Chapter 180 Sixteen Questions about Journey to the West: For the sake of immortality and longevity, all officials have gone crazy!
"Mr. Wu, you are in prison, so of course you don't know how magnificent and magical the capital is today!" said the young constable, leaning on the railing and beginning to describe it vividly.
After listening to the young detective's story and combining it with his understanding of the young detective over the past few days, Wu Cheng'en finally believed it.
Through several stone windows as thick as bowls on the stone wall, he indeed saw that it had been raining heavily since last night, and many constables were also shouting loudly about holy water and miracles.
It turns out that all this is true!
For a moment, Wu Cheng'en was in a trance, and subconsciously he looked at the book "Journey to the West" which he had already finished writing and which was on his bedside.
He was implicated in the dispute among the three religions and originally thought that he would be executed like some officials.
But he had no choice because he was controlled by the Yan Party and the most powerful man in the Ming Dynasty - Yan Song!
What he didn't expect was that after being imprisoned, he was not executed but just locked up.
Well, there was no mention of how long he would be locked up, and even some daily necessities, such as writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone, were prepared for him.
Even the constables in the Ministry of Justice treated him with great courtesy. This was how I got to know the young constable named Xu. This young man was in his twenties, but he was very smart.
Not only that, this young detective also likes the storybook he wrote, Journey to the West: The Evil Slaying Demons, very much. Whenever he has free time every day, he will come to discuss the contents of the book with me.
After a few interactions, they became close friends regardless of age.
"Mr. Wu, you don't know how miraculous the holy water is," Xu Chang'an imitated the tone of the city's storyteller, with a vivid expression and intonation, and said, "Liu Er's mother, the butcher next door to me, has had eye problems for many years. She has seen countless doctors, but to no avail. Whenever she asked people, they would only say, 'Go home and wait to go blind!'"
"But it was just yesterday? Guess what?" Xu Changan said, gesticulating with joy, "I stood outside the house, and soon there was a thunder in the sky, and heavy rain, no! It was holy water! The holy water poured down, and then Liu Er's mother's eye disease was cured!"
"There is also Old Tang from the blacksmith shop and the locksmith from Sanli Bridge. They were all burnt and disfigured, but they were healed after being showered with holy water..."
"Some people say that the dragon sucking water up into the sky is the Dragon King sending down the rain. By the way, Mr. Wu, your storybook also says that there are four sea dragon kings in it. Is that true?"
"Mr. Wu, you don't know that your book Journey to the West is being read by many people. It's strange that the court didn't ban the book, but why didn't they let you out?"
As Xu Changan was talking, he gradually started to wander off topic and began to ask Wu Chengen about the contents of the book.
"My nephew also likes to read your stories," Xu Changan said, flipping through the Journey to the West, which he had read countless times, and said with a smile, "Although this kid is only a child, he is very smart. When he learned that you were living in the prison I was guarding, he insisted on asking me to ask you a few questions. What do you think?"
As he said this, Xu Changan chuckled a little embarrassedly.
At this time, Wu Chengen had come back to his senses after hearing that there were gods in the Ming Dynasty and that they had brought down miracles. He glanced at the embarrassed Xu Changan and smiled, saying, "Go ahead."
In fact, after being imprisoned in prison for a year, Wu Cheng'en had already let go of his worries.
After a year of reflection, he found that he was not suitable for being an official. However, it was too late to say anything now. He might be executed one day, or be locked up in this prison until he died.
Xu Changan is a nice guy. He has already made up his mind to revise Journey to the West several times and then pass it on to this guy.
I am not as good as great poets like Li Bai and Du Fu, but Journey to the West also caused a terrible disaster. It can be said that I have left some traces in this world, so it is worth my life in this world.
If there really are immortals and gods in this world, then perhaps there really are the legendary heaven, underworld, and six realms of reincarnation.
If one could see the immortals and gods after death and see the reincarnation in the underworld with one's own eyes, then his trip to this world would be worthwhile.
