Chapter Twenty: Life’s Rabbit (Please Bookmark)
Finally, I’ve been waiting for you, and fortunately, I didn’t give up.
Zhu Hao’s gaze quickly swept toward the source of the voice. He saw the boy he had met that morning, now dressed in clean, tidy cloth garments, wearing a simple headscarf and a pair of nearly new leather boots. The boy tilted his head curiously in his direction.
A few men in plain civilian clothes mingled among the crowd, cautiously scanning their surroundings. This indicated that someone was secretly protecting the boy, though the level of vigilance was not as high as that for the Crown Prince of the Duke of Xing’s estate.
This boy had appeared twice without thorough security measures. Either he was not Zhu Houtong, or the Duke of Xing’s estate simply lacked any awareness of proper protection.
The former seemed more likely.
The crowd nearby whispered among themselves after hearing the boy’s words, pointing and murmuring at Zhu Hao.
The local constable sneered, feeling triumphant that someone had stepped forward to expose Zhu Hao’s lies.
Zhu Hao loudly retorted, “Young sir, you saw me fishing this morning but didn’t know what I was fishing for. We are strangers; you don’t even know my mother. How can you claim that my mother is ill? Without any grounds, how can you accuse me of lying or even label me a villain?”
When arguing, one only needed to grasp the key point.
The crux lay in this: we don’t know each other. If I say my mother is sick, the words come from me, and I decide what is true.
Unless you can provide evidence that my mother is not ill.
The onlookers were immediately swayed by Zhu Hao’s words and began to whisper again.
“Right, such a young child selling rabbits—if the family weren’t truly in trouble, who would let them do this? Seems like a filial son after all.”
“Yes, how could such a young child lie?”
...
“I’m selling my rabbits, but so far no one has bought any. This gentleman here wants me to pay a small fee to the constable, but that one coin could buy me two baked buns for a day’s meal. Where would I get it? Is there a kind soul who will buy my rabbits so I can take the money home to treat my mother’s illness? It would also help this gentleman fulfill his duty smoothly.”
Zhu Hao looked pitifully at the surrounding crowd.
Some had supported him verbally earlier, but when it came to taking action, each stepped back a few paces, exchanging glances that said, “This has nothing to do with me.”
Finally, Zhu Hao fixed his gaze on the boy who had spoken before: “Young sir, you see my rabbits lively and clever, but I can barely feed myself, let alone them. I can only try to sell them to a good family, so they won’t starve to death. Look…”
Since the boy had come, it meant he truly liked rabbits.
But Zhu Hao had just offended him.
The boy frowned slightly, unconsciously biting his snow-white thumb, as if pondering whether to buy. In that instant, he revealed a tender, girlish charm.
Zhu Hao’s heart skipped a beat, his mind racing.
This boy was most likely a girl. Although a young master of the Duke of Xing’s estate, he was not Zhu Houtong. The guards were very concerned for her safety, indicating her high status and her qualification to study alongside the estate’s scholars.
As for raising a girl as a boy, it was clearly the Duke’s ploy to sow confusion and prevent others from knowing who his real son was.
The Duke of Xing’s estate was far from lacking security awareness.
It was sheer cunning.
Having a young master of the estate occasionally venture out might be part of the Duke’s plan. Since she was not his true son, she could be used as bait to lure out potential threats, exposing enemies in one sweep.
Putting this together,
The girl’s identity was likely similar to that of Zhu Houtong’s sister, the historical Princess Yongfu, who was a year older. The princess’s title was bestowed after Zhu Houtong became emperor; for now, she was only called a young princess, her name unknown.
But all this was only Zhu Hao’s speculation without any solid proof.
“I won’t just sell you the rabbits; I’ll teach you how to raise them. Later, I can even take you to catch rabbits. I know a spot on the mountain outside the city where rabbits can be caught. I sometimes catch them and bring them here to sell…”
Zhu Hao continued to implement his plan.
Selling rabbits was just the first step to establish a connection. The real goal was to create a channel of communication in preparation for entering the Duke of Xing’s estate.
The boy showed no interest at first, but someone in the crowd couldn’t help but ask, “Where do you catch these rabbits? Maybe we should get a few too.”
Zhu Hao snapped, “Such lovely rabbits, would you really eat them? Rabbits don’t have much meat anyway. But if I really can’t sell them... I’ll have no choice but to cook them to help my mother recover…”
He looked heartbroken.
His expression was just right.
The boy who had hesitated moments ago immediately resolved to buy: “No, no, I’ll buy them… how much?”
“Wow!”
The onlookers thought the child was easily fooled.
Just a few words, and the boy, who had just mocked Zhu Hao, suddenly wanted to buy?
Someone quickly warned, “Ask the price first before deciding. Don’t let them take advantage of you with exorbitant prices.”
Zhu Hao said, “Why speak like that? I’m selling rabbits to treat my mother’s illness. Seeing how this young brother cherishes the rabbits... how about I sell you two rabbits for five coins?”
That price...
“Kid, sell them to me. I’ll give six coins.”
