By the end of Chapter 4, Wang Lung has saved enough money that he can now "walk with his fellows . . . at ease with himself and with all." The change is seen even further when he returns in Chapter 6 to the House of Hwang. He is now dressed in a new black cloth suit, which O-lan has made, in addition to the clothing for the newborn child. When Wang Lung reaches the door of the House of Hwang, his inner assurance creates new respect from the gateman. As a contrast to the time when he first came and the gateman made fun of him, he is now seated in the gateman's house and is presented tea, which he scorns "as though it were not good enough in quality" for him.
This new assurance is also seen when he refers to Hwang's land as though he were an equal to Hwang or as though he were referring to Ching's land — Ching being the neighboring farmer who will later become Wang Lung's overseer. And, finally, at the end of Chapter 6, Wang Lung is able to buy a piece of land that belongs to the House of Hwang, which signals the beginning of the descent of the House of Hwang and the rise of the House of Wang.
It is important to note in this chapter that, for the Chinese, the color "red" carried special significance and was used in all types of ceremonies. Wang Lung gets some red dye to color the eggs in celebration of the birth of his first son. O-lan wants to dress her son in red silk before carrying him before the Old Mistress. In weddings of affluence, the bride is always dressed in red. In Chapter 5, to celebrate the new year, red paper is used to make good luck signs and to make new clothes for the gods. Red signs are put on the doorway and on various items of furniture, and the people burn two red candles on the event of the new year.
