( @jiangyanli ) video ▶ 03/01

[soups]

❰ yanli usually uses text as a vehicle for network communication, mostly because it has thus far been the simplest to learn. taking photos became simpler, but she only really uses the video when there's something she really wants to show.

anyone who saw yanli when she first arrived would prehaps only recognize her now based on her face. the long and ornate robes have been shed, hair tied up higher than usual. instead she has on a long dress and is sitting on a bench in an abandoned store she's stumbled upon. it's lucky enough -- she'd gone into town for fabric and found this shoe store on the way. she's still got only the one set of shoes from home, and the ware is definitely starting to show. the camera is set up on the shoe rack adjacent to her, so most of her body and the dusty shelving behind her are in frame. ❱

I have a question...I think a video is the most helpful way to get an answer. ❰ from a bag next to her she pulls out a lone shoe, giving it one last quizzical look, like she can finally unlock what it means. nope, nothing. instead, she holds it, arms outstretched, and turns it in her hands. ❱ I didn't expect to find shoes that I'm accustomed to, but I'm not sure what the purpose of this might be.

Is it to save your heel from becoming wet, like when fishing? But then your toes are so low and exposed. And there's a certain discomfort to it... ❰ she did try it on. it's a size or three too big, but even with the extra space, the tug in her leg...this must be a shoe for a specialized craft she just isn't accustomed to. ❱ Your foot should be covered when you're out walking, yes?

Comments

[legbreakings]

[ He nods in approval. ]

That would be very smart. I have never seen shoes so useful... though they aren't any good at keeping your feet warm or dry. I don't understand why they aren't closed like proper boots to go with the stabbing heel.

[soups]

If they're meant to be used as weapons, I should find you and A-Xian a pair. They may be useful here, even if they aren't the most warm.

Though some are more concealed than others. Ah, and then I found one with a ribbon attachment.

❰ she just found one of these, so it's easy to lean forward and grab it by the bottom, letting the ribbon trail underneath. ❱ I'm not sure if it's meant to have extra length for. If you can remove them to use in your hair...or maybe it's a weapon as well.

[legbreakings]

If the heel part of the shoes doubles as a dagger, maybe that ribbon is for strangling people with it [ Jiang Cheng muses, thoughtfully eyeing the long, dangling black leather strips. ] If I carried a leather ribbon for strangling or tying people up I would wear it on my wrists and not my calves but the people here have strange and impractical weapons choices. My shotgun is an unwieldy bludgeon weapon, too.

Have you tried already how hard it is to walk on them? [ He contemplates the very thin, very long heel, thinner than a calligraphy brush. ] It can't be that much harder than balancing on a sword, I suppose...

[ Doubt. So much doubt in his voice. This must be a weapon for advanced users. ]