Monkey (44 page)

‘Master,’ said Sandy, ‘it’s bad going.’

‘We had better go back and ask them for some straw,’ said Pigsy.

‘Straw!’ said Monkey. ‘What for?’

‘You wouldn’t know,’ said Pigsy. ‘If we bind straw to the horse’s hoofs, it wouldn’t slip and the Master wouldn’t fall off.’

So they got some straw, and when Pigsy had tied it to the horse’s hoofs, they set out once more.

They had gone three or four leagues, when Pigsy took Tripitaka’s staff and made him carry it crosswise.

‘Now what is this fool up to?’ cried Monkey. ‘It’s his business to carry the staff. Why has he made the Master carry it?’

‘You’ve never been on ice, so you don’t know,’ said Pigsy. ‘Ice always has holes in it. If one puts one’s foot in a hole, down one goes, and unless one is holding a stick, crosswise like this, one can’t stop oneself. The ice closes above like the lid of a kettle, and one never gets out again. The thing to do is to hold a stick crosswise like this.’

‘One would think he had spent all his time going on the ice,’ said Monkey, laughing. They all did as he said. Tripitaka held the staff across his knees, Monkey held his cudgel, Sandy his priest’s staff, and Pigsy, who had the luggage on his back, tied the rake sideways at his waist. They went on, all feeling perfectly secure.

When darkness fell they ate some of their provisions, but did not dare halt, and, with the moonlight glittering in dazzling whiteness over the ice, they rode on, never closing their eyes all night. When it grew light, they ate some more of their provisions, and then went on towards the west. After some time a rending sound suddenly came from under the ice. The white horse plunged, and almost lost its footing.

‘Disciple, what is that noise ?’ asked Tripitaka.

‘It is freezing so hard,’ said Pigsy, ‘that the earth at the bottom of the river is hardening. Soon we shall have one solid block under our feet.’

Tripitaka was astonished and delighted. He whipped on his horse and away they went.

Meanwhile the Great King and his kinsfolk were waiting below. Hearing at last the sound of hoofs, he so deployed his magic power as to open a long deft in the ice. Monkey
immediately leapt into the air; but the white horse went straight in, and so did the other disciples. The monster grabbed at Tripitaka, and he and his kinsfolk swiftly carried him down to the Water Palace.

‘Where’s my perch sister?’ shouted the Great King.

‘At your service,’ she said, approaching the gate and curtseying. ‘But as for “sister” – no really, I can’t allow it.’

‘Be careful,’ he said, ‘or I shall take you at your word. “A team of horses cannot overtake a word that has left the mouth.” I promised to call you my sister if your plan put Tripitaka into my hands, and sister you must be.’ Then he called to his servants to set the tables, grind the knives, rip out Tripitaka’s heart, and then flay and carve him, and to see to it that there was music. ‘For I and my sister are going to eat him,’ he said,’ that we may live forever.’

‘Great King,’ she said, ‘if we eat him now, his disciples may come in the middle and spoil the fun. We had better lie low for a couple of days, and if these wretches don’t come to look for him, we’ll split open his breast and hold our feast. Your Majesty will preside, and all our tribe shall be there to entertain you with flute, string, song and dance. In that way we shall be able to enjoy the treat quite at our ease. Isn’t that a better plan?’ The king agreed, and Tripitaka was taken and laid in a long stone chest that stood at the back of the palace. The lid was put on, and there we leave him.

Meanwhile Pigsy and Sandy fished the luggage out of the water and packed it on the horse’s back. Then they all began swimming towards the shore.

‘What has become of Tripitaka?’ asked Monkey, looking down from aloft.

‘There’s no such person,’ said Pigsy. ‘ “Down among the dead men”
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is his ticket now. It’s no use worrying any more about him. We’re making for shore. When we get there, we’ll decide what’s to be done next.’

Now Pigsy had once been a marshal of the hosts of Heaven and had commanded eighty thousand water-warriors of the River of Heaven; Sandy came from the Flowing Sands, and the white horse was a grandchild of the Dragon King of the
Western Ocean. So all three of them were quite at home in the water. Led by Monkey from above, they made the journey much quicker than they had come, and scrambling up the bank, they scrubbed down the horse, wrung out their clothes and, joined by Monkey, all went back to Mr Ch’ên’s house. “They have come back again,’ someone announced to Mr Ch’e”n, ‘but there are only three of them.’ As soon as they arrived at the door, Mr Ch’Sn saw that their clothes were wet.

