The Oct. 20 homicide of Diamond Bar residents Cheng Long Wang and his wife Mei Chu Chung shocked a community of students who took art lessons from the pair.

The married couple from Taiwan taught art for years and many of their pupils were DBHS students. Their students knew them as “Zhong Lao Shi”, meaning Teacher Zhong in Chinese.

DBHS sophomore Julia Hong has taken lessons from the couple since she was five years old and considers herself very close to them.

“The day after [the incident], it was really hard for me, but I’ve come to the realization that they wouldn’t really want me to be sad,” Hong said. “I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t want us to hate whoever did this either.”

According to Hong, the couple would allow students to stay after class to continue working on their art, continuing to offer help to students even after the lesson was over.

The couple is survived by their two children, Tracy and Gary, both of whom work as physicians out of state.

Tracy returned home after discovering the news while studying at Johns Hopkins University, according to World Journal.

Flowers left by mourning visitors still lay on the porch doorsteps of the couple’s home.

The homicide case remains unsolved, as authorities are still investigating the stabbing of the couple.