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A clear, gentle voice calling “Young Master” drifted into his ears, tinged faintly with joy.
Cheng Wanting paused as he was about to step into the car, straightened up, and turned around — the woman he had seen last night appeared before his eyes.
The afternoon sun was blazing. Lin Keying wore a dark blue floral blouse patched in several places, the collar and cuffs faded white from countless washes. Her two glossy black braids swung back and forth as she ran over briskly.
Sunlight seemed to spill into her clear, bright eyes, making them sparkle.
“Young Master, Secretary Yang, are you heading back to the Mid-Levels villa?” Lin Keying asked cheerfully, happy to have saved herself a dollar’s bus fare.
Though the engagement was soon to be dissolved, surely a fiancé should at least have the decency to give her a ride.
Secretary Yang was surprised to see Master Chen’s child-bride here. After asking a few questions and learning that Miss Lin had simply come out for a stroll, he nodded and looked towards the Young Master.
Cheng Wanting naturally caught on to the unspoken request — she wanted to hitch a ride back to the villa.
He smoothly slid into the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow and, as the car door shut, instructed his secretary: “Minghui, arrange a car to take Miss Lin home.”
“Yes, sir.” Secretary Yang understood perfectly — how could the Young Master possibly give a ride to an unrelated woman, much less someone who was his cousin’s child-bride?
Although she didn’t get to ride in her fiancé’s luxury car, Lin Keying still happily took a taxi back to the Mid-Levels villa, having saved both bus fare and travel time.
Seeing how her fiancé treated her like a viper, she thought gleefully — surely the compensation fee would soon rise to a million!
Two days later, the Hong Kong stock market fluctuated dramatically. Lin Keying read the newspaper delivered daily to the villa. Although she couldn’t write traditional Chinese characters, like many mainlanders she naturally understood how to read them.
From piecing together the gist of the articles, Lin Keying confirmed that Wharf Holdings shares were being massively acquired by some mysterious force and had started soaring — rising from HK$10 a share two days ago to HK$25 now.
She left the villa and went to the public housing estate where He Xiuyun lived. After discussing it together, they decided (under Lin Keying’s guidance) to hold onto their shares a bit longer before selling.
He Xiuyun, more cautious by nature, had barely slept since buying the shares. Every morning she anxiously checked the Wharf stock prices, wracked with worry.
Seeing the stock truly rise now, her first reaction was happiness — quickly followed by anxiety over whether it might crash that afternoon, or tomorrow.
“Buying stocks is just agony,” she fretted. “It goes up and I’m happy, but still on edge. I never know when to sell.” Her face was clouded with worry — not at all like someone holding a jackpot stock. “Once I’ve paid Tingting’s medical fees, I don’t want to touch this stuff again.”
Lin Keying was a little surprised. He Xiuyun had seen through it well — playing the stock market was all about testing human nature.
She remembered her boss had once said Wharf shares would skyrocket sixfold after a massive short-term buyout. Doing the math, they hadn’t reached that multiplier yet — so she confidently held her shares.
A few more days passed. Wharf shares continued surging, reaching HK$61 per share.
Lin Keying told He Xiuyun to sell. He Xiuyun’s HK$500 capital had turned into HK$3,050, and Lin Keying’s HK$37 had become HK$225.70!
They split the money, and He Xiuyun even rounded up Lin Keying’s share to HK$230. “Keying, thank you so much. Tingting insists she has to give you sweets as thanks.”
Smiling brightly, Lin Keying went with Sister He to Queen Mary Hospital and met Tingting — pale and bedridden from illness — as well as her older brother Aqiang, who sat nearby in a school uniform, diligently doing homework.
When Tingting heard from her mother that Lin Jie had helped them buy the right stock, giving them money to continue treatment, she hurriedly pulled out a red-wrapped lucky candy from her drawer. “Sister Lin, please have a candy!”
Before Lin Keying could accept, Tingting’s brother Aqiang pushed his sister’s hand back and instead fished out an identical candy from his own uniform pocket. “Sister Lin, take mine.”
Turning to his sister, Aqiang expressionlessly said, “You keep yours to eat yourself.”
Finally, Sister He dug out two more candies from a drawer, making sure everyone got one, and only then was everyone satisfied. “Last time Tingting’s teachers and classmates visited, they brought some candies. The kids love them.”
Sitting by the hospital bed, Lin Keying chatted with the girl and found that despite her heart condition, she was cheerful and optimistic. She even eagerly talked about the most popular celebrities in Hong Kong, her eyes shining brightly.
“I love listening to Beneath the Lion Rock.” — “Me too! And The Sentimental Swordsman!”
“My favorite drama last year was The Legend of Chor Lau-heung.” — “Lisa Wang and Adam Cheng acted so well!”
The two chatted joyfully about TV shows and songs like kindred spirits. When Tingting got too animated, Lin Keying hurriedly cautioned, “Don’t get too excited, stay calm! Mind your little heart~”
Tingting: QAQ
When Lin Keying finally left the hospital, Tingting reluctantly said goodbye, promising to make her some sweet soup once she recovered.
Her son stayed behind to care for Tingting, while He Xiuyun had to return and set up her street stall to earn money. Sister He reopened her dessert stall, letting Lin Keying enjoy another delicious treat.
The stock market was fickle — it could lift someone to the heavens or smash them into ruin.
Though they’d profited this time, Lin Keying knew better than to take reckless risks without certainty.
