Chapter 3: Entering the Forbidden Forest

  "Uncle Feng!" Xiaotian had just entered the courtyard of Yan'er's home when he saw Yan'er's father tending to the flowers and plants, and hurriedly went forward to greet him.

  When it comes to Xiaotian's most loved ones, it is naturally his grandfather Feng Lao Er. The one he dotes on the most should be Yan'er, and the best friends are Da Tou and Shou Hou, while the person he respects the most is none other than Uncle Feng in front of him.

  "Oh my, Little Tianzi, you're here to freeload again, huh?" Feng Qingru smiled slightly and took the two fresh fish, patting Little Tian's head. "Next time, just tell your grandfather, no need to bring fish anymore."

  Feng Qingru, forty years old, of medium build, slightly thin, often wearing a blue robe, with a blue kerchief on his head, and sporting three long whiskers. His face is simple and unadorned, with the air of a scholar. It's said that in his youth, Feng Qingru traveled extensively to study, and even held a minor official position. For some unknown reason, he resigned from office five years ago and returned to his hometown with his wife and daughter, making a living by teaching village children. He can be considered the most knowledgeable and talented person in this area. In these past five years, Xiaotian has studied literature and learned to read under Feng Qingru's guidance, gaining a deeper understanding of many principles. Feng Qingru's noble character, calm demeanor, and gentle nature have had a profound impact on Xiaotian, who holds his benevolent teacher in high esteem.

  "Uncle Feng, where's Yan'er?" asked Little Tian, who hadn't seen Yan'er.

  "At home, she's playing with that strange rabbit! Come to think of it, that rabbit seems unusual!" Seeing Little Tian ask about his mischievous daughter, Feng Qingru had a helpless expression. As for the origins of that "little rabbit", even he, who was knowledgeable and well-read, had never seen anything like it before, and was quite perplexed.

  "Haha! Little Tian Ge, you're here!" As soon as Feng Qingru's words fell, Yan'er, wearing a boiling literary-colored skirt, rushed out of the house with that "little rabbit" in her arms. "I've given Little Rabbit a nice name!"

  "Oh, really? What's the name? Tell me!" Looking at Yanyu excitedly, Xiaotian patted Yanyu's head and asked with great interest.

  "Niang Niang!" Yan'er blurted out.

  "Ah! Haha haha haha!" Xiaotian and Feng Qingru looked at each other in surprise, then burst out laughing.

  Nobody noticed that "little rabbit" heard Yan's words and suddenly fainted after rolling her eyes!

  "Let's eat!" Aunt Feng's voice came from inside the house.

  A joyful lunch has begun, and I'll stop here.

  Time flies like water, and years pass like an arrow. In just one year, two strange things happened in Fengjiazhuang Village. Firstly, last winter, Feng Yong entered the forbidden forest for the third time, but it has been half a year since then, and he still hasn't come out. The villagers have been speculating that the tall and sturdy man is probably dead, which has caused his mother to be on the verge of collapse many times due to her deep concern for her son. She is now bedridden.

  Secondly, this spring, Feng Qingru's wife fell from a ladder and hit her head on the bluestone in the courtyard, immediately losing consciousness. Although several local doctors with some reputation tried to save her, they were all helpless as she was at death's door. Just when Feng Qingru had given up hope and was preparing for her funeral, something unbelievable happened: the next morning, the woman miraculously stood up, full of energy. Not only has she been free from illness since then, but she also seems more vigorous than before, which has left Feng Qingru baffled.

  The villagers have been whispering among themselves that on the night when Feng Qingru's wife fell and got injured, someone saw a mysterious blue light enveloping Feng Qingru's house for a long time!

  There was also a strange little thing that only Xiaotian and Yan'er noticed, which was the rabbit called "Niu Niu". Although it had been absorbing purple particles from sunlight all year round, its body shape hadn't grown at all, and it was still the same size as last year, leaving the two boys in wonder.

  Apart from the above, there is actually another strange thing that only Xiaotian himself knows. From half a year ago, Xiaotian discovered that every night when he sleeps, his lower abdomen would emit a faint and slight glow, which was very bizarre. Xiaotian didn't dare to mention it to Grandpa. Except for the fact that the light has become slightly brighter than when he first discovered it, Xiaotian hasn't felt any other discomfort over the past half year, so he no longer paid attention to it.

  This day was the fifth day of rest for Feng Xiaotian and his companions, they didn't have to go to the Wind Qingru's home. In the north of Fengjiazhuang, a group of young people were still playing hide-and-seek with great enthusiasm. A year later, Little Tian had grown taller and stronger, his eyes were still small but brighter and more spirited.

