“Pick whichever you like, take as many as you want, don’t be polite with Brother Young—these are things I was planning to sell anyway, nothing valuable,” Franklin Young said hurriedly. Using aluminum alloy jewelry to impress girls, he felt he was quite the oddball.

“But I…” The little girl tried to refuse, her voice timid.

“If you don’t take some, I’ll be angry!” Franklin Young said with a stern face, then leaned in to whisper in her ear, “This stuff is even cheaper than silver. My whole ship is made from this metal, but you have to keep it a secret for me. Also, Brother Young needs your help with something—my company is opening tomorrow, and there will be lots of things girls like. You have to bring your classmates to support me, okay?”

Lucas Lynn blushed from the masculine aura Franklin Young had been holding in for over a month, but his words eased her worries. Besides, these shiny silver pieces really appealed to her, so after a moment’s hesitation, she picked out a few she liked.

Watching her cheerful figure as she left, Boss Young grinned like a weasel that had just stolen a chicken.

“Franklin, what are all these things?” The next day, when Jinyuan Company officially opened, Franklin Young didn’t have many friends to invite, so he simply called over a group from the Chinese embassy. Samuel Swift looked at the various daily products in his showroom, clearly a bit surprised.

If nothing else, just the packaging looked fresh and new. Even though Franklin Young had changed the packaging, the plastic bottles were unheard of in this era.

“They’re just some daily necessities—things for girls to wash their faces and hair, similar to soap but much better,” Franklin Young said casually, his attention already drawn to Lucas Lynn and a group of girls walking through the door.

This young lady seemed to have quite the network at school—she brought in dozens of customers for Franklin Young. Anyone who could get into Cambridge obviously wasn’t from a family of paupers working fifteen hours a day; most had some family wealth. Each was dressed to the nines, their chests squeezed together like a row of steamed buns, making Franklin Young almost drool at the sight.

These ladies, who had been acting reserved, were immediately drawn to the Head & Shoulders and Olay products. When they read the descriptions, their eyes lit up.

“Hi, Caroline, you and your friends can try out these products. There’s a restroom over there—feel free to try whichever you like,” Franklin Young said with a beaming smile as he approached Lucas Lynn.

Chapter 8: The Mysterious Patient

Although Franklin Young said this, these girls, who had always been strictly brought up, were still too shy to run to the restroom to try out the shampoos and body washes. Olay and lotions, however, were quite popular among them.

Dozens of beautiful young girls gathered in small groups, laughing and playfully applying cosmetics to each other’s faces. The scene made Franklin Young sigh at the passage of time and the loss of youth—after all these years, he was practically an old uncle now.

As for the results, there was no need to say more. Even though high society in this era still resisted makeup, it couldn’t stop girls from wanting to be beautiful. Unfortunately, there were so few products for them to choose from. The truly popular skincare product, Pond’s Vanishing Cream, wouldn’t be developed for another five years, and it would take time to cross the Atlantic from America.

Right now, European ladies at best had pharmacists mix up some oils and waters for them. Products like Guerlain were reserved for royalty. As for these young girls, they had no access to such things. The moment they applied Olay to their faces, it was like a parched land receiving a torrential rain. Within minutes, they were all exclaiming in surprise, gazing at each other’s noticeably more delicate faces as if in a dream.

“Girls, how do you like it?” Franklin Young squeezed into their midst, grinning like a mischievous uncle. As soon as he spoke, the girls roughly pushed him aside and then pounced on the shelves like hungry wolves, instantly sweeping all the skincare products clean, leaving Samuel Swift and the other old men dumbfounded.

“How much?” Lucas Lynn asked excitedly, her face flushed as she piled two bottles of Olay, three bottles of lotion, two bottles of Head & Shoulders, and a bottle of body wash onto the counter, unable to wait.

“Four pounds per bottle,” the young and beautiful cashier Franklin Young had carefully selected said with an elegant smile.

The price made Samuel Swift gasp, staring at Franklin Young in disbelief.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Lucas Lynn took out her small wallet and counted out thirty-two pounds, handing it over, while the girls behind her kept urging her to hurry up and move aside.

“A tael of gold for a bottle of face cream?” Samuel Swift muttered through gritted teeth to Franklin Young.

“Sir, you must understand—for beauty, any woman will go crazy. Even young girls are the same,” Franklin Young replied with a look of modesty.

“Excuse me, which one of you is Mr. Young?” Just then, a cold voice suddenly rang out at the door.