Chapter 78: Master, I understand!

"It's him, it's him!"

Qiao Yingzi happily aimed the telescope in the direction of the long whistle.

"Silly daughter, you can't see this at all! How do you know who it is?" Qiao Wentong looked at his daughter like this, and felt so sour.

"Choosing to live in seclusion to enjoy the wild feelings, no sending or welcoming all year round. Sometimes going straight to the top of the lonely peak, whistling under the moon and clouds!" Qiao Yingzi opened her mouth, making Qiao Wentong, who was already sour, even more speechless.

At the slightest disagreement, she recited the setting poem, which was clearly He Chen's style. His silly daughter wouldn't have been drugged by Fang Yifan, but instead drugged by He Chen's soul-bewitching medicine!

"This is the next poem of 'Practicing the body like a crane,' both are lines from the 'Two Poems to the Gao Seng Wei Yan of Yaoshan'!" Qiao Yingzi seemed to feel her father's strange expression and gaze, and explained flusteredly why she knew this poem.

It was precisely because she knew that He Chen was so particular about ritual and pursued the original flavor that she had the confidence to "meet by chance" He Chen in Yaoshan.

Sure enough, although she didn't find He Chen among the countless pine trees in the afternoon, a long howl under the moonlight that night directly exposed the location of his mountain peak.

If she goes directly to that mountain peak tomorrow, she will definitely be able to "accidentally encounter" He Chen.

Once she thought of this, her heart began to race, and she couldn't wait to travel through the night to find him.

Qiao Wentao looked at his daughter like this and felt completely numb. Fortunately, it was late at night, and Qiao Yingzi couldn't see and didn't dare to look at his expression, so he didn't need to control his facial expressions to hide his darkened face, lest it affect his daughter's good mood for relaxing and having fun.

After the long howl ended, there was no more sound, which truly confirmed the line "Howl once under the moon, cloaked in clouds"—he only howled once.

Early the next morning.

Qiao Yingzi urged her father, who had barely slept the night before, to get up, and with camera in hand, they excitedly headed toward the mountain peak from the night before.

Although Qiao Wentao was unwilling, he had no choice but to move his old arms and legs to keep up; otherwise, he worried that if he hesitated or tried to persuade her even slightly, his precious daughter would be eager for him to rest while she went to "accidentally encounter" He Chen all by herself.

The father and daughter began their climb to visit the "high monk."

Even though the mountain peak had been confirmed, by the time they found He Chen, an hour was already gone. Qiao Wentao was nearly exhausted, but finally, he saw the campsite where He Chen was stationed.

"You kid really know how to pick a spot!"

When he adjusted his breathing along with his daughter and found He Chen practicing cultivation leisurely in the pine forest on this peak, and saw his daughter uncontrollably picking up her camera to take several rapid shots like a thief, and then thought about how he was nearly ruined because of He Chen, he suddenly became angry.

"Uncle Qiao, you've come too." He Chen didn't stop his cultivation movements, but he greeted them verbally.

"That's right, I came to see you, this enlightened high monk." Qiao Wentao said, half-teasing He Chen and half-reminding his daughter, who was acting unnaturally and waving slightly at He Chen: "Tell me, at such a young age, have you really seen through the ways of the world and intend to become a monk?"

"Is there anything wrong with being a monk?" He Chen didn't look at Qiao Wentao's expression, but he guessed his thoughts and responded with a smile: "Nowadays, the pressure of life and work for urbanites is increasing. How many people burn incense and worship Buddha? How many people yearn to hide in the mountains to practice as monks? And these people are increasing in number, which shows that there is nothing wrong with being a monk."

"Yingzi, why are you nodding!" Qiao Wentao also knew this trend, but seeing He Chen casually joking while practicing, and his own precious daughter nodding repeatedly on the side with an expression of deep conviction—as if to say, "Master, I have attained enlightenment"—he found it very hard to keep his composure.

He didn't support or oppose He Chen's willingness to be a monk, but if his only precious daughter developed such an idea, he would certainly not agree to it.

"Dad~!" Qiao Yingzi was just nodding subconsciously, and when her father called out her little action, she immediately blushed.

"Don't listen to his twisted logic!" Qiao Wentao didn't care about saving face for his daughter and warned her worriedly: "As long as your state of mind is sufficient, there is no need to become a monk or anything like that."

"Uncle Qiao's words are insightful!" He Chen praised with a smile: "In the 'Yongzheng Dynasty,' the Buddhist Yongzheng went to a temple to worship and was flattered by people saying he was a 'living Buddha' and didn't need to worship the 'past Buddha'!

