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

In the early morning in a rural village in the New Territories, the sun had just risen over the feng shui pond at the east end of the village, and the mist had not yet completely dissipated when Lin Ying was already sitting by the window of the east wing.

She was meticulously writing the character "郁" (yù) stroke by stroke within the square frame, without going outside the lines or connecting the strokes.

Lin Ying had a clear understanding of the financial situation of her parents, who lived far away in the city. Last year, her mother, Lin Lanying, and father, He Dazhu, gritted their teeth and bought a small apartment in the Yu Fat Building in Sai Wan, hoping to have a stable place in downtown Hong Kong. That apartment emptied out all of her parents' savings accumulated over many years.

My mother told me that when it came time to pay the final installment, there was still a shortfall of 30,000 yuan. It was my grandfather, Lin Fu, who, leaning on his cane, took a minibus to the city and slapped the cash, wrapped in newspaper, onto my mother's cutting table.

Now, she has declared that she wants to apply to a prestigious private school, which costs at least 1,200 yuan a year in tuition. This is undoubtedly adding insult to injury for her family, which has just been drained of its resources.

"Sister, are you tired of watching?" The door was gently pushed open, interrupting her thoughts.

Lin Fu walked in carrying an old porcelain bowl, and a fragrant aroma of boiled dried tangerine peel and mung beans wafted over. He placed the bowl on the edge of the desk, afraid that the moisture would dampen the books on it.

"Thank you, Grandpa. I'm not tired." Lin Ying put down her pen, picked up her bowl, and took a sip. The mung beans had already split open from the cooking process, and were slightly grainy with just the right amount of sweetness.

Lin Fu pulled over a bamboo chair and sat down, looking at the neatly stacked exercise books on the table, his brows relaxing.

"Your mother called the corner store yesterday to ask about your homework. I told her, 'Your brain is just meant for this kind of work.'"

Lin Ying held the porcelain bowl and looked at the old man: "Grandpa, the tuition for private schools is very expensive."

"What's there to be afraid of if it's expensive!" Lin Fu waved his hand. "Grandpa has money. Last year, I helped your mother pay for the house, and I still have money left over for my funeral. As long as you can get into one of those prestigious schools that even foreigners are scrambling to get into, I'll cover the tuition."

"Your mother and father are busy earning money to pay off debts, so you just stay here and read books. Don't worry about money." Lin Fu looked intently at his granddaughter. "Our Lin family must produce a scholar."

Lin Ying nodded and finished the mung bean soup in her bowl: "I will definitely pass the exam."

------

It's the weekend.

As usual, on this weekend, Uncle Lin Yaoying and Aunt Lin would be extremely busy at the hair salon in Mong Kok. The wealthy ladies who came to get their hair permed and eyebrows done would practically wear down their doorstep. They simply didn't have time to go back to their old home in the New Territories; at most, they would have a passing villager drop off their little cousin Lin Yue back in the village.

But on Saturday afternoon, the wooden door outside the yard creaked open.

Lin Ying was sitting on the threshold of the main room reciting English words when she looked up and saw three people walking in.

Walking at the front was my uncle, Lin Yaoying, carrying two boxes of ginseng and a bag of fruit. He was completely unlike the spirited "top hairdresser in Mong Kok" I remembered.

Following behind was my aunt. July in Hong Kong was as hot as a giant steamer, yet she wore a long-sleeved floral shirt and a silk scarf around her neck to keep out the wind. Her face was deathly pale, and her steps were unsteady.

My cousin Lin Yue, who is usually a chatterbox like a sparrow, was unusually quiet today; she kept her head down and followed closely behind her mother.

"Uncle, Aunt," Lin Ying stood up, closed her book, and greeted them politely.

Aunt Deng Hui noticed Lin Ying's clear and bright eyes.

"Sister...you're really all better." My aunt's voice was a little weak. "That's wonderful. God still has eyes."

After saying this, her eyes quickly reddened, and she lowered her head, letting Lin Yaoying help her into the house.

Lin Ying stood there, watching their retreating figures, without asking any further questions. She was all too familiar with that feeling; the exhaustion of life force being drained from the body was unmistakable.

--------

That evening, Grandma Li Yuzhen sensed something was wrong and went to the backyard to catch a free-range hen, which she then stewed into a rich chicken soup.

