Lin He found this young master incredibly annoying. There were so many shop assistants in the store, did he absolutely have to summon Da Bao? It clearly felt like he was trying to provoke her. Lin He maintained a neutral expression, but as she turned away, she shot Wen Ningmo a glare. No one noticed except for Wen Ningxuan, who was standing nearby.

As Lin He turned, her eyes met Wen Ningxuan’s. She immediately averted her gaze, knowing he must have seen the look she shot at Wen Ningmo. There was a hint of amusement dancing in Wen Ningxuan’s eyes.

Lin He didn't greet him and walked away with Da Bao toward the distance. Meanwhile, Wen Ningmo spoke up, "Second Brother, you know that ugly girl just now? The one Father always talks about, Miss Lin? I told you about running into her at Caidie Xuan once, but I think Father praised her too much. Look at her, so dull, like some village girl. She’s nothing like the capable person Father described."

Wen Ningxuan glanced in the direction Lin He had gone and said, "Have you chosen what you want? If you’re done, pay the silver and let's go home."

"Aren't you paying? I don't have any money," Wen Ningmo whined like a miser.

"If you have no money, then don't buy so much. Or, put it on my tab for Father to settle later." Wen Ningxuan ignored him.

"Stingy! Fine, if you won't pay, I will. I’m certainly not putting it on a tab; Father will scold me again when he finds out." Wen Ningmo pulled money from his own pouch to settle the bill.

Lin He and Da Bao walked further away and sat down at a noodle shop. They had both eaten but weren't particularly hungry, so they ordered a few buns and a pot of tea, passing the time chatting. Lin He told Da Bao about some recent matters at home. Da Bao wasn't overly worried about the family affairs; with their parents and sister there, nothing major should happen.

Lin He, however, was more concerned about Da Bao. Thinking of the two young masters from earlier, Lin He asked, "Brother, do those two young masters often come to the shop to buy things? That Wen Ningxuan seems to dislike me; I don't know when I offended him. He knows you're my elder brother, so you need to be careful not to let him cause trouble for you."

Da Bao replied, "No, I've seen the Young Master [Wen Ningmo] a few times; he comes to buy things too. Usually, he’s quite polite in the shop and doesn't talk much. Today was certainly different. This is the first time I’ve seen the Second Young Master. He really is handsome."

Hearing Da Bao’s words, Lin He found it amusing. The honest Da Bao actually had a good eye. Lin He had never heard Da Bao praise anyone like that before. She chuckled and said, "Whether he's handsome or not, I don't know, but he certainly has some influence. That mischievous devil Wen Ningmo listens to him very carefully."

Da Bao nodded, agreeing with Lin He. Lin He let her smile fade and spoke seriously to Da Bao, "Brother, we will pay back the money for the He Cai Wawa soon. After that, we'll have more income each month. Once our family savings are sufficient, I plan to open our own shop in town. I will rely entirely on you to manage it then. You must study diligently in the shop, handle things personally whenever possible, so you won't be completely clueless when running your own business."

Da Bao asked in surprise, "We're going to open a shop? I haven't been here long, and there are so many things I don't know yet. I’m not ready."

Seeing Da Bao's nervous reaction, Lin He said, "Not now, I mean later, when our family circumstances allow it. Look now, all our goods are sold through Uncle Wen's shop, and the consignment fees add up significantly. Right now, we don't have much stock, but once we have more, just think—a year's worth of consignment fees could be enough to set up our own shop, couldn't it?"

Da Bao agreed after some thought and nodded. Lin He said a few more words to him, and they headed back.

Lin He genuinely intended to open her own shop, but she didn't want to rent someone else's premises; she wanted to purchase one outright. Furthermore, she didn't want it to be too small—ideally, something like the He Cai Wawa shop. But those shops were frighteningly expensive, easily costing several thousand liang of silver. If their family were to afford one based on their current earnings, it would take at least another two years. However, if the He Cai Wawa venture started generating profit, with a few hundred liang coming in monthly, the timeline should shorten considerably.

Lin He sat on the ox cart, lost in thought. Xiao Jun and Old Man Qin beside her noticed her silence and assumed something was bothering her. Old Man Qin spoke first, "He'er, did something happen with Da Bao at the shop? You don't seem very happy since returning."

He'er snapped back to attention, realizing she had been silent since boarding the cart. She replied, "No, I was just thinking about things. Brother is fine at the shop; there’s nothing else."

Old Man Qin finally relaxed. Upon returning home, he unloaded everything from the cart. Madam Huang was startled by the quantity of goods and exclaimed, "He'er, you're making this much at once? Are those soaps really selling that well?"

He'er didn't want to explain too much to Madam Huang, simply saying, "I’m not just making soap; I’m making other things too. All this stuff is useful." She then asked Old Man Qin and Xiao Jun to help her move the items into the ointment workshop. In truth, much of it wasn't immediately useful, but she decided to store it there for the time being.

Then, He'er began recalling the steps for making Zicao ointment (Gromwell Ointment) from the books she had read in her previous life. There were many methods for making Zicao ointment, each distinct. Lin He remembered one of the simplest methods. The main ingredients were: Danggui (Angelica root), Zicao (Gromwell root), sesame oil, yellow beeswax, and borneol (ice crystal).

Lin He had never made it before, so following the proportions she recalled, she planned to create a small box batch first to test the results. If successful, she would then summon help to produce it properly. Lin He first finely chopped the Danggui and Zicao. She poured the sesame oil into a clean, waterless pot, added the chopped Danggui and Zicao, and set the pot aside, covered, for about two or three days.

Two days later, Lin He began the active process. She had Xiao Chen build a small fire, and Xiao Jun assisted behind her, handing her things. Lin He remembered the book stating that the sesame oil pot needed to be heated over a low flame until it reached a specific temperature—about one hundred degrees Celsius or slightly higher—and maintained that heat for about half an shichen (an hour), then the medicinal liquid should be filtered. Once it cooled naturally to eighty degrees Celsius, the yellow beeswax would be added and stirred until dissolved. When the temperature dropped further to around sixty degrees Celsius, the borneol would be added and stirred until dissolved.

In her past life, Lin He had read these instructions, but there was no thermometer here. Lin He could only estimate the temperature based on her own judgment; it should be close enough.

Lin He filled the Zicao ointment into small boxes. The boxes were similar to those used for the scented balm, but the lettering on top was different, and the color had been changed to purple—it looked quite attractive.