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

"So, they were just reminding you to keep an eye on your luggage?"

"Hmm." Lin Ying sat down again, wrapping the canvas bag strap tightly around her wrist twice. "It's very practical."

Matthew chuckled as he held his hot coffee: "The way you Chinese greet each other is quite direct. I thought when you meet fellow countrymen, you'd chat about the weather back home."

"When you're out and about, it's better to be direct." Lin Ying had just finished speaking when a scream suddenly came from not far away.

The noisy conversations in the waiting hall stopped for a moment, followed by a muffled bang as an entire row of connected metal chairs was violently overturned, suitcases rolled to the ground, and the crisp sound of shattering glasses filled the air.

"Run! Oh my god! Run!" someone shouted hoarsely in broken English.

Matthew: "Lynn!"

Lin Ying reacted faster than him; she didn't even look at what the thug looked like. Her first reaction was to grab her bag tightly and use her other hand to grab Matthew's trench coat sleeve, forcefully dragging him behind the thick load-bearing pillar next to her.

The instant they left their seats, three men rushed out of the crowd, wielding long knives, and began slashing and stabbing indiscriminately at the nearest passengers.

A middle-aged man in a suit had his shoulder slashed open, and blood gushed out instantly; a woman holding a child screamed and fell to the ground next to him, and another person was knocked to the ground...

The entire waiting area instantly turned into a hellish scene, descending into chaos; within seconds, seven or eight people were injured and collapsed in succession.

Matthew's legs felt weak, and he instinctively tried to pull Lin Ying behind him: "Let's go towards the security checkpoint! Quick!"

"Don't move!" Lin Ying grabbed him. "The crowd is all rushing towards the security checkpoint. If a stampede happens, you'll be trampled to death!"

Before she finished speaking, the group of Chinese soldiers had already moved.

The young officer at the front reacted with lightning speed, grabbing a pack of trousers from beside him: "Get down! Move to the wall!"

His standard Mandarin stood out clearly and powerfully amidst the screams and cries of English speakers.

The man with the knife went berserk and swung it wildly; a soldier held up his thick military pack with both hands to block it, and the blade cut through the rough canvas, revealing the clothes inside.

Another soldier lunged forward from the side, grabbing the other man's arm that was holding the knife, and with a swift sweeping kick, slammed him hard to the ground.

The young officer spotted Lin Ying and Matthew hiding behind the load-bearing pillar.

He pointed in their direction and shouted, "Don't come out! Crouch down against the wall!"

Without saying a word, Lin Ying pulled Matthew down to squat against the wall.

Matthew finally came to his senses: "They have no weapons! How dare they charge in like that?"

At that moment, the second knife-wielder turned his head, his eyes filled with madness, and charged straight towards them.

Lin Ying's heart sank. In an instant, the words that Granny Wu had said with her eyes closed when she sat in the old tenement building in Yau Ma Tei flashed through her mind.

"The second death calamity... I can't see it."

Lin Ying finally understood why the sorceress couldn't see it! This wasn't a carefully planned murder, nor was it a conspiracy that could be thwarted by gathering intelligence beforehand, and it had no cause and effect! It came too suddenly, too chaotically, without cause and effect, without any warning; therefore, it couldn't be calculated or seen.

As the knife drew closer, Matthew instinctively tried to stand up and shield her.

Lin Ying grabbed his shoulder and said, "Don't make things worse!"

The next second, the young officer suddenly appeared from the side with incredible speed, kicking over a heavy metal trash can. The trash can scraped against the ground with a screeching sound and slammed into the knife-wielder's shin, causing him to stagger in pain.

Taking advantage of the less than half-second gap, the officer pounced like a cheetah, precisely grabbing the other's wrist with his left hand and twisting it backward.

With a "clang," the long sword fell to the ground, making a crisp sound.

The two soldiers who followed immediately rushed forward, clamping down on the assailant's limbs from both sides and subduing him.

Only after the crisis had passed did the young officer turn back to look at them, slightly out of breath: "Are you injured?"

Lin Ying shook her head: "No."

Matthew stammered, "No, no injury."

The young officer didn't look at them much, pointed to the corner of the wall and said, "Stay there and don't wander off." After saying that, he immediately turned around to support other positions.

Five minutes passed before British airport security personnel arrived in formation with riot control equipment, followed by police and medical personnel who arrived late. The loudspeaker repeatedly announced in English that all passengers should remain where they were, stay calm, and cooperate with the inspection.

But the hall was far from calm. Some people broke down in tears, some screamed for a doctor, and some pressed torn pieces of clothing against their family members' wounds; the floor was covered in blood, and overturned suitcases were trampled and deformed...

Matthew looked at the group of Chinese soldiers who had retreated to the side: "If it weren't for them..."

Lin Ying also looked at the group of soldiers; several soldiers had injuries, and the soldier who had used his backpack to block the knife had a deep cut on the back of his hand, which was being bandaged by his comrades with a first aid kit.

The young officer was standing next to the British policeman, assisting with the explanation.

Shortly after, the British authorities sealed off the entire boarding gate area; all passengers were required to queue again to verify their identities, and all carry-on luggage had to go through security checks again; medical personnel took the injured passengers away, and airport staff cleaned up the mess on the ground while repeatedly apologizing to the frightened passengers.

Matthew went to check with the airline to confirm the flight status, and when he returned, his face was still grim: "It's delayed by half an hour; they're going to do a mine-clearing security check on everyone again."

"Half an hour is already very good." Lin Ying stood up, her legs were a little weak but she could still walk. "I thought I wouldn't be able to walk today."

Matthew looked at her: "After something like this, you still want to fly? Don't you need to stay and get some psychological counseling? This is insane."

"Matthew, what I need most right now is to fly back to Hong Kong immediately and have a bowl of hot soup noodles."

As Lin Ying rejoined the security checkpoint, she happened to pass by the group of soldiers.

Lin Ying said solemnly in Mandarin, "Thank you for what you did earlier."

The officer glanced at her and said, "It's alright, as long as you're not hurt."

The soldier whose hand was bandaged smiled at her and said, "Female student, don't tell your family any scary details when you get home, or your mother won't be able to sleep at night."

Lin Ying smiled, but her smile was somewhat bitter: "I'm afraid I can't hide it anymore. The flight is delayed, and my family will definitely ask."

The officer carefully put away the documents in his hand: "Then tell them the truth, tell them you're being protected by your own people."

Lin Ying nodded vigorously: "Okay, I will."

The boarding announcement finally came on again.

Lin Ying and Matthew parted ways at the boarding gate. Matthew handed her her passport holder back, saying, "Make sure to call me when you get there. Don't forget your friends in England just because you're back in Hong Kong."

No, it won't.