Although it was flattery, the words were crude but the logic was sound!

Not becoming a monk, but working for the country and the people—that is the true possessor of great wisdom and great enlightenment, and only then is it possible to become a truly merciful Buddha!

And it would be the ancestor of all Buddhas, the supreme Buddha!

Uncle Qiao can be a Buddha.

Qiao Yingzi can too.

Everyone can."

"Stop talking nonsense! If you want to be a monk, don't drag us into it!" Qiao Wentao said with disdain: "Yingzi, don't believe his nonsense!"

"Uncle Qiao, I am not talking nonsense!" He Chen laughed: "Nowadays there are hundreds of millions of monks and nuns, and there are hundreds of millions or even over a billion more abroad. May I ask, has there ever been such a grand event in history?

And they are not 'ignorant people' who know nothing; they are cultured and knowledgeable.

What does this mean?

Being a monk is the trend of the times!

Everyone has attained enlightenment!"

He really didn't think there was anything to being a monk.

Not to mention that being a monk in modern times is just a profession; it doesn't affect marriage or having children at all, and the threshold is not low—it's not something anyone can do just because they want to.

Let's just talk about ancient times.

Why did monks have to abstain from lust? Because there is a legend of the "most lustful"—after extreme suppression comes extreme explosion.

It's just like the hundreds of millions of monks and nuns today, each one with extremely rich theories.

He Chen and Qiao Wentao chatted in the mountains, with Qiao Wentao repeatedly criticizing him for his twisted logic, while Qiao Yingzi watched with a smile on the side, occasionally secretly taking a few photos with her camera. The atmosphere made her feel exceptionally relaxed and comfortable, and she felt that the risk of coming over was truly worth it.

It was just that with her old father by her side, even though she had many things she wanted to say, she really couldn't get them out, so she had lunch at He Chen's place.

In the afternoon, she tried to wheedle her father into renting a tent to set up camp, wanting to watch the stars with He Chen at night, but Qiao Wentao firmly rejected it.

Are you kidding me!

In this desolate mountain wilderness, for a young boy and girl to sleep so close together—it's simply more dangerous than being on different floors!

Even with him, the old father, by her side, it wouldn't do!

Fortunately, he didn't agree, and He Chen didn't agree either, and they provided a solution: after Qiao Yingzi returned to the hotel, they would stay on the phone and watch the stars together from two different locations.

Qiao Wentao was finally able to accept it.

After returning, having been tossed about for a day—no, two days—he was extremely exhausted. Even if he wanted to accompany his daughter to watch the stars, he really couldn't do it, so he had to go back to sleep first.

Qiao Yingzi stood alone by the window, occasionally looking far away at the mountain peak where He Chen was, listening to He Chen's insights on star-watching coming from the other end of the phone, and felt that everything was just too beautiful. Suddenly, she really wanted to learn He Chen's howl under the moon.

But after opening her mouth, she remembered that this was a hotel and there were people living nearby; howling in the middle of the night would be too disturbing to the neighbors, so she didn't make a sound after all, and couldn't help but feel a sense of loss.

Although she had the heart to imitate him, she ultimately couldn't learn from He Chen because of this or that constraint.

When the time came, He Chen went to sleep on schedule.

Another night passed.

The third day of the National Day holiday arrived in the blink of an eye.

Qiao Yingzi still wanted to go back with He Chen, but her father interrupted her directly to remind her: "Are you tired of living? Your mother is almost crazy; she will definitely come to the airport to pick you up. If she sees He Chen with us, she will definitely go insane."

Qiao Yingzi thought about it and realized he was right. The genuine joy that had grown on her face from the two-day vacation suddenly vanished. Thinking of her mother's attitude, her heart felt heavy, and she couldn't smile at all.

Qiao Wentao looked at his daughter like this and felt heartbroken, thinking that his ex-wife Song Qian was truly creating evil—look at how she had forced their daughter, who couldn't help but feel suppressed the moment she thought of her mother.

After getting off the plane, they indeed saw Song Qian coming to pick them up, and indeed faced Song Qian's overwhelming accusations and scolding. Thinking of the scene where his daughter's smile vanished in an instant, Qiao Wentao also lost his temper and, once again, defiantly and fiercely retorted to his ex-wife.

This made Song Qian so angry she nearly resorted to violence. Amidst Qiao Yingzi's somewhat unhinged shouting, the farce ended with Qiao Wentao leaving first.