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

Before dinner, He Dazhu returned from grocery shopping.

He was carrying two large bags in each hand, and his first words upon entering were, "Sister, Dad bought apples, oranges, eggs, and fish."

Lin Ying sat on the sofa looking at her pregnancy handbook: "Dou, are you buying groceries or preparing to open a shop?"

"Your mom said to buy fresh things, so I bought a little bit of everything. The fishmonger even asked if we were having a banquet at home." He Dazhu put the bag on the dining table. "I was very obedient and didn't even stop when the health supplement counter passed by."

At seven o'clock in the evening, the food was set on the table: fish soup, two stir-fried vegetables, and steamed eggs... The chili sauce that Lin Ying usually liked to eat was put away in the cupboard, and only salt and soy sauce were left on the table.

Lin Ying picked up her chopsticks: "Mommy, I really don't need it to be so bland."

Lin Lanying served her soup directly: "Have a couple of sips first. The doctor said to maintain a balanced diet, not that you should eat spicy or greasy food."

He Dazhu chimed in from the side, "That's right, let's eat like this for today."

After finishing her meal, Lin Ying went back to her study alone and dialed the phone number of the old house in the New Territories. Grandma Li Yuzhen answered the phone.

"Grandma, it's me. I've already eaten." Lin Ying glanced at the half-open door to the study, where Lin Lanying was standing outside with a fruit platter... Lin Ying simply pressed speakerphone.

"Ah Ying, why are you calling at this hour? Is something wrong at the factory again?" Lin Fu's voice came through.

Lin Ying: "Grandpa, it's not about the factory; I'm pregnant. I went to the hospital today to check that I'm seven weeks along, and my due date is next August."

"Say that again?!"

Lin Ying repeated it again.

"Great! Great! That's wonderful!" Lin Fu shouted into the house, "Ah Zhen, come here! Ah Ying is pregnant! She's seven weeks along!"

Li Yuzhen immediately went to the phone: "Really? You must have heard me right!"

"I'm not deaf!" Lin Fu held the microphone closer again: "What did the doctor say? Do I need to stay in bed? Is there anything wrong with your body?"

Lin Ying patiently replied, "I don't feel uncomfortable. The doctor said I just need to attend my prenatal checkups on time and get plenty of rest."

"That's good, that's good." Lin Fu breathed a sigh of relief. "Aying, you have to listen to the doctor; whatever you need to hand over, like the factory or the money, just hand it over! You've always been strong-willed since you were little, but now that you're pregnant, you can't tough it out like before."

Upon hearing this, Lin Lanying outside the door immediately nodded; she had found an ally.

Lin Ying said helplessly, "Grandpa, Mommy is listening at the door. You don't need to attack from both sides."

"Let her listen! If she goes too far, tell me, and I'll scold her!" Lin Fu snorted.

Lin Lanying called from the doorway, "Father, I heard you!"

Lin Fu: "That's good to hear! You can take care of her, but don't scare her every day; you can read the manual, but don't treat it like a royal decree! Pregnant women need to be in a good mood!"

He Dazhu chimed in quietly from the study doorway, "Father, Lanying is actually alright today."

"Dazhu, listen to me! Don't believe the folk remedies from the neighbors, just do whatever the doctor says!" Lin Fu's voice suddenly softened: "Sister, you were mentally challenged for the first nine years. Your grandma and I worried every day about what would happen to this child. Then you woke up and worked hard to study, earn money, and start a factory. You progressed too fast, so fast that we could only stand behind and watch you."

"Grandpa is getting old, and he was always worried that you would carry everything on your own and not leave yourself a way out; now it's all right, you have your own child, so when your grandma and I pass away one day, we can rest easy."

Lin Ying felt a lump in her throat: "Grandpa, you and Grandma are destined to live to be a hundred years old. Don't keep talking about whether you're going to leave or not."

Lin Fu chuckled, "I'd love to too. Living to a hundred means I can worry about things for years to come. Alright, that's all for today. Aying, you should get some rest."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Lanying brought in a fruit platter, while He Dazhu was dismissed with a glance to wash the dishes.

Lin Ying ate an orange and casually dialed Wen Xu's number, but no one answered.

She wasn't surprised; Wen Xu's job had always been like this, and being able to contact him was just luck.

The next morning, Lin Fu and Li Yuzhen arrived at Kadoorie Hill.

As soon as Li Yuzhen entered, she grabbed Lin Ying's hand and looked her up and down: "Have you lost weight? Is your appetite good?"

"Grandma, it's only seven weeks, there's no reaction yet," Lin Ying said with a smile.

"Does Wen Xu know about this?" Li Yuzhen asked.

"I couldn't get through last night."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Lin Ying's phone rang; she glanced at the number on the screen and thought, "Speak of the devil, and he appears."

