"Bodhisattva!"
The moment Wukong saw Guanyin descend, he was overjoyed.
He greeted her with a cheeky grin:
"Ah! Bodhisattva! Old Sun was just about to go to the South Sea to fetch you. How did you get here so soon?"
"Could it be that after those Kṣitigarbha Guardians and Sangha Guardians withdrew from protecting us in secret, you couldn't rest easy and have been watching over us from the heavens all along?"
Guanyin Bodhisattva lowered her cloud to the ground, her white robes fluttering. She gave Wukong an exasperated look and scolded him:
"You monkey, wagging your tongue again!"
"I am busy all day, without a moment to spare. Where would I find the time to stay by your side and protect you?"
Wukong scratched his cheek and chuckled, promptly climbing the pole she had offered him:
"Heh, that's why they call you Guanyin Bodhisattva, whose great mercy and compassion deliver all from suffering!"
"See? The moment we're in trouble, you hear our cries and come to our rescue!"
Amused, Guanyin Bodhisattva shook her head slightly and pointed a finger at the monkey, the faintest hint of a smile touching her lips:
"Enough of putting tall hats on my head."
"I came this time at someone's request. Have you forgotten whom you met out at sea?"
At her words, Wukong immediately understood. Hariti Heaven, whom he had encountered by the South Sea, must have informed the Bodhisattva.
But he had made a fool of himself. How could he bear to lose face before his master and fellow disciples?
His eyes darted about, and he hastily laughed, hoping to gloss it over:
"Oh! I see, I see!"
"Bodhisattva, please show your mercy and save my sister-in-law! She gave up her very life to save her son!"
Guanyin let the matter rest,