A rabbit I met halfway
In the twilight, the old carpenter Zhao Youde carried a bundle of freshly cut peach wood and hurried home on the winding mountain road. In the woods on both sides of the mountain road, the neighing of night birds can be heard from time to time, and it sounds like someone is crying, which is terrifying.
Zhao Youde is a craftsman, in addition to helping the villagers in the village to make some furniture and farm tools, he often goes to the village to do some rituals, exorcise ghosts and evil spirits, watch feng shui, and collect fright, and is well-known in this area. However, he had a rule that he must return home before dark, and never travel at night. The mountains in this area are dense with forests, and wild animals are often infested, and in addition to the recent unrest, people often lose their poultry and livestock, and it is said that they are all plagued by a monster called "mandrill". The mandrill is infinitely powerful, and it can tear tigers and leopards alive, and ordinary people almost have no life when they meet it.
Zhao Youde was a little tired from walking, so he rested on an old pine tree on the side of the road. He had just closed his eyes when he suddenly heard the sound of a rope in the bushes next to him, as if something was moving. He was immediately alert, and when he opened his eyes, he saw two red eyes staring at him from the bushes.
Zhao Youde was taken aback, hurriedly pulled out a bow from his back, mounted an arrow, and aimed it at the red eyes. It is a peachwood bow with a bow shaft cut from peachwood, and the arrowhead is made of silver, which is said to ward off evil spirits and is particularly effective against evil and filthy things.
Zhao Youde stared nervously at those red eyes, and slowly moved his steps, trying to go around to the side of the bushes to see who the demon was. Unexpectedly, at this moment, the owner of those eyes suddenly jumped out of the bushes, and Zhao Youde's eyes were quick and he suddenly pulled the bowstring.
At the moment when the arrow was about to shoot out, Zhao Youde suddenly saw clearly that what jumped out was actually a snow-white rabbit. The rabbit did not have a single stray hair, it was dazzlingly white, and its two eyes were red, like a pair of crystal red agate.
Zhao Youde was stunned for a moment, he had been hunting in this area for many years, but he had never seen such a beautiful rabbit. He hesitated, slowly loosened the bowstring, and the rabbit seemed frightened, turned and fled. Zhao Youde was stunned again, he saw that the rabbit's hind legs seemed to be a little lame, and it limped when it ran.
Zhao Youde suddenly felt a little unbearable, he put down his bow and arrows, waved his hand at the rabbit, and signaled it to go quickly. The rabbit seemed to understand what he meant, glanced back at him, turned and jumped into the woods by the side of the road, and disappeared.
Zhao Youde sighed, picked up the peach tree, and continued to rush home. After walking a short distance, I suddenly saw a light not far ahead, and a dozen people were sitting around a bonfire, as if they were talking about something. Zhao Youde stepped forward and wanted to ask them about the news in the village.
A dozen steps away from the bonfire, Zhao Youde heard one of them say, "...... It was really strange that a dozen of us had been chasing for a whole afternoon, and we were about to catch up, but suddenly it jumped into the woods and disappeared all at once. We split up and searched around, but we couldn't find a single rabbit hair. You say, 'Is this rabbit a sperm?'
Another old voice said: "This rabbit is indeed a little strange, you may not know, just the night before, the old man also saw an identical rabbit. At that time, the old man thought that this rabbit was unusual, and wanted to catch it to see what was going on, but he almost lost his life. ”
Everyone exclaimed in surprise and asked what the old man had encountered. The old man took a sip of wine and said slowly: "It was the second watch, and when the old man returned from admiring the moon, he suddenly saw a white rabbit jumping out of the woods on the side of the road and running straight up the hillside. The old man felt that this rabbit was extraordinary, so he quietly followed. The rabbit seemed to know that someone was following it, and it ran neither fast nor slow, always maintaining a distance of more than a dozen paces. The old man chased after him for about half an hour, and suddenly saw a large mansion in front of him, and the rabbit jumped into the mansion. The old man rushed forward, only to see that the gate was open, and the courtyard was quiet, and there was not even a figure. He walked into the courtyard curiously, and suddenly felt a gust of wind blowing on his face, cold and piercing through the bone marrow. When he looked around, he was taken aback, and saw a mourning hall in the courtyard, with an oil lamp lit on the table, swaying with a dim yellow light. On the spiritual table behind the offering table, there is a yellow table of paper with three words written on it: 'Lord Rabbit'. The old man felt that something was wrong, and wanted to turn around and leave, but at this moment, he suddenly heard a rustling sound behind him, and when he looked back, his soul was suddenly scattered, and it turned out that the rabbit had stood behind him for some time, with green eyes, staring at him. The old man screamed in fright, fell to the ground, and fainted. I don't know how long later, the old man was woken up by a cold wind, and found that he was lying on the side of the road, and the house and the rabbit were gone. When he returned home, he fell seriously ill and almost lost his life. ”
Everyone was dumbfounded, and after a long while, someone asked, "Uncle, what you said is true? Where is the mansion?"
