The Great Bandit of Journey to the West

Chapter 58 The Leaky Little Cotton-padded Jacket

Jiang Feng's words were astonishing, leaving everyone in the hall speechless with shock at his brilliant plan!

After a moment, Yang Jian slapped his thigh, stood up, and roared, "Commit suicide? How can I possibly live?!"

Jiang Feng said proudly, "Never mind whether I live or die, just tell me if this plan will work!"

Yang Jian was so angry that he wanted to draw Li Jing's sword to kill him, but he couldn't pull it out, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

Jizang quickly stepped forward and advised, "Your Majesty, please don't be angry. It was just a joke. Please don't upset your health!"

Enraged, Yang Jian flung his sleeves and pointed at Jiang Feng, saying, "You'd better give me an explanation today, or I will not spare you!"

Jiang Feng glanced at him and said, "The Emperor Jing was only nine years old when he died, wasn't he?"

You seized his kingdom and poisoned him, and now he's just trying to scare you, and you want him to be utterly destroyed? Is that something a human being would do?

As he spoke, he glanced at Jizang, Qihui, and the others in the main hall.

"I don't know about you, but I just can't bring myself to kill that child's ghost."

Everyone in the hall lowered their heads, not daring to answer Jiang Feng's question, and the atmosphere became even more tense.

"You...you..."

Yang Jian was so angry that his lips turned white, and he pointed at Jiang Feng but couldn't say a word.

Li Jing, who had been standing silently to the side, suddenly spoke up: "The Northern Zhou was tyrannical, and Your Majesty followed the will of Heaven to take its place. How can this be considered a mistake?"

Furthermore, after His Majesty ascended the throne, he worked diligently to govern the country, restoring unity and ending three hundred years of war since the Jin Dynasty. With such achievements, does Master Jiang Feng believe His Majesty should be harmed by evil spirits and personal grudges?

Jiang Feng looked at the young official with curiosity: "And you are, sir?"

Li Jing cupped his hands and said, "I am Li Jing, the Chief of Staff in this hall."

Jiang Feng's eyes lit up, and he said with a playful expression, "I've heard of you. According to rumors, Yang Su said you have the talent of a prime minister."

Unfortunately, I see your time is not yet ripe; it's not yet your time to soar to great heights.

Li Jing humbly replied, "That is all the Duke of Yue's praise. I am unworthy of it. I urge you, Master, to prioritize the well-being of the nation and exorcise the evil spirits from His Majesty's body."

Seeing that the atmosphere had eased somewhat, Wang Yuanzhi said to Jiang Feng, "Before you came, my fellow Daoists and I had already performed a spell, but we still couldn't find any trace of Emperor Jing."

In my opinion, we should capture his soul and send it to the underworld for judgment.

Jiang Feng frowned slightly, looking at Yuan Shoucheng, who had always been very low-key, with some doubt: "Even you can't figure out where he is?"

Yuan Shoucheng's heart skipped a beat. Meeting Jiang Feng's gaze, he felt as if he had been seen through.

"I am ashamed to say that I am of limited knowledge and cannot figure out where he is hiding."

Seeing that he didn't seem to be lying, Jiang Feng became even more suspicious.

It's highly unusual that Emperor Jing, a child who was poisoned to death, could escape the notice of so many experts from both Buddhism and Taoism.

After pondering for a moment, he took out two yellow talismans and handed them to Yang Jian: "Your Majesty, wear these two talismans on your body to temporarily protect yourself from evil spirits."

Yang Jian reached out to take it, but Jiang Feng quickly withdrew his hand. Just as Yang Jian was glaring at him, Jiang Feng explained, "Your Majesty, each talisman costs one hundred taels of gold. You can ask them if you don't believe me!"

"Hmm?" Yang Jian seemed somewhat disbelieving, looking at Wang Yuanzhi and the others with a questioning gaze.

When Wang Yuanzhi saw the two yellow talismans in Jiang Feng's hand, his eyelids twitched.

