TGA Chapter 27

He Jianping moved to a nearby room and showed no signs of returning anytime soon.

Tan Muxing tentatively asked, “Do we need to wait?”

“No need, it’s not happening today. They’ll be talking for a while,” Chu Qianli casually picked up a snack from the table and suggested, “How about we go eat some hotpot instead?”

He Jianping had just mentioned that the hotpot across the street was great, and this piqued Chu Qianli’s interest.

Tan Muxing was a bit confused. “Are we going to eat now?”

“Yes, unless you want to wait for them?” Chu Qianli said leisurely. “I just cast a divination, and it won’t end in less than four or five hours.”

Tan Muxing, upon hearing this, decisively chose to leave. He went over to greet He Jianping. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, He Jianping let the two children leave first.

Chu Qianli and Tan Muxing went downstairs together, with Tan Muxing walking behind her, hesitating, “He Jianping also said he’d treat you to a meal another time.”

Although He Jianping didn’t believe in Chu Qianli, he still managed to be polite. Tan Muxing, as the introducer, felt a bit awkward, not pleasing either side.

Chu Qianli replied, “Well, it’ll probably be a while before that happens.”

Tan Muxing asked with concern, “Are you okay?”

Chu Qianli had been quite troubled just a moment ago, but now she had calmed down, which left Tan Muxing puzzled.

As they exited the teahouse, Chu Qianli sighed. “So, luck is really important. Some things can’t be rushed. If the timing isn’t right, no matter how much you push, it won’t work.”

Chu Qianli didn’t stick around to wait for He Jianping because she understood that forcing things doesn’t lead to success. If the right moment hadn’t arrived, no amount of persuasion would be effective.

People often have regrets and feelings of missing out, frequently saying “If only I had known earlier,” but some things can’t be helped by knowing ahead of time. Sometimes, the timing just isn’t right.

“Thankfully, I can always wait…” Chu Qianli looked around the street, pointing at an ancient-style archway, and asked, “Is this the old hotpot restaurant?”

Inside the hotpot restaurant, the bright red broth bubbled with a satisfying gurgle, peppers rolling in the soup, and the rich aroma of the stock wafted through the air.

Chu Qianli was panting from the spice, and she quickly drank some sour plum soup, feeling like she couldn’t even speak clearly.

Tan Muxing, while putting meat into the pot, was recapping the lost business, saying helplessly, “Uncle Jianping might think we’re too young. The masters I’ve met are all getting older.”

“If you’re talking about speech techniques, I can still improve, but age is something I can’t control…” Chu Qianli gasped for air from the spice, “Funny thing is, I might not even live long enough to grow old.”

In two or three years, she might even be dead, and yet He Jianping still insisted on finding an older master—if that’s the case, she might as well climb out of her coffin to give him a reading. She could adjust her communication, but she couldn’t control her age.

Tan Muxing, hearing her unclear words, looked puzzled. “What did you just say?”

Chu Qianli’s lips were red from the spice, and tears were streaming down her face as she started frantically wiping her eyes with tissues.

Tan Muxing, flustered, quickly called the waiter, “Let’s order something else. We should’ve picked the dual-flavor pot earlier.”

When they entered the restaurant, Tan Muxing had suggested the dual-flavor pot, while Chu Qianli had insisted on the nine-square pot. Now, she was crying from the spice.

Chu Qianli held the tissue, wiping away tears, and stubbornly said, “I’m not crying from the spice.”

Tan Muxing quietly muttered, “Your eyes are red from the spice.”

Chu Qianli sniffled, “I’m not crying because of the spice. I’m crying for the lost Golden Sundial!”

Before she died, she had to own her Golden Sundial, and when she was buried, she wanted He Shichen to bury the Celestial Instrument and the Sundial next to her.

Tan Muxing: “…”

Tan Muxing added a plate of brown sugar glutinous rice cake and crispy pork. Just as he saw Chu Qianli about to throw the crispy pork into the pot, he hurriedly stopped her. “Don’t put it in! You can’t handle spice; why did you pick the nine-square pot?”

Chu Qianli, fishing for ingredients in the pot with her chopsticks, began to drink even more, her voice muffled. “Because the nine-square pot looks like a divination board. It’s the dignity of metaphysics enthusiasts.”

Tan Muxing: “… Totally unnecessary.”

Not long later, Chu Qianli had eaten her fill, and her ability to speak returned, finally able to have a normal conversation with Tan Muxing. She nonchalantly ate the brown sugar glutinous rice cakes, the burning sensation on her lips gradually subsiding.

“Did you really say you can translate it into classical Chinese?” Tan Muxing asked while cleaning up the remaining dishes. “Like changing the names of planets to ancient terms?”

“It’s not just a simple translation; there are similarities between the two,” Chu Qianli explained, pointing at the nine-square hotpot. “Just like how many schools of fate analysis can form a divination chart. The horizontal and vertical axes are different, but both build a unified cosmic model in terms of time and space.”

“If you want me to work with Six Lines or Plum Blossom Divination, I definitely can’t do it, because the main coordinate axes are different. But if we use a star system as the basis, like in the Purple Star Astrology, it’s a system similar to the Eight Characters,” Chu Qianli added.

“My grandfather is an expert in this field. We use stars as the system, so I can relate to it. The only difference is in the details, but the core principles remain the same.”

Tan Muxing was astonished. “This actually sounds quite scientific.”

Chu Qianli felt wronged. “It’s totally scientific! It’s like formulas or problem-solving steps. The results are always accurate, though some people like to simplify the steps for the result, and some prefer to go over all the steps, making it longer—it’s just a matter of focus.”

