"This is the place. Mr. Wu, this young master wishes to purchase materials for refining pills. Please assist him," the brawny man leading the way said after passing several long counters, handing Li Lin over to an old man about fifty years old, before stepping back.

"Young Master, what kind of medicinal materials do you need?" asked Mr. Wu, the steward, who was wearing a long robe and had a sharp gleam in his eyes. He looked at Li Lin with interest.

"I need these, two portions of each," Li Lin said, originally intending to buy just one portion but now opting for two since he had fifty gold coins. The additional portion was part of another plan in his mind.

"Alright, Young Master, please wait a moment. I'll gather the materials for you," Mr. Wu said, looking a bit surprised at Li Lin's request. He treated Li Lin even more politely, suspecting that the young man might be a Spirit artist.

"Okay," Li Lin responded lightly and leaned against a counter, observing the entire Tianbao Gate.

"Young Master, why are you buying materials for refining pills? Where did you get the gold coins? I heard these materials are very expensive," Li Xiaobai whispered nervously to Li Lin.

"Why worry? It's not your money," Li Lin replied, his gaze shifting to the side where he recognized two familiar figures. They were none other than Miss Du Gu Binglan and her maid Cuiyu, whom he had seen yesterday in the Li family's back garden.

"Greetings, Miss," the staff of Tianbao Gate respectfully greeted the two women as they approached, their eyes also landing on Li Lin.

Seeing Miss Du Gu again, Li Lin gave her a second look. He found her quite attractive, with a clever and spirited demeanor. He nodded slightly in acknowledgment and then shifted his gaze, paying more attention to the maid Cuiyu.

The two women seemed a bit surprised, then lowered their heads and whispered to each other.

"Li Young Master, I didn't expect to see you here at Tianbao Gate," said Du Gu Binglan after a while, approaching Li Lin with a faint fragrance. The people inside Tianbao Gate were surprised to see Li Lin and Miss Du Gu acquainted.

Behind Li Lin, Li Xiaobai trembled nervously as Miss Du Gu approached, wondering how Li Lin knew her. He thought, "No wonder the Young Master wasn't interested in seeing Miss Du Gu yesterday; they already knew each other."

"Greetings, Miss Du Gu. I needed some materials for refining pills, so I came here. I didn't expect to see you, which is an honor," Li Lin replied politely.

"It's strange. Why didn't Young Master Li go to his own family's shop for the materials?" Miss Du Gu asked with a light smile, her beauty enhanced by her expression.

"Would Miss Du Gu refuse to sell to me? Haha," Li Lin replied, hiding his true feelings behind a slight smile.

"Of course not, you're very welcome here," Miss Du Gu quickly replied with a smile. "Young Master Li, are you buying materials for refining pills? Are you a Spirit artist?"

"This..."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Young Master, your materials are ready," interrupted Mr. Wu, handing two palm-sized packages to Li Lin.

"Greetings, Miss," Mr. Wu said upon seeing Du Gu Binglan, bowing respectfully.

"Let's settle the bill," Li Lin said, handing the packages to Li Xiaobai.

"Young Master, that will be thirty-eight gold coins," Mr. Wu announced.

"Mr. Wu, give Young Master Li a 20% discount. From now on, Li Lin is our valued guest here. Please take good care of him," Du Gu Binglan interjected.

"Yes, Miss," Mr. Wu replied respectfully, then turned to Li Lin, "Since you're the Miss's friend, that will be thirty gold coins."

"Thank you, Miss Du Gu," Li Lin said with a slight nod and a smile to Du Gu Binglan. He then took out thirty gold coins from the fragrant purse and handed them to Mr. Wu, saving eight gold coins. Since he was in need of money, Li Lin naturally did not hold back.

"Young Master Li, this is our Tianbao Gate's VIP card. Please keep it. In the future, if you need anything, with this card, Tianbao Gate will prioritize your requests. You will also receive discounts on prices. If Tianbao Gate is privy to any information, we can share it with you. Additionally, if Young Master Li has any pills or similar items to sell, Tianbao Gate will offer the highest price," Du Gu Binglan said, extending a white jade card with the words 'Tianbao Gate' on it to Li Lin.

"Thank you once again," Li Lin said, unreservedly accepting the jade card. Not taking advantage of benefits was not in his nature. As for why Du Gu Binglan was so keen to curry favor with him, Li Lin was somewhat suspicious but did not pay much heed to it.

There's an old saying, 'Unwarranted kindness is either a trap or a trick'. Currently, Li Lin had nothing worth stealing by Miss Du Gu, so it must be a trick. However, Li Lin was indifferent to this realization; in fact, he even showed a slight smirk.

"I'll take my leave now," Li Lin said with a slight nod, walking past the maid named Cuiyu, also nodding slightly to her before striding away.

"Young Master, where did you get those gold coins, and how do you know Miss Du Gu?" Li Xiaobai asked Li Lin as they left Tianbao Gate.

"Why ask so many questions? Let's go back. And don't tell anyone about me buying the medicinal materials," Li Lin instructed.

"Miss, who is that person? He doesn't seem very special. Are we overestimating him?" Inside Tianbao Gate, after Li Lin left, Mr. Wu, with a sharp gleam in his eyes, spoke to Du Gu Binglan.

"He's not a simple man. Send someone to investigate his background in detail and treat him well in the future," Du Gu Binglan instructed before leaving Tianbao Gate with the maid named Cuiyu.

Crossing the streets, Li Lin and Li Xiaobai quietly returned to the Li residence through the back door. Their morning outing went unnoticed, as no one in the Li family cared much about a lowly servant and a useless young master.

"This kid really has some skills," the old servant at the back door thought to himself, looking at the two packages in Li Xiaobai's hands.

In the afternoon, Li Lin and Li Xiaobai made a brief appearance in the Li family before returning to their respective quarters, as there wasn't much to do in the cold winter.

As night fell, Li Lin was well-prepared and headed to the secret room in the firewood house, where old servant Uncle Jiang was already waiting.

"Uncle Jiang, I've bought all the medicinal materials you asked for," Li Lin said with a proud smile upon seeing Uncle Jiang.

"Why did you buy two portions?" Uncle Jiang asked, opening the medicinal materials.

"I was worried that you might fail, so I bought an extra portion. If it's successful, we can refine an extra pill," Li Lin explained, thinking that the pills should be worth more than the materials. He planned to sell them later to make some profit.

"If I'm here and you still fail to refine a first-grade pill, then you might as well go bang your head against the wall," Uncle Jiang said sternly, looking at Li Lin. "You've been practicing the Open Mountain Palm for a few days now. Show me how it's going."

"Yes," Li Lin replied, putting away his smile. He had been practicing Open Mountain Palm for several days and believed he had made some progress. Taking a moment to compose himself, he channeled the technique, forming a complex hand seal. Then, a wave of air seemed to ripple from his palms.

"Chi…"

With a soft sound, Li Lin struck the stone wall of the secret room with his palm, causing the wall to tremble and dust to fall.

Li Lin was somewhat surprised by his own power, not expecting his palm strike to be so formidable. He thought that if it were a bull, he could probably send it flying.