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Mei Shan was a lot colder than Huaguo. It was a high peak in the western corner of the province, one of the only places in Sichuan that got snow, with sharp, exposed grey stone that felt unwelcoming in contrast to the lush greenery of Sun Wukong's home mountain. It was Erlang Shen's home though, and Sun Wukong was not one to insult such a thing.
Not seriously at least.
So he kept his mouth shut.
The two of them had just ditched a Heavenly banquet together, both too accustomed to the raucous liveliness of a drink with friends to sit through yet another a stifling evening of rules and etiquette. It was well past San Geng by the time they descended to earth, and the rest of the Mei Shan brothers were fast asleep, having opted out of the banquet in the first place, so the two outcast gods were left to enjoy the quiet evening in each other's company.
"Yang 小二," Sun Wukong swirled a flask of the wine he pocketed before he and Erlang left the banquet, keeping his gaze on the flask as he spoke.
"Mn?"
"I've been thinking. You enjoy your mountain as much as I do mine. And you don't exactly have a taste for the pomp of those Heavenly officials-"
Erlang set down his flask pointedly, "Need I remind you that I myself am a Heavenly official, 猴子。"
Sun Wukong flapped his wrist at Erlang. "Yeah, yeah, I know. But listen," he took a swig of his wine and met the demigod's gaze, "Why are you so fixated on being Heaven's golden boy anyways?" The monkey gestured grandiosely from where they were sat on the roof, motioning to Erlang's estate and the scenery that lay at the foot of the mountain and all that lay in-between. "I mean, you have a pretty nice life down here on earth! Big mountain-top house, a loyal dog, and six sworn brothers to past the days with. Hell, your sister seems pretty content living on earth from what you've told me, and she's not living on Heaven's payroll."
Erlang scoffed, "You're one to talk, aren't you, 齐天大圣？"
"Hey." Sun Wukong pointed at Erlang with one of his phoenix feathers, "Don't you accuse me of being any definition of a golden boy. You know how I earned that title."
"Heaven still had to give it to you though."
"给我呸！They didn't give me anything. I put in the work, and I gave it to myself. What I did was make them recognize my title," Sun Wukong tapped annoyedly at the roof tile in front of him, "Yang 小二, really, what's the worth in Heaven's approval?"
"If there's no worth to be found in it, then tell me- If they really didn't give you the title, why'd you fight for their recognition? Shouldn't your self-assuredness prove enough?", Erlang batted Sun Wukong's claws away from the roof tile and pointedly began examining it for scratches; to which Sun Wukong responded by rolling his eyes and covering the offending tile with his tail, making use of his stone yaoguai-ness and hardening his tail so as to render it unmovable. Erlang sighed, "Am I supposed to believe you just enjoy being a nuisance? That you court Heaven's wrath for nothing more than an afternoon amusement?"
Sun Wukong paused for a moment and turned his head towards the night sky. "It wasn't about proving something to Heaven. It was about proving something to the rest of the world. It's just that in the eyes of everyone else, Heaven's recognition would serve as the best proof."
"But that's the thing though, isn't it? How, in the end, you still need Heaven to prove your point?" Erlang swept his fingers across his forehead, fingertips hovering over his closed third eye. "We have the same goal, Wukong. I'm just going about it my own way."
"Yeah and 'your way' is what's annoying me in the first place. We're in the same boat so I can't see why you won't have fun with it at the very least," Sun Wukong pointed at Erlang's flask and waggled his own, "You think you're earning your stay in Heaven, but I'm having fun on Heaven's tab."
Erlang picked up his flask and flicked his wrist, splashing wine towards the monkey, who cackled and dodged. "You know you can just leave if I frustrate you to this degree?"
"Nice try," Sun Wukong flicked his wine back at Erlang, "But not until I try something with your Sichuan peppercorns."
"You want me to feed you after insulting what I stand for?"
"You never shut up about how bland the food the Heavenly Kitchen puts out is, and I've listened to all your rants. I'm in Sichuan now, aren't I? You owe me."
