Great, it's just a lackey, we're saved!

Chapter 291 A Bizarre Topic!

Although the abbot's hair and beard were all white, he did not look old at all.

On the contrary, he possessed an otherworldly aura and was exceptionally handsome.

Zhou Wei rarely uses the word "beautiful" to describe men, but the abbess in front of her was so beautiful that she couldn't be ignored.

the most important is……

Zhou Wei's gaze fell on the abbot's head. This old monk actually had hair.

Is this a proper monk?

She couldn't help but turn to look at Zhu Qi beside her. No problem, the little monk is a proper bald man!

Looking at the other monks, they were all bald as well.

Only the abbot is truly unique!

Just as Zhou Wei was racking her brains trying to figure it out, her gaze fell on the abbot's face.

The old monk, who had been listening attentively to the high monk's words, suddenly smiled at Zhou Wei and winked.

The movements were so fast that Zhou Wei even thought she was seeing things!

Did the monk wink at himself?

When she looked at him more closely, the old monk had regained his solemn demeanor.

Zhou Wei couldn't help but tug at Jiang Yueli's sleeve: "Princess, did you see the master smile at us?"

The eldest princess shook her head in confusion, "No, the abbot has been listening to the high monk speak the whole time. Weiwei, are you seeing things?"

Am I seeing things?

Zhou Wei shook her head, unsure.

But to say that a highly accomplished monk winked at himself is indeed absurd!

Zhou Wei was momentarily confused and stood there, unsure how to react.

But then a steady voice came from inside the hall.

"Ahem, Zhu Qi, now that you're back, why don't you come forward?"

Upon hearing the sound, Zhu Qi immediately took a few steps forward and clasped his hands together.

"Zhu Qi greets all senior brothers!"

The senior monks in the hall nodded and smiled, and the abbot said, "You've returned now, have you found the Heavenly Secret Stone?"

Zhu Qi shook his head, "Senior brother, I found Yuanxing in the Great Zhou Imperial City. He hid the Heavenly Mystery Stone, and I was unable to retrieve it for the time being."

Upon hearing Yuanxing's name, the monks all suppressed their smiles.

The monk in blue robes frowned and asked, "If you could find him, why couldn't you take him back? Your cultivation is no less than his!"

Zhu Qi sighed and made a statement that shocked even the eminent monks.

“Yuan Xing… has successfully transferred his soul! Now he is inhabiting a child’s body, and his cultivation seems to have increased as well.”

The successful transfer of Yuanxing's soul left the high monks looking at each other in bewilderment.

The reason they allowed Yuanxing to remain in the temple and expelled him was because they believed that this evil cultivation method could not succeed.

Even if they succeed, they won't live long.

Unexpectedly, the circle actually defied the heavens!

Several high-ranking monks began to discuss in hushed tones. The abbot in red robes remained relatively calm, and his gaze turned to Jiang Yueli and Zhou Wei behind Zhu Qi.

"Are these two guests from the Great Zhou?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yueli stepped forward and introduced herself.

"Jiang Yueli, the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty, pays his respects to the Abbot."

The abbot did not take the princess's status as crown prince to heart, but calmly said, "Since you have come from afar, Zhu Qi will take you to rest first."

Zhu Qi nodded and was about to leave when Zhou Wei asked, "Master, I heard you were having a meeting to discuss the peaches on the back mountain, is that true?"

Zhou Wei's question was so direct and somewhat impolite. The princess was worried that the abbot would be displeased, so she immediately pulled Zhou Wei behind her.

He said apologetically, "My sister is a bit reckless, I hope you won't take offense."

The abbot wasn't angry, but his expression wasn't exactly pleasant either.

He simply said, "Indeed, does this esteemed benefactor have any guidance?"

The princess's mind was already buzzing, but then she heard Zhou Wei say, "I wouldn't call it guidance, I'm just curious, what do you think, Master? The peaches on the back mountain are ripe, do you think we should pick them or not?"

Jiang Yueli, who was initially a little anxious, suddenly calmed down when she heard Zhou Wei ask her question.

She keenly sensed that perhaps the seemingly trivial matters discussed at the meeting at Kongshan Temple were not as insignificant as she had imagined.

The abbot did not answer immediately, but instead asked several senior monks in the hall.

"Fellow disciples, what do you think? Should we pick these peaches?"

The blue-robed monk said, "Since they are ripe, they should naturally be picked."

The orange-robed monk said, "This humble monk sees that we must not pick them. The peaches are born from the seeds of the tree. To pick them now would be to kill them."

The yellow-robed monk sneered, "Junior brother, are you possessed? You kill a living being just to pick a peach? Then how come you're burdened with so much sin, eating so much rice every day? The path to Buddhahood is long, how come you haven't starved to death yet?"

The green-robed monk said, "In that case, let the peaches ripen and fall to the ground, turning into soil and fertilizer to nourish the peach trees. Let nature take its course, and we won't need to kill any living beings."

After listening for a long time, the eldest princess finally understood the core of the issue these people were discussing.

So, does a peach count as a life?

If you pick a ripe peach yourself, does that count as killing a living being?

This question is a bit too complicated; at least for Jiang Yueli, she has never considered it.

All things do indeed have a spirit, but when it comes to killing, plants were never on her radar.

No wonder this issue has been discussed for so long!

If these monks considered peaches as life itself, they naturally couldn't bring themselves to harm them.

Zhou Wei listened attentively, but her gaze remained fixed on the abbot in red.

Seeing that several eminent monks had expressed their opinions, Zhou Wei asked, "Abbot, what do you think? Should we pick the peaches or not?"

The eldest princess also looked at the abbot curiously, wanting to know how he would answer.

The abbot smiled, which made him look even more handsome.

"This humble monk does not know whether to pick them or not, but this humble monk knows one thing."

"What is it?" Zhou Wei asked.

"The peaches on the back mountain of Kongshan Temple are sweet, crisp, and juicy, a true delicacy! It is not easy for peaches to ripen; it requires the right time, place, and people. This humble monk has longed to eat a peach for a long time."

Zhou Wei laughed and said, "Now that the abbot has said that, even I want to eat some. Unfortunately, the monks felt that peaches also have lives, and picking them would be killing, so it's really not a good idea."

The abbot chimed in, "Yes, yes, it's not easy."

The princess became more and more confused, wondering what kind of riddle the two were playing.

Although she could understand all the words, the two of them kept talking back and forth, making the princess doubt whether she could understand them at all.

Zhu Qi scratched his head in confusion, his gaze shifting between the abbot and Zhou Wei.

He had never seen the abbot talk so much to anyone else.

The eldest princess could only ask Zhu Qi in a low voice, "Little monk, have we discussed whether or not to pick these peaches before?"

Zhu Qi nodded: "We've discussed it, but the result is always the same."

"What was the result?" the eldest princess couldn't help but ask curiously.

"As the two elder sisters have heard, some senior brothers believe that picking peaches is killing, so these peaches have never been picked."

Jiang Yueli was even more surprised upon hearing this.

She had thought that discussions on such issues at Kongshan Temple were just child's play, but she never expected that the minority would actually submit to the majority.

In order to refrain from killing, they left ripe peaches unpicked.

We could only watch helplessly as it rotted on the tree and in the soil!

Given this, the discussion should be as expected, and it will likely continue as before, with the peaches left unpicked.

The abbot seemed to know this was the outcome, and was just about to announce that the peaches on the back mountain of Kongshan Temple would not be picked this year.

But then Zhou Wei said, "Master, I have a way to let you eat peaches without killing any living beings!"