The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

After returning to the mountaintop, the world became tranquil. In that one mountain, that one monastery, a monk and monkey knelt in the temple hall for an entire day and night.

Although he had been forgiven and understood by the women, Fangzheng still believed that he had done something wrong. He needed to accept his punishment. That was karma. Karma that belonged to him had nothing to do with the forgiveness he received from others.

This only ended with Monkey suffering. He had a wild nature and often thought of skiving or fooling around. Especially when he saw Lone Wolf running freely ahead of him, he wished he could join. However, his tail was being held down by the monk in front of him. There was no way for him to escape other than obediently kneeling.

At the foot of the mountain, with the engine of a large bus coming to life, the villagers sent the crew of City-Toppling Beauty off. Everything seemed to return to its former peace and quietness. Many people were beaming. One of them was Wang Yougui.

“Village Chief, why are you smiling?” Dog Song asked curiously.

“Nothing, it’s nothing. You will know in the future. It’s a secret for now! Haha…” Wang Yougui laughed before he left.

He left everyone perplexed.

On the bus, Li Xueying watched Mt. One Finger gradually disappear into the darkness. A melancholic look flashed in her eyes.

“Sis Xueying, do you miss it?” asked Xiaoliu curiously.

Li Xueying shook her head, “I miss that relaxing feeling. Once I leave Mt. One Finger, I’ll be busy again. Forget it, let’s not talk about this. I’m taking a nap. Wake me up when we arrive.”

“Alright,” responded Xiaoliu, a little confused.

An uneventful night passed. The next day, Monkey hobbled out. Recalling the events of the night, he finally succumbed to Fangzheng’s despotic might. He was only released after swearing never to steal again. Yet Fangzheng did not come out…

Lone Wolf stuck his head into the temple hall “Abbot, it’s time to prepare our meals.”

“Amitabha. This Penniless Monk already said that he will kneel for two days for every day that Monkey kneels. No eating or cooking!” said Fangzheng.

“Abbot, you can’t not eat. If you don’t eat… Squirrel will slim down from hunger.” Lone Wolf shot a glance at Squirrel.

Squirrel hurriedly hid the pine nut in his hand behind him. Although he did not understand what Lone Wolf was saying, the extended period of interaction and their high intelligence allowed them to understand most things based on context. He said to Fangzheng, “Abbot Fangzheng, I’m really slimming from hunger. Do you have the heart to see me become thinner?”

Monkey rubbed his shriveled belly and said wryly, “Abbot, I know I was wrong. I guarantee you never to steal again. If you don’t allow me to take it, I’ll absolutely not take it!”

With that said, Monkey secretly took away the pine nut that Squirrel had hidden behind him…

Fangzheng’s back faced them and was unaware what the trio was doing, nor did he care what they were doing. Instead, he looked up and said to the Ten Thousand Buddha plaque, “This Penniless Monk has to do what he said he would. No eating means no eating! Even if it’s starvation!”

The three animals dispersed sadly. They sprawled underneath the bodhi tree languidly… Although they could obtain something to eat, they felt their days were lacking without Crystal Rice as the main staple…

At that moment, Monkey truly regretted stealing the undergarments. Just because of a little fun, he starved for two days… What a great loss!

Another day passed, ushering in a new day. With the beginning of a new day, the animals heard Fangzheng’s soft instruction. “Lone Wolf, Monkey, come in for a moment.”

The three animals had been staying guard outside. They immediately ran over when Fangzheng called out to them.

Lone Wolf asked, “Abbot, what is it?”

“Help me up. Numb legs…” said Fangzheng bitterly.

Lone Wolf: “@#…”

Monkey came over and helped in holding up Fangzheng. Fangzheng said, “Monkey, have you thought things through and understand your mistake?”

Monkey nodded immediately.

Fangzheng said, “Since you understand, it means you are penitent.”

Monkey continued nodding.

“Since you are penitent, receive your punishment. In the future, you are responsible for sweeping the yard. Get a broom. If there’s any leaves on the ground before a meal, you will have your food reduced,” said Fangzheng.

Monkey subconsciously nodded before suddenly coming around. That’s not right! He nearly fell for Fangzheng’s trap as he instantly exclaimed, “Didn’t I kneel? I still need to be punished?”

“That is to let you reflect. This is the punishment. Alright, get to work. I’ll make the meals. Of course, you can choose not to do it. You just won’t get to eat.”

Monkey thought of the food and then looked at the yard again. He clenched his teeth. Isn’t it just a yard this big? I’ll sweep it!

Then, Monkey picked up a broom and imitated Fangzheng’s daily sweeping of the yard. He did so deftly but he soon realized that sweeping leaves was not a simple task. If he used too much strength, the leaves would fly randomly into the sky. If he used too little strength, the leaves would stick to the ground. And if he swept too quickly, he would miss some… Helplessly, Monkey could only slow down his pace of sweeping. This tormented Monkey’s eager monkey nature. But he put up with it when he caught a whiff of the rice fragrant that came from the backyard!

Monkey soon discovered something that troubled him. As he swept a corner, the bodhi tree would shed leaves elsewhere! After sweeping an area, he had to later return. He immediately felt like throwing the broom and go on strike. But then, thinking of dinner and how Fangzheng had knelt two days for him, Monkey scratched his ass and clenched his teeth. He continued sweeping miserably…

Fangzheng’s cooking of rice was quite simple. He washed the pot and scooped the rice. He lit a fire with timber and all that was left was to wait. As he used his cell phone, he would secretly observe Monkey.

Monkey’s tenacity far exceeded Fangzheng’s expectations. He thought that Monkey would give up after a few setbacks but he never expected him to really turn serious at sweeping. Fangzheng also nodded when he saw this scene. Monkey was not incorrigible.

Fangzheng sat in the backyard as he opened WeChat. He had dozens of friend requests! On careful look, they were all familiar faces. Yu Guanze, Lin Dongshi, Luo Li, Old Tao, Xiaoliu, Xiaoling, etc as well as Li Xueying. Fangzheng accepted their requests one by one.

Then, he realized that he was added to a group chat, named City-Toppling Beauty Group.

The moment he entered the group, he saw a heated discussion.

“Did you hear? The ransomware began after stopping for a few days. It’s said that even cell phones are at risk.”

“I heard that too. Even America’s FBI was extorted.”

“Disney’s newest movie was stolen by hackers. Now, they are holding the movie ransom. However, Disney is unwilling to pay for it and sought the FBI’s help. The FBI sure is comedic. They actually told them to pay the ransom…”

“This world is going to insane. The hackers are crazy as well. They are actually ransoming the whole world openly! What lawlessness.”

“Eh? Venerable Fangzheng has entered the group!” Someone nicknamed, Xiaoling in the Wind exclaimed.

Following that, the topic immediately diverted.

“Venerable Fangzheng, you came? Sisters, welcome him!”

Then, pictures of various alluring poses appeared. After taking a look at them, Fangzheng said: “Amitabha. Patrons, nice to see you. Goodbye.”