Buddhist monk at the Manjusri Monastery on nearby Mount Wutai. The abbot at the monastery accepts Lu and gives him the name "Zhishen", which means "sagacious". Lu Da is henceforth known as Lu Zhishen. He also acquires the nickname "Flowery Monk" because his body is tattooed with flowers. Finding monastic life dreary, one day Lu Zhishen buys and consumes all the wine sold by a wine seller crossing the mountain. When he returns to the monastery drunk, the monks stop him from entering the gate. He breaks in and beats them up. He comes back to his senses when the abbot appears and gives him a dressing down. He is given a second chance. Soon, feeling bored again, Lu Zhishen sneaks down to the nearby town. There he asks a blacksmith to make him a monk's staff weighing 62 jin and a dagger. He then visits an inn where he eats and drinks without restraint, disregarding Buddhist prohibitions. When the monks on Mount Wutai see Lu Zhishen coming back intoxicated, they immediately shut the gate on him. But Lu smashes the two towering jingang statues flanking the gate, breaks into the monastery, beats up the monks and messes up the meditation hall. This time, the abbot decides to send him to the Great Minister's Temple in the imperial capital Dongjing. Encounter with Zhou Tong and Li Zhong On his journey to Dongjing, Lu Zhishen passes by Plum Blossom Village and is offered free lodgings for the night at Squire Liu's manor. He overhears the family crying and finds out that Zhou Tong, a bandit leader from the nearby Mount Plum Blossom, is coming that very night to forcibly marry Squire Liu's daughter. Lu Zhishen lies to the squire that he could dissuade the bandit with his eloquence. Zhou Tong turns up in the finery of a groom and goes to the matrimonial room where he feels his way to the bed in the dark. Lu, who is lying on the bed, jumps onto him and gives him a good thrash. Zhou Tong escapes and asks Li Zhong, the chief of Mount Plum Blossom, to get back at Lu for him. Li Zhong is surprised to find that the monk is Lu Da. Introduced to the monk by Li Zhong, Zhou Tong is shocked and vows not to disturb the Lius again. Lu Zhishen continues his journey. He meets Shi Jin,