Chapter 96 Going Up the Mountain (First Update)
Not long after the monk left, the rain stopped, and Gu Jiao went to the temple to pick up Xiao Jingkong.
Xiao Jingkong spent a pleasant and fulfilling day at the temple, or rather, half a day.
He met the gentle and considerate senior brother Jingchen, several other senior brothers, the abbot, and his former playmates, the young monks Jingfan, Jingxin, and Jingshan.
Because the abbot and his fellow monks were all busy, he spent the most time with the three young monks.
Since there was no rush to eat, the three little monks had plenty of nutrition and became rounder than before.
Xiao Jingkong is no longer the same Xiao Jingkong—he has changed out of his monk's robes and is wearing the clothes of a common child, and small hairs have grown on his bald head.
He was actually the youngest among the young monks, but he spoke the earliest and the best, to the point that even the abbot couldn't out-argue him in the end.
He proudly showed his little face to the young monks: "See Little Sprout? Jiaojiao gave it to me!"
“I saw it! I saw it!” Jingfan said.
“I saw it too!” Jingxin said.
Jing Shan looked bewildered for a moment, then said slowly, "Well... I saw it too!"
I am very satisfied with the small amount of clean air I cleared.
"Will the bud grow into a little flower?" Jingfan asked, pointing to his little face.
Xiao Jingkong paused for a moment and shook his head: "Probably not, they will only grow into kisses and stay on my face!"
"Is it edible?" Jingfan asked.
"You can't eat it," Xiao Jingkong said.
Since it could neither grow into a pretty hair or flower, nor could it be eaten, the three little monks instantly lost interest in kissing the little sprout.
But there are other things here in Xiaojingkong.
Xiao Jingkong decisively took out a jar of vegetarian meatballs that Gu Jiao had packed for him. After opening the lid, a fragrant aroma of sesame brittle wafted out, almost filling most of the courtyard.
The young monks were all stunned.
Jingfan's eyes widened: "W-what smells so good?!"
The three of them drooled.
Xiao Jingkong wanted to eat meat but couldn't, so Gu Jiao came up with a solution: she made vegetarian meat for him using tofu and other ingredients.
Whatever his family eats, he can eat too—for example, if his family eats roast duck, he can have "roast duck"; if his family eats sausage, he can have "sausage"; if his family eats braised pork, he can have "braised pork".
Recently, his family has been eating meatballs, so he has created his own special "air-clearing little meatball".
Little Jingkong ate a small meatball in front of his friends, shocking them with his skill!
The young monks were stunned once again!
"You...you...are you eating meat?"
"You're not dizzy from meat anymore?"
"Oh my god, this is terrifying! Senior brother, I want to go home!"
Xiao Jingkong wasn't entirely a mischievous child. After showing off, he confessed the truth about the meatballs: "They're vegetarian meat! Jiaojiao said monks can eat them too!"
The three young monks hesitated at first, afraid that they would be tricked by Jingkong into breaking their vows. In the end, it was the eldest of the three, Jingfan, who, with the spirit of "if I don't go to hell, who will?", took a bite and then he couldn't stop.
Xiao Jingkong, who had always been the one to snatch food from others, encountered his first wave of food-snatching in his life!
He stood there dumbfounded for three seconds!
He was a master at snatching food at the temple, focusing on it for three and a half years, but one day someone else actually stole his food?
Not only were the vegetarian meatballs stolen, but even the snacks and wild fruits were not spared.
The three former underlings seemed to have instantly maxed out their skills, leaving Xiao Jingkong defenseless.
Little Jingkong pounded his chest with his little fists, thinking, "What goes around comes around!"
The three little monks only realized today how delicious the food was down the mountain!
What should we do if they suddenly feel like going down the mountain?
Aside from the food-grabbing incident, the four of them got along quite harmoniously.
Little Jingkong described his life down the mountain to the group. Upon learning that he was currently taking in his brother-in-law every day, the young monk Jingfan asked, "Who is your brother-in-law? Is he your father?"
They were still young and, unlike Xiao Jingkong, were not exceptionally intelligent, so they didn't understand what "brother-in-law" meant, but the male head of the household seemed to be their father.
Xiao Jingkong sighed: "He's just a temporary father, Jiaojiao might replace him at any time."
Xiao Jingkong calls Gu Jiao "Jiao Jiao" but in his heart he considers her his mother. However, he can't be sure if Xiao Liulang is his father.
After all, based on his observations over the past few days, this father hadn't officially taken over yet and was in danger of being laid off at any time.
As they were talking, they somehow started discussing their studies.
Young monk Jingfan: "We've been memorizing so many Buddhist scriptures since you came down the mountain! You haven't memorized any of them, have you?"
Jingxin agreed: "Exactly!"
