Chapter 259 - 258: Research Subject

Chapter 259: Chapter 258: Research Subject

As soon as Gu Qingyin got home, she contacted a cleaning service to come and clear away all the flower bouquets. As for cleaning the house itself, her paper effigies could handle it; no outsiders were needed.

That night, Huo Xingchen was tossed into the guest room early on, and the long-separated couple spent an incomparably wonderful night together.

The next day, unsurprisingly, Gu Qingyin didn’t get up until the sun was high in the sky.

She snuggled lazily under the covers, her mind still savoring the taste of last night. ’The feeling of being with a human versus a ghost really is different.’

A moment later, the bedroom door was pushed open. Huo Yunjing walked in, looking thoroughly satisfied. "Time to get up and eat."

Gu Qingyin glanced at him, then extended an arm covered in love bites from under the blankets and said coquettishly, "Carry me."

A smile filled Huo Yunjing’s eyes. He walked over and scooped her up, blankets and all, and turned to head to the bathroom.

Over an hour later, Huo Yunjing emerged carrying Gu Qingyin, whose face was flushed crimson. He personally dressed her and was about to carry her out for breakfast, but Gu Qingyin stopped him.

’The kid is still here, at least let me keep some of my dignity.’

Huo Xingchen was very considerate. He didn’t bring up any topics that would make Gu Qingyin uncomfortable. He ate his meal with a normal expression, then obediently sat on the sofa, took out a talisman book from his storage bag, and started to read.

Gu Qingyin breathed a sigh of relief.

Huo Yunjing’s eyelid twitched, however. "Where did you get that?" he asked. If he remembered correctly, Huo Xingchen was supposed to have brought nothing with him, just in case.

Huo Xingchen glanced cautiously at his father, not daring to hide anything. "The storage bag was a meeting gift from the Huo Family, and I borrowed the book from the Huo Family’s Book Collection Pavilion."

"The Huo Family?" Huo Yunjing raised an eyebrow, a flicker of confusion on his face.

Huo Xingchen then realized that his father didn’t know about the situation with the Huo Family here, so he gave him a brief and concise explanation.

Huo Yunjing couldn’t help but sigh. The Huo Family had actually become a Heavenly Master Family, it was truly... ’The Ghost King from a past life reincarnating to become the head of a Heavenly Master Family... It doesn’t get more dramatic than this.’

After the meal, Gu Qingyin sat on a lounge chair, sunbathing. The sunlight today was wonderful, making her feel drowsy. Just as she was about to fall asleep, the doorbell rang.

Gu Qingyin jolted awake, a very unpleasant feeling. She clicked her tongue in annoyance and turned her head to see Huo Yunjing already walking toward the door.

Gu Qingyin turned back, no longer paying attention. No matter who it was, Huo Yunjing could handle it perfectly. ’Besides, there probably aren’t many people who would come looking for her at her door.’

A moment later, Huo Yunjing returned, holding an invitation card.

Gu Qingyin was a little puzzled. "What’s that?"

Huo Yunjing handed the invitation to her. "An invitation to a banquet. The theme is ’Metaphysics and Science.’"

Gu Qingyin took it, completely baffled. She opened it and saw that it only had the theme and address written on it. The signature line was a very low-class provocation: "Do you dare to come?"

Gu Qingyin rolled her eyes, tossed the invitation aside, and lay back down.

’No one but Lin Xiao could come up with something like this. Popping up every other day, she’s so damn annoying.’

"Are you going?" Huo Yunjing asked.

"Of course I am." Gu Qingyin gave a lazy smile. "I didn’t have much time to deal with her before. This time, I’ll solve it once and for all."

"Who?"

Gu Qingyin scoffed. "Just some little girl who doesn’t know her place. A good scare will make her behave."

Hearing this, Huo Yunjing immediately lost interest in asking further. "If you’re sleepy, just go to sleep. I’ll wake you up later."

