Can you tell me how a crossbow in an ancient army would release the bowstring and reset it without shooting an arrow after it was opened?

Ancient crossbows had two key structures, namely the crossbow bolt and the crossbow tines, the crossbow tines held the bowstring in place, and the crossbow bolt, similar to the present-day triggers, had to be rotated by a stroke with an arc in order to release the bowstring and shoot the arrow. So in this case, if it is a small crossbow, you can use your hand to tug the bowstring to slowly reset it, or remove the arrow and slowly dial the crossbow to use friction to unload the bowstring. If it is a large crossbow, you can tie a heavy object on the string, or replace the arrow with a heavy object to slow down the reset.