You Look a Lot Like Your Dad (Continued)

She didn't want to have anything to do with Black Rabbit anymore, lest he use that excuse to come over again, so she nodded to him.

Black Rabbit was delighted. "Roar!"

--These flowers smell wonderful. You can put them in your home; they'll look beautiful and you can enjoy their fragrance.

The Third Cub: "Chirp, chirp, chirp."

--I'll take it. It's very hot now, you should go home quickly.

The sun was blazing overhead, and Black Rabbit, being entirely black, absorbed even more heat; the Third Cub were worried he would suffer heatstroke and faint.

Black Rabbit was even happier to hear that the Third Cub cared about him.

He exclaimed happily, "Roar!"

Okay, I'll head back now.

Tao Qiu and Third Cub exchanged a glance, both somewhat surprised that it had gone so smoothly.

However, Black Rabbit soon taught the father and daughter a lesson that meant they were celebrating too soon.

Black Rabbit ran halfway and then turned back to shout to Tao Qiu and Third Cub.

--I'll come again tomorrow!

Tao Qiu and Third Cub almost fainted from looking backwards.

After saying that, as if afraid of being rejected by them, Black Rabbit immediately sped up and ran away.

Tao Qiu was speechless; this was the first time he had ever seen Black Rabbit so capable of cheating.

The Third Cub looked at Tao Qiu: "Chirp, chirp chirp?"

--Dad, what are we going to do now?

Tao Qiu also made up his mind. "As long as he doesn't enter the valley, we'll ignore him and pretend he doesn't exist. After a while, he'll get bored and leave on his own."

Third Cub also thinks this method is good.

So for the next two days and the following week, Black Rabbit came early every morning, carrying a bunch of flowers, and stood eagerly at the valley entrance, waiting for Tao Qiu and Third Cub to come out.

The family of four treated him as if he didn't exist, and Tao Qiu stopped patrolling. He would only go out to catch prey once or twice a day, and he would always fly around the valley entrance.

Tao Qiu was at her wits' end. It was her own home, yet she had to act like a thief just to go out.

The midday sun is like a series of needles, relentlessly piercing people's bodies, burning them to the bone.

Tao Qiu's family huddled in a cool, shady cave, drinking chilled pear juice and eating cold sliced meat that Tao Qiu had made. A small fan whirred nearby, making it quite refreshing.

But looking at the blinding sunlight outside, they all subconsciously frowned.

The Eldest Cub asked, "He hasn't left yet?"

Tao Qiu said, "No, I guess we'll have to wait until sunset."

Even though he disliked the Black Rabbit, Second Cub couldn't bear it and said, "It's hot, it'll wash off."

Tao Qiu had told them before that mutated monsters with feathers and fur had an even harder time surviving in the summer; even hiding in the shade to avoid the heat could result in them dying from the heat. Yet Black Rabbit was directly exposed to the scorching sun—was that really reckless?

Third Cub pursed his lips and remained silent, his gaze falling on the large bunch of dried flowers in the corner beside him.

The Black Rabbit was large; the bouquet it carried was so big that Tao Qiu, in her human form, had to hold it all in her arms.

To put it bluntly, it's about the same as a bundle of firewood.

Since we don't have vases at home, we can only use large baskets and put them in the corner.

After so many days, some flower petals have fallen, and some have dried up completely, but as Black Rabbit said, the flowers are indeed very fragrant, and the fragrance lasts a long time.

Aside from the flowers from the first day, she didn't go to collect any more of the flowers Black Rabbit sent. Black Rabbit would leave the flowers behind every day before leaving, and then bring a new bouquet the next day to replace the wilted old flowers.

Tao Qiu hardened her heart. "He's not a little brat anymore, and he's not stupid either. I really can't stand the thought of him leaving."

Another day came to an end, and the Black Rabbit carried a withered flower home.

A cool breeze picked up at night, dark clouds obscured the moon, and rumbling thunder sounded intermittently, foreshadowing the impending downpour.

Around six o'clock in the morning, a few raindrops fell first, then the rain gradually increased in intensity, quickly becoming a torrential downpour, as if the sky had been ripped open, pouring water straight onto the ground.

Tao Qiu and her children were a little uneasy after getting up. They were all worried that Black Rabbit wouldn't come again today.

Two hours later, as expected, that familiar figure reappeared at the mouth of the valley.

Tao Qiu, who went out to check in the rain, was shocked and speechless when she saw the Black Rabbit, who was carrying a flower in its mouth and was soaked to the bone.

If this were in human society, and a list of the strongest job seekers were compiled, Black Rabbit would definitely have a place.

After Tao Qiu returned, she dried herself off with a towel and told the children what she had seen.

After hearing this, the children no longer disliked Black Rabbit, but instead deeply admired him.

This must be the most stubborn mutant monster ever.

The rain hadn't stopped by lunchtime, though it had lessened somewhat.

Rain can affect one's sense of smell and perception. Besides, apart from the first time, Black Rabbit deliberately toned down his aura every time he came. Tao Qiu could only confirm whether he had left by going out to check himself.

Tao Qiu up into the air and saw that, thankfully, they were still standing at the mouth of the valley despite the heavy rain.

