The Dragon King deeply understood the feelings of Mrs. Shen the Second. Not only could he empathize with her, but he also wanted to help her take revenge on the Shen family. He gave the pre - harvested demon fruit to Shen Baozhu.
The Dragon King: [Feed it to Shen Qingshan!]
The demon fruit, though it sounded intimidating, was actually a bright red fruit. It smelled fragrant and was quite tempting. Lying in Shen Baozhu's palm, it made one have an urge to take a bite.
Shen Baozhu clenched the demon fruit and tugged at Shen Haiyan's sleeve. "Third brother, I have something for grandfather. Will you accompany me?"
Shen Haiyan glanced at his sister. Due to the tacit understanding between siblings, he vaguely sensed what Shen Baozhu had in mind. He nodded in agreement, told Yan Mingli to take good care of the others, and then led Shen Baozhu out.
When the Fourth Prince saw Shen Baozhu leaving, he subconsciously wanted to follow, but was stopped by Qiuqiu.
Qiuqiu, looking like a little adult, explained her reasoning to the Fourth Prince. "Baozhu hates grandfather so much. If she's going to give something to grandfather, it must be for revenge. Let's not disturb her."
"If we were allowed to go, Baozhu would surely take me with her."
The fact that Baozhu didn't take her meant it was inconvenient for others to follow.
The Fourth Prince understood the hidden meaning in Qiuqiu's words. He silently stepped back, thinking about how he could understand Baozhu as well as Qiuqiu did. He was also glad that Qiuqiu had stopped him, for if he had followed, he might have ruined Baozhu's plan.
Shen Baozhu had a smooth process of giving the demon fruit. She didn't even need to say much. She just held out her palm and offered the fruit to Shen Qingshan. Unable to resist the temptation, Shen Qingshan ate it.
Lin Yu: [Shen Qingshan just ate it like that?]
The Dragon King: [Of course. This is a demon fruit. Our little cutie is also very smart. She gave the fruit to Shen Qingshan herself and didn't let Shen Haiyan touch it.]
Lin Yu: [Is there a reason for that?]
The Dragon King: [The more one values fame, fortune, and status, the more attractive the demon fruit will be. No matter how smart Shen Haiyan is, he's still a child. He must have something he desires in his heart. If his desire gets out of control, he might eat the demon fruit.]
The True Man Qingyun: [No wonder it's named the demon fruit. It's a fruit that lures people into darkness.]
The Dragon King: [Fortunately, for those without desires, they'll just have nightmares for a few days.]
The Dragon King: [But who doesn't have desires? Our little cutie must have some too, right?]
Lin Yu: [Baozhu might have a desire for pastries.]
Shen Baozhu shook her head, her voice a bit low. "It's not pastries. When I saw that fruit, I thought of eldest brother and second brother. I also wanted my maternal grandfather to come home and accompany mother. But mother said that the brothers all had their own dreams. I can't stop them just because I miss them, just like she misses her father but can't ask him to come back."
Shen Baozhu's desire was not for pastries, but for her loved ones to be by her side.
This desire emerged when Shen Heqing moved to the academy and Shen Haiyan entered the military camp, and her memory of her maternal grandfather became increasingly vague.
The Dragon King couldn't bear to see Shen Baozhu unhappy. [Isn't it just missing them? That's easy!]
The Dragon King: [Where's the little phoenix? Let it grow bigger and take you on a long - distance journey to find them!]
Lin Yu was thinking about whether a computer could be used in ancient times. When he saw the Dragon King's message, he reminded him. [Baozhu is an ordinary person. Even if the little phoenix can do it, her body won't be able to withstand high - intensity flight.]
The Dragon King: [That's also easy. I can't give magic to the little cutie, but I can give her talismans. The true man can draw a protective talisman.]
The Dragon King: [And Baozhu's mother misses her family too, right?]
The Dragon King: [That's easy too. Baozhu can use the talisman for protection. The treasure - hunting rat can lead the little cutie and her mother, just like the day Baozhu took Qiuqiu to the palace.]
