"Monkey, Master, I'm back." Ye Chen walked over to them. Along the way, he had been searching for signs of a fight, but hadn't found anything.
"You silly fool, did you go off and eat by yourself? What took you so long?" Sun Wukong opened his eyes and watched Ye Chen approach. "If we'd waited for you to bring food, Master and I would've starved to death."
"You... already ate?" Ye Chen asked softly.
"Of course. I, Old Sun, could've waited, but Master couldn't hold out any longer, so I went to beg for alms and got him something to eat."
Sun Wukong looked up at Ye Chen, his face full of helplessness. Ye Chen knew Tang Sanzang must have pestered Sun Wukong with words until he got a meal, so Sun Wukong had finally given up and gone to beg for alms.
"Good, as long as you've eaten. Then I'll save the food I got for tonight." Ye Chen nodded. "By the way, did... anything happen while I was gone?"
"No. After you left, Master and I waited here the whole time. You were gone so long that Master got weak with hunger, so I went out to beg for alms. But even after I came back, you still hadn't returned."
"Master and I couldn't just leave you behind, so we had to wait for you. Nothing happened while we were here. Fool, are you running a fever again?"
As Sun Wukong spoke, he stood up and pressed the back of his furry hand to Ye Chen's forehead. "Strange, your temperature's normal. But why do I get the feeling you're hoping something will happen?"
Ye Chen pushed Sun Wukong's hand aside and looked at Tang Sanzang. Tang Sanzang was looking at him too, a suspicious expression on his face.