"Half a year?" Xiao Zheng looked at Li Jing, who was eating quietly. His expression was one of shock.
No matter how delicate a woman was, she had to eat at least one or two rice per meal. Even if they ate two meals a day, they would have to eat four taels of rice a day. That would be twelve catties a month. Even if half a year was reduced, even if it was three months, it would still be around forty catties of rice. That was not counting the cooking oil. In total, Li Jing would have to carry around fifty to sixty catties of daily necessities every time she went down the mountain.
Xiao Zheng stuffed a meatball into his mouth and mumbled, "Aunt Li, aren't you working too hard?"
He did not believe that Li Jing would ask for help. After all, she was a monk. There was no reason for her to spend money to hire someone. Moreover, when the Tang Dynasty's eminent monk went to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures, he had a group of goblin disciples who could do anything to protect him. Yet, he could only ride a pitiful white dragon horse and sigh with every step. Therefore, from Xiao Zheng's point of view, monks shouldn't resort to trickery.
"It doesn't matter." Li Jing smiled and shook her head. "Walking is cultivation. Compared to the ascetics, my homework is far from enough."
"The so-called ascetics only appear in movies and novels. In reality, especially now, there are no ascetics." Xiao Zheng shook his head. His admiration for Li Jing rose spontaneously.
Of course, Xiao Zheng could also do Li Jing's workload. But she was only a middle-aged woman after all. Being able to carry a heavy load up the mountain was beyond imagination. Moreover, the mountain path was steep. It was a huge challenge for Li Jing. Therefore, to a certain extent, Xiao Zheng believed that Li Jing was not an ordinary person.
"Why not?" Li Jing smiled and looked at Ye Yuhua. She said respectfully. "Senior Sister, you walk ten thousand kilometers every year. It has been twenty years. "
Ten thousand kilometers?
Xiao Zheng was speechless. "But on average, you walk thirty kilometers every day."
Li Jing smiled. "That's why, compared to Senior Sister, my cultivation is nothing."
Ah Jing, you've become a Taoist. "Ye Yuhua said with a faint smile on her face.
Li Jing gently nodded and said, "Senior Sister is right."
With that, she clasped her hands together and silently chanted a Clear Heart Incantation before continuing to eat.
Xiao Zheng, on the other hand, asked while eating, "Auntie Jing. I see that the mountain road is not built, and it is steep and difficult to walk. There may be wild beasts and poisonous snakes in the forest. Won't it be dangerous for you to go up and down the mountain like this? "
Li Jing shook her head and explained, "Senior Apprentice Brother Bu Du walks in the forest all year round. Even if there are some wild beasts and venomous snakes, I'm afraid they would be invited down the mountain by him. It doesn't matter. "
Xiao Zheng nodded. That was true. With the famous White Emperor overseeing the place, even ferocious tigers and lions would not dare to make a ruckus in this wilderness. Let alone some small animals? However, as a monk, Bai Wuxia would not hurt the innocent. He would only politely invite these animals that lived in the forest to go down the mountain.
Xiao Zheng wanted to ask again, but Lin Huayin interrupted him, "Auntie Jing has been practicing martial arts since she was young. Even if she were to face wild beasts, she would have a way to escape. If you want to ask, just be direct. There's no need to beat around the bush. "
Xiao Zheng said awkwardly, "I'm just looking for a topic."
Speaking of which, from the first time Xiao Zheng saw Li Jing, he could tell that this woman's footsteps were steady. She was by no means an ordinary monk. Moreover, living on the cliffs of these inhospitable mountains and rivers, if the Ye family didn't arrange for a powerful follower, how could they feel at ease letting Ye Yuhua live alone?
He asked all these random questions. It was indeed as he said, he was looking for a topic to talk about. He was afraid that there would be an awkward silence as he ate. However, this damned Old Lin did not know what he was thinking. Not only did he not cooperate, but he also poured cold water on him. It was really sad.
After half of the dinner, Xiao Zheng took the initiative to ask, "Mother-in-law, do you have any extracurricular activities at night?"
"Chess." Ye Yuhua smiled.
"Just chess?" Xiao Zheng was speechless.
"I have homework at night, so I don't have that much free time." Ye Yuhua explained. "But I have prepared some interesting things for you. Other than not being able to watch TV online, it shouldn't be too boring. "
Ye Yuhua was not the one who said it wasn't boring. From Xiao Zheng's point of view, there was a limit to how interesting a thing a monk prepared for herself could be. Therefore, he didn't take it to heart. While eating dinner, he magically took out two decks of poker cards from his pocket and said with relish, "After dinner, let's play a few rounds of poker, okay? It's not gambling. It's purely for entertainment. "
Poker?
Lin Huayin was completely stunned.
This was a temple, and the dining area was less than five meters away from the prayer hall. Aren't you afraid that your wish won't be blessed by Bodhisattva? Aren't you afraid that you will be blamed for blasphemy? Even if Lin Huayin didn't believe in Buddhism, she did not dare to imagine that Xiao Zheng would actually prepare two decks of poker cards and bring them all the way up the mountain.
Li Jing said helplessly, "Monks can't play poker."
Upon hearing that, Xiao Zheng persuaded, "Monks are also humans. If the prohibition of alcohol and meat is an iron law, then what is poker? I've heard of monks abstaining from anger, arrogance, and rashness, but I've never heard of monks abstaining from poker. On the contrary, if Auntie Jing can play poker with a calm heart, wouldn't it be another kind of cultivation? Since ancient times, there's a saying that wine and meat pass through the intestines, but Buddha stays in the heart. Although this saying is a bit extreme and brainwashing, isn't the meaning behind it the same as the saying, with Buddha in the heart, all things are empty? "
Li Jing wasn't stupid, but she had been practicing martial arts since she was young. Although she had been cultivating with Ye Yuhua all these years, she had become more gentle and less sharp compared to the past. But her verbal skills didn't improve much. After being debated by Xiao Zheng, she was speechless and could only look at Ye Yuhua awkwardly.
"It's fine." Ye Yuhua said with a smile. "Xiao Zheng, what do you want to play?"
"How about Landlord?" Xiao Zheng asked excitedly.
"Sure." Ye Yuhua nodded with a smile.
Monks cultivated their body and mind, and also gave up the seven emotions and six desires. Playing chess was enlightenment, but it also determined victory and defeat. If there was Dao in the chess player's eyes, there would still be victory and defeat. It was the same for poker. For Ye Yuhua, there was no essential difference between the two. It was just that without Xiao Zheng's suggestion, she wouldn't have taken the initiative to play.
The original way to play Landlord was for three people to play. Lin Huayin rarely played poker, but she understood the basics of Landlord, so she also participated under Xiao Zheng's invitation. The third person was Ye Yuhua. Li Jing rushed to clean up the dishes and came back to watch the game later.
The temple didn't have electricity, but both the side hall and the prayer hall were lit with warm red candles. The light was like a weave, illuminating the side hall. Xiao Zheng and the other two sat around the table, shuffled the cards, and then dealt the cards.
Xiao Zheng explained all the details of Fight the Landlord as he dealt the cards in order to prevent everyone from missing out on some minor rules. Then, he picked up a deck of cards. His eyes immediately lit up, and a smile appeared on his lips.
"Call the landlord," Xiao Zheng said excitedly.
"Call the landlord," Lin Huayin shouted.
At this time, Xiao Zheng sternly corrected Lin Huayin, "You can't say call the landlord, you should say grab the landlord!"
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