Fair-weather friends

Cock-a-doodle-doo-

A rooster crowed at a farmhouse outside the Museum walls. Dawn had barely broken, yet gray clouds already loomed overhead.

Seas of clouds were hardly a rarity in the basin.

Luo Yang emerged from the staff dormitory, water from washing his face still clinging to his skin. He couldn't be bothered to wipe it off. Just as he was about to stretch, Ma Zhonghua walked over.

"Morning, Luo." Ma Zhonghua greeted him with a broad smile.

"Morning, Curator Ma," Luo Yang replied. Noticing how bloodshot Ma Zhonghua's eyes were, he added, "Curator Ma, why are your eyes so red?"

"I put the Bronze Knife in the collection room last night and stayed up guarding it," Ma Zhonghua said.

Luo Yang smiled. "Were you worried I hadn't dealt with it properly, Curator Ma?"

"That's not what I meant. I was worried something else might happen. If it did, I probably wouldn't last much longer as director. Oh, right, about the money-we'll transfer it straight to your account once the leadership approves it." Ma Zhonghua changed the subject.

Luo Yang offered a polite reply. "Oh, money doesn't matter. I'm already happy I could help."

"No, we have to pay you. If you really..."

Luo Yang cut him off. "By the way, where's Uncle Ye?"

Ma Zhonghua gave Luo Yang an odd look. "Well, we were chatting just now when his wife called. She said there were cockroaches at home and told him to hurry back and deal with them. He left as soon as he hung up."

Luo Yang sighed inwardly. Old Ye was seriously henpecked.

"Are you heading back, Luo?" Ma Zhonghua asked.

"If there's nothing else, I'll head back," Luo Yang said.

"That won't do. I still owe you a celebratory drink. Lunch won't work, though-we aren't allowed to drink during working hours. How about tonight? My treat. We can have a few drinks together," Ma Zhonghua said.

Luo Yang didn't want to spend the whole day here just for a celebratory dinner, so he found an excuse. "Thanks, but I still have a patient to visit. Next time. We'll have a few drinks next time."

Ma Zhonghua hastily said, "A few drinks would be fine, but let's not have a next time. I hope something like this never happens again."

"Right, right. I'll let you get back to work, Curator Ma. I'm heading home." Luo Yang said his goodbyes.

"Would you like me to have someone drive you back?"

"No need. It's easy to book a ride. I'll take a look around the exhibition halls on my way out, too," Luo Yang said.

"Then I won't see you out. Let's get together another day." Ma Zhonghua left.

Luo Yang headed toward one of the exhibition halls.

He had seen a female Shaman in the Feather Blade's memories, but that didn't prove the Sanxingdui Civilization had any connection to the Ancestral Shaman Lineage. He wanted to look at the other artifacts. Perhaps he could find a clue.

"Dr. Luo," someone called from behind him.

Luo Yang turned around. It was Shi Fei.

Shi Fei hurried over with a smile. "Morning, Dr. Luo."

"Morning, Mr. Shi."

"Where are you heading, Dr. Luo?" Shi Fei asked.

"I was going to take a quick look around, then head home," Luo Yang said.

"Let me come with you. I can be your guide, too."

"Thanks, but there's no need. I'll just have a look and leave." Luo Yang politely declined.

Shi Fei showed no intention of leaving. He lowered his voice. "Dr. Luo, you're a real Shaman, aren't you?"

Luo Yang neither confirmed nor denied it. He hadn't read anything into the encounter before, but now he felt that Shi Fei must have approached him with a purpose.

"I know you pried that eye out." Shi Fei watched Luo Yang's reaction.

Luo Yang frowned slightly. "Mr. Shi, I made myself very clear last night. That eye was made from some kind of animal hide. After thousands of years, it was badly weathered. Once I removed the spirit, it turned to ash. Isn't it a little inappropriate for you to say that?"

Shi Fei smiled. "Have you forgotten what I do? I restore artifacts. I know what happened. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I just want to be your friend."

Luo Yang gave a dry chuckle. "That's certainly an unusual way to make friends. What do you want? Just say it."

Shi Fei fell silent for a moment before replying. "I'm originally from Cloud Land. My father is a Shaman, too. Thanks to his influence, I've been fascinated by Shaman culture since I was a child. That's why I studied archaeology and apprenticed under someone to learn artifact restoration. I've been to many places and handled plenty of artifacts, including many connected to Shamans. But..."

Luo Yang had grown a little interested in his story. "But what?"

"After all these years, I still hadn't found the clues I was looking for."

"What clues are you looking for?" Luo Yang's curiosity deepened.

Shi Fei looked into Luo Yang's eyes. "I'm looking for an ancestral shaman."

Luo Yang froze.

He had guessed that Shi Fei had an agenda, but he hadn't expected this.

An enigmatic smile appeared at the corners of Shi Fei's mouth. "Then you appeared. After searching all these years, I finally found one."

Keeping his expression neutral, Luo Yang asked, "Why are you looking for an ancestral shaman?"

"My father once told me that there have been thousands of kinds of Shamans throughout history, but only ancestral shamans are truly authentic. They're the origin of all Shamans," Shi Fei said.

"That's why you've spent all these years looking for an ancestral shaman?" Luo Yang didn't believe him at all.

Shi Fei smiled. "Of course I have my reasons. But it's not time to tell you yet. Besides, we aren't even friends yet, are we?"

Luo Yang held out a hand.

Shi Fei reached out and shook Luo Yang's hand, his smile broadening. "You said my way of making friends was unusual, but you have to admit it's efficient, don't you?"

"Can you tell me now?"

Shi Fei shook his head. "No. Once I'm ready and the conditions are right, I'll tell you why I'm looking for an ancestral shaman, along with a secret."

The corners of Luo Yang's mouth lifted slightly. "All right. I suppose we're fair-weather friends now. You have my number. Come find me in Ba City once you've gotten through this busy stretch."

"I would have come to find you even if you hadn't asked," Shi Fei said with a smile.

"Then that's settled. I have to go." Luo Yang turned to leave.

"My friend, are you sure you don't want me as your guide?" Shi Fei made another attempt.

Luo Yang looked back. "You forgot the 'fair-weather' part."

Shi Fei: "..."

Luo Yang smiled and walked away.

Shi Fei watched Luo Yang enter the nearest exhibition hall before turning to leave.

Only two staff members were cleaning inside the hall. There wasn't a single visitor. Luo Yang looked around and did indeed find the Kneeling Figure Statue Su Changming had mentioned. But it was merely a Bronze Statue, with no spirituality.

The exhibition hall held many artifacts, but not a single Witch Artifact. He found no clues linking ancestral shamans to the Sanxingdui Civilization, either.

Half an hour later, Luo Yang came out of the Museum and took out his phone to book a ride.

Suddenly, a pregnant woman riding an electric scooter came charging straight toward him.