The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Fangzheng glanced at Lone Wolf and Yang Hua saw the tiny basket in his mouth. He smiled, “Are you going to dig up some wild vegetables?”

Fangzheng replied with a smile, “Yes. It’s spring. The wild vegetables are out in full force. It’s time to regulate my palate.”

“Sure thing. Wait here.” Yang Hua ran back into the yard and took out a tiny hoe the length of his arm. It was meant for precision craftsmanship as well as a tool of choice for digging up wild vegetables.

With the tool, Fangzheng felt that he would have no problem wiping out the vegetables.

After leaving Yang Hua, he rushed straight for One.

The banks of One were prime land for the growth of wild vegetables. Every spring, the villagers would return to the banks to dig up wild vegetables and this season was typically not suitable for the growth of wild vegetables. The snow had just melted in March and it was still cold, making it impossible for the wild vegetables to grow. But for some unknown reason, the banks of One had a temperature higher than other spots. Wormwood sprouts that were supposed to only grow in June appeared here in March. It was also Fangzheng’s favorite vegetable.

With the hoe in hand, Fangzheng found a Wormwood sprout that had just peaked out of the ground with great familiarity. He did not pull it out, root and all. Instead, he left the roots behind. By leaving the roots behind, it would soon grow again.

Fangzheng dug as Lone Wolf followed him with basket in mouth. Lone Wolf’s eyes would roll from time to time. Clearly, he showed no interest in lush green grass.

Squirrel jumped onto the ground after watching Fangzheng dig. His tiny claws began scratching the ground and soon, a Wormwood sprout was dug up. Then it climbed on Lone Wolf’s head with a smug look. He waved the Wormwood sprout n front of Lone Wolf’s eyes before gently throwing it into the basket. It was as though it was saying: “You good-for-nothing. I can dig, but can you?”

When Fangzheng saw this, he smiled, “Since you can do it, don’t laze around. The sooner we finish digging, the earlier I can return to cook a sumptuous meal for you two.”

In response, Squirrel immediately sprawled on Lone Wolf’s head and stuck out its tongue as though it was enervated from what it had done. It would rather die than move.

Fangzheng poked the little animal’s tummy. “You are a gluttonous and lazy guy aren’t you. If you do not work, there won’t be any lunch for you.”

Squirrel immediately leaped up and waved his claws to express his dissatisfaction. Finally, it jumped down with an unwilling look. It carried its fat ass and dug one sprout after another, becoming a minion of Fangzheng.

As the man and squirrel dug the vegetables, Lone Wolf quickly lost his patience. He felt terrible following them. His wild nature arose as he threw the basket down. He fled while taking advantage of the moment Fangzheng did not pay attention. He ran into the grass patches and jumped around. It was a mystery what crazy antics he was up to.

Fangzheng could not be bothered with the silly wolf. Ever since he saw Lone Wolf, he finally realized why huskies resembled wolves so much. They were just a bunch of silly dogs. They were wily, gluttonous and lazy…

Fangzheng continued digging as Squirrel came over. He looked at Fangzheng with large watery eyes. It was clear what he meant: “Can I play too? That guy is already playing…”

Fangzheng said, “You can play if you want to. As for lunch…”

Squirrel immediately turned around and continued digging!

Fangzheng was immediately amused when he saw this. These guys were really gluttons!

As they continue digging, they suddenly heard a wolf’s cry. Following that, there were strange sounds. Fangzheng turned around and saw a monkey running with a basket in hand. Lone Wolf was chasing after it while howling. When he bit at the basket and snatched it over, all the vegetables scattered to the ground.

The monkey zoomed up the tree and squatted there. It waved its fists and screamed, “Stupid dog. Come up here if you have what it takes. Let’s fight it out. I’ll give you a three hit handicap. I’ll beat you up so badly that your parents will not even be able to recognize you!”

When Fangzheng heard the voice and the tone, he found it peculiar. Why did it sound so familiar? On a careful look, the monkey looked familiar too!

Before Fangzheng even came over, Lone Wolf could no longer stand for it. He did not understand Monkey but he knew that Monkey had taken the opportunity of catching him unaware by stealing the basket he was guarding. How could he allow that? It was a form of special favor to skive and play but to lose the vegetables, would he still have dinner? Therefore, Lone Wolf howled and jumped, hoping he could become a monkey that could fly. He wanted to bite Monkey to the point of debilitation.

The two animals continued cursing each other. One was on the tree waving his fists and the other was on the ground jumping. Finally, an idea came to Monkey as he picked up a branch. When Lone Wolf jumped, he would strike down. Pa!

Whimper…

A mark was immediately left on Lone Wolf’s face. He sat on the ground in pain as he scratched with his paws.

Upon seeing this, Monkey screamed in laughter as he clapped. He began jumping on the tree.

At that moment…

Bam!

A dull thud rang as the tree shook. The smug monkey lost his footing and plummeted to the ground.

However, Monkey somersaulted in midair and cursed, “Who is it?!”

When he turned around, he saw Lone Wolf’s large head right in front of him. Lone Wolf grinned, baring his sharp fangs. It had a sarcastic smile as though it was saying: “Silly monkey, keep jumping! Now that you have landed in my paws, heh heh…”

Monkey turned around in fright to run but he felt a pain in his ass. He screamed angrily, “Who is it now?”

Monkey turned around and saw a clean and white monk. His hand was gripping on his tail, preventing him from running.

“You scoundrel monkey. To think you came from Mt. Baiyun all the way to Mt. One Finger. Now that you have landed in This Penniless Monk’s hands, speak. What do you want? Do you want to be braised, steamed or fried? Pick one,” said Fangzheng with a stern, scary tone. Fangzheng was not certain if Monkey in front of him was the one from Mt. Baiyun. Back then, he only saw a red ass in the day and did not manage to see it clearly at night. Besides, Fangzheng was no monkey. To identify faces across species was just too difficult. Therefore, all he did was make a passing remark.

Monkey fell into a daze before screaming, “Master, you remember me?”

Fangzheng said in surprise, “It’s really you?”

Monkey nodded in excitement and said, “It’s me! It’s me! It’s me!”

Fangzheng raised his hand and threw Monkey to Lone Wolf. “Throw him deep into the mountains. This guy steals. Be careful that he steals all your rice in the jar.”

Lone Wolf did not like Monkey to begin with. Upon hearing that Monkey was a rice thief, a person that would steal his food? How could he tolerate it? Even if he could, Squirrel on his head could not! Squirrel was baring his teeth and waving his claws, as though he wished to jump up and strike Monkey’s knees.

Monkey was given a fright when he heard that. He hurriedly screamed, “Master! Master! Master! I’m not here to steal. There’s a reason why I came to look for you!”

Fangzheng waved his hand. The open jaws of Lone Wolf stopped in midair. He was just a centimeter away from piercing Monkey’s hide.

Fangzheng said, “Monkey, why did you come looking for This Penniless Monk when you can be carefree on your mountain?” Fangzheng was puzzled. Was the monkey addicted to the Crystal Rice? That was bad. Although the situation regarding his incense offerings was improving, all of them were gluttons. Their appetites would make him a pauper if it carried on! Fangzheng made a decision. He had to reject the monkey!

Monkey pushed Lone Wolf’s mouth away and scratched his ass. “I do not know either. That time, I heard your speech back at my house. I felt very comfortable after listening to it. I seemed to have understood something but it feels like I haven’t also.”