You, a monster, still want to travel to the West?

"Ha ha……"

Zhu Ganglie smiled bitterly, reached out to hold the wine jar and walked to the stone table, casually opened the seal, tilted his neck back and poured the cold wine into his stomach.

Seeing this, Qingxin thought for a moment, closed the door of the bamboo house, and sat down at the table with the white snake in his arms.

Gulp, gulp, gulp—the sound of drinking wine was endless.

After a long time, when the old pig had finished drinking the full jar of wine bit by bit, he threw the jar to the ground, making a bang and breaking sound. Xia Zhiming shook his tail and handed him another jar.

"Burp~" Zhu Ganglie burped, hugged the wine jar to his chest, reached out to peel off the layers of wine seals and took another sip, muttering: "I, the old pig, can't figure it out..."

"I can farm, I can work, I can do the work of a hundred people, I saved money, I built a house, and I never complained, but how could I end up like this?"

Xia Zhiming spat out his snake tongue and asked, "Did you figure it out after you went back?"

"I asked, but all I heard was my father-in-law's excuse. He said that there were no relatives or friends visiting, and his reputation was not good, so he wanted to cancel the marriage."

Zhu Ganglie took a sip of his wine and said, "Isn't it ridiculous? He saw that I was alone, so he took me in as his son-in-law to take care of him in his old age. Now he actually says such words to mock me."

"As for reputation..." Zhu Ganglie laughed angrily, "I'm not worthy enough to be his son-in-law?"

Qing Xin asked tentatively, "What does your young wife say?"

"She's still young, and a woman herself. What's the point of saying more? I wanted to take her back to the mountains, but I was worried she wouldn't be able to endure the hardship, so I sent her back."

"Forget it, I won't say anymore. I was so angry that I couldn't sleep all night. I'm going back to sleep first."

Having said that, Zhu Ganglie shook his ears like a palm-leaf fan, picked up the wine jar in his arms, staggered on the snow, and walked straight into the forest.

Watching his figure gradually disappear into the distance, Qing Xin didn't sit still for long. She stood up and walked to the bamboo house, picked up a broom and began to sweep the snow in the courtyard. As she was sweeping, she suddenly asked softly, "Zhiming, what do you think?"

In the girl's arms, Xia Zhiming shrank his neck and spit out his tongue, laughing: "What can I say? I'm laughing at his father-in-law for being so clueless, and at Zhu Ganglie for being so utterly treated like a donkey."

"Zhiming, are you angry?"

"That's not the case. I just think Old Pig isn't worth it."

After saying that, Xia Zhiming nuzzled the girl's soft skin and said cheerfully, "It's okay. Tang Sanzang and the monkey should be here next spring. Given his current situation, I'm afraid we can't keep him in this world."

In the courtyard, Qingxin paused while sweeping the snow. After a moment's thought, she said, "I don't think it's that simple."

"How to say?"

"That girl named Gao Cuilan was still calling him husband yesterday."

"..."

"Knowingly, prejudice is a mountain that outsiders find difficult to overcome, but there are also fools who are willing to cross it on their own..."

"Qingxin, I like it!"

"Good~"

……

————————————————————

The next day, at nightfall.

In the bamboo house, Qingxin took Xia Zhiming to sit in the bathtub and poured warm water on him to wash his body.

After a while, followed by a charming call, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Noticing this situation, Qingxin paused and looked at Xia Zhiming, who was obviously in a bad mood and raised his snake body and kept spitting out its tongue. He couldn't help but chuckle with his hands covering his lips, stretched out his hand to pry open the snake's kiss, and his body instantly turned into a stream of light and disappeared into it.

Above the tub, Xia Zhiming wagged his tail, creating a gap and appearing outside the room in an instant. He looked at Zhu Ganglie and Gao Cuilan, who stood at the doorway with their backs to him, and said with his tongue spitting out his snake tongue, "Old Pig, if you can't explain yourself today, I'll give you a beating."

