Chapter 921: Qin Shiqing’s Factory Belle Sisterhood

On the fifteenth day of the tenth month of the lunar calendar, it’s suitable for marriage, traveling, cleaning, moving, matchmaking, engagement, pledging, and moving into a new home.

Su Zelin chose today to move in. His family consulted the lunar calendar and even had a fortune teller pick the date to ensure it didn’t clash with his and Qin Shiqing’s zodiac signs.

Actually, he wasn’t much concerned with these things, thinking he could move in anytime. However, his mom and dad insisted, and since it was his first house, he wanted to be careful, even if just for peace of mind.

Su Zelin could only respect his parents’ wishes. So, he waited until the fifteenth day of the lunar calendar, which was also the third day after his company’s new headquarters opened. Originally, he planned to move sooner to make commuting more convenient.

Because of the move, the Su family’s elders and Qin family’s elders arrived in Lin’an a day early, though the latter participated as friends.

After all, the kids hadn’t registered for marriage yet, so ceremonially, they weren’t in-laws. Qin Daqing and Liu Sufen voluntarily opted to avoid any assumptions.

All four of them arrived in Lin’an at noon, had lunch together, and then showed them around the New Century Center. Even though Su Zelin and his dad had sent them plenty of photos and they had some understanding of the new headquarters, seeing it in person was different.

“Son, your company headquarters is huge! Just this office building is amazing; it must have cost a lot, right?”

Zhao Lixia exclaimed as they walked, feeling like Granny Liu visiting the Grand View Garden.

“Mom, it’s not that much. Including the land, the first phase of construction should cost about a billion or so!”

Su Zelin smiled.

“A billion is not much? You brat, that’s quite the boast! Aren’t you afraid the wind will slap your tongue? And this is just the first phase; if the entire thing is built, it could be over two billion!”

To Zhao Lixia, these were unimaginable astronomical figures.

“It’s a bit pricey, but the new headquarters is worth it!”

Su Jianjun shared his opinion: “Given the current trend in property prices, the value of the land, which is scarce, will increase significantly. In ten or eight years, the price of this land alone might double, making it a good investment. Moreover, it can attract more excellent talent to the company, which is an intangible value.”

“No wonder, Dad, you have a good eye!”

Su Zelin applauded.

“Okay, okay, you father and son both have foresight. I’m just a small-minded woman. All I know is, if I had that kind of money, I wouldn’t spend it like that.”

Zhao Lixia shook her head repeatedly.

“Hehe, Lixia, why worry? It’s the company’s money, but it’s given Zelin and Shiqing good benefits. Zelin got a big apartment without spending a penny. Shouldn’t we be happy?”

Liu Sufen wasn’t concerned about how much the headquarters cost; she cared more about the kids’ benefits.

“That’s true.”

Speaking of the free housing, Zhao Lixia couldn’t help but smile broadly.

Who would have thought there’d be such a good thing in the world?

Just that employee apartment alone, over 170 square meters, would cost at least a million in Lin’an!

The company’s big boss is truly generous… or more like, gracious!

“In the future, Zelin and Shiqing will be working in the headquarters park every day, which is really convenient. If they don’t have time to cook, they can go to the employee cafeteria. I heard it’s really cheap, too—just three to five yuan per meal?”

On the day the New Century Center opened, major media outlets covered the news. Especially after featuring on CCTV, the New Century’s employee cafeteria became a hot topic.

The rich variety of dishes and low prices made countless foodies drool with envy. While praising New Century as a conscientious enterprise, it also sparked a wave of complaints about their own employers.

Some said their workplace meals were like pig slop, with their cafeteria dirtier than a pigsty. During mealtime, it wasn’t uncommon for an extra Xiaoqiang to make its way into their meal.

Some said their company’s meal options were always the same, never numbering more than two digits even on holidays.

Others criticized the bosses for being stingy, selling employee meals that were more expensive than outside fast food, with salad ladies who loved to skimp.

There were even curious onlookers in Lin’an who wondered if non-employees could dine at New Century Center’s employee cafeteria. They planned to try it out, only to be regretfully informed it wasn’t possible. You could only dine there using a recharged employee card; the cafeteria didn’t accept cash.

Qin Daqing had also seen the news and was quite curious.

“Yeah, every meal costs me just three or four yuan, no more than five yuan at the most.”

Qin Shiqing confirmed personally.

“Three yuan? What can you eat for that?”

Zhao Lixia expressed her doubts.

“Auntie, for three yuan, you can get two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes. That’s enough for me.”

“Two meat and two vegetables? Is your company’s cafeteria doing charity work?”

Granny Su was baffled.

Even as a professional housewife, she couldn’t prepare a meal for three yuan.

“Hehe, the company doesn’t plan to profit off the employees’ meals. The cafeteria runs at a loss.”

Qin Shiqing explained.

“Shiqing, you and Zelin joined a good company. Private company benefits aren’t necessarily worse than public units. Our old-fashioned view needs to change!”

Liu Sufen commented with emotion.

When Qin Shiqing was just starting college, Liu Sufen and Qin Daqing hoped she would work in a government unit upon graduation, securing a stable job.

