What complements Lin Huiyin's beauty, like sunshine and shadow, is naturally her extraordinary talent. Wen Jie believes that Lin Huiyin's beauty is astonishing, and she does not conceal her admiration for her talent: "During the European Renaissance, there were versatile people like Leonardo da Vinci. He was not only a great painter but also a great mathematician, mechanician, and engineer. Lin Huiyin, on the other hand, was a versatile person who stood out during China's Renaissance. Her achievements in architecture are undoubtedly the main ones, but she has also made contributions to poetry, novels, essays, and drama." (As above) Bian Zhilin said with emotion: "She was born with a poetic temperament, had a deep love for drama, and had studied stage design, yet she was a peer of her husband, Liang Sicheng, an expert in architectural science and Chinese architectural history. On the surface, she was mainly the latter's capable collaborator, but in reality, she was the source of his inspiration," benefiting others as well as herself. (Bian Zhilin: "Recalling Lin Huiyin Inside and Outside the Window") In Shen Congwen's eyes, Lin Huiyin was a "Miss of utmost intelligence," while Xiao Li from the next generation called her a "brilliant artist." Fei Weimei believed that Lin Huiyin "could leave her mark on any art form with her refined insight." Jin Yuelin simply used the phrase "extreme praise, what words" as his evaluation of Lin Huiyin. (Chen Yu: "Jin Yuelin Recalls Lin Huiyin") The admiration for Lin Huiyin's talents reached its peak here.
Lin Huiyin was passionate and sincere, yet competitive. Her good friend Qian Duanxiu still remembered "to thank Lin Huiyin for several lifetimes" years after her passing. There is a story behind this. Qian Duanxiu's wife, Chen Gonghui, was Lin Huiyin's relative, and their marriage at the time was arranged by Lin Huiyin. According to Jin Yuelin's recollection, when Qian Duanxiu and Chen Gonghui were planning their wedding, they suddenly had a disagreement, and Chen Gonghui angrily left Beijing for Tianjin. Qian Duanxiu asked Liang Sicheng to chase her by car. Thus, Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin, Jin Yuelin, and Qian Duanxiu drove together to Tianjin. After Chen and Qian reconciled, they went to Shanghai together to get married. (Liu Peiyu, editor, "Jin Yuelin's Recollections and Memories of Jin Yuelin") This episode remained etched in their memories. As close friends who knew her well, their appreciation for Lin Huiyin extended beyond this. When the Southwest Associated University moved to Kunming, the Qian Duanxiu couple lived in Longquan Village in the suburbs with Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng. Chen Gonghui said: "Lin Huiyin had an extremely competitive personality, always striving to be the best in everything. She turned kerosene cans into bookshelves, made curtains out of waste materials, and decorated her broken house better than others. Actually, I admired her long ago." (Chen Zhongying: "Interview Notes on Lin Huiyin in People's Memory") Literary critic Li Jianwu mentioned Lin Huiyin and said she was "extremely intelligent, with a fiery heart, quick-tongued, straightforward, competitive, and almost all women considered her an enemy." Li Jianwu once heard Lin Huiyin recount this amusing anecdote: Bing Xin wrote a novel titled "The Madam's Living Room" (Note: it should be "Our Madam's Living Room") satirizing Lin Huiyin because every Saturday afternoon, several friends would gather around her to discuss various phenomena and issues of the times. Lin Huiyin had just returned from Shanxi after investigating temples, bringing back a jar of aged and fragrant Shanxi vinegar. She immediately sent it to Bing Xin for her use.
This competitiveness in Lin Huiyin's character actually stemmed from a deep-seated arrogance and self-confidence. Lin Xuan, Lin Huiyin's cousin, once recounted such an event. Lin Huiyin's original name was Lin Huiyin, but later she discovered a male writer named Lin Weiying. "Huiyin" and "Weiying" have similar characters and pronunciation, so Lin Huiyin worried that their works might get mixed up in the future, and thus decided to change her name. She sought Lin Xuan's opinion, and upon hearing that a friend's daughter was named "Junyin," Lin Huiyin enthusiastically approved, changing "yin" to "yin". According to Lin Xuan's recollection, Lin Huiyin said, "I'm not afraid of people mistaking my work for Lin Weiying's; I just fear that someday his work will be mistakenly regarded as mine." (Chen Yu: "Interpreting Xu Zhimo Along the Way") This bold statement reveals Lin Huiyin's overwhelming pride.