Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Zhu Ze collapsed as if he was exhausted...

Zhu Ze collapsed on the back of the chair as if exhausted. "Mrs. Huo is infertile, and Mr. Huo doesn't want to ruin what he thinks is the most perfect marriage. He also wants to get an heir without any flaws. No one knows which lover Huo Zhongshan was taken from."

Fang Shimian looked at Zhu Ze blankly.

"Then Huo Jun..."

"Huo Jun is not Huo Zhongshan's biological brother. He and the eldest young master are brothers from the same mother. They are the sons of the previous head of the Huo family and legitimate young masters. Huo Zhongshan and them are just cousins... He became the head of the family by chance, but he is just a useful tool of the Huo family."

"Do you know Dr. Hai who was exposed a few years ago?" Zhu Ze's eyes were unprecedentedly cold, with a kind of uncontrollable mania, "The one who was arrested and imprisoned because of the leak of the human gene editing experiment plan. He had been working in the Huo family's medical laboratory before. His idea was secretly supported and encouraged by Mr. Huo."

"Huo Zhongshan is the product of his experiment. He was the only one who survived out of more than 20 experimental subjects. Do you think he is a monster?"

Although Fang Shimian was shocked by this matter and felt disgusted by that kind of experiment, he did not think there was anything wrong with Huo Zhongshan himself.

He knew very well that there was no point in talking to a drunkard, and he was very disgusted by Zhu Ze's constant calling him a monster, so he asked back: "After editing his genes, will he transform? Like the Hulk, Iron Man, or a werewolf?"

Zhu Ze was obviously stunned for a moment and shook his head.

Fang Shimian looked at him and said in a low voice: "He is just a normal person. He doesn't have three heads and six arms. He won't become a strongman by eating spinach. Why use the word monster to describe a victim?"

Moreover, those people in the movies who can transform and have super powers can be heroes as long as they are not bad.

Fang Shimian felt that Huo Zhongshan was not a bad person. The bad people should be the people who conducted these experiments and those who supported these experiments. If we have to choose a monster, then they should be called monsters.

People who are created do not have the right to choose, just like him, no one has ever asked him whether he wanted to come into this world or not. They only told him that he was born, raised, and should work hard, be content, learn to repay, be obedient, and not let his family down.

It was as if he was guilty from the moment he was born, from the moment he failed to meet expectations.

Zhu Ze didn't hear Fang Shimian's words clearly, but from his expression he knew that his reaction to this matter was not as intense as he had originally expected.

Strangely, he couldn't see the familiar disgust and panic in Fang Shimian's eyes.

People should be repulsive to unfamiliar or human-like creatures. Shouldn't people with natural flaws be resistant to such monsters?

"He has no emotions, no empathy, nothing. During swimming class in elementary school, a classmate drowned next to him, but he continued swimming and counting time as if nothing had happened. He refused to even give him a hand. Even when the teacher said he was the one who killed the classmate, his expression didn't change. Do you dare to get along with such a person?"

This time Fang Shimian didn't say anything, just stared at the monitoring wall in front of the operating table in a daze.

Zhu Ze said these words under the influence of alcohol. He originally wanted Fang Shimian to give up the idea of ​​Huo Zhongshan and feel fear towards him. However, he didn't know that Fang Shimian had never thought about having any relationship with Huo Zhongshan, or even had any relationship with a man. Therefore, he not only failed to understand Zhu Ze's meaning, but also gave rise to a feeling of sympathy with Huo Zhongshan.

Both were born with expectation, yet both were disliked.

Moreover, Fang Shimian did not believe all of Zhu Ze's words. When the gene-editing doctor was arrested, it did cause a big sensation. At that time, Fang Shimian was still in high school. He was not allowed to own a smartphone, so he just listened to the discussions among his classmates.

They mentioned deleting genes for certain diseases, and also exaggeratedly mentioned screening gender, physical fitness, and even IQ when chatting and chatting, but they never said that it is possible to delete human's innate emotions.

That's a bit outrageous.

It's like nonsense that is distorted by jealousy.

Fang Shimian felt that deleting emotions was something that only gods and ghosts could do, and humans probably couldn't do it. Even cultivating immortals and practicing the ruthless way required going through so many hardships. If humans could do it by changing their genes, wouldn't they be able to create gods at will?

