Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 256: The Second National Teacher

The three questions Wukong asked actually stemmed from the same cause.
The monk official said, “Forty li west of this temple lies the capital of the Wuji Kingdom. This Baolin Temple was built by order of the Wuji King. Five years ago, there was a severe drought in the sky, with no harvest in the fields, leaving the people in dire straits. The king, who always treated his people like his own children, had a small kingdom with limited grain stores. Even though he opened the granaries to relieve the disaster, the supplies ran out after a short time.”
“The king believed it was a punishment from heaven, so he bathed and fasted day and night, burning incense to pray for rain. His prayers indeed worked—one day, a giant bird circled in the sky, and soon rain began to fall.”
Wukong let out an “Oh,” then stood up. Thinking he might have said something wrong, the monk official stared at him intently.
Wukong grew suspicious because he clearly remembered that the Wuji King had offended Manjushri Bodhisattva, which led to the Green Lion Demon transforming into a Taoist priest to throw him into a well. It had taken three years of drought before the Green Lion Demon came to bring rain—so why was there another strange bird now? Could it be Shangyang causing the rain?
Wukong’s guess was correct. After Chi Songzi saw that the drought could not be resolved, he ordered Shangyang to inspect the land monthly and bring rain wherever there was drought. Aside from the first rainfall and a battle with the Western Heaven and the Heavenly Court, no one had stopped Shangyang from acting. Wukong asked the monk official to continue.
The monk official said, “After that strange bird—no, that divine bird—brought several rains, the drought was immediately relieved, and it never returned. But the rain kept falling nonstop, causing flooding everywhere in the Wuji Kingdom within just a few days. This flooding was even more troublesome than the drought.”
Wukong understood immediately and cursed inwardly at the heartless Manjushri Bodhisattva. It must be that Manjushri, unable to resolve the drought for the Wuji King and not daring to stop Shangyang from bringing rain, had the Green Lion Demon secretly cause more rain. Shangyang could only relieve drought but not flooding.
The monk official continued, “This flooding lasted for over two years, and as the kingdom was on the verge of collapse, a Taoist priest arrived. This priest possessed great magical powers; with just a wave of his hand, the heavy rain stopped immediately, and the land dried up within half a month. From then on, the Wuji Kingdom enjoyed favorable weather and no more natural disasters.”
Wukong thought to himself that although this story had a few twists, it was generally consistent with what was written in “Journey to the West.”
He heard the monk official add, “The king was overjoyed and made the Taoist priest his brother-in-law, honoring him as the National Teacher. Though the National Teacher was highly skilled, he was not arrogant and treated everyone politely. Most importantly, although he was a Taoist, he did not prevent the people from believing in Buddhism.” Wukong thought to himself that since his master was a Bodhisattva, how could he dare to stop them?

Wukong asked, “All this talk still doesn’t answer my question. You’ve forgotten all three of my questions.”
The monk officer hurriedly said, “My lord, please be patient. This is the background story. I’ll explain it in detail so you can understand clearly. Our king has always believed in Buddhism and built many temples. After the great master arrived, he often visited various temples. When he came to this temple, he left behind several scrolls of scriptures, instructing the monks to teach them to the other monks from then on, while sealing away everything else, forbidding anyone from touching it again.”
Wukong asked, “What kind of scriptures are those?”
The monk officer took down several scrolls from the table and said, “These are the ‘Sutra of Maitreya’s Reincarnation,’ the ‘Sutra of Maitreya’s Relief of Suffering,’ and the ‘Sutra Asked by Maitreya.’”
Upon hearing this, Wukong immediately understood. Manjushri Bodhisattva had achieved two goals at once. Not only had he pushed the King of Wuji into the well to vent his anger, but he had also brought scriptures dedicated to Maitreya here. It was clear that Manjushri must belong to the faction of the Buddha from the East. Thinking further, with the Green Lion, White Elephant, and Giant Roc seizing control of the land on Lion Camel Ridge, it was obvious that among the four great bodhisattvas, aside from Guanyin, the other three were loyal followers of the Buddha from the East. This Manjushri, disregarding his dignity, even sent the Green Lion twice—wasn’t he afraid that the Tathagata might turn against him?
The monk officer continued, “After the great master left the scriptures, he instructed us to build a mountain gate to prevent monks from outside from entering, fearing that the true essence of Buddhism might be lost. Even the monks of this temple were not allowed to leave without permission. I believe now my lord understands why the plaque is covered in dust, the mountain gate is tightly closed, and we no longer receive monks from outside.”
Wukong nodded and said, “You’re right. I do understand now.” After hearing this, Wukong turned to leave, but then heard the monk officer say, “My lord is leaving?”
Wukong found this strange and turned back, asking, “Is there anything else?”
The monk officer replied, “Since my lord is passing through, you’ll need to obtain a passage permit tomorrow, I suppose.”
Wukong laughed and said, “You know quite a lot.”
The monk officer replied, “I dare not claim that. I merely wanted to inform my lord that the current king obeys the two great masters without question, but those two are completely at odds. My lord should be cautious when you go tomorrow and assess the situation carefully.”
Wukong suddenly felt dizzy. What did it mean for the king to obey the two great masters? Did the King of Wuji not yet have been pushed into the well? And if there was only one great master before, how did there become two?

Seeing that Wukong was lost in thought, the monk realized his words must have been effective. Having witnessed Wukong’s abilities, he decided to curry favor with him and said, “The Grand Sage has been here for about a year. A wealthy family moved into Wujī Country; the head of this family surnames Qin and is also skilled in spiritual practices. We don’t know the full details, but we know that the Qin family fought against the Grand Sage, and it seemed no one won. The king then appointed the head of the Qin family as the Second Grand Sage.”