Jing Shan nodded.
Xiao Jingkong raised an eyebrow: "Oh? What did you all carry on your backs?"
Young monk Jingfan: "The Heart Sutra!"
Little Jingkong shrugged: "I memorized it when I was two years old."
Young Monk Jingxin: "The Sutra of the Fundamental Vows of the Medicine Buddha!"
Xiao Jingkong shrugged: "I memorized it when I was two years and three months old."
Young monk Jingshan: "The Surangama Sutra!"
Little Jingkong picked at his little ear and sighed helplessly, "It's the Surangama Sutra, you idiot. You even got the name wrong. Have you really memorized it?"
The little monks blushed.
They didn't really memorize them. They just wrote down the names. It took them several days to remember just these few tongue-twisting names. It must have exhausted their little brains!
"Sigh, it's no fun talking to you guys. I'm going to find the abbot." Little Jingkong jumped down the steps and strode off to find the abbot.
The abbot had just sat down in the scripture hall, about to give a sermon to the monks, when suddenly a young novice rushed over: "Abbot, something terrible has happened! Master Jingkong is here to see you! He wants to discuss scriptures and Zen with you!"
The abbot swayed, dropping the prayer beads in his hand in fright.
That little troublemaker wants to come and discuss Zen with him?
This is going to kill me!!!
From a young age, Xiao Jingkong studied Buddhist scriptures and was full of curiosity about everything related to them. For every sentence the abbot would say, he would ask ten questions, and in the end, he would always leave the abbot unable to answer!
“‘All forms are illusory.’ If everything with a form is illusory, then is the abbot also illusory? Since the abbot is illusory, then what the abbot said to me is also illusory! Therefore, I cannot trust the abbot! If I cannot trust the abbot, then I cannot trust the Buddhist scriptures that the abbot said to me! The Buddhist scriptures are also illusory!”
Abbot: Although your argument is far-fetched, I actually find a tiny bit of truth in it...
The abbot, displaying exceptional professionalism, regained his composure and patiently explained the situation to him.
After listening, he said, "I think you're wrong!"
Abbot: "What's wrong? You're too young to understand!"
Xiao Jingkong: "The Buddha is so wise, he must have found a way to make me understand. It's because you didn't convey his meaning properly. This isn't my problem, it's the abbot's problem!"
Countless dialogues like this occurred, and often the abbot failed to persuade him, while he himself used his own logic to perfectly mislead the newly arrived monks.
The abbot was overwhelmed by the fear of being controlled by Xiao Jingkong, and he was completely distraught.
When Gu Jiao finally came to pick up Xiao Jingkong, Xiao Jingkong had already single-handedly managed to leave all the monks in the scripture hall speechless with questions!
"Abbot, I'm leaving now. We can discuss this issue another time!" Xiao Jingkong, with one hand held by Gu Jiao, turned his head and waved his other hand at the abbot.
The abbot, who wished he could die on the spot, was ashen-faced: Please, don't come again...
The siblings walked down the mountain hand in hand.
Little Jingkong was itching to run down.
Unfortunately, it had just rained and the road was slippery. Gu Jiao was worried that he would roll down like a little winter melon, so she didn't dare to let go of his hand.
"Did you have fun today?" Gu Jiao suddenly asked.
"So happy!" Little Jingkong said cutely, raising his little hands to count, "Today I saw Jingxin, Jingfan, Jingshan, Senior Brother Jingchen, and the Abbot..."
He talked a lot, basically listing everything he saw in the temple.
"Didn't you see your master?" Gu Jiao asked.
Xiao Jingkong sighed, "He's an elusive old man, rarely seen on the mountain."
An old man?
Gu Jiao thought of the eccentric monk in the forest. The monk was very young and could not possibly be the old man that Xiao Jingkong was talking about.
What Gu Jiao didn't know was that "old man" was just a way for Xiao Jingkong to refer to himself based on his own age. His master was actually not that old, more than twenty years younger than the abbot!
Gu Jiao then asked, "Are there any very handsome monks in the temple? The most handsome kind."
That monk's looks were almost on par with Xiao Liulang's; there probably wasn't another one like him in the world.
"Yes!" Xiao Jingkong raised his head very solemnly, pointed to himself, and said, "Me!"
Gu Jiao: "..."
Gu Jiao said, "Except for you."
Xiao Jingkong said with absolute certainty, "Then there are none. I am the most handsome little monk in the world! Apart from me, none of them are handsome!"
Even the master isn't good-looking!
Because his master said he was the most handsome man in the world, but Xiao Jingkong thought he was the most handsome man, so he resolutely refused to admit that his master was handsome!
Gu Jiao hummed in response.
Could that person not be a monk from this temple?
Monk: You little brat, who are you calling unattractive?
(End of this chapter)
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