The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Fangzheng said, “This Penniless Monk needs a sturdy fish net and two sturdy metal poles.”

Old Wang was immediately taken aback. “I can understand the fishing nets, but what are the metal poles for?”

“Master, impressive. You still need metal poles to defend yourself? Don’t worry. With that single kick alone, it was enough to scare off Brother Snake and the rest. It’s unlikely they will find trouble with you again.” Shao Chong believed that Fangzheng was buying things for self-defense purposes.

Fangzheng didn’t explain as he said, “It will be used to do something, but not to fight.”

Shao Chong nodded slightly, but he didn’t believe it one bit. Prior to this, he believed that Fangzheng was only an ordinary monk, but after that kick and with his purchase of fishing nets presumably to catch fish, he had already categorized Fangzheng as someone like the Flowery Monk, Lu Zhishen, in the Classical Novel, Water Margin. He thought, “This is a monk who is a mad hatter…”

Old Wang didn’t ask further and said, “I don’t have what you want in my shop, but there’s a steel welder across the street. You can get him to make you two steel bars. As for the net, I have many types. They are all over there. Pick one yourself.”

Fangzheng nodded and walked over. There were nets all over the floor, but what surprised Shao Chong and Old Wang was that Fangzheng chose the roughest rope net!

Old Wang asked with a face of embarrassment, “Venerable One, you don’t know how to fish, right? That’s not a fish net. It’s a net used by me to store goods.”

When Shao Chong heard that, he burst out in laughter. “Master, didn’t you notice? This net’s ropes are about the thickness of a finger. The holes in the net are about the size of a palm. Where are you going to fish with such huge holes?”

Fangzheng smiled. “Who said that This Penniless Monk was going to go fishing?”

Once he said that, Old Wang and Shao Chong were stunned… If you aren’t net fishing, why are you buying a fishing net?

Fangzheng didn’t explain and immediately made the payment. Shao Chong asked for Old Wang to give a discount since it wasn’t really a fishing net but an old net used to haul goods. Old Wang shook his head in exasperation and gave Fangzheng a discount before selling it. Having been in business for so long, this was the first time he had encountered such a strange customer. Fangzheng had come to a fishing accessories store to buy a net, but not for fishing! That wasn’t even important; he even bought it despite knowing that it was old…

However, Old Wang couldn’t be bothered either. Anything that earned him money was good business, regardless of what the customer bought.

Fangzheng stored away the net and headed across the street to the steel welder. The welder had a rod with a handle, and he welded the net onto the rod according to Fangzheng’s wishes. Instantly, this strange item became a huge netted scoop for scooping up fish. However, the net was just too big… Unless one was trying to scoop up a huge marine creature like a shark, it was completely useless.

Shao Chong kept following and watching. He was responsible for bargaining, but the more he watched, the more confused he got. What is this monk going to use this thing for?

“Master, what are you using this item for?” Shao Chong finally couldn’t curb his curiosity as he asked.

Fangzheng chuckled. “To scoop up a mermaid.”

“Mermaid?” Shao Chong was taken aback before he smiled wryly. “Master, stop pulling my leg. Although Dawu has a river, it’s a freshwater river. How can there be mermaids…”

Fangzheng said, “What you might not be able to scoop up isn’t necessarily something This Penniless Monk can’t scoop up either.”

Shao Chong still wanted to keep asking when he heard Red Boy say, “Since my Master said that he can scoop it up, it definitely means he can. Stop blabbering and just watch the show.”

Shao Chong rolled his eyes when he heard that. Although he didn’t verbalize it, he had come to a conclusion. Fangzheng was definitely trying to use smoke and mirrors. Ignoring the fact that there were no mermaids in this world, they would be in the sea even if they existed. Could this monk be going downstream into the sea? With this in mind, Shao Chong stopped talking and just followed behind. He wanted to see how the duo was about to catch a mermaid!

However, the more he walked, the more puzzled he became. Why is this monk walking back to the commercial district?

Shao Chong’s mind was filled with questions. Just as he went over to inquire, he saw Fangzheng stop suddenly and look up at Shao Gang who was leaning against the window on the third story.

Shao Gang laughed. “Master, have you bought your fishing equipment? Eh? This net of yours is really special.” Shao Gang was also puzzled.

Why would this monk end up buying something like that when he was buying a fishing net? Has this monk gone silly from being a monk? Doesn’t he have any common sense when it comes to catching fish? But even if the monk is unaware, Shao Chong should know that, right? Did this fellow just watch idly as this Master got swindled? He pondered if he should berate Shao Chong later.

Before Fangzheng could speak, Shao Chong shouted. “Brother, Master bought the net not to catch ordinary small fish, but he wants to catch a mermaid!”

“Pfft!” Shao Gang spewed out a mouthful of tea and laughed. “Mermaid? Haha! Master, you must be kidding, right?”

As the two brothers shouted, the merchants around heard the commotion and either peeked their heads out or leaned against the window to watch the show. A few passers-by shot Fangzheng a glance and were immediately attracted by Fangzheng’s clothing. After all, few people wore monk robes these days. It was also rare to see monks walking on the street. Furthermore, this monk was rather special. Ignoring his white monk robes and shiny bald head, wasn’t he a little too handsome? Many chicks took a second glance, pissing off the male partners beside them! But soon, the chicks were attracted to the super huge scoop that Fangzheng was carrying. The net had a diameter of a meter and was two meters long! With Fangzheng carrying it on his shoulder, it was difficult for him not to attract the attention of others.

Furthermore, Fangzheng still had an adorable kid following him. They basically attracted everyone from young to old.

However, when the crowd heard that Fangzheng was about to scoop up a mermaid, they immediately started laughing.

“Haha, this Master sure is interesting. Ever since he came, our street has turned rather lively. He swindled a cheat and beat up scumbags. Now, he’s catching mermaids. Tsk. I wonder what trick he will pull off next.” The female sales attendant in the clothing store from before chuckled.

Her boss was attracted once again. When he saw Fangzheng’s appearance and his employee recounting how the net was meant to scoop up a mermaid, he immediately shook his head. “This monk sure is capable; unfortunately, he’s an idiot. Scoop up mermaids? He really can fantasize. Enough, Little Zhang, stop watching. Although he’s quite handsome, his brains are lacking.”

“Oh, come on, Boss. Let me watch a little while longer. I find this monk rather fun. There’s no one in our store anyway. I’ll stop watching if customers come,” Little Zhang said.

The boss shook his head. “Alright then. I’ll watch the idiot and amuse myself as well.”

Many people had similar thoughts. Although there were many people on the commercial street, each store didn’t get much business individually. Some stores were even empty… Since there were no customers, the bosses didn’t force their employees to do anything. They allowed them to watch the show and were rather humane.

As for the passers-by, some shook their heads, took a photo, and posted it on their WeChat Moments: “Encountered an idiot. He wants to use that net to scoop up mermaids. Wishing him the best of luck…”