I Became the Eye Candy: Four Bigshots Claimed to be My Dad?-Chapter 148: What a Waste to Eat It

"Your Majesty, my disciple was so frightened by this fruit that she fell gravely ill. Although she has awakened from her high fever, her body is terribly weak. I’ve heard that the Yin-Yang Fruit can cure illness and ward off disaster. This old man begs Your Majesty to grant permission for the little girl to eat this fruit." With that, Dean Chen kowtowed, his forehead striking the ground hard.

Ye Qianning heard every word clearly, and she also heard the distinct thud of her master’s forehead hitting the floor. Her nose began to sting.

’I never expected Master to be so protective of me, to think of me like this.’

Her eyes misted over...

Xiang Minghou and the others were also astonished. They had all assumed Dean Chen would present the treasure to the Emperor; they never imagined he would propose letting the little girl eat it.

The girl was frail; if she ate the Yin-Yang Fruit, her weakened body would quickly be restored.

’The Dean has truly gone to great lengths for this child.’

Xiang Minghou was moved beyond words. ’Pangtuan really found the right master.’

The Beili Emperor, for his part, was also stunned for a moment. ’Not for the imperial family? He wants to give it to a little girl to eat?’

’An artifact from the Immortal Mountain landed in Beili. The other kingdoms must have heard the news by now. This is a perfect opportunity for Beili to boost its morale. But if it’s eaten...’

’In a month, envoys from the three neighboring kingdoms will arrive for the birthday celebrations. What will I have to show off then?’

The crowd’s eyes widened in shock upon hearing this. ’Eat it? How could they even think of eating such a priceless treasure instead of enshrining it?’

"Dean Chen, this fruit from the Immortal Mountain only appears once every few hundred years. Surely, eating it would be inappropriate."

"It would be such a waste to eat it. Dean Chen, your request puts His Majesty in a difficult position."

"Dean Chen, the Yin-Yang Fruit is incredibly rare. Please, reconsider."

"An artifact from the Immortal Mountain appearing in Beili means it belongs to Beili—it belongs to His Majesty! If anyone is to eat it, it should be the Emperor. How could it possibly be given to a mere little girl?"

The officials chimed in one after another. Though they were wary of Dean Chen, the Emperor was present, and as his ministers, they had to stand united with their sovereign.

Besides, the Yin-Yang Fruit was simply too precious. The thought of it being eaten was agonizing.

’Just because it’s in Beili, it automatically belongs to Beili?’

Ye Qianning felt a profound sense of disgust at this display of imperial authority. ’I gave the fruit to Master, which makes it his property. No one has the right to question how he chooses to deal with it.’

’Is the Emperor really going to just steal it outright?’

"The little girl is the one who found the fruit, so what’s wrong with her eating it?" Old Gu was the first to speak up.

"Exactly!" Zhan Yi chimed in. "Your Majesty, you have no idea how terrifying it is when a high fever doesn’t break for two days. If she hadn’t been so resilient, she never would have woken up. Her body is weak now; ordinary medicine won’t be enough to restore her. She needs the Yin-Yang Fruit."

The Beili Emperor fell into a thoughtful silence. He neither bade Dean Chen to rise nor declared what should be done with the fruit.

"This old man begs Your Majesty to grant his permission," Dean Chen said, kowtowing once more.

"Master, I won’t eat it! Master, please get up!"

Her heart ached for him. Ye Qianning grabbed her master’s arm with her small hands and pulled with all her might.

’Any nascent goodwill I felt toward the Beili Emperor just vanished completely. An emperor is an emperor, in the end. None of them are soft-hearted. They’ll sacrifice anyone and everyone to achieve their goals.’

Upon hearing her words, the Beili Emperor shifted his gaze to Ye Qianning, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "Little girl, you don’t want this fruit?"

Ye Qianning ignored him completely, as if she hadn’t heard a thing, and kept pulling forcefully on her master’s arm.

"Child, the Emperor is asking you a question." Dean Chen straightened up and tugged at her small, straining arm.

Ye Qianning glanced his way before finally turning her head. "What did you say?"

The onlookers’ hearts clenched. ’No one has ever dared to speak to the Emperor that way. The child must be a fool.’

The Beili Emperor, however, didn’t seem to mind. He pointed at the Yin-Yang Fruit. "Do you want to eat that fruit?"

Ye Qianning thought for a moment, then shook her head.

"Why?"