Chapter 148: Catching Rabbits

Chapter 148: Chapter 148: Catching Rabbits

That night, the Ling family slept soundly. In their dreams, however, they all took a trip to Lingnan—eating the local delicacies, seeing the giant flying cockroaches, and even nervously attempting to speak the local dialect with the natives...

Waking up the next morning, they resumed their journey toward Lingnan. They walked faster and faster along this stretch of the road, feeling absolutely no fatigue.

The path ahead was growing greener by the minute! More and more plants appeared, and soon, small patches of woods began to emerge. At first, the trees were sparse, but as they traveled further, the forest grew increasingly dense. They saw rivers, little hopping rabbits, and chirping birds.

Having starved for so long, their eyes had previously betrayed a mix of despair and madness. Their bodies were already extremely weak; when they had first escaped the drought-stricken lands, they had resorted to eating grass and gnawing on tree bark. Now, upon seeing these wild rabbits, a greedy light flashed in their eyes as everyone gulped down their saliva.

They rushed forward desperately. Though their footsteps staggered and they looked as if they might collapse at any moment, they had only one thought in mind: catch those rabbits and fill their stomachs. The government officers didn’t try to stop them. In fact, even the government officers joined the fray to hunt down the wild rabbits.

Ling Qianjun and Ling Qianfan exchanged a glance before charging forward in unison. The agile Ling Qianjun could often catch wild rabbits with ease, while Ling Qianfan was a bit less skilled. Together, the two brothers darted into the woods.

Ling Qianjun quickly spotted a wild rabbit. He sprinted after it and snatched it up in just a few leaps. Watching his brother, Ling Qianfan couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy and disappointment. Just then, an even larger wild rabbit darted past them.

Determined to prove his own abilities, Ling Qianfan made up his mind to catch it. He chased after it with all his might, but the rabbit was incredibly fast, and he just couldn’t close the distance.

Seeing his younger brother’s earnest efforts, Ling Qianjun silently cheered him on. He quietly circled around to the front of the rabbit and then suddenly popped out, startling the creature. The rabbit immediately changed direction, darting straight toward Ling Qianfan, who seized the opportunity and caught it.

The two brothers looked at each other and burst into joyous laughter. They realized that although everyone had their own strengths and weaknesses, they could achieve much greater results by helping one another.

Ling Qianfan naturally realized what Ling Qianjun had quietly done for him. So, after catching the rabbit, he cheerfully trotted over to him, dangling his prize. "Hehe, Qianjun, I’ll roast the rabbit for you tonight," he said with a wide grin. "Just sit back and wait to eat. I’m handling all the roasting tonight!"

Ling Qianjun didn’t refuse. He nodded. "Alright."

In the end, the two brothers caught a total of six rabbits—enough for everyone in the family to have one each. When they carried the rabbits back to Ling Yunge and Xu Panqing, the women excitedly gathered around to stroke the animals’ soft fur.

"You caught so many!" Xu Panqing said. "Jun’er and Qianfan did such a wonderful job."

"Wow, we get to eat roast rabbit tonight!" Ling Yunge exclaimed. "These rabbits are a bit skinny, though. I can easily finish a whole one by myself!"

Hearing this, everyone turned to look at her.

Ling Yunge lowered her head in embarrassment. "Uh... actually, just half a rabbit is fine, too..."

Ling Qianjun chuckled and spoke in a clear voice, "You and Mother can have one each, while Qianfan and I will have one and a half each. That leaves one, which I’ll take over to Buwan."

Naturally, no one had any objections. They all nodded in agreement with the arrangement.