CHAPTER 772: 765

Chen Hai could roughly guess what was going on inside the young broker Zhang Jin’s mind without much thought.

With a flip of his hand, he casually pulled out dozens of Spirit Coins and stuffed them into Zhang Jin’s hand.

"This is a reward for you," Chen Hai promised offhandedly. "Once we get to Zhuang Mansion, as long as there aren’t any major issues with the house, I’ll definitely buy it. At that time, I’ll have a hefty reward for you!"

Those who had died at his hands all possessed remarkable strength.

From any one of them, a single Storage Bag could be randomly searched, and the Spirit Coins stored inside would at the very least be counted in units of a hundred thousand.

To Zhang Jin, a mere few dozen Spirit Coins may seem like a considerable amount, but to Chen Hai, it was nothing more than some loose change that might slip through the cracks between his fingers.

"No problem," Zhang Jin said. "Just follow me directly."

"Zhuang Mansion is at most a mile or two from here. With me leading the way, we’ll be able to reach the place in the time it takes to burn a stick of incense!"

Looking at the Spirit Coins in his hand, Zhang Jin was first stunned, then his eyes visibly lit up.

After glancing a few times at the shopkeeper of the Agency nearby and seeing no particular reaction from him, Zhang Jin hurriedly stuffed the coins into his bosom and secured them.

The reluctance that was previously apparent on his face had now been entirely swept away, and with a professional, insincere smile on his face, he patted his chest and hurried to make a promise.

After finishing his spiel, he gestured to Chen Hai with an inviting ’please’ and indicated for him to follow, as they walked towards the outside of the Agency.

Although the street where the Agency was located was considered to be spacious, the passersby were sparse and it didn’t look very bustling.

Following behind Zhang Jin, they made left and right turns, and the streets they passed through became increasingly desolate.

Apart from occasionally seeing groups of people scurrying by with big and small bundles, as if fleeing from disaster, Chen Hai didn’t spot a single person aimlessly wandering or loitering on the streets.

"My lord, in recent days, there have been quite a few disturbances around here," Zhang Jin explained to Chen Hai in a low voice.

"Those living nearby who have the means are getting as far away as they can, wanting to distance themselves from this place."

"Those who truly have nowhere else to go, for their safety, are staying at home unless absolutely necessary, and very rarely venture outside!"

...

As he led the way, Zhang Jin quietly explained to Chen Hai.

Every time a disaster struck, resulting in deaths or mysterious disappearances, these incidents generally occurred at night, while daytime was comparatively safer.

The area where Zhuang Mansion was located was already considered to be quite secluded.

Due to the panic caused by the continual occurrences of incidents during the past few days, the shops on the surrounding streets had all closed their doors, and small traders and vendors were hard to spot.

This didn’t bother Chen Hai in the slightest.

Seeking a temporary abode in Mang Mountain City, his preferred residence was to be somewhere secluded.

As they were chatting, Zhang Jin had led Chen Hai to a mansion that still looked quite imposing, and had stopped at its entrance.

"My lord, this is the Zhuang Mansion I mentioned."

"Initially, including the servants, the Zhuang Family had more than twenty people."

"However, now, aside from Young Master Zhuang, Zhuang Bufen, who by chance spent the night at Yingxiang Building with his sweetheart and thus fortuitously escaped, everyone from the Zhuang Family, either died or disappeared, not one left."

"When Young Master Zhuang received this terrible news, he was almost scared witless. The sale of this mansion has been fully entrusted to our Zhang’s Agency, and as for himself, he doesn’t even dare to come back here."

As he opened the gates of the mansion and led Chen Hai inside, Zhang Jin continued to introduce the place.

The entire mansion spanned several acres, and aside from a few side rooms, there was even a quaint garden in the backyard, where unknown bright red flowers bloomed in fierce competition. Along the edge of the clear, bottom-visible pond, there also stood a unique pavilion.

Chen Hai didn’t find any dissatisfaction as he walked around the property.

After all, he was buying the mansion just for a temporary residence, not to live there permanently.

If truth be told, the entire estate was serene and peaceful, and its environment so tranquil that it greatly exceeded his expectations.

"Zhang Jin, how much for this mansion?" Since Chen Hai was extremely satisfied with the estate, he naturally didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to asking the price.

"My lord, you’ve seen the environment within the estate."

"The Zhuang family has occupied this place for nearly twenty years, investing a lot of effort and Spirit Coins to turn this mansion into what it is now."

"If it weren’t for that incident, a mansion like this would start at two hundred thousand Spirit Coins, there would surely be a horde of people willing to fight tooth and nail for it."

"But under the current circumstances, Young Master Zhuang would rather stay in the Yingxiang Building every day than set foot in this place again."

"Selling it to someone else? At this point, it’s very difficult to find a buyer."

"If you, my lord, would like to buy it, just one hundred thousand Spirit Coins would suffice, and as for the deeds and documents, our agency here can take care of it all for you!"

Tilting his head, Zhang Jin pondered for a while before he responded.

From his tone, it seemed as though his asking price of one hundred thousand Spirit Coins was somewhat tentative.

Perhaps, if Chen Hai put some effort into bargaining, he could get a better deal.

However, Chen Hai, having no shortage of Spirit Coins, simply couldn’t be bothered to do so.

"Okay, one hundred thousand Spirit Coins it is," he nodded, waving his hand as Spirit Coins of various colors, each representing different values, appeared directly on the stone table in front of him.

It was only after entering Mang Mountain City and wandering around that he didn’t find ordinary people in possession of Storage Bags.

Otherwise, he would have simply used a Storage Bag to carry the Spirit Coins and handed it over to Zhang Jin.

After all, for ordinary people, Storage Bags were precious, and it seemed he actually had quite a few on him.

"My lord, you..."

As a broker who had worked in Zhang’s Agency for so long, it was the first time Zhang Jin had encountered a lavish customer like Chen Hai.

Looking at the pile of Spirit Coins on the stone table in front of him, he was momentarily stunned.

"Haven’t I already said that if there’s no problem with the mansion, I would buy it on the spot?"

"Here, there are a total of one hundred and ten thousand Spirit Coins, the extra ten thousand is a reward for you."

"I plan to reside here tonight. As for the land deeds and such, I’ll give you two days to sort them out. Any problem?"

Chen Hai casually pointed at the pile of Spirit Coins on the table as he spoke.

As for Zhang Jin, Chen Hai wasn’t at all worried whether the man would have the audacity to embezzle the Spirit Coins and abscond.

Chen Hai played by the rules; it was already good that he didn’t exploit his power to seize things forcefully. An ordinary person would need to be alive to dare touch his belongings.

"No problem, definitely no problem!"

Hearing that ten thousand Spirit Coins were a reward for himself, Zhang Jin’s heart throbbed with ecstatic joy, his chest pounding fiercely.

In front of Chen Hai, he counted the Spirit Coins carefully to make sure the amount was correct, then immediately took off his short coat to wrap all the Spirit Coins.

He then respectfully bowed to Chen Hai, quickly turning and heading towards the direction of the gate.