Journey to the West: Upon seeing the Yellow-Eyebrowed Demon, why not pay homage?

The king, blinded by lust and lacking discernment, was unable to recognize a demon. Therefore, when Baihua Xiu fell for Kui Mulang, he immediately took a liking to her and said with a smile:

"There's no need to argue, no need to quarrel. Whether he's a demon or not is no longer important. What's important is that the Third Prince Consort and my Baihuaxiu can live a good life together in the future."

Pigsy glared and shouted, "King, what do you mean by this?"

"This means that this meal will serve as a farewell dinner for everyone. After the meal, I will prepare ten thousand taels of gold for the eminent monks as a token of my gratitude," said King Baoxiang.

Upon hearing the words "ten thousand taels of gold," Pigsy suddenly stopped being angry and turned to look at Yellow Eyebrows.

Following his lead, everyone else also looked at Huang Mei, waiting for him to speak so that the new situation could be determined.

For example, should we break off relations or compromise?

Huang Mei simply smiled at this and said to Sanzang:

"Now do you know the consequences? If you hadn't released those two demons back then, Baihua Xiu would have been too afraid to act rashly and would never have dared to do this."

Sanzang's pale face flushed red as he defended himself, saying, "I didn't expect things to turn out this way..."

Huang Mei stopped there, not deliberately trying to put him down: "Since the king has said so, then let's do as he wishes."

Sanzang hesitated and said, "If we just leave like this, wouldn't we be fulfilling the demon's wish? With right and wrong reversed and demons entering the court, this Baoxiang Kingdom will surely suffer disaster."

Huang Mei chuckled: "They don't appreciate your kindness, so why are you still so worried? Go away, go away, lest you lose face."

Sanzang pursed his lips and glanced sideways at the king:

"We don't need those ten thousand taels of gold. We monks can survive on the food of a hundred families, and we don't need such gold and silver."

But I urge Your Majesty to think carefully about whether you truly want us to leave like this.

Once we leave, there will be no one in Baoxiang Kingdom who can keep this demon in check.

The king's expression changed slightly; he was easily swayed and began to repeat himself: "You've given up ten thousand taels of gold so easily, which shows that the monk is truly a high-ranking monk. I apologize to everyone for my disrespect just now."

As he spoke, he stood up and bowed deeply to the pilgrimage team.

Huang Mei: "..."

have to.

He was convinced.

They wanted to persuade Tang Sanzang to leave as soon as possible, ending the ordeal in a way that was half-hearted and ultimately unsatisfactory.

Although the heavenly soldiers have not yet arrived, they will still receive credit after leaving Baoxiang Kingdom.

Unexpectedly, Sanzang moved the king with his "great generosity," and the king was also very easily swayed, which made it impossible for this ordeal to end hastily.

"Father..." Baihua Xiu called out softly, her heart sinking slightly.

King Baoxiang said gently, "My dear daughter, it's not that I don't trust you, nor that I don't trust Li Xiong, but as the ruler of a country, I cannot be swayed by one side's opinions."

So, let them stay and test Li Xiong.

If they ultimately fail to prove that Li Xiong is a demon, then I will accept him as my son-in-law and appoint him as Imperial Son-in-Law Commandant.

Having said that, he immediately asked Tripitaka, "What is the Master's opinion?"

"This humble monk thinks it's quite good."

Sanzang responded, then looked at Huang Mei, who was frowning and silent: "Huang Mei, if evil spirits rule the country, it will harm the people of the nation."

This is not just a matter for one family or one household; it concerns the safety of the entire Baoxiang Kingdom.

Therefore... I hope you can understand.

Huang Mei said, "Never mind, let's talk about it later."

Thus, this farcical "family reunion" ended in a temporary draw. The westward journey team and Kui Mulang both remained in the palace, even their residences were positioned facing each other from north to south, maintaining a balance of power.

But that very night...

Moon stars are rare.

The chirping of insects filled the air.