‘I told you so I’ he said.’ I begged you to stay, but you would not listen to me. If you had, you would not now be in this sad state. And what has become of Tripitaka?’

‘That’s not his name now,’ said Pigsy. ‘He’s known as “Old Down at the Bottom”.’

Both the old men burst into tears. ‘If only he had waited till the ice melted, and taken a boat I’ they wailed. ‘His obstinacy has cost him his life.’

‘Don’t distress yourselves unduly,’ said Monkey. ‘I’ve a notion that the Master will live a long time yet. This is just a trick of that monster’s. Meanwhile don’t worry, but get our clothes put through the mangle, dry our passports, have the white horse well fed, and then we’ll go and find this creature, rescue the Master, and get this business settled once and for all. Then I hope you’ll all have a quiet time for a long while to come.’

The old men were satisfied by this, and ordered a good supper to be brought in. When the pilgrims had eaten their fill, they asked the people of the place to look after the horse, and weapon in hand went off to the river to look for the monster.

And if you do not know how they saved Tripitaka, you must listen to what is told in the next chapter.

‘N
OW
we have got to decide which of us is to go down under the water first,’ said Monkey, when he reached the bank.

‘Brother,’ said Pigsy, ‘neither Sandy nor I can match half your tricks. It’s clear that you should go first.’

‘The trouble is,’ said Monkey, ‘that I am not at my best in the water. I have to be making magic passes all the time to protect myself from it. You are both of you water-experts and had better go in together.’

‘I can manage the water all right,’ said Sandy, ‘but I don’t know what it’s going to be like when we get to the bottom. Let’s all go together.’

‘Shall you transform yourself into something,’ went on Sandy, ‘or shall we carry you? In any case, when we get to the creature’s lair, you must go on ahead and see how things stand. If the Master is really there and alive, we’ll all charge to the assault. But it may turn out that it wasn’t the Great King who carried him off at all; he may just have been drowned. On the other hand, the king may already have eaten him. In that case, there’s no more we can do, and we had better make off in some other direction as fast as we can.’

‘Good,’ said Monkey. ‘Which of you will carry me?’

Pigsy saw his opportunity. ‘This monkey,’ he said to himself, ‘has had I don’t know how many games at my expense. But he is not at home in the water, and if I offer to carry him, I shall have a chance of getting my own back.’

‘I’ll carry you, brother,’ he said.

Monkey saw at once that there was something in the wind, and made his plans accordingly. ‘All right,’ he said. ‘You are stronger in the back than Sandy.’

So Pigsy took him on his back and Sandy led the way. When they had almost reached the bottom, he began his game. Monkey felt that it was coming, and plucking a hair he changed it into the semblance of himself, which remained
on Pigsy’s back, while the real Monkey changed into a hog-louse and clung tight to Pigsy’s ear. Pigsy as he went suddenly made a great jolt, intended to send Monkey flying over his head. But the sham Monkey, being nothing but a transformed hair, merely fluttered away and disappeared. ‘Brother,’ said Sandy,’ do you know what you have done ? It’s not very good going, and anyone might slip about a bit. But you’ve jolted our brother right off your back, and how is anyone to know where he has fallen to ?’

‘That Monkey,’ said Pigsy, ‘ought surely to be able to stand a little jolting. What’s the good of a fellow who just vanishes at the first jolt? Don’t let us worry about what has become of him. You and I will go and look for the Master.’

‘I’m not going without him,’ said Sandy. ‘You and I may be good at going in the water, but we are not up to half his tricks.’

Monkey, firmly lodged in Pigsy’s ear, could not refrain from crying out, ‘I’m here.’

‘That’s done itl’ said Sandy. ‘Ghosts are heard but not seen. He is certainly dead. What possessed you to try that game with him?’

Pigsy, in great perturbation, knelt down and said, kowtowing, ‘Brother, I ought not to have done it. When we have rescued Tripitaka and are on land again, I will apologize properly. Where are you talking from ? You frightened me to death. Show yourself in your true form, and I will carry you properly and give you no more jolts.’