"Hehe, Mr. Wu is really nice!" Seeing that Wu Chengen was not bored, Xu Changan smiled and complimented him a few times, then said:
"Mr. Wu, first question, when the Monkey King was causing havoc in Heaven, Tathagata used a trick to deceive him. If they had fought with real swords and guns, an unprecedented battle of magical powers, how long could the Monkey King have lasted?"
"Also, was Tathagata injured? He felt that the process was written too hastily, without a detailed description of the fight."
"The second question is, the Heaven Court governs the three realms and has many talented people, so why can't they defeat the Great Sage? Why do they need the Buddha to defeat the demon?"
"The third question is, since the Buddha can take action, why doesn't the Taoist Taishang Laojun take action? The fourth question is, the Jade Emperor has cultivated for so many tribulations, why doesn't he take action?"
"The fifth question is, what about the other two of the Three Pure Ones? They never appear in the book, and there seems to be no description of them... In the seventh chapter, "The Great Sage escapes from the Eight Trigrams Furnace, and the Monkey Calms Down under the Five Elements Mountain," during the Heaven Peace Conference, Yuanshi Tianzun and other gods offered pearls, rare treasures, longevity fruits and exotic flowers to the Tathagata Buddha."
"Also, in the 24th chapter, "The Immortal of Wanshou Mountain Invites Old Friends, and the Traveler of Wuzhuang Temple Steals Ginseng", the Immortal Zhenyuan was invited by Yuanshi Tianzun to go to the Miluo Palace in Shangqing Heaven to listen to the lecture on Hunyuan Daoguo, so he was unable to personally receive Tang Monk and his disciples."
"In the entire Journey to the West, Lingbao Tianzun did not appear in person, but his name was mentioned in the Heaven Peace Assembly in Chapter 7, where he presented gifts to Tathagata Buddha together with other gods."
"The Three Pure Ones are the gods of Taoism. Do we need to offer gifts to Buddhism?"
"Sixth question, what do you think of the Taoist classic "Laozi Huahu Jing"? Taoism says that the Buddha was Laozi who transformed into a barbarian, but your book seems to be reversing the situation?"
"...the seventh question...the eighth question...the ninth question...the eleventh question..."
Xu Changan asked a series of questions in a row, like pouring beans.
The smile on Wu Chengen's face gradually disappeared. Is this a question asked by a ten-year-old? A naughty child, right?
However, Xu Changan had already asked too many questions and didn't care about Wu Chengen's gloomy face at all. He continued to ask, "The twelfth question, why do you want to obtain the scriptures?"
"Just to spread Buddhism to the East? Is it a test? Buddhism is boundless and can save all living beings. For a supreme wise man like the Buddha, why would he bother with a bunch of fools? Why not just spread Buddhism directly?"
"Well, my nephew said that your explanation is a little unreasonable. Is there any deeper hidden secret?"
"The thirteenth question, Taishang Laojun transformed Nuwa's name, refined stones to mend the sky, and saved the world of Yama. Sun Wukong is a stone monkey. Is there any relationship between Sun Wukong and Laojun?"
"The fourteenth question, who is Bodhi Patriarch?"
"..."
"Sixteenth question, why didn't Guanyin Bodhisattva subdue Sun Wukong herself, but recommended Erlang Xiansheng Zhenjun? Is it because she couldn't defeat him? If there is a ranking of magic power, how would it be ranked?"
"Well, for now, these are the sixteen main issues." After saying that, Xu Chang'an put away the page of paper in the book with an expectant look on his face, raised his head to look at Wu Cheng'en, but was met with a sullen old face.
"Um, Mr. Wu, what's wrong with you?" Looking at Wu Chengen, whose chest was heaving violently, Xu Changan was stunned. What happened to Mr. Wu? Was he angry?
"Xu boy, tell me, these questions were asked by your ten-year-old nephew? You are not here to find fault?" Wu Cheng'en was angry.
Is this the question a 10-year-old asks? Is this nitpicking? Is this the only question a 10-year-old would ask?