Under the simultaneous gaze of four pairs of eyes, Lin Ying answered the phone: "Feed?"

"It's me," a gentle voice came through. "I just finished a set of data and called during a break."

Lin Ying glanced at the four parents sitting upright in the living room, then turned and walked to the garden: "Wen Xu, I have something to tell you; I'm pregnant, seven weeks along, and my due date is in mid-August next year."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

Lin Ying waited patiently.

Then Wenxu asked, "Seven weeks? Which days in November?"

Lin Ying smiled: "Yes."

Wen Xu asked excitedly, "How are you feeling? Which hospital? Send me a copy of the report."

"Mr. Wen, can you understand obstetrics and gynecology reports?"

"If you don't understand, I'll learn it now! Has your workload been reduced? You're not going on long business trips anymore, right?"

Just as I expected! She said softly, "It's been arranged; someone at the factory is keeping an eye on it."

He let out a long sigh of relief: "I'm so happy."

"Me too." Lin Ying's ears felt slightly warm.

"I will tell my family about this," Wen Xu said decisively.

"What did you say?"

"Just tell them you're already married, your wife is seven weeks pregnant, and don't introduce me to any more potential partners."

Lin Ying was stunned: "We're not married. You're lying to your parents?"

"It's not lying, it's just simplifying the information transmission process." Wen Xu said confidently, "If I explain that I'm not getting married but have a child, my mother can interrogate me for three hours on the phone; besides, the child has your surname Lin, I will make it clear to them that I have many grandchildren and grandchildren in my family, and I don't need anyone with the surname Wen. I just want them to know that I have a daughter."

Lin Ying shook her head and chuckled, "You're really brave. Is your mom very formidable?"

"She's being overly enthusiastic! Last time she sent six photos for a blind date, and I didn't even open the envelope! If this isn't resolved, she'll send another one next month." Wen Xu glanced at his watch. "I have half an hour free here, I'll call now."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Ying returned to the living room, where the four people immediately looked at her.

"What was his reaction?" Lin Fu asked.

"I'm quite happy." Lin Ying sat down. "He said he's going to inform his family now, and it might... be quite a lively scene."

At the same time, in Beijing.

The Wen family's ancestral home is in Liaoning. The parents moved to Beijing for work years ago. In this compound, the elderly couple are both proud of their youngest son, who entered the national core laboratory at a young age, but dare not ask too many questions.

After hanging up Lin Ying's call, Wen Xu stood by the window in the laboratory corridor for two minutes, took a few deep breaths, and excitedly patted his chest.

He dialed home, and his mother, Zhao Lan, answered: "Xiao Xu? Why are you calling at this hour? What happened?"

Wenxu launched a "four-hit" notification with extremely fast speech:

"Mom, I have a few things to tell you, please listen before you speak! First, I'm married; second, my wife is pregnant, seven weeks along, due next August! You're going to have a granddaughter; third, please stop sending me blind date photos; fourth, the child will take my wife's surname, Lin, since my eldest and third brothers have enough grandchildren anyway."

..........

"Mom?" Wen Xu waited for a long time but there was no response from the other end.

"...Say it again?" Zhao Lan felt like she was dreaming.

"I'm married. My wife is seven weeks pregnant, and the child will take her surname, Lin," Wen Xu said again.

"Wen! Xu! Are you kidding me?" Zhao Lan asked through gritted teeth.

"Alright, Mom, I have to go back to the lab. We can talk later. Bye."

"Wait a minute! Who did you marry? Where are you from? Why doesn't the child have the surname Wen? You........"

"Beep beep beep..." Only a busy tone remained on the receiver.

Zhao Lan stood there, stunned. Wen Guoping, who was reading the newspaper, noticed something was wrong with his wife and quickly asked, "What's wrong? What did Xiao Xu say?"

Zhao Lan walked over in disbelief and yelled, "Old Wen!!! Your son's gone mad with his research!!!"

Wen Guoping jumped at the shout: "What's wrong? Who's crazy?"

"He said he's married! His wife is seven weeks pregnant! I don't even know what she looks like, and the child won't even have our surname! This little brat! He applied to his own university, picked his own job, and now he's making all the decisions about getting married and having kids!"

It took Wen Guoping a while to process this huge amount of information: "Then...where is that girl from? What does she do?"

He hung up without saying anything! Call him back! Ask him!

Wen Guoping picked up the phone and dialed, but no one answered. "They've probably gone back to the lab."

He calmed down a bit. "Xiao Xu never does anything he's not sure of; since he called to inform her, it means the girl must be quite good, maybe even a talented researcher."

"Having good conditions is one thing, but the child not having the surname Wen is another!" Zhao Lan felt a headache coming on.

"No way! This kid's just wary of me! I'm going to the research institute tomorrow to confront him. I want to ask him if he's gone mad or if he really is!"