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

By the end of October, the weather at Boya Academy had turned completely cool.

As soon as the bell rang for morning self-study, no one in Class 1 of Grade 1 dared to bury themselves in their homework anymore. Zhou Yawen walked into the classroom in her high heels and stood by the podium: "Tang Xueqi."

Tang Xueqi, who was sitting in the first row, stood up, her face filled with despair.

Zhou Yawen: "Blackboard, library, responsibility. Write those three words down."

Tang Xueqi held the chalk and slowly walked to the blackboard.

Lin Ying sat in the third row, looking down at her English textbook, her eyes glancing at the black handbag next to the podium.

It has been more than half a month since I last pointed out at my home in Taikoo Shing that "Night Taboo" sold for a loss.

At the time, Zhou Yawen said she would bring some manuscripts to see her the next day. Lin Ying did not let her rush to see Su Zhihao. Instead, she told her to organize and file all the manuscripts, serial clippings, and reply slips first. If she had time, she should go to the film and television companies outside to inquire about the market and get a feel for things.

For the past two weeks, Zhou Yawen has remained unchanged at school. She still conducts dictation tests as usual, deducts points as required, and makes anyone who talks during morning self-study stay after lunch break to make up for the dictation. The girls in her class still secretly call her "Zhou the Skinflint."

Only Lin Ying knew that Zhou Yawen had been carrying a bag stuffed with old contracts and manuscripts as she ran out after class lately.

At 3:30 p.m., the last class ended, and the students began packing their bags.

Zhou Yawen stood at the door, waiting for Lin Ying to come out before saying, "Lin Ying, please stay for a moment."

Tang Xueqi had just slung her backpack over her shoulder when she heard this and gave Lin Ying a sympathetic look.

After most of the students had left the corridor, Zhou Yawen led Lin Ying to a sheltered spot at the corner of the stairs on the second floor.

She glanced around to make sure no one was watching before clearing her throat and saying, "Lin Ying."

"teacher."

"Well..." Zhou Yawen said somewhat awkwardly, "Could you act as a mediator and introduce my other scripts to Su Zhihao and me? See if there's any hope of revisions?"

Lin Ying was a little surprised. Just half a month ago, Zhou Yawen was calling Su Zhihao a "scoundrel" and a "profiteer."

"Teacher, why are you thinking about Uncle Su again?" Lin Ying asked.

Zhou Yawen's face darkened further: "During this time, I listened to you, took the properly filed catalog, and went to meet with several investors who were touting their abilities to the skies."

Zhou Yawen cursed directly, "These bastards! Each one of them is more ruthless than the last!"

She got angrier and angrier as she spoke: "There's this guy surnamed Ma who supposedly owns two companies in Kowloon. He heard that I have some suspense novels, and he was smoking a cigar in a very smug way. He just said he'd buy out one for 50,000 yuan."

Lin Ying was stunned: "Fifty thousand?"

"Yes, fifty thousand!" Zhou Yawen sneered. "Not only fifty thousand, but he's not just buying the TV adaptation rights. He wants all the rights! Movies, TV shows, videotapes, overseas distribution, even priority rights to characters in sequels—he wants to bundle everything into that fifty thousand! Is he trying to fob me off?"

Lin Ying felt that these capitalists' eating habits were even worse than Su Zhihao's.

Zhou Yawen gritted her teeth and continued to complain: "There's something even more outrageous! They said that it's already a favor that someone would be willing to film something written by a female teacher like me. They can give me credit, but they absolutely cannot guarantee it in the opening credits, and the small print at the end will just be mixed in with the production crew credits and that's considered credit."

Lin Ying was speechless; it was simply treating writers like fools.

Zhou Yawen looked at Lin Ying and confided, "There was another middleman who claimed to be from a major newspaper. He was all about introducing me to a big boss. But the first thing he asked was if I could leave my manuscript with him so he could take it to the boss for me to see."

Lin Ying asked, "Did you give it to me?"

"Am I crazy?" Zhou Yawen glared at her. "The manuscript was out of my possession, and there wasn't even a confidentiality agreement. Who am I going to complain to if it gets confiscated? I'm not stupid anymore!"

Lin Ying exclaimed, "These capitalists are truly ruthless and heartless!"

Zhou Yawen said helplessly, "Now I understand. Su Zhihao is a cunning businessman who tries to drive down prices, but at least he has some shame. He presents a contract, brings a lawyer, and clearly defines the ownership of rights. Those people outside, who try to fool us with contracts, are just a bunch of bandits trying to get something for nothing."

Lin Ying understood.

She only realized after running into a lot of obstacles that Hong Kong was a very chaotic place. Although Su Zhihao tried to negotiate the price down to 130,000, at least he followed the rules and didn't do anything reckless.

"Which books does the teacher want him to read?" Lin Ying got straight to the point.

Zhou Yawen took a piece of paper out of her handbag and handed it to her.

Lin Ying took it and looked at it. Three book titles were clearly written on it.

The sound of rain in the old building.

The Thirteenth Letter.

