"You are not a monster. We eat, we eat whatever we want. I'll cook for you, buy for you, anything for you."
"I won't let you starve, won't let you starve."
Xiao Shan was incoherent. He couldn't bear it. The person he held in his palm, the one he had doted on with all his heart, how could she... how could she... was she trying to break his heart?
Had she been enduring hunger all these days?
Why didn't she tell him? Was he being too strict?
No wonder she was always listless, always wanting to lie down.
Was it hunger?
It truly pained him.
"Wuwu..."
Ling Yao burst into tears, "It's just that after my Nirvana, my constitution changed. It's not an illness. What's wrong with me eating more? You can afford it..."
"I'm always hungry, my mind conjures illusions. I don't really want to eat you."
Xiao Shan finally stepped forward and hugged her pitiful, small, trembling body. "I know. It's my fault. I was wrong."
"I want to eat pork knuckles, braised duck, steamed buns, and crispy cakes, all of them, all of them, all of them..."
Her voice gradually faded, and she became still.
"Xue Niang, don't scare me!"
As the night deepened, the inn became lively. Carriages stopped outside, and doctors were invited in.
More than a dozen doctors reached the same conclusion.
Insufficient nourishment, qi deficiency, weak body, fainted from hunger.
"Oh dear, look how thin this child is. Can't you see with those eyes? How can you be a father? What a sin!"
The last doctor shook his head and left.
Xiao Shan felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
He replayed the events of the past few days in his mind over and over.
Compared to before his dietary control, she had indeed lost weight. How could he have been so careless and not noticed? Her small chest showed her ribs.
It was all his fault for adhering to some damned rules and not discovering it sooner.
When had Xiao Shan ever been a rule-follower? He was utterly foolish!
"Alas, why aren't you throwing a tantrum at me like before? You must have been enduring a lot these past few days, my little fool. I thought it was for your own good, but it ended up harming you like this."
"Did my emotions affect you? Yes, I was so scared of you, so scared of the slightest disturbance. You must have been trying to comfort me."
Xiao Shan stroked her thin little face, muttering endlessly.
When Ling Yao woke up, she smelled the fragrance filling the room. She then saw a man serving soup by the table laden with food.
"A Shan, this..."
Ling Yao's gaze was glued to the table, unable to move. It smelled so good, all her favorite foods.
Was it a festival today?
"Do you want to eat? If you want to eat, drink this soup first."
Seeing Ling Yao's eager eyes, he couldn't help but feel regret. Why hadn't he noticed a few days ago?
When had she ever eaten anyone else's food? That day she was so hungry she ate someone else's chicken leg, and he had thought...
"Can I really eat? As much as I want?"
"Eat until you're full."
Xiao Shan brought over the soup, specially prepared to nourish the stomach, mixed with the blood-tonifying medicine prescribed by the doctor.
Ling Yao didn't even ask and drank it all.
"I want to eat the braised pork first, okay?"
"Yes, of course! Eat whatever you want!" Xiao Shan said generously.
Ling Yao's eyes lit up, and she excitedly clenched her small fists and raised them.
Xiao Shan brought the meat over and started feeding her with chopsticks. The meat was stewed until it was soft. Ling Yao ate quickly, not afraid of choking. Her teeth were already injured, so he couldn't let her tear at it.
Soon, the entire plate was finished.
Her stomach felt warm and comfortable. Ling Yao was almost moved to tears.
"A Shan, aren't you afraid I'll ruin my health?"
"I'm not afraid. If you feel fine, then you're fine. But if you really feel uncomfortable, you must not hide it. Tell me."
He had thought about it. Rather than being wary and letting her suffer, it was better to let go and let her be happy and comfortable.
Even if there was a problem with her health, the worst that could happen was death. He would be with her. What was there to fear?
"I'm fine, really fine, I promise!" Ling Yao was happy, smiling like a flower. "A Shan, you're so good."
She got out of bed, hugged Xiao Shan's neck, and kissed him. Then she jumped off the bed herself, put on her slippers, and sat on the stool to eat.
Fortunately, Xiao Shan had prepared easily digestible food. She had been hungry for so long that she could swallow it with just a couple of chews.
Amidst Xiao Shan's repeated "Slow down, slow down...", she still devoured the table of food, leaving very little.
Xiao Shan was dumbfounded. Her appetite was even bigger than his.
He stopped caring about any rules and lifted Ling Yao's clothes to examine her stomach.
Indeed, it had bulged out like a round ball.
Although he had just said he would let her do as she pleased, but, but, however, wasn't this too much? How could he not worry?
Was she going to burst her stomach?
"It's okay! It's much smaller than when I was carrying a child." Ling Yao patted her stomach and let out a satisfied burp.
It felt so good! She was finally full.
Good heavens, how could that be comparable?
"I bit you, how's the wound?" Ling Yao looked worriedly at his arm.
"It's a minor matter."
Xiao Shan waved his hand and looked at the empty plates on the table.
Could this be a side effect of Nirvana?
After recuperating at the inn for two more days, Ling Yao finally regained her usual vigor. She no longer ate like a whirlwind, but she still ate a lot.
During this time, Xiao Shan also received a letter from Ruan Ji.
"Urgent for her needs, thinking what she thinks. When she is weak, I am strong; when she is strong, I am weak. To win a lady's heart, true affection must be exchanged."
Tch! What nonsense. He already knew all this. He shouldn't have asked that philanderer; what did he know about true affection!
Looking at another letter, he was somewhat surprised.
The golden light from Changyun Mountain.
He vaguely remembered that the golden lotus in Ma Yibu's hand had gone towards Changyun Mountain in his past life.
Could that golden lotus be about to appear?
Xiao Shan looked for Ling Yao, only to see her in the lobby on the first floor, chatting with a waiter, looking very excited.
Indeed, she was full and full of energy.
He curved his lips, about to call her, when she turned and ran upstairs.
"A Shan, hurry and come with me to Dongfeng Restaurant!"
Xiao Shan had just finished reading the letter and was about to tell her about the Left Prime Minister. She seemed rather urgent and pulled him along.
"What's wrong? Does Dongfeng Restaurant have new dishes?"
"No, Dongfeng Restaurant is holding a competition. Whoever eats the most can eat for free at their restaurant for a month, eat whatever they want!"
Oh, it was related to food again.
And it was this kind of unreliable competition.
It could make a healthy person sick.
"Haha, the waiter said you should try it. He doesn't know that I'm even better than you!"
If eating a lot was considered being good at something, then indeed, her appetite had surpassed his.
The key was that she ate quickly and digested quickly. When he cautiously touched her stomach, the bulging belly had inexplicably disappeared.
It must be a lingering effect of Nirvana!