Soul Returns to Hong Kong: From Tailor Shop to Richest Woman

Not long after the bell rang, the street instantly became lively again.

Lin Ying sat on a small stool, her gaze passing through the open roller shutter of the tailor shop, watching the figures in school uniforms coming and going on the streets of Hong Kong in the 1980s; most of them wore white shirts with navy blue shorts and carried all sorts of schoolbags.

"Mommy!" A boy's voice came from outside the door.

A small figure rushed into the shop like a gust of wind; it was Lin Qian, his younger brother.

He was carrying an old schoolbag that was almost half the size of his body, and his chest was heaving violently.

Mom glanced at him, then continued pedaling the sewing machine, the stitches flying across the floor: "Why are you running? Are there dogs chasing you? Put your backpack down and go wash your hands."

Lin Qian didn't go; he ran over and looked at Lin Ying sitting in the corner.

Every day after school, my sister would sit in this spot; but she would sit there like a wooden statue, her eyes unfocused, looking at the sky and the ground, but never at anyone.

But now, his sister was tilting her head slightly, her bright eyes looking at him. There was scrutiny and curiosity in her gaze.

"Sister... Sister?" Lin Qian called out tentatively.

Lin Ying looked at him. The few remaining senses in this body told her that for the past nine years, this little boy would secretly slip delicious candy into her palm every day, and would run back to hug her and cry after being bullied outside.

In her past life, she had a younger sister named Xu Ning, who was just as vibrant and attached to her; a natural sense of closeness welled up within her.

"Little brother," Lin Ying said.

"Sister! You really recognize me! You can call me now!" Lin Qian excitedly grabbed Lin Ying's hand, his palms sweating profusely.

He jumped up and down excitedly twice, then suddenly stood up straight, patted his chest, and said, "Sister, don't worry! Now that you're better, I'll protect you in this housing estate! Anyone who dares to mess with you, I'll smash their head in!"

The voice just fell.

"Slap!" Lin Lanying had stopped sewing at some point, walked over and slapped Lin Qian on the back of the head. The force was just right, not too light and not too heavy, enough to break his arrogant attitude.

"What are you bragging about! Do you think you're some kind of gangster?!" Lin Lanying glared at her. "You better stay in school and focus on your studies, stop learning that gangster stuff! If I hear you spouting this nonsense again, I'll whip you with a rattan cane!"

Lin Qian rubbed the back of his head, looking at his mother with a wronged expression: "Why did you hit me...? Summer vacation is only a month away, I'll study hard for my exams!"

Lin Lanying glared at him: "If you don't get into the top ten, you'll be washing dishes at the herbal tea shop every day during the summer vacation." After saying that, she turned around and went back to work.

Lin Ying couldn't help but laugh as she watched the mother and son bickering; she had never seen such liveliness before and found it very refreshing.

She looked at Lin Qian, who was still rubbing his head, and asked softly, "Little brother, what grade are you in this year?"

Lin Qian immediately put his hand down and moved closer to Lin Ying: "I'm in first grade now. After my exams next month, I'll be in second grade. Big sister, when I have summer vacation, I'll take you to the park to catch goldfish, okay?"

"Okay." Lin Ying nodded in agreement.

In the evening, He Dazhu went straight to the tailor shop after get off work. He was carrying an oiled paper package, still dripping with oil, and his face was flushed.

"That's it for the day! We've bought some extra ingredients and vegetables today, including a really nice roast goose!" He Dazhu shouted in his gruff voice. The family of four closed the shop and walked back to Yufa Building together.

Dinner was laid out in the living room: poached chicken, stir-fried bok choy, and roast goose that He Dazhu had bought. He Dazhu specially opened a bottle of beer, drank it with a broad smile, and kept putting food on Lin Ying's plate.

While scolding him for wasting money, Lin Lanying served roast goose legs to her two children.

After dinner, Lin Lanying went to the kitchen to wash the dishes, while He Dazhu hung the clothes to dry on the balcony. Lin Qian spread out his books on the small square table and began to do his homework.

Lin Ying had nothing to do, so she pulled up a stool and sat down next to Lin Qian.

Lin Ying's gaze fell on the books on the table. She casually picked up the top one and glanced at it.

The cover was printed with "Chinese Language and Literature." Opening the book, the layout was vertical, read from right to left. It was densely packed with traditional Chinese characters. There was no pinyin; the unfamiliar characters were marked with phonetic symbols that Lin Ying didn't recognize. The strokes were complex and the characters were densely packed; looking at them for a while made her eyes tired.

