Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

If you ask a modern person, what are the names of the ten Yama Kings in the underworld?

I guess few people can answer it in one go without the help of search tools.

It is very likely that the ancients had similar troubles, so they gave the ten non-professional Yama Kings, including Qin Guang King, Chu Jiang King, Song Emperor, Coroner King, Yama King, Pingdeng King, Taishan King, Metropolis King, Biancheng King, and Zhuanlun King... These ten Yama Kings who would die if they were recited in one breath were given a resounding male group name, called the Ten Kings of Hell.

Interestingly, although the Ten Kings of Hell are the rulers of the underworld, when they met Li Shimin, the emperor of the world, they did not act like local tyrants, but instead came down to greet him with great courtesy. After a few pleasantries, they also ordered Judge Cui to check Li Shimin's life span. Wen Jiao only heard the sound of flipping through books, followed by a surprised breath, and then she knew that Judge Cui found out that Li Shimin's life span ended in the 13th year of Zhenguan. Because he had promised to protect the emperor of Tang, he had to quietly add two horizontal lines to the "one", and added 20 years of life span to Li Shimin without anyone noticing.

Oh, now Wen Jiao also knows. In short, these two strokes distinguish Li Shimin in Journey to the West from the historical one. After all, this wise and capable monarch died in the 23rd year of Zhenguan in history.

From this we can see that the person who could summarize the proverb "It is easier to get things done if you have someone in the court" is definitely a philosopher king.

Wen Jiao flew up lightly, tickled Judge Cui's arm, and condensed her voice into a line, sending it into his ear: "Uncle Cui, can you also show your niece my Book of Life and Death?"

As her cultivation deepened, she gradually developed a subtle feeling that although her journey to becoming an immortal had experienced some twists and turns, it still seemed a little too smooth, as if her attainment of immortality was already destined. This made her feel a little unpredictable and confused.

Judge Cui was also a man who loved to help others, so he replied in a voice transmission: "I am on duty right now, so it is not convenient. After seeing off His Majesty, your uncle will quietly check with you."

Wen Jiao shrank back and continued to look out secretly through the hole in her sleeve.

After questioning Li Shimin for a few sentences, the Yama King of the Ten Palaces wanted to send him away. Li Shimin was naturally obedient and took the opportunity to ask about the life expectancy of the family members in the palace. The Yama King of the Ten Palaces only said, "All is well, but I am afraid that my sister Li Yuying may not live long."

Through the hole in his sleeves, Wen Jiao could only see the ten kings with an imperial demeanor, but they smiled at each other with deep meaning when they spoke. She couldn't help but feel puzzled. After thinking for a while, she suddenly realized something and felt a chill all over her body. When Judge Cui received the order to send Li Shimin away and took the Emperor of Tang out of the Yama Palace and away from the Ten Yama Palaces, she asked in a voice transmission: "Uncle Cui, is Princess Yuying really not immortal?"

After a while, Judge Cui replied, "It's hard for Old Yin, a rough and tough man, to give birth to a clever girl like you. There are millions of people recorded in the Book of Life and Death. Even a judge like me can't remember the specific life spans of people without checking. I haven't seen the specific book about Princess Yuying's life span, so I can't guarantee that what I say is absolutely true, but I can make a tentative guess."

"No matter whether her life span is eternal or not, since His Majesty the Emperor Tang has come to the underworld to travel, her life span should not be eternal."

The emperor of the world is protected by the dragon spirit, especially a wise ruler like Li Shimin, who is blessed with great luck. If such a monarch can be converted, it will be a key to spreading the teachings of Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. In order to induce him to lead a country to believe in Buddhism, the Buddha ordered Guanyin to come to the East to find the pilgrim. Similarly, in order to make him fear the existence of hell, the Ten Kings of Hell will naturally not hesitate to shake the small principle.

For example, although it was the old dragon of the Jing River who was causing trouble, he insisted on letting Li Shimin fall seriously ill for several days and die of illness before the judge took him to the underworld and the ten kings of hell personally welcomed and entertained him to show their respect. For example, in order to prevent him from regarding his experiences as an illusory dream after his return to the world, a small secret was revealed, telling him that a relative was about to die.

This relative cannot be very important to Li Shimin, otherwise the pain of losing a loved one will make him hate the underworld. This relative should also be very healthy, otherwise if he is sick, his death will only be regarded as the end of his life.

And when he wakes up and hears the news of the death of his usually lively relative, he will naturally believe in the existence of hell.

The cycle of life and death in the palm of your hand is so capricious.

Wen Jiao clenched her fingers, and after a long time, she sighed faintly and weakly.

And she was just a small monk with some skills who had to rely on connections to enter the underworld. Even if she guessed the inside story, what could she do?

Ask Judge Cui for help? Although Judge Cui had the intention to protect Li Shimin and her, it was all done in secret. Princess Yuying was sentenced to death by the King of Hell. Did Judge Cui want to go against his boss directly? Wen Jiao didn't think that she, a "daughter of an old friend", had the weight to do so. However, it might not be impossible to ask for a solution in secret, but was she worthy enough to ask again and again?

The more she thought about it, the more worried she became, and Wen Jiao hugged her head.

After all, I am too weak and too insignificant.

While she was struggling between heaven and man, Judge Cui had already led Li Shimin through the eighteen levels of hell, the six realms of reincarnation, and the Naihe Bridge. This emperor, who had fought on the battlefields for a long time, was so shocked that he believed in this life and the afterlife, cause and effect, and promised that after his return to life, he would hold a large water and land ceremony to help the sixty-four dust storms and seventy-two bandits in the late Sui and early Tang dynasties to be reborn.

This made Judge Cui and Captain Zhu, who escorted him, feel very sensible. They were all smart people, and they understood each other's purpose without having to point it out. Unlike the old dragon of Jinghe River, the fortune teller Yuan Shoucheng clearly knew his identity as soon as they met, but he did not point it out, just hoping that he would be more sensible after losing and not cause trouble again. Who would have thought that the old dragon was so confused that he could do such a rotten thing as tampering with the Jade Edict of the Heavenly Court for a mere gambling game, and directly ruined his life.

It is the style of masters to fight each other, to go back and forth and stop when necessary.

After finally sending the person away, Judge Cui waited until the King of Hell on duty went off work, then he secretly took out the book of Taoist priests from all over the world to look for her. However, after searching one by one, he could not find Yin Wenjiao's entry.

He transmitted his voice, "I think it's because you were born into a rich and powerful family that you are not in this book. Let me find another one." Then he went to the storehouse of the Lady's Office of the World and found another one. "This is the book of the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty was established not long ago, and you were born during the Wude period, so it won't be difficult to find it."

As he said this, he opened the notebook and saw Yin Wenjiao's name after reading only a few pages.

"Yin Wenjiao, daughter of Yin Kaishan, Duke of Yun, born in the 15th year of Kaihuang..." He skipped the long list of life events in the middle and looked directly at the end, "Shouzhi... Eh? Why is the paper torn here?"