Journey to the West: Beginning with the Apprenticeship of Bodhi Patriarch

Chapter 230: Tieguai Li Meets the True Man
Huabiao Zhenren and his companions were resting in the house of Mr. Li in Qingzhou. They were squeezed into one room and it was a bit crowded, but he didn't care and rested in the room.

At dawn the next day, Jiang Yuan and others came out of the house and sat down in the main hall. When Mr. Li heard that they had woken up, he went out of the house, got a brazier to keep them warm, and then went forward to cook for them.

Seeing this, Sun Wukong laughed and said, "Big Brother, this old gentleman knows how to be polite. He actually treats us like this."

The Bull Demon King agreed with this and said, "The old man may not have studied, but he knows etiquette much better than Liu Yanchang."

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "If you do good, you will be rewarded. Don't worry, after this, he will be blessed and worry-free in his later years."

Zuo Liang asked, "Sir, I see that Mr. Li has lost his wife and has no children. How will his future blessings come?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, "It is hard to say. The word 'blessing' is very mysterious. It will eventually return to you in ways you can never imagine."

Zuo Liang seemed to be thinking about something.

Sun Wukong asked: "Big Brother, we have entered Qingzhou now, but we don't know where we need to practice the law. How can we walk around in Qingzhou?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, "Wait for me to see."

Sun Wukong was about to say something else when he heard a knock on the door.

The Bull Demon King said, "Master, please stay here for a while. I will go and see who is visiting."

The Bull Demon King walked out.

When I walked outside the main hall, I ran into Mr. Li.

Bull Demon King was afraid that Mr. Li would be knocked away, so he held him and said, "You don't have to go over, I will help you open the door."

Mr. Li was flattered and said, "Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir."

The Bull Demon King walked to the door and opened it, only to see an old man standing outside. The old man was lame and leaning on a crutch, with unkempt hair and a dirty face, and a gourd on his back. He looked like a beggar, but also had an air of an immortal.

The Bull Demon King asked, "Who is coming?"

The beggar smiled and said, "Li Xuan greets the Bull King. I am a disciple of Lao Jun. Today, I am traveling in the human world because of my sins. When I arrived in Qingzhou, I saw auspicious mist covering this place and thousands of divine lights. I asked the local people and learned that the immortal had come here, so I came to pay my respects. But please let the Bull King inform me."

The Bull Demon King said, "Wait a moment, I will go in and inform you."

Say it.

The Bull Demon King went back to the central hall and told Jiang Yuan about the person who came from outside.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuan looked at Sun Wukong and said, "Wukong, have you ever heard of Li Xuan's name?"

Sun Wukong nodded and said, "I have heard of it before. I have often heard that Laojun has a disciple, known in the world as 'Iron Crutch Li', whose real name is Li Xuan. He looks like a beggar, but he often walks around the world, curing illnesses and saving lives, and he is very famous."

Jiang Yuan said with a smile: "Li Tieguai? Since he is Laojun's disciple and has great reputation, I should go and meet him in person."

The immortal then left the hall, followed closely by Sun Wukong, Bull Demon King, Zuo Liang and his men.

When they reached the gate of the mansion, Li Xuan was shocked to see the Immortal coming in person. He immediately bowed and said, "How dare I bother the Immortal to come and welcome you in person!"

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "Junior brother is here to visit me, how can I not come in person?"

Li Xuan was surprised and asked, "What do you mean, Junior Brother? Could it be that the Immortal is also a disciple of Laojun?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, "No, Laojun has taught me, but my master is Bodhi Patriarch of Sanxing Xiandong. The saying of senior and junior brothers refers to those who have heard the Tao. It is said that 'those who have heard the Tao are the same person', so there is a distinction between the first and the last. The former is the senior brother and the latter is the junior brother, that's all."

Li Xuan heard this and agreed with it, so he bowed and said, "That is true, but I have not yet mastered the practice and have been too rigid in my own way of thinking. I hope you will not blame me, Senior Brother."

Jiang Yuan said, "No problem. Since you are here to visit me, please come in."

He looked at Bull Demon King again and said, "Bull, go ask Mr. Li, maybe he can teach my junior brother how to enter the house."

The Bull Demon King took the order and left. He returned soon after, saying that Mr. Li had agreed.

After hearing this, Jiang Yuan brought Tieguai Li into the hall.

As soon as they entered the main hall, Tieguai Li bowed to Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan returned the gift, and the two of them talked about spiritual practice in the main hall.

After a long while, Jiang Yuan said, "I've heard that you are helping sentient beings. Are you going to Qingzhou to help?"

Tieguai Li shook his head and said, "No, no. In the past, I cured illnesses and saved lives in the human world. I traveled all over the nine states and returned to the Heavenly Palace to meditate under the seat of the Lord Lao and enjoy eternal peace. Recently, I have committed a crime, so I asked the Lord Lao to come down to the human world to forgive my sins."

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "What crime have you committed? Are you as ignorant as I was in the past and stole some golden elixirs?"

Tieguai Li panicked and said, "How dare I have the might and courage of the Great Sage?"

Sun Wukong said: "Since I didn't steal the elixir, why did you ask Laojun to come down to earth to forgive me?"

Jiang Yuan smiled widely but said nothing.

Upon hearing this, Tieguai Li sighed and said, "To be honest with you, Great Sage, Ox King, I have returned to the Heavenly Palace and lived in Tushita Palace. After enjoying peace, I couldn't control myself, so I often played with some Taoist children in the palace and discussed Taoism with them. It was because of this mentality that I made a big mistake just now. I am here to forgive my sins."