As his thoughts continued to move towards metaphysics, Zhu Ze said coldly, "If you get close to him, he might kill you on a whim one day. It's just a small matter that can be dealt with with a few words and a little money. Don't always have unrealistic dreams!"

Fang Shimian: “?”

"Has he killed many people?" Fang Shimian asked seriously.

Zhu Ze felt a chill in his throat. He couldn't make up a rumor about this kind of thing, but he knew that the position Huo Zhongshan sat in now was built by stepping on the bones and blood of the losers in the power struggle.

The monitoring room was stuffy, and there was the roar of machines from time to time. Zhu Ze didn't know if it was because of the environment or because of the stupid Fang Shimian. He had only drunk a small glass of wine, but the smell of alcohol was emanating from his clothes.

But he really has a headache now.

"My driver is outside, please take me out." Zhu Ze felt that he needed a space to calm down.

When they were about to get in the car, Zhu Ze lowered his eyes and asked, "Fang Shimian, do you really like Huo Zhongshan that much?"

Fang Shimian looked very surprised. He seemed to understand what kind of love Zhu Ze was referring to, but he didn't understand why Zhu Ze asked such a strange question. He was actually more grateful to Huo Zhongshan, and the two were not familiar with each other. They met and communicated only after he saved someone...

He originally thought that Huo Zhongshan was a good person, although he was sometimes strong-willed, but it was understandable. When he was a child, he also came into contact with some people in very high positions. No matter how graceful they appeared on the surface, they were all autocratic at heart, including his father.

But now he has another layer of emotion towards Huo Zhongshan. It turns out that they are both very unlucky people.

Zhu Ze didn't hear the answer, but he wasn't surprised. He patted his sleeves in silence, got in the car and left.

Fang Shimian returned to the monitoring room and ate the melon seeds and oranges that he had offered in fear. Zhu Ze's tossing and turning actually alleviated most of his fear.

His mind is full of werewolves, vampires and the like.

Maybe I need to find a place to purify myself...

Fang Shimian will have more than ten days off next month, and there will be four consecutive days off after the second day of the Chinese New Year. He didn't want to go to Zhu Ze, so he found a person with the note "Senior Brother An Guo" in the WeChat list, clicked on his circle of friends, filled out the questionnaire and signed up. After signing up, he sent the screenshot page to that person and sent a few emojis of hands folded together.

The last message between the two was a transfer of 1,000 confiscated dollars.

Soon the person was shown typing.

Brother Anguo: [No]

Fang Shimian: [ID card photo.jpg]

Senior Brother An Guo: [……]

Senior Brother An Guo: [Send me a message when you arrive]

Brother Anguo: [Lotus rejoices and praises.jpg]

Fang Shimian sent a few more emojis of hands clasped together.

It snowed in Haishi on the first day of the Lunar New Year, but it didn’t last long. Only a thin layer of white could be seen from the eaves. Many people in the circle of friends were posting videos of snow falling under the street lights.

At eight o'clock in the evening on the second day of the Chinese New Year, Xu Long and Fang Shimian got out of the taxi. Looking at the tall mountain gate in front of them, they both unconsciously wrapped their clothes.

"Can't the taxi drive up the mountain?" Xu Long hunched his shoulders and looked around, his eyes full of curiosity.

Fang Shimian lowered his head and pulled his backpack up, "We can go up the mountain now."

Xu Long: "Then why do you want to get off here?"

Fang Shimian: "Because my senior brother said he would pick us up here."

Xu Long: ...

Yesterday, when Xu Long heard that Fang Shimian would not be at home during the holidays, he was very determined to go with Fang Shimian. After hearing the destination, he became even more determined to go together and repeatedly assured that he would not cause any trouble.

Unfortunately, the volunteer quota was full at that time, so Xu Long had to settle for the next best thing and booked a guest room in the temple's pilgrim's Zen courtyard.

After a while, a boy in a white down jacket and a cotton hat came towards them with light steps in the distance, holding a strong flashlight in his hand, which temporarily blinded Shi Mian and Xu Long, who were shivering.

"Brothers, please follow me." An Guo bowed slightly to the two of them with a smile on his face.

The way up the mountain was still some distance away, and it was all uphill. Xu Long carried a large mountaineering bag, which was bulging with unknown contents. Fang Shimian carried a schoolbag, which only contained some spare underwear and socks, a T-shirt, a towel and other toiletries.

The two of them were a little cold before, and after climbing for a while, they were sweating a little.

