As soon as the case was closed, everyone in the Kaifeng Prefecture felt relieved and then began gathering together to slaughter rabbits.
Yes, you heard right—slaughtering rabbits.
Previously, while the constables were frantically digging for evidence between Jinze and Kaifeng, they unearthed more than twenty nests of rabbits, rats, and wild ducks within just a few days. The wild ducks were carefully released back into the wild, the rats were executed on the spot, and the rabbits were all stuffed into burlap sacks and brought back to the Kaifeng Prefecture, intended for later cooking and consumption.
However, that night, the rabbits chewed through the sacks. The next morning, when a constable opened the door to the woodshed, he was immediately overwhelmed by a swarm of powerful little legs kicking him in the face, leaving him bruised and bloodied, screaming in shock.
Gray, yellow, white, and black rabbits scattered like a tidal wave, knocking everything in the courtyard into disarray, as if a disaster had struck.
Throughout the entire morning, every idle constable in the Kaifeng Prefecture rushed to catch the rabbits, creating chaos and pandemonium, with many ending up with fresh scratches across their faces.
They must be killed—without delay!
Huo Ping, sporting several fresh bloody scratches, angrily said, “These little pests are the most despicable! They dig holes wherever they see fit, and reproduce like mad—nonstop breeding all year long! They’ve ruined the main roads, leaving them full of potholes. Normally, these holes are hidden under grass, but when people or horses step on them, they’re sure to twist an ankle!”
A few days ago, while digging for evidence, several constables had already twisted their ankles stepping into rabbit burrows and were still swollen today.
Rabbits can begin nesting when they’re only four or five months old, breeding continuously throughout the year, producing five or six litters annually, each with around ten offspring. Before you know it, they’ve multiplied into a full-blown infestation.
Crops, vegetable seedlings, and grasslands in many areas were completely devoured by them, causing endless suffering for the common people.
Just among those they had brought back, a rough count showed more than a hundred rabbits—truly alarming.
Ma Bing watched as Huo Ping swung his knife, and several rabbit heads flew off. She quickly caught them in a basin, saying, “These are valuable; we can’t throw them away.”
After chopping off the rabbit heads, Huo Ping began skinning them. “Can you even eat that?”
They were stiff and didn’t seem to have much meat on them.
Ma Bing smiled, “There’s still some meat on the cheeks. It’s fun to pick meat from the bones, but the best part is what’s inside.”
She made a gesture of opening the top of the skull.
Huo Ping sucked in a breath.
What a ferocious little girl!
However, recalling Ma Bing’s skill in preparing rabbit meat during their previous nights in the wilderness, Huo Ping couldn’t help licking his lips, asking, “Really tasty?”
“Just wait and see!” Ma Bing said confidently.
Rabbit heads are tough and require slow cooking to become flavorful. Back then, under limited conditions with only one rabbit head, it wasn’t worth the effort.
But today was different—with over a hundred rabbit heads!
There would be no shortage of things to gnaw on.
Huo Ping secretly swallowed hard, took a breather, and continued chopping.
“As for all these rabbit pelts, we’ll have someone tan them later,” he said cheerfully. “Enough to make a coat each for you and Chief Physician Wang.”
In their eyes—martial officers—doctors were always more delicate and needed proper care.
Wang Heng came out from the house with a smile, stroking his beard, saying, “Rabbit meat nourishes the middle jiao and boosts qi, cools the blood, and detoxifies. It’s perfect to eat now.”
After working so hard these past days, everyone had developed some internal heat; eating rabbit meat would be just right.
“Exactly! Medicinal tonics can’t compare to dietary nourishment!” Ma Bing chimed in.
Wang Heng washed his hands and rolled up his sleeves to help clean the rabbits, “How do you plan to cook them?”
Ma Bing often cooked delicious dishes, and Wang, living in the same courtyard, had benefited many times. Now, whenever he saw her heading toward the kitchen, his mouth would start watering.
“Half braised, half grilled! The rabbit heads and offal will be stewed separately!” Ma Bing waved her hand decisively, organizing everything efficiently.
With so many rabbits, they couldn’t afford to be too picky about categorization. Dividing them into two large batches would save time and effort.
Wang Heng and Huo Ping both subconsciously swallowed, nodding, “Excellent, excellent…”
“Big sister Ma, I heard you solved the case, so I came to visit you!”