Look at what tricky questions this damn kid asks!
If Tathagata hadn't lied to the monkey, and they had fought with real swords and guns, how long could the monkey last? Was Tathagata injured?
What is this question? Are these important? Is fighting important? My book is the product of political struggle, okay? If you want to see the excitement, go listen to the book. It is so exciting!
There are so many talented people in the Heavenly Palace, why can't they defeat the monkey? What a strange question, did I say they can't defeat it?
Can't you see that I'm implicitly satirizing the incompetence of the imperial court? I deliberately wrote something more straightforward than the original, representing Confucianism to satirize the imperial court, just to make a big deal out of it!
Well, in the previous dispute among the three religions, Wu Chengen represented Confucianism, and many things were written by him at the instruction of Yan Song.
It can be said that the officially published version of Journey to the West that he wrote before is completely different from the first draft, and it can even be said to be a dark version of Journey to the West. Both people, gods and Buddhas are blinded by greed.
This is not a storybook for entertainment at all, okay? Why are you, a ten-year-old child, asking such irrelevant questions?
Will I tell you that these are not important and I didn’t write them at all? Will I tell you that these minor details were not written, just to tell you that Tathagata is better than the monkey, isn’t that okay?
Besides, Tathagata subdued the monkey, attended banquets, and chatted with the gods. Doesn’t this demonstrate his strength?
What about the Three Pure Ones? The two who didn't appear much, what's the use of them? Why did they appear if they are not used? If it wasn't for making the Dao sect clearer, I wouldn't have written it at all, okay?
Finally, who is that Bodhi?
Well, tools, tools, does it matter who he is?
Looking at these questions, Wu Cheng'en seemed to have seen a naughty child who was abandoned by a dog and kept asking him questions.
"Um, it's indeed my nephew!" At this time, Xu Changan also realized that he might have made Old Wu angry, and nodded quickly.
In fact, even the detectives in the Ministry of Justice, who were used to seeing high-ranking officials, respected Wu Cheng'en very much.
The reason is naturally because this person is Yan Song, a person specially arranged by Lord Yan.
The reason why Yan Song specially arranged Wu Cheng'en was mainly because Journey to the West had appeared in front of the emperor before.
And also received interesting comments from the emperor.
Besides, this person is just a chess piece, and an idle one at that. It doesn't matter whether he keeps him or discards him, so there is no need for Yan Song to take the risk of getting rid of Wu Cheng'en.
What if one day the emperor suddenly remembered this person and became interested in his words and wanted to meet him, where would he find him?
Therefore, Yan Song just made some casual arrangements, and then Wu Chengen lived a very comfortable and comfortable life in the Ministry of Justice prison.
"Hmph," Wu Chengen suddenly chuckled as he looked at Xu Changan, who was shrinking his neck and looking a little embarrassed. The anger in his chest dissipated for a moment, and then he shook his head and laughed at himself, waving his hand and said, "Why would an old man fight with a child?" After that, he looked at Xu Changan and said,
"If these questions were really thought up by your nephew, then he is extremely intelligent! If he is trained, he will surely become a great talent in the future. Don't delay... What's his name?"
"Hey!" Hearing that Wu Cheng'en was no longer angry and even praised his nephew, Xu Chang'an smiled and said, "My nephew's surname is Xu, his name is Zhonglin, and I'm from Nanjing."
"Three years ago, my brother and sister-in-law unfortunately passed away due to illness, so I brought my nephew from Nanjing to Beijing to take care of him..."
A red sun rose in the sky, and the orange-yellow sunlight with a hint of red set, illuminating most of the capital city.
However, at this time, the capital city was already bustling with people.
Peddlers and hawkers were rushing around, and in restaurants and inns, as long as there were crowds of people, there was only one topic of discussion, and that was that there were immortals in the world. There were even rumors that the imperial court had already contacted the immortals.
Of course, more people, from court officials to common people, are all waiting for an explanation from the court.
