The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Panda Novel

In fact, all the way until Eighth Qiu was taken away by Old Jin, Qiu Baihong had been standing behind a haystack. She returned only after seeing that he was fine. At the same time, she deleted a number she had been prepared to call at any moment. On the phone’s screen, Qiu Jinyu’s number could be seen.

Upon seeing this, Fangzheng sighed once again. “Dreams. Life is like a dream. Even if it lasts a thousand years, the awakening will come one day.”

With that said, Fangzheng slowly got up and came in front of Qiu Baihong as he looked into her eyes. “Patron, a dream is ultimately a dream. Since you have woken up, open your eyes and see for yourself. Look at what the world is like beyond the dreams. Is it really as terrible as you imagine?”

With that said, Fangzheng reorganized some memory fragments and played them before Qiu Baihong.

They were scenes of Eighth Qiu protecting her in every tiny way possible. He had done so since she was a little girl all the until now. Eighth Qiu’s love for her had never changed!

As for Qiu Jinyu, who was supposed to be the younger sister, she had taken on the role of the elder sister. She had given up good food and toys for her, and she had never quarreled with her. She always smiled when conversing with her… However, her smile had gradually lessened at some point in time. Her loo had become more of a wry look of beseechment, pity, and sadness…

Upon seeing these images, Qiu Baihong crouched down, her hand on her heart as tears dripped down.

Fangzheng pressed his palms together. “Amitabha. Patron, slowly watch and think. Seek This Penniless Monk out when you are done thinking, and This Penniless Monk will send you out. Whether you continue wallowing in a dream of misery or awaken to embrace happiness depends entirely on you.”

With that said, Fangzheng turned around, pushed open the door to the monastery, and vanished behind it.

Seconds turned into minutes as the stars and constellations spun. It appeared like maybe a day passed, maybe a year.

Qiu Baihong knelt in front of the door watching the series of memories, recalling the bits and pieces of her life. She had cried and laughed. Finally…

“Master.” A warming greeting sounded behind Fangzheng.

Fangzheng nodded without turning his head. “Amitabha. If you’ve thought it through, leave.”

“Leave? How?” Qiu Baihong was stunned.

“By walking, obviously. Do you actually need This Penniless Monk to send you down the mountain?” Fangzheng asked.

Qiu Baihong was stunned. She walked out of the monastery in puzzlement, but the instant she pushed open the door, a swath of white light flashed past her.

At the same time, Qiu Baihong heard a sharp scream!

This scream jolted her out of her reverie as she snapped to her senses, recalling all that had happened. She widened her eyes as she watched Eighth Qiu rush over to block the prong for her! She even saw the anxious look and anger in Eighth Qiu’s eyes, as well as his intense desire to protect her.

But at that moment, Qiu Baihong’s mind nearly went blank as she yelled and pushed Eighth Qiu away!

There was no way for her to dodge the steel prong!

Pfft!

It stabbed into Qiu Baihong’s stomach as her eyes widened. She watched with disbelief before fainting.

“Master, your posturing has gone awry. A life is now at stake,” Red Boy whispered.

Fangzheng shot a glance at him and said, “Keep your mouth shut if you aren’t good with words. She won’t die with me around!”

Having said that, Fangzheng walked over. The man who had dealt the injury was dumbfounded. He widened his mouth and said, “I… I didn’t do it on purpose. I just wanted to scare them…”

But the next moment, he was pressed down by a group of villagers. When Fangzheng passed by him, he took a look at him and smiled. “Patron, it’s good to be young and determined, but think through anything you do. Don’t do this again.”

His words seemed to come out of nowhere. The man didn’t even understand what Fangzheng was saying. The others were also dumbfounded, thinking, “When did Abbot Fangzheng become an idiot? Why wasn’t I aware of this?”

Fangzheng ignored them as he patted the devastated Eighth Qiu’s shoulder. “Patron, it’s useless if you cry. Why don’t you let This Penniless Monk take a look. This Penniless Monk knows some medicine.”

Upon hearing that, Eighth Qiu subconsciously turned around. The moment he saw it was Fangzheng, he recalled that Fangzheng was very impressive. In fact, he was a famous doctor throughout the entire country!

Hence, Eighth Qiu didn’t say a word as he knelt down and kowtowed.

Fangzheng hurriedly helped him up and said, “Patron, if you wish to save her, time is of the essence. If you wish to kowtow, let’s leave it for later, alright?”

Once Eighth Qiu heard that it was a race against time, he hurriedly made way, no longer daring to cause any delays.

Fangzheng indicated to Red Boy to chase everyone away. Otherwise, it would affect his mood with a huge group of people surrounding him and making a din.

With the people dispersed, Fangzheng began taking action. Qiu Baihong’s injury wasn’t trivial, but Fangzheng transformed his Buddhistic medicine Spirit Qi into a needle and thread, and he easily stitched up the wound. However, Fangzheng knew that the Qi line was ultimately formed from gas. Such a stitch could be used for emergency cases, but to really rescue her, she needed to be sent to the hospital.

The village was very far from the hospital. Fangzheng’s solution couldn’t last the whole distance to the hospital, but he wasn’t worried. This was because there was no need to bring her to a hospital. One Finger Village would suffice! There was a lot of emergency equipment there.

Hence, Fangzheng told the crowd that he needed a vehicle to send Qiu Baihong to One Finger Village. The villagers immediately dispatched a van for him as Fangzheng allowed Eighth Qiu to carry Qiu Baihong before they rushed to One Finger Village.

After Qiu Baihong opened her eyes in a daze, all she saw was that familiar face with a warm smile.

Qiu Baihong’s mouth gaped as she let out a soft voice. “Sister, why are you here? Where’s Dad?”

The moment Qiu Baihong said that, she saw Qiu Jinyu’s eyes redden. At the same time, there was the sound of something dropping and a gasp.

Qiu Baihong traced the sound and saw Eighth Qiu standing to the side. He held a knife in hand with a piece of skin remaining on it. Clearly, he had been peeling an apple. At that moment, Eighth Qiu’s tears gushed out as he choked. “My dear daughter, you are finally calling me Dad… and not Eighth… It’s been fifteen years! You haven’t called me Dad in fifteen years… Sob!”

Eighth Qiu was already crying silently towards the end.

When Qiu Baihong saw this, she felt her heart ache. She tried hard to say, “Dad, Sister. Sorry, it was all my fault in the past…”

“Sis, there’s no need to say such things towards family. Let’s lead our lives well in the future and be happy,” Qiu Jinyu said.

Eighth Qiu nodded as well. “Yes, yes, yes. Let’s lead our lives well…”

“Right. Have you seen Abbot Fangzheng?” Qiu Baihong suddenly recalled the thousand-year-long dream. She knew very well that her crawling out of a bottomless abyss, her turning back into a real person from a living ghost, and her being able to laugh happily again was all thanks to Fangzheng! And back when she was chasing and threatening to slash someone, she had indeed seen Fangzheng and his disciple. She asked the question because she wished to thank him in person.