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Wu Xuemei stared blankly at Bai Tang, momentarily unable to grasp the meaning of her words. After about three minutes, she finally exclaimed, "Ah!" She remembered that just before, Bai Tang had deposited a portion of the income from their first business deal into her account as her commission—an impressive 380,000 RMB, enough to buy a decent new apartment in City D. Moreover, yesterday, Bai Tang had secured a business deal worth 20 million, which meant she would receive a commission of 2 million. She was now a millionaire, able to support her son and buy him a new house. What was the point of keeping this old house? Should she leave it for those with ulterior motives to scheme against the two of them?
Her son was Wu Xuemei's Achilles' heel; he was her future support. While her family could scheme against her—she had endured it for thirty years—they could not scheme against her son. Wu Xuemei absolutely could not tolerate that. She took a deep breath and said softly, "I will call my older sister, older brother, and second brother right away to discuss selling the house. If they disagree, I can give up my ownership of it."
"Don't! That house was left to you and your son by Ah Xiang. Why should you give it up?" Bai Ma urged her daughter earnestly. "Our location is good; the city will eventually require redevelopment. Whether it's compensation in housing or cash for demolition, it will be a significant amount of money. Why give it up?"
"Mom, Mei Mei is already a millionaire now; why worry about that little bit of money?" Bai Tang said as she peeled a sugar orange the size of a ping pong ball, handing one to Bai Ma and another to Wu Xuemei while keeping one for herself. The sweet and sour flavor filled her mouth as Bai Tang contentedly squinted her eyes.
"What money! That's several tens of thousands! Don't think just because you have more money now that you can be extravagant. Remember our family motto: be diligent and frugal!" Bai Ma poked her daughter's forehead with her long index finger.
Bai Tang quickly dodged, "Since when did we have a family motto?"
"Now you know? From now on, save all the money you earn properly; no unnecessary spending, understand?"
Bai Ma spoke with authority, and Bai Tang dared not refute her, shaking her head repeatedly.
Satisfied, Bai Ma lowered her voice and addressed both women: "Besides the money issue, there are other concerns. If Mei Mei really gives up ownership of the old house, won't the Xing family find out that she has become wealthy? The siblings in the Xing family are decent people but not particularly well-off; if they learn that Mei Mei has money, won't they feel unbalanced? Won't they think about trying to gain some benefits from Mei Mei? And they won't keep it a secret; once it reaches the ears of the Wu family, won't they scheme against Mei Mei even more?"
Both Bai Tang and Wu Xuemei were taken aback; they indeed had not considered this issue. This is why having elders in the family is like having a treasure—their experience can compensate for the shortcomings of youth.
"Auntie is right; I didn't think this through!" Wu Xuemei admitted humbly.
"Then change your phone number so that neither the Xing family nor the Wu family can reach Mei Mei or Xiaokang!"
Bai Ma continued to ruffle Bai Tang's hair: "You keep coming up with silly ideas. Xiaokang is part of the Xing family; how could he possibly cut off contact with relatives over there?"
Bai Tang hugged her head and muttered, "Aren't we still here?"
"Go away!" Bai Ma pushed her daughter aside and continued discussing how to handle the old house with Wu Xuemei. Then Wu Xuemei contacted Aunt Xing, Uncle Xing, and Second Uncle Xing from the Xing family to express her intention to sell the house. The members of the Xing family were shocked and asked what had happened. Wu Xuemei adopted Bai Tang's suggestion and told them she needed to work outside; since her son would be cared for by the Bai family and no one lived in the house anymore, she thought it best to sell it. Among the three siblings in the Xing family, Uncle Xing and Second Uncle Xing agreed to sell the house and share the proceeds while Aunt Xing opposed selling it, wanting to wait for compensation from redevelopment. In the end, Wu Xuemei negotiated with Aunt Xing to transfer her share of ownership to Aunt Xing for 50,000 RMB. This amount was certainly low; although the old house was aged, its central location meant property prices were not cheap—a sale price of 300,000 RMB would not be an issue. Aware that she had gotten a good deal, Aunt Xing bought two sets of clothes and many snacks as compensation for Xing Xiaokang.
Next came moving day. Wu Xuemei did not want to search for another place; she directly bought a one-bedroom apartment from Bai Tang. The two families simply made a hole in the living room wall and installed a door so that they could come and go without using the main entrance or hallway, making it seem as if they were one family.
Bai Ma took out the almanac to choose a date. On a sunny day, the Bai Family and the Wu family moved out of their old house, where they had lived for over twenty years. This time, Bai Tang did not use packing boxes but instead contacted a moving company. Bai Ma and Bai Dad had too many belongings they were reluctant to part with, and it took the moving company an entire day to finish moving everything.