Senior officials from the Six Ministries, the Inspectorate, the Dali Temple, the Hanlin Academy and other departments were all waiting for the cabinet's response.
After all, the cabinet represents the emperor's will.
The people in the capital, and even the subjects outside the capital, who received the news at this time were waiting, waiting for news.
As time passed, it was soon noon and high-ranking officials from the six ministries, the Inspectorate and other places poured into the Wenhua Hall.
Li Chengwu and others had already sat in their respective seats, each looking eagerly towards the door, waiting for the cabinet and the two kings.
Everyone was feeling very nervous at the moment, but of course, they were more expectant, expecting the imperial court to reveal their chance of immortality to them.
Today they had no intention of discussing politics, they just wanted to know what the immortal fate was all about.
Of course, there were still many people who looked at Li Chengwu who seemed very calm from time to time. What Li Chengwu said yesterday was like a seed that took root and sprouted in their hearts. The calmer he appeared, the more they believed him.
So they are worried that even if the imperial court discloses the matter of the immortal fate to them, and the cabinet, or the second prince, extends an olive branch to them, will they really become a stepping stone?
In short, all the officials were in a mess at this moment.
Noticing the gazes of the officials and their uneasy expressions, Li Chengwu chuckled in his heart and looked towards the seats opposite that belonged to the elders of the cabinet, with a gleam in his eyes.
Behind him stood the Five Military Commanderies. He would build a giant to replace the cabinet. He would let the six ministries return to their rightful positions. As for the cabinet? It should return to its original form!
Finally, after waiting for about an incense stick of time, outside the Wenhua Hall, the elders of the cabinet were seen walking slowly towards us from afar.
"Lord Yan!" When Yan Song came to his seat, all the officials greeted him.
"Haha," Yan Song smiled and raised his hand to press it lightly, "No need to be polite, just sit down..."
After saying this, he sat down with the help of Yan Shifan and Hu Zongxian. He still looked old and frail.
Seeing this scene, everyone looked strange.
Is this still the 90-year-old man they saw walking briskly in the heavy rain yesterday?
If they had not seen it with their own eyes yesterday, they would have thought that the person they saw yesterday was not Yan Song, Lord Yan, at all.
"I've seen everything. Is there any need to pretend like this?" Li Chengwu snorted in his heart, with disdain emerging in his eyes.
After hearing Yan Song asking everyone to take a seat, he casually bowed and then sat down first.
Others may be afraid of you, Yan Song, but I am not. Behind me are the commanders-in-chief of the five armies. You, Yan Song, are the emperor's confidants, and the commanders-in-chief of the five armies are also the emperor's confidants. In fact, people like us are the real pillars of the royal family!
Li Chengwu usually behaves like a soldier, a barbarian, and a tough guy, so no one is surprised to see him acting like this at the moment.
However, for those who know his background, they can naturally see that his attitude stems from his confidence and backing.
The main reason why Li Chengwu acted like this in front of the cabinet was naturally to prepare for his next move. After all, he wanted to set up his own faction outside the cabinet.
If he doesn't act tough in front of the cabinet, how can others follow him with confidence?
Yan Shifan naturally noticed Li Chengwu's attitude. He frowned and was about to speak, but was stopped by Hu Zongxian. Then he turned around to look at his father, only to see that his father was silent.
"Hmph!" Yan Shifan flicked his sleeves and shook off Hu Zongxian's hand. He looked at Li Chengwu deeply. He remembered this man.
Hu Zongxian looked at Li Chengwu, his expression was calm and there was nothing unusual about him. His Qi-cultivation skills were exactly the same as Yan Song's.
Seeing this, Xu Jie, who was sitting next to Yan Song, just raised his eyelids and sat in his seat calmly.
He naturally knew why Yan Song had no reaction.
Because he could see, and Yan Song could naturally see, that Li Chengwu wanted to establish his own faction outside the cabinet, but what he could not see was that the emperor did not need another force outside the cabinet to compete with the cabinet, because this force was in conflict with Yan Song's role. Comparing the two, Yan Song was naturally more favored.