Someone shouted, clearly trying to take advantage of Zhu Hao’s inexperience.
Though the rabbits were not particularly large, each weighed at least one or two pounds. Don’t underestimate rabbit meat.
Six coins couldn’t even buy two or three pounds of rice.
Zhu Hao scoffed, “I’m selling to this young sir at a low price because he won’t kill the rabbits and will treat them well... As for you who want to buy them for meat, no matter how much you offer, I won’t sell... Why would I choose to come here instead of the market?”
These words struck a chord with the boy.
“All right, I’ll buy them.”
The boy clearly thought six coins was a great deal.
Zhu Hao said, “No cheating, hand over the money and I’ll hand over the rabbits. Give me six coins; I’ll give one coin to the constable. If I have more rabbits later…”
“You can sell them all to me. How much per rabbit?”
“Three coins!”
“Deal!”
The deal was made, seemingly for a long-term arrangement.
The crowd was nearly in disbelief—three coins per rabbit?
This was clearly market manipulation!
“Impossible!”
A burly man of about thirty rushed over to stop the boy from dealing with Zhu Hao.
But the boy ignored him, quickly coming over and pulling out a pouch embroidered with golden chrysanthemums. Counting out six coins, the pouch’s style and embroidery marked it as a rare, exquisite piece made from top-quality Sichuan brocade, likely an imperial tribute.
...
...
Money exchanged for rabbits.
Zhu Hao handed one coin to the constable immediately.
The crowd, seeing no more excitement, dispersed.
The boy wanted to take the rabbit cage as well. Zhu Hao chased after him: “I made the cage; you can’t take it.”
“I paid for the rabbits. Why not the cage? How much?”
The boy thought Zhu Hao was stingy.
He had bought the rabbits; what was wrong with a free bamboo cage?
Zhu Hao said, “I won’t sell the cage for any price. It’s an essential tool for catching rabbits... We don’t have bamboo groves at home, so I can’t easily get bamboo strips to make cages. Can’t you just take the rabbits home?”
The boy admired the cage’s craftsmanship but, faced with the seller’s refusal to sell it, was about to reach in for the rabbits when the burly man stepped in.
The man intended to take the rabbits out of the cage himself.
Taking advantage of the man bending down to catch the rabbits, Zhu Hao leaned close to the boy and whispered, “I know of a nest of newborn rabbits on the mountain. I plan to catch them in a few days. Want to come along?”
...
“Ah... you’re so cruel!” the boy exclaimed, clearly revealing the innocent charm of a little girl.
Zhu Hao replied seriously, “If you don’t catch them and raise them, they might get sick and die if it rains. Such young rabbits have a low survival rate in the wild.”
How could a child not be moved by such words?
Going up the mountain to catch a whole nest of rabbits—that thought alone stirred excitement.
“If you don’t go, that’s fine; I’ll go catch them myself and raise them at home.”
Zhu Hao said regretfully.
“Hey, didn’t you say you’d sell them to me after catching them?” the boy urged.
Zhu Hao said, “You want to raise a whole nest? They’re very young. You don’t know how to raise them. What if they die? I’ve raised rabbits before, I know how…”
This was also a way to attract the boy’s attention.
Wild rabbits turned domestic rarely survive long—they usually die of illness, hunger, or depression. If you can’t raise them, you’ll come back to buy pet rabbits from me and ask for feeding advice.
Did Zhu Hao really know how to raise rabbits?
Not at all!
He’d only seen farmers raising rabbits on short videos before, with almost no hands-on experience!
This was a trap.
“When will you go?” The other party had taken the bait.
Seeing the man bringing the rabbits over, Zhu Hao hurried, “Tomorrow morning, right here. I’ll leave after the hour of the snake. You should come early if you want to join.”
“The hour of the snake won’t do. Come after noon. That’s when the teacher rests.”
That one sentence revealed their daily routine.
Teaching activities at the Duke of Xing’s estate were scheduled in the morning, with a tradition of a midday nap. This was the time children had a chance to sneak out.
“All right then, see you at the end of noon. It’s a deal. We’ll split by headcount—however many go, we split into that many shares. Don’t be greedy.”
“Agreed.”
...
...
A gentleman’s pact.
Zhu Hao then set a trap for the boy.
His trap wasn’t for catching rabbits but was aimed squarely at the boy and the Zhu Houtong behind him.
By saying to split by headcount, he was subtly suggesting the boy could bring others along, giving him a chance to “play smart.” If the boy really was close to Zhu Houtong, when sneaking out, wouldn’t it be better to bring his brother along and share the spoils?
Such a fun outing—would only the boy want to go? Didn’t others in the Duke of Xing’s estate want to play and see something new?
Zhu Hao left the flower and bird market.
Not going home.
But rushing out of the city to arrange and prepare everything.
He had to prepare for two scenarios. The first: the boy came alone—then he would let him catch rabbits and return with a full haul, ready for the next meeting.
The second: Zhu Houtong came along.
The methods for these two scenarios were completely different. The real target of this hunt was Zhu Houtong.
If he caught you, he would grasp his fate and could roam freely for the rest of his life.