Mei Lin

(female) (Chinese) ‘Plum’. One of the three so-called ‘friends of winter’ (dong sanyou): plum (mei), pine (song), and bamboo (zhu), which stay green throughout the winter. It is also a symbol of endurance.

Chinese 林: from a word meaning ‘forest’. Bi Gan was a half-brother to Zhou Xin, the cruel and corrupt last king (1154–1123 BC) of the Shang dynasty. Bi Gan criticized his half-brother's excesses, and for this he had his belly ripped open and his heart cut out. His wife fled to Chang Forest, where she gave birth to a son. When Zhou Xin was toppled by the new Zhou dynasty, the new Zhou ruler granted the son some land together with the name Lin.