When Monkey returned to the manor, he saw that Tripitaka and the others had already packed their belongings and were standing outside with their horses, surrounded by a crowd of villagers.
The villagers, clutching farm tools and putting on a show of bravado, were all trembling with fear, their eyes filled with terror.
Old Master Gale, so old he could barely steady his cane, insisted on holding a sickle and, with tears and snot streaming down his face, pointed at Tripitaka and shouted, "You’re not leaving! Not until you bring Cuilan back—none of you are leaving!"
Tripitaka pressed his palms together and said, "Old Master, Lady Lana has only gone to meet Marshal Silver. She’ll be back soon, there’s no need to worry."
"Liar!" Carter Gale pointed at Tripitaka, shouting, "It was that monkey demon who kidnapped the young mistress and handed her over to the pig demon!"
With that, he hurriedly hid behind Old Master Gale.
Immediately, someone in the crowd began to stir things up, shouting, "Hand over the young mistress! If you don’t—none of you…"
By the end, even the last syllable of the shout was trembling; no one dared echo him.
The villagers kept Tripitaka’s group tightly surrounded, wide-eyed, swallowing nervously, casting fearful glances all around.
"What now? Do we fight?" Barry Bear leaned in close to Tripitaka’s ear and asked.