Chapter 143: The Useless Rabbit

Chapter 143: The Useless RabbitThe foreign pepper creature disrupted the enthusiasm for eating mulberries. Han Cheng and Tie Tou climbed up and picked more before returning to the tribe. These mulberries were meant as gifts for the people in the tribe.

Due to the earlier encounter with the foreign pepper creature, Han Cheng became cautious when picking the mulberries again. He feared encountering unexpected situations and didn't want to provoke the creature again.

By this time, the rain had stopped, so Han Cheng and his group put the mulberries they had picked into overturned bamboo hats. The group started to head back.

"Stop."

Holding a stone spear, the Eldest Senior Brother at the front suddenly turned around and spoke to the others.

Han Cheng's heart couldn't help but tremble. Did they run into a ferocious beast?

He approached Sandy, the Third Senior Brother, with fear and anticipation. He followed the direction pointed out by the Eldest Senior Brother.

No signs of a primordial ferocious beast were seen.

Han Cheng wondered and looked around. Then he found, about ten meters ahead, a gray rabbit sitting there attentively eating grass.

Han Cheng was disappointed that a rabbit was treated with such solemnity.

The Eldest Senior Brother tiptoed forward, holding a stone spear, and approached the rabbit cautiously.

When he got within two meters, the rabbit became alert, looked up at the Eldest Senior Brother, and then ran away.

Prepared for this, the Eldest Senior Brother swung his right hand, and the stone spear flew towards the rabbit. However, it missed, and the frightened rabbit continued to hop away.

"Ah, ah, ah!"

The Eldest Senior Brother shouted and chased after the startled rabbit, and the others also shouted and joined the pursuit. Only Third Senior Brother and Tie Tou stayed to guard Han Cheng. However, judging by their expressions, they were also itching for action.

After about ten minutes, the somewhat breathless Eldest Senior Brother returned with others who looked equally breathless. The Eldest Senior Brother carried the now dead rabbit.

Having not hunted for a long time, unexpectedly encountering a rabbit today excited everyone.

Han Cheng looked at the rabbit, which seemed larger than most rabbits raised in the tribe. He furrowed his brows.

In theory, the rabbits in the tribe eat when hungry, sleep after eating, and mate when in the mood. They live a life similar to pigs and should be larger than the wild ones.

However, now they seemed inferior to the wild rabbits. This puzzled Han Cheng.

With Shaman around, there should be no rabbits in the tribe that would be starving. The possibility of that happening was almost nonexistent.

Since it wasn't a food-related issue, what could be the reason?

Han Cheng pondered but couldn't figure it out.

After returning to the tribe, Han Cheng washed the purple stains from his hands and face. After failing to clean them completely, he threw a couple of mulberries into his mouth. Then, carrying the wild rabbit, he went to the rabbit enclosure with the Shaman.

Initially, Shaman didn't understand Han Cheng's intentions. He thought Han Cheng wanted to eat rabbit meat and followed Han Cheng with a small stick, ready to catch an adult rabbit from the enclosure. However, Han Cheng stopped him.

Shaman was puzzled, not understanding the Divine Child's intentions.

When Han Cheng compared the wild rabbit he was holding with the one Shaman had caught from the enclosure, Shaman suddenly realized the difference.

Both were rabbits, but the difference was astonishing.

Looking at the plump wild rabbit, then at the one in his hands, Shaman placed the rabbit back into the enclosure and picked another one. After comparing, he discovered that most of the rabbits raised in the tribe were not as plump as the wild ones.

Shaman scratched his head with the short stick and looked at the different rabbits. He glanced at the green grass on the wooden planks not far away, which was used to feed the rabbits. There was also uneaten grass in the rabbit enclosure. His face showed confusion.

He wondered, "Have I ever neglected these rabbits? Why don't they grow as well as the wild ones?"

"Could it be lack of exercise?" Han Cheng thought for a moment, then shook his head with a smile. He had only heard that excessive eating without exercise leads to weight gain, never the other way around.

Unable to understand the situation, Han Cheng decided to take out his frustration on these underperforming rabbits. He asked the shaman to bring out nine more rabbits from the enclosure, and they were knocked dead one by one. Han Cheng planned to cook rabbit soup for the night.

After the rain cleared, the people in the tribe, without Han Cheng having to instruct them, voluntarily joined in helping to plaster the roof with mud.

Rabbits were relatively easy to skin. Once the head was processed, peeling off the fur was possible.

The peeled rabbit fur was soaked in grass and wood ash day and night, taken out, cleaned, and sun-dried, becoming soft and high-quality leather.

Fu Jiang wagged its tail, looking at its master expectantly, hoping to receive fresh meat.

Han Cheng threw the entrails to Fu Jiang, who caught it in one bite and went to enjoy it on its own.

The Deer Lord also wanted to come over for a taste, but after Fu Jiang threatened it with a nose bite, it left disappointed.

Seven rabbits were stewed, three were barbecued, and the people, who had been eating fish recently, found the rabbit meat extremely delicious.

Only after finishing most rabbit soup pots did they switch to drinking fish soup.

Shaman still appeared somewhat melancholic. Even after personally slaughtering nine rabbits and experiencing the wonderful feeling again, he couldn't dispel the lingering sadness in his heart.

Why, even though they were all rabbits, were the ones he raised smaller?

This was the question he had asked himself countless times.

Now he knew the feeling of tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

Got it!

Han Cheng, who was helping put tiles on the roof, suddenly had a flash of inspiration. The puzzle that had troubled him and Shaman for over two days was finally solved.

Inbreeding is likely the reason.

The rabbits in the tribe, descendants of those two old rabbits, had reproduced for countless generations, and it was only natural for them to become weaker.

Nearby tribes had even gathered together to hold a joyous celebration this year, trying to ensure their descendants' strength for future generations. Han Cheng had forgotten about it.

It wasn't just the rabbits; even the deer herd would need to consider this issue in the future.

Han Cheng called Shaman, asking him to identify the larger rabbits. As expected, these larger ones were mostly from the earlier generations.

Han Cheng explained his theory to Shaman when asked why, who suddenly looked enlightened.

Now that they had found the root of the problem, it was easy to solve. They just needed to capture a few wild rabbits and throw them into the rabbit enclosure.