Chapter 169 - 119: Hu Zi Hits Really Hard!

Chapter 169: Chapter 119: Hu Zi Hits Really Hard!

"Senior Brother... he... he..." he stammered, pointing at Hu Zi in Zeng Anmin’s arms. "He’s the one from that day..."

Seeing how terrified the young monk was, Zeng Anmin felt truly ashamed. He quickly took the nutritional supplements from Dachun and handed them toward the young monk, Yingchen. "I am so sorry. I am this child’s uncle. I came today specifically to apologize." He placed the gifts on the table.

"No, no, this poor monk cannot accept a Patron’s belongings." Hearing this, Yingchen hurriedly waved his hands.

"Please just accept it, little master..."

"My uncle is giving you something, so just take it," Hu Zi said weakly.

Upon hearing Hu Zi’s voice, little Yingchen’s body froze as if he had been hit by a Body Fixation Skill. Clearly, he was still traumatized by Hu Zi. Seeing this, the old monk’s heart ached terribly. His hands frantically cycled through his Prayer Beads. "Amitabha... Amitabha..."

Zeng Anmin thought, "Goodness. Just how brutally did you beat him that day!" He glanced at Hu Zi and glared at him. "Hurry up and apologize to him!"

"I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have hit you. I was wrong, and I hope you can forgive me..." Naturally, Hu Zi was very obedient. He looked aggrievedly at the terrified Yingchen in front of him and pouted. "My uncle said if you don’t forgive me, Buddha will take me away... Can you please not let Buddha take me away?"

"Uh..." Hearing Hu Zi’s words, Yingchen blinked for a long while before bursting into laughter. "Buddha is magnanimous and kind, delivering all sentient beings from suffering. He wouldn’t blame you over such a trivial matter."

"Really?" Hu Zi looked up at Yingchen with extreme insecurity. He then waddled over to Dachun on his short little legs and pulled a Wooden Sword out of Dachun’s wide sleeve.

The entire room fell silent for a moment. Yingchen’s newly improved complexion instantly turned terrified again. He stared at Hu Zi and stammered, "What... what are you going to... do..."

Unexpectedly, Hu Zi dropped to the ground with a THUD, holding the Wooden Sword up with both hands. "Little Master, please hit me back!" With that, Hu Zi squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, waiting to take a sword to the head.

Uh... Yingchen blanked out for a moment. He stared blankly at Hu Zi. After a long time, he took the Wooden Sword from Hu Zi’s hands. A kind smile appeared on his pure face.

"This poor monk will accept the Wooden Sword.

"However, Buddha once said that vengeance only breeds more vengeance. Rather than punishment, this poor monk would prefer to make peace with you, Patron.

"Just do not casually fight with others in the future."

Hu Zi looked up, half-understanding. "Are you really not going to hit me back?"

The young monk Yingchen smiled without saying a word.

"You’re so nice. Will you be my friend?" Hu Zi looked eagerly at young monk Yingchen. "I just made a friend named Liu Hao at the academy, but my uncle won’t let me play with him anymore."

Mentioning this made Zeng Anmin angry. He thought, "Can you even be friends with someone like that? Today he dares to instigate you to bash heads with a Wooden Sword, and tomorrow he’ll instigate you to commit murder with a real one!"

"Sure," little Yingchen smiled. He looked at the old monk and asked, "Senior Brother, I’ve finished my daily lessons, right?"

"Amitabha." The old monk chanted Buddha’s name, then turned and walked toward the outside of the temple.

As the old monk left, Zeng Anmin’s gaze fell on Yingchen’s face. Yingchen was patiently helping Hu Zi up from the ground. He bent over and very gently brushed the dust off Hu Zi’s knees. "In the future, you must not casually kneel to anyone except Buddha and your elders."

Even though little Yingchen was only twelve or thirteen years old, his voice sounded incredibly pleasant at this moment. Zeng Anmin thought, "This young monk really has a wonderful personality."

Hu Zi nodded ignorantly, his eyes full of anticipation. "Brother Yingchen, can you show me around here? I’ve never played here before!"

Yingchen was also just a young monk and wasn’t that much older himself. Hearing Hu Zi’s words, he smiled broadly and said, "Okay!"

