Chinese Diarist Dies; He Put Last Words on Web

A terminally ill Chinese cancer patient who captivated Web surfers and media over the past few months died Monday, just two weeks after his last words were immortalized in a published diary.

Lu Youqing was told in February that he had just three months to live, according to the popular literary Web site https://www.rongshu.com that in August began publishing excerpts of his somber, painstakingly penned diary.

The 37-year-old former advertising executive and real estate developer died peacefully at dawn, state television reported.

His startlingly honest reflections on his life and his often melancholic turn of phrase won him many admirers and were published two weeks ago in “Life’s Parting Words: Death Diary,” a final gift to his wife and 10-year-old daughter.

“Holding the book in his hands, he said he had rescued it from death’s hands,” Lu’s wife, Shi Muyan, said in an interview the day before the book was published.

“It’s a gift from him to us. It will affect the remainder of our lives and that of our daughter. I feel so proud for him,” she said.

In a message typical of readers’ responses, “Cdcy” said in a poem posted on the Internet: “It is you who have cured us of all our diseases. . . . In today’s world, your diary is like a breath of refreshing wind.”