The other monks were startled upon hearing this, and in a panic, they exclaimed, "Oh dear, what should we do? I don't want to die."
"Why panic? Don't be so cowardly."
In truth, the Abbot was also frightened, but he had to maintain order and couldn't afford to lose his composure first.
"Abbot, could it be that we've collected too much incense money recently, and the Buddha is displeased? Is He punishing us?"
The temple had more and more monks, and the expenses were increasing too, putting immense pressure on the Abbot. In utter helplessness, he resorted to asking every visitor who prayed to donate money. Due to the temple's prosperity, the Abbot had accumulated a considerable amount of wealth in this period, ensuring that the monks wouldn't have to worry about food and drink for the next ten years. Just when the Abbot was feeling pleased, the incident of the bloodied statue occurred, understandably causing the monks to overthink.
