A Name Beneath the Roof

Longxing County had never been a place where the average income was high.

But without a doubt, many people in this county lived rather interesting lives.

And sometimes, they were even willing to spend money for the sake of their interests.

For example, the private tutor employed by a merchant in the eastern part of town would occasionally be stopped on the street by villagers, who would ask him to name their children.

On this particular day, the tutor had been given annual leave by his employer.

With rare free time on his hands, he strolled leisurely through the streets.

Unexpectedly, his quiet moment was interrupted.

Someone called out to him from the street.

“Daozhang, Daozhang.”

Since the tutor always dressed like a Daoist priest, being addressed this way was not unusual.

He looked around, yet for a moment failed to spot anyone nearby.

Recalling that the voice seemed to come from a lower position, he lowered his gaze.

Sure enough, he saw a little girl tugging at the hem of his robe.

She carried a basket in one hand and had a bundle strapped to her back.

Her clothes were plain and simple.

But her tender, delicate face already hinted that she would grow into a striking beauty one day—perhaps even rise above her circumstances like a phoenix taking flight.

“Little girl, what do you need this poor Daoist for?”

The tutor spoke gently, showing no trace of condescension despite her obvious poverty.

“I… I have something I want to ask Daozhang to help with!”

Her voice trembled as she spoke.

At the same time, she pushed the basket into his hands and began untying the bundle on her back.

The tutor glanced into the basket and saw it was filled to the brim with eggs.

Each one had been carefully washed clean for a better appearance.

Looking again at the bundle, he realized the girl was carrying a baby—likely her younger sibling.

“These are eggs laid by the chickens I raised myself.”

“Can I use them as payment and ask you to give my little brother a name?”

Children from poor families matured early.

Despite her young age, she already knew how to bargain in a worldly manner.

Understanding the situation, the tutor couldn’t help but smile.

“It’s only a name. We’re all neighbors here, no need to be so formal.”

As he spoke, he set the basket aside and gently took the baby into his arms.

“What’s your name? What does your family do?”

“My family runs a roasted goods shop in the county.”

“My parents want me to grow up quiet, because talking too much while roasting food might dirty the ingredients.”

“So they call me An’an.”

“But they say boys with cheap names are easier to raise, so they’re not in a hurry to name him.”

At this point, the little girl clenched her fists.

“I can’t read, but I still want my little brother to have a proper, impressive name!”

Holding the baby, the Daoist gently patted the girl’s head.

“So your ‘An’ uses the ‘roof’ radical.”

He pondered for a moment, then looked at the baby in his arms.

The infant seemed born with a frown, his brows tightly knit even in sleep.

An idea came to him.

“Since your name has the ‘roof’ radical, it would be fitting for your sibling to share it.”

“Then let’s call him ‘Ning.’”

“An Ning, An Ning… it sounds like you belong to the same family.”

As he spoke, he carefully strapped the baby back onto the girl’s back.

Then he took out a sheet of paper and wrote the character down.

“You said you can’t read, so when officials come to register your household, just show them this paper.”

“Little girl, what do you think of the name?”

The question was almost unnecessary.

She was too young and inexperienced to judge whether a name was truly good or not.

But because it was given by someone she regarded as learned, it became precious in her eyes.

She lifted her brother and spun around happily.

“Little brother, you have a name now!”

“From now on, your big sister will call you ‘A Ning’!”

“A Ning, A Ning, A Ning…”

After bouncing around for quite a while, she finally bowed shyly to the tutor.

“Thank you, sir, for naming my little brother.”

“No need to thank me.”

Smiling, the tutor returned the basket of eggs to her hands.

But what An’an did not know…

Was that naming her brother “Ning” did not necessarily mean a wish for him to live a peaceful life.

Because the character “Ning” carried another meaning.

And that meaning was far from good.

Ning… might not mean peace at all.

Time passed.

Regardless of whether the name was good or not, An’an and her brother A Ning both grew up.

Longxing County was small, but it still had many snack shops.

There were several roasted goods stores alone.

The Mu Family Roasted Goods Shop was one of them.

It wasn’t a large business, nor particularly famous.

But it was known in the county for having two rather unusual children.

One of them liked to sit at the shop counter all day.

He looked like a street-side accountant with thick glasses.

Most of the time, aside from keeping accounts, he would read books whenever he was free.

The lenses of his glasses were extremely thick.

Without them, he likely couldn’t see clearly at all.

The way he dressed made him look every bit like a scholar.

“Young Master Mu! Is Young Master Mu here?”

Whenever he sat at the counter reading and doing accounts, customers would still call out for the shop’s young master as they entered.

Every few days, someone would come in shouting just like this.

“Coming~”

From the back room of the shop, a bright-smiling girl walked out as usual.

“Steward Liu, please wait a moment.”

“My father and I are packing the bags of dried fruits you ordered.”

“It’ll be ready soon, very soon.”

The one doing accounts continued without looking up.

Meanwhile, the true young master of the shop busily carried the packed goods outside.