Tao Qiu had no choice but to leave in the end.

He braved the rain to approach the Black Rabbit and urged it, "Chirp, chirp, chirp."

Why are you so stubborn? The rain is too heavy, go back now.

Black Rabbit was like a silent boulder; upon hearing Tao Qiu's words, he didn't reply, but simply shook his head gently.

Tao Qiu felt a headache coming on.

Since they were friends after all, Tao Qiu softened her heart.

"Chirp, chirp."

"Then come in with me. There's a place in the valley where we can take shelter from the rain."

Black Rabbit finally moved. He stood up, revealing the bouquet of flowers that had been hidden beneath him.

Placed at their feet, with animal fur to shield them from the rain, the bouquet looked fairly intact.

Black Rabbit roared.

--Me? I picked them early last night because it looked like it was going to rain.

Tao Qiu opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

He led Black Rabbit inside, pointed to a recessed spot in the valley's rocks, and told Black Rabbit to hide there.

The space there was large and the terrain was high enough to accommodate him without him being flooded.

"Roar." Black Rabbit gave the flower to Tao Qiu.

--Thank you. Why don't you give the flowers to the baby birds? Otherwise they'll get soaked.

Meeting the Black Rabbit's sincere gaze, Tao Qiu thought for a moment and then accepted the flowers.

Black Rabbit went to take shelter from the rain, and Tao Qiu also returned to the cave.

Tao Qiu told the children about the flowers, and they all fell silent as they looked at the perfectly intact and clean bouquet.

After a long silence, the Third Cub finally said, "He put his heart into it."

The Eldest Cub also said, "If it doesn't act, is it a good rabbit?"

If Black Rabbit is an actor, what kind of grand scheme would it take for him to go to such lengths?

Third Cub: "Give him a chance?"

The three children all looked at Tao Qiu Tao Qiu, who sighed, "Dad, think about it again."

The rain gradually stopped around four or five in the afternoon.

Tao Qiu and her three cubs stood at the cave entrance, peeking down. Black Rabbit remained obediently squatting in place, not wandering around after the rain stopped.

Tao Qiu said softly, "Based on my observations of Black Rabbit over the years, I trust him quite a bit. His insistence is probably just a way to exchange crops for taking care of you."

He looked at Third Cub: "They say children's intuition is more accurate, Third Cub, what do you think?"

The Third Cub said in a serious tone, "Rabbit, not bad."

They disliked Black Rabbit before, but were afraid that he would pose a threat to them if he knew their secret. As for his character, based on their current interactions, he seems quite good.

Tao Qiu said, "Why don't you go and talk to him? If you think it's alright, we'll agree to let him take care of you. Consider it like having a big playmate. Are you willing?"

The kids didn't have any objections.

Tao Qiu sent his Third Cub, who had transformed into bird form, to find the Black Rabbit with meat and carrots, while he watched from a distance to prevent the Black Rabbit from harming the Third Cub.

Even if they all felt that Black Rabbit probably didn't have any bad intentions, they couldn't be without the intention to harm him, but they still had to be wary of him.

At the bottom of the valley, the Black Rabbit stared blankly ahead.

Although he didn't glance around, the sight of this stinking, fruit-growing patch of land was enough to astonish him.

These mutated monsters eat whatever grows in the ground. Although their intelligence has increased after mutation and they have some understanding of human life, they have never considered planting.

Of course, they didn't know how to plant it either.

But Snow Bird has now become an anomaly among them. Not only does he know how to plant, he can also make even the smelly fruit taste delicious.

Black Rabbit was astonished. What exactly was the effect of that glowing fruit that could enable the Snow Bird to do this?

At that moment, the Black Rabbit heard a sound other than the wind: the flapping of wings.

Black Rabbit looked up and saw that it was Third Cub coming over. His dim eyes immediately lit up.

The Third Cub flew to the Black Rabbit and handed him chunks of carrot and meat, chirping, "Chirp, chirp."

--You haven't eaten all day, how about having some of this to tide you over?

If the gift had been sent by Tao Qiu, Black Rabbit would have refused it. But since it was from the little bird, it means the little bird has softened its attitude towards him. Black Rabbit would be a fool not to accept it.

The Third Cub's size means it can't carry too much food, so when she said "filling its stomach," was she really just saying that?

What seemed like large pieces of meat and carrots to her were devoured by Black Rabbit in one bite; he didn't even chew them a few more times before swallowing them.

Black Rabbit thought the Xiao Xue snowbird was just kind and brought him food out of pity, and was about to leave after giving it to him, but unexpectedly the Xiao Xue snowbird stopped on the rock next to him.

The Xiao Xue snowbird tilted its head, its eyes shining brightly, as if observing him.

Black Rabbit suddenly tensed up. He straightened up and suddenly felt annoyed that the rain had soaked his beautiful, flowing fur, greatly diminishing his appearance.

Will the Xiao Xue snowbird dislike him?

The Black Rabbit nervously glanced at the Xiao Xue snowbird out of the corner of its eye.

Unexpectedly, the Xiao Xue snowbird suddenly spoke.

"Chirp chirp?"

--Do you really want to come and take me with you?

Black Rabbit responded almost immediately, "Roar."