Chapter Forty-Five: A Stinging Rebuff

The woman glared at them in indignation, utterly refusing to believe they had any money.
“Father, Mother, once we’ve all made our selections, we can settle the bill together,” Lin Sangqian said with a gentle smile.
“That makes sense,” they agreed.
They resumed their choosing, while the woman remained stubbornly at the doorway, her gaze sharp and unyielding, as if waiting for the moment they would surely embarrass themselves at checkout.
After a while, all six members of the family had picked out their clothes. Each person chose two sets. Lin Sangqian selected a lotus-colored skirt and a convenient beige outfit. The others also picked what pleased them.
The shopkeeper busied himself with tallying up the bill, his abacus clattering. Finally, he said with a broad smile, “Altogether, that comes to one tael and eight hundred wen.”
Nearly two taels! In truth, even on his best business days, his ready-made clothing shop seldom earned so much. Today was slow, and he hadn’t expected to make much, yet unexpectedly, a generous family of patrons had arrived.
The shopkeeper was delighted.
“That much? They’ll never be able to pay!” the woman at the door muttered, still unwilling to admit defeat.
Liao Shuxia shot her a disdainful glance, then took the money pouch from Lin Hongda, opened it, and drew out two taels of silver, handing them over.
“Wrap up all the clothes for us, and just give us two hundred wen in change,” she said.
The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up, and he quickly accepted the silver, grinning. “Of course! Please wait a moment while I wrap everything up for you!”
Now, the woman at the door was rendered speechless. She stood there, gaping in astonishment. She had never imagined this family could actually produce two taels of silver! Which meant, all that money could have been hers. Yet she had done something so foolish, handing her business right over to her rival.
She truly felt like an utter fool.
The satisfaction of seeing her proven wrong was enough for the Lin family, who had no intention of wasting any more words on her.
Once the shopkeeper finished wrapping their purchases in cloth, the three Lin brothers and Lin Hongda carried the bundles, Liao Shuxia accepted the two hundred wen in change, and they prepared to leave.
But as soon as they stepped outside, the woman hurried to intercept them. Gone was her earlier scorn and sarcasm; now her face was filled with obsequious flattery.

“Oh, dear customers, I truly offended you just now!” she said with a fawning smile. “It’s all my fault—I was blind and ignorant, not recognizing important clients when I see them!”
“Do you want something?” Liao Shuxia asked impatiently.
Sidling up to her, the woman ingratiated herself. “Miss, the clothes at my shop are much nicer than his. Why not come have a look? Think about it, can a young lad like him know better than me?”
“No need,” Liao Shuxia replied coldly. “These clothes are already more than enough for us.”
“Oh, but do come see mine—” the woman persisted.
Liao Shuxia sneered, “Did you already forget how you looked down on us just a short while ago? We haven’t.”
“It was all my fault! I was blind and arrogant…”
The Lin family ignored her and walked away.
The woman watched their retreating backs, then looked back at the young shopkeeper, who was joyfully counting his money, and stamped her feet in regret.
Afraid her points in the system’s space would be insufficient, Lin Sangqian bought twenty pounds of chicken feet directly in town.
Back home, they all changed into their new clothes, and the entire household was filled with happiness.
Lin Yanbei, feeling the fabric, sighed, “It feels like New Year’s.”
Actually, even during New Year’s in the past, they seldom had new clothes to wear. Any money they had would usually end up in Lin Hongda’s drinking tab.
Thinking of this, he shot Lin Hongda a resentful look.
But now, their father seemed reliable for once.
Unaware of his son’s thoughts, Lin Hongda stood with hands on his hips in his new outfit, grinning. “Well, how do I look? Handsome, aren’t I?”
“Very handsome!” Lin Sangqian was generous with her praise. “Dad, if you were a little younger, you’d certainly be the most dashing man in Shuangji Village!”
“Girl, are you saying your old man is past his prime?” Lin Hongda protested. He was only in his thirties, after all. “Then tell me, who’s the most handsome man in Shuangji Village right now?”
Lin Sangqian thought for a moment. “Once my brothers are a bit older, I’m sure they’ll be very handsome.”
The three brothers immediately straightened their backs with pride—such affirmation from their little sister!
Lin Hongda wilted, casting his daughter a plaintive look.
Once there are brothers, she forgets her old dad.
“Nonsense, I still think my man is the handsomest,” Liao Shuxia declared, loyally coming to his defense. “Especially when you fought Wang Dameng today—husband, you were so dashing!”

Lin Hongda couldn’t help but shiver. “Can’t you talk normally? You’re scaring me.”
Their laughter filled the room.
After a while, the family retired to their rooms.
Lin Sangqian opened her system space and saw her points had increased by thirty for cooking for her brothers over the past few days and rescuing Liao Shuxia that day.
She now had sixty in total.
Actually, now that they had money, there was much less need for the system’s resources.
Although the ingredients in the system space were the freshest and best, as long as she was careful selecting and cooking, those bought outside were not much different.
She recalled what the system had told her: once she accumulated a thousand points, she could exchange items from other systems.
What could those other spaces offer?
Clearly, she’d need to use her points sparingly and save up for that thousand as soon as possible.
Wait! The system had also said that if she could win over a handsome man, she’d instantly earn a thousand points.
But what exactly was the system’s definition of a “handsome man”? And what did it mean to “win over” one?
Lin Sangqian’s head ached with these questions. Frowning, she exchanged for a variety of seasonings and a large bundle of enoki mushrooms.
With fifty-five points left, she closed the system space.
Tonight, she planned to have hotpot with her family.
In the modern world, Lin Sangqian had been a devoted hotpot enthusiast. Since coming here, she hadn’t had a single hotpot meal and had been craving it for days.
She headed to the kitchen first to prepare the chicken feet.
She thought to herself, on her own, she could only manage about twenty pounds at a time.
If she supplied Fuman Restaurant, it would never be enough—she’d sell out in a day.
Why not set up a small, simplified factory?
But opening one in the village would make transporting goods to town a hassle.
She’d have to find a way to open one in town. That way, the factory could produce not just chicken feet, but other things as well.
The more Lin Sangqian thought about it, the more fired up she became.