Chapter 57: Queen Mother

Journey to the West: Starting by Joining the Chat Group, Main Text Volume, Chapter 57, Queen Mother. Wuming Mountain, Wuming Temple.

Beneath the Golden Body of Tathagata Buddha, the Old Monk was sternly criticizing Xuanzang, holding a whip in his hand, truly like a dogmatic old schoolmaster.

"In front of Buddha, Xuanzang, tell me, how many precepts have you broken since going down the mountain?" the Old Monk said.

"Broken precepts? They don't exist, Master! Don't you understand your own disciple yet?"

Xuanzang's expression was serious, looking very sincere, firmly refusing to mention the matter of breaking precepts.

"It is precisely because I understand that I know exactly how flowery the tricks in your belly are."

The Old Monk swung his arm, and a willow-branch whip lashed out.

Whether intentional or unintentional, the speed of the whip was very slow, so Xuanzang moved his body aside without hesitation, dodging the lash.

"Rebellious disciple, you still dare to dodge?" The Old Monk was so angry he puffed out his beard and glared.

"Master, Buddha is watching! You wouldn't want Buddha to see you whipping your own disciple, would you?

Doesn't our Buddhism advocate for convincing people with virtue and sacrificing oneself for others?

If a disciple makes a mistake, it is generally the master's fault, so you might as well punish yourself.

Then, the disciple will be moved, and only then will I respect you even more," Xuanzang explained.

After hearing this, the Old Monk's white eyebrows arched, his anger accumulating to its peak.

Xuanzang pressed his palms together and continued, "Master, 'Jingang Angry Eyes' is not as good as 'Bodhisattva Lowered Brows'; you are so high in cultivation, surely you know this? Stop being angry; the disciple is doing this for your own good."

"'Jingang Angry Eyes', 'Bodhisattva Lowered Brows'!"

The Old Monk's gaze shifted slightly, he lowered his arm and said:

"Disciple, you still know this principle; these years of studying Buddhist Dharma haven't been in vain."

"Forget it, let's not talk about breaking precepts. Didn't I tell you to return every three days? Why has there been no news for so long?"

The Old Monk questioned him, although he had secretly known everything all along, he still pretended to know nothing.

"I got lost, Master, do you believe it?" Xuanzang said.

"Sigh, Xuanzang, looking at that rebellious nature of yours, I don't know if you can handle that great Buddhist undertaking in the future," the Old Monk sighed.

"If I can't, then just replace me," Xuanzang said nonchalantly.

"You are quite open-minded? Hehe! If only it were that simple, but it's none of my business anyway.

In any case, you are the one to seek the scriptures, you are the one to endure the tribulations, and you are the one to experience the suffering," the Old Monk said.

The Old Monk had not kept the matter of Scripture Seeking from Xuanzang; he had been subtly influenced by it since childhood.

"Master, actually, the disciple has always had a guess. Is there a possibility that you are a lackey of Buddha sent here to be my Protector of the Dao?"

Xuanzang asked suddenly, using a half-joking tone.

The Old Monk was not angry and said bluntly:

"Xuanzang, you are so clever, haven't you guessed? Is there a possibility that you are not you?"

"What do you mean?" Xuanzang frowned slightly.

"Xuanzang, go be the Scripture Seeker, go be a Scripture Seeker who is not defined," the Old Monk said.

"..., Master, go take a sh*t, go take a sh*t that is not defined! Taking a sh*t is easy, and you'll be relaxed too!" Xuanzang replied.

Playing with memes, huh? Who doesn't know how!

"Smack!"

The Old Monk couldn't hold it in anymore, slapped Xuanzang on the head, and scolded:

"In front of Buddha, how can you speak such filthy words? Where is the decorum?"

"Master, you started it. Don't blame me!" Xuanzang spread his hands.

"Get out, get out, get out, go face the wall. From now on, without my permission, you are not to leave the mountain.

Also, I punish you with one month of no meat."

The Old Monk waved his hand, driving Xuanzang away.

"Alright!"

Xuanzang left, his face full of smiles. This hurdle was considered passed; the Old Monk said it was his business, but whether to listen or not was his own decision.

And the Old Monk looked at the statue of Buddha sculpted in Golden Body before him, slowly taking out a chicken leg he had kept warm in his pocket for a long time.

This Xuanzang didn't return early or late, but happened to return just when he was killing a chicken to add to his meal.