Sanzang summoned Huangmei and his disciples to the courtyard, looked them over, and asked softly, "Do you have any ideas on how to break this deadlock?"

Sun Wukong said with a smile, "Didn't Second Brother say during the day that this crisis stemmed from releasing those two demons?"

"Why don't I go and steal those two demon seeds now, and force Baihuaxiu to change her story?"

Sanzang shook his head: "This is not the right path."

"Then I'll listen to your righteous teachings," Sun Wukong said calmly.

Sanzang: "..."

If he had a solution, he wouldn't have asked everyone else.

"I support what my senior brother did."

Pigsy said, "Master, don't always treat those two demons as humans. Demons without immortal roots are just demons. Killing them is fine, and no one can say anything bad about it."

Sanzang's stubborn streak kicked in, and he waved his hand, saying, "Let's think about it again and see if there's a way to avoid killing."

"I, Old Sun, don't have any," Sun Wukong said, shrugging.

"Old Pig doesn't have any either," Pigsy chimed in.

Sha Wujing: "Me too."

Sanzang: "..."

Left with no other option, he looked at Huang Mei with pleading eyes and asked earnestly, "Huang Mei, you must have a way, right?"

Huang Mei smiled and nodded: "Yes!"

Tripitaka was overjoyed: "What plan do you have?"

Huang Mei said, "Tomorrow you should go and talk to the king and tell him to prepare eighteen beautiful palace maids for Li Xiong every night, starting tomorrow night, to keep him company while he drinks and makes merry."

Pigsy's Adam's apple bobbed slightly: "How can we let him have such a good opportunity?"

Huang Mei laughed and said, "A good thing? For people with weak willpower, temptation is more like torture."

Modern people often cannot understand why ancient tyrannical rulers would still be drinking and making merry when their armies were at the gates of a city.

But you can understand it by simply saying it another way. For example, tomorrow is the college entrance exam, but that doesn't stop you from watching videos, singing karaoke, and playing games tonight.

The more anxious they are, the more they love to play.

Thinking in reverse, with a formidable enemy at hand and temptations lurking, anxiety is escalating, yet one can only forcibly restrain the release of impulses—this is the torture and torment inflicted on the mind.

Huang Mei gambled on Kui Mulang and couldn't help himself.

If he wins the bet, it will prove that he is a monster.

It doesn't matter if you lose the bet; it will be a spiritual lash against Kui Mulang.

The longer it goes on, the harder it becomes to endure.

Moreover, based on Kui Mulang's performance in the original work, Huang Mei felt that his chances of winning were at least 70%!

The next day.

Following Huang Mei's instructions, Sanzang secretly approached the king and proposed arranging for eighteen palace maids to be given to Li Xiong every night.

The king was surprised and puzzled.

Sanzang then declared that this was the test: any demon with a weak will would indulge in wine and women, revealing its true nature.

The king had no further objections after hearing this, and that very night he invited Li Xiong to the Yin'an Palace for drinks, and selected eighteen young and beautiful palace maids to play music, sing and dance to entertain them.

After several rounds of drinks...

The king excused himself by saying he was tired and left, leaving only an old demon and eighteen young girls in the entire Silver Peace Palace. An ambiguous atmosphere began to linger in the palace.

However, Kui Mulang was wary of Huang Mei and Sun Wukong, so he dared not accept the food or drink, and even dared not drink too much, lest he lose control after drinking.

But he really couldn't bear to end his entertainment just like that, and kept thinking about playing a little longer. Before he knew it, it was getting late, but he was suffering terribly.

She endured it until late into the night, until Baihuaxiu came and dismissed the palace maids, finally ending the unbearable torment of her alluring beauty.

To his surprise, the next night, the king invited him to the Silver Peace Palace for drinking and merrymaking, and brought eighteen beautiful palace maids, not even the same group from the previous night.

Kui Mulang was extremely distressed, but he couldn't express his feelings to anyone else...