It didn't take long for the servants to serve food towards their table. Even though the food was covered in a metal lid, it couldn't contain the smell inside. Some of it leaked outside, its pleasant smell thoroughly stimulating their appetite.
Yun Xia's stomach grumbled much to her embarrassment. She couldn't contain her hunger anymore after she caught a whiff of their food.
The people sitting around their table looked at her in amusement with the exception of Yue Dongmei. Her face was stoic as ever but there was a slight, almost unnoticeable smile on her lips.
Yun Ling chuckled a bit at his daughter. It would seem that Yun Xia couldn't wait any longer. With that in mind, his hand reached out towards the lid so they could start eating immediately.
When Yun Ling opened the lid, he was quite surprised when he saw the food in front of him.
"This is... one of the Seven Delicacies of Food, a Multi-Colored Chicken."
The crown prince was similarly surprised.
"I thought the smell was a bit familiar but I couldn't recall it no matter how much I thought about it. It turns out it's a Multi-Colored Chicken. I've only eaten one before and that was when I was still a child."
"This thing is very rare. It can only be found by luck and not on purpose. Not even the emperor can casually eat a Multi-Colored Chicken as he likes." Yu Shan hadn't eaten a Multi-Colored Chicken himself before but he still knew a lot about it since it is a rare and famous delicacy.
Just like its name, the Multi-Colored Chicken was a chicken with many colors. It was also known by another name, Rainbow Chicken because each of its colors corresponds to the seven colors of the rainbow. The Multi-Colored Chicken was one of the rarest chicken species. It was known to be very delicious no matter how it was cooked or no matter how bad the cook was.
Even though the Multi-Colored Chicken was already cooked and without any feather, Yun Ling and the others were still able to recognize it. It was because it was still faintly emitting the seven colors of the rainbow. It was its unique characteristic.
"I heard that His Majesty keeps two Multi-Colored Chickens in the palace. My father said His Majesty was reluctant to eat them and instead, reared them for their eggs," Yu Shan shared. Although the Multi-Colored Chicken could lay many eggs, there was only one in a million chance that another Multi-Colored Chicken would emerge from it. Most of the eggs are unfertilized and were only good for eating.
"Multi-Colored Chicken, huh? The fourth prince must've bled a lot of money for this," Yun Ling said amusedly. He took a glance at the other tables and saw that the food served there was also top quality. Although it couldn't compare to a Multi-Colored Chicken, it was still high class and expensive.
Yun Ling was right. The fourth prince almost went broke because of this. He had spent much money as a means to show his wealth and authority. The fourth prince wanted to form goodwill and attract as many geniuses as he could towards his side through this banquet.
There was still unopened food on their table. The crown prince lifted another lid off from the tray.
"This one looks like... I think it is a Glacial Salmon. A type of salmon that lives inside the ice in the cold sea. It's not expensive but it is also by no means cheap."
"And this one is a Grade A, Fiend Pig's meat. A Fiend Pig's meat is quite cheap, practically anyone can buy it. A Grade A meat however is quite hard to come by," Yu Shan said when he saw the content of the last tray.
Yue Dongmei and the crown prince's guards stared at them blankly as they all thought, 'What are you three? Food connoisseurs?'
"Anyway, let us eat," Yun Ling said as he grabbed a fork and knife. He sliced a portion of the chicken's meat and placed it on top of Yun Xia's plate. "Xiaxia, you should eat this one. Multi-Colored Chicken is not only delicious, but it is also good for your body's foundation. This will be useful when you start cultivating in the future."
"Hm." Yun Xia nodded at her father.
"Eat some of these Glacial Salmon as well. It's inferior to a Multi-Colored Chicken's taste but it is still a high-class delicacy. You are a daughter of Yun so you must know how to appreciate good food from bad food. As for the Fiend Pig's meat, it's quite on the heavy side so you shouldn't eat it. It's already night and you're going to sleep soon so it will be for the best not to eat it especially since you are already going to eat the Multi-Colored Chicken and the Glacial Salmon."
"Yun Xia understands, Papa," Yun Xia said following Yun Ling's every word.
Yun Ling smiled at her in appreciation. Then, he noticed Yu Shan and the crown prince looking at him strangely.
"What?" Yun Ling asked, frowning.
"Nothing," The crown prince simply replied and started eating, ignoring Yun Ling.
Yu Shan on the other hand chuckled.
"It's nothing Yun Ling. It's just that, it feels a bit unusual seeing you act in a fatherly way."
"You're not the first one to tell me that," Yun Ling said, thinking of Yun Yi who said the same thing just earlier. "And I have a feeling you wouldn't be the last."
Yu Shan suddenly let out a small laugh. "It's not a feeling, it's a fact. There will certainly be more people who'll be surprised when they see you act like this in the future."
Yun Ling let out a scoff. He ignored Yu Shan as he started eating after serving some food on his plate himself.