The dining table was so quiet you could hear the clinking of chopsticks against the porcelain bowl. Lin Yaoying kept her head down, eating only white rice, not even picking up a single piece of food. Her aunt had a bowl of chicken soup in front of her, topped with a layer of butter, but she only mechanically stirred it with a spoon, not drinking a drop.

Lin Yue looked at her father, then at her mother, barely daring to breathe.

After dinner, Lin Yaoying stood up and cleared away the dishes. She then turned to Lin Yue and said, "Yueyue, go play with your older sister outside in the yard for a while. Old Dou has something to say to Grandpa and Grandma."

Lin Yue nodded obediently and walked over to take Lin Ying's hand.

Lin Ying didn't move. She looked at Lin Yaoying and said, "Uncle, I'm not going outside to play. I just need to finish copying this text, so I'll stay here and copy the words without disturbing you."

Lin Fu sat in the main seat, took out a pipe and put it in his mouth, but didn't light it; he glanced at Lin Ying: "Xiao Ying is sensible. Let her sit inside, we're all family, there's nothing to be shy about."

Lin Yaoying didn't insist anymore; he pulled over a bamboo stool and sat down opposite Lin Fu, with his aunt sitting next to him.

"Father, Mother..." Lin Yaoying had barely uttered those two words when tears welled up in her eyes, and she covered her face with her hands in anguish: "We couldn't save them again."

With a "thud," the rag in Li Yuzhen's hand fell onto the table.

My aunt, who had been holding back her tears, completely broke down the moment she heard those words. She didn't wail; she simply turned her head away, and tears fell silently down her cheeks.

This is the third time; since Lin Yue was born, Lin Yaoying and her husband have worked hard to earn money, hoping to have a son. But in the past few years, she has been pregnant three times, and each time she miscarried before four months.

"The doctor said that Ah Hui's health is completely ruined." Lin Yaoying wiped her face vigorously.

"Father, I accept my fate. In this life, I guess Lin Yue will be my only daughter. It's my bad luck that the family line has ended."

"What utter nonsense!" the old man immediately retorted. "What do you mean by 'no descendants'? Isn't Yueyue human? Doesn't Yueyue have the surname Lin?"

Lin Yaoying sighed, "Father, but Yueyue is a girl, and she'll eventually get married..."

"Whom do you want to marry?" Lin Fu frowned. "Nothing in life is perfect! You're already blessed by God to have a prime shop in Mong Kok and make money. Not having a son isn't such a big deal, is it?"

Lin Fu pointed at Lin Ying sitting in the corner: "Look at your older sister! How did Dazhu even get into our family back then?"

"Recruiting a son-in-law! If your eldest sister can do that, when Yueyue grows up, she'll follow her aunt's example and find an honest and reliable man to live with her! The children they have will still bear the Lin surname! They'll still take care of you and Ahui in your old age! Anyone who dares to say behind your back that you're childless, I'll beat their mouth to a pulp with a carrying pole!"

The aunt-in-law sat to the side, staring at her father-in-law in disbelief. Her greatest fear these past few days had been being shunned by her in-laws for not giving birth to a son. But now, her father-in-law had made the decision, paving the way for his daughter's future marriage into the family.

"Father..." Aunt covered her mouth and cried.

With red-rimmed eyes, Li Yuzhen walked over and gently patted her daughter-in-law's thin back: "Alright, alright, don't cry. Even after a miscarriage, you still need to recover. If you ruin your eyes from crying, you'll suffer when you're old."

"It's all fate," Li Yuzhen sighed. "Our Lin family has never been as prosperous as other families, even since our ancestors. I'm already content that you, in your generation, have Xiaoying, Lin Qian, and Yueyue."

Grandma touched her aunt's slightly cool hand: "You and Yaoying should take good care of yourselves and work hard to earn money outside; if you don't want to have children, then so be it, don't force it. Fortunately, all three of our children are healthy now, which is better than anything else."

As long as you're healthy.

Lin Yaoying let out a long sigh and nodded vigorously: "I understand, Mom. From now on, we'll take good care of Yueyue."

The storm was completely resolved in those few words of conversation.

Lin Ying sat in the corner, quietly watching this scene; she gripped the pencil in her hand tightly. This home, these people, gave her an unprecedented sense of security.

Lin Ying turned her gaze back to the traditional Chinese character practice book in front of her.

There are less than ten days left until the entrance exam for St. Paul's private elementary school. I have already mastered all the knowledge points and honed my writing skills.