The Silent Witness.

When Lin Ying saw the last name, she was somewhat surprised: "This one too?"

Zhou Yawen looked at her: "This is the best one. I'm counting on it to buy me a house."

"Okay." Lin Ying folded the paper and handed it back to her. "I'll arrange a meeting for you with Uncle Su this Saturday. The location will still be my home in Taikoo Shing. Will you be bringing an agent?"

Zhou Yawen hesitated for a moment: "My agent has some family matters to attend to recently, and may not be available on Saturday; this is just to introduce the book and discuss the intention, not to formally sign a contract and finalize the price."

"That's fine then," Lin Ying said. "But let's make it clear first, I'm just a middleman. I'll help you schedule a time and organize the materials, but I won't quote a price for you or help Su Zhihao negotiate a lower price. I won't get involved in any copyright revenue sharing."

Zhou Yawen looked at her: "You've managed to distance yourself so cleanly."

"You need to be clear about the relationship," Lin Ying said. "At school, you're my homeroom teacher. Outside of school, Uncle Su is a business partner in my film. If I sit at the table and try to negotiate his price for you, or try to pressure you to pay more, we won't be able to work together in the future."

Zhou Yawen was silent for a few seconds, then nodded in agreement: "Yes."

Zhou Yawen then turned and left, satisfied.

On Friday evening, Lin Ying sat in her study in Taikoo City, the computer screen still dimly lit. She picked up the landline and dialed Su Zhihao's number.

The phone rang only twice before it was answered: "Ah Ying? Do you have any new ideas for the storyboard outline of 'Night Taboo'?"

Lin Ying: "That's basically sorted out. Second Uncle, are you free Saturday afternoon?"

Su Zhihao perked up: "What? Do you want to talk in person?"

"We have something to discuss," Lin Ying said, "but it's not just about 'Night Taboo.' Teacher Night Returner has other scripts and would like to see if there's any hope for further collaboration."

Su Zhihao immediately asked excitedly, "Are there any other notebooks?"

"Um."

"How many?"

"She'll have to say it herself."

Su Zhihao asked impatiently, "Aying, tell your second uncle first. Is it something on par with 'Night Taboo'?"

Lin Ying thought for a moment: "I haven't read the whole draft yet, so I can't say anything rash. But the subject matter and structure should be quite suitable for prime time on TV now."

Su Zhihao said, "Saturday afternoon, what time? Taikoo Shing, right? I'll ask Lawyer Zhang to come with me right away!"

"Don't bring a lawyer yet," Lin Ying stopped him. "This time we're just looking at the draft, not signing a contract or setting a price."

Su Zhihao also realized that the previous buyout offer of 130,000 was indeed a bit stingy: "Okay, then I'll come alone first. I'll just bring a driver and wait for me in the car downstairs."

"Two o'clock in the afternoon, on time."

"I'll definitely be there."

At 1:30 pm on Saturday, Lin Lanying knew that there was serious business to discuss at home, so she specially prepared a fruit platter and brewed a pot of fine Pu'er tea.

After Lin Ying explained the whole story, she only gave her one piece of advice: "Is it your homeroom teacher, Mr. Zhou, who makes you copy words every day? The teacher is coming to our house to talk about serious matters, so don't be too disrespectful."

Lin Ying nodded: "I know, Mommy."

At 1:50, the doorbell rang; Zhou Yawen arrived first.

She wasn't wearing her school uniform today; instead, she wore a dark long skirt with a beige cardigan over it, carried a black leather bag, and had her hair piled up high, looking very capable.

As soon as she entered, she greeted Lin Lanying, saying, "Mrs. Lin, I'm sorry to bother you today."

Lin Lanying smiled and invited her in: "Teacher Zhou, you're too kind. Aying is doing very well at school, thanks to you for keeping an eye on things."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yawen thought, "She's taking care of Lin Ying? I should be thanking my lucky stars that this eleven-year-old student isn't teaching her manners instead."

Zhou Yawen changed her shoes and placed her purse beside the sofa. The first thing she did after sitting down was to take out three document folders from her purse and arrange them neatly on the mahogany coffee table.

Each file folder had a white sheet of paper pasted on its cover, with the book title, completion date, word count, and copyright information written in pen.

At 2:00 PM sharp, the doorbell rang again, and Su Zhihao arrived.

He was wearing a navy blue suit today, and as soon as he entered, he greeted Lin Lanying with a big smile: "Mrs. Lin, I'm sorry to bother you again today."

"Mr. Su, you're too kind. You two can talk business. I'll go check on the soup in the kitchen." Lin Lanying handed over some tea and tactfully vacated the living room.

Su Zhihao sat down on the single sofa, his eyes immediately falling on the three file folders on the coffee table: "Teacher Zhou."

"Boss Su."

The two exchanged a glance.

One person was thinking: "I got a good deal on that 130,000 yuan purchase back then. I wonder if I can get a good deal this time too."

Another person was thinking: This unscrupulous merchant ripped me off, but other merchants are even worse than him!