After acquiring the hilltop, Er Niu and Da Jiang immediately set about cutting down a good amount of bamboo, intending to fence off their new land. This would serve as a clear marker, signaling to others that the area had been purchased and should not be trespassed upon for logging or other activities.

Lin He also had her father cut a significant quantity of bamboo, explaining she needed to invite Uncle Li over to consult on the best design for a chicken coop. Given the size of the hill, they could potentially raise a large flock; Er Niu suggested they start by acquiring just over a hundred chickens.

The household's regular farmhands were tied up during this period, as the wheat fields were demanding constant weeding and fertilizing. Thus, only Er Niu, Da Jiang, and Da Sheng were present on the hill. Lin He recalled having visited this hill before; it was dotted with fruit trees—peaches, plums, apricots—whose produce she had tasted herself, finding it uniformly bitter and astringent. Her mother and Chen'er had previously mentioned that all the fruit grown on this mountain possessed that same undesirable quality.

Lin He remembered a grafting technique from her previous life that could drastically improve fruit yield and quality. She explained this to Er Niu, warning that while grafted trees wouldn't bear fruit for a few years, the eventual harvest would yield fruit that was both large and sweet. Lin He even demonstrated the grafting process. Er Niu had never witnessed such a technique before, but since Lin He claimed to have read about it in a book, he trusted her assurance of its effectiveness.

Er Niu learned from Lin He that this period was ideal for grafting. Once the field work for the farmhands concluded, he gathered them and taught them the technique, diligently applying it to every fruit tree on the hill that could be grafted. After the fruit trees were all tended to, Uncle Li finished the chicken coop, and Lin He’s chicks were purchased. During the day, the chicks were released onto the hill to forage; at night, Da Jiang and Da Shan secured them.

Er Niu also spoke with Da Jiang and Da Shan about the fish pond, mentioning that their family wouldn't be stocking it heavily this year. He instructed the two to bring feed to the pond every morning and evening, and whenever they had free time, to check on the hilltop as well. Since the family now owned the land, routine checks were necessary, primarily to deter anyone from coming onto the hill to damage the trees or cause mischief.

In truth, the fish pond rarely demanded much attention, leaving Da Shan and Da Jiang with ample free time. With the addition of the hill, the two men diligently cleared all the weeds and debris surrounding the fruit trees, and they cut more bamboo to raise the perimeter fencing another layer higher. The bamboo now stood taller than a person, meaning anyone attempting entry would have a substantial obstacle to overcome.

Lin He found herself visiting the hilltop frequently these days. Observing the flowers and fruit trees sparked a new idea in her mind. As the weather was rapidly warming, her fragrant unguents were inevitably going to face a slump in sales. Lin He had been searching for a suitable alternative product to the unguents that could be researched and launched during the warmer months, especially since she hadn't introduced any new items in a long time.

Lin He knew that in her former life, the best cooling-weather substitute for fragrant unguents was lotion, a skincare product useful year-round. However, the recent arrival of two younger brothers had placed a heavy burden of household duties squarely on her shoulders. Coupled with the New Year festivities, family affairs were overwhelming. Moreover, lotion differed fundamentally from her existing unguents and toners, requiring certain tools and implements that were currently unavailable.

After much deliberation, Lin He settled on a different product: a face mask. She was certain its skincare efficacy would rival that of lotion, and it was something she felt highly proficient in, having made countless varieties of masks in her past life. It required readily available ingredients and minimal development time.

Furthermore, masks could be produced in many distinct varieties—floral, herbal medicine-based, and more. The production process wasn't overly complex. Lin He spent an entire morning with Zi Qing and Zi Yu in the pomade-making room of their new house and successfully created three different types of masks.

Lin He immediately tested these masks on the young maidservants. After use, the girls all reported that their skin looked visibly whiter, smoother, and felt pleasantly refreshed.

Lin He had anticipated these positive results; the masks were relatively simple to create. The challenge lay in the current environmental limitations, particularly regarding shelf life, which she couldn't guarantee for long. The optimal scenario would be for customers to visit a dedicated counter where staff could apply the masks professionally, but those conditions were currently unattainable. Moreover, Uncle Wen’s shop featured products from many suppliers, and managing custom-made applications would be overly complicated, potentially compromising the secrecy of the proprietary ingredients.

Lin He wrestled with how best to market these short-lived items until Chen'er inadvertently sparked an idea. Earlier, while walking with Lin He in the marketplace, Chen'er had spotted a lovely little porcelain vial at a roadside stall and insisted on buying it. Lin He had questioned its utility, noting its small size, but Chen'er insisted it was simply beautiful.

That tiny vial gave Lin He the solution. While she couldn't guarantee long shelf stability, the masks would certainly last a few days. The plan was to promote them at Uncle Wen’s shop, requiring customers to pre-order two days in advance. Crucially, each vial would contain only a very small amount—enough for just two applications—thus mitigating the shelf-life issue. Although this required extra administrative effort, it was a viable solution for the time being, with future improvements to be addressed later.

And although refrigeration wasn't available, wealthier households often possessed ice houses. She could simply explain the necessary storage requirement to the buyers upfront. Moreover, unlike daily-use unguents, masks only needed to be applied once or twice a week, meaning customers wouldn't be purchasing them constantly.

However, the increased logistical effort and material costs would necessitate a significant price increase. Lin He decided she would discuss the precise pricing structure and sales strategy for the somewhat troublesome masks with Uncle Wen when she visited the town.

After extensive consideration, Lin He concluded she needed to travel to town in a few days. Since the end of the month was approaching, Da Bao would likely be finishing his break soon, and she could bring him home then. Furthermore, she hadn't visited Tianxin Town since the New Year, making it an ideal time for an inspection trip.