A Couple In China Finally Found Their Missing Daughter After A 24-Year Search
Since their daughter went missing in 1994, Wang and Liu never gave up hope.
By Katrina Khairul Azman — 05 Apr 2018, 02:51 PM
After spending over two decades looking for their lost daughter, a couple in China finally reunited with her on Tuesday, 3 April
Wang Mingqing (third from right) and Liu Dengying (second from left) finally reunited with their daughter Qifeng (centre), now known as Kangying.
Image via Youtube/KnewsWang Mingqing and his wife Liu Dengying were working at their roadside fruit stall in Chengdu, China when their daughter Qifeng disappeared on 8 January 1994
According to Channel News Asia, the then three-year-old went missing when Wang stepped away to get change for a customer from a neighbouring stall.
The distraught parents, who have two other children, made it their mission to find their lost daughter by trying every measure they could think of
The couple contacted the police, put up missing signs on streets, visited children's shelters, and publicised their search through newspaper advertisements.
"For the next six months, I would walk and my husband would ride his bike as we looked for her. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack," Liu revealed.
In 2015, 21 years after Qifeng's disappearance, Wang became a driver for ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing in an attempt to continue spreading the word about his daughter
The devoted father put up a placard in his car about Qifeng and gave out business cards with information on his daughter to passengers, reported Straits Times.
Wang apparently used a photograph of his other daughter for reference, as he did not have a recent picture of Qifeng and the two girls looked similar as young children.
After local news media caught wind of Wang's search, the story quickly went viral. In late 2017, a police sketch artist offered to help Wang by drawing what Qifeng might look like in present day.
The sketch began circulating far and wide online, eventually leading to a 27-year-old woman from Jilin who recognised herself in the portrait. The woman, now known as Kangying, had been adopted after she was found on the side of a road in Chengdu as a child.
She grew up with her adopted family in Panshi city, a four-hour plane ride from Chengdu.
Kangying contacted Wang on 2 April and discovered that she shared similar traits with his long-lost daughter, such as a small scar on her forehead.
The results of a DNA test confirmed that Kangying was a 99.9% match with Wang and Liu. She immediately flew to Chengdu with her husband, son, and daughter to reunite with her biological parents.
"I really need time to absorb the change. Everything’s happened so fast. It’s like the people in my dreams have walked into reality and are standing in front of me," said Kangying.
"I can’t tell you how much hope, disappointment, and despair we have gone through these past 24 years. Now we can finally meet again," said Wang.
"Dad loves you," Wang tearfully told to his daughter.
Wang and Liu thanked the media for their instrumental help in reuniting them with their daughter. "If not for the leads, she would never have found us."
Wang Mingqing (left), his wife Liu Dengying (second from left), and Kanying (second from right).
Image via Northglen News