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墨書 Inktalez
Bing Tianyi, who had faced hardships since childhood, gradually found that aside from his father, there was no one he truly feared. However, after coming into contact with the old monk, he added another person to that list.
So when he saw the old monk again, his heart naturally began to race. After finishing his words, the old monk shook the iron chain in his hand and said, "Good disciple, did you forget everything I told you before I left? You were supposed to do as I instructed within forty-nine days."
"I didn't eat meat or get close to women!" Bing Tianyi replied, feeling wronged.
"But you smoked!" The old monk pointedly stated, his words clear and firm.
Bing Tianyi was taken aback, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Feeling helpless, he quickly said, "Master, I'm really sorry about this. I completely forgot..."
Before he could finish, the old monk sneered and said, "Forgotten? Shouldn't I teach you a lesson to jog your memory?"
With that, the old monk reached the iron chain toward Bing Tianyi's neck. Bing Tianyi wanted to escape, but no matter how hard he tried to move his feet, it was futile; he could only stand there and watch as the old monk brought the chain closer.
In a moment of desperation, Bing Tianyi shouted, "Master, please let me go this time. I promise I won't dare again."
"Why should I believe what you say?" The old monk replied with a hint of resignation in his eyes and sighed softly.
Bing Tianyi's eyes filled with tears as he pleaded, "Master, I beg you. If you let me go this time, I promise to follow your instructions for the next forty-nine days."
"Sigh... Who told me we have a connection? Since that's the case, I'll give you one last warning. Let me be honest with you: as long as you can follow my instructions during these forty-nine days, even if you leak Heavenly Secret later on but do good deeds towards others, it won't have much impact on yourself or your descendants. However, if you act recklessly during these forty-nine days, you'll be putting yourself in danger," the old monk said earnestly.
"Then why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Bing Tianyi asked curiously.
"I was worried that you might misuse your abilities based on what I previously said. But after observing you recently and seeing your kind heart and willingness to help others change for the better, that's enough for me," the old monk said as he turned to leave.
Bing Tianyi hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Master."
Unexpectedly, after he spoke, the old monk stopped in his tracks, turned around with a mischievous smile, and said, "Yes, since it's a reminder, let's make it thorough."
With that, the old monk swung the iron chain in his hand directly at the top of Bing Tianyi's head.
Seeing the dark iron chain coming down towards him, Bing Tianyi was completely stunned. Startled, he couldn't help but scream.
However, after letting out that scream, Bing Tianyi suddenly opened his eyes and began jumping on the ground while shouting, "No, please don't!"
After bouncing a few times, Bing Tianyi finally realized that he had just been dreaming. He sighed and patted his heart, which was still racing from the scare. He bitterly smiled to himself and said, "I never thought I would be so scared of dead people."
Although he said that, once he calmed down, he cautiously walked over to the mirror. When he saw himself in the mirror, Bing Tianyi was shocked again.
Before going to sleep, he had a buzz cut, but now there was a complete bald patch on the top of his head as if someone had meticulously shaved it with a razor. Seeing this, Bing Tianyi looked at his reflection and bitterly smiled, "Master, how am I supposed to go to school like this?"
Even though Bing Tianyi had only been in school for three weeks, he was very familiar with the school's regulations. Regarding appearance, the school strongly opposed boys having long hair and being bald.
With his current hairstyle, he would have to go to the barber tomorrow to shave off what little hair remained.
Soon it was the next day. To save eight dollars on a haircut, Bing Tianyi's mother picked up his father's razor and quickly shaved off every last hair on his head at Bing Tianyi's request.
Looking at his bald head, Bing Tianyi felt like crying but had no tears. After briefly staying in his room, he thought it was time to start planning for his future.
After some contemplation, he decided that his first step would be to help people tell fortunes on the street. Although he wasn't very proficient in the I Ching study that the old monk had taught him, he had already memorized the book "Guanyin Divination" thoroughly.
Thinking of this, he waited until his parents set up their stall before shouldering his backpack. He packed the book given to him by the old monk along with five copper coins and a box of incense candles and began his journey to set up his first fortune-telling stall.
Familiar with the county town, he quickly found the spot with the most foot traffic. This was conveniently located at the left corner of People's Square, where a few elderly men in robes usually helped people with fortune-telling.
He approached, opened his backpack, sat down on the steps, spread out two newspapers in front of him, scooped up a handful of soil from the garden, and then lit three incense sticks before taking a seat.
