The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

“Silver needles? I even thought that it was someone giving the middle finger,” a staff member of the embassy said in surprise.

When this was said, Park Changmin felt his scalp tingle. The silver needles were very thick, long and short. The longest needle was indeed the one in the middle, while the rest were all very short. This combination could make one identify it as the middle finger! But how could a person be pregnant with silver needles? And how could the silver needles coincidentally form the middle finger?

“Retribution! Retribution!” Suddenly, a man knelt to the ground and kowtowed as he yelled.

When Park Changmin heard that, his heart palpitated as he asked, “What’s going on? What retribution?”

“Mr. Park, what are silver needles? They are a representative item of TCM. You have destroyed TCM and now, Park Mintae is pregnant with five silver needles. Isn’t this retribution? Look at the gesture. It’s clearly the contempt of the gods of TCM!” The elder was clearly spooked. He wore a nasty expression, but what he said was clear.

When Park Changmin heard that, he flew into a rage. “How can there be gods in this world? Take him out. Don’t spread such rumors!”

Immediately, two men led the elder out. Although he was gone, Park Changmin’s roar had stunned everyone present. However, the question still remained. How had the silver needles appeared? Why were they in such an arrangement? If there were no gods, who could explain how this had happened?

In an instant, Park Changmin felt his brain lacking, as though the decades worth of medical knowledge he had accumulated was for nothing.

Just as Park Changmin was yanking at his hair, wearing a look of exasperation, a staff member of the embassy suddenly said, “Mr. Park, there’s a new development in China’s TCM!”

“New development?” Park Changmin was stunned. China’s TCM doctors had all been wiped out, so how could there be any new developments? Looking at the livestream from the staff member’s cell phone and seeing a bunch of familiar faces doing a livestream, he sneered. “Are they being shameless all together? What use are their medical skills if they as TCM doctors aren’t trustworthy?”

From what it looked like, the livestream had been going on for a while. At this moment, someone suddenly stood up and asked, “Mr. Song Yuhe, I heard that all of you went to a seminar held by a TCM master and benefited greatly from it. Furthermore, his insights into Traditional Chinese and Western medicine have supposedly already reached an unprecedented state. Might I ask what this master is best at?”

The moment this was asked, everyone raised their heads and looked at Song Yuhe.

Meanwhile, on Mt. One Finger, Lone Wolf, Monkey, Squirrel, Red Boy, and Salted Fish all looked at Fangzheng, seeing him sitting there completely composed as though he wasn’t the least embarrassed. Instead, he slowly stood up and said indifferently, “What are you looking at? Continue watching the show. I’m going out for a stroll.”

With that said, Fangzheng went out the monastery. After confirming that no one had followed him, Fangzheng’s face instantly turned red like a soy egg. He rubbed his face and said bitterly, “Will I be considered famous or super famous this time? If Old Dad One Finger were here, he’d probably beat me to death, right?”

The moment he finished rubbing his face and lowering his hands, he saw Lone Wolf, Monkey, Red Boy, Salted Fish, and Squirrel standing in a row from big to small, from left to right. All of them were staring at Fangzheng with wide eyes.

Fangzheng was instantly dumbfounded. He was doomed. How was he to lead the rest of his days, embarrassing himself in front of his disciples?

At this moment, Squirrel said in all seriousness, “Master, we didn’t see a thing. We will be heading back to watch the livestream.”

Then, Lone Wolf led the team as they collectively made a left turn and filed into the monastery.

Fangzheng thought, “Did they only see me rubbing my face and nothing else?”

At this moment, there were loud roars of laughter coming from the monastery’s backyard. Even a fool would know what that laughter was about…

Fangzheng paced in his spot before storming in with a broom. Before long, there were cries from a fish and wolf everywhere as Squirrel ran around, begging for mercy…

Although Park Changmin didn’t hear what Song Yuhe and company had said earlier, he was intelligent enough to figure it out at a glance himself. The TCM doctors had been defeated, and now, they were digging out some formidable old guy to back them to establish their standing again. With regards to this, Park Changmin was indifferent. He didn’t share the worry of the people around him, as though everything was within his expectations.

Park Changmin’s only curiosity was directed at the identity of the person and what his specialization would be!

At this moment, Song Yuhe slowly said, “Abbot Fangzheng is best at treating people who can’t have children and painless abortions.”

Pfft!

At that instant, countless people in China spewed whatever they had in their mouths, including many couples.

Even Park Changmin jumped up from what he heard.

By the side, the embassy staff laughed.

“Haha, a monk who’s good at treating people without children and painless abortions. Hahaha! Is he planning to do it himself? Hahaha!”

“It’s a monk? Hahaha! Is this some kind of sensational farce? They really have no bottom line…”

It wasn’t only them. The streaming comments in the livestream chat room erupted.

A series of ‘666’, ‘2333’, and ‘haha’ filled the screen.

It could be imagined how impactful that statement was.

Park Changmin shook his head as well, mumbling. “Does China not have anyone left?”

At this moment, Park Mintae exclaimed. “Fangzheng!? That monk from Mt. One Finger?”

The moment Park Mintae shouted, some of the memories Park Changmin had forgotten came back to him. He suddenly thought of something! Monk? Medical skills? Silver needles? Becoming pregnant? People without child? Painless abortion?

