Rebirth and making money first

Zhang Jing felt very comfortable in the class she took over—it turned out to be the same class she had previously taught. This was a special arrangement made by Director Chen, clearly a recognition and trust in her work ability.

The students were particularly excited to see Zhang Jing, affectionately calling her "Teacher Zhang." Zhang Jing responded to each student with a smile, accurately calling out their names. Then, she joined the students in singing "Catching Loaches," filling the classroom with a joyful atmosphere. However, when the tongue twister began, Zhang Jing noticed that they were a little rusty and had forgotten some parts. But this didn't dampen their good mood.

Zhang Jing planned to teach them finger exercises this time, starting with simple commands. As expected, the students showed great interest, chanting in unison: "Head claps, shoulders claps, head claps, shoulders claps, head claps..." This set of finger exercises not only strengthened the students' finger dexterity but also strengthened their brains. Zhang Jing marveled at how the finger exercises, so common among the elderly, had resonated so effectively with these special people.

After learning the basic movements, alan wasn't satisfied and asked to learn more. So Zhang Jing found a record player and played "My Chinese Heart," and began performing the corresponding hand gestures to the music. Despite their varying learning progress, Zhang Jing patiently taught them. Later, she even taught everyone "Grateful Heart."

Finally, Zhang Jing asked them which song they wanted to learn the sign language for, and they answered in unison: "Both!" Zhang Jing happily decided to focus on teaching the sign language for these two songs in the next few days, and continue learning other content after the students have mastered it.

Zhang Jing had underestimated their learning abilities; after three days, everyone had caught up. Zhang Jing simply dragged everyone outside to practice, which again attracted a crowd of onlookers. Some followed along, and even Director Chen came to watch. Zhang Jing reassured the students, telling them to stay calm and just watch her follow the movements. Perhaps it was Zhang Jing's smile that soothed the panic. After two rounds of practice, everyone had mastered the movements. Seeing that time was almost up, Zhang Jing dismissed the get out of class.

Before leaving, Alan invited Zhang Jing to his home. The squad leader took an apple from his backpack and gave it to Zhang Jing. Dazhuang simply said, "I like you." Zhang Jing was deeply moved. These are a group of neglected people who need more care. I'll find a video to record it tomorrow as a souvenir and take a few photos to give to them. They are all hardworking people and deserve to be rewarded.

Director Chen came to see Zhang Jing and praised her highly, praising her excellent teaching skills. Zhang Jing knew that Director Chen must have more to say, so she waited quietly. Sure enough, Director Chen then said that he would assign a few people to learn finger exercises. These people came for finger exercises, but Zhang Jing couldn't help but wonder: "If they don't have to participate in the competition, what practical use is there for so many people learning this?"

After all, she was just a substitute teacher and didn't want to be overly burdened. Upon hearing this, Director Chen suddenly understood and quickly reassured Zhang Jing, telling her to teach without hesitation. He would be responsible for contacting relevant competition organizers. Zhang Jing also requested audio equipment, as well as the ability to record and photograph her lecture notes. Without hesitation, Director Chen offered no problem, stating he would do his best to resolve the issue, allowing Zhang Jing to focus solely on her teaching duties.

Meanwhile, Li Xiangyue also visited Zhang Jing. She was pleased that Zhang Jing hadn't embarrassed her, and informed her that she was about to be transferred to a nursing home as a supervisor. Li Xiangyue asked Zhang Jing if she would like to join her, saying the treatment there was better than here, and she would take care of her. However, Zhang Jing politely declined, explaining that she had just arrived and didn't want to change her job location for the time being. If she needed help in the future, she would seek help from her sister-in-law. Li Xiangyue wasn't disappointed; she had only been going through the motions.

Zhang Jing had always been frail and had no interest in strenuous activities like mountain climbing and running. However, she had independently explored various fitness techniques, including qigong, long sword, nunchaku, Ba Duan Jin, and Tai Chi, and came to deeply understand the importance of exercise for good health. So, she decided to make one of these her daily morning exercises.

At first, she considered Tai Chi. Its slow, graceful movements were perfect for a morning practice. But she noticed that most Tai Chi practitioners were elderly, which made her feel a bit uncomfortable. She also considered health preservation techniques, which could be broken down and practiced individually.

