Shaking off all the hustle and bustle, Cheng Su and Qi Taiguo also took Qi Xiaoqi back to Qing City. Going back with them, of course, was Mother Cheng, who would help take care of Qi Xiaoqi.
When Mother Qi and the others saw them off at the station, they practically wanted to squeeze onto the train with them. It was only because Father Qi talked her down that she finally gave up. Even so, her eyes were brimming with tears as she looked at her grandson. It would be another stretch of time where she could only look at photos of him to cure her craving.
The weather had cleared, and the journey back to the compound was smooth and easy. Out of habit, Cheng Su and the others headed toward the Southwest Ladder, but Qi Taiguo tugged her and said, "Wrong way. Our whole family has already moved into the new place now!"
Cheng Su froze for a second. "Everythingās already moved over?"
"Yeah, itās moved, but we havenāt had time to sort it out yet. Itās a mess everywhere." Qi Taiguo scratched his head as he spoke.
The group turned and walked to the new apartment. When they took out the key and opened the door, sure enough, it was chaotic everywhere, things scattered all over the floor in a jumble.
Cheng Suās head started to ache. What she dreaded most was tidying up right after a move.
"Mom, you take Xiao Qi into the bedroom to sleep first and have a rest. Taiguo and I will slowly sort things out." Cheng Su opened the bedroom door and saw that the room was fairly tidy, and all the quilts and such were new, which made things easier.
Mother Cheng was getting on in years and had already been on the road for several hours, so she was exhausted. She didnāt stand on ceremony with her daughter and went straight into the bedroom with her grandson.
Cheng Su looked over at Qi Taiguo, and he said, "You go boil some water and have a drink of hot water first. Iāll do the sorting!"
Now thatās more like it!
Cheng Su rummaged through that pile of clutter to find the kettle, then took it into the kitchen. The kitchen wasnāt very big, but it had a faucet, cookware, and everything they needed, plus a countertop. Compared with the old shared kitchen, it was dozens of times more convenient, and that made her pretty happy.
She turned on the gas to boil water, then dug out the porcelain tea mugs and some dish soap and started washing them. As she worked, she asked, "So thereās nothing left over there?"
"Basically everythingās been moved over. You can go back later and see if thereās anything we forgot." Qi Taiguo said, "They wonāt be taking back that dorm room for a while yet anyway."
"Mm, then thereās no rush. Letās get this stuff put away first." Cheng Su took off her coat and hung it behind the door, then put her hands on her hips and looked around. "Letās move the big pieces into place first, otherwise thereāll be nowhere to put our feet."
"Got it!"
The couple rolled up their sleeves and got to it. Working together, they moved the sofa, the dining table and chairs, the TV cabinet...
To save space and make storage easier, Cheng Su had specially had several storage cabinets made. Since the front door opened straight toward the sofa and directly through to the balcony, sheād placed a large storage cabinet in front of the sofa. The upper cubby shelves could hold bottles of liquor, plants, and decorative pieces, while the lower cabinets could serve as a shoe cabinet and store small items. It was good for the feng shui too.
Once the big pieces were in place, the room suddenly felt much more spacious and not cramped anymore.
Cheng Su brewed some tea, and the two of them sat down to moisten their throats. Looking at the scattered things around the house, it was still a bit of a mess, but overall it was already much more orderly. It would be a lie to say they werenāt pleased.
"You never realize until you move just how much trouble it is to tidy everything up." Qi Taiguo took a sip of tea and was about to stand up again.
Cheng Su pulled him back down. "No rush. Catch your breath first, then weāll keep going." She asked him, "Has everyone in this building moved in already?"
"From what I can see, everyone on our floor has moved in." Qi Taiguo said, "Weāre the latest ones!"
"Mm! Then for our housewarming, letās not make a big deal of it. Weāll just fire up the kitchen, cook a few dishes, and invite the neighbors on both sides, plus Chunhua and Guiying, to come over for a meal. Thatāll be enough, okay?" Cheng Su discussed it with him. She really was sick of those big banquet-style affairs.
"Man works outside, woman runs the home. Youāre in charge of things here. However you want to do it, thatās how weāll do it!" Qi Taiguo gave her a kiss.
Cheng Su spat at him playfully. "Youāre awful. Get back to work!"
"As you command!"