Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 554 Tian Peng Learns Xuanzang’s True Name

Chapter 554: Chapter 554 Tian Peng Learns Xuanzang’s True Name

Tian Peng thought to himself how close that had been; he was fortunate to have held back his words just in time, for calling the monk "baldy" to his face would have been quite disrespectful.

Upon hearing the name Jiang Liuer, the monk paused and looked at Tian Peng, "Donor, may I ask what you intend to do by seeking Jiang Liuer?"

This query meant recognition, and Tian Peng found it to be quite a coincidence. It was a good thing he asked; now he had an out.

With this monk here, he might be able to avoid Jiang Liuer in Chang’an as well.

"You know him? Well, that’s really a coincidence. It’s not anything important; just that the physician knows Jiang Liuer and mentioned him briefly to me, saying that if I see Jiang Liuer, I should let him know. I guess they must have met during Jiang Liuer’s travels for study," said Tian Peng, spinning a couple of lies casually.

The monk’s expression did not relax in the slightest, "Jiang Liuer was the name from his childhood, and even while traveling to study, it’s unlikely he would have casually spoken of it to outsiders."

"Oh, I see," Tian Peng scratched his head, "Maybe they met when he was still a kid. Is he also in Chang’an?"

The monk paused for a moment, then nodded, "Indeed, he is in Chang’an. This humble monk has known Jiang Liuer since we were children. What is the family name and given name of the physician you speak of, and where does he live? When I see him, I can pass on the message."

Tian Peng scratched his head; he hadn’t thought about what lie to concoct for this.

Then an idea struck him; thinking of Chen Nuo who had lived in the mortal world for some time, he lied, "That friend of mine used to live in a small town at the foot of Mount Taihang. I’ve only just gotten to know him, too. He asked me to inquire about Jiang Liuer’s whereabouts, that’s all I know."

He certainly didn’t seem to know much, but the situation was now rather complex, and this monk seemed quite peculiar.

When he heard that the man had previously lived in a small town under Mount Taihang, he thought about it; indeed, there had been such a case.

When it came down to it, Jiang Liuer was a childhood name, one he had never mentioned in front of others; how could this person be looking for Jiang Liuer?

"I’m not curious about that, when the master arrives in Chang’an and sees Jiang Liuer, you can tell me all about it next time we meet," said the monk.

These kinds of lies were not common for Tian Peng; he planned to leave after spinning this tale.

"May I inquire, what did that physician look like? Is the individual male or female?" asked the monk.

Tian Peng thought about it and decided there was no harm in telling him, as they would likely never meet again, and so he described, "A man, tall and with an ethereal air, practicing medicine to help the world, also a wanderer; meeting him must have been destiny."

Upon hearing the description, the monk’s eyes grew increasingly shocked; after all these years, that person was still the same.

Even though he had not laid eyes on the individual, just hearing the description made him feel that there had been no change from before.

"Look at me, I said I wouldn’t bother you, managed to send the gentleman away, but ended up lingering here myself. Master, this time I truly won’t trouble you anymore, I’ll be leaving now."

Tian Peng said he was leaving, but the monk stopped him again.

"Donor, wait a moment."

Tian Peng paused, wondering if he had inadvertently given something away, "What’s the matter?"

"I just wanted to ask, wasn’t that ’donor’ originally selling oil? How did he become a physician?"

"How do you know so much?" Tian Peng retorted.

No sooner had he spoken than he realized something was amiss.

Earlier, when he spoke the name Jiang Liuer, the monk seemed to pause.

Placed in the context of the earlier conversation, he hadn’t detected anything wrong, but now, Tian Peng truly sensed something was off.

Ever since he had mentioned Jiang Liuer, the monk had been keen to find out who was inquiring after Jiang Liuer.

He had thought he recognized Jiang Liuer and wanted to help him clarify the situation.

After some investigation, Tian Peng became thoroughly convinced that something was different.

Originally, the reason this monk asked so many detailed questions wasn’t that he was very familiar with Jiang Liuer, but rather because he was Jiang Liuer himself!

"You are Jiang Liuer?"

An ascetic doesn’t lie, and although the monk wanted to deny it, in keeping with the rules of Buddhism, he didn’t lie and simply nodded.

In reality, even if the monk shook his head, Tian Peng wouldn’t have believed him now, and moreover, Tian Peng felt a severe headache coming on.

Previously, Chen Nuo had instructed him to keep his distance from a monk called Jiang Liuer, which made him vaguely suspect something was off about this monk.

This monk called Jiang Liuer must be someone Chen Nuo specifically mentioned to stay away from because the identity of Jiang Liuer was no ordinary one.

Being cast down to the mortal world and having no ordinary identity, in Tian Peng’s mind, there was only one possibility that matched up—that was the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi.

No wonder Chen Nuo had told him to stay away from Jiang Liuer. It wasn’t just about avoidance; there must be many from Buddhism watching over the situation around Jiang Liuer.

If he appeared by Jiang Liuer’s side, he might attract their attention and then be tracked by Buddhists or reported to the Jade Emperor.

If the Jade Emperor found out about his rebirth as a human, he would definitely send an Immortal Official to secretly prevent him from becoming an immortal. No, he had to become an immortal, so he had to keep his distance from this monk.

The monk didn’t expect his admission to elicit such a big reaction from the person in front of him. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Could it be that the one who really wanted to know whether he was Jiang Liuer was actually this young man?

Impossible, he didn’t know this young man at all.

Besides, when he first saw the young master selling oil, he was only just beginning to remember things, and now he had forgotten all about that time except for the memory of that young master’s graceful robes.

Indeed, he had once spoken of his own experiences in the shop, and that young master must have remembered him.

"Donor, what’s the matter with you? You seem troubled," the monk asked. "Could it be, you know me as well?"

"No, I don’t know you," Tian Peng quickly denied.

The monk was startled by the swift response, then spoke again, "Indeed, Donor is a few years younger than me. It’s only proper that you don’t recognize me."

"Well then, Master, you should rest well," Tian Peng said. "If I keep talking to you, I’m afraid it will be dark before you can get proper rest."

"In that case, I have already finished my questioning, so you should rest well. In the evening, I will have the waiter deliver meals to you, so you won’t have to walk around and suffer from smelling meat and fish," he expressed with such sincere concern that even the monk himself couldn’t find fault and just nodded. "Then, I thank you kindly, Donor."

Tian Peng was doing well speaking with the monk, but once he left the monk’s door and entered his own room, all pretense disappeared.

How could this have happened? It truly seemed that whatever he feared would come to pass.

Nobody would have expected that a monk he merely came across on the road would turn out to be that damn Jiang Liuer.

At this point, Tian Peng also didn’t know what to do. He paced back and forth in the room, thinking for a long time without coming up with a solution.

What if those above had already become aware of his identity? Then all the efforts he had made before would have been in vain.

After some thought, Tian Peng felt this matter really couldn’t be regarded as trivial and decided it was better to consult Chen Nuo for a strategy first.