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

When Lin Ying finished her meal and rushed back to the information building, Engineer Tang was sitting at his workbench looking at his watch.

As soon as she entered, Engineer Tang pushed the scrap board towards her: "Sit down, disassemble it first, then solder it; don't hold the soldering iron like a calligraphy brush, you're not here to write."

Lin Ying sat down, picked up the soldering iron, and began to remove the first solder joint.

Desoldering was more troublesome than she had imagined. The solder melted too slowly, the desoldering pump was not aligned properly, and she almost pulled up the edge of the solder pad.

Engineer Tang, watching from the side, shook his head and said, "Stop."

Lin Ying stopped immediately.

Engineer Tang took the tools and said, "Look carefully, the heating time cannot be too long, your hand must be steady, and the desoldering action must be quick." He demonstrated once, and his movements were neat and the result was perfect.

Lin Ying watched it and started working on it again.

She removed the first ten solder joints very slowly; by the twentieth, her wrists started to ache...

Engineer Tang sat beside her repairing the equipment, occasionally glancing up at her: "Sour?"

"acid."

"normal."

"Teacher Tang, did you practice like this when you learned this?"

"It's worse than yours; my master made me disassemble a whole box of scrapped radios, and after that I had to put them back together. I would get scolded if even one screw was missing."

Lin Ying lowered her head and continued disassembling: "So, is this how you're treating me now a way of passing on the torch?"

"I guess I'm kind."

At 9:40 p.m., she finally finished disassembling the forty solder joints and then soldered them back on.

Engineer Tang used a magnifying glass to inspect the solder joint and pointed out three problems: "This solder joint is too big, this one isn't bright enough, and this one, the pin is cut too long."

Lin Ying rubbed her wrist: "Do we need to redo it?"

"I'll redo half of it tomorrow. I'm going back to sleep now."

Lin Ying picked up her lunchbox and schoolbag and was about to leave when Engineer Tang called her back: "Bring a notebook tomorrow and write down every mistake you make; theory relies on your brain, but skill relies on practice. Don't feel ashamed."

Lin Ying nodded: "I understand."

In the days that followed, Lin Ying attended classes in the morning and either went to the lab or the library to look up information in the afternoon; she went back to her dormitory to do her homework in the evening and had to submit her practice results to Engineer Tang every few days.

Lin Ying also took the time to call home. She now calls home once a week, and her parents aren't as worried about her now that she's not abroad.

Lin Lanying's voice on the other end of the phone was always the same: "How's the food? Are you cold? Do you have enough clothes?"

"It's enough, Mommy, don't worry." Lin Ying sat next to the public phone, people coming and going in the corridor. "The food in the cafeteria here in Beijing is a hundred times better than in England."

"That's good. I was worried you wouldn't be used to it. By the way, your dad asked me to ask you if you can come back at the end of the year?"

"Yes, the school starts winter break on January 12th."

"Then I'll have your dad book the plane tickets in advance." Lin Lanying's voice rang with relief. "Your grandparents have been nagging you about it for years."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Ying went back to her dormitory and wrote a letter to Professor Smith. In the letter, she mentioned the progress of the laboratory, Tang's almost demanding requirements, and several papers on digital signal processing that she had been reading recently.

Smith's reply arrived in Lin Ying's hands about twenty days later. The envelope had a British stamp on it, and the handwriting was still so messy.

"Lynn, you finally understand the gap between theory and practice! Engineer Tang's requirements aren't too demanding; also, stop focusing on those old papers, I've already sent you a copy of the latest findings, remember to sign for it. And, I'm planning to go to Hong Kong for Christmas, if you go back, remember to treat me to dinner. Finally, Matthew's been tied up with lab projects lately, he said if he sees you, please give him his regards."

Lin Ying smiled after reading the letter and put it away.

In early December, it started snowing in Beijing; the heating in the dormitory building was turned on, but the wind still blew through the cracks in the windows.

That day, Sun Miaoshu came in wrapped in a thick coat: "Lin Ying, have you heard?"

"What did you hear?"

"Something's happened in the Soviet Union, lots of people are talking about it! The Soviet Union has collapsed!" Sun Miaoshu sat down on the edge of the bed. "The radio in the cafeteria keeps broadcasting that it's been officially announced."

Lin Ying knew this day would come, but when the time actually arrived, her heart still sank.

Sun Miaoshu noticed her strange expression and asked, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Lin Ying closed her notebook. "I just feel that the international situation will become more complicated in the future."

"You still care about this?"

"My home is in Hong Kong, so I have to care."

Over the next few days, discussions about the Soviet Union were everywhere on campus; some said it was an inevitable historical event, some said it was a Western conspiracy, and others said the world order would be reshaped.

As Lin Ying listened to these words, she thought to herself that the situation in Hong Kong would become increasingly chaotic.

In early January 1992, winter vacation officially began; Lin Ying packed her luggage and boarded a plane back to Hong Kong.