Lin Ying picked up another book that was lying on top of hers; the cover read "Mathematics." She opened it and saw it was entirely in English. From the table of contents to the text content, even the instructions for the most basic addition and subtraction problems were all in pure English.

Lin Ying gripped the book pages tightly. "Are you kidding me? This is just a first-grade textbook."

I remember back in the 1980s and 90s in mainland China, first graders were still learning the letters a, o, e and simple strokes; but here, seven- or eight-year-olds have to deal with such complicated traditional Chinese characters and math lessons taught entirely in English.

She suddenly realized that her little brother had it really tough; carrying such a heavy schoolbag every day and having to study all that stuff, no wonder their mother kept such a close eye on his grades.

Lin Ying put down the book and asked softly, "Little brother, is this what you learn in school?"

Lin Qian was biting his pen, working on a math problem, when he heard his sister's question. He immediately replied, "That's right, Chinese class is taught in Chinese, but in math and general knowledge classes, the officers often mix in English. Sister, can't you understand? It's okay, I'll teach you to read!"

Faced with her younger brother's kindness, Lin Ying didn't refuse and followed up the conversation by asking, "Are there many students at your school? Are the teachers strict?"

Most kids would be annoyed by being constantly interrupted while doing their homework; but Lin Qian wasn't impatient at all. He felt it was a great thing that his sister could talk to him normally now.

He put down his pencil and patiently answered each question one by one: "There are a lot of people, forty in my class. I attend a government-run primary school, which is tuition-free, but the competition is fierce. My mother says that if I don't study hard, I won't even be able to get into a decent middle school! The teachers are very strict; they carry a wooden ruler and will hit your palm if you don't write well."

When the topic of hitting the palm came up, Lin Qian subconsciously shrank his neck.

As Lin Ying listened, she got a general idea of ​​what was going on. This was a highly competitive, pragmatic, and stressful social environment where even children from ordinary families were forced to be swept up in this torrent from a young age.

She patted Lin Qian's head and said, "Do your homework properly, I won't bother you anymore."

The next few days.

Lin Lanying took Lin Ying with her when she went to work at the shop. Lin Ying no longer sat obediently in the corner chair, but began to move around the narrow commercial street.

She went to the herbal tea shop across the street to watch the old lady brew the dark, 24-herb soup and listened to the neighbors complaining about how much pork prices had recently gone up.

She went to the newsstand to watch the owner organize the day's newspapers, gleaning information about the times from the traditional Chinese headlines...

She doesn't speak much, she just listens and watches; when a neighbor strikes up a conversation, she greets them politely.

Within a few days, everyone knew that the girl from Lin's Tailor Shop who had been mentally challenged for nine years had recovered. When they saw that she could greet people, they were all amazed and would occasionally give her a piece of candy or a biscuit.

When no one was around outside, Lin Ying sat in the shop, flipping through the textbooks her younger brother, Lin Qian, had used before. Lin Lanying assumed her daughter was looking at the pictures to pass the time and didn't pay any attention to her.

In fact, Lin Ying was quickly familiarizing herself with the writing style and context of this set of traditional Chinese characters, making a perfect connection between her knowledge base from her previous life and the world before her.

Time flies, and the weekend is here in the blink of an eye.

Early in the morning, He Dazhu carried his toolbox out the door. He had taken on an urgent job and couldn't rest today.

Lin Lanying rummaged through drawers and found a pink floral dress with a collar for Lin Ying to change into. She then dressed Lin Qian in a clean collared T-shirt.

"Today I'm taking you to the New Territories to visit your grandparents," Lin Lanying said, combing Lin Ying's hair as she instructed. "When we get to the village, remember to greet everyone. Your grandparents are getting old, and they'll be so happy to see how clever you are now."

Lin Lanying carried two large plastic bags filled with freshly bought roasted pork, fruit, and several boxes of egg rolls. Lin Qian, carrying a small backpack, held Lin Ying's hand as the three of them walked out of the building to wait for the minibus at the street corner.

A red-roofed minibus screeched to a halt in front of them. Lin Lanying helped the two children onto the bus and paid the fare herself.

The minibus started shakily; Lin Ying sat by the window, watching the scenery outside rushing past.

The densely packed high-rise buildings gradually thinned out, and large swathes of green vegetation, low-lying village houses, and distant mountain peaks began to appear on both sides of the road. We drove from the bustling city center into the rural countryside, filled with the scent of earth.

The car stopped at a fork in the road. Lin Lanying, carrying their belongings, led them out of the car.

Walking along a cement road, a large cluster of neatly arranged village houses came into view. At the entrance of the village stood a huge old banyan tree, its shade blocking out the sky.