This was an utterly private matrimonial gathering.
The attendees seated below were all either wealthy or noble.
Everyone craned their necks in anticipation, watching the stage concealed by red drapes, whispering amongst themselves.
"What if the bride is very ugly?"
"I'd still take her, as long as she can bear children."
"A high-quality female human like her, in the entire interstellar, is few and far between; who cares about her looks."
"Too bad she's a plant-based human."
"A plant-based human I'd still take, as long as she can bear children."
"If she weren't a plant-based human, it wouldn't be our turn to compete here."
"Shh! It's starting! It's starting!"
Someone exclaimed in surprise.
The crowd immediately fell silent, nearly holding their breaths, fixing their gaze on the slowly moving red drapes on the stage.
The red drapes parted, and an ironwork bed came into view of the audience.
The onlookers stood up impatiently, craning their necks to peer onto the bed.
There lay a young girl in a pure white wedding dress.
Her skin was like creamy jade, her features delicate.
The black curls spread beneath her like seaweed, making her complexion even more strikingly pale.
She lay there quietly, like an exquisite doll in a display window.
It was hard to imagine the breathtaking sight if she were to open her eyes.
Though she appeared frail, even lying down, her chest remained proudly pronounced, indicating a curvy figure.
The people below erupted into excitement.
"Truly a bewitching beauty!"
"Never imagined that the Miss of the Yan Family could be this gorgeous!"
"Tonight, she must be mine! No one dare compete with me!"
"Too beautiful! Such a ravishing beauty is a waste just for childbearing, she should be revered like an ancestor!"
"What use is a pretty shell if she can't bear children? With such excellent genes, she should have at least seven or eight babies."
"Seven or eight? Ha! Do you have the stamina?"
In the midst of the commotion, no one noticed the sleeping beauty's forehead twitch so faintly it was barely perceptible.
The chittering voices drifted into Yan Qianyi's ears.
From a blur to gradually clearer.
Her soul had finally returned to its place!
She was so excited she wanted to open her eyes.
But her body was beyond her control, only able to hear the outside voices.
"Everyone, quiet down." Yan Hong came out, "As you all can see, this is the daughter I had with my ex-wife, and her fertility is S-grade."
In the interstellar year 1027, due to fertilty limitation laws.
Although the vitality of humans had increased, their fertility had worsened.
Fertility was divided into six grades: S, A, B, C, D, E.
Yan Qianyi, with her S-grade fertility, was a high-quality female human indeed.
Yan Hong sighed and continued, "Regrettably, an accident two years ago turned her into a plant-based human, but she can bear children normally. Today is her twentieth birthday, and I wish to choose a capable person to look after her for the rest of her life. As everyone here is aware of the rules, the one with the highest dowry can take her away tonight."
What Yan Hong referred to as capability was merely wealth.
Thus, rather than calling this a matrimonial gathering, it was more apt to deem it an auction.
Hearing her father's words, Yan Qianyi was so enraged she nearly had an out-of-body experience again.
She had tried so hard to return, only to hear upon her return that her once loving father was now auctioning her off like an item.
And what did her father mean by "ex-wife"?
Had he already divorced her mother?
What exactly had happened during the two years she was gone?
Ignoring the rowdy bidding noise near her, she focused her energy on mobilizing her body.
She must wake up as soon as possible!
There was no way she could lie here and be butchered like a lamb!