Su Li's apartment was a forgotten storage closet of a place—fifty square meters crammed with the debris of her life. Unopened delivery boxes piled in the corner, half-eaten cookies littered the couch, and an expired takeout coupon clung to the fridge, faintly reeking of sour milk. She shoved the door open, night air sweeping in with the damp chill of rain, fluttering the curtains like they were mocking her exhaustion. Her shoulder wound throbbed under its bandage, but she gritted her teeth and shot a glare at Ji Mo behind her. "Get in. Don't dawdle."
Ji Mo stood at the threshold, his soaked, wide-sleeved robe dragging on the floor, looking like a disheveled scholar straight out of an ancient painting. He stepped over the doorway cautiously, his eyes scanning the room with a mix of curiosity and bewilderment. The dim light cast shadows on his pale face, his doe-like eyes blinking as if he'd stumbled into an alien world. "Lady Su, this dwelling… is there a bamboo grove? Ink and brush?"
"Shut up." Su Li tossed her keys onto the coffee table with a sharp clink. She rubbed her temples, her headache outpacing her shoulder pain. Bringing a potential lunatic home was a new low in her career. She pointed at the couch, her voice cold as winter tap water. "Sit. Don't touch anything."
Ji Mo obeyed, his robe sweeping up a puff of dust as he sat. He eyed a pack of cookies on the couch, sniffing cautiously. "What is this? Medicinal herbs? Spices?" He picked up a piece, inspecting it like a rare artifact.
Su Li rolled her eyes and snatched the cookies away. "It's food. Hands off." She tossed him a bottle of mineral water. "Drink this. If you're hungry, speak up." She turned to the kitchen, hoping to scrounge something edible from her barren fridge. The door creaked open, revealing only a carton of expired milk and half a wilted cucumber. She cursed under her breath, feeling like a textbook single-loser cliché.
A yelp came from behind her. She whipped around to see Ji Mo fumbling with the water bottle, now spilling over his robe, soaking it further. He wiped at it frantically, muttering, "This water vessel… no mechanism? Why does it flow on its own?" He looked up, flashing an innocent smile, his dimple peeking out. "Lady Su, must this water be purified with a talisman?"
"Purify your head." Su Li stormed over, snatching the bottle, tempted to chuck it at him. She took a deep breath, reminding herself he was an "observation subject," not a criminal. "Listen up. Rule one: no touching appliances. Rule two: no weird talk. Rule three…" She faltered. Ji Mo stared at her, his clear eyes like a mountain spring, making her feel oddly guilty.
"Rule three?" he prompted, tilting his head. His sleeve slipped, revealing a faint golden pattern on his wrist, pulsing like veins before fading.
Su Li frowned, wondering if she was seeing things. She rubbed her eyes, brushing off the weirdness. "Rule three: shower before bed and change clothes." She dug an old T-shirt and sweatpants from her closet and tossed them at him. "Don't parade around in that costume. The neighbors will call the cops."
Ji Mo caught the clothes, pinching the T-shirt's fabric with a frown. "This garment… no spiritual aura, poorly crafted." He looked up earnestly. "Lady Su, without talisman paper, might I borrow ink and brush? I can draw a calming talisman to aid your sleep."
"Calm your big head." Su Li gritted her teeth, her headache spiking. She pointed at the bathroom. "Shower. Ten minutes. Move." She turned away, cursing her rotten luck.
The sound of running water filled the bathroom, punctuated by Ji Mo's startled cry: "This water falls from the heavens! A celestial spring?" Su Li slumped on the couch, scrolling her phone. The image of the golden rift at the dock, Ji Mo crashing down, was etched in her mind like a blade. She opened the station's group chat. Xiao Wang had sent a message: "Captain Su, that costume guy's really at your place? Watch out, he might burn your house down with his talismans, lol!" She nearly hurled her phone.
The bathroom door opened. Ji Mo emerged, draped in her old T-shirt emblazoned with "I Love Overtime" (a gag gift from last year's station sports day). The sweatpants hung loosely, his wet hair plastered to his forehead, making him look like a drenched, fallen heartthrob. He fumbled with the waistband, muttering, "These garments… why so ill-fitting? In Great Liang, clothes are tailored to the body."
