Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The little white cat had already jumped to the side when Little Baldy was eating.
Only Little Baldy was left standing there with her eyes wide open to meet Bai Zhun’s inquisitive gaze.
The child scratched her head in embarrassment and explained shyly, “Buddha Wuli said that I’m growing and must eat more. But I just did the calculations. There are 25 buns in the pot. I’ll eat eight and give the rest to you, Auntie Wang, and Uncle Liu. If it’s still not enough, I’ll go and snatch someone else’s food. Isn’t there someone in the courtyard holding a lunchbox? There must be food inside.”
Auntie Wang had originally planned to pan fry some of the 25 buns for dinner, but she didn’t expect…that this child would have such a good appetite.
But Bai Zhun caught the more important part. “In the future, you’re not allowed to snatch food from other people. If you’re hungry, you can tell me. These steamed buns are all for you. You can eat as much as you want, but just don’t overeat. Do you understand?”
As Bai Zhun spoke, he took out a piece of tissue from the tissue box and wiped the child’s mouth.
Little Baldy’s eyes widened. “But if I finish eating everything, you will have nothing to eat.”
“Auntie Wang will cook some more.”
As soon as Bai Zhun said this, Auntie Wang smiled and said, “That’s right. Young master, there are plenty of buns in the house. Eat as much as you like.”
“Amitabha. This penniless monk before you is called Xuan Jiu.” Little Baldy stretched out her hand and swallowed the food in her mouth. She then looked at Auntie Wang seriously and said, “Madam Benefactor, you can call me Ajiu.”
Auntie Wang felt that this little monk with a straight face was really adorable. She had probably just returned to the secular world, so she was still calling herself a ‘penniless monk’ like how the monks at a monastery would.
Bai Zhun moved Little Baldy’s chair closer to him so that it would be convenient for him to take care of the child.
When Little Baldy saw that there were still buns left, she said to Bai Zhun very seriously, “Then I’ll suppress my appetite.”
What sort of suppressed appetite was this? She had just eaten six large steamed buns, as well as that bean paste bun earlier…
Bai Zhun pressed his forehead. Why did he feel like he had adopted a foodie?
This meal was exceptionally yummy. The buns were dipped in chili oil, and from time to time, he would pick up some pickled cucumbers as well. This was the typical way northerners ate, and people in Beijing loved to eat this way.
Before this, beef with soy sauce would definitely be served as well. It would be doused with a special sauce, and would taste especially fragrant in the summer.
However, with Little Baldy around today, Bai Zhun did not eat any meat dishes. He also ate the porridge and steamed buns. His appetite was not worse than usual. On the contrary, he ate even more than usual because of the child next to him.
Little Baldy’s favorite dish was the fried egg tofu. This was a local dish, and the cooking method was also different. It was as if the tender tofu was mixed with eggs and it melted in the mouth. It was extremely delicious.
After eating for about half an hour, Little Baldy stuck out her round little belly and said to Auntie Wang, “Amitabha. Thank you, Madam Benefactor.”
Bai Zhun saw the child’s expression and was afraid that she would not be able to digest well, so he pulled her over and rubbed her little belly twice.
Little Baldy did not understand why Bai Zhun would act like this. After being stunned for a moment, she stuck her hand out to imitate Bai Zhun by trying to rub Bai Zhun’s tummy too.
“Stop fooling around.” Bai Zhun blocked the child’s hand. “Are you full?”
Little Baldy thought for a moment and decided to tell the truth. “Actually, I can still eat five more vegetable buns, but Auntie Wang is too tired from cooking, so I’ll save my stomach for dinner.”
Bai Zhun didn’t know what to say.
It seemed like he should find Auntie Wang a helper.
Little Baldy blinked her big eyes twice. She felt that something was not right. Why did no one ring the bell even after she had finished eating?
When should she start chanting Buddhist scriptures?
Little Baldy was very conflicted when she thought about this. She had already learnt to read the scriptures during this time in the temple.
Of course, in reality, she was not very interested in chanting the scriptures. The main point was that once she was done with chanting these scriptures, she would be allowed to play wrestling with all the other monks.
If she didn’t chant any scriptures, then when would she be able to play wrestling?
Little Baldy was anxious, so she reached out to grab Bai Zhun’s sleeve.
Bai Zhun was drinking tea, and in his hand was a copy of a novel entirely written in English, “The Little Prince”. He noticed that she was perspiring profusely, so he asked in puzzlement, “What’s wrong?”
“I need to chant the scriptures. Buddha will blame me if I don’t recite the scriptures,” Little Baldy explained incoherently. “But nobody has rung the bell yet.”
Others might not have understood what she was babbling about, but Bai Zhun, who had once lived in a temple, understood the daily schedule there. He looked up at the clock in the hall.
“You can start chanting scriptures from now on. I will tell you when it’s time to stop”
As Bai Zhun spoke, he bent down, picked up the little girl, and placed her on the sofa.
Little Baldy trusted her new older brother very much. She crossed her legs and began to recite the scriptures devoutly.
The child’s voice was not loud, but it still carried a soft and childish tone.
Not only did Bai Zhun not find this noisy, but it actually carried a different kind of tranquility. Even the sun outside did not seem so hot anymore.
However, these good times did not last long.
Little Baldy had only recited the scriptures for less than half an hour when a group of children came in.
These children had all grown up within the military zone, so it could be said that each of them hailed from a powerful family and often came to the Bai house. The soldiers outside would definitely not stop them from coming in.
The child in the lead was a little tyrant who was willing to listen to no one else but Bai Zhun. As soon as he entered the door, he saw a tiny monk meditating on the sofa and was stunned for a long time.
“What’s going on? Where did this monk come from?”
“There’s not a single strand of hair on the top of his head. Has he been shaved?”
“Why would this little monk appear in Brother Bai’s house?”
The little tyrant listened to the comments of the children around him and took out the wooden sticks that they had been playing with earlier. He lowered his voice and warned them, “All of you, be quiet. Bai Zhun isn’t here, so he must be taking an afternoon nap. If you end up waking Brother Bai up, you can forget about getting me to take any of you in as my underlings.”
“Then how do we deal with this little monk?” There was another girl among them. She was wearing a very ladylike princess dress, and she looked at little Ajiu unhappily. If she wasn’t mistaken, the little monk’s leg was covered with Bai Zhun’s little blanket.
Normally, she wasn’t even allowed to touch Bai Zhun’s things, so how could this little monk be covered with his little blanket?
Sometimes children became jealous over the strangest things.
The little tyrant also recognized the blanket. After thinking about it, he realized that he was supposed to be the one closest to Bai Zhun! Where did this little monk even come from? Why hadn’t he heard anything about this fellow?
The little tyrant had always been the type to instigate other children. When he saw that the little monk was just sitting there motionlessly, he winked at the two children standing next to him. He wanted to show this little monk his might so that the little monk would know whose territory this was!
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