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

On Monday morning, Lin Ying arrived in São Paulo fifteen minutes earlier than usual.

Principal Liang took the class transfer application form from Lin Ying, saw the parents' signatures at the bottom, and said nothing more.

He signed his name at the bottom, then picked up the red official seal next to him and pressed it hard onto the paper.

"Starting today, you will be going to Class 1, Grade 5 for a trial period." Principal Liang put the form into the file folder and looked at Lin Ying.

Inspector Luo, who had been standing to the side, already held Lin Ying's original paper student file in his hand. He looked down at the girl and asked, "Did you bring all your schoolbags?"

"Everything's ready, Officer Law."

"Let's go then."

Lin Ying followed Luo Sir out of the administration building; the school bell hadn't rung yet, and the morning sunlight slanted across the second-floor corridor.

As I passed by the door of Class 1, Grade 4, there were already students talking inside.

Tang Shiya was sitting in her seat, head down, organizing her general knowledge exercise book; at that moment, she was unaware that Lin Ying would not be sitting in the seat next to her today.

Inspector Law did not stop walking.

Class 1 of Grade 5 is on the third floor. With the pressure of entering middle school approaching, the third floor is noticeably quieter than the noisy fourth-grade floor.

Mr. Luo walked to the door of Class 1, Grade 5 and knocked on the door.

The classroom was already more than half full. A female teacher in her forties, wearing a gray suit, stood in front of the podium, holding a roll call list in her hand.

"Teacher Chen, Lin Ying has arrived," said Inspector Luo.

The female teacher nodded: "Thank you, Mr. Luo."

Luo Sir patted Lin Ying on the shoulder one last time: "Go in."

Lin Ying walked into the classroom with her schoolbag on her back.

The moment she stepped across the threshold, everyone in the classroom turned their attention to her.

Teacher Chen slammed the attendance book shut.

"Dear students, starting today, we will have one more student in Class 1 of Grade 5 on a trial basis. Lin Ying was originally a student in Class 1 of Grade 4. Because her grades in all subjects and the teachers' overall assessment have met the school's special grade adjustment standards, she will temporarily attend classes with us in Class 1 of Grade 5 starting today."

"After the final exams, the school will decide whether she will officially advance to the sixth grade based on her grades."

Then, soft, rustling sounds came from below the podium.

"Did he jump up from fourth grade?"

"Is that the guy who makes a fortune writing movie scripts?"

"Isn't she only in fourth grade? I heard she's only ten years old."

"How come the student who got first place in the whole grade last month's exam is now in our fifth grade?"

Teacher Chen clapped her hands: "Quiet down."

The whole class immediately fell silent.

Teacher Chen then turned to Lin Ying and said, "Please briefly introduce yourself to everyone."

Lin Ying stood by the podium, not at all nervous: "Hello everyone, my name is Lin Ying, and I used to be in Class 1 of Grade 4. I hope you will all guide me in the future."

"Go sit in the empty seat in the first row," Teacher Chen pointed.

Lin Ying walked over with her schoolbag on her back, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

The morning reading bell rang, and Lin Ying opened the textbooks that had just been handed out. The fifth-grade textbooks were much thicker than the fourth-grade ones, with longer Chinese texts and longer English reading passages containing unfamiliar vocabulary.

In math class:

"Turn to page 30. This complex word problem doesn't need further explanation of basic logic. Look at the conditions and write the equation." Teacher Chen's chalk clattered on the blackboard as he went straight to the final exam point.

Lin Ying took out her pen, opened her notebook, and began copying.

Fifth-grade teachers assume students have self-learning and comprehension abilities and will not explain each basic concept in detail as they would in fourth grade. The pace of class is faster and the amount of practice is greater.

Even after the bell rang, Ms. Chen didn't linger. While tidying up her lesson plans, she said, "Before the next class, finish questions five through ten after class. Class monitor, collect them all."

After saying that, Teacher Chen walked out of the classroom.

No one ran out of the classroom to chase or play around. The vast majority of students immediately buried their heads in their scratch paper and started working on the problems. Only a few people whispered and discussed the steps with each other.

Lin Ying immediately took out her exercise book as well.

The morning classes went on one after another.

Lin Ying had no extra time to recall the pace of fourth grade, nor to adapt to these so-called new classmates.

