The Battle in Journey to the West

Wukong sat in meditation for many days. When the two Taoist Boys saw that the pepinos had been stolen, they naturally came to confront Tang Sanzang and refused to let him leave.

Feeling helpless, Tang Sanzang wanted to ask Wukong for help, but seeing him deep in meditation, he refrained from disturbing him. Zhu Bajie and Monk Sha, having witnessed Wukong enter his meditative state, dared not interrupt either. When Tang Sanzang accepted them as disciples, they had almost been turned into mincemeat by Wukong’s staff, so they still harbored a sense of fear towards him.

Tang Sanzang inquired, "What should we do about this? You’ve stolen their fruit, and now they refuse to let us go, insisting on waiting for their master to return and deal with this matter justly!"

Zhu Bajie shifted the blame, "Those fruits were all thrown by Mr. Monkey, and they have nothing to do with me! Monk Sha knows as well that this was all Wukong’s doing alone, it has nothing to do with us!"

Sighing, Tang Sanzang said, "We, as monks, should not indulge in carnal desires! ’Form is emptiness!’ These are all but illusions; the body is merely a stinking skin sack. Why bother with it?"

Monk Sha then said, "Master, it is our fault for lacking restraint. We heard that eating a single pepino fruit could extend life by forty-eight thousand years, so we couldn’t help ourselves! Next time we will be more careful and not cause trouble for you, master."

Tang Sanzang snorted, wanting to scold them, but he swallowed his words. Now they were caught red-handed; there was no escape. He wondered how Zhen Yuanzi would decide on the matter upon his return.

At that moment, Zhen Yuanzi had already descended from the Upper Pure Heaven. Learning that Wukong was in seclusion, he smacked his forehead and decided to take matters into his own hands.

Zhen Yuanzi arrived at the rear courtyard and stood before the pepino fruit tree. With a gentle call and a breath, he toppled the tree, uprooting it, and laid it flat on the ground.