Wukong frowned slightly. Another person surnamed Qin? Who could this be?

The monk replied, “It is said that all great paths share the same origin, but these two Grand Sages are an exception. One insists on one thing, while the other insists on the opposite, causing great trouble for the king.”

Wukong had a hunch that the king of Wujī Country had survived precisely because of this mysterious Second Grand Sage.

The monk continued, “Normally, our temple gates are tightly locked and cannot be opened no matter who calls. A few days ago, the Second Grand Sage came here to pay homage to the Buddha. Before leaving, he scolded me and ordered me not to lock the gates again, which is why that handsome monk was able to enter the Great Hero Hall today.” He glanced at Wukong and added, “Even if the gates were locked, they couldn’t stop you, sir.”

Wukong laughed and said, “Good. I’ve learned a lot from hearing this. Thank you!” The monk repeated, “You’re welcome, you’re welcome.” By the time he looked up again, Wukong had already disappeared.

Seeing that Wukong wasn’t particularly fierce, the monk picked up a scripture and read a few passages before falling asleep in peace.

When Wukong arrived in the courtyard, he saw the bright moonlight illuminating everything, casting clear light over the land. Taking advantage of the cool night breeze, he organized his thoughts. Manjushri Bodhisattva was behind the Green Lion Spirit—there was no doubt about that. He had ordered the Green Lion Spirit to spread the Maitreya scriptures as a way to prepare for the arrival of the Eastern Buddha. Since the Eastern Buddha had repeatedly obstructed the quest for the scriptures, Buddha Shakyamuni surely wouldn’t stand by idly.

Although Buddha Shakyamuni didn’t intervene in this part of the Journey to the West, he remembered that Guanyin had urged them to speed up the quest during their farewell at Pingding Mountain. It was likely that this Second Grand Sage surnamed Qin was sent by Buddha Shakyamuni or Guanyin.

The Second Grand Sage’s visit to Baolin Temple a few days ago wasn’t coincidental either. His real purpose was to open these temple gates. Given Tang Seng’s habit of visiting every temple and offering incense to the Buddha, he would surely go inside. Perhaps even the monk’s words were taught to him by the Second Grand Sage.

With an extra Second Grand Sage around, it would be difficult for the Green Lion Spirit to act. Guanyin might have only intended to help Wukong capture the Green Lion Spirit, but unintentionally, she saved the king of Wujī Country from three years of flooding. It was truly a chain of events—one move affected everything else.

What Wu Kong couldn’t figure out was why that Eastern Buddha could dare to challenge the Tathagata. Alas, he had no way of knowing how deep the waters in the Western Heaven were at that moment. Since the Eastern Buddha was the Buddha of the future, how could he be such a reckless person? Yet here he was, wasting his time worrying needlessly.

Wu Kong sat outside all night, the moonlight casting shadows on him. This being who could ascend to heaven and descend to earth was actually the loneliest person in this world. He could only ponder his thoughts alone, unable to share them with anyone—what a profound loneliness!

As dawn approached, Tang Seng stepped out. Seeing that the bright moon in the west was still shining brightly, he recited, “The bright moon hangs like a precious mirror in the sky; mountains and rivers are clearly reflected. Palaces and towers are filled with pure light; the air is crisp as if from an ice mirror or silver plate.”

Wu Kong praised, “Master, what talent!”

When Tang Seng saw Wu Kong, he said happily, “With my mortal body, I feel most at ease only when sleeping in bed.”

Wu Kong asked, “Did Master have no dreams all night?”

Tang Seng replied, “How could I think about dreams? I fell asleep as soon as I lay down. Now I feel refreshed and ready to continue our journey.”

Wu Kong thought to himself, “That king must have indeed escaped disaster; otherwise, he would surely come to seek Tang Seng for justice.”

The group had breakfast at Baolin Temple before leading their horses away, heading west toward the Country of Black Chickens. Forty miles should take less than an hour, so Tang Seng let the horse go at its own pace, with the White Dragon Horse galloping swiftly. Seeing the open road ahead, Wu Kong didn’t stop them.

After traveling for a while, while Wu Kong was chatting with Zhu Bajie and Wuhui, they suddenly heard noise ahead. He flew over and saw a group of men blocking Tang Seng. Several armored warriors surrounded him, clearly with ill intentions.

Seeing that Tang Seng was unharmed, Wu Kong felt like playing a prank. Without revealing himself, he sneaked closer to eavesdrop on their conversation.

The group had colorful flags fluttering and white horses running in the wind. Some carried eagles and dogs, others had cannons or fishing poles. Everyone wore carved bows and arrows at their waists—clearly they were going hunting.

At the center was a young general, wearing a helmet and armor, holding a green sword, riding a yellow horse, with a fully strung bow at his waist. He had an air of royalty about him. Wu Kong thought to himself, “This must be the prince of the Country of Black Chickens.”

Tang Seng said, “I don’t know how I offended Your Highness the Prince. I hope you can forgive me.”

One of the warriors said, “Hmph! Just saying ‘I’m sorry’ will do? My prince is the heir to the throne. Even if you kowtow, it won’t save you!”

Tang Seng had never encountered such a scene before; sweat immediately broke out on his forehead. He cursed inwardly, “Damn these disciples, why haven’t they come yet?”
Then the crown prince said, “Give me your white horse, and I won’t blame you.”