The True Man Qingyun: [Shen Heqing is traveling for study, Shen Danqing is delivering military supplies, and the maternal grandfather is at war. Their whereabouts are uncertain, so it's impossible to find them.]
The Dragon King: [Even easier. Let Baozhu's mother eat the kinship fruit to find the maternal grandfather and the "fool" (referring to Shen Heqing). It's a bit more troublesome for Shen Danqing. Yun Yiniang has to eat the kinship fruit.]
Watching the Dragon King solve the problem that had troubled her for a long time with just a few messages, Shen Baozhu's eyes sparkled. Her longing had been there for a long time. Later, when her brothers returned home, she gradually forgot about it. It was the demon fruit that had brought back the thought hidden in her heart. She never thought that something that made her so sad was so easy in the eyes of the Dragon King.
Shen Baozhu couldn't help cheering. "The Dragon King is so amazing!"
The Dragon King: [Just so - so. I'm the number one in the world.]
Lin Yu: [The Dragon King doesn't need to be modest. You truly deserve the title of number one.]
The True Man Qingyun: [Indeed.]
The Dragon King's tail was almost sticking up with pride, but he still pretended to be modest. [Really? Praise me a bit more.]
While Shen Baozhu was reading the messages, she was picked up by Shen Haiyan.
Shen Haiyan almost ran back to Mrs. Shen the Second's cell. Gasping for breath, he said to Xu Yutang, "It was so scary. I've already beaten Shen Qingshan, but just now, an inexplicable impulse suddenly welled up in my heart. I almost couldn't resist beating him again."
Xu Yutang clenched her palms. From her upbringing, she wanted to persuade Shen Haiyan not to call an elder by his name and not to be disrespectful to an elder. But thinking about how much Shen Haiyan hated Shen Qingshan, she held back and said softly, "How about you find that jailer just now and give him some money to beat Shen Qingshan up?"
"Shen Qingshan has already been beaten twice. I'm afraid he won't be able to bear another beating. Forget it." Although Shen Haiyan shook his head regretfully, his expression showed that he was tempted.
The Dragon King: [Is this Shen Haiyan's desire?]
The Dragon King: [I'm suddenly curious about the desires of the "fool" (Shen Heqing) and the "stupid one" (referring to someone else).]
Lin Yu: [Mingli probably wants to marry Miao Chun. Does Baozhu's eldest brother want to be the top scorer in the imperial examination? I'm also curious.]
The Dragon King: [I still have demon fruits. How about giving Shen Qingshan another one?]
The True Man Qingyun: [Next time. Shen Qingshan is a mortal. Eating two demon fruits in a row might cause problems.]
Mrs. Shen the Second endured her hatred and told them the silver spent by the Shen family in recent years.
Shen Haiyan vaguely felt something was wrong. He wasn't favored in the Shen family, but he had a favored eldest brother. Just looking at the things Shen Qingshan gave to Shen Heqing, the accounts didn't match.
The Prince Rui shook his head repeatedly. "No, your accounts are wrong. Although Shen Qingshan has resigned from office, his two sons are still serving in the court. They need to give gifts for the weddings and funerals of their colleagues. You didn't include that in the accounts."
Under Mrs. Shen the Second's puzzled gaze, the Prince Rui accurately reported a winter year. "That winter was extremely cold. There were many funerals, but the expenses were not much. Either you made a mistake or the Shen family didn't let you pay for these."
Mrs. Shen the Second staggered. She finally understood why the Shen family looked down on her but still gave her the power to manage the family. It turned out that this was how they managed. She was responsible for paying the money, but she couldn't represent the Shen family to give gifts. She was even kept in the dark about such matters.
Xu Yutang didn't understand. She whispered to Yan Mingli, "Not letting her pay the money is a good thing, right? Mrs. Shen the Second seems very sad."
"Just like you have two clothes. One is not good - looking and you don't like it, but it's cheap and practical. You usually wear it, but when you have guests, you'll change into more appropriate clothes. Mrs. Shen the Second is that cheap and practical clothes, and even free." Yan Mingli replied in an even softer voice.