In front of the county magistrate's mansion, there was a mad monk who sometimes cried and sometimes laughed. Even an elderly lady wobbly walking down the street looked like a flirtatious beauty to him, and even the dogs on the street seemed to become more charming.
The monk cried and cursed at times, "You disrespectful youngsters, putting something in my drink to fool me, the monk. This is pure waste of good wine. What a pity for the hundred-year-old liquor in my gourd. This wine was meant to ease sorrow, but now it's the monk's bitter water..."
And then he laughed and cursed, saying, "People have enemies; the monk also has enemies. This is the retribution destined for me. I can't hide from it, so this wine, the monk still has to drink."
Clearly, there was something wrong with the wine, but the mad monk still picked up the gourd at his waist and took a swig without a care.
After a while, the mad monk waved his hands repeatedly at the dog behind him, "Sin, sin, benefactor, don't undress. The monk has always shunned women. Take it off again, and the monk will truly be angry!"
The crowd thought he was speaking nonsense until they saw the mad monk suddenly concentrate his energy and shout the word "stop" at a tail-wagging yellow dog looking for food.
And amazingly, the dog also stopped in its tracks as if it were a piece of wood, with only its eyeballs still moving back and forth.
...
In East Gate Alley, Xu Qing was planning to return to Underground Street to further study the blue scales in his hand. But just as he crossed two streets, he ran into the mad monk who was laughing and crying, stumbling over from the opposite side of the street.
Xu Qing decisively turned around, but on the following street, he encountered the mad monk again.
"..."
Xu Qing turned around once more, and on the street he was returning to, he encountered the mad monk's figure yet again.
Is this a monk blocking my way?
Xu Qing realized the monk was coming for him, so he decided not to hide but stood by the street waiting for him to come over.
When Venerable Xin Yuan came closer, he hadn't even spoken when his eyes reddened with tears.
"One shouldn't be too lacking in virtue. Bullying a monk will cost you yin virtue!"
Xu Qing remained composed and said bluntly, "Tricking a kid into shaving his head, isn't that lacking in virtue? You became a monk and have no one to care for you in old age, so you're thinking of tricking a young monk to come back as your child to look after you. You're even less virtuous than a human trafficker!"
The two exchanged words back and forth, quarrelling fiercely.
Venerable Xin Yuan and Xu Qing were very similar in character. Both were quick with their tongues and had thicker skins than anyone else!
Under normal circumstances, Venerable Xin Yuan had the confidence to quarrel on even terms with Xu Qing, but today he was drugged, crying and laughing, unable to give it his all.
Finally, Venerable Xin Yuan couldn't take it anymore and straightforwardly asked, "What exactly did you put in the monk's gourd?"
Xu Qing vehemently denied, "I didn't poison it; don't pin it on me!"
Venerable Xin Yuan, looking intoxicated, laughed crazily and said, "I know you didn't poison it. A regular poison wouldn't work on me. The monk is asking what exactly you put in it!"
Xu Qing clicked his tongue and said, "Have you never had medicinal wine? The wine I brewed had mushrooms from Dian Nan. What you drank had Giggle Mushrooms, Cry Mushrooms, and also..."
"Also what?" Venerable Xin Yuan felt increasingly uneasy.
"And Dreaming Mushrooms."
"What kind of mushroom is that?"
"Oh, it's a mushroom that makes men have wet dreams, and women experience nocturnal emissions. It's a good thing to test your monkly composure. You should be thanking me."
"I shall break my vow against anger on you!" Venerable Xin Yuan made a show of rolling up his sleeves.
Xu Qing's expression turned cold, and he said, "You've been scheming to abduct Chen Liu'Er; I haven't settled that with you yet. Don't think I don't know the tricks you're playing at the county magistrate's mansion!"
"I haven't thrown you into jail yet, considering you haven't done major evil. If you remain stubborn, you'll see if I won't beat you up!"
Xu Qing always dealt with Venerable Xin Yuan as an ordinary person. Those mushrooms were from Dian Nan, far from being respectable, at most considered as tricks of the jianghu.
Even when mentioning Chen Liu'Er, Xu Qing always spoke from the perspective of worldly emotions, never involving the Xuan Sect's matters.
It was just that this monk seemed to have some restriction on him, so even when people messed with him, he could only accept it.
Xu Qing didn't know what kind of cultivation technique this was in Buddhism, but it seemed to have some similarities to his Silence Curse and Silent Meditation.
Venerable Xin Yuan, anxious, took another sip of wine and said, "Don't ruin the monk's grand plan! That child wasn't meant to live..."
Halfway through speaking, Venerable Xin Yuan's voice abruptly stopped, as if he accidentally revealed something he shouldn't have.
"Wasn't meant to live?" Xu Qing squinted, leaned forward, and said word by word, "What do you mean by that?"
"No meaning! Don't ask, I'll just let it pass, but if you keep pestering..."
Venerable Xin Yuan struck a Martial Arts External Skill pose in front of Xu Qing.
"The monk is also a practitioner, with a background as a Martial Monk. You can't beat me!"
Xu Qing squinted, undeterred, and said, "Chen Liu'Er is the county magistrate's adopted son. Even if I can't beat you, I can still report to the authorities to have the constable catch you. The constable of Linjiang County, Zhao Zhonghe, is a Martial Master. How could you, a mere monk, withstand the authorities?"
"Are you talking about that constable?"
Upon hearing the name Zhao Zhonghe, Venerable Xin Yuan suddenly calmed down. He hesitated for a moment and said, "Whether Chen Liu'Er wants to go with the monk isn't for you to decide..."
"Don't worry, master. I believe in Chen Liu'Er; he won't go with you."
Venerable Xin Yuan was dubious.
The white-faced youth's resolute tone before him shook his resolve a bit.
No, he couldn't keep tangling with this kid any longer!
For the first time, Venerable Xin Yuan felt a thought that someone was destined to restrain him, so without another word, he turned and prepared to leave.
Xu Qing wouldn't just let him leave since his questions remained unanswered.
"Stop, you haven't explained what you meant by Chen Liu'Er wasn't meant to live."