Hearing the human voice, Zhu Ganglie and Gao Cuilan quickly turned their heads and saw a white snake as white as jade floating in the air, sticking its head out and spitting out its tongue, looking very unfriendly.

Seeing this, Gao Cuilan trembled instantly, took a step back, and hid beside Zhu Ganglie by grabbing his clothes.

Zhu Ganglie wasn't surprised at all. He turned to his wife and said, "Don't panic, my wife. They are the guardian spirit officials of the Lihen Heaven, which is above the Thirty-three Heavens. They are immortals with proper celestial positions. They are inseparable on a daily basis. One of them appears as a girl, and the other as a snake. Don't be frightened."

Gao Cuilan nodded timidly upon hearing this, and then her husband bowed and said, "My dear Immortal friend, I am sorry to bother you. I came to your house in the middle of the night because I have something to ask of you."

"That's quite unusual," Xia Zhiming glanced at Gao Cuilan and said with a smile, "You come here every day to beg for food, and I've never heard you say the word 'beg'. But now that you've brought your wife here, why are you being so respectful?"

"Haha..." Zhu Ganglie laughed innocently. "I went to Gao Laozhuang today and saw my father-in-law trying to break off the engagement with my wife. It ended up being a quarrel between father and daughter, so I decided to take my wife back to live in the mountains."

"It's just that my wife is really weak, and the Yunzhan Cave is even more desolate. I'm a warrior and a rough man, and I'm worried that my wife might be ill, so I thought I'd ask you two for help. What should I buy for her?"

Xia Zhiming smiled when he heard this, turned to look at Gao Cuilan, and asked with a smile: "I understand, you eloped with him?"

Gao Cuilan blushed and nodded hesitantly, "Well, Immortal, please don't laugh at me..."

Xia Zhiming's figure flashed and turned into a human form. He shook his head and smiled, "I'm not laughing at you. I'm just happy."

No matter what era, it takes immense courage for a woman to elope for her lover. He really didn't expect that this little girl could make such a decision.

After saying that, Xia Zhiming took out a folding fan from his sleeve, opened a gap beside him, turned around and said with a smile: "Come on, take me to see your home."

"Haha, lady, let's go!"

"Husband, please pull me gently..."

……

Chapter 214 Sun Wukong: Cricket and two monsters.

Fuling Mountain Yunzhan Cave——

When Xia Zhiming brought Lao Zhu and his wife through the gap and arrived at Yunzhan Cave, he looked at the pigsty in the cave with the help of the moonlight that filtered through the cracks in the rocks above his head. He turned around and teased, "Lao Zhu, you dare to elope with someone in this shabby hole?"

Zhu Ganglie's face flushed instantly, and he took his wife's hand and said flatteringly: "I just haven't thought about buying any property, so I can only ask you for help."

Xia Zhiming shook his head, looked around briefly, then walked to the south wall with his folding fan and said, "Your cave is not suitable for mortals to live in. Dig through the cliff and then open a cave. Only when there is sunlight can you live comfortably."

Crack! — the sound of a mountain breaking apart!

"Open the windows in the room to ventilate it so that it won't get suffocated."

Buzz! —The sound of swords!

"Seal the cave walls to prevent water and moisture, so as to prevent the roots of disease from taking root."

Woohoo! —The sound of burning!

"Don't use stone furniture too much to avoid catching a cold. I'll change it for you and buy some more sheets and clothes."

Snap! Xia Zhiming snapped his fingers, then pulled out a few bunches of insect repellent incense from his sleeve and handed them to the stunned two men, saying cheerfully, "Your wife is fine, but why are you so shocked?"

Hearing his words, Zhu Ganglie glanced at the newly renovated cave, swallowed his saliva, and said happily: "My immortal friend, you are so considerate of others. You really deserve to be born with a wife in heaven."

"If you can talk, talk more. I love to listen."

