The Monkey King was being reprimanded by Su Qing, yet he showed no intention of arguing, simply bowing his head and listening.
If one were to ask, who in this world could make the Monkey King dutifully listen to a scolding?
Besides Patriarch Bodhi, it would be his Big Sister.
Perhaps he didn't feel he had done anything wrong.
But when being lectured, he wouldn't refute or bicker.
After reprimanding Wukong for a while, Su Qing had no intention of continuing.
Instead, she casually pulled out a pot of wine and some fruits from her Sleeve Universe, placing them before him.
Su Qing hadn't come here just to preach to the monkey, of course…
She herself disliked preaching.
The only reason she'd spoken up was merely to maintain her image as Big Sister.
“Here, eat up!”
Su Qing said:
“Trapped under Five Elements Mountain, I imagine you haven't been able to eat or drink well, so I brought you some food.”
Su Qing remembered that the original Journey to the West text documented what Sun Wukong ate while suppressed under Five Elements Mountain.
Although she couldn't quite recall the specifics, it was undoubtedly poor fare.
“Thank you, Big Sister! Thank you, Big Sister! You truly are my Big Sister! You know exactly what I want most right now!”
Indeed, after Su Qing laid out the fruits and fine wine, Wukong immediately thanked her with excitement.
Then, without caring about his dirty hands, he grabbed some fruit and began to munch on it happily.
As he chewed, he didn't forget to say, “Actually, there was a fruit tree near my cave a few years back, but somehow, it withered and died the very next year… What a shame about that tree, otherwise, I could've had some fruit this autumn!”
Su Qing rubbed her chin and glanced into the distance.
Did the Earth God play a trick with this fruit tree?
Su Qing wasn't sure…
But she was too lazy to inquire.
As Wukong ate, he seemed to recall something and couldn't help but stop to ask, “Speaking of which, Big Sister, have you come to set me free?”
Hearing this, Su Qing was silent for a moment before shaking her head slightly. “No, you were suppressed under this mountain by Buddha Ru Lai. With my current strength, I cannot free you.”
Wukong, upon hearing this, not only didn't blame Su Qing for not rescuing him, but instead let out a deep sigh of relief and said:
“That's good, that's good! If Big Sister really did release me without permission, Ru Lai would certainly blame you! Ru Lai is incredibly powerful, and I, Old Sun, am no match for him, at least not for a while.”
“If Big Sister were confronted by him, I, Old Sun, would have trouble protecting you. So it's right that you don't release me.”
“I mustn't implicate Big Sister because of my own mistakes!”
Hearing Wukong's words, Su Qing couldn't help but furrow her brow slightly...
She had expected Wukong to look forward to her rescuing him, just like he did last time in the Eight Trigrams Furnace.
But she hadn't anticipated...
This time, Wukong seemed to have matured quite a bit.
He was actually seriously considering the consequences.
Could her earlier lecturing have worked?
But those were just things she'd said casually.
Su Qing hadn't expected him to truly heed them.
“Ah… I almost forgot. Though Wukong went wild for a time and lost his true self, he's fundamentally a good monkey and not truly stupid.”
Su Qing's mind instantly cleared considerably.
Su Qing shook her head slightly, remarking calmly, “You're quite thoughtful, you monkey.”
“I, Old Sun, have always taken responsibility for my own actions!”
“Heh.” Su Qing smiled and said, “However, although I can't directly free you, I can go plead on your behalf with Ru Lai. Directly releasing you is probably unrealistic, but it should at least grant you a chance to reform.”
“Reform?” Wukong was about to say that he hadn't done anything wrong and didn't need to reform.
But then he remembered that saying so would surely earn him Su Qing's rebuke, so he shut his mouth again.
“Yes, that's right! No matter what, you have to get out of this mountain, don't you? Do you want to be perpetually crushed under Five Elements Mountain?”
“That's true… of course not.” Wukong nodded slightly and said, “Then… Big Sister, please do what you can, but don't jeopardize your own future for my sake.”
“I don't have much of a future; being a mountain god and protecting a region of land and water is my greatest wish.”
Su Qing shook her head slightly, then poured some wine into the monkey's cup and said:
“As for you, once you're free, you must behave yourself. Don't end up suppressed under a mountain again.”
“I understand, I understand!” Wukong chuckled and quickly nodded.
Seeing this, Su Qing stopped her scolding and simply chatted with Wukong.
She spoke of the matters of Flower-Fruit Mountain.
After learning about the various changes on Flower-Fruit Mountain, Wukong exclaimed happily, “I never would have thought that in just a few decades since Big Sister took over Flower-Fruit Mountain, it would have changed so much! Indeed, Big Sister is the most suitable person to be the King of Flower-Fruit Mountain.”
Su Qing heard this and shook her head slightly, saying, “I'm not suitable. I'm very lazy and have no interest in constantly managing this group of people. Flower-Fruit Mountain's current prosperity is entirely due to the efforts of the monkeys, the Earth God, and some mortals. It has little to do with me!”
Wukong didn't care, just laughed heartily and praised Su Qing again.
Just like that, time passed quickly.
Before they knew it, the wine was finished, and only a few fruits remained.
The sun in the west was also about to set.
And Su Qing, naturally, it was time for her to return.
“It's getting late, so I'll head back now. When there's good news next time, I'll come find you!”
Su Qing stood up, patted the dust from her clothes, then took out some more fruits from her Sleeve Universe and placed them beside Wukong, saying:
“I didn't bring many fruits this time, but these should last you for a few days. After you're done eating, plant the seeds nearby. If you take good care of them, they might even sprout next year.”
Wukong quickly nodded at this, saying, “Thank you, Big Sister, thank you, Big Sister! Have a safe journey. And Big Sister, don't worry about me. Though I can't move under Five Elements Mountain, this mountain won't take my life, Old Sun's life.”
Su Qing nodded, then turned and walked away.
However, after walking a distance, Su Qing didn't leave directly.
Instead, she called out the old Earth God and gave a few instructions.
Seeing the old Earth God nod repeatedly in assurance, Su Qing finally left Five Elements Mountain with satisfaction.
Rate on N.U.