  "Little Tian Ge!" The children were playing happily when they suddenly heard a drawn-out, tearful voice of a little girl coming from afar. (Ps: Yan Er: What a terrible author, I'm such an adorable little girl, why do I always appear crying?! Xi Feng: Hehe, little brat, you just love to cry! Xiao Tian nodded in agreement: Yeah, yeah! Yan Er's eyes reddened: Humph! I won't talk to you guys anymore! You're ganging up on me! As she spoke, tears began to well up in her eyes again. Xiao Tian and Xi Feng exchanged a look and sighed: Ugh, here we go again!

  "Huh? Is it Yan'er? What's wrong with Yan'er?" Upon hearing Yan'er's cries, Xiao Tian suddenly jumped out of the pit and looked in the direction of the sound. He saw a short figure stumbling and running towards him from the direction of the forbidden forest.

  "Yan'er, slow down, what's wrong? What happened?" Little Tian hurriedly ran up to meet her and supported Yan'er with one hand.

  "Little Tian Ge——" Yan Er suddenly threw herself into Little Tian's arms and burst into tears, "Niu Niu, Niu Niu ran away!"

  "Niang niang? Ran le? Zen me ran le?" Xiao Tian was caught off guard.

  "Just now I was holding Niu Niu and preparing to come find you to play, just as we were walking to the north of the village, Niu Niu suddenly jumped out of my arms and ran towards the outside of the village. I chased after her for a while, but she ran very fast and I couldn't catch up!" Yan'er said with sobs.

  "Huh? Didn't you see where it ran off to?" Xiaotian asked, wiping the mud off Yanyan's small hands with his sleeve. It was clear that she had fallen several times while chasing after Nini.

  "It was running towards the forbidden forest, I saw it run into the forbidden forest!" Yan'er said with a nod, her face covered in sweat and tears, leaving several muddy streaks on her delicate little face.

  "What?!" Xiaotian and the surrounding boys all gasped in unison upon hearing that it was the Forbidden Forest. That blue-eyed rabbit had actually gone back to the Forbidden Forest by itself?!

  "Yan'er, isn't Niu Niu's home in the Forbidden Forest? It must be homesick and missing its mother, so it went back to its home in the Forbidden Forest." Seeing Yan'er on the verge of tears, Xiao Tian quickly came up with a reason to comfort her. He still clearly remembered that the strange little rabbit "Niu Niu" was brought out from the Forbidden Forest by Feng Yong one year ago.

  "Huh——will Niu Niu come back or not?" After listening to Xiao Tian's explanation, Yan Er stopped sobbing, lifted her head and asked with hopeful eyes.

  "This... this one, I guess... probably... maybe won't come back?" The little Tian didn't dare to guarantee, and said hesitantly.

  "No, I want Niu Niu!" Upon hearing this response, Yan Er became unhappy and pouted at Xiao Tian.

  "What's to be done? I'll either go into the forbidden forest to find 'Niu Niu' back or catch another blue-eyed rabbit, but that's the forbidden forest!" Looking at the heartbroken Yan'er, Xiao Tian felt a pang of sympathy and thought to himself.

  "Little Tian Ge! Little Tian Ge!" A year had passed, and the thin monkey, who had been worn out by family matters, was calling out to Little Tian in a low voice.

  "Huh? What's wrong?" The little Tian was interrupted in his thoughts, shook his head, and couldn't help but feel a lingering fear for the sudden idea that had just popped into his mind - entering the forbidden forest, where one could go in but never come out!

  "We...we might as well...go take a look in the forbidden forest?" The thin monkey's face turned red, and he suggested cautiously.

  "What? Are you crazy? Are you looking for death? You're looking for death, that's your business, but what about dragging Little Tian down with you?" Before Little Tian could even speak up, Big Head on the side was shocked, his sparse hair standing on end, and he hastily scolded Skinny Monkey.

  "I... I... I want to go find my brother, my mom is ill and can't get out of bed, but she still wants to see her son one more time. So I..." The thin monkey said hesitantly, its eyes reddening as it spoke, looking at Little Heaven with a hint of longing in its gaze.

  "Ah..." Big Head heard Skinny Monkey's reason and didn't know what to say either.

  "Little Tian Ge, I also want Niu Niu!" The young Yan Er didn't understand the horror of the forbidden forest, at this moment she just wanted to find her Niu Niu back, so she looked at Little Tian with pleading eyes and begged.

  "This——" Xiao Tian hesitated, after all, Feng Lao Er's repeated warnings had made him extremely fearful of the forbidden forest. However, these excessive warnings also piqued the curiosity of Xiao Tian, who was born with a sense of adventure, and he couldn't help but feel a thrill of curiosity and anticipation towards that mysterious and unpredictable place.

  "Alright, then!" Looking at Yan'er and Shou Hou in front of him, Xiao Tian really couldn't bear to be hard-hearted. For the sake of his beloved Yan'er and good friend Shou Hou, this young man who was never timid finally made up his mind to explore the forbidden forest.

  The first part of this book is about to begin. What will the mysterious forest welcome the protagonist with? Please look forward to Chapter 4: "Danger in the Forbidden Forest".