Beside her, Gao Cuilan blinked, looking at the unserious Xia Zhiming in front of her, recalling the scene of thunder and fire in the cave just now, she couldn't help but curl the corners of her mouth - Immortal, so this is it?

Noticing her smile, Xia Zhiming unfolded his folding fan and waved it, "Alright, this cave is habitable now. As for the remaining small items, you two can discuss and buy them one by one. I won't keep any more."

After saying that, Xia Zhiming casually opened a gap, stepped through, and disappeared into the cave in an instant.

At the same place, Zhu Ganglie and Gao Cuilan looked at each other, one looked happy and the other looked shy, and they held hands and walked around their new home.

After a long time, Zhu Ganglie suddenly said, "My lady, I will teach you how to practice from tomorrow."

"Why do you mention this, my husband?"

“Because it’s worth it.”

"..."

the other side--

Xia Zhiming stepped across the gap and appeared in the bamboo house.

As soon as he landed, Xia Zhiming rolled up the snake letter and casually spat out a jade leaf. In a flash of fluorescent light, Qingxin fell into his arms.

Looking at her lover who was staring at her, Qing Xin raised her hands and pinched his ears, saying softly, "Be good, I'll go take a bath later."

"Wait, let me do it this time."

"Hehe, okay~"

—————————————————————

In the following months, Xia Zhiming and Qing Xin hardly saw Zhu Ganglie again. They only saw him traveling by the wind and clouds every day, still leaving early and returning late, but he was no longer going to Gao Village.

As for what he was going to do, Zhu Ganglie once told the man and the snake that in winter, hungry tigers were rampant everywhere, and there were notices at the gates of many county governments calling for the extermination of tigers. He relied on his cultivation to earn some bounties, and then sold tiger skins and bones. He could earn dozens or even hundreds of taels of silver a day, saving a lot of money for his wife.

Qing Xin and Xia Zhiming naturally expressed their admiration for the fact that his abilities had finally been put to good use - wasn't this much better than when he was guarding the dozens of acres of land in Gao Village?

Time flies, years pass by, and before we know it, it is spring again. It is the season when flowers bloom, but when we see that——

The jade horse's hooves are soft against the grass, and the willows are swaying with golden threads in the fresh dew.

The peach and apricot trees in the forest are competing for beauty, and the ivy around the path is full of vitality.

The mandarin ducks sleep on the sandbank in the warm sun, and the butterflies are tame in the fragrance of flowers in the mountain stream.

……

One day, as it was getting dark, on a small path outside Fuling Mountain, a monkey in monk's robes was leading a white horse with a monk on its back. It was Sun Wukong and Tang Sanzang and his party.

As the master and his disciples walked, they saw Gao Laozhuang at the foot of the mountain in the distance.

Sanzang was delighted to see the village and said quickly, "Wukong, we've been through a lot of hardships along the way. How about we go and ask for shelter today and continue our journey tomorrow?"

Sun Wukong chuckled and said happily, "Master, don't worry. I have a pair of divine eyes that can see the heavens above and the underworld below. I can tell good from bad and distinguish good from evil. Let me take a look and see if it's a good place to go."

When Tang Sanzang heard this, he nodded immediately and took the reins. He saw Sun Wukong jump onto a huge rock on the side of the road. A golden light flashed in his pupils. After looking carefully, he jumped down.

"Wukong, is the foot of the mountain a good place to go?"

"Hey, the village has cows, sheep, chickens, and ducks, and it's full of life. You're a good family in the village, and I'm sure you can stay with me."

"Good good!"

Tang Sanzang was overjoyed when he heard this, and hurriedly rode his horse down the mountain. Naturally, Sun Wukong also somersaulted and followed him.

When the master and his apprentice arrived at the entrance of the village, they met a young man with a backpack on his back. He had a black spot on his forehead and looked like he was about to die. He was walking hurriedly on the street.

Sun Wukong was stunned for a moment, then grabbed him and asked, "Where are you going, young man? I have a question for you. Where is this place?"

