Frugal, childless Chinese couple who split US$2.5 meals leave US$735,000 to sick children

A late childless couple in China donated five million yuan (US$735,000) to help 455 children with congenital heart disease, despite living an extremely frugal life themselves.The couple’s story was revealed at a charity exhibition late last month in Shanghai, according to the news website The Paper.Du Yingrong passed away in 2018 at the age of 81, while his wife, Lu Suying, died last year at the age of 92. Before their deaths, Du was a retired teacher, and Lu was a retired doctor from the same college in Shanghai.Du Yingrong and his wife, Lu Suying, in their youth. The childless couple quietly amassed a massive fortune to donate before passing away. Photo: The PaperIn early 2018, Du noticed a poster in front of Shanghai-yoda-cardiothoracic-hospital" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="159566" data-entity-type="organization">Shanghai Yoda Cardiothoracic Hospital that called on the public to help children with congenital heart disease.Du and Lu instantly donated half a million yuan to support 10 children.Shortly afterwards, they decided to donate another 4.5 million yuan. Even an employee at the hospital in charge of the charity project urged the couple to keep some money for themselves, as she had visited their home and found it “old and shabby.”“Neither of us has much time left. We receive pensions and still have some savings. We don’t need much money,” Du told the worker, insisting on making the donation.Charity workers later discovered that the late couple lived in an incredibly modest, “old and shabby” home. Photo: The PaperWithout children, the couple arranged for the Shanghai-overseas-chinese-foundation" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="159567" data-entity-type="organization">Shanghai Overseas Chinese Foundation to be their legal guardian.Weeks later, Du died of an undisclosed type of cancer. His wife, Lu, who lived at the Shanghai hospital for several years, died in August last year.Workers at the foundation remarked that the old couple, generous towards charitable causes, were frugal in their own lives.In addition to dilapidated furniture, the workers discovered a pair of glasses with a broken frame patched with adhesive bandages.Amid the dilapidated furniture, charity workers found a pair of eyeglasses held together with adhesive bandages. Photo: The PaperThe couple left behind piles of notebooks documenting their daily expenses.Further ReadingDu once told the workers that he often went to their community canteen to buy a 17-yuan (US$2.5) lunchbox and would split it into two servings for himself and his wife.Despite leading a simple life, the couple enjoyed a rich inner world. The workers found that the couple had written extensive reading notes and collected news clippings from newspapers. They also had a vintage record player, a violin, and badminton rackets in their home.Du, a veteran in stock investment, recorded stock market performances in some of the notebooks, the workers noted.Though material wealth was absent, their rich inner world included reading notes, a vintage record player, a violin, and sports gear. Photo: The PaperBefore donating to the children with congenital heart disease, the couple had contributed on other occasions.In 2010, they donated 10,000 yuan to Yushu Tibet Autonomous Prefecture in northwestern Qinghai province after it was hit by an earthquake.They also donated another 10,000 yuan to the Water Cellar for Mothers charity project in northwestern China.In 2013, they donated 80,000 yuan to an earthquake-struck area in Yaan, southwestern Sichuan province, along with 20,000 yuan for local students’ education.Following their final wishes, a burial at sea and a commemorative charity exhibition were held in Shanghai to honour their incredible selflessness. Photo: The PaperIn April , the Shanghai-overseas-chinese-foundation" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="159567" data-entity-type="organization">Shanghai Overseas Chinese Foundation held a burial at sea for the couple following their last wish.“Death is not the terminal point; forgetting is. They might not leave their names in history, but the 455 children who received their help will always remember this pair of grandparents and their most cherished love,” the foundation commented at the charity exhibition.The news attracted widespread admiration for the departed couple on mainland Chinese social media.“Their souls shine,” one online observer said.“They are so selfless, great people. I salute these two old individuals,” said another user.