96: Chapter 96 Bloodline Dragon Vine!

At the buffet table on the other side of the banquet hall, the clinking of knives and forks and the sound of chewing were endless.

Ayugu shamelessly hogged an entire long dining table, her flat lower abdomen already slightly bulging.

The bone china dinner plate in front of her was piled high with Boston lobster claws, M9 wagyu beef slices, and colorful French macarons.

She grabbed a fat shrimp claw with her left hand and scooped up a lump of pitch-black caviar with a small silver spoon in her right hand, shoving it into her mouth. After chewing twice, she immediately curled her lips in disgust.

"City people really aren't picky eaters. These black fish roe are so salty they're bitter, and when you bite into them, they're mushy—not even half as crispy as the black-armored venomous insects I raise."

Ayugu threw the spoon back into the plate, and the Miao silver neck ring around her neck jingled with the movement of her shaking head.

Frost Star was holding a goblet filled with ice cubes and bright red watermelon juice.

The little girl stepped barefoot on the leather seat, biting the straw and making loud slurping sounds.

"What do you know? This is called high-end ingredients."

Frost Star spat out the straw, her blue and red heterochromatic eyes revealing a black-bellied slyness.

"If you're not used to eating it, give that plate of red raw meat to me. I'll freeze it with some ice cubes, and it can barely pass as a midnight snack."

"Dream on! This young lady's appetite is huge. If I can't finish it, I'll pack it up and take it away to feed the Gu insects!"

Ayugu wrapped her arms around the dinner plate like she was guarding her food, glaring back unceremoniously.

Lin Ye had one hand in his suit pants pocket, leaning against a marble Roman pillar nearby. Watching these two little girls bicker, he smiled.

The hypocrisy and pleasantries of the high-end banquet were completely washed away by these two foodies.

A crisp sound of high heels stepping on the smooth marble floor came from behind.

Lin Ye turned his head.

A young woman wearing a moon-white form-fitting evening gown was slowly approaching while lifting her skirt hem.

She was extremely beautiful, with gentle facial features and the poise of a young lady from a prestigious family between her brows and eyes.

Having just recovered from a major illness, her cheeks still carried a hint of weak paleness, yet her demeanor was graceful as she moved.

This was Patriarch Song Zhenguo's beloved daughter, the daughter of the Song family who had been hit with a Soul-Locking Nail by the Yinshan Sect, Song Ruobing.

She came alone, holding a purple-black flat brocade box in both hands.

Song Ruobing stopped two steps in front of Lin Ye, bowed slightly, and performed a solemn ancient greeting.

"Mr. Lin, a few days ago Ruobing's life hung by a thread. Thanks to your action in pulling out the death curse, the heavy reward prepared by Grandfather is the Song family's token of appreciation, while this meager gift is Ruobing's own bit of gratitude."

Her voice was soft, and her moist eyes quietly sized up the tall and handsome young man in front of her.

She had seen many young masters in Jiangzhou's upper-class circles, whose arrogance was entirely piled up by money and designer brands.

Yet the man in front of her exuded a steady composure like an abyss standing still; standing there casually, he could suppress the superficiality of the entire venue.

Lin Ye straightened his body, his gaze falling on the purple-black brocade box.

"Taking people's money to eliminate disasters for them, Miss Song has just recovered from a major illness and should rest quietly at home."

Lin Ye's tone was calm, and he did not reach out to take the brocade box.

A trace of blush appeared on Song Ruobing's cheeks.

Emboldened, she took half a step forward and proactively unlatched the brocade box.

"With the Sir's heaven-defying methods, ordinary worldly treasures are hard to catch your eye. This is a rare item that the auction house under the Song family acquired from the southwestern border half a year ago."

"The appraisers searched through ancient books and still couldn't figure out what kind of plant this is. It emits a strange fragrance year-round, and getting close to it makes one's whole body cold. I thought the Sir might find it useful."

The brocade box opened.

A withered, twisted vine of dark purple throughout lay quietly on the yellow silk.

The surface of the vine was covered with fine bloody patterns.

The moment the box lid was lifted, a pungent, spicy odor mixed with a heavy earthy fishy smell drifted out.

The temperature of the surrounding air suddenly dropped by a few degrees.

At this moment, brilliance flowed in front of Lin Ye's retina.