However, upon seeing the neighbor’s child join this private enterprise with excellent benefits and promising development prospects, Qin Shiqing was slowly convinced to follow suit upon graduation and join New Era.

“Yes, without realizing it, the times have indeed changed!”

Qin Daqing agreed.

“Back in the day, Old Su had the courage to voluntarily give up his secure job at the steel mill to start a business. But later, more and more people with stable jobs ventured into entrepreneurship. After the 21st century, the market economy flourished, and many robust private companies became more popular than government jobs and more attractive to college graduates. Zelin and Shiqing’s choice was the right one!”

A group of people chatted idly as they left New Century Center.

That evening, they stayed in a rental apartment.

On the following morning, at nine o’clock and eight minutes, it was an auspicious time.

Moving into a new home typically happens between six in the morning and eleven in the afternoon.

The morning has abundant positive energy, making it very auspicious for moving house.

In the afternoon and evening, the energy is heavier, which can negatively affect fortune.

The move needs to be completed before the afternoon, and at the latest, before sunset.

There weren’t many people participating in the ceremony, just the three members of the Su family.

Old Su had few relatives, as Su Zelin’s grandparents were long gone, and there were no important relatives back home, so distant kin weren’t invited. After all, Lin’an was quite far away, and particularly, Su Zelin wanted a low-key housewarming without planning to hold a big feast.

As for those accompanying the move, there were the Qin family, who had a great relationship with the Su family, and with the possibility of them becoming in-laws, they were almost like family.

Other friends did not accompany them during the move, but in a few days, Su Zelin planned to invite them over for a gathering.

At the auspicious hour, Su Zelin, as the homeowner, pushed open the door with both hands, shouting, “Open wide the doors of wealth, bring in prosperity!”

As he recited the words, he scattered coins from his hands.

This was taught by his parents, having consulted the elders.

Even without their teaching, Mischief knew the procedure well because he had moved house many times in his past life, and was already familiar with the process.

Zhao Lixia and Su Jianjun followed closely behind, along with the three members of the Qin family.

They walked through the living room to the master bedroom, then to the study, guest room, and kitchen, visiting each room and scattering two coins in each corner.

After moving in, there were two tasks to complete: first was ‘bed making’, which involves setting up the new bed.

Then, ‘fire opening’, which means cooking a pot of soup, symbolizing sweetness, or cooking dumplings to represent joyful reunion, with the simplest action being to boil a pot of water, indicating a continuous flow of wealth.

Mischief chose dumplings, which was also Jianglan’s tradition.

As for offering sacrifices to the God of the Earth, such old customs were waived due to being in a provincial city.

After eating the dumplings, the housewarming ceremony was basically completed.

The remaining detail was that after falling asleep on the first night in the house, you couldn’t fall asleep immediately; you had to get up after a few minutes to move around. It’s said this prevents sickness.

There’s no scientific basis for it, it’s purely an ancient tradition, but anyway, the elders always say so.

Unless you sneer at such things, you should follow them.

On the first night in the new house, guests can stay overnight, but according to tradition, only the homeowner may sleep in the master bedroom. Even a girlfriend must sleep separately, and with her parents there, Qin Shiqing was embarrassed to share a bed with Su Zelin, even though they had been living together for a while. They still had to keep up appearances in front of the elders.

So that night Qin Daqing and his wife, along with Qin Shiqing, each slept in a separate guest room.

After spending a night in the new house, the adults from both families returned to Lin’an the next day, as the young ones were busy with work, and they didn’t want to stay too long.

Once the adults left, the young couple was free from constraints, naturally spending the night together.

They had an unashamed night together. In the morning, Su Zelin woke from a dream, and the beauty next to him was still in deep sleep.

The employee apartment was not far from the office building; it took less than five minutes by foot, saving a great deal of commuting time. Besides, they could have breakfast at the employee cafeteria, so Qin Shiqing set her alarm much later.

The girl’s silky smooth tresses spilled outside the blanket, her long eyelashes fluttered slightly, a happy smile hung on the corners of her lips, and she subconsciously hugged Su Zelin’s arm in her sleep.

Having left the rented accommodation, sleeping in their own house felt so much cozier and more secure.

But Mischief soon startled her awake, and after a morning workout, the young couple dawdled on the bed until eight thirty. Only then did Qin Shiqing change her clothes, get up, and wash.

“Good thing we moved into the employee apartment, otherwise I’d be made late today because of you.”

“Hey, no worries, from the apartment to the office building, including time for breakfast at the cafeteria, half an hour is more than enough.”

In the bathroom, Su Zelin hugged his girlfriend’s soft waist from behind: “By the way, we need to invite friends over soon for the housewarming party. Why not in the coming days? It’s not good to delay too long. Who are you planning to invite?”

“Xiaoyanzi and Mouse, also Yuwei, Qiu Wen, and Panpan, hmm, that’ll be enough!”

Qin Shiqing didn’t hesitate and casually listed the guests she was closest to personally.

Her best friend’s couple definitely needed to be invited, as they were the best friends of her and Su Zelin.

As for the other three girls from the same company, since the new headquarters started functioning, Qin Shiqing had gone to the cafeteria for lunch with them every workday, almost forming a sisterhood of factory beauties, always becoming a beautiful sight in the cafeteria.