Her voice arrived before her body did. Before the words had fully faded, Yuan Yuan in a yellow gauze dress appeared from outside the courtyard, followed by two maids carrying a large food container.
After Wang Heng arrived in Kaifeng Prefecture, he planted numerous medicinal flowers in the courtyard. Osmanthus and honeysuckle were naturally among them. Near the walls by the gate, he specifically cultivated roses.
After several years, the roses had grown wildly, climbing trees and walls. As soon as the weather warmed, they began budding. Now, the entire wall was covered with roses as red as blood. When the wind blew, they formed passionate waves, attracting bees and butterflies, creating a magnificent yet charming scene.
Roses regulate qi, relieve depression, promote blood circulation, remove blood stasis, and beautify the complexion. Every year, Wang Heng collected and dried the petals, either using them directly in medicine or steeping them as tea—both were excellent.
He had heard that in the southwest, there was a custom of eating flowers—rose jam made from rose petals was used to make flaky pastries that tasted delicious.
Unfortunately, he never had the chance to try them himself.
Yuan Yuan entered smiling from behind the wall of roses. A gentle breeze lifted her gauze dress embroidered with dragonflies, blending with the sea of flowers and dancing butterflies, making it hard to distinguish reality from illusion.
Truly, she was more delicate and beautiful than the flowers themselves.
“You’ve got some nerve coming here,” Ma Bing laughed, “We’re just about to make something delicious. I was even considering whether to invite you, but I was afraid you might be out playing with your lady friends.”
“With my big sister here, who needs other lady friends!” Yuan Yuan giggled, hugging Ma Bing from behind and leaning her head on her shoulder, “Dear sister, Mother heard I was coming and specially asked the kitchen to prepare some delicacies. There’s the duck tail pastry you liked last time, fresh milk nine-layer cake, peach cake, almond puff… Oh, and I also brought a box of zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). Try them and tell me which one you like best, and I’ll send you some for the Dragon Boat Festival.”
Zongzi… Ma Bing suddenly realized, it was already late April.
How fast time had passed.
Ma Bing patted Yuan Yuan’s arm with a mix of emotions, “Hmm, if you had come empty-handed, you’d have been chased away by now.”
Yuan Yuan giggled, rubbing her soft, fragrant cheek against Ma Bing’s, “Big sister always teases me. I know you don’t really mean it.”
“Little smart aleck!” Ma Bing pretended to poke Yuan Yuan’s face with her blood-stained fingers, scaring the girl into jumping back.
“Oh my! Are these rabbits?” Yuan Yuan finally noticed the bloody rabbits in the basin, startled and paling, “This…”
It was her first time seeing raw ingredients before cooking.
It was quite frightening.
“I was careless,” Ma Bing thought to herself. After all, she was still a child, “Go inside and play while we cook some braised rabbit cubes for you later.”
Yuan Yuan hesitated, reluctant to leave.
Her big sister was here.
What was there to be afraid of!
She bit her lip and crouched back down, clearly avoiding looking directly at the rabbits but still trying to act calm, “I… I’m not scared. Rabbits are so cute…”
Saying that, she reached out to play with the few live rabbits in the corner.
Look, they were so fluffy and adorable. She had even seen other young ladies keep rabbits as pets.
But the next moment, one of the rabbits suddenly struggled violently, its round head biting toward Yuan Yuan’s fingertip.
“Wahhhhh!”
Startled, the girl screamed, fell backward, and clung to Ma Bing’s arm, trembling like a leaf.
“Miss!”
The two maids were also frightened and hurriedly put down the food container to help her.
Everyone burst into laughter, quickly wiping their hands to help her up.
“You silly girl, haven’t you heard that even rabbits bite when they’re desperate?”
Many people thought rabbits were weak and easy to bully, but in reality, these little creatures had extremely strong teeth. If bitten, their teeth could easily penetrate hard nails and reach straight to the bone.
Yuan Yuan herself felt a bit embarrassed, clinging to Ma Bing’s arm to steady herself, forcibly holding back her tears and pretending nothing had happened, “Rabbits are so cute, of course…” (sniffing) “of course we should braise them.”
Everyone burst into laughter again.
As children grow up, they start to care about their image.
Yuan Yuan blushed deeply, almost to the point of bleeding.
The two maids were both exasperated and amused. “Miss, what are you trying to prove?”
Just say you’re scared!
Meanwhile, the seven-day student sit-in protest finally came to an end.
