"This is what my mother gave me."

Matsumoto Keiko was lying on the bed in the bedroom. When she saw Ning Weimin coming out of the bathroom after taking a bath, she pointed directly at the envelope on the dressing table.

At this time, Ning Weimin was not sober because he had been drinking a lot.

You should know that on this day, Ning Weimin went to Matsumoto Keiko's parents' house to formally meet him. His future mother-in-law did treat him as a serious guest, and the welcome banquet was very rich and formal.

Salt-grilled kingfish, tuna sushi, peony shrimp tempura, cream-baked vegetables with top-quality sake, takeaway imported honeydew melons and a variety of desserts provided by a century-old wagashi shop.

As for salmon, we don’t use Boston lobster, the “high-end seafood” that our Chinese love to see, because the grade is too low.

And when it came to the official meal, since Han Yingming and his wife had basically approved the son-in-law candidate brought by their daughter, the atmosphere became quite harmonious.

Especially Han Yingming, once he gets drunk, he becomes a different person.

His face became red, he talked more, and he smiled.

He changed from being rigid and serious when we first met, and became friendly and enthusiastic.

Holding the cup, he pulled Ning Weimin to drink together.

People are so hospitable, so naturally Ning Weimin will not be pretentious, and he will drink until his glass is dry.

Han Yingming drinks either sake or Korean low-alcohol soju on weekdays, and his drinking capacity is only so-so.

But when I drink it, I can't keep my mouth shut.

In addition, he and Ning Weimin share a common interest in collecting, and the more we talk about Tokyo’s flea markets, the more speculative they become.

One is willing to speak, the other is willing to listen, and they seem to be much closer to each other.

Moreover, Tsuneko and Keiko would occasionally interrupt. Both mother and daughter like to chat about what happened at home in the past.

Ning Weimin was equally interested in this, especially when his future mother-in-law recalled Qingzi's childhood, his eyes were particularly bright.

This natural curiosity will of course please Changzi.

Because it was obvious that Ning Weimin was coveting Qingzi, not anything else, and this was enough for the prospective mother-in-law to approve.

I really wish they could get married as soon as possible and make this prospective son-in-law a permanent member of the family as soon as possible.

In this way, the welcome banquet lasted until it turned dark, and it could be said that it was a very enjoyable time.

In the end, not only was Han Yingming a little drunk, he took Ning Weimin's hand and asked him to take good care of his precious daughter Qingzi.

Ning Weimin was also a little bit conceited. He breathed out alcohol and assured her seriously that it was his honor and there would be absolutely no problem.

At this time, Chang Zi realized that his bad old man looked out of tune, and he quickly wanted to put him to rest.

Matsumoto Keiko also felt that Ning Weimin seemed to be a bit excessive.

After helping his mother settle down, his father quickly drove home with Ning Weimin, who was unsteady on his feet.

Sure enough, after returning home, Ning Weimin felt a headache and lay down on the sofa.

Until Matsumoto Keiko thoughtfully made a pot of lemon tea for Ning Weimin, let him drink it to sober up, and brought a hot towel to his face.

After twenty minutes of this, Ning Weimin finally regained his energy and was able to take a bath and wash himself.

But I didn't expect that after he had gone away from the smell of alcohol and was ready to sleep with his sweet-smelling beauty, something like this would happen.

Ning Weimin casually picked up the envelope on the dressing table without asking Qingzi what it was, and just asked Qingzi to look at it.

But he really overestimated his ability. In his dizzy state, he couldn't really see clearly what was written on it. All he could see was a bunch of zeros, and he knew it was a bank check, the kind that can be used by private individuals to withdraw cash.

Embarrassed, I asked Keiko again and found out that my mother-in-law had given her five million yen.

Matsumoto Keiko had already gone to bed, loosened her bun and started to crawl into bed.

Ning Weimin followed her and lay next to her.

"What? What does this check mean? Is it your dowry?"

Qingzi yawned a little and said nonchalantly, "Marriage is a matter between two people. Of course, my dowry is personal property in my name and not my parents' business. My mother asked me to give the money to

For you to prepare for the wedding then, it should be considered as what you earned today, right?"

"What? Give it to me? How could I earn it?"

"Well, who asked you to send so many expensive gifts without consulting me in advance? Mom felt very embarrassed and was embarrassed not to accept them, so she gave us this money..."

After some explanations from Qingzi, Ning Weimin finally understood.

It turns out that in Japan, the more expensive the gift, the better.

Just like in his future mother-in-law's mind, her daughter's marriage has little to do with the thickness of the gift.