The mountains are not like the cities, there are not so many street lights. On this section of the mountain, there is only moonlight and Anguo's flashlight to see the surrounding scenery clearly. I saw that the roads on both sides were full of rape flowers. The snow on the road was not very thick, but it was compacted by footprints and was a bit slippery. From time to time, pilgrims and believers coming down the mountain discussed the efficacy of this temple with flashlights.

Going further up, Xu Long saw several small buildings enclosed in the wall on the left side of the mountain road. The windows of some of the rooms inside had lights on, and human figures could be vaguely seen.

"Are we living in there?" Xu Long asked.

An Guo glanced over there, continued walking forward, and slowly explained, "That's the Buddhist College, those brothers came here in advance."

After passing the Buddhist College, the rape flowers disappear and the gentle uphill road becomes a steep staircase. The scenery on both sides also becomes covered bridges and ancient Buddhist temples of various sizes. There are occasional pavilions next to the stairs for pilgrims to rest.

An Guo led the two of them through the Hall of Heavenly Kings and to the wing on the left side of the Main Hall, where two fellow brothers were writing blessing notes to be hung on the tree tomorrow. They stopped writing when they saw them coming, handed over their ID cards, and after asking about their situation, they arranged for the two of them to check in.

Only then did Xu Long realize that Fang Shimian would live in the volunteer dormitory, which was just below this row of rooms, while he would live alone in the pilgrims' teahouse. He looked a little unhappy.

Fang Shimian was happy, and he followed An Guo heartlessly with the key in hand to see the room and put his things. Xu Long followed behind, looking at the very small double room that Fang Shimian was assigned, and after learning that he had no roommate tonight, he very decisively discussed with An Guo that he would stay here tonight and not stay in the single room over there.

An Guo thought about it, and after a brief hesitation, he agreed.

The two went to the warehouse to get the washed bedding. Fang Shimian took a large volunteer vest and put it together with the sheets. After returning to the dormitory to pack up briefly, An Guo left to take care of other things.

This dormitory has bunk beds. Fang Shimian took off his shoes and made the upper bunk. He also helped Xu Long make the lower bunk. After all this time, both of them felt a little hungry.

Fang Shimian took Xu Long to the store to buy instant noodles. After eating and washing up, Fang Shimian set the alarm and fell asleep.

After five in the morning, Xu Long was awakened by the sound of monks chanting morning lessons. He wanted to cover his head and continue to sleep, but just as he was about to fall asleep, he was startled by Fang Shimian's alarm clock. At this time, there was a noise from the upper bunk. Fang Shimian sat up from the bed and turned off the alarm clock.

"Why is your crappy alarm clock so weird? It even laughs a few times before singing." Xu Long cursed while getting dressed.

Fang Shimian's mind was still not fully clear at the moment. He closed his eyes and leaned against the cold wall for a while before putting on his clothes. "That song is like this. There is laughter in the prelude."

"Why don't you just choose the second half as your alarm, idiot!" Xu Long packed up, turned on the light and found his phone. He looked at the time and saw it was only half past five. He couldn't believe it, "Five o'clock?!"

He became a monitor because he liked staying up late and didn't like getting up early. He never got up at five o'clock in high school.

Fang Shimian nodded, took his toothbrush and towel and walked out, "Breakfast at six o'clock. No one will be served after that time. Come back to sleep after you eat."

As soon as the two of them went out, they were both frozen and came back, silently putting on more clothes.

The faucet is outside the dormitory, and you can turn on the hot water, but the temperature is low at the moment, so the hot water is warm. After washing up, a cool breeze blew, and Fang Shimian hissed and wiped the water off his face with a towel.

Xu Long: "Aren't you coming back to catch up on some sleep?"

Fang Shimian nodded, "Volunteers are very busy, we need to accumulate merits."

Xu Long stared at Fang Shimian in silence for a while, his round head filled with confusion, "You finally got a day off to come up the mountain to work?"

“The mountain is peaceful.”

“…”

We had to queue up for breakfast in the dining hall. There was a red slogan at the door that read "Please keep silent when talking in the hall to avoid waste."

The two of them took the steamed buns, and in the iron bowl were some side dishes, tofu, rapeseed, pickled vegetables, etc.

We couldn't talk inside, but we could talk outside. Xu Long was really hungry, so he ate three big white steamed buns and the side dishes. He went back in with the bowl, but he came out dejectedly every two minutes and said irritably, "There's no hair left."