The emperor summoned Li Qinghe and the other two leaders, asking them thirteen questions on the spot, all of which they answered.
Tu Yao, who was present, nodded in approval after listening.
Although somewhat immature, their answers showed promise, lacking only experience and practice.
After they finished answering, the emperor remained silent for a while.
No one dared to speak without his command, and the hall fell into a silence so profound that even a pin drop could be heard.
After an unknown length of time, the emperor finally spoke, naming three counties. These counties were remote, impoverished, and frequently harassed by Japanese pirates, making them extremely dangerous.
“These three counties either lack a county magistrate or a county clerk. Are you three willing to take up these positions?”
County magistrate ranked eighth grade, and county clerk ninth grade—both were at the bottom of the bureaucratic ladder. Below them were clerks who didn’t even hold official ranks.
Moreover, these were such impoverished places where it was hard to achieve political success. If they were unlucky, they might spend their entire lives stuck in these remote, backward areas.
If they patiently waited for official appointments, they, as jinshi degree holders, probably wouldn’t end up in such places.
For the three who had already experienced the prosperity of the capital city, this was undoubtedly an extremely difficult decision.
If they accepted, they might spend their entire lives in poverty and hardship.
If they refused…
This was undoubtedly an imperial test.
For them, it was a high-stakes gamble, with their own lives as the stakes.
As soon as the emperor finished speaking, Li Qinghe and another person immediately knelt down to express their gratitude. The third hesitated slightly before hastily kneeling as well. The moment his knees touched the ground, his face turned pale.
Oh no!
This is terrible!
His hesitation would inevitably lower the emperor’s evaluation of him. It would likely make it much harder for him to rise in the future…
He secretly pinched his palm, deeply regretting his moment of hesitation, which had squandered the excellent opportunity he had fought so hard to achieve.
Indeed, the emperor’s gaze swept over the three and paused on him, and he imperceptibly frowned.
This young man certainly showed courage, but his mind was not firm. He might turn out to be a paper general, all talk and no action—like Lord Ye who professed to love dragons but was terrified when he actually saw one.
After leaving the palace, Li Qinghe quickly caught up with Tu Yao and sincerely kowtowed several times.
“Thank you, sir, for your support. I don’t know if we’ll ever meet again. Allow me to bid you farewell now.”
Tu Yao accepted the kowtows calmly and sighed, “This journey will be perilous, but the sky is vast and the sea is wide. You… take care of yourself.”
Those impoverished regions were indeed dangerous—truly a place where one risked their life for political achievements. Even if successful, it might not guarantee a swift rise.
But having a practical, resourceful local official would be a blessing for the people there.
Li Qinghe listened carefully, “Thank you for your guidance and support.”
He stood up, bowed deeply, and slowly backed away before leaving.
Who knows if he would ever return to Kaifeng again. He originally wanted to visit Cao Qing to tell her that the protection tax had finally been abolished, but he didn’t know what else to say.
Besides, saying it now would only lead to helpless sighs…
Well, life is long. Let things take their course.
May there be fewer tragedies in this world.
Tu Yao watched him leave, and in the distance at the street corner stood a woman, likely the one who had once come together to deliver eggs.
The woman spoke a few words with Li Qinghe. Then, the two turned around and bowed respectfully to Tu Yao from afar before finally getting into the carriage and slowly disappearing from sight.
“Sir,” Xie Yu approached, glancing in the direction where the carriage had vanished, “Let’s go back to the mansion.”
Tu Yao nodded and turned to get into his sedan chair.
May your journey ahead be safe.
Without further words, they soon arrived at the Kaifeng Prefecture.
As they entered the gate, they could hear laughter and chatter coming from the medicinal garden from afar, causing everyone to relax their expressions involuntarily.
How wonderful.
Even if the outside world is exhausting, returning home still brings moments of peace.
Homecoming is truly wonderful.
“Since we have two days off, let’s go play with them,” Tu Yao waved his hand, signaling to Xie Yu and Yuan Pei.
“Sir,” Xie Yu suddenly asked, “Why did Xu Maocai suddenly get transferred to the Ministry of Justice?”
Last night, he had gone to the prison again, but the cell was empty. After inquiring with the jailers, he learned that Xu Maocai had been moved.
Tu Yao stopped walking and gazed at him deeply, “Then tell me, what exactly are you so persistent about, and why?”
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