Chapter 003

Chapter 003

The "eldest brother" mentioned by Wang Xingcai was his eldest son, Wang Bohui, who was 42 years old. He was also the childhood friend and sworn brother of Lu Mingzhu's older brother, Lu Changsheng, and had always taken care of Lu Mingzhu and her younger brother, Lu Pingan.

When mentioning his eldest son, Wang Xingcai couldn't help but think of Lu Changsheng.

What a shame that such a talented and charismatic person was no longer with them.

If he were still alive, the Lu family would have been under his control. How could he have left his own sister behind when he took the rest of the family abroad?

After a moment of hesitation, Wang Xingcai quickly changed the subject and said to Lu Mingzhu, "I have some blank travel permits in my study that are already stamped by the police station. I'll fill in your and Pingan's names and give them to you."

Lu Mingzhu pretended not to understand. "Travel permits? What are those?"

In her previous life, she had worked as a screenwriter and had consulted a large number of documents for writing scripts. She remembered that there had been free movement in and out of the country around the time of liberation, but it would soon become restricted, requiring a pass to exit. Her urgency to leave the country was precisely because of this.

Wang Xingcai led her and Pingan into his study and explained, "I'm talking about passports. Border controls have tightened this year compared to before. To leave for Hong Kong, you need a government-issued passport or travel permit to pass through customs. However, some residents take small paths for trade or work without any issues. I remember you have a passport, and so does your whole family. Getting a travel permit now is just a safety measure. If it's not needed, that's the best outcome."

After hearing this explanation, Lu Mingzhu nodded in understanding.

Wang Xingcai took out a fountain pen and two sheets of paper from a drawer, which were the so-called travel permits. He filled in the names of Lu Mingzhu and Lu Pingan, writing "18 years old" and "15 years old" directly in the age column. He then filled in other information such as their home address, with the reason for leaving being to join relatives, traveling from Shanghai to Hong Kong, and the duration of stay was set for three full years, from August 1951 to August 1954.

Lu Mingzhu stood by and watched carefully.

Knowing that this departure might mean his goddaughter wouldn't return, Wang Xingcai carefully instructed, "The usual stay duration is three months, but I'll write three years for you as a favor. Once you find your elder brother, ask him to take you and Pingan to the police station to apply for Hong Kong ID cards first. This is very important as it concerns whether you can stay in Hong Kong long-term without being deported. After handling the school enrollment, ask your brother to help you buy a building in a good location to rent out. Hong Kong is small, with many people and few houses, making rent expensive. The monthly rent will be enough to cover your and Pingan's living expenses. You're both still young, and education is the best path forward, even in a foreign land, don't neglect your studies."

Having lived in Hong Kong for some time, he was quite familiar with the situation there.

Lu Mingzhu readily agreed.

As Wang Xingcai spoke, he suddenly asked, "By the way, Mingzhu, how much money did your father leave you?"

Lu Mingzhu received the travel permit with both hands and answered truthfully, "My father left me some gold ingots and 30,000 silver dollars, with 10 million in cash. I also found a lot of untaken cash and gold jewelry from the residences of my grandmother and the second, third, and fourth houses, totaling about 40 million in cash. Additionally, I have saved over 20,000 silver dollars myself, and my mother left me 5,000 silver dollars. Godfather, I plan to convert all the silver dollars, cash, and gold jewelry into gold ingots before I leave. Do you have any connections for that?"

Being new to this, she found it difficult to handle such transactions immediately.

Wang Xingcai, with his vast business empire, had no intention of coveting his goddaughter's possessions. He said, "There are strict regulations on foreign currency and gold. Banks only buy gold and do not exchange it, and the exchange of foreign currency is extremely limited. Transacting in the black market is not cost-effective. It's better to exchange your cash or silver dollars for British pounds. Don't convert them into gold ingots because gold is heavy. If you carry too much, it might raise suspicion and cause unnecessary trouble."

Lu Mingzhu's eyes lit up. "Can you do that?"

Foreign currency was indeed more convenient and very useful abroad, provided it could be kept safe without loss or damage.

She had a secure place to store them, so she wasn't worried.

"Yes, I can pay the workers with cash or silver dollars." The Wang family still had its own industries in Shanghai, which Wang Xingcai hadn't had time to deal with before fleeing and had reclaimed upon his return. They were currently thriving.

Lu Mingzhu thought for a moment. "Godfather, I'll convert my gold ingots into British pounds too. My father left me 40 gold ingots, my mother left me 23 gold ingots and 50 smaller ingots, and I've saved 55 gold ingots and 254 smaller ingots. We found 14 gold ingots and 37 smaller ingots in the third house, plus my gold jewelry, which amounts to about 200 taels."

Two-tael gold bracelets and pendants were common, and there were even several chains weighing over ten taels, a popular accessory during the Shanghai occupation used to fasten overcoats, as detailed in Eileen Chang's novels.

Wang Xingcai quickly calculated. "That should be exchangeable for over 20,000 British pounds."

Lu Mingzhu said without hesitation, "Exchange!"

"Your cash and silver dollars can be exchanged for about 7,000 British pounds. In Hong Kong, one British pound can be exchanged for 16 Hong Kong dollars." After saying this, Wang Xingcai took out six bundles of British pound notes from the drawer and handed them to Lu Mingzhu. "Here’s 30,000 pounds. Take this. Tonight, I’ll send Butler Li and a few people over to collect the gold and cash from your place."

Lu Mingzhu immediately said, "Godfather, that’s too much."

"That's an extra 3,000 yuan!"

Wang Xingcai smiled faintly, "Consider the extra amount as pocket money from your godfather."

