Reading Notes B: The Monkey King

My favorite story from the second part was Laotzse.

Notes:

• The Great Saint was about to strike fairies that woke him from his nap, but the fairies said they were sent by the Queen-Mother
• The Queen Mother did not invite The Great Saint to her peach banquet
• He decided to go anyways, and transformed into the Bare-Foot God to get in.
• The Great Saint saw a lot of wine, and turned some of his hairs into sleep-worms so he could drink the wine.
• Drunk, he thought it was weird that no one else was there. He stumbled upon the house of Laotzse.
• Laotzse was preparing pills of life, and The Great Saint decided to eat them. He felt bad about what he had done, and wanted to return to Earth.
• When he returned, his apes asked him to get more wine for them
• He stole two barrels and they enjoyed them.

Laotzse

Story source: "The Ape Sun Wu Kung" in The Chinese Fairy Book, ed. by R. Wilhelm and translated by Frederick H. Martens (1921).