docs: def readBytes(self):
          """
          Reads and returns a utf-8 encoded byte array.
          """
          length, is_reference = self._readLength()
  
          if is_reference:
              return self.context.getString(length)
  
          if length == 0:
              return ''
  
          result = self.stream.read(length)
          self.context.addString(result)
  
          return result