A white Land Rover stopped, and a young man in his twenties jumped out of the car, wearing a peaked cap and a tracksuit.

The young man got out of the car and looked at Chen Mo and the pot, "What's this?"

Chen Mo said, "Hotpot."

"Is hotpot supposed to be this color?"

The young man curiously walked over and smelled it, "Why does it smell so strong of meat? Is this braised meat?"

Chen Mo nodded, "Braised meat hotpot."

The young man took another sniff and seemed to talk to himself, "It does smell quite nice."

He then left the parking lot, squeezed into the woods along the path, and disappeared from Chen Mo's view.

Chen Mo was puzzled, continued to brew tea and eat meat, enjoying the aroma of both, "Maybe this is the meaning of life."

...

Hui Ke walked to the entrance of Haiyue Temple, took off his jeans and sweatshirt, and removed his hat.

He revealed the long robe underneath, with nine distinct spots on top of his head, looking like stickers.

"You're back."

"I'm back."

"How did it go?"

"Brother Huineng, all the candidates said the location is too remote, and they won't work for less than ten thousand a month."

"What?" Huineng looked a bit surprised, "Ten thousand? The average salary in the county is only two thousand five, and they want ten thousand?"

Hui Ke sighed as well, "Nowadays, chefs who can cook get at least five thousand. Those people said they'd have to drive to the top of Wanglong Mountain every day, which is a significant commuting cost, plus buying groceries. Nobody will do it for less than ten thousand."

Huineng shook his head and sighed, "Then let's just cook porridge and eat buns tonight."

There was no other choice.

Years ago, when Wanglong Mountain was bustling, Haiyue Temple had a constant flow of visitors and offerings, but as Wanglong Mountain declined, many monks at Haiyue Temple returned to secular life, leaving only about a dozen of them, all of the Hui generation.

Yes, even the abbot resigned and reportedly moved abroad.

The temple gradually couldn't manage wages, even the cook quit. If there were only a few people in the temple, it wouldn't be an issue, but cooking for a dozen is a big deal.

With low salary and a remote location, nobody wanted the job. The monks at Haiyue Temple have mainly been surviving on porridge and buns this year, sometimes cooking noodles, which was quite painful.

They sent Hui Ke down the mountain to recruit a chef again today, but it was another wasted trip.

The brothers were hungry all day and this news was hard to accept.

Back in the kitchen, Hui Ke lit the fire, added water, and waited for it to boil before adding rice.

Watching the water in the large black iron pot start to steam, Hui Ke's mind inexplicably thought of another big black pot.

That pot was full of braised meat sauce, with various ingredients bubbling in the sauce. He took a deep breath, as if he could smell that intoxicating aroma.

He tossed a handful of rice into the pot, looked at the clear soup and water, and smacked his head, "Even though that pilgrim is eating by himself, if the price is high enough, maybe we can buy some. Besides, it seemed like his car was a food truck, maybe he sells food?"

Thinking of this, Hui Ke was so excited that his muscles started to tremble.

Everyone hadn't had a good meal in a whole year, and now there's a chance. Not seizing it would be unwise!

Without further ado, Hui Ke left the boiling porridge and rushed to his brother's dorm.

"Brother Huineng!"

"Is the meal ready?" Huineng was already too hungry to move, lying on the bed with blank eyes. It was already half past midnight, their first meal of the day!

"No." Hui Ke sat on the side of the brick bed, "Brother Huineng, I saw a pilgrim in the parking lot on my way back."

"So what? Are they coming to offer incense?"

Hui Ke shook his head, "No. The pilgrim was cooking hotpot in the parking lot, and it was braised meat hotpot. It smelled really good, and I was thinking..."

"Outrageous!" Huineng sat up, "You knew it was braised meat hotpot, and you still had such thoughts?"

Hui Ke was taken aback, "Didn't the abbot say before, 'Meat and wine will pass through the intestines, and the Buddha will remain in the heart'?"

"That's why the abbot left." Huineng put his palms together, full of guilt, "This place is a Buddhist Gate. Once you enter, you are a person of the Buddhist Gate, you understand?"

Hui Ke scratched his head, "If we go out, we are not people of the Buddhist Gate. That pilgrim is in the parking lot, not in the Buddhist Gate."

Huineng opened his eyes and looked at Brother Hui Ke in shock, unable to believe that the usually honest and simple Brother Hui Ke would say such a thing.

He opened and closed his mouth several times, "Brother, your insight is high! Let's leave the Buddhist Gate first!"

Hui Ke was instantly delighted, chuckling as he brought the shoes to his brother, "After we eat, we are people of the Buddhist Gate again."

The key is to be flexibly Buddhist.

The two of them set off together, cautiously, without disturbing the other brothers. When they passed by the main hall, they also unlocked the donation box.

"Brother, is this okay?"

Huineng stuffed a handful of loose change into his sleeve pocket, "Let me ask you, if we still can't get food, what will happen?"

"We'll be malnourished, we'll starve to death!"

"Saving a life is like building a seven-level pagoda, and we're saving two lives. Do the math, how many pagodas is that?"

Hui Ke put his palms together, "Brother, I understand!"

The two of them stuffed the bills and coins from the donation box into their pockets, taking small, quick steps in the moonlight, stepping out of the Buddhist Gate!

As they stepped out of Haiyue Temple, the moment the brothers Huineng and Hui Ke did so, it was as if they smelled some indescribable fragrance.

For people who haven't eaten meat for a long time, this smell is deadly, enough to drive them mad!

It's like many elementary school students who don't usually love meat much. Send them to boarding school for a semester, and when they return home, they won't want to eat anything else; they'll just crave meat.

This is an animal instinct, and Huineng and Hui Ke are no exception, especially since stepping out of the Buddhist Gate, they've entered the secular world.

"Over there, Brother!" Hui Ke led the way, pointing a finger towards a hidden path in the dense woods.

"To think of eating hotpot in the parking lot, this benefactor must be an interesting person. Let's hurry!"

The two walked along the secluded path in the woods, the aroma of meat in the air growing stronger with each step, intensely enticing!

Until they left the woods and stepped onto the cement road, suddenly, a little benefactor appeared in front of them.

This wasn't the important part.

The important part was that on the table before the benefactor, there was really a large black pot bubbling away, and it seemed like the meat aroma was emanating from it.

Huineng swallowed a gulp of saliva.

"Brother, did you bring enough money?"

He thought they had brought enough, but smelling this aroma, Huineng only felt like he could eat two cows; it would be embarrassing if they didn't have enough.

"Brother, it's enough; this is three months' worth of the temple's offering money!"

Huineng nodded firmly.

"Let's go!"

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