The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Panda Novel

With this in mind, Lin Tai smiled. “Since we came here, let’s go to have a chat. It’s not a bad idea to pay Abbot Fangzheng’s monastery a visit.”

Li He, who originally believed that Lin Tai was in a hurry to leave the mountain and was about to retort Cui Jiandong, changed what he was about to say the moment he heard that. “Boss Lin is right. I’m also curious how luxurious our Abbot Fangzheng’s monastery is.”

The moment that was said, he could not help but feel amused.

What kind of luxurious monastery could there be on such a crappy mountain? Only a retard would believe that.

Fangzheng was rendered a little speechless as well. He had only been speaking the truth. Why were these people so good at distorting the facts? When did he say that the monastery was luxurious? As for what these people were thinking, Fangzheng knew as well. Since these people were so thick-skinned and weren’t afraid of being smacked, Fangzheng was naturally happy to fulfill their wishes.

He swept his gaze across Liu Ying. Compared to the others, she was relatively kind. Furthermore, he was indebted to her from back then, so it was only right to invite her up the mountain. The girl, Lin Xi, did not seem to have any malicious intent either.

Therefore, Fangzheng said, “Patron Liu, since you came here, please feel welcome at the mountaintop.”

“Mountaintop? You…” Liu Ying nearly fumed with exasperation when she heard that. Why was this monk still trying so hard at this moment in time? Was he a fool? Lin Tai and company were clearly planning to head up to mock him for their amusement. Liu Ying gave Fangzheng the labels ‘foolish’, ‘impetuous’, ‘braggart’, and ‘someone with a false sense of pride’.

Before Liu Ying could say a word, Lin Xi tugged at Liu Ying and said, “Sis Liu Ying, let’s go. Let’s take a look. After all, there’s nothing down the mountain. Don’t be a downer.”

Lin Xi only wished to watch the fun. Besides, she was indeed somewhat interested in the handsome monk. She wished to understand more of his situation. For example, was there really a rundown temple up the mountain? What kind of rundown temple could produce such an otherworldly monk? She was curious, very curious!

The others echoed her. Fangzheng did not say another word, so without having an out, Liu Ying had no choice but to agree. However, her evaluation of Fangzheng went another notch lower. “He’s not flexible and doesn’t know how to take an out when given one. Such a personality only suits this kind of godforsaken mountain. If he weren’t on this mountain all the time, he wouldn’t even know what hit him when he was scammed in the real world.”

The group of people followed Fangzheng up the mountain. It didn’t take them long to reach the end of the mountain trail. Just as they were about to reach the summit and see the scenery of the mountaintop, Cui Jiandong’s lips curled up slightly as he thought, “Fangzheng, o Fangzheng, are you still acting calm now? Hmph. No matter how much you brag, it will just backfire. Now, it’s time for me to expose your lies!”

With this in mind, Cui Jiandong suddenly jumped forward and laughed. “Come! Let me first take a look at Abbot Fangzheng’s luxurious monastery. Haha, where is it? Right, it’s that… Uh!”

Cui Jiandong was instantly stunned rooted to his spot when he saw the scene before his eyes. He only had one thought in mind, “How… is this possible!?”

Li He chuckled when he saw this. “What’s the matter, Cui Jiandong? Are you stunned by Abbot Fangzheng’s flawless, luxurious monastery? Or can you not see a monastery but only ruins? In fact, it’s nothing if you see ruins. After all, it was quite run down already. Thinking back to those years… Uh!”

Before Li He finished his sentence, he was instantly rooted to the spot when he looked in the direction of One Finger Monastery.

Their odd expressions intrigued Liu Ying, Lin Xi, and Lin Tai. They rushed over and were simultaneously dumbfounded as well!

In the distance, the sky was extremely blue. It was as though the most beautiful lake in the world was hanging high in the sky. A monastery with red walls and green tiles was located among a sea of emerald-green bamboo. With the blue sky and green bamboo serving as a foil, the red bricks made the monastery all the more eye-catching.

Right in front of them, there were a bell and drum tower that looked like two towering, mighty guardians. Although the monastery wasn’t huge, it was filled with a zen-like charm. The monastery wasn’t tall, but it was extremely clean and otherworldly. One glance at it made it impossible to ignore its existence. Furthermore, the entire monastery exuded zen charms that left one’s mind serene. It was as though they could hear the murmurs of a Buddha.

Intricate, zen-like, Buddhistic, serene, lofty, relaxing… These were the feelings the monastery gave them!

Although the monastery did not look opulent from the outside, everyone had to admit that this was a monastery with extremely intricate Buddhistic vibes!

Upon seeing the monastery, Lin Tai, Li He, and Cui Jiandong immediately felt extremely awkward. If felt like they had eaten a dead fly.

Lin Xi covered her tiny mouth and exclaimed, “Bro, didn’t you say that there were only a few crappy bricks? Have you seen such beautiful bricks before?”

Lin Tai’s face flushed red. He glared at Lin Xi, making her shut up. Was she not happy that he had embarrassed himself enough?

Liu Ying was flabbergasted as well. She looked at the monastery and then at Fangzheng. She could not help but have a rueful smile as she thought. “No wonder he remained stoic the entire time. So what he said was true. But how is this possible? How did he do it? This isn’t scientific. Why would anyone donate money to renovate a monastery in such a poor, remote village?”

At that moment Fangzheng, who had been silent all this while, said, “Patrons, please come in.”

Although Fangzheng was saying it to everyone, his gaze only landed momentarily on Lin Xi and Liu Ying. It was as though he treated the others as nonexistent.

When the group saw this, they exchanged looks as their faces flushed red. They yearned to turn and leave immediately, never to see the bastard monk again! Especially Lin Tai. Ever since his family’s uprising, when had he suffered such a setback? Worst of all, he couldn’t flare up since Liu Ying was around. All he could do was bear with it as his teeth sounded from him gnashing them. Yet, he had to force an awkward smile. He looked quite ridiculous.

If Fangzheng had ended up mocking him, he might have felt better. He might even have been able to resort to sophistry and make an excuse for himself. Yet, Fangzheng remained ever casual as though there was no one around him, and this made them even more upset. The feeling of being ignored seemed to ignite an ardent fire in his heart.

At that moment, Liu Ying sighed. “Did all of you need to do this? Sigh.”

As she spoke, Liu Ying quickly walked forward.

Seeing how Liu Ying had abandoned them to follow the monk, Liu Ying felt like a pack of dynamite had been thrown into the flames in his heart. Liu Ying exploded there and then as his eyes turned red!

When Li He and Cui Jiandong saw this, Li He immediately said, “Boss Lin, don’t be mad. No matter how awesome Fangzheng is, all he has is a tiny monastery. How can he compare with you? You have a powerful family and a wonderful career. Just a tiny bit of what you have is more than his entire wealth.”

Cui Jiandong said, “That’s right. Liu Ying came here only to see an old classmate. If she truly wanted to choose a boyfriend, ten Fangzhengs couldn’t even compare with you. Besides, he’s a monk. No matter how awesome he is, doesn’t he just stay on this crappy mountain all day and not even have a job?”

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