“Why is it hard to get out of?” Sanzang asked.
The old man put his hands together and replied, “About a dozen miles West of our village is a Runny Persimmon Lane and a mountain called Seven Perfections.”
“Why 'Seven Perfections?'“ Sanzang asked.
“It's 250 miles across,” the old man replied, “and covered with persimmons. There's an old saying that persimmon trees have seven perfections:
1. They prolong life.
2. They are very shady.
3. No birds nest in them.
4. They are free of insects.
5. Their leaves are very beautiful after frost.
6. The fruit is excellent.
7. The branches and leaves are big and fat.
That's why it's called Mount Seven Perfections. This is a big, thinly populated area, and nobody has ever been deep into the mountain. Every year over-ripe, rotten persimmons fall on the path, and they fill the rocky lane right up. The rain, dew, snow and frost attack them, and they rot all through the summer until the whole path is a mass of putrefaction. The people round here call it Runny Shit, or Runny Persimmon, Lane. When there's a West wind it smells even worse than a cesspit being emptied. As it's now high spring and there's strong Southeasterly blowing you can't smell it yet.” Sanzang felt too depressed to speak.
Monkey could not contain himself. “Silly old fool,” he shouted at the top of his voice. “We're here late at night to find somewhere to stay, and you're trying to scare us with all that talk. If your house really is so poky that there's no room for us to sleep indoors we'll spend the night squatting under this tree. So cut the cackle.” At the sight of Monkey's hideous face the old man shut his mouth, petrified with fear.
Then he plucked up his courage, pointed his stick at Monkey and shouted, “Damn you, you bony-faced, pointy-browed, flat-nosed, sunken-cheeked, hairy-eyed, sickly-looking devil. You've got no sense of respect, sticking your mouth out like that and insulting an old gentleman.”
“You're not very perceptive, old chap,” Monkey replied, putting on a smile. “You don't realize who this sickly-looking devil is. As the manual of physiognomy says, 'A freakish face is like a rock in which fine jade is hidden.' You're completely wrong to judge people on their looks. Ugly I certainly am, but I know a trick or two.”
“Where are you from?” the old man asked. “What's your name? What powers do you have?” To this Monkey replied with a smile:
“My home is in the Eastern Continent of Superior Body;
My conduct I cultivated on the Mount of Flowers and Fruit.
After studying with the Patriarch of the Spirit-tower Heart Mountain
I learned complete and perfect skill in the martial arts.
I can stir up the oceans, subdue mother dragons,
Carry mountains on my shoulders, and drive the sun along.
At capturing monsters and demons I'm champion;
Ghosts and gods are terrified when I shift the stars.
Great is my fame as sky-thief and earth-turner;
I'm the Handsome Stone Monkey of infinite transformations.
This turned the old man's anger to delight. Bowing to them he said, “Please come into my humble abode and make yourselves comfortable.” The four of them then went in together, leading the horse and carrying the load. All that could be seen to either side of the gates were prickly thorns. The inner gates were set in a wall of brick and stone that had more thorns on top of it, and only when they had gone through them did they see a three-roomed tiled house. The old man pulled up chairs for them to sit on while they waited for tea to be brought and gave orders for a meal. Soon a table was brought in and set with wheat gluten, beancurd, sweet potatoes, radishes, mustard greens, turnips, rice and sour-mallow soup.
Master and disciples all ate their fill. After the meal Pig pulled Monkey aside and whispered, “Brother, the old bloke wasn't going to let us stay at first. Now he's given us this slap-up meal. Why?”
“It wasn't worth very much, was it?” Brother Monkey replied. “Tomorrow we'll make him give us ten kinds of fruit and ten dishes of food.”
“You've got a nerve,” Pig replied. “You talked him into giving us a meal all right with all that boasting. But we'll be on our way tomorrow. How can he give you things?”
“Don't be so impatient,” said Monkey, “I've got a way to cope.”
Dusk soon started to draw in. The old man brought a lamp, and Monkey asked with a bow, “What is your surname, sir?”
“Li,” the old man replied.
“I suppose this must be Li Village,” Monkey continued.
“No,” said the old man, “this is Tuoluo Village. Over five hundred families live here. Most of them have other surnames. I am the only one called Li.”
“Benefactor Li,” Monkey replied, “with what kind intentions did you give us that ample meal?”
“Just now you said that you could capture evil monsters,” said the old man. “We have a monster here that we'd like you to capture for us, and we will of course reward you generously.”
Monkey then chanted a “na-a-aw” of respect and said, “I accept your commission.”
“Just look at him,” said Pig, “asking for trouble. The moment he hears there's a demon to catch he's nicer to him than he would be to his own grandfather. He even chanted a 'na-a-aw' first.”
“You don't understand, brother,” said Monkey. “My 'na-a-aw' clinched the deal. Now he won't hire anyone else.”
When Sanzang heard this he said, “You monkey, you always want to grab things for yourself. If that evil spirit's powers are too great for you to capture him then we monks will be shown up as liars.”
“Don't be cross with me, Master,” Monkey said with a smile. “Let me ask some more questions.”
“What else?” the old man asked.
“This fine village is on an open plain and a lot of people live here,” said Monkey. “It's not remote and isolated. What evil spirit would dare come to your door?”
“I will be frank with you,” the old man replied. “We had long lived in peace and prosperity here till a sudden, strong wind blew three and a half years ago. Everyone was busy at the time threshing the wheat on the threshing floor or transplanting rice in the paddy fields. We thought it was just a change in the weather. We never imagined that when the wind had blown by an evil spirit would eat the horses and cattle that people had put out to pasture as well as the pigs and the sheep. He swallowed hens and geese whole, and any men or women he found he devoured alive. Since then he's come again each of the last two years to murder us. Venerable sir, if you really do have magic powers to capture the evil spirit and cleanse the place of him, we will most certainly reward you generously and with great respect.”
“But the monster will be hard to catch,” Monkey replied.
“Yes,” said Pig, “very hard. We're pilgrim monks only here for the night. We'll be on our way tomorrow. We can't catch any monsters.”
“So you monks just tricked that meal out of me,” the old man said. “When we first met you talked very big. You said you could move the stars and capture evil monsters. But now I've told you about this you pretend he can't be caught.”
“Old man,” said Monkey, “it would be easy to catch the evil spirit, except that you people here don't work together. That's why it's hard.”
“How can you be so sure that we don't work together?” the old man asked.
“If the monster has been harassing you for three years, goodness only knows how many lives he's taken,” Monkey replied. “I reckon that if every family put up one ounce of silver the five hundred households could raise five hundred ounces, and with that you could find a priest somewhere who'd exorcise the monster. Why did you cheerfully put up with three years of such cruelty from him?”