‘You are carrying me now,’ said Monkey. ‘Gee up, and I won’t tease you.’

Mumbling to himself about his apology, Pigsy scrambled to his feet and went on. Suddenly they saw a notice with ‘Turtle House’ written on it.

‘This must be where the monster is living,’ said Sandy. ‘Let’s go and taunt him to battle.’

‘Do you suppose there is water at the gate?’ said Monkey.

‘There clearly isn’t,’ said Sandy.

‘Well then,’ said Monkey, ‘you two go and hide at each side of the door, and I’ll prospect.’ So saying, he crawled out of Pigsy’s ear, shook himself, changed into a long-legged crab
mother and sidled in at the door. There was the monster, with his kinsfolk round him and the perch mother at his side. They were discussing how they should eat Tripitaka. But looking about on all sides, Monkey could not anywhere see the Master. Presently he saw a crab mother sidling along the corridor. ‘Granny,’ he said, going up to her, ‘they are deciding about the eating of this Chinese priest. What have they done with him in the meanwhile ?’

‘They’ve put him in the stone chest behind the palace,’ said she. ‘They are not going to eat him till tomorrow, for fear his disciples come along and kick up a fuss. If everything is all right then, there’ll be music and great goings-on.’

Monkey chatted with her for a little, and then went behind the palace, where sure enough he found a stone chest, rather like some pig-styes that people make of stone, or a sepulchral sarcophagus.

He bent over the chest, and soon heard Tripitaka blubbering piteously. ‘Master,’ he called, ‘do not grieve. The Flood Scripture says, “Earth is the mother of the five elements, Water is the source of the five elements. Without earth we could not be born, but without water we could not grow.” Take comfort in this and in the fact that I have come.’

‘Save me, disciple!’ groaned Tripitaka.

‘Don’t worry!’ said Monkey. ‘Wait till we have caught the monster; then we’ll soon get you out.’

‘I hope you’ll be quick about it,’ said Tripitaka. ‘If I stay another day, I shall succumb.’

‘That’s all right,’ said Monkey.’ Off I go!’

‘Well, brother, how do things stand?’ asked Sandy, when Monkey reappeared in his true form.

‘The Master has indeed been captured,’ Monkey said. ‘But so far no harm has been done to him. The Monster has put him in a stone chest. You two had better go and give battle, and I’ll return to the surface. If you can catch the monster, do so. If you can’t, pretend to give in and retreat to the surface, enticing him to follow you. Then you can leave him to me.’

Look at Pigsy! He goes blustering to the door. ‘Monster,’ he cries, ‘give us back our Master!’ Some little imps at the
door rushed in and announced, ‘Great King, there is someone outside asking for his master.’

‘I know what that means,’ said the monster. ‘That cursed priest has come. Quick, bring me my whole outfit,’ he cried. Armed to the teeth he called his imps to open the door and came striding out, followed by a hundred and ten satellites, all swinging halberds or brandishing swords. ‘What temple do you come from, and why are you making this scene at my door ?’ he thundered.

‘Insensate creature!’ cried Pigsy. ‘I had a chat with you only a few nights ago. How can you pretend that you do not know me ? I am a disciple of Tripitaka who is going to India to fetch scriptures. You have the effrontery to call yourself Great King and think yourself entitled to eat girls and boys from the village. I am your victim, the girl Load of Gold. Don’t you recognize me ?’

‘Are you aware that you could be sued for impersonation?’ said the monster. ‘As things turned out, I didn’t eat you, and in fact did you no harm. But you gave me a nasty knock. I should have thought you would have been glad enough to escape alive instead of coming pestering me at home.’

‘No harm indeed!’ cried Pigsy. ‘Isn’t it enough that you trapped my Master under the ice? Give him back to us at once, and we will say no more about it. But if so much as half the word “No” leaves your lips – just have a look at this rake, and know what to expect!’

‘Well, if you must needs know,’ said the monster smiling sourly, ‘I confess it was I who made the frost and seized upon your Master. But I must warn you that if you want to pick a quarrel with me, things won’t go quite like last time. Then I was going to a dinner party, and had no weapons with me. This time I have got my battle-mallet. I challenge you to three bouts. If you can get the better of me, you shall have back your Master. But if you can’t, I shall eat you as well as him.’