The elderly man beside him never expected that this young child would come over to compete for their livelihood. With a hint of disdainful laughter, he looked at Bing Tianyi and asked, "Child, are you planning to help people tell fortunes?"
"Yes, sir. I hope you will take care of me in the future," Bing Tianyi replied politely.
At first, the old man was relatively friendly. After Bing Tianyi finished speaking, he chuckled and said, "Well said! But little brother, are you going to read faces or calculate life destinies?"
"What method do you use for fortune-telling?" Bing Tianyi asked curiously.
"It's a trade secret; you'll find out soon enough," the old man replied with a grin.
Bing Tianyi nodded thoughtfully and smiled as he said, "I use this."
With that, Bing Tianyi showed the five copper coins he held in his hand to the old man. The elder looked up and then laughed to a few others nearby, saying, "Look at this little child; he plans to use ancient coins for fortune-telling."
Seeing the disdainful smile on the old man's face, Bing Tianyi curiously asked, "Isn't that acceptable?"
"Of course it is! Then I wish you good luck," the old man replied with a smile.
The other two elderly men beside him chuckled as well but soon closed their eyes to rest, completely ignoring Bing Tianyi as if he were invisible.
By noon, Bing Tianyi had yet to start his business. However, the elderly man to his left had already taken on two clients—one man was asking about his fortune for the year, and a woman was inquiring about her marriage.
Upon careful observation, Bing Tianyi felt that this old man was nothing more than a fraud. He began by tentatively asking about the recent situations of these two individuals, then seriously analyzed their personalities before finally drawing conclusions.
How could this possibly be related to fortune-telling?
Just as Bing Tianyi was feeling hungry and preparing to buy a couple of steamed buns to satisfy his hunger, he unexpectedly encountered a young couple walking toward him. The man was about 1.75 meters tall, while the woman, though not very tall, had a slender figure, an oval face, and two charming dimples on her cheeks.
When the couple reached Bing Tianyi, the woman smiled and said, "Look, this little kid can even tell fortunes!"
"Sweetheart, should we give it a try?" the man said with a smile.
The young woman thought for a moment and then replied, "Alright, but what should we ask about?"
"How about we ask about our marriage? What do you think?" the man suggested.
The woman nodded in agreement and then squatted down in front of Bing Tianyi. Naturally, Bing Tianyi had heard their earlier conversation. Once they were seated, he straightforwardly said, "Sir, please tell me your name and current address."
The man chuckled and promptly provided the information that Bing Tianyi needed.
After hearing this, Bing Tianyi followed the instructions from the book. He held five coins in both hands, shook them in the air while silently reciting a mantra. After a moment, he scattered the coins onto a piece of newspaper.
Arranged in order, they showed a pattern of yin-yin-yang-yin-yang. Seeing this, Bing Tianyi shook his head and continued to address the young woman, "Beautiful lady, what is your name and current address?"
The young woman frowned slightly before stating her name and address.
Once she finished speaking, just like before, Bing Tianyi began to interpret the hexagram.
To his surprise, the hexagram he obtained for the woman was identical to the one he had drawn for the man.
Looking up at them, Bing Tianyi smiled and said, "There are obstacles in your marriage. If I’m not mistaken, both of you are currently involved with someone else."
"Stop it!"
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
After exchanging these words, the man and the young woman turned and left. Bing Tianyi sat helplessly on the steps, initially thinking that at least one of them would give him fifty dollars, but he never expected them to just walk away like that.
He could only do one reading a day, and now he had wasted both opportunities today.
Once the two had left, an old man nearby mockingly said, "Kid, you should hurry up and go to school. At this rate, if you keep trying to tell fortunes, you'll probably starve."
Bing Tianyi ignored him, sitting on the steps feeling utterly frustrated. At that moment, he didn't even feel like eating.
After sitting there for less than two hours, Bing Tianyi felt his stomach growl again. Just as he was about to pack up and head home, he was surprised to see the young woman from two hours ago approaching him quickly, looking somewhat anxious.
Although she had changed her clothes, Bing Tianyi still recognized her.
As she reached his side, the woman pulled out two hundred-dollar bills and handed them to him while hurriedly saying, "I'm sorry about this morning. I hope you can forgive me."
Taking the two hundred-dollar bills, Bing Tianyi could hardly believe his eyes. He never expected to earn two hundred dollars so soon after setting up his stall today; it was far more than what his parents earned in a day!
Overwhelmed with joy, Bing Tianyi tried to suppress his excitement as much as possible and smiled calmly, saying, "I wonder if this beautiful lady has anything else she needs?"
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