However, given the emperor's character, he would naturally not personally intervene in the fights among his ministers.
So, once this mountain is established, its enemies will be himself and others in the cabinet.
If he and his group win, Li Chengwu will definitely be kicked out. It's hard to say what his fate will be, but he will definitely not be able to make a comeback.
On the contrary, if Li Chengwu wins, then he and others will be kicked out of the cabinet and replaced by Li Chengwu.
It is even more serious than being kicked out of the cabinet, and it is very likely that all the honors previously received will be lost.
Yan Song, the old fox, saw through Li Chengwu's enemy and didn't want to clash with him. To put it bluntly, Yan's party was the ultimate enemy of any winner between the two sides.
At this time, for Yan Song, Li Chengwu was not qualified to be his opponent and play chess with him!
Although the Five Army Commanders and Yan Song were both the emperor's confidants, in his opinion, there were differences among confidants.
The commander-in-chief of the five armies had absolute control over military power, and Yan Song was a close minister, so many things had to be done by Yan Song.
One is a tool and the other is a hand. If a conflict really arises, the tool can be replaced at any time, but the familiar hands that can do any job and do it well cannot be easily replaced.
But Li Chengwu obviously did not realize this.
Thinking of this, Xu Jie glanced at Zhang Juzheng imperceptibly, but his eyes conveyed a message of "don't worry" to him.
"The two princes are here!" Just as the officials of the six ministries were expecting, waiting for the cabinet or the two princes to announce the immortal fate to them, and when the cabinet and Li Chengwu had different thoughts to each other, someone suddenly shouted, and everyone stood up.
Prince Yu, dressed in a red dragon robe, and Prince Jing, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, walked over.
"Please take a seat, no need to be polite." Prince Yu smiled and waved his hand. After he and Prince Jing sat at the top seat, he spoke, "In addition to the daily routine of political affairs, there is another important matter today!"
As he spoke, Prince Yu looked around at the people below.
Here it comes! The imperial court is really going to announce the immortal fate to us!
After hearing Prince Yu's words, all the officials' eyes suddenly brightened and they looked at Prince Yu hopefully.
At one side, young cabinet minister Yan Shifan, who took in everyone's expressions, sneered in his heart, "A bunch of people who can't see their own position clearly. If you don't join the cabinet, how can you have the chance to become an immortal?"
Thinking of this, Yan Shifan looked at Li Chengwu again, with a cold light flashing in his eyes, and he did not hide his hostility at all.
He has always been the one who gives others the cold shoulder, but today someone actually gave him the cold shoulder. He will let that person know who is truly second only to the emperor in the Ming Dynasty!
"You'd better not lose!" Yan Shifan said in a low cold voice.
Gao Gong, who was sitting next to him, heard the words, glanced at Yan Shifan beside him, and then thought about Li Chengwu's attitude towards Yan Song just now, and naturally understood what this villain Yan Shifan meant.
"Hmph," Gao Gong snorted, "We are all worried about the court. There is no winning or losing. Just take care of yourself, young minister!"
"From today on, in addition to establishing the Daming Immortal Palace, Daming will also establish the 'Daming Immortal Martial Department', which will be led by Jinyiwei Commander, Lu Bing. The Immortal Martial Department will be directly under the Emperor!" At this time, facing the expectant eyes of everyone, Prince Yu also spoke.
"Hypocrisy!" Yan Shifan also mocked Gao Gong in a low voice, "You are always so sanctimonious, aren't you tired? Haha, that's right, this is your nature, how can you be tired!"
"Hmph, I don't want to talk to you anymore!" Gao Gong snorted coldly and whispered, "Yan Shifan, last time you attacked me, I admit that I was no match for you, but you are not the only one who can practice the Immortal Martial Arts. If you are brave enough, let's make an appointment to compete again!"
"Come on, I'm not afraid of you!" When Yan Shifan heard Gao Gong take the initiative to challenge him to a fight, he did not want to be outdone and retorted, so he agreed.
