Chapter Text
Part One: The Bell Return Recollection
Sushang has been out of spirits these days. In the words of her colleagues, she is almost like an emotionless cycrane, mechanically doing good deeds every day.
Sushang does not quite agree: "I heard from Ziqiao at the Central Starskiff Haven yesterday that there have been a few cyranes with temperaments and human-like nature recently. It seems that not all cyranes are emotionless."
Her colleague has a complicated expression: "......Is that the point?"
Before she could explain further, a voice from the outside of the dormitory came from the Cloud Knights on duty: "Sushang, someone is looking for you!"
Sushang and her colleague let out a simultaneous "Ah", seeing confusion in each other's eyes.
Sushang was transferred from the Yaoqing Xianzhou, she had no family or friends in Luofu, who would come to find her specially?
"Could it be Yanqing again?" her colleague made a reasonable guess, but immediately overturned it, "No, he usually just barges in......"
As Sushang walked outside, she wondered whether she should correct her colleague. That's not called barging in, isn't it because Yanqing is a Cloud Knights vanguard, so naturally he can come and go freely in the army?
But if it's not Yanqing, then who could be looking for her?
It couldn't be her parents, could it? She mentioned in her last letter home that she had made progress, but they wouldn't travel all this way, would they? Or maybe it's one of the Luofu people she has helped? Oh well, "helping those in need, always responding to requests, doing good every day, self-examination thrice daily" are her practice principles, little matters like these are not worth mentioning. But that's not right either, Sushang doesn't remember telling anyone which unit of Cloud Knights she's in, how could anyone find her here?
It's so complicated, her brain can't handle it.
By the time she got outside the dormitory, Sushang looked around and saw no one. It took a guard's direction to see the mysterious figure standing under the poplar tree in the spring moon.
"Ah......" Sushang was somewhat surprised. It was him.
The man was very tall, dressed as an Outworlder but fitting into the Luofu scenery perfectly, like a wildly growing tree, full of life. Hearing the noise, the tree... no, the man slowly turned around, not wanting to disturb the spring scenery, and softly called her name: "Miss Sushang."
In that instant, many thoughts flashed through Sushang's mind. Making a friend has been Sushang's wish for many years, and this goes back to when she was a little over a year old. When a child sees nothing but swords every day, even the white-bearded old man in the lyceum seems much more friendly, but unfortunately, Sushang had to get up early to practice the sword from a young age, so she was always drowsy at school and could not stay awake. Besides earning the honorable title of "Sleepy Sushang", she didn't make any friends.
Later when she arrived at Luofu, although her colleague's sister was also very nice, they had different patrol ranges and rarely went out together. Secondly, this sister had some habits that Sushang couldn't understand, and it was difficult for Sushang to keep up with her cultural level.
The stranger of unknown origin, identity, and age in front of her gave Sushang a warm feeling at this moment, as if to prove that she too, like ordinary people, had friends and her own life.
When Sushang stood in front of him, she had to look up at him, and once again marveled at his height. She passed by this road outside the dormitory every day, and never noticed that these poplar branches were so lush, almost hanging over Luocha's shoulders.
Seeing her not speaking, he took the initiative to say: "Miss Sushang wouldn't forget me, would you?"
"How could I?" Sushang came back to her senses and waved her hands to explain, "Of course I remember, you are Luocha. I just didn't expect, didn't expect you to come looking for me. Do you know someone in the Cloud Knights? How did you know I was here?"
Luocha shook his head, his tone was as gentle as the first time they met: "No, I came specifically for Miss Sushang."
"Oh......huh?" The unexpected answer made Sushang suddenly feel a bit embarrassed. Do all Outworlders speak like this, why does it always feel, always feel like there's some strange enthusiasm?
Luocha just smiled and didn't say anything, Sushang felt his gaze resting on her head, she couldn't help but reach up to feel if there was something on her head, but this move made Luocha laugh out loud.
"??" Although Sushang didn't socialize much, her instinct told her this was not a normal reaction, her originally good mood dropped a bit.
Perhaps because of Sushang's pure nature, everything was written on her face, Luocha seemed to keenly notice her mood change, and promptly remedied: "I came to return something to Miss Sushang."
Sushang doesn't remember giving Luocha anything. She doesn't have much, the only Xuanyuan ancient sword she has is always with her, even if she wanted to give something to others, she really couldn't afford it.
