The Su family was in charge of the military horses, but all high-ranking officials who were in charge of weapons, food, and military horses seemed to be a cut above others.

  Su Jiajun's position in this area is distinct, and since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, he has been in charge without any problems. Pingnan Bo Su Wei was also like this. In his opinion, the Su family would surely continue to thrive for a long time. Perhaps all loyal officials have such an idea, as long as they are dedicated to their work, the imperial court will not treat them unfairly.

  Since ancient times, accompanying a lord is like accompanying a tiger; who can say clearly what will happen in this world?

  Su You was over forty years old, and he and his wife were still affectionate. Although he had several concubines, all the children born to them were daughters. In total, there were only two legitimate sons, so he was particularly strict with their education.

  The eldest son, Su Ming Feng, was young and had already entered the officialdom, still holding the power of the military horse department as he did. In fact, in the past six months, he has done even better than Su Wei. Some time ago, Su Ming Feng discussed with the veterinarians of the Imperial Hospital to reform some rules of the military horses, and as a result, the number of military horses that died from the plague each year was reduced by half, which is a great achievement. Just wait for the feedback of the military horse statistics in the imperial court next month, Su Ming Feng will surely be rewarded for this.

  The reward is secondary, the main thing is the glory it represents. Su Ye has long since passed the age of foolishness, and now that Su Ming Feng is at a good age, it's time for him to take over his father's legacy and expand his reputation. If Su Ming Feng performs exceptionally well, he might even become a trusted talent left behind for the next crown prince.

  The eldest son is so outstanding, Su Wei is naturally overjoyed, but the younger son makes him headache. It's probably because the younger son, Su Minglang, was born when his wife was quite old, and she spoiled him a lot, which made him develop a pampered personality. Not to mention being as excellent as the eldest son, he often appears to be slightly inferior among his peers.

  Originally, Su Minglang was not the eldest son and did not need to inherit the position of heir, so it didn't matter if he was a bit foolish. However, Su Ye had a stubborn personality and couldn't tolerate any shortcomings in his own children. As a result, every time he returned from Guangwen Hall to check on their homework, the younger son would be scolded and beaten, while Madame would defend him, resulting in quite a commotion.

  This was not the case, on this day, Su Wei was in the study discussing matters with Su Ming Feng. The father and son had endless topics to discuss about military horses. Old Master Su was delighted, having given birth to such an excellent son, what more could he be dissatisfied with? As they talked, it came up that next month's reward for Su Ming Feng would be coming down.

  "In my opinion, Your Majesty will surely grant you an official title this time. Let's not mention the jewels and rewards for now, your father just hopes that your career path will be more stable. Now that the Xiongnu are restless and eager to move, military strength needs to be taken seriously. Ming Fang, as long as you gain the attention of His Majesty, our Su family will only become more prosperous in the future. Your younger brother is still young, the Su family still needs you to take on the heavy responsibilities."

  Su Mingfen nodded in agreement. He was indeed a young man, with a strong and upright spirit between his eyebrows. However, he couldn't help but reveal a few threads of pride in his eyes, as this was the most competitive period for a young man. Moreover, it was affirmation from his father, which made him usually calm and composed in official matters, now bursting into bloom.

  The father and son were both in a good mood when they heard the young servant calling from outside the door: "Master, Second Young Master has returned."

  It was exactly when Second Master Su, Su Minglang, got out of school. Every day after school, Su Minglang would be called to Old Master Su's study to test his homework, and today was no exception.

  Mr. Su had a headache and pressed his forehead, looking at his excellent eldest son, then looking at his stupid second son who was like a little pig, it was really ridiculous. Every day, Su Minglang came to the study, but in the end, he could only make Su Ye angry and frustrated.

  It's the same today too.

  Su Minglang slowly entered the study, twitched his mouth and called out: "Father, elder brother."

  He was like a round and silly ball, cute. Su Ming Feng smiled and patted his brother's head: "Ming Lang, how was your day at school today?"

  Su Minglang pursed his lips and didn't speak. Every time he did this, it meant that things had gone badly, not even a little bit well. He had been scolded by the master.

  Old Su's face was stern as he said to Su Minglang: "Hold out your palm."

  Su Minglang shrank back, dejectedly stretched out his hand, and on the tender white palm, there were several red marks. What else could they be but the marks of a beating?

  Mr. Su had an expression that he had expected all along, but Su Mingfen felt some heartache for his own brother and asked: "How did this gentleman beat him so severely? He's just a little kid."

  "It's you who has spoiled him with your daily pampering!" Old Master Su was furious, shouting: "What's gone wrong today?"

  Xiao Su hesitated for a moment before saying with a hint of embarrassment: "Sir, you asked me to come up with four words that describe 'silent rabbit and dead fox', but I couldn't think of any..."

  "You're making me say you're no good!" Old Master Su's face was filled with pain and anger: "You can't even recite the silent characters, look at other young masters of your age, which one is like you? Your older brother started learning military strategies when he was as old as you. You're almost ruining the reputation of our Su family!"

  Su Mingfen was about to persuade him, when he heard his second brother sobbing and saying: "Although I didn't say the four words 'rabbit dies, fox grieves', I did say the six words 'cunning rabbit dies, walking dog is cooked'. Isn't that two more words? Since they mean the same thing, isn't 'cunning rabbit dies, walking dog is cooked' the same?"

  "Nonsense." Old Master Su was at a loss for words. Su Ming Feng smiled and said, "Second Brother, these two words don't mean the same thing?"

  "What does it mean?" Su Minglang asked with his small face raised up.

  "The rabbit dies, the fox grieves" means that when the rabbit dies, the fox feels sad because it thinks it has the same fate. And "the cunning rabbit dies, the dog is cooked" means that when the rabbit dies, the hunting dog used to catch it becomes useless and is cooked. It's saying that once something has no use value and can't be exploited for profit, it can be discarded. This is similar to "burning the bridge after crossing the river". Su Mingfeng was a good older brother and patiently answered his younger brother's questions.

  But Su Minglang shook his head, still looking puzzled: "Since they are all things that happen after the rabbit dies, shouldn't they be exactly the same? After all, the rabbit is dead."

  Su Ming Feng was about to explain when he saw his father suddenly pause for a moment, repeating in a low voice: "The rabbit is dead?"

  "Yes," Su Minglang said with a wave of his hand, the round face still showing an innocent and stubborn expression: "After all, it's just that the rabbit died. Doesn't this mean that as long as the rabbit dies, both the fox and dog will be unlucky? Since everyone is going to be unlucky, doesn't that mean these words have the same meaning?"

  The death of a cunning rabbit and the boiling of a running dog are all natural rules. Fables are called fables because they must have their own great principles in life.

  The rabbit is dead, the fox is smarter than the dog and can see its own ending. But who is that hunting dog? The dog that helped its master hunt down the rabbit, what kind of ending does it have?

  Su Wei's expression gradually sank down.