Although fighting is something that only crude warriors would do, sometimes Yan Shifan felt that it would be difficult for him alone to win an argument with the Qingliu gang.
Sometimes it is better to take action directly if you can. It is much more satisfying than arguing, mainly because it makes him feel better.
Daming Xianwu Division? !
When Yan Shifan and Gao Gong were secretly making an appointment to fight, all the officials started talking about it again when they heard that the court was going to establish the Ming Immortal Palace and the Ming Immortal Martial Arts Bureau.
"May I ask Your Highness, which army is the Ming Xianwu Division mainly composed of? What are the personnel regulations?" At this time, an official with a quick mind immediately asked.
At this time, they have become extremely sensitive to the word "Xianwu" or even "Xian".
The Emperor is the principal of the Daming Immortal Palace, and the Cabinet's Secretary of Ceremonies and even the two princes serve as professors. They can't think of anything else other than it being related to immortal fate. So is it the same for the Daming Immortal Martial Arts Department?
If I ask this question at this time, His Highness should also reveal his destiny, right?
However, to their disappointment, Prince Yu just smiled slightly, and then said: "Da Ming Xianwu Division, you will know it in the future." After that, he continued: "Okay, let's start today's political discussion."
Hmm? Is that the end? Are you really not going to give an explanation to the officials and the people for what happened yesterday?
"It is just as I expected!" Li Chengwu was not surprised at all when he saw that Prince Yu had no intention of talking about what happened yesterday.
"Your Highness, yesterday's 'dragon sucking water' and the strange phenomena that occurred in the city have probably caused discussion among the people. I think the court needs to explain to the people of the world as soon as possible to prevent any accidents." The first to speak was the director of the Imperial Observatory, Fang Tianyi.
Seeing that Prince Yu was not going to reveal the story of the immortal fate, all the officials lost their patience.
Well, since the court intends to pretend that nothing happened and wants us to pretend that we know nothing, then today's political discussion will be all about everything related to yesterday's strange phenomenon. Let's see how the court can explain it.
The immortal fate is something that is worth their recklessness!
It's impossible that you high-ranking officials got the chance to become immortals, but we didn't even say a word to them, right? The Cabinet and the six ministries are equal, and there has never been a saying of who is the superior and who is the subordinate.
Why can the cabinet obtain the immortal opportunity, but we can't?
For a time, all the officials of the six ministries, except for people like Xu Fan, Li Zhiyuan, Yan Maoqing, and Luo Longwen, were dissatisfied.
Too much discrimination!
And it was too obvious!
Even if you don't want us to have a chance to be immortal, can you at least give me a perfunctory reason? How can we feel when you treat us differently and even disdain us?
"Your Highness, I have something to report as well," said Xu Zhengzhi, the Minister of Justice, who stepped forward and said, "This morning, many of my subjects were talking about the court's connection with the immortals. Some even said that the court was deceiving the people. Should we send people to arrest these people?"
"Your Highness," Huang Wenjie, the assistant minister of the Ministry of War, also spoke up, "Yesterday in the palace, there was a strange phenomenon of a dragon sucking water, and holy water fell from the sky to cure the people's diseases. This has attracted many people to gather. Should we let the Five Cities Military Department suppress it, or strengthen the defense..."
"Your Highness," Minister of Rites Zhao Chongli also spoke up, "Before this, overseas countries wanted to send envoys to our Ming Dynasty to pay tribute. I think this matter of the immortal in the Ming Dynasty needs to be settled as soon as possible."
"So as to prevent other countries overseas from knowing about this and thinking that the people of our Celestial Empire are ignorant and stupid, which would affect the national system..."
At this moment, all officials were surprisingly united.
Good! Since His Highness wants to play dumb with us, then we won't be polite. If you say it's a political discussion, then let's discuss politics.
Anyway, what happened yesterday must be explained clearly.
It can only be said that this is worthy of being an immortal fate and the path to immortality, which makes these officials willing to go dizzy and crazy for it.
"..."
(End of this chapter)
