161: Chapter 161 Emerging from the Mountain

The old monk said, "Ever since you came to stay here,

the incense offerings at our temple have become much more abundant.

On normal days when you weren't here,

this temple of ours was just a dilapidated old place,

and the mountain was hardly a famous one.

But since your arrival,

many people from the mundane world have learned that you are staying here,

and they all want to pay a visit.

It is no exaggeration to say

that the people wanting to visit you

have nearly trampled our temple's threshold into dust.

Now I finally understand

what it means when they say, 'A mountain need not be high; it is famous if there is a dragon. Water need not be deep; it is magical if there is an immortal.'

Bai Jingqing shook his head. "I will not see them."

The old monk nodded. "Benefactor,

in truth, your state of mind is already very mature.

And now,

there is no longer any need for you to cultivate.

In my view,

you probably don't even believe in Buddhism."

Bai Jingqing looked at the old monk with some curiosity. "How did you know?"

The old monk smiled faintly. "I just know.

I can feel it.

However, it can only be understood intuitively,

not expressed in words."

His mysterious demeanor

was exactly like that of a transcendent master.

Bai Jingqing did not press further.

At this moment, his state of mind truly was different,

as he had become much more indifferent toward many things.

Since the old monk was unwilling to say,

he was not inclined to ask more.

The old monk continued his advice, saying, "The way you are now won't do.

I know your heart is heavy with many matters,

but right now, you cannot cast these things aside entirely.

It is not yet time for you to renounce the world."

Bai Jingqing asked again, "Why?"

The old monk continued, "I know your identity.

I know you are the boss of Huayao Communications.

Currently, you hold such a massive company as Huayao Communications in your hands,

along with the platform known as Douyin.

Nowadays, both of these platforms are considered giants,

and they have even achieved a monopoly over the Dragon Country market."

Hearing the word "monopoly,"

Bai Jingqing's brow furrowed slightly,

but it quickly smoothed out again.

The old monk went on, "Besides this,

you have also triggered political earthquakes abroad,

sparking a wave of liberation movements in many countries.

Although many nations are investigating,

trying to find a connection between you and those student movements,

you haven't left any evidence for them to find yet.

However,

your current desire to live in seclusion

and avoid seeing anyone

is actually the wrong approach.

Doing this will cause dissatisfaction from the higher-ups."

Bai Jingqing asked, "The higher-ups?"

The old monk replied, "You know who I mean—

the top leadership of our country."

Bai Jingqing was puzzled. "Why is that?"

The old monk said, "Think about it.

If you were a high-level official,

and under your jurisdiction was a massive entity,

and the leader of this entity

sought neither fame nor profit, nor the company of women,

what would you think?"

Bai Jingqing thought for a moment

and shook his head. "I don't think there's any problem.

I might even think this person is quite decent."

The old monk said, "Wrong.

That is exactly where the problem lies.

It is impossible for a person to be truly transcendent.

If the leader of a massive entity

seeks no fame, no profit, and no women,

what he seeks must be power!

Or rather,

his designs are far grander!

How could the higher-ups possibly feel at ease?

In short,

if you continue to live here,

the higher-ups will absolutely not let you be,

and they will certainly take action against you."

Bai Jingqing frowned,

carefully considering the meaning behind the old monk's words.

During this time,

he had been constantly tempering his state of mind.

It seemed like he had let go of everything,

but in reality,

he did indeed still care about the affairs of this world.

Just as the old monk said,

it is impossible for a person to be truly transcendent,

especially since he didn't have a spiritual faith like Buddhism.

The old monk's words were not without merit.

Bai Jingqing asked further, "You have always been here in these deep mountains,

how can you know so much about the outside world?"

The old monk then pulled a little gadget out of his monastic robes

and said, "Because I watch Douyin."

As he spoke, he placed the gadget in front of Bai Jingqing.

Bai Jingqing looked at it;

it turned out to be a mobile phone.

"Heh, it's even the latest Huawei P20 released by Huayao."

At this, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

This old monk,

living on this mountain for so long,

likely truly believed in Buddhism,

and would basically stay here for the rest of his life,

but clearly,

he wasn't truly transcendent either.

Even while living in these deep mountains,

he didn't forget to scroll through Douyin

to see the outside world.

Yet even so,

the old monk's realm was obviously much higher than his own.

He made his final decision;

he could no longer act with such lofty detachment.

"Thank you, Elder."

Bai Jingqing thanked the old monk,

but to his surprise, at that moment,

the old monk directly pulled up a payment QR code.

"No need for thanks.

Two thousand yuan.

Would you like to use WeChat or Alipay?"

Bai Jingqing was dumbfounded.

...

Two days later,

Bai Jingqing officially left the mountain,

completely changing his previous image.

This time,

he no longer lived in seclusion.

Instead, he appeared in public every day,

attending all sorts of conferences.

Of course, at these meetings,

he would never make any shocking or unorthodox statements.

Every word he spoke could withstand scrutiny and re-scrutiny,

all of them demonstrating to the state that he was completely loyal to the country.

And when someone asked him about the political earthquakes in Eagle Country,

he shook his head and flatly denied it: "It wasn't me, I didn't do it, don't talk nonsense."

He went straight for the triple denial.

From then on,

he also bought numerous luxury sports cars

and various famous watches.

Accompanied by all kinds of young models,

he frequented high-end venues,

his entire lifestyle becoming extremely extravagant,

as if he had become a different person.

Many people were shocked.

They had once been won over by Bai Jingqing's charisma,

thinking that because he lived in seclusion

and was indifferent to fame and fortune,

he was a true modern-day saint.

But now,

seeing his current behavior,

many people said sourly, "So it was all an act before.

I guess he finally couldn't hold it in anymore, right?

With so much money,

how could he possibly endure the loneliness?"

However, this change was so drastic

that many felt there must be some hidden motive behind it.

But the realm of ordinary people was too low,

and they generally couldn't fathom the reason why.

Only those veterans of the political arena,

who had operated in officialdom for many years,

could be considered shrewd old foxes

who had long ago seen through the nature of power.

Only they knew

just how brilliant this move of Bai Jingqing's was.

Suppose you have a farm where you raise many livestock,

and among them is a large fat pig,

extremely fat,

even considered a massive creature.

If it hides away

and never shows its face every day,

you know it exists

but you can't see it,

you will definitely feel

that this fellow is up to no good!

There's no telling when it might jump out and gore you!

But if

this fat pig eats and sleeps on time every day,

and everything follows a very regular pattern,

then you will only feel

that this thing is no big deal,

it's just a bit fat

and looks intimidating, that's all.

Even if this fat pig goes around working for you,

promoting your achievements to the other animals on the farm,

you would feel all the more that it is harmless and simple.

Comparing the two,

unless it's necessary to slaughter the pig,

a farm owner generally won't take action against the latter.

But as for the former,

that's hard to say.

Bai Jingqing had now chosen the latter.

What Bai Jingqing didn't know was

that with this transformation,

he had just narrowly escaped a disaster.

The butcher's knife the higher-ups were preparing to raise

was now quietly being withdrawn.