Abducted Son Returns, Then Cuts Ties With Buying Family

A Chinese man, abducted as a child, has reunited with his birth parents and publicly cut all connections to the family that raised him after buying him. Peng Congcong, now 26, was four years old when he was lured away from a market in Beijing. His birth parents had just moved there from Jiangxi province. They reported him missing, beginning a 22-year search. On December 12, Peng posted an online reflection of his first year since the reunion. In it, he stated he has now severed ties with the adoptive family who purchased him. "Money can buy a ghost, but it cannot buy true love," Peng wrote, using a Chinese idiom. His post has sparked intense public discussion about child trafficking and the complex emotions of victims. Chinese authorities have cracked down on child abduction networks in recent years. High-profile reunions, often aided by DNA databases, are increasingly common. However, Peng's subsequent rejection of his buying family highlights a painful legal and emotional reality. The family who purchased him could face criminal charges for child trafficking. Peng's birth father expressed gratitude for his son's return but also deep, enduring pain from their decades-long separation.