The young man was startled when he saw his monkey-like appearance, then swallowed his saliva and said in panic: "This is the territory of U-Tsang State, called Gao Laozhuang, please let me go!"

"I, Old Sun, can't let you go. Tell me the truth, where are you going? What's going on?"

The young man tugged at his sleeves, struggling to break free. He said helplessly, "I'm a member of the Gao family, my name is Gao Cai. My grandfather had a daughter who was kidnapped by a monster on Fuling Mountain last winter. Now that spring has arrived and travel is easier, my grandfather asked me to find a magician to subdue the monster. That's it. Please let me go!"

Sun Wukong laughed when he heard this and said, "Your forehead is black, and you dare to travel in the middle of the night. You will definitely encounter danger if you go. Fortunately, I have some tricks. You don't have to go. Go directly to the master and tell him that we are holy monks from the Tang Dynasty in the East. We are going to the West to worship Buddha and obtain scriptures. We are good at subduing demons and monsters."

Gao Cai couldn't help but panic when he heard this. He looked at the sky and saw that it was indeed late. He hurriedly said, "I can take you there, but don't lie to me, otherwise I will be scolded by the parents."

"I'm not trying to scare you. Go! Go!"

Seeing this, Gao Cai did not delay and led the master and apprentice back to the village. When they reached the door, he asked them to wait for a moment before going in to report.

As soon as she entered the main hall, she bumped into Grandpa Gao and heard him scold her, "You disobedient beast, why don't you go find someone? What are you doing back here?"

Gao Cai put down his bag and shuddered, "I was just leaving the street when I ran into two monks. They said they were holy monks from the Tang Dynasty in the East, heading to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures and capture monsters. I thought they must be very capable after traveling over ten thousand miles, so I just came back to report."

Hearing this, Grandpa Gao thought it made sense, so he quickly changed his clothes and went out with Gao Cai to greet them.

Seeing the monk and the monkey, Grandpa Gao immediately panicked and grabbed Gao Cai, shouting, "You rascal! Just when a monster escaped, you called another monster to subdue it. You're making me suffer!"

When Sun Wukong heard this, he cursed, "You are a scoundrel with age but no wisdom. There are so many gods in heaven and on earth, but none of them are human. They are good gods if they can catch monsters. Why do you judge people by their appearance?"

Seeing that he was angry, Gao Taigong replied tremblingly: "Please come in, please come in!"

Seeing that he said please, Sun Wukong gave up, tied up the white horse, invited Tang Sanzang into the house, pulled over a chair and asked his master to sit down, then jumped onto the chair next to him.

After everyone was seated, Grandpa Gao asked, "Just now, the servant said that the two elders came from the East and have the ability to catch monsters?"

Tang Sanzang clasped his hands and bowed: "I have been ordered to go to the West to obtain the scriptures. I am passing through this precious place and have come to stay overnight. My disciple does have the ability to catch monsters. Elder, please tell us about it."

Sun Wukong interrupted, "I'm here to stay the night and catch a few monsters. How many monsters are there on Fuling Mountain? Tell me how powerful they are. I'll go play with them."

Hearing him say this, Grandpa Gao finally spoke up: "Our village has never had any evil spirits since ancient times, but in recent years, three monsters have appeared."

"My family is the most unfortunate. We have no sons, only three daughters. The two elder ones are married to local families."

"I only have the younger one, Cuilan. I'm thinking of finding a live-in son-in-law to take care of me in my old age."

"Unexpectedly, three years ago, a man came and said he was from Fuling Mountain. He called himself Zhu Ganglie. He had no relatives, but he worked very hard and could do the work of dozens of people. So I hired him."

"I never imagined that the man was a monster with a changed face. About a year and a half ago, he changed into a pig's head and broke into the house, revealing his true identity. He also has a huge appetite: he eats three or five dou of rice in one meal and a hundred or so pancakes for dessert."