It wasn't until after lunch, during the break before the first class in the afternoon, that she managed to take ten minutes to quickly go downstairs to Class 1 of Grade 4 on the second floor.

The fourth grade, Class 1 had just finished lunch, and the classroom was noisy; several boys were chasing each other in the aisle, throwing paper balls at each other.

When Lin Ying appeared at the classroom door, the boy in the front row wearing round-framed glasses called out first, "Lin Ying!"

Tang Shiya was slumped over the table, lost in thought. Hearing the shout, she rushed to Lin Ying and asked, "You...really went to fifth grade today?"

"Okay." Lin Ying nodded and walked to her original seat.

The name tag on the table hasn't been removed yet.

Tang Shiya looked at the name tag: "Why didn't you say anything? Our whole class didn't even have a chance to say goodbye to you."

Lin Ying reached into the old drawer and took out the remaining old draft notebook. "It was only finalized this morning. Actually, it's not really a farewell; I'm just moving to a different floor for classes."

Tang Shiya lowered her head: "But you won't be in our class anymore. There will be no one to help me highlight the key points for the questions I don't understand."

Lin Ying knew that Tang Shiya had never been a good fit for the group at school. Because of her family's mediocre economic situation, she was always intentionally or unintentionally ostracized by the groups of girls who dressed in expensive clothes. She was used to bowing her head, giving way, and swallowing all her grievances and resentment.

Lin Ying said, "Tang Shiya, we've only met at this stage. If fate allows, we'll naturally come together again in the future."

Tang Shiya raised her head in a daze.

Lin Ying advised, "You need to pay more attention to your future exams. Your biggest problem with general knowledge isn't that you don't know the answers, but that you hesitate and write too slowly. Before the next exam, look at the point values ​​first, do the higher-scoring questions first, and don't hesitate repeatedly on the more 10-point multiple-choice questions."

Tang Shiya nodded vigorously: "I've remembered everything."

Lin Ying looked at the easily tearful little girl in front of her: "Tang Shiya, you need to learn to be braver, to be yourself confidently and courageously, and not always live in the eyes of others. Just because someone doesn't like you doesn't mean you've done anything wrong. You need to stand firm first, understand?"

Hearing these words, Tang Shiya's long-suppressed grievances and self-doubt seemed to dissipate at that moment.

She wanted to say something, but in the end, she only asked, "Then... then, can I still go to the third floor to ask you questions in the future?"

"Okay," Lin Ying smiled, "but think about it yourself first. If you really can't figure it out, then come and ask."

Tang Shiya smiled, but tears streamed down her cheeks.

------

Over the next two months, Lin Ying fully immersed herself in the rhythm of Class 1, Grade 5.

The isolation or provocation that Inspector Luo had worried about did not happen at all.

Everyone is just too busy.

With the final exams approaching, it's a crucial time that will determine whether a student can enter the advanced class in sixth grade.

In addition to memorizing long English articles during morning reading, Chinese class requires writing essays in class, math class progresses to word problems beyond the syllabus, and general knowledge teachers also come into the classroom after lunch to supplement physics and other science content.

After school, almost every class has their own interest courses and elective courses.

There was simply no time for them to form cliques, let alone spend their days gossiping about a student who skipped a grade.

The strict teacher, Ms. Chen, was even more demanding of Lin Ying.

In the first surprise quiz in class, Lin Ying got a perfect score in math and lost only one point in Chinese. Teacher Chen slammed the test paper on Lin Ying's desk: "Your handwriting could be a little more steady; the strokes are a bit messy. You're not in fourth grade anymore; the requirements for neatness on your test paper have increased."

"Understood, Teacher Chen." Lin Ying immediately picked up her pen to make the corrections.

Life went on under this pressure, day after day.

The light in that small bedroom in Yufa Building stayed on late into the night every night.

Lin Lanying was heartbroken and began to firmly establish rules at the dinner table: "Lights out and you must be asleep by 10 p.m.! We can afford to feed you no matter how little we earn. Skipping a grade isn't about sacrificing your health!"

The final exams came unusually quickly.

São Paulo's final exams this year were graded using four levels: A, B, C, and D.

On the afternoon the exams ended, a light rain started to fall outside. In the fifth-grade classroom, no one dared to speak loudly.

a few days later.

Teacher Chen walked into the classroom carrying a stack of report cards.

