For the common good

Lu, a noted agricultural scientist, also donated his own body to support medical research and education.

Many teachers and students from the university were saddened when Lu succumbed to illness and died on Aug 12. No public viewing of his body was held, a desire he had expressed in his will.

Lu had always been a hard worker and lived frugally. He was dubbed the "commoner academician" by colleagues and students. He saved every penny he could, both in daily living and in his work, says professor Liu Xiangdong.

In 2003, Lu, who was then in his 70s, wanted to save on hotel costs when he traveled to a conference in Shenyang, Liaoning province, after attending a national conference on wild rice in Nanchang, Jiangxi province. He took a night train with sleeping accommodations to Beijing and then transferred to a plane bound for Shenyang.

"True scientists must be loyal patriots and take the needs of the country and the people as the driving force of their work," Lu was quoted as saying.

His colleague Dang Linxi says Lu worked like a farmer, rolling up his trousers to walk through rice paddies as he conducted field research and looked for wild rice.

"He has left footprints in many rice fields in Guangdong, Hainan, Jiangxi and other provinces and regions of the Chinese mainland," Dang says.