Sun Wukong didn't understand what he meant and asked, "You were playing with the Taoist boy and discussing the Dao, how could that be wrong? Laojun is a great supernatural being, how could he punish you to go down to the mortal world for such a small matter?" Tieguai Li shook his head and said, "If it was for this matter, Laojun would not have punished you in this way, but when I was playing with the green bull in the palace, I was not careful and let it escape to the mortal world. When Laojun heard about it, he was angry and asked me to go down to the mortal world to bring the green bull back."

Sun Wukong asked, "How come the green bull escaped again?"

Tieguai Li asked, "Great Sage, did the blue ox ever escape?"

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "When I was traveling west, I suffered nine disasters. One of them was caused by the escape of the green bull. The green bull had a treasure in its hand, called the Diamond Jade. It was very difficult for me to fight it at that time. Fortunately, my eldest brother helped to subdue the green bull and helped me to survive that disaster."

Tieguai Li said: "I don't want to have such a past again."

Sun Wukong asked: "Can the Blue Ox bring the Diamond Chisel down to the human world? If it does, you will have trouble defeating it."

Tieguai Li said: "If it was the bull nose ring, he would have taken it to the lower world."

Sun Wukong said: "If this is the case, it will be difficult for you to subdue him. Even if you find the Green Ox, you can teach him how to use his magic. You don't have any magic, so you can't defeat him with your bare hands."

Tieguai Li Siji felt a little troubled.

Jiang Yuan just opened his mouth and said, "Is the Green Ox in Qingzhou? If it is in Qingzhou, I might be able to go with you. If it is somewhere else, we can't leave here."

Upon hearing the news, Tieguai Li was overjoyed and said, "In Qingzhou, in Qingzhou, Senior Brother, are you really willing to help me?"

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "The old man has a favor to me. Since I know that the green bull has escaped, I will help you."

The Immortal learned from Bodhi, and the ancestor was very kind to him, but Laojun also taught him, which he dared not forget.

Tieguai Li bowed deeply and said, "Junior brother thanks you for your kindness!"

Jiang Yuan helped him up and said with a smile: "No need to be like this, you can stay here for a while, I will talk to the people here, and then go with you to find the blue cow."

Tieguai Li responded.

While they were talking, Mr. Li suddenly came in, bringing some tea and food for everyone to enjoy.

Everyone enjoyed tea and food, and after they were done, Jiang Yuan told Mr. Li that he was about to leave.

Mr. Li asked, "Sir, have I failed to entertain you well enough? Why don't you stay a little longer?"

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "I have something to do, so I won't stay here for long. If I have the chance, I will stay here for a while and talk to you again."

Mr. Li smiled happily and said, "If you come again, you must come."

Jiang Yuan agreed.

After they packed up a little, Bull Demon King went to lead the deer and left the house. Seeing that Mr. Li was kind-hearted, Li Tieguai thought for a moment and left a pill in the house without leaving a trace.

Jiang Yuan and others said goodbye to Mr. Li and left the house.

Old Li accompanied Jiang Yuan and others for ten miles before turning back. He saw a pill on the table. After a little thought, he realized that it was left by Jiang Yuan and his friends.

Old Li knew that what the immortal and others had left behind must be a miraculous medicine. He was grateful and wept for a long time. He took the pill. He thought he would need water to swallow it, but the pill melted in his mouth. He felt a warm current flowing through his limbs.

Li Lao suddenly realized that this was a panacea, so he bowed deeply in the direction where Jiang Yuan left. He got the pill and it would benefit him greatly, so he won't mention it for now.

……

After Huabiao Zhenren and his companions left Old Li's house, they walked on the road. Sun Wukong led the way, Bull Demon King led the deer, Zuo Liang followed behind, and Li Tieguai stood beside the deer and talked with Huabiao Zhenren.

Tieguai Li said: "Brother, I still don't know why you are walking in the world."

Jiang Yuan rode on the back of a deer and said, "I have an agreement with Emperor Xuan to revise the laws to restrain the hearts of the practitioners in the world."

Tieguai Li said: "I never thought that Senior Brother would do such a thing. If you are delayed in your search for the Green Ox, it is my fault."

Jiang Yuan said, "No mistake, don't worry. I was walking around to find the blue ox. I might find a place to practice the law, but I don't know where the blue ox is."

Li Tieguai pointed to the front and said, "Brother, I have visited many places and heard that there is a mountain in the Donglai County area of ​​Qingzhou. The mountain is called 'Babaili Liquan Mountain'. I don't know when a monster appeared in that mountain. It claims to be the king. It is said that its original form is a green bull. I guess it is the green bull that has come down to earth to cause trouble there."

After hearing this, the Bull Demon King smiled and asked, "The green bull likes to eat oranges the most. Why does the monster like this?"

Tieguai Li said: "I heard that he likes this kind of oranges and fruits, and often asks the people living at the foot of the mountain to offer him oranges and fruits."

The Bull Demon King said: "If that's the case, then that fellow must be the Green Bull. Apart from him, there are very few monsters who like oranges."

Upon hearing this, Li Tieguai was overjoyed.

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "Let's just go to Donglai County. There's no need to speculate here. If it's the Green Ox, we'll surrender."

The Bull Demon King smiled and said, "What you said is very reasonable. With you here, me here, and my dear brother here, no matter how powerful the Green Bull is, it will never be able to withstand it. It will have to teach us to surrender."

Tieguai Li bowed and said, "Thank you, Senior Brother, thank you, Great Sage, and thank you, Ox King, for your help. I am very grateful."

Under the instruction of the Immortal, Bull Demon King helped Li Tieguai up, and they all happily headed towards Donglai County.

(End of this chapter)