Bai Tang entered the new home carrying a new pillow, while Xing Xiaokang entered with two pillows. Bai Tang also brought three new pillows into her bedroom. After placing one pillow on the bed, she walked into Bai Ma and Bai Dad's room and put the pillow on their bed. This custom was something Bai Tang had seen online; it was believed that moving signifies a transfer of energy, and at this time, it was necessary to let the pillows enter first. According to the number of people in the household, one should carry new pillows through the door and then place them according to personal sleeping arrangements. It is customary to put an envelope containing 138 yuan inside the pillow, praying for "prosperity for a lifetime."
There are many customs regarding moving houses online. Bai Tang and Bai Dad realized that moving is indeed an art. To ensure family health and smoothness, they strictly adhered to these customs. For instance, early in the morning before the moving company arrived, Bai Dad went to the new house first, lit incense, and began fumigating from the left side of the house—starting from the living room to the bathroom, kitchen, Flower Board, walls, and corners—exiting from the right side to a safe place where he extinguished the incense and discarded it, as this was believed to dispel evil spirits. Meanwhile, Bai Ma plugged up the sinks in the kitchen and bathroom, turned on the faucet to let water flow gently, symbolizing abundance; boiling water on the stove represented wealth; and a fan running in the living room symbolized prosperity. Of course, there was a taboo: the fan must not blow directly at the front door.
There were other customs to follow as well. For example, on moving day, one should not take a nap; otherwise, it could lead to illness. When going to bed at night, one should lie down for a few minutes before getting up again for a few minutes, symbolizing that one must rise after lying down. After moving in, all lights should be turned on for the first night until morning to ensure vibrant energy in the house. Particularly strict customs require that lights remain on for seventy-two hours for optimal effect; within a week after moving in, there must be noise in the house—relatives and friends should be invited over for gatherings and meals to create a lively atmosphere; the more lively it is, the better it is for dispelling evil spirits; when entering through the door after moving in, two coins should be thrown at the entrance to make noise while lighting incense at the door.
"Finally done!" Bai Ma tapped her lower back. "Oh my old back is so sore!"
"Mom, let me massage you!" Bai Tang said as she helped Bai Ma lie down on their brand-new comfortable leather sofa and gently massaged her lower back with both hands. She channeled some energy into Bai Ma's body. Bai Ma felt a warm flow circulating around her waist as her soreness and fatigue dissipated instantly.
"How does it feel?" Bai Tang asked as she looked down at her mother.
"Very good!" Bai Ma got up from the sofa. "My back doesn't hurt at all now. My daughter is amazing; you should give your dad a massage too. He insists on toughing it out even when his back is hunched over; he won't admit he's in pain!"
Bai Tang laughed: "Mom, you still care about Dad!"
Bai Ma shot her daughter an eye roll and called out loudly for Bai Dad: "Old Bai, come here quickly! Your daughter wants to show you some filial piety!"
Bai Dad slowly walked out of the bedroom: "I don't need it; Tang Tang has been busy all day and is more tired than we are—no need to make her work harder!"
"Dad, I'm not tired! Really! I have extra energy; how could I be tired?" Bai Tang quickly walked over to Bai Dad and pushed him onto the sofa.
"Just because you care about your daughter doesn't mean I don't care!" Bai Ma shot a glance at Bai Dad. "Our daughter is impressive; just relax!"
"Grandpa! Grandma! Mom is taking us out for dinner tonight; she's treating!" Xing Xiaokang ran over from the connecting door between their two living rooms.
Due to moving houses, both families had takeaway lunches. Wu Xuemei thought they should have a nice dinner to celebrate that evening but realized everyone was too exhausted to cook (referring to her own situation). She thought about going out for a good meal instead. She had already spotted several high-end restaurants nearby.
"I saw a hot pot restaurant diagonally across from our area; let's eat hot pot! It symbolizes prosperity!" Wu Xuemei said as she walked in behind her son with a tired expression on her face. She had been busy alone at home and was much more exhausted than all three members of the Bai Family combined!
"Mei Mei, you should sit down and rest!" Bai Tang noticed that Wu Xuemei looked unwell and invited her to sit on the sofa. "It's best to have a hot meal at home, so let's not go out. I'll make dinner! Hot pot is simple; I can quickly make the soup base with a pressure cooker."
"But there are no ingredients at home!"
"I'll go buy some at the supermarket!" Bai Tang stood up.
Wu Xuemei stared in surprise at the energetic Bai Tang. "Aren't you tired?"
"Not at all, I have good stamina!"
"I'm really envious of you; being young is great! I'm almost exhausted!"
"Why don't you take a nap on the bed first? I'll call you when it's time to eat!"
"No need, I'll chat with Uncle and Aunt for a bit." Wu Xuemei sank into the sofa, letting out a comfortable sigh.
"Then you all chat; I'm heading out!" Bai Tang walked out of the house, glanced at the distant river, and smiled happily.
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