The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

And so Red Boy happily followed Fangzheng down the mountain three days later.

Fangzheng saw Ouyang Fenghua dressed in a yellow t-shirt which was matched to shorts and canvas shoes. She wore a black cap, and her ponytails were flung behind her. She carried a black haversack on her back. As she stood at the foot of the mountain, Fangzheng kept subconsciously taking a glance at her long, straight legs. As a result, Fangzheng deliberately slowed down his pace and chanted the Clear Minded Chant thrice before he calmed down and stopped looking.

Instead it was Red Boy who went forward and asked out of curiosity, “Patron, why are your pants so short?”

Fangzheng raised his hand and gave Red Boy a slap to the back of his head. “To think you have the nerve to speak of others. Do you wear pants?”

Red Boy looked down at his red dudou and exclaimed unhappily, “Master, I also wish to wear pants, but what can I do when you aren’t giving me any?”

“If we could afford it, would there be a need for you to remind me? You disdain wearing the clothes I wore when I was a child, and now, you are trying to stand on the side of reason?”

“It’s too ugly. I’m not wearing that!” Red Boy looked away.

Upon seeing the master and disciple bicker away, Ouyang Fenghua laughed out. She squatted down and pinched Red Boy’s nose. “Jingxin, don’t call me patron. Call me Sis.”

“Heh heh. Granddaughter might be more accurate.” Red Boy rolled his eyes.

Ouyang Fenghua was immediately dumbfounded. What did the brat just say?

Fangzheng was rendered speechless as well, but there wa no way for him to retort that claim. In terms of age, the fellow was probably the ancestor of the ancestors of all Earthlings… However, when counting his age as a demon, he was still a kid! Furthermore, in terms of knowledge, he had seen quite a number of Dharma treasures and elixirs, but since he entrenched himself in a mountain, he knew nothing much about how the world worked apart from being fawned upon. Furthermore, he was extremely brattish since he was accustomed to being a king of the mountain. He always felt that whatever he said was the be all and end all. He did or said whatever he wished. He seldom cared about what others felt.

Fangzheng could only slowly guide him in such matters. Being overly naggy was useless too.

Red Boy turned his head petulantly, as though whatever he said was only natural and right.

Ouyang Fenghua did not think much of it either and brushed it off as a child’s innocent talk. Her eyes rolled as she smiled. “If you call me sis, I’ll buy you delicious food and beautiful clothes once we enter the city, such as…”

“Sis, you are really pretty!” Red Boy said immediately before Ouyang Fenghua finished her sentence.

Fangzheng facepalmed when he heard this. He realized that he had underestimated Red Boy! Instead of not knowing anything, this fellow knew too much! Fangzheng ruminated over the possibility that Internet access was the reason for such an outcome. It looked like banning the child from the Internet was necessary!

Ouyang Fenghua beamed as she pinched Red Boy’s noise. “How obedient! Sis won’t go back on her word!”

Red Boy smiled as well. He did not care about such things. All he cared about was food and clothes.

Fangzheng kicked Red Boy in the ass secretly when Ouyang Fenghua turned around. How embarrassing!

A friend had given Ouyang Fenghua a ride, but in order to not affect Fangzheng, she had immediately chased her friend away. Now, Ouyang Fenghua was regretting it somewhat.

“Master, how do we go?”

“Walk? There will be a bus later.”

The buses around the area were privately run, and they were scheduled to ply a fixed route across several nearby villagers daily. Only when the bus was filled would the bus drive to Songwu County. Although it was convenient, it was well known for going in circles…

It did not take long for the bus to arrive. From afar, Ouyang Fenghua saw the bus filled with heads. In addition, the bus was in quite a sorry state as though it would break down at any time. As it drove over, it even spewed black smoke in the rear as though it was on fire. It was not air-conditioned, and the windows were down. There were even hoes sticking out in the back. Ouyang Fenghua immediately felt too deep for tears when she saw this. She asked apprehensively, “Master, is this… safe?”

Fangzheng smiled wryly. “This is the only one in the village. If we don’t take it, there won’t be any others to take. Don’t worry. They are all villagers and honest people.”

Ouyang Fenghua gave a dry, forced chuckle as she followed extremely unwillingly. It was not that she felt contempt towards the villagers, but she felt that the bus was too unreliable! What happened to adhering to the bus capacity limits? What happened to the prohibition of smoking? If that was followed, what were those glowing butts and smoke billowing out of the windows? All of this was different from what she gleaned from books. From her point of view, the bus was unsafe. It would be suffocating to have so many people smoking on it.

Besides, the ride would take nearly two hours before they reached the county city. As it was so packed, she would need to stand, but when she thought of the jerky roads, she nearly fainted. She truly regretted chasing her car away. If she had known better, she would have gotten him to give her a ride to the county city before waiting for her…

While Ouyang Fenghua’s mind was going off rails, Fangzheng and Red Boy boarded the bus before turning their heads simultaneously to call out to her.

Helplessly, Ouyang Fenghua boarded the bus and mumbled, “I’ll die from all this standing…”

However, the moment she got on the bus, she heard someone call out. “Venerable Fangzheng, you are taking the bus too? Quick, come over and sit with me.”

A boorish man stood up and offered his seat to Fangzheng as he spoke.

Before Fangzheng even said a word, someone rushed to say, “No! Venerable One, you are closer to me. Sit over here.”

“You are so dirty, why would he sit with you? Here, Fangzheng. Come sit with me!” shouted a middle-aged woman.

Instantly, the bus was filled with shouts, all of them clamoring to offer their seat. This left Ouyang Fenghua dumbfounded. She never expected that. Although Ouyang Fenghua knew that Fangzheng was a monastery’s abbot, that he was enjoying an increase in incense offerings, and that he was skilled in calligraphy, she never imagined Fangzheng to have such influence. All the villagers liked him so much they collectively offered him their seats!

Fangzheng had not expected this either. He was young and strong, so he obviously wasn’t accepting the offers. He pressed his palms together. “Amitabha. Patrons, This Penniless Monk is still young and strong. There’s no need for all of you to offer your seats. This Penniless Monk will just stand.”

“What nonsense is that? Sit if I’m offering you. Why? Do you think of me as old and useless?” shouted a middle-aged woman.

A middle-aged man laughed. “Hehe, you think you are useful now? Back when we were boarding the bus, you went to great lengths to squeeze in and plant your ass in the seat. You even claimed your back and legs hurt. Have you forgotten?”

“Scram! No one asked for your opinion!” scolded the middle-aged woman jovially.

The man laughed as well. Clearly, they were joking and not having a real quarrel.

The middle-aged woman was displeased when Fangzheng rejected the offer again. “What about your child? Do you really think we are old? I’m telling you, you might not be my match when it comes to labor in the fields. Alright, cut the crap. Have a seat.” With that said, the middle-aged woman pulled Fangzheng and seated him.

Fangzheng helplessly pressed his palms together. “Thank you, Patron.”

But that was not the end…

When the middle-aged woman saw Red Boy and Ouyang Fenghua, she slapped the man beside in the back of his head.