One of these two yellow talismans was a protective charm that he taught Cui Ying to make, and the other was a hand-drawn atonement decree by Jiang Feng that was completely useless...

What a leaky little cotton-padded jacket! Maybe we should just expel her from the sect!

Wang Yuanzhi sighed inwardly, and forced himself to say, "Your Majesty, that is indeed the price."

Yang Jian, annoyed, looked at the eunuch beside him and said, "Go and fetch the gold!"

A moment later, the eunuch presented two hundred taels of gold. Jiang Feng weighed the gold in his hand before handing the two yellow tallies to Yang Jian with satisfaction.

After leaving the palace, Jiang Feng returned to Cui Peng's residence.

In the lobby, Cui Ying had been waiting for who knows how long, pulling along a sleepy-eyed Ao Ying.

Upon seeing Jiang Feng return, Cui Peng anxiously stepped forward and asked, "Jiang Feng, what happened in the palace? Why did His Majesty summon you to the palace so late at night?"

Jiang Feng glanced at him and said in a low voice, "His Majesty is unable to sleep at night and wants to summon you to the palace to serve him in bed, but he is too embarrassed to tell you directly, so he asked me to pass on his message."

"ah?!"

Cui Peng froze on the spot, and after a moment, a look of utter horror appeared on his face.

While he was still in shock, Jiang Feng pulled Cui Ying and Ao Ying to the backyard.

"Cui Ying, help me arrange for the tens of thousands of servants under the name of Datong Casino to go to Jiangnan. Also, while you're at it, exchange the mortgaged land of the casino. Be quick, it doesn't matter if some land is lost."

"Ao Ying, go find the Jing River Dragon King now and ask him to inquire about Emperor Jing of Northern Zhou in the underworld."

Cui Ying frowned slightly: "What happened? Why the rush?"

Jiang Feng sighed with deep sorrow: "Alas, I suspect that some treacherous people want to harm me. Under the guise of exorcising evil spirits for Yang Jian, they want him to hold a Buddhist and Taoist ritual, and then have him appoint me as the Tripitaka Master of Sui and send me to the Western Paradise to retrieve the scriptures."

Before things escalate to that point, I need to finish what I want to do quickly, and then find a way to extricate myself.

Guanyin Bodhisattva: "..."

No, how did you guess that? I haven't even made a move yet!

And what kind of thing is "朕" (Zhen)? Is that a title you should use?

No, this humble monk is not a troublemaker!

Guanyin Bodhisattva, who was secretly observing Jiang Feng, was slightly surprised. She felt that she had countless words she wanted to say, but she could not find anyone to confide in. Her calm and composed state of mind, which had been undisturbed for many years, was not able to help but be a little flustered.

Meanwhile, on the banks of the Wei River, two tall, slender figures stood facing the river.

Yang Jian's third eye on his forehead had already opened, flashing with a captivatingly cold and divine light. All three eyes were staring at the Eastern Han Dynasty monk in front of him, looking murderous.

"Jin Chanzi, what are you trying to do in the Western Paradise? Why are you involving my sister?"

With a slight smile, the monk from the Eastern Han Dynasty said, "I am not Jin Chanzi, my Dharma name is Han Sanzang."

This humble monk has no idea what the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Western Paradise are plotting, or whether they will succeed.

As for Jiang Feng and your sister's meeting, it was simply a matter of fate.

Yang Jian, barely suppressing his anger, said, "Can't you speak like a human being?"

The monk from the Eastern Han Dynasty sighed, slammed his prayer beads to the ground, and roared, "In plain terms, I have no idea either!"

"I didn't offend anyone. I was riding my horse, eating dried meat, on my way to the Western Paradise to retrieve the Buddhist scriptures. When I passed the Flowing Sand River, I was suddenly eaten by a monster. Where can I go to seek justice?!"

Yang Jian: "..."

After a moment of silence, Yang Jian sighed and looked at Donghan Sanzang with some sympathy: "In your condition, I don't know if you can be resurrected. If there is a chance, I will ask my sister to put you in the Lotus Lantern to nurture you and see if that works."