Tang Seng and his disciples left.
Facing the bright morning sun in the sky, Sun Wukong looked back.
Baihu Ridge is hidden in layers of dense forests. If you don’t walk in, who would have thought that such a fairyland-like place is hidden in this inconspicuous mountain forest
Sun Wukong thought that if he had the chance again in the future, he would definitely come here again to take a look.
A comfortable sigh interrupted his thoughts. It was Zhu Bajie.
"The king of Baihu Ridge is really a good demon." As he said this, he was holding a small bag of dried fruits in his hand and kept putting them into his mouth.
When they were about to leave, seven or eight little monsters blocked their way and stuffed a lot of things into their mouths.
"They are all worthless things, and the monsters themselves want to give them to the guests." Jiang Lin said.
Zhu Bajie was anxious, so he opened it and saw that they were all dried fruits and dry food that were easy to preserve, with a very good texture and taste.
Sun Wukong glanced at his junior brother and scolded him, "Idiot! All you know is eating!"
Zhu Bajie was no longer afraid of this and said calmly: "I am a pig now, what else can I do if I don't eat?"
There was a barely detectable hint of self-mockery in his casual tone.
Sun Wukong glanced at his indifferent smile, reached out, grabbed a bag of dried fruits and threw it into his mouth.
“It’s pretty sweet.”
Jiang Lin stood on the highest mountain of Baihu Ridge, watching the figures moving further and further away until they were finally hidden in the wilderness.
Zong Yu stood beside him, somewhat puzzled: "You are too enthusiastic towards them."
He said: "But from what I see, they are just ordinary mortals and monsters."
Jiang Lin thought to himself that you don’t understand. The Monkey King has a special place in the hearts of every Chinese who grew up reading Journey to the West. He only hates that he can’t do more with his current status.
He couldn't tell Zong Yu about this, but he could tell him about another point.
"It never hurts to make good connections." Jiang Lin sighed, "One day I will have to leave Baihu Ridge, and you don't look like someone who can stay here for long. The monsters down there are not powerful enough to support such a large Baihu Ridge, so I have to make some plans in advance."
The master and his disciples have received such kindness from him that if anything really happens in Baihu Ridge in the future, they will surely not stand idly by.
This sounds quite ominous.
Zong Yu's heart was filled with alarm bells: "Leaving Baihu Ridge? Where are you going? Aren't you coming back?"
Jiang Lin had a premonition about this, and he had already thought of the reason: "I have reached a bottleneck in my cultivation. Soon I will start to retreat or travel around the world. I may not come back for hundreds of years."
After hearing him say this, Zong Yu felt relieved.
He muttered, "So that's what it is. You sounded like you would never come back. It really scared me to death."
He thought about Jiang Lin's words and asked expectantly, "Can I travel with you?"
Jiang Lin laughed and said, "We'll talk about it later."
Because of this conversation, Zong Yu always had something on his mind. For a long time, he watched Jiang Lin very closely, as if he was afraid that he would suddenly disappear.
But everything was normal, and Baihuling lived in peace and tranquility for twenty years.
The holy monks who went to the West to seek Buddhist scriptures returned to the Tang Dynasty and were received with great courtesy.
Jiang Lin met the Monkey King again.
He was wearing a golden armor and a blood-red cloak. There was no golden hoop on his head. His pair of golden eyes were shining brightly. He looked heroic and dashing. He was exactly the Monkey King in Jiang Lin's mind.
This appearance was completely different from what Jiang Lin had expected. He asked curiously, "What's this, Great Sage?"
Sun Wukong smiled and said, "I have completed my mission to obtain Buddhist scriptures from the West. Now I am free again, and I don't have that damn tight-fitting curse anymore. I wonder if I can ask the king for a glass of wine?"
Jiang Lin was really surprised now: "I thought that the Great Sage would convert to Buddhism when he arrived in the West."
"Convert to Buddhism?" The Great Sage looked at Jiang Lin strangely. "You are right. That old Tathagata wanted to make me a Fighting Buddha, but I refused."
"Why did the Great Sage refuse?"
The Great Sage looked at him and smiled: "When I heard what you said, I thought it made a lot of sense."
"Because my six senses are not pure."
