Chinese woman reunites with family 22 years after running away over broken shower gel bottle

A woman in eastern China has been reunited with her birth family 22 years after running away as a child, fearing punishment for breaking a bottle of shower gel.

Liu Xiuhong, from a rural family in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, was nine years old when she moved with her migrant-worker parents to Jieyang, Guangdong province, where they lived in a cramped rented room, according to the mainland outlet Shicheng Media.

While playing at a friend’s home in 2004, Liu accidentally smashed a glass bottle of shower gel worth about 10 yuan (US$1.5), a small amount today but a considerable expense for a rural household at the time.

Liu, centre, is embraced by two members of her birth family. Photo: Douyin

Afraid her mother would beat or scold her, she fled and became lost in a vegetable market, where the man who became her adoptive father later found her. His identity has not been disclosed.

Her birth parents appealed for help through a local television station for three days, but found no trace of her.

Mainland reports said Liu was well cared for by her adoptive family in Guangdong, who later helped her search for her birth parents.

With the help of volunteers and police, Liu, now 31, recently traced her family back to Jiangxi.

Liu, in red, is presented with flowers by two tearful members of her birth family. Photo: QQ.com