Luocha extended his right hand, opened his palm for her to see. His palm was soft and white, with long and even knuckles, and no calluses, unlike the hands of a hard-working swordsman, confirming Sushang's suspicions - he really was a weak merchant, and that slender sword he carried was probably just for show.
After realizing this, Sushang finally saw the object in Luocha's palm, a small and smooth silver bell. The pattern was not unusual, just the standard design of the Xianzhou, and it looked quite old. Small silver bells like this are usually worn by the children of the Xianzhou, and they come in pairs, symbolizing protection and safety. Why did Luocha only have one?
Seeing that she really couldn't figure it out, Luocha had to suppress his laughter and explain: "Miss Sushang, this is your bell."
Sushang was startled and reached up to feel her head again. Indeed, tied to her temples, besides the short purple spike, there was only one lonely little bell left. Since it was in Luocha's hand, it must have been dropped when they met that day and he happened to pick it up.
"No wonder I've been out of sorts lately, it turns out I lost something." Sushang had some strange beliefs. For example, her mother told her from a young age that if she didn't practice the sword, she wouldn't have enough food in the future. She knew how terrible it was to be hungry, so she practiced the sword diligently for over a decade, even when her mother was no longer by her side, she never slacked off. Also, when she was a child, she heard from the old lady next door that the silver bells children wore should not be lost. They had been with them since childhood and were used to protect the spirits of the Xianzhou people. So even though Sushang felt that she had grown up, she still threaded the silver bells with a thin rope and tied them to her hair, bringing them from Yaoqing to Luofu.
Sushang reached out and carefully took the silver bell. Luocha's palm was slightly cold and bloodless, and Sushang started to wonder, was the traveling merchant not eating well? Even in this state, he still "does not pocket found money", in order to return a worthless little silver bell, he must have inquired many places to find here.
Luocha looked strangely at Sushang, who suddenly had tears in her eyes, and asked with concern: "Miss Sushang, what's wrong?"
Sushang held back the tears of emotion, shook her head and solemnly said: "Luocha, you are a great benefactor."
"......" From the day before, Luocha had some understanding of Sushang's character and didn't plan to delve into it, instead, he politely thanked her, "This is the first time someone has said that to me. Thank you, Miss Sushang."
After explaining the origin of the silver bell, Sushang wanted to tie it back to her hair, but when she raised her hand to do so, she hesitated and stopped.
"What's wrong?" Luocha asked.
Sushang honestly said: "I lost it once, and there's no guarantee there won't be a second time. I thought I would never lose something tied to my hair, but it seems that's not safe either. Besides, it always makes a noise, what if I have to go on a covert mission, wouldn't it expose me quickly? Never mind, I'd better not wear it."
Although she said never mind, the loss on her face couldn't be hidden.
Luocha thought for a moment and asked: "Can I take a look at it?"
Sushang nodded, and just as she was about to hold it out with both hands, she saw Luocha step closer, taking advantage of his height advantage, and even bent down a bit to look.
...It turned out that what he wanted to look at was her head.
Sushang bowed her head, looking at Luocha's shoe tip, silently counting in her heart. When she counted to twenty, Luocha finished looking, but didn't move back to his original position.
"Miss Sushang, this silver bell just has some wear at the connection point. I know of a workshop in Luofu that does fine craftsmanship, just a little reinforcement, and it won't be easily lost." Luocha suggested.
Upon hearing this, Sushang was overjoyed, her spirits lifted instantly, and she regained the bright-eyed look when Luocha first met her.
"Where is it? Where is it?"
Luocha was infected by her enthusiasm, and his tone unconsciously became lighter. "Let's go. Although the journey is not long, the place is a bit remote, I'll take you."
This bright and beautiful spring day is actually not rare in Luofu. It was a very ordinary day, but Sushang decided to make a note of it in her heart. Among the bustling crowds of Luofu, she, Sushang, finally had a companion. This foreign merchant seemed to be more reliable than he looked.
Sushang followed Luocha through a series of turns, exclaiming, "I didn't know there were such small paths", and soon they arrived at their destination. Luocha asked her to wait outside for a while, and he took her pair of silver bells and went into the shop himself. He seemed to be talking to the shopkeeper in a language other than that of the Xianzhou, maybe the shopkeeper was his fellow townsman, no wonder he could vouch for their craftsmanship?
Sushang stood alone in the courtyard, looking around in boredom, when Luocha, as if he had a sixth sense, poked half his body out of the inner window and reassured her, "Miss Sushang, just wait a moment for me."
