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They can never forget their 19-year-old daughter who was cruelly snatched away by the May 12 earthquake. But the cuddly little child in Yang Xia's arms has somewhat lessened their grief, even if temporarily.

Yang, 40, and her husband Xian Ziwen, 46, became the proud parents of a son on Saturday - the first parents who lost their children in the quake to have a child.

The child was born in Chongzhou, about 40 km west of Sichuan province's capital of Chengdu, Xinhua reported. "It's all like a dream for me," Yang was quoted as having said after giving birth.

The couple's grown-up daughter, Xian Juan, was in the 12th grade, and she was the only one to die when her school building in Chongzhou collapsed.

The quake left about 90,000 people dead or missing, with the Sichuan provincial population commission saying more than 10,000 families lost their children in the quake.

Sichuan legislators eased the one-child policy for families who lost their children in the quake, and announced they could have another child.

Earlier, Xinhua reported more than 750 women who had lost their children were now pregnant.

On May 12, a schoolteacher informed Yang in the afternoon that her daughter was injured in the quake and admitted to hospital. Yang rushed to the hospital, only to find Xian Juan covered by a piece of white cloth on a bed.

Xian wanted to study anthropology, a subject "we farmers had never heard of", Yang said.

Life had become meaningless for Yang after the loss of her daughter. "We quarreled everyday over almost everything," recalled Xian Ziwen. "I realized she had to release her pent-up emotions."

But after July, when it was confirmed that Yang had conceived, "there developed a new, stronger bond between us", said Xian, a flour-mill worker in Baima village, Jinjiang county.

"Now, my only wish is that he, our newborn, doesn't go through misery or suffering," he said.

Since the quake, about 5,000 Sichuan couples have received free fertility treatment, Wang Zaiyin, director of the provincial population and family Planning Commission, said on Monday.

Questions:

1. What subject did Xian Juan want to study?

2. How many people died or are missing in the May 12 earthquake?

3. How are some Sichuan couples trying to get pregnant again?

Answers:

1. Anthropology.

2. About 90,000.

3. By using free fertility treatments.

（英语点津 Helen 编辑）

About the broadcaster:

Bernice Chan is a foreign expert at China Daily Website. Originally from Vancouver, Canada, Bernice has written for newspapers and magazines in Hong Kong and most recently worked as a broadcaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, producing current affairs shows and documentaries.