Fang Shimian broke off half a steamed bun and handed it to Xu Long, saying slowly: "I told you, don't take too much, but don't take too little either... wait until noon."

"I can still steal yours." Xu Long pushed the steamed bun to Fang Shimian and sat aside, lost in thought, thinking, "Have you been here all these days?"

Fang Shimian nodded.

Xu Long grabbed the chicken coop's head hard twice.

After putting the bowls behind the dining hall, Xu Long returned to the dormitory. Fang Shimian rested for a while and then gathered with other volunteers in vests to shout slogans. They were then dispersed to sweep the floor. Everyone had their own area. Fang Shimian and An Guo were assigned to the area behind the mountain. They had to go up and down the hill repeatedly. As they were sweeping, it started snowing.

On the road they were sweeping, on a small platform where the steps and the slope met, there was a very old stone pavilion, below which was a small sealed well, with a statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Childbirth, on top and an incense burner outside.

It is said that this place is very effective. The time of its construction cannot be verified, but it is known that it has existed for a long time. Legend has it that the water from the well under the Guanyin is very effective. In the past, countless people came from thousands of miles away to drink the water. However, later a child almost fell into the well, so the monks sealed it and no one was allowed to drink from it.

When An Guo had almost finished sweeping, he took Fang Shi Mian and put down the broom to go to the God of Wealth Temple in front to be on duty. To be precise, it was An Guo who was on duty. Fang Shi Mian and another volunteer brother stood outside the temple to guide the pilgrims to burn incense in a civilized manner.

Because it was Chinese New Year, there were many pilgrims. In addition, Baoyin Temple was very well-known in Hai City, and the God of Wealth Temple was very famous. The believers who came to fulfill their vows donated a very tall pagoda to the temple.

Fang Shimian never stopped talking the whole morning, either giving directions or guiding tourists to burn incense in an orderly manner, discouraging uncivilized behavior, and even finding a child who had lost his parents.

When Fang Shimian returned to the dormitory at noon, Xu Long had already packed up and ran away. Fang Shimian opened WeChat on his phone.

Xu Long: [Your brother Long is not planning to lose weight for the time being, don’t worry. ]

Fang Shimian went to have lunch by himself. Since he was alone, he ate in the dining hall. The masters of Baoyin Temple all had their own exclusive seats. Before eating, they would put their hands together and recite a prayer. Fang Shimian sat behind the master and quietly learned a little.

Just like blowing a cake and making a wish, he thanked the temple for giving him some warmth.

After dinner, Fang Shimian was assigned to wash the dishes. There was a mountain of dishes, and four or five volunteers washed them together. Fang Shimian did not wear gloves, and his hands were swollen and white from being soaked.

After washing the dishes at about one o'clock, Fang Shimian went back to the dormitory to take a nap, and then returned to the outside of the God of Wealth Temple at two o'clock to hold up the sign.

The snow has stopped now, the sun has come out, and the sunlight shining on the eaves is beautiful.

At five o'clock, when Fang Shimian and another senior brother were preparing to pack up and go back to the dormitory to rest, Fang Shimian suddenly saw several very familiar bodyguards in black in the crowd. Aren't they the people who followed Huo Zhongshan? Could it be that he was here too?

Fang Shimian was a little surprised because Huo Zhongshan didn't look like he had any faith in gods or Buddhas.

The bodyguards took the incense sticks and imitated the pilgrims in inserting them in the incense burner outside the main hall. Some bodyguards were taking pictures, not of the people, but of the burning incense sticks. One of them looked up, as if he saw Fang Shimian, and after a brief pause, he nodded to Fang Shimian across the crowd and left.

Huo Zhongshan never showed up from beginning to end. Fang Shimian suddenly thought that he had no contact with Huo Zhongshan since he had a fever, as if he had faded out of his life.

Just like many people in the past, Fang Shimian was used to passive acceptance. No matter whether it was well-intentioned or malicious, he accepted it all. People who hated him found it boring after being insulted and provoked, and people who had a good impression of him found it unbearable after being proactive for a long time. People around him came and went, and once the other party terminated contact, Fang Shimian was alone again.

He knows that his character has a lot of problems, but he doesn't want to change it because that would save him from a lot of hurt.

Fang Shimian pinched his aching arm, said hello to Brother An Guo, and walked slowly towards the volunteer dormitory.

