In the early 1990s, Zhang Xuexia worked as a salesperson at a department store in Du Jun city, Guizhou province, while her husband, Song Huainan, was a long-haul truck driver. Due to their busy schedules, the couple often left their son, Song Yanzhi (nicknamed Zhizhi), who was over two years old, with his maternal grandfather for care.

On the morning of 29/12/1991, Zhizhi asked his grandfather to go outside and play in the snow with neighborhood children. Seeing his grandson making snowballs by the gate, the grandfather, who was over 50 years old, went back inside for a few minutes. When he returned, the child was gone. A boy from the neighborhood recounted that a strange man had been standing under a nearby tree, constantly watching Zhizhi. When the children returned after playing hide-and-seek, both the man and the boy were no longer there.

Zhang Xuexia with her son Song Yanzhi at three years old in Guizhou province. Photo: Sohu

Upon receiving the devastating news, Zhang quickly reported it to the police. Family, neighbors, and colleagues spread out to post flyers at bus and train stations. For the next six months, the couple took unpaid leave to search for their son everywhere.

In 9/1992, Guizhou provincial police arrested a suspected trafficker named Luo. Two children from the neighborhood identified Luo as the man who had been standing under the tree the day Zhizhi disappeared. However, during interrogation, Luo confessed to taking the child to Anxi county, Fujian province, and handing him over to another intermediary, but claimed not to know the final buyer.

Zhang and her husband immediately traveled to Fujian to inquire, but language barriers and long distances hampered their search. When funds ran out, Zhang returned to work at her sister's hardware store to fund her husband's continued search in Guangxi, Guangdong, Sichuan, and Yunnan. During his journey, Song was often robbed or driven away when seeking shelter at train stations.

In 1994, Zhang became pregnant, but the couple decided not to keep the baby, dedicating all their energy and money to finding their firstborn son. Many years of fruitless searching led Song into depression, and he often mumbled to himself and embraced strange children on the street, mistaking them for his son.

On 31/1/2006, the third day of Tet, Song took his own life, leaving a note that read: "I only need my son Song Yanzhi." After the tragedy of losing her husband, Zhang continued her search alone. "Only by finding my son will my life have meaning," she stated.

Zhang Xuexia traveled through many provinces and cities in China, searching for her lost son for 25 years. Photo: Sohu

In 2009, she learned to use the Internet and registered her information on the "Baby Come Home" missing children network. By 2012, a young man living in Guangdong province, roughly her son's age, messaged her via the QQ app. The young man explained that he had also been abducted as a child and was searching for his birth parents. After reading Zhang's story, he proactively connected to offer encouragement and hoped to find clues about his own family.

During a video call, the camera image was horizontally flipped, leading Zhang to believe the young man's birthmark was on the opposite side to her son's. Believing they were not related, they did not undergo DNA testing but remained in contact as friends sharing similar circumstances.

Four years later, in early 2016, China Central Television (CCTV) invited Zhang to participate in their family reunion program "Waiting for Me". On air, she recounted all the identifying features and circumstances of her son's disappearance. Song Yanzhi's adoptive parents in Guangdong happened to watch the program, noticed many coincidences, and proactively contacted the organizers.

Upon comparing images, Zhang realized her long-lost son was the very young man she had been chatting with on QQ for the past four years. Subsequent DNA testing confirmed they were mother and son.

Zhang Xuexia reunited with her son Song Yanzhi in Guizhou, China, in 3/2016. Photo: Sohu

In late 3/2016, after nearly 25 years apart, the 27-year-old young man embraced his mother in a tearful reunion. His maternal grandfather also found relief from the torment that had haunted him for a quarter century. Returning to his hometown of Guizhou, Song Yanzhi stood before his father's grave, wept, and apologized for his late return.

In 2021, Song Yanzhi married and opened a tea business in Guangdong province, where he grew up with his adoptive parents. During winter breaks or Tet holidays, he brings his wife and two sons to Guizhou to reunite with his birth mother. Consistently, on the third day of Tet each year, the entire family visits Song Huainan's grave together.