Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

At the same time, Su Yuan followed Fangzheng’s gaze and happened to see a stray dog and cat playing under a tree.

After a while, Fangzheng remained silent.

Su Yuan asked, “Venerable One, are you sympathizing with those stray cats and dogs? Sigh, in this society, there are always people who like to buy them, but not raise them. It creates a problem of stray cats and dogs everywhere.”

Fangzheng remained silent.

Su Yuan found it difficult to continue a conversation…

At that moment, Qian Ying and Su Cancan also packed up and came over.

Qian Ying asked curiously, “What are you two looking at? What are you talking about?”

Su Yuan smiled bitterly. “Looking at the stray dogs and cats.”

Su Cancan leaned on the window sill and said, “Mother, why don’t we adopt one?”

“No.” Qian Ying firmly rejected her before changing the topic. “Venerable One, what are you looking at?”

Su Yuan was just about to say that the Venerable One was in a daze and wouldn’t reply when he saw Fangzheng smile. “Nothing. This Penniless Monk saw these cats and dogs and suddenly thought of a story.”

“Story? What story?” Su Cancan asked curiously.

Su Yuan and Qian Ying were curious. “What story?”

Fangzheng said, “This Penniless Monk was also very mischievous when he was young. There was once when he grabbed a dog and insisted that he climb a tree, but the dog did not go up. Instead, it nearly bit This Penniless Monk.”

Hearing this, Su Cancan smiled and said, “You deserved it.”

Fangzheng continued, “Later on, I couldn’t figure out why. I went back to ask This Penniless Monk’s master for the reason. This Penniless Monk asked, ‘Master, why can’t a dog climb a tree? I taught him how to climb a tree out of good will. Why did he bite me?’”

“What did your master say?” Qian Ying was curious as well.

Fangzheng smiled. “This Penniless Monk’s master didn’t say a word. Instead, he brought This Penniless Monk down the mountain to catch some fish. After a whole afternoon, we caught a palm-sized carp. Then, Master handed me the carp and got me to teach it how to run on land…”

Su Cancan smiled brightly. “Isn’t this silly? How can fish run?”

Fangzheng said, “That’s right. That’s what This Penniless Monk said as well. Therefore This Penniless Monk’s master said, ‘That’s right. Why would a fish run on land? It’s something that goes against nature. If it can’t do it, why are you forcing it?’”

The moment Fangzheng said that, the smiling Su Cancan was stunned.

Su Yuan and Qian Ying were stunned as well. They fell into deep thought.

When Fangzheng saw this, he smiled and didn’t say a word. He continued looking at the cat and dog downstairs. After a long while, he said faintly, “Letting a dog climb a tree will always make him think that he’s a piece of trash. A child who loses his confidence is like a ship that has lost its engine and compass. It will just follow the flow… So what if it goes to a City of Gold because of the wind? It’s not a place he wants to go. Without a dream, how is it any different from a useless salted fish?”

Salted Fish secretly pinched Fangzheng when he heard the last part of the sentence.

Fangzheng frowned. He didn’t retaliate. Instead, he silently made a note of Salted Fish’s action. He planned to settle the debt when he returned.

Upon hearing Fangzheng’s words, Su Yuan and Qian Ying trembled as they subconsciously looked at Su Cancan.

Fangzheng smiled when he saw the trio deep in thought. He silently retreated and left the Su family after casting A Golden Millet Dream.

The trio didn’t know when they woke up. In short, the moment they woke up, Su Yuan and Qian Ying asked Su Cancan in unison, “Cancan, do you want to learn drawing tomorrow?”

Then, both of them stared at each other and laughed.

Su Cancan covered her smiling face in disbelief and screamed, “Really?!”

“When did Daddy ever lie to you? However, if you want to thank someone, it’s best you thank Master… Uh, where’s Master?” Su Yuan was about to point to his side when he realized that Fangzheng had disappeared.

Su Cancan quickly searched the house but did not see Fangzheng. “He seems to have left.”

Qian Ying walked over and wrapped her arm around Su Cancan’s shoulder. “Cancan, you met your benefactor. This master is a capable person. His words enlightened your dad and me. To be honest, we all understand such reasoning, but for some reason, the moment he said that, we thought seriously and hard about it. In the past, I thought that having a good future, a good job, without needing to worry about food or anything is better than anything. But from the looks of it…”

Su Yuan nodded. “From the looks of it, that would be nothing more than being a beautiful puppet. Cancan, pursue what you want. Dad and Mom will support you!”

“Thank you, Daddy and Mommy…” Su Cancan burst into tears. She threw herself into her mother’s arms and wailed uncontrollably while crying, “Thank you, thank you… Boohoo… It’s been more than ten years. I’ve been waiting for this day. Sob… Mommy, let me tell you, I secretly participated in a national competition and got second in the city. I got a National Outstanding Award…”

Upon hearing this, Qian Ying and Su Yuan were clearly taken aback. They exchanged looks and saw the regret in each other’s eyes. In their eyes, Su Cancan had always been a stupid child who liked to mess around and not do anything well. They never thought that this stupid child could achieve such a feat through her self-study and secret practice!

The duo thought of Fangzheng’s story, as well as Fangzheng’s words. It steeled their thoughts. Perhaps, nurturing a child’s interest and talent was the best way of nurturing.

While being hugged by her parents, Su Cancan felt a sense of bliss that she had never felt before despite her crying. At the same time, a shadow appeared in her heart. It was a tattered robe and a fair and handsome young monk… She mumbled inwardly, “Where did you go? Although you aren’t as handsome as Abbot Fangzheng… Thank you…”

“Master, aren’t you spending the night at the Su family? If we keep going, we will be sleeping on the road,” Salted Fish mumbled.

Fangzheng said, “So? With my physique, sleeping on the road is fine.”

Salted Fish thought that it made sense. Therefore, he changed the topic and asked, “Master, you left so quickly just now. Why did you return to eavesdrop?”

Fangzheng rolled his eyes. “I left to give them some space to vent their personal emotions. Eavesdropping was to see the results. If what I said didn’t work, I’ll have to find another solution…”

Salted Fish was taken aback before smacking his lips. “Master, I don’t agree with what you did. Back when I was online, I saw people say that although the current education isn’t the best, it’s already the fairest method. A poor child has to rely on this to get a new lease on life… By tricking them into letting their child learn drawing, what happens if she doesn’t get into university? Even if she does, it’s hard to survive with just drawing, right?”

Fangzheng said with a smile, “There’s no job in the world that’s best for survival. All work is left to those who have better skills. If people don’t work hard, even doing construction work will do. All professions have their experts. When one is at the peak of their line—no matter which line—life wouldn’t be too bad. As for learning, that’s indeed a problem.

“However, the Su family doesn’t have such a problem. Her family has the conditions to support her on the path of drawing.

“As for what you said, those are ordinary families. For them, in the current society, they can temporarily put aside everything and work hard for their future. With a future, they can recall their original aspirations. That’s also a choice. Sometimes, dreams need to be grounded in reality; otherwise, they’ll be building castles in the sky. This is just a helpless reflection of reality…”