Watching the two children, one slightly older than the other, walking and chatting around the temple, a fond, doting smile appeared on Zeng Anmin’s face. He thought, "See? Education isn’t that difficult. It’s just that some parents are too rigid and always prefer to solve problems with violence."

CLAMOR!!

Zeng Anmin suddenly heard a burst of commotion outside the temple. Then, he saw a figure slowly making his way toward the Great Hall in the center of the temple, flanked by a large entourage like stars surrounding the moon. The procession was extremely lavish. Countless monks followed respectfully behind him. Clearly, this person must have dropped quite a bit into the Merit Box.

After the man entered the Great Hall, his entourage and the monks all stood outside the door to wait. He was probably a high-ranking official from the capital. Looking at his luxurious clothing and the aura that was extremely similar to his own father’s, Zeng Anmin could faintly guess the person’s identity. This kind of temperament was not the wealthy air that Liu Sanjiang possessed, nor was it the noble elegance of the Eldest Princess. It was much more akin to the commanding aura of a high official like his father.

Zeng Anmin yawned. He glanced around and spotted Hu Zi and young monk Yingchen in the distance.

"Let’s go, it’s time to head back," Zeng Anmin said, glancing at Dachun before walking toward Hu Zi.

Just as he approached, he heard young monk Yingchen pointing toward the rear of Fa’an Temple. "There is a small Nunnery over there. I heard it’s where Consort Xi from the palace used to live, so we aren’t allowed to go in."

Hearing this, the anticipation in Hu Zi’s eyes dimmed a little. He smacked his lips and said, somewhat depressed, "Alright." Then, he suddenly looked up and saw the Great Hall surrounded by a crowd. His eyes lit up instantly. "Can we go over there, then?"

"Not right now." Yingchen shook his head with some regret. "Official Mr. Ren from the royal court is still inside."

"Official Mr. Ren?" Hearing the young monk’s words, Zeng Anmin raised a brow. He had already arrived beside the two children and looked at little Yingchen, asking, "Which Official Mr. Ren?"

"I don’t know," Yingchen shook his head. "This poor monk only heard from the senior brothers that he is a high official in the royal court and comes to the temple every year to worship Buddha."

Zeng Anmin narrowed his eyes. He thought, "A high official in the court surnamed Ren. Could it be the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue Mr. Ren Weizhi? Isn’t he a Confucian scholar? Why has he started believing in Buddha?"

Zeng Anmin revealed an amiable smile and asked, "When does he usually come?"

Yingchen shook his head blankly. "I don’t know. Official Mr. Ren came here once last month, too."

"Oh." Zeng Anmin nodded thoughtfully, filing the matter away in his mind. He said no more about it and looked at Hu Zi. "Shall we go?"

"No!" Hu Zi shook his head decisively. "It’s fun here. Uncle, can I stay a little longer? Just a little while."

As he spoke, his face filled with grievance. "No one plays with me at home...

"Mother is no fun at all..."

"Alright, alright, alright," Zeng Anmin’s mouth twitched. He waved his hand and said, "You can play for another half an hour."

"Yay! You’re the best, Uncle!" Hu Zi’s eyes lit up fiercely. He then dragged young monk Yingchen off toward another area.

Having nothing else to do here, Zeng Anmin turned his gaze to Dachun. By now, a bunch of unidentified objects had appeared in Dachun’s hands. Dried twigs. Strange stones. And a small bug...

"Where did you get such a disgusting thing?!" Zeng Anmin had a look of utter disgust on his face. He saw it very clearly—Dachun was holding a colorful, fuzzy caterpillar!

"I picked ’em all up!" Dachun gave a foolish smile. He raised his head, his smile beaming with pride.

COUGH, COUGH—

An unfamiliar coughing sound rang out, catching Zeng Anmin’s attention. He looked over and saw an extremely unsteady figure slowly hobbling on crutches, walking in this direction from the Great Hall.

The figure looked incredibly miserable—old, desolate, and coughing every now and then. He limped along, making his way bit by bit toward the small hill at the back of the temple.

Zeng Anmin blinked as he watched the direction where the cripple vanished, a hint of bewilderment flashing in his eyes.

"Didn’t Yingchen just say that people aren’t allowed to enter that Nunnery?" he murmured.