The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Fangzheng nodded slightly. It was indeed a solution. He looked outside through the windows, and he could see several video cameras a distance away from the police line. As expected, with such a huge commotion, it was impossible for reporters not to come. And it appeared as though the turnout would only increase as time passed.

At that moment, Fangzheng was taken aback for he saw a familiar person.

Fangzheng pressed his palms together. “Patron, if you wish to meet a reporter, This Penniless Monk can recommend you a person.”

“Who is it?” Wang Dayou asked warily.

“A patron named Jing Yan.”

“Jing Yan? The great reporter Jing!?” To Fangzheng’s surprise, Wang Dayou actually knew Jing Yan!

Fangzheng subconsciously asked, “You know her?”

“Yes. She has reported on a lot of positive news and has helped many people. All of us like to read her reports. If it’s her, I agree to it,” Wang Dayou said.

When Fangzheng heard this, he sighed inwardly. He never knew that after not meeting her for so long, the domineering girl would have already turned into a living Bodhisattva. As for him, the unlucky monk, he was still the same unlucky monk. All he could do was shake his head. But since Wang Dayou was agreeable to it, that made things simpler.

However, a problem quickly arose. Wang Dayou asked, “Who will tell the police?”

When everyone heard this, all of them were stunned before they collectively looked at Wang Dayou. Seeing the guns in the policemen’s hands, he immediately shook his head. “I’m not going out.”

The other three women were willing, but Wang Dayou was uneasy about letting them. He was afraid they would run the moment they were out! He felt uneasy about having fewer hostages around.

As for Xia Jili and his daughter, it was even more impossible for him to release them. He still wanted Xia Jili to pay him his money.

With this, Wang Dayou finally looked at Fangzheng. With an exasperated look, Fangzheng said, “Amitabha. Alright. This Penniless Monk will do it.”

“You are not to run! If you run… I… I’ll kill someone!” Wang Dayou was also afraid that Fangzheng would run. Hence he threatened him. However, Fangzheng could also tell that Wang Dayou was only trying to threaten him. Even so, he wasn’t certain that Wang Dayou wouldn’t be agitated and end up killing someone if he really ran. After all, Wang Dayou was not a professional assassin. His state of mind wasn’t that great at the moment, and it was possible for him to do anything in his panic.

Fangzheng said, “Patron, don’t worry. Buddha said: If I don’t descend into Hell, who will? This Penniless Monk will definitely not run before these Patrons leave.”

“That’s good. Get Jing Yan in here,” Wang Dayou said.

Fangzheng nodded. But then he feigned worry and asked, “Getting her in isn’t a problem, but Patron, you will need to agree to a condition of This Penniless Monk.”

“What is it?”

“Patron, you must not hold Patron Jing Yan hostage. If that happened, This Penniless Monk would have sinned.”

The moment that was said, Xia Jili signaled to Fangzheng with his eyes, indicating that Wang Dayou wasn’t to be believed since he was a lunatic. Fangzheng pretended not to see it as he calmly looked at Wang Dayou.

Wang Dayou was taken aback as he seemed to fall into thought. After a while, he said, “Will you believe me if I say I won’t hold her hostage?” From Wang Dayou’s point of view, he was now a murderer, an armed robber. He was the most heinous kind of person! Who would believe a person like him?

But to Wang Dayou’s surprise, Fangzheng nodded without hesitation and smiled. “This Penniless Monk will believe you.”

Wang Dayou looked at Fangzheng in astonishment before sighing. “Go. I agree not to hold her hostage. She can come in and leave as she wants.”

Fangzheng nodded before walking towards the door.

The policemen outside all appeared very nervous. Although they faced all sorts of cases in the city, most of them concerned petty crime or street fights. However, they were already long accustomed to those things. After all, northeasterners were quick to act on their temper and entered brawls easily. Yet they could sit down and drink beer after their fight before heading to the hospital for their injuries together. Therefore, police in the northeast were quite used to such cases.

Although northeastern China was quite chaotic, it was rare to have any heinous cases of murder or arson. To suddenly have a murder, armed robbery, and hostage situation left the policemen breaking out into a cold sweat. They were unsure of how to deal with the situation exactly. All they could do was follow their simulated trainings and try hard to stabilize the suspect’s emotions and not agitate him. They had to wait for the experts to come or listen to their commander on how to handle the situation.

Meanwhile, there were people trying to figure out the identities of the suspect and the hostages. This allowed them to continue their work.

As for the reporters behind them, they only served to make things worse for them. Normal people would be eager to stay away and hide, but these reporters would try to squeeze their way through through any opening they saw. It was like they yearned to rush in and get an exclusive interview with the suspect. The police had to prevent the suspect from running out, and also prevent these reporters from running in. A policeman couldn’t help but curse, “These people are really unafraid of death. Do they really think their cameras can win against a real gun?”

At that moment, a female reporter who was standing very far in front, seemed to see an opportunity to close in. She was stopped by a policeman. “Stop, don’t move any closer.”

“I’m Black River Agency’s reporter, Jing Yan…” Jing Yan said.

“Unless it’s the police, any other Jing-anything ¹ won’t do! Women, please, we are already at the end of our wits. Don’t make it more difficult for us.” The policeman waved his hand and cut off Jing Yan.

Jing Yan was rather exasperated as well. Seeing the number of competing reporters increasing, she felt that having the headlines stolen, even if her competitors weren’t from big agencies or media conglomerates, would make her work meaningless. She was truly curious about the reason for the hostage situation.

Jing Yan pulled at the policeman and kept explaining herself, but she was met with a resounding “No.”

Finally, Jing Yan mentioned a few government officials she knew, but the policeman abided by the principles. He was unmoved. Who cares who you know? Same answer: “No!”

Helpless, Jing Yan looked at the police officer who was in charge of the situation. Despite her waving her hand, he ignored her.

Just as the exasperated Jing Yan was trying to think of other means, she suddenly heard a young policeman shout. “Someone’s coming out!”

Jing Yan hurriedly looked up when she heard that. Simultaneously, many cameras were pointed at the door. It was as though they were about to execute the person who was about to appear with their flashlights.

Jing Yan tiptoed and craned her neck to look in. She noticed that the rack was being moved and when she squinted, she realized that the person looked familiar! She saw a bald head!

“Bald head? Who could it be?” Jing Yan muttered to herself.

Just as Jing Yan was muttering to herself, the young policeman was also mumbling. Why did the person look so familiar? He subconsciously touched his shoulder and looked to his side. Could it be?

The two of them stared intently at the door, and at that moment, the rack was moved away. The person appearing behind the door was dressed in white. He had a bald head and a handsome face. He wore a brilliant smile that seemed like it would last forever.

At that instant, Jing Yan and the young policemen cried out in unison. “Holy sh*t! It’s him!?”v