Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

The spring of the eighteenth year of Zhenguan was probably one of the darkest times in Xuanzang's life.

This year, he married a woman.

Although it is fake.

But his mother came solemnly.

Not only did he come, he also brought with him a Taoist priest who had called him a bald donkey many years ago.

She also introduced him to him: "Xuanzang, this is A Niang's Taoist partner, you can call him 'stepfather'."

Xuanzang's eyes went dark and he almost fainted in public.

At that time, the King of the Kingdom of Women had a grand ceremony, and the phoenix chariot and dragon carriage drove all the way from the palace to Yingyang Posthouse. Before the people arrived, the stringed instruments and drums that had arrived earlier were already deafening.

At that time, the postmaster of Yingyang Post, as the master of the wedding, urged his three disciples, Wukong, Bajie and Sha Seng, to carry the fair and tender Xuanzang, who had taken off his fairy clothes and bathed in fragrant water, to the door of the post station early in the morning. When they turned around, they saw two more people at the end of the street.

To be exact, they were a Taoist priest and his wife. The man was majestic and rode a handsome nine-tailed red fox. The woman was even more beautiful and radiant, riding a red lion. The man and the lion were like stars, with brilliant light flashing all over their bodies, and they looked like gods.

The postmaster was stunned and said in amazement: "It can actually move a fairy to come down to earth, Goddess of Heaven, this is really a very good marriage!"

As she was sighing with emotion, she saw Xuanzang's face showing a half-excited and half-uneasy expression: "Mother, there is also this..."

Although he had not seen Yuan Tiangang for several years, Xuanzang had a very good memory and recognized the man at a glance. He just didn't know how to address him in a hurry, so he hesitated for a moment.

During this moment of hesitation, Wen Jiao spoke: "Yuan Tiangang, the former Huoshan Commander and current Chief of Princess Wencheng's Mansion, became my Taoist partner when I ascended to heaven two years ago. Now that you are getting married, he should be here to be a witness as your Taoist partner."

Xuanzang was suddenly confused by the wind.

Ever since his mother and Chen Guangrui divorced, he had been prepared for a stepfather to appear at any time. But you didn't look for him when you were the Lady of Guichuan County in Chang'an, and you didn't look for him when you were looking for immortals. But now that you have completed your practice and ascended to heaven, you look for him instead?

Furthermore, he knew that Ah Niang and Yuan Tiangang were good friends. But when did you two become so close? And even became Taoist couples? Two years ago?

Also, I've already said it was a fake marriage, so why did you naturally bring your partner to be a witness?

I don't think you two would like to have a cup of daughter-in-law tea, the kind offered by the King of the Kingdom of Women?

His mind was in a mess, and the postmaster rubbed his face vigorously, finally pulling his mind out of the frantic development of events. She grabbed a messenger and said hurriedly: "Go and report to the Imperial Master, things have changed, two gods from the Eastern Tang Dynasty came to watch the ceremony, one said she was Tang Yudi's biological mother, and the other was his stepfather!"

The officer ran away.

The postmaster ordered his men to quickly clean up the most spacious and cleanest house and prepare flowers, fruits, and tea. Fortunately, all these were ready for the emperor's arrival, and they were ready in no time. The postmaster just stepped forward with a forced but slightly trembling smile, and said with a bowed back, "The arrival of the true immortals is a blessing for all the people in our country of women. It is really inconvenient to stand on the street, so please come to the pavilion to rest for a while."

Wen Jiao smiled and glanced at her, then took Yuan Tiangang's hand and said, "Lead the way."

The postmaster felt relieved and hurriedly led the way.

The nine-tailed fox looked at the red lion next to it and spoke in human language, full of pride: "I have been running all the way and I am very hungry. If you have any local delicacies or specialties, please serve them to me."

The postmaster tripped and almost fell.

As for the fact that Xuanzang and his three disciples followed in later, Xuanzang even went back to his room. I wonder if he took the opportunity to put on the fairy clothes again... She had no time to care about it.

My goodness, everyone knows that Tang Yudi was reluctant to accept this marriage. However, the mountains and roads of the Tang Dynasty were too long and there was no way to support him. The queen was determined not to let the master and apprentice go, so he had no choice but to sacrifice himself in exchange for the three apprentices to continue the journey.

If it was an ordinary man, he would have been robbed into the palace. But who would have thought that a monk like Tang Yudi would have a mother who was a deity? Now that his mother is here, it is still unclear whether the marriage will be successful. Didn't you see the big claws of the mounts of these two? A fingernail is enough to scratch a living person in half.

I hope these two immortals will not make a fuss about it with the Kingdom of Women because of her warm hospitality.

Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must see the situation clearly. Don't let lust blind you and make a fool of yourself by trying to snatch your son from the gods!

I don’t know if it was an illusion caused by the postmaster’s anxiety, but the rhythm of the stringed instruments outside seemed to be a little slower.

Wen Jiao had actually noticed this the first time. If the drum music rhythm of the imperial carriage was like the high sea tide with strong winds and waves at the beginning, after a burst of rapid horse hoof sounds, it all changed to a gentle stream with a beautiful sun setting. One note seemed to be stretched out to ten, and the musicians playing the sheng and drums were almost straining to produce a sheep-like vibrato.

Xuanzang put on the immortal robe again and came to the quiet room. He saw Wen Jiao leaning against the small table, holding her chin and listening to the untuneable music outside the window. She looked very interested. Yuan Tiangang on the other side of the table had his eyes slightly closed, obviously in meditation. The postmaster and several runners were waiting nearby, sweating profusely under the pressure of the real immortal.

"Mother." He walked forward with a look of embarrassment, "Didn't I tell you everything clearly last night..." He paused for a moment, and then vaguely explained the scheme of faking marriage and escaping, and continued, "Why did you come anyway?"

He even brought such a big Taoist companion to watch the ceremony. If it weren't for the fact that this was indeed his biological mother and not his stepmother, Xuanzang would have almost thought that she was not here to help him at all, but to watch the fun.

Wen Jiao withdrew her gaze from the window and said with a smile: "Mother has never been to Xiliang Women's Kingdom. This is a rare opportunity. Can't you come over for a walk?"

This excuse is too perfunctory!

Xuanzang was helpless. No matter how perfunctory this excuse was, he really didn't know how to refute it. Seeing the postmaster bringing a chair, he had to sit down angrily.

Yuan Tiangang saw that the atmosphere between the mother and son was quite tense, and asked himself if he, as a stepfather, should intervene to mediate. But he could comprehend the mysteries of heaven and earth, but it was difficult for him to deal with the human relationships. After thinking for a while, he had to lead Xuanzang to talk: "Your hat is very good."

He was the elder now, and since the elder had spoken, Xuanzang could not just ignore it, so he responded, "This Vairocana hat was given to me by your Majesty when I was giving lectures in Chang'an in the past."

Yuan Tiangang nodded: "It looks very majestic."

Moreover, after the top of his head was covered with this hat, it looked less bald and actually looked a lot better.

Before he could finish the latter sentence, Wen Jiao suddenly pulled his sleeve and pointed in a direction.

Yuan Tiangang was startled and looked over there. He quickly calculated with his fingers under his sleeves, and then wrote a word on the table with his fingertips.

scorpion.