The moment that was said, everyone subconsciously looked over.
They saw a young monk walk out of the Heavenly Kings Hall. He was dressed in ordinary monk robes, but his eyes were as resplendent as the stars. He raised his chin slightly, exuding the sharpness of a youth. Following that, a middle-aged monk walked out of the Heavenly Kings Hall. He frowned slightly but did not say a word.
Fangzheng was taken aback when he saw this. He never expected that the two people standing forward to speak up for him would be these two people!
Back when Fangzheng crossed the river on a reed at Baiyun Monastery, someone was indignant and had debated with Fangzheng. That person was none other than the young monk in front of him — Golden Bamboo Convent's Yi Xing! And behind him was Yi Xing's master, Venerable Hong Jin, who was the first to find fault with Fangzheng.
However, after Fangzheng's Lotus Flower Conveyance, he had run off. It was unknown what happened to them after that. From the looks of it, they were at least friends and not enemies.
Tongguang, Zhineng, and Zhiyun exchanged looks and saw the shock in each other's eyes. A young monk actually had the support of others? Furthermore, he had made such bold claims. It was unbelievable!
Zhiyun was the most impatient. When he heard Yi Xing's words, he immediately said unhappily, "Young monk, where did you come from? Aren't you afraid of biting your tongue by saying such bold words? Sunglow Monastery has gathered all the accomplished monks in the world today. Who would dare say such things? "
Yi Xing was very spirited. Back then, he had even dared to refute Zen Master Baiyun, much less Zhiyun. Therefore, Yi Xing raised his head and said proudly, "This Penniless Monk is Yi Xing from Golden Bamboo Convent in Black Mountain City. This is This Penniless Monk's master, Zen Master Hong Jin. He is also the current abbot of Golden Bamboo Convent! And who are you? "
Zhiyun had asked the question boldly, but when he was questioned, he immediately shriveled up. Although he came from a large monastery, in terms of status, he was only a mere acolyte monk! Even a Bhikkhu was one. It would be embarrassing if word got out! After all, all the monks present today were Bhikkhu Precepts. Yi Xing was a real monk, while he and Zhineng were fake. Zhineng had relied on a disguise to get in, while he had done it purely through nepotism.
Before Zhiyun could say a word, Zhineng spoke. "This Penniless Monk is Tanzhong City's Southwind Monastery's Superintendent. This Penniless Yi Xing, how may I help you?"
A supervisor was one of the eight deacons of a monastery. They were in charge of the treasury, finances, and other matters of the monastery. It could be said that they held absolute power. After Zhineng stated his position, he raised his head. From his point of view, the eight deacons of Southwind Monastery were not inferior to the abbots of medium-sized monasteries!
However, Yi Xing was only slightly astonished. He shook his head and said, "I wouldn't dare advise you. I only heard someone shamelessly say that Venerable Fangzheng is a fake monk. This Penniless Monk is just saying something fair."
With that said, Yi Xing came in front of Fangzheng and pressed his palms together. He retracted his arrogant stance and bowed humbly. "Greetings Venerable Fangzheng. Venerable Fangzheng, I benefited greatly from your scripture preaching at Baiyun Monastery. I had planned on visiting Mt. One Finger one day but was unable to do so due to trivial matters. It's truly a pity."
Hong Jin also went forward and bowed humbly. "Venerable Fangzheng, we meet again. This Penniless Monk was rude last time, please don't take offense. "
Seeing the arrogant young monk and his master act in such a manner towards Fangzheng, Zhineng and Tongguang frowned. Zhineng thought, "Could it be that this monk really has an impressive background? But … This One Finger Monastery is so small. What sort of background could it have? "
That night, Zhineng investigated One Finger Monastery's situation. All he found was that it was a tiny monastery on Mt. One Finger. A monastery of that size did not appear to be powerful in any way. Tongguang had only decided to help after reading the information provided by Zhineng. He naturally felt no pressure bullying a monk from a tiny monastery. But from the looks of it, the situation did not seem right.
Tongguang immediately flipped through the name list and indeed, he found Golden Bamboo Convent's Yi Xing and Hong Jin's names. He knew that their identities were not fake. Then for them to treat Fangzheng this way, there was probably something fishy going on. Furthermore, Yi Xing had pointed out that Fangzheng had preached the scriptures at Baiyun Monastery. If this was true, it would be too shocking!
Although Baiyun Monastery was incomparable to Sunglow Monastery, it was in no way smaller than Southwind Monastery. In terms of influence, it was even greater than Sunglow Monastery in Black Mountain City! Zen Master Baiyun was also an honored guest of Sunglow Monastery. Zen Master Sunglow would always come out a hundred steps to welcome him! For such a monastery to let an outsider monk preach the scriptures …
Tongguang had a vague sense of foreboding.
At that moment, Fangzheng pressed his palms together and said with a smile, "Amitabha. Greetings Abbot Hong Jin and Venerable Yi Xing. Venerable Ones, you are being too polite. Back then, it was Zen Master Baiyun's kindness and guidance that allowed This Penniless Monk to represent the younger generation of monks to say a few words. It's really nothing much. "
Fangzheng did not wish for everyone to know of his Lotus Flower Conveyance. It was best if fewer people knew about it. Although it was good to have a greater reputation, there were certain things that were better kept a secret. Especially since no one would believe such a thing even if he said it. Even if there was a video, it would probably be treated as a composite video with computer effects. Then, he would be criticized as a scumbag fake monk who wanted to gain fame.
Fangzheng wished to become famous, but he was afraid of trouble. Therefore, he decisively did not mention it.
Upon hearing Fangzheng say that, Tongguang, Zhineng, and Zhiyun heaved a sigh of relief. They thought, "So he's only a young monk representative. That gave me a fright. I thought he was some impressive figure!"
After confirming that Fangzheng was nothing much, Zhineng immediately said, "Venerable One, This Penniless Monk isn't familiar with Venerable Fangzheng. However, he has women with him. Furthermore, This Penniless Monk and Junior Brother saw him stay in a hotel with a female patron. How can such an indecent act be done by a monk? This Penniless Monk's Junior Brother is a straightforward person. He says whatever is on his mind and doesn't mince his words. If there's anything wrong, please forgive him. "In addition, One Finger Monastery is not invited to the inner mountain. Senior Brother Tongguang only followed the monastery's rules and got him to leave the mountain to seek lodgings. There's nothing wrong with that, right? However, he refused and even caused trouble. How can such actions be something a monk would do? Therefore, This Penniless Monk's Junior Brother isn't wrong in saying that he's a fake monk, right? Of course, if there's any mistake, This Penniless Monk can apologize to Venerable Fangzheng on his behalf. "
His words were extremely slick. Basically, it meant that no matter if they doubted Fangzheng's right or wrong, he would always stand on the side of morality. He pushed all the blame to Fangzheng. If someone who didn't understand the situation heard this, they would basically label Fangzheng as a villain.
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