"I can't let go of the Flower-Fruit Mountain, I can't let go of my children, and I don't like the Buddhists who keep talking about Amitabha Buddha."
"I learned the supreme magic, became the Great Sage Equaling Heaven and became famous all over the world. But in the end, what I miss most are the days when I was born in Huaguo Mountain."
The Great Sage looked far away at his hometown in the east, and leaned against the tree trunk casually: "So, I am back."
He and Jiang Lin drank for three days and three nights, and left in a drunken state.
Later, the world had a new emperor. The new emperor believed in Taoism. Not only did monks and Taoists prosper, but even many big monsters stayed in the world.
Baihu Ridge has changed its appearance again. Many new monsters have arrived, and the management has become more organized.
Jiang Lin felt that the time was about up.
He called Pheasant, Civet Cat, Han Dongqinghuan and others to his front and said that he was going out to travel and might not come back for hundreds of years, so he asked them to take good care of Baihu Ridge.
He also went into the kitchen himself and prepared a table full of delicious dishes for Zong Yu to eat.
Zong Yu looked very unhappy.
"Aren't you going to take me with you?" he asked Jiang Lin.
Jiang Lin smiled gently: "Zong Yu, I'm sorry, it's not convenient for me to take you this time."
Zong Yu used to love the food cooked by Jiang Lin the most, but this time he didn't even look at it, and walked away with a grim look on his face.
Zong Yu was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Zong Yu to react so strongly.
He felt a little annoyed. He had been living with Zong Yu for hundreds of years. Although the child had a bad temper, he was not a bad person by nature and was very dependent on him.
He already had a precious daughter, Qingluo, and had no intention of raising a son. Besides, Zong Yu was not old enough for him to raise him as a son.
But it is impossible to say that there is no emotion. In Jiang Lin's eyes, Zong Yu is just a close younger brother.
He did not chase out, but sat quietly in the small yard waiting.
He understood Zong Yu just as Zong Yu understood him.
When the moon was at its zenith, Zong Yu came back by himself.
He glared at Jiang Lin angrily, his eyes red: "If I don't come back, how long are you going to sit here?"
Jiang Lin smiled slightly: "I'll sit here until you come back, and then I'll say goodbye to you."
Zong Yu's eyes got even redder.
He said: "Although you said you were traveling, I always had a feeling that you would not come back."
Jiang Lin didn't expect him to be so sensitive. He smiled bitterly and said, "This... How can I put it? If we are destined to meet, maybe we can meet again."
Zong Yu had a stern face and said nothing more. He sat down quietly and ate all the cold food on the table bite by bite.
Then he left without saying a word.
Jiang Lin knew he was still angry and sighed.
When the morning glow rose the next day, Jiang Lin got up.
Standing at the exit of the valley, he turned around and looked at this world with a rare lingering look.
After looking at him for a while, he said softly, "Goodbye."
I turned around and walked away, but saw a small familiar figure standing under the peach tree in front of me.
The peach blossoms are blooming with romance and passion, but Zong Yu has a solemn look on his face under the tree.
Zong Yu looked at him coldly: "You really don't have any regrets at all."
Jiang Lin sighed: "Zong Yu, all good things must come to an end. You are still young now, you will understand in the future."
Zong Yu walked up to him and put a small bead into his hand.
He said, "I think fate won't allow us to meet again. I'm very angry with you now. I get angry when I see you. If you want to leave, leave quickly, or I won't fight with you."
Jiang Lin lowered his eyes and looked at the thing in his hand: "What is this?"
Zong Yu snorted coldly: "It's not a good thing. If you don't like it, just throw it away."
Jiang Lin: “…”
In front of Zong Yu, he carefully put it away and said solemnly: "Thank you for your gift, I will keep it carefully."
Zong Yu turned his head away and didn't look at him.
Jiang Lin didn't mind and raised his hand to touch the top of his head.
"Goodbye, Master Xiaozong."
No one replied to him.
Jiang Lin didn't want to wait for any response. He smiled, raised his step, walked towards the morning glow in the sky, and his figure disappeared in the sunset glow.
After a long time, the wind finally brought a reluctant response:
"Goodbye, Jiang Lin."