A kidnapped Chinese man fought for 34 years to reunite with his biological family, only to leave them one year later.
Yu Baobao, 37, had been abducted from his grandparents’ home in China’s Sichuan province when he was only two years old.
Although he had the chance to reconcile, the man recently announced news of the split to his 326,000 followers on social media, saying their separation was fueled by financial issues.
Highlights
- Yu Baobao was abducted at age 2 and reunited with his family after 34 years.
- DNA test helped Yu find his biological parents after decades of searching.
- Financial disputes and sibling conflicts led Yu to cut ties with his biological family.
A man reunited with his biological family after 34 years of searching, only for them to go their separate ways due to issues surrounding money
Image credits: Tonchuan Public Security Bureau
Originally known as Li Qiang for more than three decades, Yu was sold to a rich family by human traffickers after he was abducted.
His new parents did not treat him well and often subjected him to beatings, additionally telling him that he was adopted when he was five, before sending him to another family when he reached 11 years old.
However, Yu left and quickly became a nomad. After turning 19, he traveled to Shanghai and Beijing for work before ultimately settling down in China’s capital as a delivery driver.
Yu never thought the story his adopted parents told him was entirely true and actively searched for the reality of his past
Image credits: Tonchuan Public Security Bureau
His parents had been reluctant to give details concerning his adoption, or the supposed orphanage they said he grew up in. As a result, Yu decided to take action himself.
According to Newsweek, he went to Shanghai’s Puxing Road Police Station on May 11, without telling his family. His DNA was collected and put into the missing persons database, and after just 10 days, a match was discovered.
Thousands of miles away, in Dazhou, his biological parents—who had spent decades trying to find their son—resubmitted their samples as well.
Image credits: Tonchuan Public Security Bureau
Within 24 hours of the Tonchuan Public Security Bureau finding a conclusive match, Yu was on a train to reunite with his family.
Opening up to the Chinese newspaper Dahe Daily, he said he’d never stopped looking for his real parents, and when authorities informed him of the match, he mentioned that he was excited to “have a good nap” on his mother’s lap.
Yu’s story gained much attention, especially from those on social media
Image credits: Sohu
The 37-year-old was welcomed warmly by his family and neighbors, and the reunion touched many netizens online.
They encouraged him to do e-commerce live streaming in an effort to support his birth parents—who were divorced—as well as his two younger brothers.
With the help of his mother and father’s persuasion, Yu agreed to run the business with them and give his siblings 60% of the total earnings, since they were both in debt.
The streaming practice turned out to be a great success, racking up 470,000 yuan ($66,000 USD) in total. However, problems quickly arose after Yu complained that he was not receiving enough money, despite giving his brothers the promised amount.
Image credits: Weixin
Additionally, his siblings spoke rudely to him, saying they were doing him a “favor” by accepting him into the family, even occasionally using his adoptive name and threatening to beat him up.
Yu mentioned that although he had a chance at a happy ending, he was disappointed by his mother’s bias towards his siblings and decided to cut ties with the family.
The 37-year-old had planned to use his savings as a way to bring the human traffickers who had inflicted so much misery on his life to justice.