Gu Qingyin agreed with her eyes closed and quickly fell asleep.

The time on the invitation was for the evening three days later. The location was a villa complex in the suburbs. Security was decent, but there were very few residents, with more than half the homes being empty.

For convenience, the family of three went to a dealership during the day and picked up a car, then drove over that evening.

When they reached the security booth, the guard opened the gate as soon as they handed over the invitation, without asking a single extra question. It seemed the person hosting the banquet had quite a bit of prestige in this community.

They drove deep into the complex. As far as the eye could see, only one house was lit up. Forget other houses, even the streetlights weren’t on in the surrounding area.

Gu Qingyin couldn’t help but laugh. "With the atmosphere she’s created, it would be a shame if a ghost didn’t show up."

Huo Xingchen chuckled along, patting his storage bag. "The paper effigies are the main stars tonight!"

Huo Yunjing stopped the car some distance away from the villa. His indifferent eyes gazed at the distant villa as he assessed it. "It looks pretty normal. The Yin Qi is faint, within a normal range."

Gu Qingyin no longer had her innate Yin Yang Eye, and opening it each time was very draining. With Huo Yunjing around, things were much easier. He was originally a ghost body with incomparably strong soul power, which wasn’t much different from having a natural Yin Yang Eye.

"As expected." Gu Qingyin shrugged. "With Lin Xiao’s intellect, who knows what kind of crowd she’s called over today. ’I have no idea how she even got into Jing University.’

"Oof."

Huo Xingchen hopped down from the car. Standing straight on the ground, he was barely taller than the car’s chassis. Gu Qingyin found him so adorable that she swept him up and gave him a kiss. "How can you be so cute?"

Huo Xingchen had gotten used to being kissed these past few days and took it quite well. But this was the first time Huo Yunjing had seen it, and his face instantly darkened. He went up, snatched Huo Xingchen, and tucked him under his arm.

"He’s a grown-up now. He needs to keep his distance from his mother, not be too intimate."

Huo Xingchen: ...

Gu Qingyin: ...

’There’s really no need to be jealous over every little thing.’

Huo Yunjing saw absolutely nothing wrong with his actions. He walked toward the villa with Huo Xingchen tucked under one arm and Gu Qingyin’s hand in his other.

Just as they reached the courtyard gate, Gu Qingyin heard conversation from inside the villa. They seemed to be discussing how to tell if a person was still their original self.

Gu Qingyin’s brow twitched. ’So, this banquet really is aimed at me.’

The family of three entered through the front door, and everyone in the living room turned to look, a stunned amazement appearing in their eyes.

It was simply because the looks of the two adults and one child were off the charts—the kind of beautiful that could debut on the spot and become an instant sensation.

The man wore a shirt, trousers, and combat boots, all in black. Yet his skin was incredibly pale. At first glance, he looked like a Vampire Prince who had just stepped out of an ancient castle.

The woman was dressed very casually in shorts, a camisole, and thigh-high boots. Her long legs were both beautiful and coolly stylish.

The child tucked under the man’s arm, on the other hand, was in formal wear: a shirt, trousers, little leather shoes, and even a bow tie.

Of the family of three, only the child looked like he was dressed for a banquet.

At the same time, the family of three was also sizing up the crowd inside the villa. There were quite a few more people than they had expected. Everyone else was dressed quite formally—the men in suits and leather shoes, the women in evening gowns.

Except, everyone was wearing a mask. Only the three of them had come bare-faced. It was as if they had stumbled into some kind of masquerade party.

CLAP. CLAP. CLAP. In the silence, the sound of unhurried clapping echoed through the room. Everyone followed the sound and looked toward the second floor. A woman in a gold mermaid dress and a feathered mask was standing by the railing. She announced in a loud voice, "Everyone! With a round of thunderous applause, welcome our research subjects for tonight!"

Applause suddenly erupted, and the gazes everyone fixed on the family of three turned feverish.