■ Life reporter Yan Yan Tang
On the evening of January 16, Mr. Tang from Shanxi arrived in Nanning by train from his hometown. At the Xixiangtang police station, he met his 13-year-old son Xiao Yang (a pseudonym) who had been away from home for over a year. Mr. Tang shed tears of regret. The police officers nearby, seeing the reunion of this father and son, felt greatly relieved. All of this started with a report four days ago.
A Couple Takes In A Little Boy
Location: Nanning Railway Station Square
Situation: The little boy was sitting by the roadside crying, starving.
On January 13, the Xixiangtang police station received a special report: a couple reported that they had taken in a pitiful boy named Xiao Yang, who had lost contact with his parents. However, the boy refused to disclose his parents' names or contact information, so they hoped the police could help Xiao Yang find his family.
It turned out that this caring couple had taken Xiao Yang in at the Nanning Railway Station square. A few days earlier, one night as they were passing through the railway station square, they saw a little boy sitting by the roadside crying, looking very helpless. "Although we suspected it might be a scammer's trick, we still went up to ask. I thought, the other party might really need help." After exchanging words with Xiao Yang, the couple learned that Xiao Yang had just come to Nanning from Yunnan, without any relatives or money. Xiao Yang was starving at that time.
The Little Boy Was Brought To The Police Station
Understanding: Climbed onto a train in Shanxi, wandering for over a year
Discovery: Numerous scars on his body, once "remotely controlled" to be a thief
When the police officers of the Xixiangtang police station initially interacted with Xiao Yang, they found that Xiao Yang didn't talk much and had numerous scars on his arms. When the police asked Xiao Yang why there were so many scars on his body, Xiao Yang remained silent.
At mealtime, the police asked Xiao Yang what he wanted to eat. Seeing the caring police officers, Xiao Yang burst into tears and recounted the story that happened to him.
Xiao Yang said that when he was five years old, his parents divorced. Xiao Yang was awarded to his father for custody. When Xiao Yang was seven years old, his father remarried a "new mother". Although the "new mother" got along well with Xiao Yang, his father was very strict and often beat Xiao Yang. Therefore, Xiao Yang still missed his real mother. Xiao Yang's biological mother ran a hair salon next to the local railway station, so Xiao Yang often went to the railway station alone to see his mother.
In September 2008, because his father hit Xiao Yang, the 12-year-old Xiao Yang ran to the local railway station in anger. This time, Xiao Yang did not look for his mother but climbed onto a train in a huff.
After an unknown number of hours, the train arrived in Kunming. Xiao Yang thus began his days of "wandering far and wide". In the more than a year since leaving home, he had multiple times sneaked onto trains with crowds, visiting many cities such as Zhengzhou and Kunming, sleeping on the streets, and eating by begging. In some cities, he was incited by older children to become a thief. "I stayed in Kunming for a month, and they made me steal. When I couldn't steal anything at the railway station, they would cut my hands with knives." Thus, Xiao Yang had many scars on his hands. Recently, unable to endure the torture of the knives, Xiao Yang ran to the Kunming railway station, sneaked onto a train, and came to Nanning.
Father Comes To Nanning To Pick Up His Son
Regret: Father regrets being "too violent"
Lesson: Let his son go to school, take the right path
After understanding Xiao Yang's situation, the Xixiangtang police station actively contacted the Shanxi police. The local police station found Xiao Yang's father, Mr. Tang. When the police informed Mr. Tang that Xiao Yang had wandered to Nanning, Mr. Tang immediately bought a train ticket to Nanning.
Mr. Tang told reporters that one day in September 2008, his then 12-year-old son Xiao Yang suddenly disappeared. He was scared and looked everywhere, later reporting to the public security authorities, but there was no news. He even thought his son had been abducted by criminals.
Mr. Tang said that Xiao Yang often caused trouble at school when studying, and dropped out after the fourth grade. As a father, he also lamented about iron not becoming steel, which is why he beat his own child. In the future, he will definitely change his educational approach, let Xiao Yang go to school, and take the right path.