Standing on the podium, Ms. Chen, with a stern face, reviewed the class's overall performance from beginning to end. Then she opened another file folder that was tucked away separately.

"Lin Ying".

Lin Ying immediately stood up.

Teacher Chen looked at the report card: "Chinese, A. English, A. Mathematics, A. General Knowledge, A. Overall Grade: A."

All four subjects were rated A.

Teacher Chen took a document stamped with the Academic Affairs Office seal from the file folder and put it on Lin Ying's desk.

"The school's comprehensive evaluation has been officially approved." Teacher Chen looked at her, a slight smile appearing on her usually stern face. "Your student record will be officially adjusted by the administration office before the summer vacation. When the fall semester starts in September, you won't have to go back to fifth grade; you'll go directly into sixth grade."

Lin Ying accepted the documents with both hands and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your guidance over the past two months, Teacher Chen."

Ms. Chen's tone remained stern: "Sixth grade isn't the end; it's the most brutal year before middle school placement. Don't let your guard down during the holidays, understand?"

"I see."

After the final grades are released, according to São Paulo's rules, the school will have another week of general education classes before the official summer vacation begins.

This week, Lin Ying's schedule finally became a little more relaxed.

The fifth-grade students' attitudes toward her also changed. No one talked about her skipping a grade anymore, and everyone saw her academic level with their own eyes.

During breaks, students started coming over with their exercise books to ask about math problem-solving strategies or techniques for identifying subjects, verbs, and objects in English reading comprehension. Some, unable to contain their curiosity, even whispered inquiries about movie profit sharing.

Lin Ying gave a standard answer: "You can ask about textbook questions, but I don't know about the movie."

She genuinely doesn't know.

"Die in the Light" was a hit in midnight screenings and had a high box office, but Su Zhihao still had to settle accounts with various investors and hadn't received any definite news on how much money he had made.

Until Thursday afternoon.

Lin Ying left school early and returned to Lin's Tailor Shop with her schoolbag on her back.

The shop was bustling with activity. Lin Lanying, with a soft measuring tape around her neck, was measuring the waist of a plump woman. He Dazhu sat in the corner, grinding scraps of jade for carving.

The old-fashioned rotary dial telephone on the counter suddenly rang, "Ring ring ring!"

Lin Lanying held a piece of chalk in her hand and drew lines: "Sister, go answer the phone. See if it's the old lady from the New Territories calling."

Lin Ying walked over and picked up the microphone: "Hello, Lin's Tailor."

Su Zhihao's loud voice immediately came from the other end of the phone, "Hahahaha! Aying!"

Lin Ying immediately recognized the voice: "Second Uncle?"

"Is school over yet?" Su Zhihao cleared his throat, seemingly trying to sound like a composed and mature investor on the phone, but...

"Just arrived at the shop."

Su Zhihao chuckled on the other end of the phone, "Are you free tonight?"

Lin Ying's fingers tapped on the edge of the counter: "Second Uncle, is something wrong?"

Su Zhihao immediately shouted, "Hurry up and share the money!"

Lin Ying raised her head, her gaze passing over the shelf and landing on Lin Lanying, who was taking measurements.

Lin Lanying had obviously heard the sound of her daughter's microphone; she stopped what she was doing and turned her head.

On the other end of the phone, Su Zhihao continued loudly, "Bring your mother along! I've already had a car ready. The lawyer, detailed account books, and cash checks are all laid out on the table in the main room!"

Lin Ying gripped the receiver tightly: "Okay, we'll be right there." She hung up the phone.

Lin Lanying walked over and asked suspiciously, "Was that Uncle Su calling? Why was he in such a hurry?"

Lin Ying whispered in Lin Lanying's ear, "Mommy, the revenue sharing for the theaters has been finalized."

Lin Lanying ripped the measuring tape off her neck and tossed it onto the tailor's table beside her. Turning to the well-to-do lady who was still waiting for her measurements, she said, "Mrs. Wang, I'm sorry, you can come back to pick up this dress tomorrow."

The customer was somewhat displeased: "Mrs. Lin, didn't you just say the goods would be ready to ship tonight?"

Lin Lanying deftly turned off the sewing machine, grabbed the leather bag from the back of the chair, and said, "I'll give you a 30% discount tomorrow! It's really not possible tonight."