"Ding! "My Lord, Please Behave Yourself" System prompt: Detected that a wealthy daughter is proactively offering a treasure, the precursor of peach blossoms blooming has already arrived. Please the host determine the posture of accepting the gift within three minutes and handle this thorny delicate flower well!"

The light screen unfolded, clearly listing three options:

[Option A: Physical severance — Push the brocade box back with a cold face. Loudly declare 'I, Lin Ye, only accept cash and do not support physical item deductions', and demand on the spot that the other party list this thing on Xianyu to cash out and transfer.]

[Reward: Steel straight man titanium alloy medal. Consequence: Song Ruobing dies socially in public, weeps bitterly, and the Song family loses all face.]

[Option B: Sea king casting a net, accepting everything as it comes — Reach out and hold her hand holding the box. Gaze affectionately into her eyes: 'Compared to this vine, Miss Song is the most precious gift'.]

[Reward: Scumbag quotes collection. Consequence: Leng Yue immediately detonated Red Lotus Karmic Fire, burning the entire hotel to the ground, and you and the peach blossoms turned to flying ash together.]

[Option C: Technical outsourcing, transferring firepower — Maintain a high-cold badass aura, call the Miao territory technical consultant to take over. Use Ayugu's professional knowledge to appraise the treasure, which can both rightfully accept the spoils of war and cut off the other party's unrealistic pink fantasies.]

[Reward: Husband points + 200, Ayugu professional skill proficiency increased.]

For Lin Ye, this kind of situation didn't even require thinking.

"I choose C."

Lin Ye stepped back half a step, widening the slightly dangerous social distance between the two.

"This thing has extremely heavy yin and cold qi. Miss Song has a yin-leaning constitution, no wonder you felt cold."

Lin Ye turned his head and shouted towards the dining table.

"Ayugu, stop gnawing on the crab, come over and work."

Ayugu, who was grappling to death with a king crab leg, heard the call and immediately dropped the crab shell.

She casually wiped her oil-stained hands twice on her jeans and swaggered forward.

She poked her head in and glanced at the brocade box.

Her originally casual gaze suddenly froze, and her two eyes instantly lit up.

"blood-line dragon vine!"

Ayugu exclaimed, snatching the brocade box right out of Song Ruobing's hands.

She leaned close to the withered vine, her nose sniffing heavily twice at the pungent, earthy, fishy smell.

An expression of wild joy appeared on her face.

Song Ruobing was startled by this Miao girl covered in silver ornaments and acting rudely, standing in place somewhat at a loss.

"Boss Lin, you've struck it rich!"

Ayugu held the brocade box in both hands, jumping up and down with excitement.

"This thing only grows in the extremely yin burial pits of our Ten Thousand Mountains in the Miao territory, surviving by feeding on the corpse blood deep underground and the yin dew of early morning. It takes a hundred years to grow such a small section!"

She turned to look at Lin Ye, speeding up her speech to popularize the value of this rare item.

"If a living person accidentally ingests even a tiny bit, their intestines and stomach will immediately rot, and even immortals can't save them. But using it as medicine to boil soup is a top-grade tonic for feeding high-level Gu insects and refining the corpse path! The toxicity of this thing can directly wash away the impurities in the corpse fiend's body completely!"

Hearing the four words 'refining the corpse path'.

Leng Yue, standing not far away, turned around.

She was holding a glass of champagne in her hand, a thin layer of fine frost already condensed on the glass wall.

She walked slowly in high heels.

The dark blue velvet dress swayed under the lights, and a large area of hollowed-out snow-white back drew sidelong glances.

That cold and gorgeous aura crushing the entire venue forced Song Ruobing to instinctively hold her breath.

Leng Yue walked to Lin Ye's side.

She didn't look at Song Ruobing, her gaze falling on the blood-line dragon vine in Ayugu's hands, slightly nodding.

"It is indeed an extremely yin object, Husband. This item is of great benefit to Frost Star; with it, the Nether Corpse Qi inside Frost Star can be completely stabilized."

Leng Yue's voice was cold and clear, and as soon as she spoke, she directly made decisions for Lin Ye, classifying this heavy treasure into their own inner treasury.

She turned her face, her dark red eyes quietly gazing at Song Ruobing.