Sushang miraculously calmed down, leaning under an old tree in the courtyard, looking up at the sky.
She didn't know who had said it, but the relationship between people was like the clouds in the sky, gathering and dispersing, meeting was already difficult, and parting might come without even saying goodbye.
Meeting Luocha was undoubtedly an accident, but Sushang had already begun to feel a little sad for the separation that she didn't know when would come. This wasn't like her.
Fortunately, the inexplicable emotions didn't last long. With a clear sound of bells, the two silver bells, which had been reconnected, appeared in front of Sushang's eyes, and even the purple millet spike seemed to look a little brighter.
"Miss Sushang, give it a try." Luocha handed the silver bells to her.
There were no mirrors here, but there was a shallow pool, so Sushang stood by the water and reflected, tilting her head to fiddle with her long hair.
The renewed silver bells rang crisply, and the girl's heart rippled when she saw the reflection of the foreign guest in the water.
Luocha leaned against the old tree that she had just been leaning against, watching her intently.
Did he know that his reflection would appear in this pool of water? If he did know, what did this unabashed gaze mean?
To the immortal species of the Xianzhou, Sushang's age and experience are so shallow that they can almost be ignored, so she still doesn't understand why she can't help but steal glances at Luocha.
In the midst of Sushang's confusion, her hand loosened and the silver bells suddenly slipped. Just as they were about to fall into the water, Sushang stretched out her hand to catch them in a split second, pushing her body to its limit.
The silver bells fell safely into Sushang's palm, but her palm was enveloped by another thin but strong hand.
Luocha's voice was close at hand, "Miss Sushang, be careful."
"You..." Sushang looked back at the old tree. Luocha had actually managed to come over and react in such a short time. Foreign guests are really amazing.
"I'm sorry, I don't know why..." Sushang's voice got smaller and smaller, she really couldn't explain why she was just in a daze.
Fortunately, Luocha didn't want to ask further, and just let go of her hand to let her go. Sushang steadied her mind, quickly tied up her hair, and shook her head as if to show off. Yes, it really didn't seem like it was going to fall off.
"Luocha, thank you." Sushang sincerely thanked him, "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be able to wear this silver bell."
"Since it is a silver bell that wards off evil and protects, and Miss Sushang is in the Cloud Knights, Luocha naturally hopes you are safe." Luocha's gaze flowed and settled on the silver bell in Sushang's hair, "Furthermore, just consider it my selfishness. Life is vast, like the gathering and scattering of clouds, it is not easy to meet Miss Sushang. The next time I come to Luofu, even if I accidentally miss you in the crowd, I can know you are nearby by the sound of this silver bell."
In this way, they will not pass by each other and leave regrets.
Sushang could hardly bear such a gaze. With her limited knowledge, Luocha at this moment was like the beautiful water spirit she had heard about in her childhood, who was good at bewitching people's hearts, and good children should not look too much.
"You, you should not say that..." Sushang stammered, "Since you know that I am a Cloud Knight and know where I live, you will not miss me. At worst, you can write to me in advance the next time you come, and I can go to the Starskiff Heaven to pick you up."
Luocha listened seriously, seemingly really considering doing so. Sushang felt uneasy all over, and seeing that it was not early, she wanted to find an excuse to escape. "I, I have to patrol tonight..."
Luocha looked at the daylight and did not hold her back. This was not a date after all.
So Sushang walked out, her hurried footsteps to escape made her not hear the faint laughter behind her.
"Miss Sushang, there is one thing I forgot to mention." Luocha stopped her just as she was about to step out of the courtyard.
"What is it?" Sushang stopped abruptly and turned around, the silver bells in her hair collided, spreading a pleasant sound.
"I was absent-minded just now, and I added some blessings to your silver bells according to the customs of my hometown. I hope Miss Sushang will not mind."
His innocent face, in Sushang's eyes, was really "accidental", and she didn't have time to think about how he would have to be absent-minded to act like this.
"I don't mind, I don't mind." Sushang waved her hand nonchalantly, "You are doing it for my good."
Luocha watched Sushang walk a long way, even saw her standing in the distance waving vigorously at him, until she disappeared into the twilight.
The craftsman poked his head out of the inner window to look at him and said in the still unfamiliar language of the Xianzhou, "You also have moments of carelessness?"
Luocha did not look at him, his gaze turned to the shallow pool next to him. The old tree dropped a few leaves without the wind, and the spring water in the pool wrinkled.
"When I want to be careless, I naturally will be careless." Luocha muttered to himself.