How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
Dr. Gu held the well-burnished kettle high above the teapot and began pouring. "I love watching Dr. Gu do his tea ritual," Wye Mun said to his daughter quietly. "See how he pours the water from high up. This is known as xuan hu gao chong—'rinsing from an elevated pot.'" (2.16.19)
The tea ritual with Dr. Gu contrasts the other, more modern customs we see in the novel. This ritual is about working and waiting for the tea, rather than forcing it for the sake of doing things quickly.
Quote #8
People like Mrs. Lee were used to only one kind of Chinese wedding banquet—the kind that took place in the grand ballroom of a five-star hotel. (3.7.1)
There's a sense of "back in my day" amongst the elder Singaporean elite. The template fancy wedding is apparently one of the treasured traditions of the old ladies.
Quote #9
"This is all so unbelievably archaic. We're living in the twenty-first century, and Singapore is one of the most progressive countries on the planet. I can assure you Ah Ma doesn't feel the way she did thirty years ago."
"[…]You don't know how important bloodlines are to her." (3.11.47-3.11.48)
This archaic custom is central to the plot of this story, yet we don't have much indication why it's so important. What does Shang Su Yi know that we don't?