Su Li glared, half-tempted to kick him back to the dock. "Stop whining. Sit and eat." She set two steaming bowls of instant noodles on the coffee table, the spicy red oil swirling on the surface. She snapped her disposable chopsticks with a loud crack. "Eat before it gets soggy."
Ji Mo stared at the noodles, cautiously poking them with a plastic fork. "This… is it 'yi noodles'?"
"Instant noodles. Three-minute junk food." Su Li lifted her bowl's lid, the spicy aroma flooding the air.
Ji Mo mimicked her, flinching as steam hit his face. He slurped a few noodles, his eyes lighting up. "Exquisite flavor!"
"Not bad, huh?" Su Li slurped loudly on purpose. "One of the 21st century's greatest inventions."
Ji Mo took another bite, choking slightly, his ears turning red.
"Slow down. No instant noodles in Great Liang?" She tossed him a tissue, smirking.
He shook his head. "Great Liang favors steamed buns and porridge." He paused. "Court banquets had 'cold noodles.'"
"Great Liang…" Su Li narrowed her eyes. "Where is that? Never heard of that dynasty."
"Year Seven of Yonghe, Jiangnan Circuit, Talisman Academy," Ji Mo said, setting down his chopsticks, sitting ramrod straight like a scholar. "I'm the Chief Talisman Master, specializing in talismans."
Su Li's fork froze midair. "Speak human."
Ji Mo thought for a moment, then pulled a crumpled yellow paper from his "sleeve" (the rolled-up T-shirt hem) and… her eyebrow pencil?
"Hey! That's mine—"
"Borrowed for a moment." He swiftly drew on the paper, his strokes practiced, like he'd done it a thousand times. "Look."
Su Li leaned in. The paper had a wobbly square with a stick figure inside.
"What's this…?"
"Me." Ji Mo pointed at the stick figure. "This is the Talisman Academy's library." He drew a lightning-shaped line beside it. "While testing a spatial talisman, the array failed…"
"Hold up." Su Li cut him off. "You're saying you tried to make a 'portal' and accidentally teleported to now?"
He nodded.
She stared at him for three seconds, then pinched his cheek—warm, real. "Does that hurt?"
"Tolerable," Ji Mo said, unfazed.
She let go, muttering, "Not dreaming, then…"
Ji Mo rubbed his cheek and asked, "Does this place have a 'Celestial Observatory'?"
"Huh?"
"An institution for observing stars and calculating calendars."
"Oh, the weather bureau?" Su Li sipped her broth. "Yeah, they're always wrong."
Ji Mo pondered. "And a 'Craftsmanship Institute'?"
"You mean a science academy? Research institute?"
His eyes brightened. "Are there masters of mechanisms? I need guidance to mend the spatial rift—"
"Stop!" Su Li raised a hand. "First, tell me what you did back there. Just drew talismans all day?"
"Yes." Ji Mo pulled another yellowed talisman from his sleeve (how much was he hiding in that T-shirt?). "This is a self-cleansing talisman. Affix it to clothing to repel dirt."
Su Li took the paper, eyeing its scrawled patterns and red stamp. "This works?"
"Spiritual energy here is thin," he coughed. "My talismans succeed… three out of ten times."
Su Li: "…"
"But spatial talismans!" he added quickly. "Five out of ten!"
Su Li facepalmed. "So you're an ancient tech nerd who only knows talismans?"
Ji Mo considered. "I also grind ink, identify herbs, read stars, play Go…"
"Can you cook?"
"…"
"Do laundry?"
"…"
"Great." Su Li sighed. "So you're a lost tech nerd who wants to go home but has no clue how."
Ji Mo nodded, a rare flicker of melancholy in his eyes. "The osmanthus at the Talisman Academy… must be blooming now."
Su Li felt an unexpected pang of sympathy. She glanced outside—night had deepened, neon lights flickering, traffic humming. This man, dropped from some ancient dynasty, sat in her "I Love Overtime" T-shirt, surrounded by noodle steam, looking like a lost kid.
"Fine. Eat, sleep. Couch is yours." She stood, clearing the bowls. "Tomorrow, we're back to the station, and I'm getting you normal clothes… Also, stop using my makeup to draw talismans!"
Ji Mo nodded obediently but sneaked the "self-cleansing talisman" onto her back. It shimmered briefly before dissolving into ash.
(Effect: The noodle oil stain on her jacket… stayed exactly the same.)