The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

However, Fang Yunjing was a student after all. She was burdened with her studies, so she seldom had the chance to come to One Finger Monastery. The chances of them meeting were low.

Fangzheng was a little surprised to suddenly meet her today. He felt a little guilty, afraid that he would be recognized by someone he knew.

Just as Fangzheng was about to dodge, he heard the driver shout, “Take the correct seat. Don’t take the wrong seat? That will save us trouble.”

Fangzheng hurriedly took out the card he had hung on his neck and looked at the seat number: “Number 42!”

Fangzheng immediately felt relieved. With such a seat at the back, he could definitely distance himself from Fang Yunjing.

Red Boy heaved a sigh of relief as well. The two of them looked up to find their seats. The seats had their numbers on the racks above the seats. On the left were No. 1 and No. 2, followed by No. 3 and No. 4…

“What’s your number?” Fang Yunjing asked kindly.

Fangzheng took out his card and said, “Number 42.”

Fang Yunjing smiled and said, “What a coincidence. I’m number 41. What I’m sitting at Seat 42. I suffer from car sickness. Can I change seats with you? Sitting by the window is more comfortable.”

Fangzheng was instantly dumbfounded when he heard that. He looked up at the top of his head. Indeed, Fang Yunjing was sitting at number 42!

Red Boy tugged at Fangzheng’s trousers, implying, “We can’t avoid her, what do we do?”

Fangzheng patted his head, implying: “It’s fine.”

Hence Fangzheng smiled. “It’s fine. This Pe… I can sit anywhere.”

Then, Fangzheng sat down and carried Red Boy over, placing him on his lap.

Red Boy did not look at Fang Yunjing the entire time, afraid that he would be recognized. It was a classic example of having a guilty conscience.

Fangzheng was fine. Since he couldn’t avoid it, he decided to face it calmly. He sat there and waited for the bus to drive off.

“Are you guys doing the one-day tour?” Fang Yunjing asked curiously.

Fangzheng patted Red Boy on the head. Red Boy felt helpless. It was time for him to lie. “That’s right. We also signed up for the one-day trip. However, we spent our last bit of money. Now, we have nothing left. Not a single cent.”

Fang Yunjing did not believe Red Boy. She pursed her lips with a smile and said nothing.

Not long after, a tall and burly woman entered the bus. She was dressed in red, making her look fiery. She had a large ponytail, but it did not make her look innocent at all. Instead, she looked even fiercer.

The woman’s voice was very loud. She said loudly, “Hello everyone. I’m your tour guide for this tour. You can call me Tour Guide Li. I’ll use your registered phone number’s last few numbers. Shout out when it’s your number.”

Then, it was a round of attendance-taking. They were split into groups and families. After figuring out what was going on, Tour Guide Li added, “Everyone, listen up. Today is a low-priced, one-day tour, but we don’t have any hidden expenses, nor do we force anyone to spend. Today, we are mainly having fun. I wish everyone of you a good time.”

Everyone heaved a sigh of relief when they heard that.

Fangzheng clearly heard Fang Yunjing heave a sigh of relief.

Clearly, after Fang Yunjing’s parents left, her life was not going well. Otherwise, she would not have signed up for such a low-priced tour to relax.

Fangzheng didn’t mind. It was his first time traveling with a group. He felt a little excited.

The bus drove for an hour before they finally left the city.

At that moment, Tour Guide Li stood up again. Holding the microphone, she said, “Everyone, I’ve already told everyone that we’re going on a low-priced, one-day tour. We’re just a tour group meant to have fun. Therefore, when we arrive at the scenic area, everyone must listen to me. Why do I say that? Because we’re all tourists, and all of you are getting off from this tourist bus. The target is too obvious. Everyone knows that no matter where, there’s a type of person that can’t be avoided—thiefs.

“You don’t know them, and they don’t know you either, but they know that you are tourists and will steal your stuff. The possibility of you getting it back is low. Furthermore, in their eyes, you are all rich people.

“Perhaps someone might ask me—don’t you know them? Wouldn’t it be enough if I just point them out?

“I’m sorry, everyone comes here once, while I ply this route every day. Even if I recognize them, I can’t call them out in front of everyone. That way, my life will be difficult. Therefore, what I can do is that when I see them approach, I’ll shout “everyone get on the bus.” At this time, everyone will have to look after their own things and quickly return to the bus to prevent any unnecessary financial losses.”

Everyone nodded when they heard that.

Red Boy said, “Master, Tour Guide Li isn’t bad.”

Fangzheng nodded slightly but did not say a word.

By the side, Fang Yunjing frowned slightly as she mumbled, “Why is it this saying again…”

Fangzheng asked in surprise, “Have you heard of something similar?”

Fang Yunjing nodded and said, “Yes, everyone seems to be saying the same thing. Of course, some tour guides really do it for our own good. However, some tour guides are just trying to scare the visitors. Their goal is to shorten the time for the visitors to have fun. My friend went to Guilin before and said that its security is good. There are not many thieves who will steal things openly. Furthermore, the local government is also very protective of the tourists. If anything happens, they will stand on the tourists’ side.

“Moreover, locals don’t like to bully others, so there aren’t many…”

Red Boy whispered, “So that means Tour Guide Li is bluffing?”

Fang Yunjing nodded and said, “From her accent, she’s not a local tour guide.”

Fangzheng remained silent as he watched silently. At the same time, he tapped Red Boy’s head, indicating that before he figured everything, he shouldn’t be in a rush to label others and make a conclusion.

But no matter what, what Tour Guide Li said gave many people on the bus a better impression of her. Their vigilance and wariness were greatly reduced.

Fangzheng heard a couple whisper behind him. “This tour guide is not bad. She’s quite honest.”

“Yes, it’s pretty good.”

…

After driving for a while, Tour Guide Li stood up again and said, “Everyone, I’ve been emphasizing that we are a low-priced tour group. Then, someone will be suspicious. Why can we spend such a low price to have fun? Doesn’t the tour guide earn any money? Does the travel agency not earn any money?

“I’ll do the math for everyone. The cost of one person on our bus is 50 yuan. When we reach the place, we’ll need 200 to 300 yuan for all the entrance fees. This is the fee that everyone has to pay themselves. But it’s different for our travel agency. Our company’s purchase of tickets is done in bulk. We have an agreement with the tourist attraction, so it’s much cheaper. That’s why our fees are lower than if you were to travel on your own.

“However, we still have a shop front and so many mouths to feed. I need to eat too. That’s why this doesn’t make it profitable. In fact, there might even be a loss.”