Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 123 Encountering the Blackwater River (Part 9)
Meanwhile, Wukong and Bajie came over and questioned Ao Tu.

Ao Tu laughed and said, "I am, after all, the master of a river. What's wrong with indulging in some delicious food? Is it really worth the Great Sage and the Marshal coming here personally to question me?"

Wukong said, "It's understandable that you eat some good food, but now that everyone is watching, if you're the only one eating good food, regardless of whether it's right or wrong, people will definitely gossip about it."

Bajie stared at the dishes and said, "That's right, everyone else is eating porridge, rice, and vegetable soup, which are bland and tasteless, but yours smells so good. How can we eat like this?"

Upon hearing this, Ao Tu conjured two sets of bowls and chopsticks and said, "Great Sage, Marshal Tianpeng, why don't you sit down and have some food?"

Wukong asked, "Who ate yours?"

Pigsy said, "Then I, Old Pig, won't stand on ceremony!"

Upon hearing this, Wukong grabbed Bajie's ear and said, "Idiot, didn't you just say we shouldn't do this?"

Pigsy said, "Brother Dragon, you've been busy all day building this bridge with your magic. It's only right that you get to eat something good now. Who would dare to object?"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "What the Marshal says is very true, let's drink to that!"

Pigsy grinned as he brought out the wine.

Wukong laughed and scolded, "You idiot."

Ao Tu said, "Great Sage, please take a seat as well."

Wukong took out a glass bowl and said, "Don't rush to eat. I see there are quite a few dishes here. May I serve some to my master first?"

Ao Tu said, "How dare I neglect the holy monk? Please come along with me."

Wukong said, "My master is shy. If we call him, he will definitely refuse to come. It would be better if I served him some to eat."

Ao Tu said, "Great Sage, please proceed."

Wukong served Tang Sanzang a variety of vegetarian dishes.

Tang Sanzang indeed declined.

Wukong advised Tang Sanzang against wasting resources, and Tang Sanzang finally accepted the advice.

After the meal was finished, Ao Tu ordered the laborers to set up camp on the spot and build sheds with wood and stones to live in.

The imperial envoy came to Ao Tu and said, "Lord Dragon God, I saw today that the bridge was built at a rate of over ten zhang per day. Although this is extremely fast, considering the sixty li of river surface, it will still take three years to complete the bridge. I am afraid that two hundred thousand taels of silver will not be enough to pay the workers' wages. Do you think I should petition His Majesty to allocate some more silver?"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "No need. Today, we are slowing down because we are building wooden carts, opening roads, and constructing camps. We will see the results tomorrow."

The imperial envoy replied happily, "Yes, I understand."

As expected, the bridge construction proceeded at a faster pace by the next day.

In just half a day, the bridge grew more than 20 zhang (approximately 63 meters) in length, and two giant piers were built beneath it with huge stones to support its weight.

A few days later, as the laborers became more and more familiar with their work, the bridge construction speed became even faster, reaching a length of sixty or seventy zhang per day.

One day, a group of migrant workers were cutting down a tree when it was about to fall.

All the migrant workers avoided the area.

However, one of the migrant workers tripped over a tree root and was unable to avoid it in time.

The tree was about to fall.

Just then, two tiger cubs arrived in time, lifted the tree, and saved the migrant worker's life.

The rescued migrant workers were extremely grateful.

Everyone praised the two water generals for their righteous act.

Compared to the tiger cub, the wolf cub never experienced such a life-or-death situation.

However, wooden carts often get stuck in the roads there.

Because the road was a dirt road, it was naturally difficult to walk on and people often got stuck.

In this situation, an ordinary person would have to unload the mud from the vehicle before they could push it out.

However, the little wolf was able to pull the car out with a simple tug.

Gradually, as time went by, the migrant workers were no longer afraid of the two tiger cubs and the two wolf cubs, and their relationship became more and more harmonious.

Everyone has their own role to play.

The little tiger led people to cut down trees. The little wolf led people to dig the soil.

The old river god helped build the bridge piers.

Mingniang provided food for everyone.

After Tang Sanzang had stayed there for a while, looking at the weary crowd, he said to Ao Tu:

"River God, this humble monk begs to lend a small helping hand in the construction of the bridge."

Ao Tu asked, "Why does the holy monk have such a kind thought?"

Tang Sanzang said, "Because I have been treated with great courtesy by the people of Huoluo Kingdom, if I were to sit idly by and watch the bridge be completed without doing anything, wouldn't I be ashamed?"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "Holy Monk, your compassion is admirable. But please be careful not to injure yourself."

Tang Sanzang said, "I am grateful for your trouble, benefactor. I will do my best to help."

At this moment, Wukong came over and said:

“Master, this is a small matter. You don’t need to do anything. Just call me and I’ll gather as much wood as he needs in less than half an hour.”

Ao Tu said, "Great Sage, I know you have great supernatural powers, but please do not interfere in the matter of building this bridge."

Wukong asked, "Why?"

Ao Tu said, "If the Great Sage were to take action, this bridge would be completed in no time."

Wukong said, "Isn't it a good thing to build it faster?"

Ao Tu said, "But the people hope that the bridge can be built longer."

Wukong said, "You little dragon, what nonsense are you spouting? Does anyone actually enjoy doing hard labor?"

Ao Tu said, "If the Great Sage doesn't believe me, would you dare to gamble with me again?"

Wukong said, "What... um, I'll go and find out first!"

Wukong transformed into a sparrow and flew into the forest, where he overheard the woodcutters saying, "Wang Er, how long do you think this job will last? I heard that the bridge grew more than sixty zhang yesterday alone."

Wang Er said, "I heard that this river is sixty or seventy li long, and it takes more than sixty zhang a day. It must take several months."

The migrant worker asked, "What does 'several months' mean?"

Wang Er scratched his head and said, "This... I don't know."

The migrant worker said, "You're supposed to be a carpenter, and you can't even figure this out."

Wang Er said, "We carpenters all use rulers to measure. If you let me use a ruler to measure, I will know."

The migrant worker said, "Come on, try to compare it with a ruler. I'm afraid you'll fall into the river before you even get the dimensions right. You'll either drown or be poisoned by the black water. Sigh, I just wish the construction period could be longer. If only we could work for a few more months."

That way, my family will be able to buy some meat for the New Year. With the remaining money, I'll buy my mother a new piece of cotton cloth. Her old cotton-padded coat is over thirty years old; I want to take out the cotton, fluff it, and remake it into a new coat, just to make her happy.”

Wukong, after hearing this, understood the reason. He then inquired around again and obtained mostly the same information. Only then did he return and tell Tang Sanzang what had happened.

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang said, "Amitabha, these people have a hard life, so let the bridge be repaired for a while longer."

Ao Tu said, "If the holy monk really wants to help them, there are other ways."

Tang Sanzang asked, "What method is that?"

Ao Tu said, “These laborers were conscripted here to work and cannot go home. Over time, they will surely miss their families. Most of them are illiterate. If the Holy Monk is willing to write letters for them free of charge, that would be the greatest help to them.”

Tang Sanzang was overjoyed upon hearing this and said, "This humble monk can do it."

So, Tang Sanzang then wrote letters for the group of laborers free of charge.

Wukong and the others were also busy. After Tang Sanzang received the letter, they delivered it to him.

The migrant workers were able to communicate with their families, which made them feel more at ease while working each day.

Therefore, everyone praised the holy monk of the Tang Dynasty.

Tang Sanzang was also pleased.

If Buddha knew that he had done this, he would surely be pleased.

(End of this chapter)