When Our Story was published, some readers challenged certain details in the book for being inappropriate or unbelievable, but Rao argued that he could only write and paint as he remembered, because "that was my whole truth", Lezeng recalled his father saying.

This attitude of his at times worked against him as he was bullied and often seen as unsuccessful in the eyes of the pragmatic, says Liu.

"There were aspects of him that were strange to even his own children. When Our Story came out, they were surprised to find that their own father, an elderly and old-fashioned Shanghai guy, had so much energy in him."

Rao Xizeng, the eldest son, accompanied his father on a tour of France to promote the book a few years ago. During the memorial, he said: "These are trivial incidents of a family's life documented in the book, but tell the legendary life of my father.

"He joined the army as a young man to fight against the Japanese invasion, risking his life more than once. He dedicated everything to the family after he was married. He faced all the adversities without bitterness or complaint.