Since he had returned, as a master, he couldn't just turn a blind eye and let him go to Chang'an.

At this moment, taking out the chicken leg and thinking about what Xuanzang had just said, his brows furrowed tightly.

How could he eat this now? His appetite was gone!

……

Heavenly Court, Thirty-Second Heaven, Yaochi.

As soon as Yang Jian entered the Southern Heaven Gate, he was summoned to Yaochi.

Yaochi was the Queen Mother's territory, just as the High Heaven Palace was the Jade Emperor's territory.

The Queen Mother and the Jade Emperor, one manages the Three Realms, the other manages the female immortals; although the two govern the Three Realms together, they are not a married couple in the common sense, but more accurately, they are colleagues.

To Yang Jian, in some respects, the Queen Mother was more terrifying than the Jade Emperor.

The Queen Mother is a woman, so she is very sensitive to certain things, unlike the Jade Emperor who might sometimes turn a blind eye.

"This minor god pays respects to the Empress!"

After arriving at the main hall of Yaochi, Yang Jian cupped his hands, his expression respectful.

"Yang Jian, there is no need to be so humble. You are the War God of the Heavenly Court and the god in charge of punishment; how can you be a minor god?"

On the golden Phoenix throne in Yaochi, a noble and graceful woman sat there.

This woman had a very beautiful face, was filled with immortal aura, her makeup was dignified, and wearing a wide golden phoenix robe could not hide her graceful figure.

This is a woman full of mature temperament, her whole being written with self-confidence.

She is the Queen Mother, the most noble woman in these Three Realms.

The Queen Mother's voice is ethereal yet full of majesty; she is awe-inspiring without anger, making people involuntarily lower their heads.

"In front of Your Highness, Yang Jian can only be considered a minor deity. I wonder if Your Highness has any tasks to entrust to this minor deity?" Yang Jian said.

The Queen Mother's majestic pupils glanced at Yang Jian, and she asked casually, "How is your sister doing lately?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, everything is as usual."

Yang Jian replied, but his heart suddenly skipped a beat; why did the Queen Mother suddenly ask about Yang Chan?

The Queen Mother's expression remained unchanged, and she said indifferently, "After all, your sister has not been an immortal for long, and her immortal age is not yet ten thousand years. The road to immortality is long, and life is eternal. For a woman to guard Mount Hua alone, as time passes, her thoughts will change, and she will be unable to endure the loneliness. Yang Jian, you must keep a close watch on her!"

"Yes, thank you for the reminder, Your Highness." Yang Jian lowered his eyes, but cold sweat could not help but appear on his back.

The Queen Mother suddenly stood up, pondered for a second, and said, "Yang Jian, how much do you know about the Journey to the West?"

"It seems to be related to Western Buddhism? It appears to be the Eastern Transmission of Buddhist Dharma," Yang Jian said.

In fact, he only had a superficial understanding; he was not very familiar with the Journey to the West, and since it was a matter for Buddhism, he did not pay much attention to it.

"It is indeed the Eastern Transmission of Buddhist Dharma. This matter involves Jinchanzi, the reincarnated chief disciple under Rulai, traveling to the Western Heaven to seek the true scriptures, with all the immortals and Buddhas in the sky cooperating with Buddhism to set up the Eighty-One Tribulations," the Queen Mother said.

"Jinchanzi!" Yang Jian's expression changed imperceptibly once again; he had just met Xuanzang.

He did not expect that he was actually the mastermind of the Journey to the West! However, this was a matter for Buddhism; why was the Queen Mother getting involved?

"I wonder what Your Highness needs this minor deity to do?" Yang Jian asked.

The Queen Mother closed her eyes, took a sharp breath, and then said:

"This first tribulation should be handled by our Heavenly Court, so Yang Jian, I am entrusting you with a task: you go and complete the first tribulation. Although it is to cooperate with the Buddhist journey to the west, you must ruthlessly increase the difficulty for me; it would be best to make him stop there!"

"Does Your Highness mean to silence him?" Yang Jian hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice.

"Silence who! You are not allowed to harm Jinchanzi, just increase the difficulty of the tribulation!" The Queen Mother suddenly raised her voice.

"Uh..." Yang Jian was stunned; wasn't this making things difficult for him?

But why did the Queen Mother look so resentful at this moment?

This is not normal!

PS: So hungry!