He appeared very generous.

"Godfather, you are so kind!" Lu Mingzhu thanked him repeatedly, delighted. She also asked Wang Xingcai to rent out the Lu Family Garden once they left, with a lease of thirty years on the property.

After the reform and opening up, she still planned to return and live in the Lu Family Garden.

Shanghai's old Western-style mansions were rare and highly sought after. A large estate like the Lu Family Garden would be worth at least eight to ten billion yuan.

Wang Xingcai readily agreed, as it wasn’t a difficult task for him, "Renting the house to the government is beneficial for its preservation, whether they allocate it to officials or use it for other purposes."

"No problem," Lu Mingzhu replied decisively, then added, "Since it's for the government's use, the rent can be waived."

Wang Xingcai nodded, "That works too."

He knew his goddaughter wasn't short of money.

With her future secured, Lu Mingzhu said goodbye to Wang Xingcai and left the garden. Everything outside was old, worn down by time.

What did luxury look like?

It was probably the exquisite Western-style buildings in the Lu Family Garden and Wang Family Garden, the lush exotic flowers and plants, the elegant attire, and the refined demeanor—not the street life outside.

Lu Mingzhu looked at the busy traffic on the road, constantly bustling. It was fascinating to see.

Those driving small cars, riding bicycles, pulling rickshaws, pushing wheelbarrows, pedaling tricycles, and walking—all shuttled back and forth, with seventy percent being pedestrians, most of whom looked sallow and shabby, wearing patched clothes, some even barefoot, their expressions mostly numb, eyes devoid of spirit.

It didn't match the glamorous Republican-era dramas Lu Mingzhu had watched.

If this was the situation after liberation, what was it like before?

One could easily imagine a scene that was dull and lackluster.

Lu Mingzhu also saw many fashionably dressed men and women.

This was a street lined with mansions of prominent capitalists and was part of the former concession area before liberation, home to many celebrities. The living conditions of the residents nearby were relatively more affluent, with men wearing white shirts and black leather shoes, slicked back with hair oil, and women in qipao and silk stockings, with permed hair, sitting in rickshaws—a kind of refinement reminiscent of old Shanghai, far from what could be captured in TV dramas.

If she weren’t so uncertain about the storms that would come in the next decade, Lu Mingzhu really wouldn't want to leave her hometown.

How demeaning it was for a person to leave their homeland!

Pingan suddenly asked in a very soft voice, "Sister, are we going abroad to find Grandpa?"

Without hesitation, Lu Mingzhu replied, "We're going to Hong Kong."

"Isn't going to Hong Kong considered going abroad? Hong Kong is a British colony now." Although only fifteen, as an adopted son, Pingan was smart and precocious, with a keen mind, and well-versed in the ways of the world. "I heard that Grandpa is planning to go to Britain, and Hong Kong will be the first stop."

Lu Mingzhu smiled, "You’re sharp! But Sister has money. We won't look for him. We'll rely on ourselves from now on."

Pingan nodded heavily, "I have money too. We'll buy a building together."

"Where did you get your money?" As far as Lu Mingzhu knew, apart from New Year’s red envelope money, neither the old lady nor Pingan's father had ever given him a single cent. He was often treated like he didn’t exist, completely ignored.

The only people who doted on him were three: Madam Lu, the original body, and the elderly Master who was indifferent to worldly affairs.

It was said that the elderly Master used to love his eldest legitimate grandson, Lu Changsheng, the most, even making Lu Father step back. He poured all his heart into Lu Changsheng, but who would have thought that he would die young, leaving no successor.

Although Lu Pingan was an adopted son, he inherited Lu Changsheng's legacy, so the elderly Master couldn't help but transfer some of his affection to him.

Pingan shyly told Lu Mingzhu, "Before she passed away, Grandmother gave me 50 large gold bars and a box of jewels, which I hid in a secret compartment in my room. She told me to use the gold bars for business when I grew up and give the jewels to my future wife as a betrothal gift. And Great-grandfather also gave me 50 large gold bars and a box of jade and gemstones long ago, saying it was for me to marry a wife."

Lu Mingzhu was delighted, "What's yours is yours. Don't exchange it for foreign currency with your Godfather; take it to Hong Kong!"

But Lu Pingan said, "It's more convenient to exchange it for foreign currency. 100 large gold bars are 1000 taels of gold; they take up little space but are heavy and cumbersome to carry around."

Lu Mingzhu thought it made sense, "Come on, I'll ask Godfather for help!"

Wang Xingcai wasn't working today and was quite happy when he heard it. "It's wise not to let gold and silver leave the country, but I don't have British pounds. I'll exchange it for US dollars. It should be around 31,000 US dollars, but I'll give you 32,000."

"Thank you, Godfather." Lu Mingzhu immediately handed the money over to Lu Pingan.

When they returned home, Lu Pingan immediately opened the secret compartment and moved the large gold bars to Lu Mingzhu's room, ready to hand them over to Wang Xingcai.

"I just don't know where the money from selling the properties before the liberation went. I remember when Grandmother gave me the gold, her private vault had over twenty boxes of gold bars and a small mountain of silver dollars, and it was filled with a lot of penicillin in the previous years." From the conversation between Wang Xingcai and Lu Mingzhu, Lu Pingan learned that Grandmother only gave Auntie 23 large gold bars and 50 small gold bars, not all the wealth.

Lu Mingzhu shrugged, "I don't know either. I don't even know where her private vault is."

"It's in the Magnolia Garden behind Lu Family Garden, part of Grandmother's dowry." Lu Pingan had been there a few times with Madam Lu. "But Grandmother has already sold the Magnolia Garden."