Park Changmin glared at Park Mintae and asked, “Didn’t you say that the monk was a cheat?”

Park Mintae turned agape, unsure what to say. His pregnancy had been too odd, something that couldn’t be explained by science. If there had to be an explanation, then the monk was the greatest suspect!

At this moment, Song Yuhe continued. “I know that everyone is doubting what I said, and some people might think it’s just me being sensational, trying to extend the life of TCM. However, Master will be holding seminars on Mt. One Finger every three days. If you have any questions, you are welcome to attend. Oh, by the way, Mt. One Finger is a small place, so there’s not much space for people to attend the seminar. Therefore, Master’s rule is first-come, first-served. If everyone wants to attend the seminar, make sure to wake up early.”

With that said, Song Yuhe got up. “Alright, that will be all for today’s press conference. If you have any questions, please head to Mt. One Finger; otherwise, it’s useless no matter how much I say.”

With Song Yuhe and company leaving, the livestream came to an end.

However, the media turned into a frenzy. If what was said was true, that monk would be like a savior to China’s TCM! This might even be an opportunity for it to rise anew! Hence, the group of reporters stormed to Songwu County with their cameras. Although there were still three days left, it was best if they snatched a good spot early.

Meanwhile, the Internet erupted into chaos. The downtrodden mood on the Internet due to the talk of TCM now turned into voices of doubt and endless cursing.

In short, China’s TCM seemed to be the talk of the town once again.

Someone shouted: “Experts are among the people.”

Another person shouted: “TCM’s final straw. If it’s only a farce, no one will ever believe in TCM again! This is an opportunity, but also a crisis!”

Upon seeing this, Park Mintae looked at Park Changmin and asked, “Master, if he’s really a medical master, my illness…”

“Speak no further. It’s definitely him! What he says sounds like a joke to others, but I have a feeling that he is talking to us through Song Yuhe’s mouth.” Park Changmin sighed. He didn’t believe in coincidences, nor did he believe in fate. To have all these coincidences happening together, there could only be one answer. This was a challenge delivered in a unique manner!

“Then what about us?” Park Mintae asked.

Park Changmin said, “We will go to Mt. One Finger the day after tomorrow. I want to see how capable this young monk from a mountain is!”

Time quickly passed, and in the blink of an eye, three days had passed.

Already before dawn, while it was still pitch-black outside, one could hear engines rumbling, breaking the silence of One Finger Village. Many villagers opened their doors, surprised to see their village roads filled with cars. Many people were jumping in their spots due to the cold, but they still rushed for Mt. One Finger against the cold winds.

A child scratched his head and mumbled. “What are these people doing? Why are they heading up the mountain at this time?”

“Little guy, what’s wrong with heading up the mountain at this time? Do you think we came very early?” a woman asked with a chuckle.

The child laughed sarcastically and rolled his eyes at her. “What I mean is—do you think that there will be space if you head up the mountain at this time?”

The woman was stumped. She looked at her watch which read 4.30 a.m. The sky was still dark!

The child continued. “All of us know about Abbot Fangzheng’s seminar on the mountainside. It can’t accommodate too many people. Since Abbot Fangzheng is speaking about medicine, my parents went at midnight. For people like you, you can listen to the winds howl on the stairs.”

The woman was appalled as she thought, “Are you kidding me?”

When the woman ran up Mt. One Finger, she was convinced! There were people everywhere on the mountainside. They were densely packed with their cell phones’ lights on. It was like a sea of stars. When she saw so many people, she found her brain lacking. Since when was TCM so popular?

It wasn’t only her. Many people gave up after seeing the sea of people and obediently drove home. These people were just there to join in the buzz anyway. They didn’t know anything about medicine…

However, a number of them remained to watch the development.

At this moment, the mountainside was a bit chaotic, with more and more people in the empty space before One Finger Spring. Some people were almost bursting into tears from the squeeze.

“Stop squeezing. Any more, and I might get pregnant!”

“Whose high heels are those? Why are you wearing those on a mountain? You even stepped on me!?”

“Don’t move. Don’t move! Any more and I’ll fall!”

…

The venue was in chaos. Song Yuhe and company had already been left dumbfounded by the crowd. They knew that many people would come, but they never expected this many! They had seriously underestimated the passion of the Chinese to watch a buzz. Especially with the reporters’ passion for the matter, more than half of the people who arrived at midnight were reporters. These people actually managed to squeeze out the local villagers…

In the beginning, Wang Yougui had come up to partake in the buzz, only to realize that the situation was about to get out of control. Hence, he hurriedly organized the villagers to maintain order to prevent any danger from happening.

With the help of the villagers, things became better. Although it remained a squeeze with people complaining, one benefit of that was that it warmed up the area, so it wasn’t freezing cold.

As everyone complained, the gongs of the bell and drum sounded. The drum’s gong thundered, quaking their hearts. They felt as though something repressed in them had been lit! Those who had never heard the drum before had their eyes instantly turn red as they seemed to explode with bloodlust! But the next moment, the bell’s gong sounded in a calm and peaceful manner. It felt like a huge hand was gently massaging their heart, instantly wiping out the frustration and bloodlust.