The couple, Shen Jie and Liu Xi who were married for two years before their death, had frozen their embryos planning to give birth via in-vitro fertilisation.
Tiantian, which means ‘sweet,’ was born in China in December to a Laotian surrogate mother.
Although he has no parents, his four grandparents have reportedly proven relations through DNA.
After their untimely death, the grandparents-in-waiting fought a protracted legal battle to inherit the fertilised eggs that were frozen in a Nanjing hospital’s liquid nitrogen tank.
According to Beijing News, there was no precedent for the legal battle but eventually, the grandparents won custody of the embryos.
Their next challenge was finding a surrogate. Since the service is illegal in China, they had to look abroad, eventually hiring an agency and settling on Laos, where surrogacy is not prohibited.
Liu’s mother, Hu Xinxian, told Beijing News: “Tiantian’s eyes look like my daughter’s but overall, he looks more like his father.”
The four new grandparents said they were thrilled that they are able to continue the families’ bloodline.