"Miss Song is thoughtful, so my Husband will accept this token of gratitude. The night wind is chilly, Miss Song has a weak body, so go back to your room and rest early."

In a few brief words, Leng Yue pushed the oppression and sovereignty declaration of the 'legal wife' to the extreme.

Song Ruobing was an intelligent woman.

Looking at the tacit understanding and aura between the two that outsiders simply couldn't intervene in, the trace of romantic feelings that had just sprouted in her heart was instantly doused by a basin of ice water.

She twitched the corners of her mouth, pulled out a proper shallow smile, and bowed slightly to Lin Ye once more.

"Since it's useful to the Sir, this thing can be considered to have found a good destination. Ruobing takes her leave and will not disturb you all."

Song Ruobing lifted her skirt hem and turned to walk into the crowd.

Her back was still dignified, but her steps were slightly chaotic.

"Ding! Option mission completed, Husband points + 200, current points: 4650."

"Technical consultant Ayugu's loyalty increased, one rotten peach blossom severed, backyard fire crisis resolved."

Lin Ye took the brocade box from Ayugu's hands, snapped the buckle shut with a 'pa', isolating the piercing yin and cold.

"Handle this thing yourself, and later mix a few mild medicinal herbs, boil them into soup, and feed it to Frost Star."

Lin Ye threw the brocade box back to the Miao girl.

Ayugu hugged the brocade box like she had found a treasure, nodding repeatedly.

"Leave it to me! This is an excellent material for refining top-grade Gu soup, guaranteed to cure the disease once the medicine is taken!"

Frost Star, who had been squatting on the chair all along, heard the two words 'feeding medicine', and her dark blue heterochromatic pupils shrank.

The little girl dropped the watermelon juice in her hand, slipped down to the floor barefooted, and hid directly behind Leng Yue.

Both hands tightly grabbed Leng Yue's skirt hem, poking out half her head, staring vigilantly at the purple-black brocade box.

"Frost Star won't drink bitter medicine! That bug-raiser is definitely going to poison me to death in the soup!"

Leng Yue backhanded and rubbed the little girl's silver hair, rarely failing to scold her, the corners of her mouth curling into a faint arc.

The banquet was nearing its end.

Lin Ye didn't stay too long in the vanity fair.

After finding Patriarch Song Zhenguo and Bai Yu to briefly say goodbye, he took the three women and left from the hotel's exclusive passage.

The night was deep, and the autumn rain had stopped.

Both sides of the streets in Jiangzhou City had lingering puddle water, reflecting colorful neon signs.

The commercial vehicle drove on the wide main road.

Fatty Wang was not around, so Lin Ye acted as the driver himself.

Ayugu and Frost Star sat in the back row, and the two of them were engaged in fierce verbal sparring in low voices in the back seat over the ownership of the brocade box containing the blood-line dragon vine.

In the front passenger seat.

Leng Yue took off the high heels that bound her ankles, barefooted with a pair of jade feet that put frost and snow to shame.

She adjusted the seat back backward, sinking lazily deep into the soft leather seat.

The car interior was unlit.

The dim streetlamp light and shadow flashing backward on the roadside occasionally swept across her stunningly beautiful profile.

Lin Ye held the steering wheel with both hands, his gaze looking straight ahead.

A slightly cool and soft jade hand reached over from the side.

Leng Yue's fingertips probed in along the cuff of Lin Ye's suit jacket.

The moment their skin touched, the scalding heat of pure yang and the icy cold of the drought fiend quietly intersected inside the dark night car compartment.

Leng Yue didn't make a sound.

She rested her head on the seat's neck pillow, facing Lin Ye's direction.

That rich cold fragrance of Manjusaka, mixed with the faint mellow aroma of red wine on her body, quietly fermented in this enclosed, narrow space, brewing a sticky feeling that made one's breathing tighten.

Lin Ye slowed down the vehicle.

He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the woman beside him.

The dark blue velvet dress gleamed faintly in the dim light, and their clasped hands conveyed silent reliance and possession.

The bickering in the back row gradually subsided.

Ayugu hugged the brocade box and began to snore slightly, while Frost Star curled up in the corner of the seat and fell fast asleep.

Inside the car, only the low hum of the engine and the 'rustling' sound of tires rolling over puddle water remained.

Lin Ye slowly stroked the back of Leng Yue's delicate hand with his thumb.