Chapter 220: Thoughts of Renouncing Asceticism Due to Poverty

Translator: CKtalon Editor: CKtalon

Lone Wolf suddenly got up and appeared as though he wanted more. Monkey immediately grabbed it in his hand. He took a sniff but smelled nothing. He dabbed it in some sauce and wanted to sample a little.

But he suddenly realized murderous intent from the side. He took a glance and realized that Lone Wolf had stood up and crouched down, as though he would pounce him for his food.

Monkey quickly turned around and tsked, “Want to eat my vegetable? Dream on!”

Lone Wolf chased after him and bit down with widened jaws.

Monkey raised his arms high to dodge Lone Wolf’s sneak attack before he chuckled strangely. He flaunted the dandelion greens before stuffing them into his mouth.

Monkey saw Lone Wolf give a sneaky smile as he opened his mouth slightly. He had not swallowed the mouthful of greens!

Monkey immediately felt something amiss but he had already bitten down the mouthful of greens… At that instant, Monkey’s a.s.s turned redder as his eyes turned red as well. He felt the bitterness in his mouth, so much that the juices in his gall felt like bursting. He widened his mouth and was about to spit it out!

But suddenly, he heard squeaking sounds from afar. Squirrel was coming back.

At that instant, Monkey and Lone Wolf exchanged looks and understood each other. “We cannot be the only ones that got scammed!”

Hence, the two animals endured the bitterness and closed their mouths. They smiled as they chewed as though they were immersing themselves in revelry.

When Fangzheng saw this, he was rendered speechless. Indeed, the thought of scamming was contagious. He had fed Lone Wolf a huge mouthful of dandelion greens because Lone Wolf had been in heat the past two days. Dandelion greens could attenuate it a little. As for Monkey, he was purely a tragedy that Fangzheng ignored. However, from the looks of it, another little guy was about to end up in tragedy as well.

Fangzheng did not say a word and continued watching everything play out. He enjoyed his Crystal Rice and looked at the two rascals acting while holding back their tears.

Squirrel returned as he climbed up the table filled with innocence. When he saw Monkey reac out his hand to protect the bowl of dandelion greens while his mouth was chewing on something with a leaf hanging from the corner of his mouth, he knew that he was eating what he was protecting! From the pleasant look on his face, it looked like it was delicious. Looking next at Lone Wolf, his expression looked like he was about to cry? Was it so delicious that he was moved to tears?

The fat ball turned even more curious as he stretched out his paw to grab a bowl. Monkey was large in size, he easily kept the bowl out of Squirrel’s reach.

Squirrel would not have any of that. He waved his fists and squeaked as though he was protesting. With Monkey ignoring him, Squirrel could only lodge his complaint with Fangzheng.

Fangzheng said, “Amitabha. Monkey, don’t bully Squirrel. Put it down!”

Only then did Monkey unwillingly put the bowl down. Squirrel rubbed his paws and ran over. However, a pair of chopsticks suddenly blocked Squirrel’s path. Fangzheng said gravely and earnestly, “Little guy, remember what I said to you the first time we ate? You are not to waste food. Eat how much you take. If there’s any waste, you will have one day of food deducted.”

The little guy turned anxious. He only wished to eat as soon as possible when he saw how Monkey and Lone Wolf were enjoying the food. He immediately nodded to express his agreement.

Only then did Fangzheng retract his chopsticks. The little guy was not big in size but his mouth could squeeze a lot of things. His dexterous paws stuffed the dandelion greens into his mouth, squeezing it to his cheek pouches. From the looks of it, the little guy was planning on bringing a mouthful of greens back to eat an entire day.

Fangzheng looked at Squirrel with even more pity. There was a price for greed. The little guy was good in every way except for his greed.

When Monkey and Lone Wolf saw Squirrel stuff his mouth full of dandelion greens, they laughed. They finally felt appeased after eating a mouthful of bitter vegetables amid tears.

As for Squirrel, he still did not realize what was happening. When he took a taste of the dandelion greens in his mouth, the tender leaf tore apart, splattering the juices within. At that instant, Squirrel’s eyes rolled back as he fell back to the table, motionless.

When Fangzheng saw this, he could not help but laugh out loud. The little guy had finally paid the price for his greed.

Squirrel did not faint. Just a sample of the leaf was already that bitter. He still had so much in his mouth… Just the thought of it left him in despair!

Finally, after great pains, Monkey, Squirrel, and Lone Wolf finished the dandelion greens in their mouths. Then, they looked angrily at Fangzheng. Clearly, they had fallen for the treacherous monk’s trap!

Fangzheng thought nothing of it. He continued eating his meal calmly as though their murderous gazes did not exist. He had did it with good intentions. Dandelions were considered a traditional Chinese medicine. Eating it had a ‘cooling’ effect. Even he had eaten quite a bit. Although it was bitter, it had a unique taste. One could get used to it after eating more.

Seeing Fangzheng eating with utmost composure, the three animals exchanged looks before they ravenously ate the Crystal Rice. When Fangzheng saw this, he chuckled and thought nothing of it.

In the end, the animals finished a meal that should have taken more than ten minutes in slightly more than ten seconds. They had truly eaten voraciously. They did not care if their faces were flushed red. Then, the three animals charged into the back kitchen. Fangzheng didn’t think much of it but suddenly realized the problem!

In the past, there was only Lone Wolf and Squirrel. Since Lone Wolf did not have hands, he could not scoop rice. Squirrel was too tiny and he could not scoop a lot of rice unless he jumped into the pot… but now, they had Monkey and his nimble hands!

When Fangzheng heard the din in the kitchen, he hurriedly ran over with his bowl of rice. The moment he entered, he saw the three animals having a feast with their a.s.ses perked up. Not a single bit of rice was left in the pot!

“The three of you…” Fangzheng’s face turned grim. The three animals were forming an alliance to seek revenge!

The three of them ate ravenously without looking up. Soon, everything was finished as they lay on the ground motionless, stomachs bursting.

“Good, eating more is a good thing. More food, more work. For the next week, the three of you are responsible for sweeping the monastery. If it isn’t swept clean, hmph…” Fangzheng shot a glance at the pot. It was clear what he meant.

When the three animals heard that, they immediately lamented. Indeed, intelligence could never overpower force…

Fangzheng ignored them. It was likely he would be starving in the afternoon.

Perhaps it was because the mountain had been sealed off for the filming previously, not many visitors came up the mountain. There was also no reason for the villagers to offer incense for no good reason everyday; therefore, Fangzheng touched his pocket and looked into the sky speechlessly. He sighed, “System, when will such days come to an end? Aren’t we just too poor!? The tiny bit of incense donations I earn are taken by you. There’s no way to continue living like this!”

“Then work hard at earning merit. The day you become Buddha, is the day you can renounce asceticism.”

Fangzheng rolled his eyes. “Is merit that easily earned? Up to now, I’ve saved so many people but how many merit points could I have?”

“Alright then, I’ll give you a little heads-up. Your current merit is at two hundred points.”

“Oh? There’s that much?!” Fangzheng was shocked. Although he had helped quite a number of people, the amount of merit he received each time was pathetic. He probably did not even have a hundred points if he was generous with his calculations, so how did he suddenly have two hundred points?