The dining hall opens for lunch at six o'clock. On the way back, tourists who saw Fang Shimian's volunteer vest would ask him for information about the temple. They walked and stopped along the way. One of the tourists hoped to meet the master chef in the temple, saying that he had a patient at home and wanted to offer sacrifices to the Medicine Buddha.

Fang Shimian saw the pilgrim standing alone, holding his cell phone with an anxious look on his face. He said that he had come from far away and had spent a lot of money and it was not easy.

"Have you been to the hospital?" Fang Shimian took the pilgrim to the reception desk next to the main hall.

The man lowered his head and wiped his tears. "I have been treated. I have tried both Chinese and Western medicine. All the famous big hospitals have run high. Some hospitals dared to admit me before, but now those hospitals won't even admit me. They told me to take me home and be prepared... I didn't believe these things before."

Fang Shimian handed the tissue in his bag to the pilgrim, lowered his eyes and remained silent for a long time, "The Buddha will bless you."

Before, I didn’t feel how high the steps were, nor did I realize how long the road was. It was only at this moment that the blue bricks under my feet seemed to have turned into human suffering, and every step was the wail of a desperate person.

There is no sunny future, only the quagmire of the six realms of reincarnation.

When they arrived at the reception desk, the brothers inside brought a stool and helped the pilgrim to sit down. The pilgrim told them about her hardships and how she had almost no hope and was determined to die when her child was rejected by the hospital. She covered her face and cried bitterly. The two brothers listened attentively and whispered words of comfort from time to time.

Fang Shimian could not bear to listen, so he squatted in the corridor of the wing room, staring at the ancient and majestic Main Hall in front of him in a daze.

The Buddhist temple is filled with incense.

Under the altar and above the cushions are the backbones of the people whose bodies have been pulled out by suffering.

I wonder if the gods and Buddhas, who are full of compassion, will look down at this human world.

Not long after, a group of people actually walked out of the side hall of the Main Hall. That was where the abbot chanted scriptures and gave lectures daily, and outsiders were generally not received there.

Fang Shimian looked up and saw Huo Zhongshan standing and talking with the kind-looking abbot. There were two other people standing tall beside them, wearing black executive jackets.

The group of bodyguards he had seen just now were now surrounding the two of them, not too close.

The tall and handsome man standing high up seemed to see him, but also seemed not to see him. After a brief intersection, their calm eyes coldly shifted to other places.

The few people seemed to have finished their conversation. The abbot returned to the side hall, and Huo Zhongshan was led down the mountain by another monk. A group of people passed in front of Fang Shimen.

Huo Zhongshan was surrounded by the crowd in the most conspicuous position. The two people next to him seemed to be talking to him. Fang Shimian opened his eyes wide and stood up, but the man didn't even give Fang Shimian an extra glance.

The young bodyguard was standing at the end of the team, and Shi Mian blinked at him.

Many of the pilgrims were looking this way, and Fang Shimian heard someone talking about the Cultural and Tourism Bureau.

He didn't think that Huo Zhongshan was deliberately ignoring him. He just guessed that Huo Zhongshan might not have seen him, so he took two steps forward and called out "Mr. Huo".

Huo Zhongshan did not react at all, but the monk leading the way turned around to take a look.

After he said that, Fang Shimian realized that he had said it wrong. They hadn't seen each other for a while. Fang Shimian immediately corrected himself and said, "Brother Huo."

This time he spoke quietly, and everyone had walked a distance away. Fang Shimian didn't think Huo Zhongshan could hear him, so he turned back to the wing room and found a pillar to lean against.

The people inside were still crying. Fang Shimian heard the two brothers tell her to worship Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is not only in charge of rebirth in hell, He also controls the human world, helping people overcome suffering. He also controls the mountains, rivers and the land, protecting the health and growth of all beings, and is in charge of eliminating disasters, resolving difficulties and rewarding blessings. He is regarded as the representative of saving the suffering.

Although Fang Shimen had his back to the speaker, he was still fascinated by the conversation. He lowered his head, looking at the stairs under his feet, thinking that he would light an eternal lamp in front of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva when he left.

Before he finished listening, a pair of black leather shoes appeared in his sight, and the dark gray suit pants were spotless.

Fang Shimian subconsciously looked up and their eyes met. Huo Zhongshan's dark eyes were deep and steady, but not as gentle as the last time he faced Fang Shimian. Instead, they had no expression and looked very cold.