The compassionate and courageous man once saved a drowning child at an indoor swimming pool one summer and lately helped an injured child to hospital.

Wang's father, Wang Ping, recalls his son's reply clearly in a discussion over the deed. "There's no point in thinking whether it is worthwhile in an emergency."

"The two kids are the future of the country. We don't blame their parents for their carelessness. We love all students as if they were our own children," says Li Yonglan, Wang's mother.

As a teaching family, including Wang's wife, parents and grandparents, there is a long tradition of showing selfless love for children in the household. Wang lived up to his dream of becoming a teacher in April 2009. Soon after he met his wife, Chen Luxi.

"I'm fortunate to have met such a good man like him, but unfortunate to realize that our time together was so short," she says.

Cao Xujia, 12, a student of Wang, says he was both humorous and strict, and had a unique way of teaching, and that he learned a lot from Wang through the laughter. "He encouraged me to study hard, to become a man who can make a contribution as well," Cao says.

Wang's colleague Zhang Ya says she was not surprised by Wang's newly awarded title. "Society needs role models like him, to evoke positivity that can influence future generations.

"Although he is gone, his spirit and his love for the students will always be a huge spur for me."

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