The plane landed at 3 p.m., and Lin Lanying and He Dazhu were waiting at the arrivals gate.

Back at his home in Taikoo City, Lin Qian was engrossed in his homework when he saw Lin Ying enter. He immediately put down his pen and exclaimed, "Big sister! You're finally back! Is it cold in Beijing?"

"It's cold, but the heating's on." Lin Ying took off her coat. "How are your studies?"

"Don't even mention it," Lin Qian said with a bitter face. "Writing legal case analyses is giving me a headache."

"That's the major you chose yourself." Lin Ying sat down on the sofa. "You have to finish writing it even if it gives you a headache."

After resting at home for two days, Claire called: "Lynn, are you free? I'd like to see you."

"Now?"

"Yes, this is my office in Central. Come over here."

Lin Ying changed her clothes and went out, taking the subway to Central; Claire's office was on the twelfth floor of an office building, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the view of Victoria Harbour.

"Sit down." Claire gestured to the chair opposite her. "Let's get down to business."

Lin Ying sat down: "About the account?"

"Yes." Claire opened a report. "The thirty million dollars you took in July seems like a real waste now."

Why?

"Because the US stock market has performed so well in the last six months," Claire said, pushing the report towards her. "If that money had stayed in the account, it would be at least sixty million now."

Lin Ying... it feels like heartbreak;

"It's alright, though. You left fifteen million in the account last time," Claire continued. "That money has now grown to thirty million."

Lin Ying sighed: "I know the market is good, but I need that money to be secured."

"I understand." Claire closed the report. "But Lynn, have you considered that if the market continues to rise like this, you might miss an even bigger opportunity?"

"I'm not gambling on that opportunity." Lin Ying looked at her. "Claire, no matter how much money you have in the stock market, it's just numbers in an account. What I want is something I can hold in my hands."

The two chatted for a while about the account details, when Claire's boss came to her office, and Lin Ying immediately got up to say goodbye.

After leaving the office building, Lin Ying went to a phone booth and called Professor Smith. "Edward, have you arrived in Hong Kong yet?"

"We're here, at the Peninsula Hotel." Smith's voice was as strong as ever. "Lynn, when are you free? I'd like to invite you to dinner."

"I should be the one treating you to dinner," Lin Ying said. "Let's do it tonight, I'll make a reservation."

"Okay, I'll bring Elaine and Claire along."

Lin Ying booked the most luxurious hotel restaurant in Hong Kong.

At 7 p.m., Lin Ying arrived at the hotel on time; the Smith family was already waiting in the private room.

"Lynn!" Smith stood up and gave her a hug. "Long time no see!"

"Professor, it's been a long time," Lin Ying replied with a smile, then greeted Elaine and Claire.

"Why don't I see Matthew?" Lin Ying asked.

Smith said somewhat helplessly, "Speaking of which, I have some bad news for you."

"What news?"

"Matthew can't leave the UK now; the project he's involved in has been upgraded. Now all his exit applications are blocked."

Lin Ying was taken aback: "His research involves sensitive areas?"

"Yes." Smith nodded. "I can't go into too much detail, but you should be able to guess."

Lin Ying understood that Matthew was a physicist, and the project that could prevent him from leaving the country must be of a serious nature.

"That's such a pity," Lin Ying said. "There are so many delicious foods in Hong Kong, and he won't be able to eat any of them."

Smith laughed: "That's what he regrets most. He asked me to tell you to focus on your studies during this time."

"Received, please thank him for me." Lin Ying picked up her teacup. "And wish him all the best."

Elaine spoke up from the side, "Lynn, are you settling in well in Beijing?"

"I'm used to it. The teachers there are all very nice, but the requirements for the lab classes are a bit strict."

Claire asked, "How strict is it?"

"I soldered forty points, then took it apart and soldered it again, then took it apart again." Lin Ying shrugged. "My hand aches whenever I see a soldering iron now."

Smith laughed: "Now that's real engineering training! Lynn, you finally understand the difference between theory and practice."

"I understand that now," Lin Ying said. "But Engineer Tang is right. If you don't master the basics, you won't be able to handle complex equipment in the future."

"That Engineer Tang is a good teacher," Smith said. "You should learn from him."

The meal lasted for more than two hours; Smith praised the Hong Kong cuisine highly, and Elaine was also very satisfied with her meal; Claire, on the other hand, didn't talk much and spent most of the time listening to their conversation.

As he was leaving, Smith patted Lin Ying on the shoulder: "Lynn, graduating in June was definitely the right decision. The situation in the UK is much more complicated now than when you were here."

"I know we've troubled the professor's family over the years."

"Work hard, and if you need any help in the future, feel free to write to me."

"Thank you, Professor."

After seeing the Smith family off, Lin Ying stood at the hotel entrance, looking at the lights across Victoria Harbour.

Matthew can't come back. The Soviet Union has collapsed, and the gears of the world are turning in a direction that is both familiar and unfamiliar to her.