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A 6-year-old boy was left to fend for himself in a hotel room for over two weeks
Nicknamed Chengcheng, the boy checked into the facility in February with his mother, Yue, in Zhengzhou, China.
While Yue initially returned during the day, she disappeared completely in March, leaving him without any contact information.
Left alone, Chengcheng spent his time chatting with cleaners and staring out the window, waiting for a familiar face.
In a heartbreaking moment that went viral, the boy was heard talking to the room's smart speaker
"I want my mum to come back," he told the device, after asking the AI if it had parents of its own.
Distressed by his plight, hotel employees took turns buying him meals and fruit.
One cleaner became especially close Chengcheng, acting as a 'stand-in mother' by spending her shifts playing and talking with him.
Yue finally returned to the hotel on 24 March and was reunited with her son
She apologised for her absence, citing illness and a mounting debt of 100,000 yuan (RM59,000) as the primary reasons for her departure.
Despite the ordeal, Chengcheng was quick to forgive his mother as he ran into her arms.
"Mum, I do not blame you. I can take care of myself," he said, adding that he wanted to grow up to protect her.
While the reunion was emotional, lawyer Zhang Huimin noted that Yue may have violated the Law on the Protection of Minors
Zhang stated that, in serious cases, such conduct could lead to five years in prison.
Chengcheng has since been placed with a foster family to ensure his wellbeing and has started attending kindergarten.
As he left, he wiped away a cleaner's tears, promising to stay in touch via her phone number.
