I recently saw a set of old photos, from 1929 when Lin Huiyin had just given birth to her daughter Liang Zai Bing, and her body hadn't yet recovered, but Liang Sicheng was holding a camera and taking pictures nonstop. My first reaction was that this guy was quite inconsiderate, but I later realized—this was actually Lin Huiyin's own idea. She believed that childbirth was the most important turning point in a woman's life, and the transformation from girl to mother was worth recording, and Liang Sicheng quietly supported every one of her ideas.

Their story begins with their family backgrounds. Lin Huiyin was born in Hangzhou in 1904. Her father, Lin Changmin, had a very good relationship with Liang Sicheng's father, Liang Qichao, and the two children knew each other from a young age. Later, through Liang Qichao's matchmaking, they studied together at Songpo Library, and their feelings gradually deepened, eventually going to the United States to study abroad together. Interestingly, American architecture programs did not admit women, so Lin Huiyin transferred to the art department but still insisted on auditing architecture courses—that character was truly remarkable. In 1925, her father had an accident, and Liang Sicheng accompanied her through that difficult period. In 1928, they married in Canada, and after that, they studied European ancient architecture for half a year before returning to China.

After returning, Liang Sicheng founded the Department of Architecture at Northeast University, and the couple joined the China Construction Society, beginning their most important work—visiting and researching Chinese ancient architecture. In 1932, they visited Dule Temple in Yixian County, Hebei; in 1933, they went to the Yungang Grottoes in Shanxi; in 1937, they found Tang Dynasty inscriptions at Foguang Temple on Mount Wutai, directly overturning Japanese scholars' claims that China had no Tang wooden architecture. When the war broke out, they moved south with their children, continuing their research in places like Kunming and Lizhuang, even under harsh conditions and Lin Huiyin's recurring lung illness, they never stopped.

After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, they returned to Beijing and continued working at Tsinghua University's Department of Architecture. When the People's Republic was founded, Lin Huiyin, despite her illness, participated in designing the national emblem—core elements like the jade bi and five stars were all proposed by her, and ultimately adopted. She also participated in the design of the relief for the Monument to the People's Heroes and promoted the reform of Jingtailan craftsmanship. In 1955, Lin Huiyin passed away from tuberculosis at only 51 years old. Liang Sicheng personally designed her tombstone, carving her own floral wreath pattern onto it.

Seventeen years later, Liang Sicheng also passed away, but what they left behind remains forever—pioneers in the investigation of Chinese ancient architecture, the foundation of cultural heritage preservation. Those postpartum photos now reveal not only Lin Huiyin's obsession with beauty but also, more deeply, the love and mutual support between the two—each photo has become the warmest proof of time.