Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

After Wen Jiao returned to live in the mansion, she did not leave any servants in the huge Wanhua Tower, and only she and Huo Ling'er lived there. Madam Yin originally wanted to leave a few people to clean the courtyard, but Wen Jiao posted a talisman at the gate of the courtyard. Since then, not only dust but even flying insects could not enter the Wanhua Tower, so Madam Yin gave up.

Madam Yin looked around the Wanhua Tower but could not find a single person. She suddenly felt that she had to leave a few servants behind, otherwise if Wen Jiao left without saying goodbye again, she would not even be able to find anyone to ask for information.

Disappointed, Madam Yin was about to go back when she heard a faint snoring sound. She followed the sound and approached, only to find that Huo Ling'er had turned back into the crystal lion paperweight and was nestling in Wen Jiao's makeup box, with her head resting on the Ruyi Pearl Hairpin and the turquoise pearl necklace wrapped around her body as a blanket, sleeping soundly.

Madam Yin poked her belly with a finger and said, "Miss Huo, have you seen where Mantang Jiao went?"

Huo Linger turned over and muttered, "Jiao...Wen Jiao went to Hongfu Temple to see her son."

Mrs. Yin was shocked and stood there for a long time. She sighed and turned away.

Wen Jiao was at Hongfu Temple where Xuanzang was resting. When she came in, she heard Xuanzang talking to Bian Ji and the others: "At most, it will be five or seven years. Just look at the pine branches facing east at the mountain gate, and I will be back..."

She paused and coughed three times. Several disciples had seen Wen Jiao subdue Xie Xie and knew their mother-son relationship, so they stood up. Bian Ji frowned slightly, put his palms together and greeted, then led his fellow disciples out of the meditation room.

Xuanzang was about to stand up when he suddenly saw a flash before his eyes. Wen Jiao, who was originally standing five steps away, had flashed in front of him. She reached out her hand to hold down his steps and pushed him back.

"Sit still and let me take a look at you." Wen Jiao looked at Xuanzang. The once delicate and slender young monk had grown into a dignified young man with colorful eyebrows and bright eyes. He was a man who was loved by the majority of women. His robes were bright and colorful, and the staff beside him was shining with thousands of rays of light, which made this dignified appearance look a little strange.

"I've heard that you're going to the West." Wen Jiao said.

Xuanzang finally stood up, leaning on his staff, and stood in front of Wen Jiao. He was two heads taller than Wen Jiao, and Wen Jiao tried her best to look up, but still could only see his chin, so she took a step back and sighed, "Time flies, and children are like bamboos. In the blink of an eye, you have grown so tall."

He smiled softly, "I always feel that you are still the little red ball when you were just born. You only cried twice when you landed. Mother was afraid that Liu Hong would come and kill you, so she told you, 'Don't cry anymore.' You actually stopped crying, and looked at me with your dark eyes. I hugged you, feeling scared and happy, and tears were streaming down my face at that time."

The memory is as clear as yesterday.

Wen Jiao was talking, feeling somewhat dazed and sad for a moment. Was it because Yin Wenjiao's memory of her own flesh and blood was too deep, affecting her; or was she her previous life? She could no longer tell.

Xuanzang's eyes watered as he heard this. He sniffed and said, "Mother, the emperor has given me the order. I must go on this journey."

Wen Jiao immediately stepped back and frowned, "Don't wipe your tears with your sleeves."

Xuanzang put down his sleeves awkwardly.

Wen Jiao looked at him and found that she needed to tilt her head slightly to look into his eyes, so she said, "Sit down."

Xuanzang sat down obediently.

Wen Jiao was satisfied to see his head that was so smooth that it almost reflected light: "Jiang Liu'er, mother never raised you, so naturally she never had the chance to teach you. Now that you are going on a long journey, mother should at least give you a few words of advice."

"Because we, the Demon-Subduing Heavenly Venerable, rule the world, there have been few ghosts in the East since ancient times. Even when the sun was eclipsed a few days ago, some ghosts took the opportunity to hurt people, but no big trouble occurred. But it is different on the way to the West. There are ferocious beasts in the mountains, evil monsters in the water, and countless demons. It is no exaggeration to say that disasters are coming at every step. Although you have some martial arts skills, you will be helpless if you encounter a powerful demon. You can only surrender."

Xuanzang's face turned pale when he heard this: "What, what, what should I do?"

Wen Jiao pretended to calculate, then paused for a while and said with a smile: "Fortunately, obtaining the scriptures is a great merit, and the gods and Buddhas in heaven are watching, and they will not let you end up in vain. Auntie calculated that Guanyin Bodhisattva has arranged a few helpers for you on the road ahead to protect you on your way west."

Xuanzang breathed a sigh of relief.

"but……"

Xuanzang's heart rose to his throat again.

"These helpers were able to protect you and walk through the clump of monsters, so they must have extraordinary powers. You are the only mortal left in the group, and as the one being protected, you are the manager of them. Seeing their brutal methods, you will inevitably feel suspicious and angry. Seeing that you are weak, they will inevitably have their own thoughts. Some may be open-minded, but their excessive sharpness makes people unhappy; some may not be as good as the former, and seeing that you are kind-hearted, they will use you as a gun to suppress others; some may not speak when it does not concern them, but will be furious when it concerns them... Have you thought about how to deal with these?" Wen Jiao asked.

Xuanzang's bald head grew bigger after hearing this, and he said with a bitter face, "I don't know."

Wen Jiao sighed: "Then start thinking about it now."

"Journey to the West" once became an excellent material for office politics. It cannot be blamed solely on readers' tendency to over-infer the story. It is simply that the composition and experience of the team that went on the journey to the West were too typical.

The boss is incompetent and is a second-generation executive who was brought in to take over the company. The most capable department backbone does the most work and takes the most responsibility, so naturally they want the most say. The second-in-command, who thinks he is capable but doesn't want to take responsibility, sees that he can't be the top leader, so he chooses to cling to his boss and get rid of him. The third-in-command who doesn't care about anything doesn't bother you, but he doesn't bother to speak up until you can get involved with him. The fourth-in-command says he is just a driver, and no matter who else, he has to drive, so don't cue him.

To describe this scene as "demoral" would be an understatement to the team that is seeking the scriptures.

Tang Seng, as the immediate superior, was dissatisfied because the top leader, Sun Wukong, refused to flatter him, but he had to rely on him. He disliked the other party's meddling, big-heartedness, and bad temper. When he saw the second brother coming to him, he thought he was obedient and capable, and he was immediately delighted. He and the second brother kicked the top leader out together.

The third and fourth brothers were indifferent to the fact that the top leader was being promoted. The third brother said, "What does it have to do with me?" But as soon as the top leader left, the second brother started to show off and kept thinking about assigning the third brother to do this and that. The third brother couldn't continue to do nothing, so he had to fight with the second brother. The boss got rid of a thorn in the side, and then welcomed two people who rebelled against each other. The whole day was in a mess. After that, when there was a major task to be handled, no one could be used. When the fourth brother saw that the department was going to collapse and he couldn't even drive a car, he quickly proposed to invite the top leader back.

After this incident, the second brother knew that he really couldn't take on the responsibility, so he had to endure it with a lot of scolding. The third brother found that the boss didn't fight with the second brother anymore, so he also went back to his idle state. The fourth brother continued to drive. Everyone found their own ecological niche, and only the boss who was forced to admit his mistakes had a knot in his heart.

What a realistic office hell.