The Last Train to Hell

Can he really be like a normal person?

I smiled bitterly, not having any hope in my heart, but I still nodded and agreed.

"Thank you, abbot, for your kind words. I hope that good times will turn around and I can get out of this predicament as soon as possible."

The old monk said a few words to Duan Mei and I, then disappeared.

Judging from the direction he left, it should be the apse of the temple.

There are always some places in the temple that are not open to outsiders. It would be strange for me to follow them.

After the monk's figure completely disappeared, Duanmei said thoughtfully.

"Master Kongduan is an expert in this world. Since he asked you to stay in the temple for a while, then if you have nothing to do, just stay in the temple as long as possible."

I didn't refute Duanmei. When I came to the temple, I felt much better.

The whole person felt very relaxed, but the smell of incense and candles that was everywhere made me feel a little off-putting.

I don’t know why, but I haven’t liked places like temples since I was a child.

Blind Grandpa didn’t come to temples very often, and he didn’t even go to Taoist temples a few times.

Even I didn't like these places very much. I found them scary when I was a child.

The bigger thing is that I reject the smell inside. I always feel that the strong smell of incense candles makes me very uncomfortable.

Although I'm not used to it, I feel extremely peaceful.

Duanmei may have seen the reluctance on my face, so he sneered and said impatiently.

"You guys have the nerve to put aside your picking and choosing. You don't want to think about your current situation. Let me give you a suggestion. It's best to stay here for a while."

I felt a little aggrieved, where was my reluctance?

I just remembered what happened in the past. What Duanmei said seemed to be how ignorant I was.

I didn't refute him, but smiled at her.

Then he greeted a young monk who was coming and going. Looking at him in a hurry, he seemed to have something to do in a hurry.

"Can I ask if I want to stay with you, what are the conditions?"

Generally, there will be a Zen room for receiving guests in such temples. If you want to stay in the Zen room, you must pay money, or donate incense money.

Of course, the temple will not be very straightforward and tell everyone how much you have to pay.

Instead, you are asked to donate incense money. This incense money is not donated to the monks, but to the Buddha.

Well, I don’t feel particularly aggrieved if I donate this money to Buddha.

Anyway, I felt quite comfortable being around Buddha just now.

The young monk was stunned for a moment and looked at Duanmei and me.

Said with some embarrassment.

"You go to the front hall and ask Senior Brother Yuanfang. I don't know much. I've only been here a few days."

Looking at him like this, he seemed to have something to hide, which made me a little curious.

What kind of secrets does the temple hide that would make a young monk show such an expression?

Could it be that there really is some secret hidden in the temple?

I glanced at Duanmei, only to find that he didn't look towards me at all, but instead walked back and forth under a tree.

I bowed to the young monk to show respect, and then followed Duanmei to the tree in front.

I don't think there's anything special about this tree. It's just ordinary. How can I see it as an ordinary tree?

Why does it cause eyebrow breakage? I have been lingering near it.

Is it possible that there is something inside this tree?

I looked at the tree with some suspicion, but I couldn't tell. What was wrong?

After a while, Duanmei said regretfully, "My wife and I planted this tree together before she passed away. I didn't expect that it would grow into a towering tree after such a long time."

To say it is a towering tree is a bit exaggerated.

In fact, it does grow into a big tree. It must be just a sapling when it is planted.

I didn't say anything, just stood aside and waited for Duanmei for a while.

He circled around the tree a few times, probably feeling more comfortable, and then followed me to the front hall.

He found Senior Brother Yuanfang with familiarity and handled the check-in formalities for me.

He was so generous that he directly booked a Zen room for three months.

The price for these three months was not cheap. Duanmei donated 20,000 yuan in incense money to settle on this Zen room.

The temple is located near the suburbs. Normally, an ordinary house in the surrounding area only costs four to five hundred yuan a month.

It is still the best with three bedrooms and one living room, and a Zen room here costs more than 6,600 yuan, which is very expensive.

Although it is said that the donation is incense money, in my eyes, it is not much different from paying rent directly.

I'm just a layman, and I don't have such a high ideological awareness.

Could the Buddha actually receive the money donated for incense? That's not necessarily the case.

The Buddha is a master outside the world, so why should he be greedy for such things as the worldly world? It is nothing more than collecting money for these monks in the name of donating to the Buddha.

I have heard someone say that the monthly salary of monks in the temple is ten thousand or twenty thousand. Of course, I don't know whether it is true or not.

After leaving the temple, that heavy feeling came back to me in an instant.

Duanmei and I looked at each other, thought about it, and then said to him.

"You help me go back and get the sheets, bedding, etc., and also bring the things I left at your house. I will just stay here and not leave. Except when I get out of the car, I plan to stay the rest of the time. Clean up here.”

I said helplessly.

This heaviness made me feel uncomfortable. I felt that the heaviness was like an accumulation and suddenly rebounded.

The heaviness on my body was more than four or five times heavier than when I came in.

Originally, I just felt depressed, but now I was a little breathless.

Duanmei nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

"You can go in and rest directly. There are beddings and other things in the Zen room. The monks will change them for you every half a month. I will bring you your clothes and documents. Anyway, I don't have to go to the police station every day and I can move in with you."

Duanmei's straightforward attitude of making a decision surprised me.

I didn't expect that Duanmei would stay with me.

This made me feel a little flattered, but when I think about it, Duanmei might as well stay with me in the temple instead of tossing back and forth every day.

I sat in the Zen room of the temple, and I felt peaceful.

Then the fatigue in my body gradually emerged, and I lay on the bed sideways and fell asleep directly.

In my dream, I walked on the boundary between light and darkness, half of it was light, half of it was dark, and something in the darkness kept waving at me.

And in the light, there were also bursts of Buddhist sounds, echoing in my ears. I struggled, not knowing which way to go.