The animals were sympathetic to the old beggar’s plight and went into the forest to search for food. The monkey returned laden with fruits he had gathered from up in the trees. The fox returned with some fish he had caught in a nearby stream.

Despite searching throughout the forest, the rabbit could not find any food for the old man from the woodland floor. When he returned much later, and saw the beggar sat next to the fire eating the fruits and the fish, the rabbit felt sad that he had been unable to find him any food. Realising that he could sacrifice himself so that the man could eat, the rabbit threw himself into the fire in an ultimate act of selflessness.

But at that instant the beggar turned back into the Jade Emperor and stopped the rabbit from being burned. Having found the most noble of creatures to take on the role of creating the elixirs, the Jade Emperor carried him up to the moon, where he learned to make divine medicines and he could be kept safe from humans wishing to steal the elixir of life.

The rabbit worked hard and learned to create the divine medicines, eventually mastering the skills required to pound the right ingredients together to create the elixir of life. The Jade Emperor was so delighted with the rabbit that he made the his fur a dazzling white. The heavenly glow from the rabbit’s smooth, soft fur was so bright and beautiful, that it looked like precious jade, which is why the other heavenly beings came to call him the Jade Rabbit.

If you look up at the full moon and squint slightly at the markings, you can still see the Jade Rabbit with his pestle and mortar, making the elixir of life for the immortals.

One day, Hou Yi went hunting with his students, but Pang Meng pretended to be ill and stay at home. After making sure Hou Yi had gone, he went to Hou Yi's house and tried to force Chang'e to give him the elixir. Chang'e knew she couldn't defeat Pang Meng, so she drank the elixir immediately.

The elixir made her fly higher and higher. In the end, she stopped on the moon. She became immortal. More info