Under the warm sunlight, I let out a heavy sigh of relief, then looked back at Coach Ma standing behind me. He also had a relieved expression. None of us expected that Tie Nan, after coming out, seemed to have seen through things. He seemed to have let go of a lot of things and was finally no longer so stubborn. This was a good thing for him and for us.
I smiled and said to Coach Ma, "It'll just be the two of us for lunch. What do you want to eat? It's on me."
"Let me treat you; this meal is my farewell gift to you."
Inviting someone to dinner is a perfectly ordinary thing, but it surprised me from the bottom of my heart. I stared at him for a long time before replying, "Did I hear that right? Ever since you went to Jizu Mountain, you haven't invited me to dinner... Have you finally gotten your salary after two years of hard work?"
"We don't call it wages here, we call it clothing allowance... Come on, you can pick the most expensive place."
I was even more surprised. "Expensive places always have plenty of food and drink... Don't you never eat these things?"
"I'm vegetarian, you can order whatever you want, we won't bother each other."
"You said it yourself, when we get there, don't worry about the money in your pocket."
...
Driving all the way to the old town, I picked a restaurant that served mushroom hot pot. I really didn't hold back on Director Ma. Anyone who has been to Dali knows that in any mushroom hot pot restaurant, ordering just a plate of mushrooms will cost tens or even hundreds of yuan.
Here's what I've been thinking: For the past two years, I've been the one treating Coach Ma to meals. Although he's a vegetarian and the meals aren't expensive, it's still a lot of time. Today, he's taken the initiative to treat me to a meal, so based on the principle of reciprocity, I should of course eat back.
Actually, what I really want to know is why he's become even more stingy since becoming a monk. I think the more expensive the meal, the more likely I am to get the answer from him... In terms of income, he's definitely not penniless now, because I've heard from insiders that the treatment at Jizu Mountain is quite good, especially during peak tourist season. The core monks receive a very considerable amount of incense money, and with his devout Buddhist heart, Master Ma has long been one of the core monks of the temple. So he'll never lack pocket money.
...
As usual, I sat by the window, glancing at the menu while keeping an eye on Coach Ma out of the corner of my eye. He called over a waiter and then used a group-buying app to buy a set meal for two, which cost only about two hundred yuan in total.
He smiled at me, then took the menu from my hand, indicating that it was no longer needed. This made me feel quite disappointed. Before coming, I had prepared a budget of 1,000 yuan, so that even if I couldn't finish it, I could take it back for Zhou San to eat. These are all very nutritious foods.
I complained to Coach Ma, "I told you to pick the most expensive place, why are you being so petty?"
"These fungi are living things too. If you eat one more, it's like committing another act of killing... Just enough of this is enough!"
"Don't be so high and mighty"
"You're such a cheapskate..."
This time, Coach Ma didn't respond to me. He took off the cloth bag he was carrying and turned his gaze to the stage of the bar across the street... That was once his life, so his eyes didn't look so innocent... He probably remembered a woman who had struck up a conversation with him during his singing career; or some other fleeting scenes; or perhaps it was because the singer on stage looked somewhat like him, reminding him of his glorious youth...
In short, I don't believe he's truly detached from worldly desires... because he still has a desire for money.
He finally spoke to me and said, "I'm quite envious of you."
"You've already given up all desires, so envy is a false proposition for you."
"I'm truly envious. Whether it's Ye Zhi or Yang Sisi, you still have a choice in this life. This is all I'll ever be."
I felt inexplicably angry, so I retorted, "That's just bullshit; two years, a full two years, Bai Lu has stayed in Dali the whole time, she hasn't gone anywhere else... Don't you know who she's waiting for?... Is it that she doesn't want to get back together with you, or is there someone else preventing you from getting back together?"
Coach Ma stared blankly at the street for a moment. He didn't explain to me. He just took a key out of his bag and placed it in front of me, saying, "I bought Bai Lu a two-bedroom apartment. I just got the key a couple of days ago. Can you give it to her for me and tell her not to rent a place anymore? She's a native of Dali. How can she not have a home of her own in Dali?"
"You...you went to rob a bank?"
"Don't talk nonsense. It's because I've done a good job in my business and received a lot of donations... I've saved up all of this in the last two years."
I was astonished. I always thought he was just someone who didn't lack pocket money, but I never expected that he could save up enough to buy a house in just two years. This really overturned my understanding of this profession. No, being a monk is not a profession. For Lao Ma, it's more like a means to an end.
"Why don't you go and give her the key yourself... You know better than anyone that she's waiting for you, not me."
"I didn't make her wait for me."
Never before have I heard such a resolute sentence come from Coach Ma's mouth... Are there really people like him in this world who wouldn't yearn for someone waiting for them in this heartless world?
Having experienced so much, I now have a new perspective on the word "wait." In my view, waiting is a guide, a warmth, and even more so, a driving force to return... A world without waiting is a world where everyone fights their own battle—how ruthless and pale that would be!
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