The reason why Le Xaan headed here was because Zein Sanki had once brought up that their family had chanced upon some great finds in this underground marketplace.
From then on, Le Xaan had come here every so often to try his luck.
Ghost Market was currently practically abandoned with only ten or so stalls clustered in a small alley.
As he walked down the alley, Le Xaan paused and squatted down to scrutinize the items on the stalls from time to time.
After quiet some time, Le Xaan was still without gains. He was about to return home to practice inner body Qi. Abruptly, a somewhat hesitant male voice sounded out from the other end of the alley.
"Are you... Le Xaan?"
Le Xaan lifted his head and looked over. The speaker was a yellow-clad young man with a bolt-straight figure, a brownish jade pedant hung at his hip. Even though Le Xaan didn't know the man, Le Xaan immediately figured out his identity.
"You must be Chin Wensy's elder brother, Chin Gerron, right? "
Chin Gerron looked bewildered for a moment before his face was lit up with an enlightened smile.
"Brother Le, you sure have sharp observation skills, don't you?"
"No, not at all. Just you look too similar to your younger sister." Le Xaan shook his head.
In comparison to Chin Wensy, Chin Gerron's appearance was essentially a male version of the same features and outline. The siblings bore much of a semblance.
"Since we come across each other here, why not go for a drink together? Jingor often brings up Brother Le, you, in front of me." Chin Gerron proposed with a smile.
Le Xaan thought for a moment before nodding with agreement.
The two of them went out of Ghost Market and then got into a public house nearby, starting to drink and eat.
The dining hall was bustling with all sorts of noises, such chatter and laughter from patrons. But both of Le Xaan and Chin Gerron were accustomed to such kind of environment, unperturbed at all.
At the beginning, the two of them fell silent for a while but soon struck up a friendly conversation.
"I have heard Wensy talk about you. You're a man of dignity and integrity. Ridiculously, I view you suspiciously not long ago. That's my fault." After moments of silence, Chin Gerron opened his mouth to speak at first.
He paused for a moment and then added, "The authorities have already stepped into Wein Zikua's case. But it was not Brother Jingor who alerted the authorities, but Wein Zikua's family. "
Le Xaan held a cup of liquor in hand and took a sip of it. The mildly spicy liquid ran through his mouth before streaming down his throat.
"We'll talk about Wensy later. What's the conclusion that the sheriff force have reached?"
Chin Gerron shook his head while saying, "Jingor and I went to query the sheriff force. They said that it's a missing person case and Wein Zikua had fallen into river and drowned there. That's the conclusion that the sheriffs in charge of the case reached. And they said that some people had witnessed how Wein Zikua fell into Pine River."
Le Xaan kept silent as he threw back his head and drained the cup of wine.
"So this case is settled just like that?"
"Yes. What else are you expecting?" Chin Gerron said with resignation, "Actually, there are a large number of missing person cases on Pine River every year. Wein Zikua's case is just one among them. That's how the authorities handle such sort of cases. And we're not allowed to publicize this case. Otherwise, we would be held accountable, perhaps even sent to jail."
Le Xaan immediately realized why Mountainside City was hailed for its stable public security.
"My younger sister said that you have declined her because you think that you two don't know each other well?" Chin Gerron changed the topic.
"Wein Zikua's case is really settled just like that?" Le Xaan pressed.
"Yes. It's settled just like this." Chin Gerron replied. "The Pine River is broad and deep. We can't gather enough manpower to dive into the river and look for a body that might have long been devoured by fishes."
Le Xaan let out a long breath and adjusted his sitting posture. He felt as though his heart were blocked.
Whether it be the authorities in Gourian City or Mountainside City, they seemed to lack drive in solving such cases but preferred to stand by and watch. This bored and unsettled Le Xaan.
"Then what's on earth the sheriff force' duties?" Le Xaan blurted out.
Upon hearing this, Chin Gerron was dumbstruck and then unconsciously reached for the amber-colored jade pendant at his hip and rubbed it.
"You're right... what's on earth the sheriff force's duties?"
Both of them felt upset about this topic as their thoughts wandered to other matters.
Silence lasted for a while.
While Le Xaan's gaze fell upon the yellowish jade in Chin Gerron's hand, he was intrigued.
"Brother Chin, would you mind passing me that piece of jade? I want to have a look."
Chin Gerron nodded and casually handed the jade pendant to Le Xaan. "It's a present from my best friend not long ago. A top-notch piece of Nine Prairie Jade."
Le Xaan took it from him. Upon touch, he sensed a current of freezing cold air streaming into his body.
It felt exactly the same as when Le Xaan absorbed the energy from the powder.
"The Negative Qi is so dense!" Le Xaan was stunned. He named this kind of Qi as Negative Qi. The Negative Qi in this piece of jade was far thicker than the powder whose Negative Qi he had once soaked up, to the extent that he didn't have to drip his blood on it yet the Qi would automatically find its way into his body.
"Brother Chin, is this jade pedant a loot from tomb raiding?" Le Xaan asked pretentiously casually.
Chin Gerron nodded while saying, "Yes, highly likely, as far as I'm concerned. But you haven't answered my question. Based on what you told my younger sister, when could both of you be considered as knowing each other well? " Chin Gerron steered the conversation toward his younger sister.
Le Xaan had avoided the topic once. Upon being asked once more, he couldn't help but sigh.
"With regard to such sort of things, we can't act too hastily. Brother Chin, let's see where things go from here. What's more, I and Wensy have only known each other for a short time, why do you have so much faith in me?"
"Initially, I have been worried about your intentions in approaching Wensy, but now I am worry-free since you says such things to me." Chin Gerron sad with a smile. "If you give your approval of marrying Wensy, we would gift you twice the amount of property we previously offered!"
Le Xaan wore a bitter smile after hearing this.
He was well aware why the Chin family was enthusiastic about marrying their daughter to him. In the first place, Chin Wensy really held strong feeling for him. Secondly, the Chin family had always been looking for an eligible, willing son-in-law, yet unsuccessfully, and he was the one who was well suitable. That's why the family was trying to make the two of them tie the knot as soon as possible.