Food: Randomly set up stalls, even the little guy is drooling.

Chapter 76 Pigsy Misled Me! (Bonus Chapter)

Hai Chi weighed the insulated bag in his hand; there were only six buns left inside.

For Benefactor Lu's grand plan to make money, he also sacrificed his dignity as a Buddhist disciple. Of course, he was absolutely certain that it wasn't for that bag of steamed buns, but simply out of a Buddhist disciple's benevolent heart to help others. Amitabha.

He had only parted ways with Hai Ci for two minutes when he noticed a small group of people gathered ahead, dressed in matching quick-drying sportswear. Some were stretching, while others were packing their backpacks, seemingly having just finished their morning exercise and preparing to descend the mountain.

"Excellent! Another group of people with affinity!" Hai Chi's spirits lifted. This wave of people was just enough to empty his inventory of insulated bags, so he could go back and enjoy delicious buns. No, he could complete his meritorious deed of helping others.

You ask him why he doesn't steal food? He, Hai Chi, is a monk with a proper ordination certificate! Stealing food—is that something a proper monk would do? That's all fiction from "Journey to the West," Pigsy misled me!

Besides, what if we don't bring enough people, and Boss Lu doesn't honor the deal? As the saying goes, "draining the pond to catch all the fish" or "killing the goose that lays the golden eggs"—it's something we can do, but not something we can! What will we do tomorrow if we eat today?

He straightened his greyish-blue monk's robe and strode over. Before he even got close, he could hear the group talking animatedly.

A young man was slumped unceremoniously against the wooden railing of the observation deck, looking up at the sky and letting out a passionate roar, "Ah! I really don't want to get up early to climb mountains anymore! You have no idea what I've lost!"

"Shouldn't I be in my warm bed, waking up leisurely, making myself a cappuccino, and enjoying this precious morning? Why am I here?!"

He dragged out his words, seemingly describing a beautiful scene, but every word was tinged with pain.

"Zhang Jingfan." A smartly dressed girl with short hair rolled her eyes at him and teased, "You only lost your warm bed, but overall, your trip today was still something to be happy about, except for the unhappiness of waking up early, the unhappiness of climbing the mountain, and the unhappiness of finishing the climb."

The boy, Zhang Jingfan, immediately retorted, "Jiang Libai! What do you know! All I lost was my bed? The point isn't about what I've already lost, but what I've gained right now! What have I gained?"

"It's exhaustion, it's aches and pains, it's hunger! This isn't an equal exchange at all; it's unilateral deprivation! It's capitalism's cruel exploitation of the proletariat's rest time!"

Zhang Jingfan became more and more agitated as he spoke, as if he hadn't climbed a mountain but had been sold to work in a mine. He rubbed his rumbling stomach, his expression becoming even more pained, "Hungry! So hungry my stomach is practically touching my back! So hungry I'm seeing stars! I feel like all my emotions and desires have vanished except for my appetite."

Hai Chi happened to hear this, and his round face beamed with even more joy. He thought to himself, "It's good to be hungry. Only when you're hungry will you have the most primal desire for food!"

He stepped forward at the opportune moment, palm up, and said in a loud yet gentle voice, "Amitabha, good morning, all benefactors. Climbing mountains is good for your health, it helps you expel the old and take in the new, excellent, excellent!"

Hearing the voice, Zhang Jingfan turned his head and saw a smiling, fat monk carrying a bag. He blurted out, "Oh, now monks are doing door-to-door sales? What are they selling? Blessed bracelets or amulets? Let me make it clear, we don't have any money. We've given all our money to the gym."

This wasn't the first time Hai Chi had been mocked, so he was somewhat immune to it by now. He still smiled and said, "You jest, benefactor."

"This humble monk, Hai Chi, is a monk from Kaiyuan Temple on this mountain. Seeing that you all have an affinity with Buddhism," he paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, "I have some newly made vegetarian snacks at the entrance of my temple today. They are light and palatable, perfect for replenishing after exercise. Please enjoy them for free."

"We're having a free tasting event for tourists at the entrance of our temple today. We have a few vegetarian buns here, which are light and refreshing, perfect for replenishing your energy after exercise. Please feel free to try them."

"Free?" Zhang Jingfan raised an eyebrow, clearly disbelieving. "There's no such thing as a free lunch, oh, breakfast."

"Besides," he puffed out his chest, a hint of inexplicable pride in his voice, "Boss Li said he's treating us lucky members to Biranju after our morning exercise! Have you heard of Biranju?"

"That's the most famous Cantonese noodle shop in the city, a long-established brand! They have all sorts of amazing dishes like custard buns, jade shrimp dumplings, and stir-fried beef noodles. And here's a free bun for you—"

"What, you want to eat fried chicken like us at Libai? Even if you starve to death, even if you jump off this cliff, you won't eat a single bite of this bun?" another girl next to her joked.

"Fang Chuchu! Are you trying to get yourself killed?! What are you saying, you brat?" Jiang Libai, the short-haired girl, blushed slightly when her friend brought up old grievances.

She pretended to pinch her exasperated best friend, but Fang Chuchu chuckled and easily dodged.

Provoked by this, Zhang Jingfan retorted, "That's right! I wouldn't eat it even if I jumped off this cliff!"

"Jingfan! How can you talk like that!" The capable woman in charge clearly spoke up to stop her.

Looking over, Hai Chi saw that the capable woman had a well-proportioned and healthy figure and a steady breathing, clearly indicating that she was the core of this group.

"Please don't be offended, Master Haichi." She nodded apologetically to Haichi first, and then explained, "Hello, Master, my name is Li Manwu, and I come from Xingcheng Dance and Fitness Center. Today, I brought my friends here for morning exercise and team building to experience life."

Hai Chi said, "This humble monk is unharmed."

Li Manwu nodded and then said to these troublesome members, "The team building activities I organized were based on advanced experience I learned from a close friend in Lucheng. I've summarized it as the 'Food Threshold Fitness Method'."

Seeing the members looking somewhat bewildered, she explained, "Simply put, only when you've tasted truly delicious food, your taste buds are elevated, and your taste threshold is raised, will you find that all those random snacks and heavily oiled, salty takeout food are utterly tasteless."

"This way, you'll naturally eat less and it'll be easier to stick to a healthy diet and exercise routine."

As Li Manwu spoke, a hint of reminiscence and emotion flashed in her eyes, "At first, I also thought that my best friend Song Zhihui was spouting some kind of nonsense. It wasn't until the week before last, after I ate the fried chicken cutlet made by Boss Lu outside our gym, that I really understood."

"The taste... ugh, after eating it, I can't bring myself to eat any other fried chicken. Most of you have tried it, so you should understand, right?"

Jiang Libai, Fang Chuchu, and several other members who had tried the food nodded in agreement.

Only Zhang Jingfan listened from the side, muttering softly, "So, Sister Wu, you mean we climb the mountain on empty stomachs so we can have a good meal at Biranju later, and then we won't care about anything else after that?"

His stance was extremely firm: "I think it's fine! Then I definitely won't eat these free buns! Yes, I'm not like Jiang Libai, I mean what I say! I wouldn't eat them even if I jumped off this cliff!"

Hai Chi, standing to the side, had already quietly opened the insulated bag, and the enticing aroma of steamed buns gently drifted into the noses of everyone present.