Shaoying Zhu

This character reads zhū. It is my surname and can be translated as ‘red’, more specifically ‘vermilion red’ – a kind of unique colour of calligraphic ink reserved for emperors. There is a Chinese saying “近朱者赤”, literally “Proximity to vermilion makes one red”. Because 朱 is also a metaphor for “pure gold”, it means being close to a good person makes a person better.