The old man shook his head, "The old man doesn't know, it was dark like ink at that time, and he was flustered, so he didn't remember the path at all." I just think that the house is quite spacious, not like an ordinary house. ”
The more Zhao Youde listened, the more frightened he became, he remembered the rabbit he had just met, could it be ...... He suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly asked the old man: "Uncle, when you met the rabbit the day before yesterday, were you also around here?"
The old man thought for a while, nodded and said, "Yes, it's not far ahead." ”
Zhao Youde's heart sank, it seems that this rabbit is indeed unusual, maybe it is really a spirit. He remembered what had happened to him, and suddenly felt a pang of fear.
The old man saw that Zhao Youde's face was wrong, so he asked, "Uncle, have you also encountered anything strange?"
Zhao Youde sighed and told him about the rabbit he had just met. After hearing this, everyone was amazed. Someone asked, "Uncle, why didn't you draw an arrow and shoot it at that time?"
Zhao Youde smiled bitterly: "You don't know, when I saw the eyes of the rabbit, I suddenly had an inexplicable fear in my heart, as if there was a mysterious force stopping me. I've never felt this way, so ......"
When everyone heard this, they smacked their tongues. They all knew that Zhao Youde was a well-informed person, and even he was afraid, and that rabbit was probably really extraordinary.
At this moment, they suddenly heard the sound of a rope in the woods, and everyone suddenly became nervous, and they all picked up their bows and arrows and aimed them in the direction from which the sound came. After a while, a snow-white rabbit jumped out of the woods, and everyone saw that it was the rabbit they had just talked about.
The rabbit didn't seem to be afraid, it stood in the middle of the road, its two red eyes rolling around, as if it were looking at everyone. Zhao Youde's heart moved, he remembered that he had let go of this rabbit just now, maybe it was here to repay his kindness.
He slowly lowered his bow and arrow, waved at the rabbit, and motioned for it to move away. The rabbit seemed to understand what he meant, looked back at him, turned and jumped into the woods, and vanished.
When everyone saw this, they sighed. They knew that this rabbit was by no means an ordinary thing, and it was safe and sound today, thanks to Zhao Youde's kindness.
Zhao Youde also felt scared for a while, and he was secretly glad that he didn't have a spur of the moment just now, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable. He thought of the strange mansion that the old man said, and he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart. He decided never to walk at night again, lest he get into trouble with something unclean.
Everyone said goodbye to the old man and went home. Zhao Youde picked up the peach wood and hurried home. As he walked, he wondered where the rabbit was sacred, why was it here, and he was determined to find out the truth before it would cause any more harm to the world.
After Zhao Youde returned home, he told his wife about tonight's experience. When his wife heard this, she also felt a palpitation. She instructed her husband to be careful and not to deal with evil things again.
Zhao Youde nodded in agreement, and he lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. He thought of the rabbit, of the strange mansion, and couldn't help but feel an inexplicable fear in his heart. He knew that what he had encountered this time was anything but ordinary, and he had to deal with it carefully to avoid getting into more trouble.
Early the next morning, Zhao Youde got up. He decided to wander around the nearby mountains and see if he could find the eerie mansion. He took a bow and arrow and a peachwood sword and set out on the road of search.
He wandered around the mountains for a day, but found nothing. In the evening, he returned home exhausted. When his wife saw that his face was full of disappointment, she comforted him and said, "Maybe the rabbit is just a coincidence, you don't have to pay too much attention to it." ”
Zhao Youde shook his head, "No, that rabbit is anything but an ordinary thing. I believe it must have something to do with that eerie mansion. I had to find the mansion and find out the truth. ”
Seeing that he was so stubborn, his wife also sighed helplessly. She knows her husband's temper, and once she decides something, it is difficult to change it. She could only pray silently, hoping that her husband would be safe.
Zhao Youde rested for the night, and set off again early in the morning of the third day. This time, he decided to expand his search and look further afield to find the mansion. He traveled all over the nearby mountains and rivers, but still found nothing.
In the evening, he came to a remote valley. The valley is surrounded by towering peaks with a narrow path in the middle. Zhao Youde walked along the trail for a while, and suddenly saw a dilapidated mansion in front of him. His heart moved, and he walked over quickly.
When he came to the door of the house, he saw that the gate was closed, and a broken couplet hung on the door. He pushed the door and walked into the courtyard, only to see that the courtyard was overgrown with weeds and desolate. He looked around, and saw a clay rabbit statue on the table, with an oil lamp lit in front of the rabbit statue, swaying in a dim yellow light