Lin Feilu greeted him with a smile, "You can call me Little Lu. Who are you?"
The boy was a little surprised and asked, "You don't know me?"
Lin Feilu tilted her head curiously, "Should I know you?"
The boy turned his head to a side, feeling embarrassed. "Don't worry about it if you don't know me."
Lin Feilu continued to gently pat the rabbit in the boy's arms. "Why are you crying? Does it have something to do with this little rabbit?"
The boy looked down at the little rabbit safely tucked within his arms and pursed his lips. He whispered sadly after a while, "My… my mother asked me to kill it myself."
Lin Feilu was shocked. "Why?! This bunny is so cute. How could anyone possibly want to kill it?!"
Once Lin Feilu finished her words, she felt a sudden chill in her heart.
As expected of myself.
The young boy became even more sad as he lowered his head and wiped his tears with his sleeves.
Lin Feilu put her hand on the rabbit's head. Its fur was soft and felt pleasant to stroke. Its whole body was covered in pure white fur, without any impurities or discoloration. It looked very beautiful. Although she liked eating Shuangliu Mama's Rabbit Heads in her past life, she would be really reluctant to eat this lovely little rabbit.
(T/N: "Shuangliu Mama's Rabbit Heads" is a Szechuan dish that is a local favorite in Chengdu, China. It is a tongue-numbing spicy dish that uses rabbit heads as the main ingredient.)
She asked the boy, "Why does your mother want you to kill it? Does she dislike rabbits?"
Or maybe she was allergic to rabbits?
The boy pursed his lips and shook his head.
With red, tearful eyes, he said with a choked up voice, "This rabbit was given to me as a birthday gift from my mother. I've been raising it for three years."
Lin Feilu: ???
Isn't this mother way too cruel?
Making her own son kill the pet she gave him, what was he supposed to learn from this?
She looked at the little boy sympathetically and listened to him as he continued to snivel while sobbing, "Mother said that only the weak have compassion. The strong must be firm and resolute. Those who want to achieve great things can not have any compassion, nor can they play favorites, because those very same things will become their fatal weaknesses in the future."
Lin Feilu: ???
This mother is really something.
To take this approach in raising one's children, it was clear that his mother must be thinking of vying for power. As an imperial prince, what else was there to fight for besides for the imperial succession to the throne? This boy's mother was too obvious with her plans.
Nonetheless, his mother was too impatient. She miscalculated and never thought this lesson would leave psychological scars on her son instead. It was more likely for him to grow up into a psychopath with a twisted personality instead.
Lin Feilu had learned from Lin Jingyuan that she had three more older brothers.
Lin Ting, the eldest son of Emperor Lin, was birthed by Noble Consort Ruan.
Lin Jiwen, the second eldest son of Emperor Lin, was from Consort Shu.
Lin Qing, the third eldest son of Emperor Lin, was birthed by the empress and was also the crown prince.
The three brothers were around the same age. They were all eleven or twelve years old. She wondered which royal brother was this crybaby in front of her who was forced by his mother to grow up?
He was most likely the third royal brother that she had never seen until now.
After all, he would inherit the throne in the future. To be a reigning monarch, he had to learn how to be ruthless. This young boy looked kind and soft-hearted. He looked like a pushover, and also seemed to be a bit of a crybaby. From the looks of it, he did not meet the standards of becoming an emperor.
Lin Feilu seemed to hear a voice in her head:
*Ding* Your new target is now available. Please capture when you are ready.
She raised her hand and patted his head in a soothing manner. "Don't cry, I will help you find a way."
The young boy raised his head and looked at her.