The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Although Fangzheng said that, he knew something very well. Flaunt his wealth? His bit of money was nothing! Since he couldn’t compete with them, he might as well not join the competition at all. At worst, he would just keep staring at the sky, allowing people to wag their tongues at him. If they pissed him off, he could fight it out with them. So what if you have money? Do you have divine powers?

Seconds turned into minutes as the number of people that arrived grew. After all the strangely-dressed religious figures left, there was another huge bunch of reporters.

“They are all gone now. Can we head in now?” Ong urged the driver.

The driver shook his head and said, “Sir, it’s useless asking me. We have to wait for the police to give us directions. We can only go once they say so.”

Ong looked at the overworked police and immediately felt that there was no chance they would be getting through anytime soon. Looking back at Fangzheng, he was using his phone, looking relaxed. Since he wasn’t anxious, he fell silent as well.

After a while, the police finally waved for the cars to continue moving.

The taxi slowly moved forward as the driver said, “Sirs, are you hoping to take a look outside the summit? Or are you planning on going to Hoàn Kiếm Lake to take a look? I must tell you that the area is completely locked down. Outsiders can’t enter, and you can’t see anything from the outside. Just stand outside and take a few photos to tell your friends that you’ve been here. What’s really nice is Hoàn Kiếm Lake, so let’s go there…”

With the driver going on and on, Fangzheng didn’t show any reaction, but Ong’s face darkened! The driver didn’t believe that they were there for the summit at all! He was even recommending them tourist attractions…

“Alright, enough. We are here to participate in the summit,” Ong said.

The driver clearly didn’t believe it as he grinned. “Heh heh.”

Ong nearly threw a punch at him, but he eventually held back.

When they arrived, the taxi driver asked again, “Are you sure you are getting off here? The reporters haven’t left. If you get out here, it will be too striking. Others come in a Rolls Royce while you come in a taxi. People come in all kinds of beautiful kasayas and suits, but you?”

The driver looked at their getup, his meaning clear.

Ong looked at his tattered camouflage clothes and felt that he really wasn’t suited for entry. He blushed red as he scoffed. “What the hell are you thinking? I’m just Master’s henchman. I won’t be entering but will be waiting outside.”

“He won’t do either. Don’t you see the signboard? Those without proper attire are forbidden from entering. A monk without a kasaya, a Daoist priest without his robes, etc. aren’t allowed to enter even if they have an invitation letter.” The driver was very familiar with all of this as he warned them.

Ong immediately felt at a loss. He hadn’t seen Fangzheng bring any luggage back when they came. All he had was a black cloth bag with the salted fish demon inside. As for a kasaya? That was nothing!

At this moment, Fangzheng smiled. “It’s fine. This Penniless Monk has a kasaya. Let’s get out and take a look.”

Once Fangzheng got out of the taxi, he immediately felt something amiss.

Flashes overwhelmed him as a result of all the reporters present! Also, many of them were snapping him. The blinding flashes made Fangzheng subconsciously squint.

At the same time, he heard murmurs.

“Who’s this? Why is he so young? Where’s his master?”

“This monk actually came by taxi? Holy sh*t, how poor is their monastery?”

“Don’t tell me he’s here to get a feeling of walking the red carpet? Damn, he wasted my storage space…”

“Look at his clothes. He’s only wearing some monk robes and not a kasaya! He can’t enter without a kasaya. From the looks of it, he’s just here to mess around. I’m deleting the picture!”

“Heh, he really doesn’t have a kasaya. I’m deleting it too!”

“Let’s delete it together. Seriously, what the hell? I thought I would get something interesting, but all I got was this. Thankfully, it’s a digital camera. If we were still using film, my heart would bleed from the pain.”

“Look, the security guards are heading over!”

“Hehe, I think a show is about to play out.”

Fangzheng noticed that most of the people speaking were Vietnamese. Clearly, most of the reporters were locals. As for Chinese reporters, Fangzheng knew none of them. With everyone being Asian and wearing the same local attire, how could he recognize people if they didn’t say something?

But clearly, many of the Chinese reporters knew Fangzheng!

However, Fangzheng wasn’t embarrassed. He pressed his palms together and smiled at everyone before walking towards the venue with brisk steps.

Ong followed closely behind and said nervously, “Master, where’s your kasaya?”

Fangzheng smiled bitterly. Did he really have to take it out? Couldn’t he not wear it?

“Venerable One, may I take a look at your invitation letter?” At that moment, two black-suited men walked over with a gentle and polite smile.

At that instant, Fangzheng really wished to create an invitation letter, but when he thought that he hadn’t stolen or snatched one, but had really been invited there, why did he need to worry? It was better for him to just explain himself.

Hence, Fangzheng shook his head and said frankly, “This Penniless Monk lost the invitation letter. Patrons, you can check the invite list and will be able to find This Penniless Monk.”

The two frowned, clearly doubting his words. However, they nodded out of caution and politeness. They got Fangzheng to tell them his name before they spoke over their walkie talkies.

At that moment, a voice boomed. “If you don’t have an invitation letter, it means you don’t have one. Master, lying is a grave sin!”

Fangzheng was taken aback. He wasn’t familiar with the voice, and when he looked back, he saw a man in a cut suit. His hair was grizzled, and the wrinkles by the side of his eyes could hardly be hidden. His face was the kind that just asked for a beating!

When this person appeared, the reporters who were prepared to wrap up were roused to attention.

“It’s Nguyen Thiên Tinh!”

“The Nguyen Black Gloves is one of the three arms of the Nguyen Corporation! Damn it, why is he here?”

“Why is he here? For such a grand summit, not only him, perhaps even the big boss of the Nguyen Corporation will be here! This is the first summit hosted by the Dharma Characteristics Monastery!”

“That’s right, the Dharma Characteristics Monastery isn’t an ordinary monastery. Rumor has it that it has connections with the royal family and the government. Also, I heard that it had to do with the Nguyen Corporation’s conflict with somebody over a piece of land that eventually turned nasty. At the end of the day, they failed to get the land. I suspect they are hoping to use the Dharma Characteristics Monastery’s summit to come into contact with the high-ranking officials.”

“It isn’t only them. There were many patriarchs from different families who entered. Who wouldn’t want to seize this opportunity?”

“But it’s fine if he enters. Why is he putting down a young monk?”

“Nguyen Thiên Tinh is known as the Black Glove, so who knows what’s on his mind? The monk must have been a sore sight to him.”