Xue Lin warned him in a serious manner not to touch any food if someone pressed him to eat.

  Ge Chen gazed at her with surprise. "And why is that?"

  Naturally, Chinese families care about the groom and groom’s family members. They treat the groom like a king.

  Since Ge Chen is from the Ge Family, he will be valued more and everyone will try to build rapport with him. They will offer him drinks and food as a form of flattery.

  That’s why Xue Lin’s sudden warning completely threw him off guard, but he believed that there must be an explanation.

  Xue Lin had no interest in hiding anything from her husband. She asked him, "Do you remember those black magicians who kidnapped me?"

  "I can never forget them," Ge Chen answered.

  Those people nearly ended his wife’s life. He didn’t know how they died yet but he sought to hunt them down.

  Xue Lin described, "My first and second aunties used to visit a famous black magician. That person was Balthazar’s father. My aunties don’t like me or my family for some reason. My mother was very caring when I was young and she kept reminding me to stay away from them."

  She added, "There was a reason behind her warning. When I was one year old, my first aunt poisoned me and I almost died. My mother told me that if I hadn’t cried in pain back then, no one would’ve found out that I was poisoned. They took me to the hospital but the doctors couldn’t do anything. They didn’t have a clue what was bothering me.

  "My mother took me to the temple and asked the priests to do something about it. One of the priests felt bad for me or maybe he couldn’t stand my screaming. He took me to the High Priest. My mother had no idea what they did to me and I certainly had no memory of it. When I came back, I had recovered.

  "Later the priest said that I was under a dark spell. My mother is still haunted by that incident. She herself suffered as well. When she was pregnant with my elder sister, she was poisoned too. My mother almost had a miscarriage. Can you imagine how scary this can be for a woman who has no one to support her?"

  "She had her husband," Ge Chen commented.

  Xue Lin instantly frowned. "Ah! That good for nothing jerk! Don’t even remind me of that useless guy. He can’t even protect his wife! He is no man!"

  Ge Chen immediately nodded in agreement to keep her calm. "Okay, I understand. But, why would your aunties do such things?"

  Xue Lin described, "That’s a long story. My first auntie lost her baby because of malnutrition and when my second auntie was pregnant, the first aunty got jealous and tried to kill my second auntie’s child with black magic. And, she did succeed.

  "Second auntie got angry and tried to kill poison with poison. So, she ended up going to the same village as my first aunt. Her motive was simple. Since her firstborn died and it made her upset, she wouldn’t let anyone live in peace."

  Ge Chen questioned her, "And how do you know that they were doing black magic? Was there any proof? Did anyone see them doing anything?"

  Xue Lin told him in detail, "When I was little, I believed my mother but when I grew up, I started doubting my mother since she had no proof. It was just a rumor in the town. However, when I was in high school, I went on a school trip to a village where we met demon worshippers. I met Balthazar there. I knew it then. Although I grew up in Yinchuan, I used to go to the town on holidays. I saw him visiting our town from time to time."

  Ge Chen reached out and patted her hand. "That was quite an experience. Are you okay?"

  Xue Lin chuckled. "I’ve lived for two decades. What are you even asking? What about you? Are you scared? Do you still want to go there?"

  He asked her playfully, "My wife, how can I leave you alone?"

  "My husband, don’t regret it later," she replied in the same manner.

  "I won’t."

  Soon, they reached Karamay.

  Karamay had been diversifying the city’s economy away from sole reliance on exploiting oil and gas resources in the Junggar Basin.

  Its modern high-rise buildings and sleek highways were a dramatic departure from the earlier years. There were amenities such as 40 city parks, a golf course, a library, a science and technology center, a gymnasium and an Olympic-sized public swimming pool. The living standards of the local people certainly increased many folds.

  Inside the car, an impressed Ge Chen commented, "I’ve been here before but it wasn’t as developed as it is now."

  "Yes, after the government bought most of the lands, it developed faster. I’m glad that the government bought it from my brainless relatives. How could they let go of oil? If I had this land, I would’ve become a billionaire." Xue Lin shook her head hopelessly.

  Ge Chen calculated and announced, "I think you still can buy the land if you want."

  Upon hearing his suggestion, Xue Lin let out a laugh. "The government will rather kill themselves but they won’t agree to sell it to anyone."

  "There are many ways to make them obey," Ge Chen narrowed his eyes. He knew that if his wife agreed to have this land, he could buy it immediately.

  Xue Lin gazed at him and smirked. "I know a few tricks to make them obey but I like my life better now. Why make life complicated when I have a peaceful life that I have always wanted?"

  "You are right." Ge Chen couldn’t agree more.

  It was already evening. The sky was dark and the city was colorful with thousands of multicolored lights. It was like Christmas.