If the gift is expensive or given too much, it will be a burden to Yu Qingzi's parents, and they will feel that they are suspected of selling their daughter.

For example, today, in addition to sending carefully prepared gifts to his prospective father-in-law, Ning Weimin also did not forget Chang Zi, his prospective mother-in-law.

Even the gift he gave was more expensive than the one given to his prospective father-in-law.

It was a set of pearl jewelry worth 2.2 million yen, including a long pearl necklace and a pair of earrings.

Moreover, it is also the most famous pearl brand in Japan - Mibiki.

This is certainly a manifestation of sincerity and good intentions for Ning Weimin.

But for Tsuneko, it turned into mental pressure.

As a result, although Chang Zi accepted it, he was not willing to take advantage of Ning Weimin for nothing. After careful consideration, he wrote such a check and entrusted his daughter to hand it to him.

If we look at price alone, don't even count the celadon tea cups from Longquan kiln of the Song Dynasty that Qingzi helped obtain from Han Yingming by relying on his bloodline advantage.

Even Ning Weimin has to say that he earned these five million yen.

It’s a perfect combination of people and money!

But the problem is that such benefits also make him feel awkward.

He never thought that his good intentions might lead to bad things. Wouldn't this cause trouble for Qingzi's parents?

He co-authored it and sold those flashy things to others at a high price!

This made him feel so embarrassed.

"How did this happen? This is so embarrassing. Can't we just not want the money?"

Ning Weimin also wanted to lose face. He couldn't start with Qingzi's natal family.

However, Qingzi said, "I'm afraid not, my mother won't agree."

"You haven't asked yet, how do you know? Isn't this the personal money your mother saved with great difficulty? You'd better ask..."

"Just believe me. If mom is willing to give it to you, just take it. Don't think too much about it. My parents only have a daughter like me. Sooner or later, she will be ours..."

Qingzi's insistence left Ning Weimin speechless for a moment, feeling somewhat sad for Qingzi's parents.

I thought it seemed like I would have to have a son in the future, and having a daughter seemed a bit cheating.

After raising such a big daughter, she really puts her husband first.

What a little cotton-padded jacket, a leaky cotton-padded jacket, you haven’t even gotten married yet and you’re already thinking about supplementing your own family from your parents’ family?

But he really had a misunderstanding, because Qingzi had a few more words that made him truly understand the complexity of this matter.

Suddenly I discovered a truth that few people know - in Japan it is really not easy to be too generous and give expensive gifts casually.

"...Besides, mom can save you a lot of trouble by giving you money at this time. You probably don't know yet, but Japan has a gift tax, and relatives can't give financial gifts to each other at will. Real estate, stocks, jewelry, etc. are all taxed.

It falls within the scope of taxation. Once the amount exceeds 2 million yen per year, you must pay tax. Otherwise, it is illegal. Even adult children cannot live in the property in the name of their parents. If the children live with their parents, they must live in the same area according to the regulations.

The average rent price must be paid to parents on time every month through officially designated channels. And parents must report this rent to the tax bureau and pay the tax, otherwise they will commit tax evasion. So, like the gift you sent today

My parents' gift exceeds the limit. Mom probably wants to treat you as a transaction by giving you this money, so that both of us don't have to bear legal risks."

Ning Weimin was dumbfounded when he heard Qingzi's words. He never thought that the Japanese government could even make such money.

"What? Is there such a thing? Then how could I not know? The tax accountant never told me? Then do I have to pay tax on the Cadillac I bought? I also gave the car to your firm

…”

"Oh, gift tax occurs between individuals, and business gifts are not within the scope of gift tax, but within the scope of income tax. When you go back to do the annual calculations, you will understand if you pay attention to the tax form. So next time

, if you want to give something to my parents, you'd better discuss it with me. After all, you still don't understand some of the situation in Japan. If you do this again, it might really bring unnecessary trouble to both parties..."

Well, Ning Weimin is really educated now.

I thought I was well-informed, but I never expected that in Japan, co-authors and even co-authors have to pay tax.

What's more, I didn't expect that my sincerity and filial piety to please Qingzi's parents would actually bring such a huge hidden risk to the other party.

I feel more and more sorry.

But at the same time, he seemed to understand a little bit.

Why is it said that Japanese people are relatively indifferent to each other and care about money?

It’s not okay for the Japanese not to care. They break the law at every turn. Who can stand this?

Why don’t parents have the habit of helping their children buy houses?

Even if parents and children encounter financial difficulties, they rarely lend a helping hand to each other.
To be continued...