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Huang Taitai is Lindo’s first mother-in-law, a wealthy and cruel woman. Although she is haughty and proud of her family’s status, much of that pride stems only from material goods and surface prestige, not actual value, echoing Lindo’s dismissive comments about fourteen-carat gold. Huang Taitai acts as if her family is far too good for Lindo’s, emphasized by the way she physically looks down at them from her house on higher ground. However, we can see that her pride is misplaced. Tyan-yu is a spoiled and childish young man, and furthermore not even interested in marriage. Meanwhile, Lindo is polite, intelligent, and an excellent cook, a person with true character. Other details prove that Huang Taitai has little to look down on others about. Lindo notes that Huang Taitai likely added imperial dragons to the roof corners despite the Huang family having no actual connection to the imperial family. During Lindo and Tyan-yu’s wedding, Huang Taitai goes to great lengths to make the ceremony seem grander than it is. She has Lindo carried over to the ceremony on a palanquin and even pretends Lindo’s dowry furniture is newly delivered. In reality, the wedding is sparsely attended because of the war with Japan, and Huang Taitai looks foolish for behaving as if the war isn’t happening. Although she looks down on others, there is no substance or depth to back up Huang Taitai’s haughtiness.