Taking a rare stroll in Central, she marveled at the diverse crowd — men and women, office workers in sharp suits, everyday people in trendy outfits — all forming the brightest stars in this bustling metropolis.
What captivated her most about Hong Kong were the dessert stalls.
He Xiuyun’s stall wasn’t exactly a formal shop — with Hong Kong’s sky-high property prices, rent was steep. So she simply set up a small stand selling sweet soups. Among the hundreds of slanted street signs, it formed a unique and vibrant scene.
He’s Dessert Stall thrived between a few jars of sweet soup and three small tables and stools.
Though she had come to Hong Kong illegally, He Xiuyun had lived here for 21 years. After learning the craft, she ran an honest business. She didn’t make a fortune, but the tasty and affordable desserts kept neighborhood regulars coming back, enough to scrape by.
The beancurd skin and barley sweet soup was rich and fragrant, boiled with rock sugar until thick and smooth. Lin Keying held a bowl and took a sip — aromatic, sweet but not cloying, and deeply flavorful, leaving an endless aftertaste.
“Sister He, this dessert is really good — I’d say it’s as good as those in fancy restaurants.”
He Xiuyun beamed, ladling more sweet soup for customers as she laughed, “You flatter me! My little stall could never compare to the big restaurants.”
She enjoyed chatting with Lin Keying. Having lived in Hong Kong for so long, unless she met fellow mainland migrants, few people spoke Mandarin with her.
“Don’t sell yourself short, Sister He. Your place is just small, limiting your talents. Maybe one day you’ll grow bigger and stronger.” Having tried many sweet soups in her previous life, Lin Keying honestly thought He Xiuyun’s skills were top-notch.
After finishing her dessert, Lin Keying packed three portions of beancurd barley sweet soup and one chilled mung bean soup to take back to the villa. Before leaving, while Sister He was busy serving customers, she quietly left HK$15 on her stall and slipped away.
Carrying four portions of dessert, she took a taxi back to the villa. By now she could just about pronounce a few key Cantonese phrases, like the address of Mid-Levels Villa No. 5.
At the villa, the servants had already finished dinner and tidied up. Lin Keying found Uncle Zhong, Aunt Hua, and Ah Mei — the three servants who had always looked after her kindly. “I bought some desserts. Please try them.”
They were naturally delighted to see sweet desserts. They split three bowls and praised them: “This tastes great, must be from a fancy restaurant.”
Lin Keying smiled warmly. “It’s from a dessert stall called He’s. Small place, but good stuff — tastes just as good as any big restaurant.”
The remaining mung bean soup was stored in the fridge by Aunt Hua, who then tried to speak in rather clumsy Mandarin: “Weather hot, this one… you save to eat.”
It took Lin Keying a full minute to understand what she meant.
The plastic-sounding Mandarin was so funny, it involuntarily made her smile.
Hong Kong’s summer nights were sweltering. Even the night breeze carried heat as darkness fell and the villa grew quiet.
Before heading back to her room, Aunt Hua muttered to Uncle Zhong, “Young Master should be coming tonight, right?”
In past years, after visiting the cemetery on his mother’s death anniversary, the Young Master always came to the Mid-Levels villa instead of returning home.
But today was different — the sun had set and he still hadn’t arrived.
Uncle Zhong didn’t know what had happened, but he was certain the Young Master’s habits wouldn’t change. “He’ll definitely come. Keep your ears sharp tonight.”
“Okay,” Aunt Hua murmured. “I should remind Miss Lin — the Young Master will be in a bad mood tonight. She’d better rest early and not disturb him.”
But just then, a few young servants called her away to ask about food supplies for the villa, and she forgot the matter.
Later that night, an imposing Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow sped up the winding road to the Mid-Levels villa.
The estate had two buildings — the servants stayed in the annex, while the main villa contained guest rooms and the master bedroom.
At that moment, Lin Keying was in her first-floor bedroom enjoying the air conditioning, once again marveling at Hong Kong’s modern comforts. For all her bad luck in being transported here, at least the appliances were all present — fridge, air conditioning, flush toilets — her quality of life hadn’t dropped too much.
As she read the Hong Kong newspaper, hunger suddenly crept up on her.
She hadn’t had a proper dinner, just some sweet soup and egg waffles from a street stall. Going to the kitchen and seeing fresh mugwort, she decided to make a hometown snack.
She boiled and mashed the mugwort, mixed it with glutinous rice flour and a bit of sugar, kneaded it into dough, and steamed it.
The mugwort rice cakes turned out fragrant, soft, and chewy, with a refreshing herbal note. After sharing with the villa staff, she saved the last one for herself — it would go perfectly with chilled mung bean soup!
At 8 PM, Lin Keying took the mung bean soup from the fridge and set it on the table. She pulled out a chair and sat down, first counting today’s earnings — her money had sextupled! After repaying Uncle Zhong HK$50, she now had a personal fortune of HK$181!
Lin Keying’s heart was full of joy — nothing else could be relied upon, only money was dependable. Sadly, despite ten years of hard work in her past life, she hadn’t enjoyed any of it. Now clutching her first fortune in 1980s Hong Kong, she counted the bills over and over — the tangible feel of paper money was far more satisfying than the cold numbers of future mobile payments.
But as she counted, she suddenly sensed a chilling gaze shoot toward her.
Looking up, she saw the man who hadn’t appeared for several days. Her first reflex was to quickly pull back the money and stuff it into her pocket!