Chapter Ten: The Mortgage

The two families had been discussing the marriage for quite some time. They had even set the wedding date. It wasn’t just the young couple; even when both families sat together, matters like buying a house couldn’t be changed with a simple word.

An Songlin pondered and found himself having to agree with his father. But if they didn’t touch the money set aside for the wedding house, their family might not only lose their savings but perhaps even their village homestead.

“Your idea is indeed reasonable, but we need to plan more carefully before discussing it again with the in-laws,” his father said.

“But,” An Jianping hesitated, then looked seriously at his son, “Songlin, if we really negotiate with the Xuan family, your wedding on Labor Day might have to be postponed.”

Before An Jianping’s words fully sank in, Bi Lizhu suddenly stood up sharply. “No! Absolutely not!”

An Jianping frowned slightly, helplessly tugging at his wife to calm her down. It was late at night, and if she shouted like that, people would surely start gossiping tomorrow morning that the couple had argued.

Bi Lizhu pursed her lips tightly, unwilling but eventually sat down under her husband’s restraint. Yet before anyone else could speak, she lowered her voice and reiterated, “Jianping, Songlin’s wedding date must not be postponed.”

“Although they haven’t sent out invitations yet, you know that anyone remotely close to the family already knows the date. If it’s suddenly delayed without a proper reason, neither our family nor the in-laws would easily agree.”

“Besides, I imagine the Xuans are in a similar situation; anyone even slightly close probably knows about the date by now.”

“Lizhu, I only said it’s a possibility. It doesn’t mean the decision is final!” An Jianping hurried to soothe her again.

But Bi Lizhu wasn’t foolish. She stood up once more, pacing a few steps with a furrowed brow.

“If buying the house is the issue, can our family really decide whether the wedding should be delayed or not?”

“Jianping, you know well that no matter how reasonable the in-laws are, situations like this are hard to negotiate.”

An Jianping found it difficult to refute his wife’s words. Lately, besides gathering information, he had been deeply troubled.

Just as the conversation seemed to stall, An Songlin seized the moment to speak up. “Dad, Mom, what I mean is… maybe we could consider not buying the house for now.”

“The houses we’ve looked at either have poor locations, are too far from schools, or lack convenient transportation.”

“Even the elevator-equipped apartments currently on sale in this area are only in the Hongye Haoting complex.”

“So choosing Hongye Haoting isn’t because it’s perfect for us, but because it’s the best option among the available neighborhoods.”

Bi Lizhu calmed down and thoughtfully considered her son’s suggestion, although deep down she wasn’t fully convinced.

An Songxiang glanced at her sister, signaling her to observe their mother’s reaction. An Songyu looked resigned but gently shook her head, signaling her sister to remain silent.

An Songxiang curled her lips but didn’t say anything. After all, although their parents relied heavily on their eldest son, they never exploited their daughter.

So if anyone in the An family had some money that could be flexibly used, it was likely her—the daughter who had only worked for two years and whose parents never asked for a penny of her salary.

She understood that among her friends and classmates, it was rare for couples to buy a new house for their wedding, and no one ever pressured their parents to empty their savings for a brother’s marriage.

But things were different now.

“Actually, it’s not a problem for me to buy a house now!” An Songyu said, looking at the troubled family.

Everyone’s attention turned to her, especially Bi Lizhu.

She always felt there was something unusual about her second child. Every time Songyu spoke, it brought a profound impact to the whole family.

“Well… I overheard someone at the hotel say that besides paying in full, there was also an option to take out a mortgage,” she added.

A mortgage?

This new term sparked mixed reactions among the An family.

An Songlin, who had been struggling with the dilemma, suddenly felt as if a cloud had lifted.

Excitedly, he looked at his family. “Yes, yes, the mortgage thing started a couple of years ago.”

“Dad, do you remember when this was reported in the newspapers? So many people at work were discussing it.”

“Though back then, most were calling it nonsense.”

“Because the welfare housing system was still in place!”

Upon hearing this, An Jianping and his wife also recalled having some vague impression about mortgages but never knew the details.

Their gaze all turned to An Songyu.

She shrugged helplessly. “I’ve heard of mortgages but don’t know the specifics.”

If this were in the future, anyone could easily discuss it. But it was still 1999, and the exact implementation of mortgages wasn’t clear yet.

After her mention, Songyu realized she didn’t even know when the mortgage policy started.

Fortunately, someone in the family had heard about it.

“This is easy to inquire about. It’s late now; I’ll ask around tomorrow,” An Jianping decided firmly.

Her suggestion also sparked new ideas in his mind.

The next day, the An family resumed their busy routines, but this time with a clear purpose.

That evening, when the family gathered again, not only An Jianping but almost everyone had learned about mortgages.

An Jianping even uncovered more information but kept it to himself during the gathering.

It wasn’t until the following morning, when An Songlin mentioned taking his wife to Jiang Village, that An Jianping privately called his two daughters aside.

“Ayu, Xiang, I’m planning to transfer your household registrations back to the village!”