Interesting Journey to the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom (VII)

After the thieves had fallen asleep, Ao Tu and Guanyin Bodhisattva took incense to the cabinet and spoke some words about rebirth in the Pure Land.

At that moment, Wukong was inside the cupboard when he saw the old man and woman outside. He thought to himself, "Isn't this the old woman who kindly informed them of the situation before? It's pitiful that this kind old couple gave birth to such a Bandits son."

Wukong had originally planned to kill the Bandits after they led him and his disciples out of the city, but seeing that the old couple were kind and good people, he couldn't bear to kill them directly, so he said:

"Old man, old woman, stop bowing! Since you have such kind hearts, why don't you let us out? You've saved four of our lives; wouldn't that be a great act of kindness on your part?"

Bajie hurriedly chimed in, "Yes! Yes! As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Please save us!"

Upon hearing this, Ao Tu said, "Merchants inside, please don't complain. It's not that my wife and I are unwilling to help. It's just that we are old and frail, and there are more than twenty Bandits here. If we make even the slightest noise, you will all die. How can we save you?"

Guanyin Bodhisattva said, "Yes! Yes! You don't know, our son is skilled in martial arts, with sharp eyes and ears. If he opens the cabinet door even slightly, he will hear the noise and kill you all."

Wukong said, "If you can't save us, go outside and report to the authorities to save our lives."

Upon hearing this, Ao Tu said to Guanyin Bodhisattva, "Old Woman, he said we should report this to the authorities!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva said, "Old man, I'll take charge of the household for you!"

Ao Tu said, "Then I'll go report to the authorities; you stay here and keep watch."

Guanyin Bodhisattva agreed.

Ao Tu went outside to report to the city patrol office.

The officials there all recognized "Teacher Hua" and knew that he was the father of "Great Thief Hua Yunlong." When they saw "Teacher Hua" come to report to the authorities, they dared not neglect him and invited him in for questioning.

Ao Tu then said that his son had gone into the city and robbed a merchant, and that the man and his horse were now at home.

Upon hearing this, the officials hurriedly reported it to the commander-in-chief.

Upon learning this, the general mobilized Troops throughout the city overnight to apprehend the thieves. Troops from the Troops, Troops, Troops, and north of the city, along with lantern Troops, street patrollers, gatekeepers, and river watchmen, were all dispatched to arrest the thieves, totaling over a thousand men.

With troops and horses fully prepared, they hurried over.

Patriarch Styx had been awakened long ago. He climbed onto the eaves and saw many soldiers surrounding them. He quickly woke the bandits, shouting, "Get up! Get up! The soldiers are here!"

"Why are the soldiers here?" the Ground-Digging Tiger exclaimed in surprise.

The Patriarch Styx said, "It must be that old bastard who betrayed his own family for the greater good, attracting the government troops! They outnumber us and are too powerful to resist. Come with me quickly!"

When the bandits heard that the government troops were coming to surround them, they were all at a loss. Upon hearing this, they all dropped the White Horse and wooden chest and followed the Patriarch Styx to escape.

The soldiers gave chase and surrounded the bandits at the city gate.

Seeing that there was no way to escape, the Patriarch Styx kicked open the city gate and led his band of thieves away.

Seeing this, none of the officers and soldiers dared to give chase. They had no choice but to turn back, seize the White Horse and the cabinet, and give themselves an explanation.

The four of them thus fell into the hands of the government troops.

Tang Sanzang said, "Wukong, what should we do? We've been captured in this cabinet, with no way to escape or hide. If we open the cabinet tomorrow morning and find four monks inside, and then report to the King, won't we be ready to be killed?"

Wukong said, "Master, don't worry, I have my own Supernatural Ability to deal with that Tyrant. I guarantee you'll be fine tomorrow morning, so just sleep soundly!"

Tang Sanzang, still worried, asked, "Wukong, what method do you have?"

Bajie said, "Master, I know his method."

Wukong said, "Fool, how did you know?"

Bajie said, "I know you have Seventy-Two Transformations. When the cabinet door opens tomorrow morning, you'll turn into a Fly or mosquito and fly away, leaving the three of us to be killed. Then you can pack your White Horse and luggage and go back to Flower-Fruit Mountain."

Wukong said, "Master, don't listen to this fool's nonsense. He's still resentful that I didn't let his concubine come up to sing!"