After careful consideration, Zhang Jing ultimately chose Tai Chi. To make her practice more engaging, she paired it with a Guanyin song. In a previous life, this combination was known as "Guanyin Fist," a popular genre. An online search revealed the corresponding music, but no matching boxing routines were available. So, Zhang Jing unleashed her creativity and incorporated the 24 Tai Chi moves into the mix, constantly tweaking the movements until the entire routine flowed seamlessly and harmoniously with the music.

After practicing three times in a row, she felt a sudden sense of relief. With a satisfied nod, she decided to practice it once every morning and evening to strengthen her body. The next day, Zhang Jing washed up early, donned her sportswear, and headed to the playground with her record player. Relaxing in the sun, she slowly practiced the "Guanyin Fist" to the tunes on the record player. Soon, the security guards noticed, as did the support staff who had gotten up for a run. Following Zhang Jing's graceful movements, others began to imitate her.

After completing her practice, Zhang Jing felt incredibly relaxed and refreshed. While she was eating breakfast in the cafeteria, Aunt Zhang, who worked there, asked if she could join in the practice. Zhang Jing readily agreed and told everyone to practice once in the morning and once in the evening, and anyone who wanted to join in was welcome. Aunt Zhuang was also eager to try. After the previous incident, she had long since put aside her grudge against Zhang Jing and seemed to have forgotten their previous argument. She was clearly a straightforward person.

Teaching gradually got back on track, and the number of students in the classroom showed a significant growth trend. However, Zhang Jing didn't like teaching so many people. After all, no matter how hard she worked, the salary she received was only a little over 2,000 yuan. In contrast, she would rather spend her time writing more stories.

Director Chen had a amiable smile on his face as he revealed to Zhang Jing, "We now have some clues about the competition! This event is a gala and interactive activity jointly organized by the orphanage and nursing home under the Civil Affairs Bureau and our special school. Each unit will launch several wonderful programs, and you have an important responsibility. You have to prepare two programs to participate in the performance. You must work hard to achieve good results!" After hearing this, Zhang Jing was helpless and knew that she had a heavy responsibility.

Zhang Jing acted decisively, stating that her top priority was to arrange for someone to help photograph and videotape her leading the students in the exercises. This was a matter of urgency and could not be delayed. Director Chen immediately called in a teacher to help with the filming.

There are two programs: one for the students to perform finger exercises, "My Chinese Heart" or "Grateful Heart," and the other for Guanyin Fist. I haven't decided whether to do it alone or with a group. As for the costumes, I'll buy a set of flowing Tai Chi clothes, as I'll need them for morning and evening practice anyway.

Zhang Jing's work was whirlwind, and she was bustling with activity. Her writing career was also booming. Her novel "The Foreign Girl" was accepted for serialization in the evening paper. Her article, "We Are All Wonderful in the Exchanged World," was published in the daily newspaper. Director Chen promised her a salary bonus of 100 yuan for each article published, with the royalties going to her personally. Of course, the honor went to the company. Naturally, she used a different pen name for her other novels, quietly earning money. She didn't want anyone to know about it anytime soon, so it would be nice to be able to keep the pseudonym around for a while.

Income began to trickle in, and the short stories on the Tomato website exploded as she began to produce them in large quantities. Soon, she was earning 7200 yuan, which made her realize how sweet money really is. Earning money was truly hard, even if she was retrieving memories from a past life. She decided to limit herself to long stories, occasionally writing a novella. The foreign girl asked her to work overtime to finish the 20-word piece, and she still had to delete a lot of it. It was a huge time-suck, but the rewards were great. She could choose between two income options: 8000 yuan per thousand words, a one-time payment; and a non-word-based royalty fee, starting with yuan. The profit share would depend on the performance, initially % for now.

Zhang Jing chose the second option and even regretted deleting the plot. A serialized work of over a million words is still quite impressive. She should choose a good topic and write a longer one next time.

With over 10,000 yuan in hand, Zhang Jing finally breathed a sigh of relief. She had to return A-Long's money as soon as possible and didn't want the entire collection of gold coins. Since they weren't planning on continuing, there was no point in getting involved. Zhang Jing couldn't understand why she was so obsessed with A-Long in her past life. Was it really a love affair she'd been smitten with?