Bajie muttered, "If I had chosen a young lady to come up here, I might not be stuck here!"

Tang Sanzang had no choice but to believe Wukong's words, but he was still worried and couldn't fall asleep. He finally slept after a long time.

Once Tang Sanzang was asleep, Wukong devised a plan. He left the palace, soared to the Palace, and conjured hundreds of Body Outside Body on the clouds. He then transformed his Golden Cudgel into hundreds of razors, summoned the Earth Gods and City Gods, and ordered them to lead the shaving of the Inner Court Imperial Palace.

Afterwards, Wukong returned to the cabinet without mentioning it again.

The next morning at dawn, the palace Palace Maids and Eunuch got up to wash and dress, only to find that they had all lost their hair, which filled them with shock and fear.

When the Empress awoke, she found her hair gone. Looking around, she saw an old monk sleeping nearby and cried out in surprise, waking the King.

When the King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom awoke, he was astonished to see that the Empress was bald and asked why. The Empress pointed to his head and said, "Your Majesty, it's your hair!"

"Hair?" The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom touched his head, but found not a single hair. Terrified, he was shaken to his core and his spirit was scattered. Later, he heard that everyone in the Palace, young and old, had lost their hair overnight. He then guessed that it was a matter of ghosts and spirits, retribution for killing the monk, and ordered everyone not to mention the matter.

When the court assembly was held, all the civil and military officials went up to the palace to apologize.

The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom asked, "Why do you all plead guilty?"

The civil and military officials said, "Your Majesty, we do not know why, but overnight, all of our hair has fallen out. We beg Your Majesty's forgiveness for our rudeness!"

Upon seeing this, the King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom wept, abdicated his Throne, and said:

"Like all my ministers, and everyone in the palace, high and low, lost their hair overnight. From this day forward, we will never again dare to kill monks!"

The officials bowed and knelt in obeisance.

The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom then returned to his Throne and asked, "Is there anything to report from the city? If not, court is dismissed."

Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom, a small country with a small population, is not a big deal.

The general stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, last night Hua Yunlong came to the city to harass and rob merchants. Your Majesty led your troops and captured a chest of stolen goods and a stolen horse!"

Upon hearing this, the King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom exclaimed with delight, "Hua Yunlong has been a scourge to our country for so long that we have been unable to subdue him. I never expected that my beloved minister could accomplish such a feat, capturing the stolen goods. Bring them up for my inspection."

Upon hearing this, the general ordered his men to bring up the White Horse chest.

Tang Sanzang, hiding in the cabinet, asked fearfully, "Wukong, what should we say to His Majesty later?"

Wukong laughed and said, "Master, don't be afraid, I've taken care of everything. The King will want to become our disciple as soon as the cabinet is opened!"

Bajie said, "This Monkey is lucky to be alive, let alone talk about becoming a disciple?"

Just then, the cabinet was carried to the Court Hall.

The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom ordered the gates to be opened.

The soldier opened the cabinet.

Bajie jumped out first, followed by Wukong, Sha Wujing, and Tang Sanzang.

Upon seeing these four strange monks, the officials were all terrified and scattered in all directions.

Throne King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom hastily abdicated, asking, "Where have the four elders come from?"

Tang Sanzang said, "This humble monk is on the orders of the Tang Emperor in the Eastern Land, traveling to the Great Thunderclap Temple on Spirit Mountain on Western Heaven to worship Buddha True Scriptures."

The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom said, "If you were seeking scriptures, why were they hidden in a cabinet? And why are you involved with that notorious thief Hua Yunlong?"

Wukong laughed and said, "Because I heard that His Majesty killed monks, I dared not enter the city in my Original Form. So I changed into ordinary clothes and disguised myself as a merchant to make things easier. Unexpectedly, I encountered Hua Yunlong robbing me on the road. I, Old Sun, drove him away, and that's how I became enemies. I stayed overnight at Baofang Inn. Fearing that I would be discovered, I rested in the counter, but Hua Yunlong stole it out. Later, I was captured by the general."

The King of the Dharma-Extinguishing Kingdom rejoiced:

"The elder actually possesses such martial arts skills, capable of defeating Hua Yunlong?"

Bajie laughed, "My senior brother's martial arts are so good that even ten Hua Yunlong couldn't defeat him with just one hand!"