“But outsiders love to use fancy names, like Plum Blossom Divination, the Art of the Mysterious Door, and the Supreme Divine Numbers. It doesn’t matter what the content is, the name has to sound impressive!” Chu Qianli said with a sigh, resting her chin in her hand. “I’ve even heard that beginners find the Four Pillars of Destiny too old-fashioned and prefer the more flamboyant systems.”

Occasionally, Chu Qianli became numb. She explained seriously that metaphysics is a discipline, but most outsiders are more superstitious than those who actually study it.

Chu Qianli: “Some people even complain that fortune-tellers are cheats, but that’s just us deliberately trying to deceive them. The mindset of only listening to names makes it easy to be fooled!”

Tan Muxing: “…”

After finishing the hotpot, Chu Qianli and Tan Muxing headed home. They hadn’t been in contact with He Jianping for some time, and they didn’t discuss the matter anymore while at school.

Tan Muxing was still worried that Chu Qianli might be upset. After all, his desk mate was always boasting about being the best of the present time, which made people frustrated when others interrupted him. However, Chu Qianli seemed to have a great attitude, laughing and joking every day at school, as if nothing bothered her.

In late spring, the sky was clear, and the grass was gradually turning green.

In the classroom, Tan Muxing noticed that his desk mate had been quiet for almost a month and curiously asked, “You haven’t mentioned the Golden Sundial recently. Do you no longer want to buy it?”

“Of course, I still want it. It’s just that I don’t have money right now.” Chu Qianli said nonchalantly as she flipped through a book. “Don’t worry, it’s a small issue. I’ll have money soon.”

Chu Qianli had her ways, and her mindset was calm.

Tan Muxing didn’t understand her change and was a bit confused.

A few days later, Tan Muxing suddenly realized Chu Qianli’s attitude. He received a message from He Jianping, inviting him and a friend to dinner as an apology for the previous hasty meeting.

Tan Muxing wasn’t good at making friends, but he understood human relationships. In fact, he was quite sensitive to the emotions of others and immediately realized that this wasn’t just an apology.

If He Jianping truly wanted to apologize, he wouldn’t wait a month—there was clearly something else going on.

Tan Muxing read the message and began to consider his words carefully, tentatively asking, “Do you have time this weekend? Remember the tea house we visited last month? One of the uncles there…”

Tan Muxing was concerned that Chu Qianli might have negative feelings toward He Jianping, so he planned to bring up the invitation in a subtle way.

Before he could finish speaking, Chu Qianli eagerly clapped her hands. “Golden Sundial! Golden Sundial!”

Seeing her so excited, Tan Muxing realized his concerns had been unnecessary.

At the entrance of the teahouse, Chu Qianli was not being particularly serious while talking to Tan Muxing. When she saw He Jianping, she immediately became obedient and poised, displaying the excellent professional qualities of an astrologer.

The three of them made no mention of the unpleasantness from their last encounter, as if there were no tension between them, and everything was harmonious as always.

He Jianping smiled and said, “What would you two like to eat? Today, it’s up to you!”

Chu Qianli stood next to Tan Muxing, acting like a lady. She casually said that she was fine with anything.

Tan Muxing, thinking about his tablemate’s inability to handle spicy food, hesitated and said, “…As long as it’s not hotpot.”

He Jianping then took them to a Huaiyang restaurant. The three of them found a private room by the window, and once the door was closed, they began to discuss matters.

He Jianping sat down, and before long, he got to the main topic, saying, “Last time, I had you, little master, do some divination for me. I was thinking of partnering with a company for a business venture, but at that time, I wasn’t sure if we could secure the deal, so I hesitated about whether to stock up on materials in advance. The raw materials were cheap at that time, but I was afraid they might go up in price later…”

People in business often have some cash flow issues. If the partnership goes through, He Jianping’s low-priced materials would be consumed all at once, and the money would come back for reinvestment. If the deal fell through, the cheap materials would be consumed slowly, but the funds would be tied up in the short term.

Time is money, and with the funds tied up for a long period, it would effectively be losing money.

“Then that day, a friend of mine showed up, and we got interrupted halfway through. After that, you two said you’d head back.” He Jianping apologized, “I just couldn’t let it go, and I thought I must treat little master to a meal!”

Tan Muxing didn’t quite understand what “little master” meant. Maybe it was a generational gap between He Jianping and the two of them. Calling her just “master” seemed wrong, so he added another word at the front.

Chu Qianli quickly waved her hand and smiled kindly, “It’s fine, it’s fine. The deal was completed in the end, so as long as the matter was resolved, it doesn’t matter who gave the reading, does it?”

Tan Muxing looked at her with some hesitation. He hadn’t realized she could be so understanding, unlike the unreasonable person she was in class.

He Jianping, hearing this, immediately started complaining and said, “It didn’t go through, that’s the problem! The issue is, it didn’t work out!”

“I just signed a deal with that company, and then a foreign company specifically came to approach us, wanting to establish a long-term partnership, but the factory’s funds are already tied up.”

The domestic company consumed material A in the collaboration, while the foreign company consumed material B. He Jianping had been stockpiling material A, but now, without the funds to purchase material B, even if he had material B, he lacked the production capacity.

If He Jianping finished the domestic order first and then went to the foreign company with funds and manpower, it would probably be too late. Timing is crucial in business, and delays can cause things to change.

For this reason, He Jianping wanted to consult someone to find the best solution, but he ended up still stuck in a bind.

“You say they didn’t cause trouble for me? I even went to reason with them, but they just told me there’s nothing they can do!” He Jianping said angrily. “I even put money in at the start, and now they’re turning their backs on me!”

He Jianping had a heated argument with his friend over this and then remembered what Chu Qianli had once said: “Think carefully about whether what you’re asking and what you want are the same.” This made him reflect on things.

However, the mistake had already been made, and He Jianping didn’t believe Chu Qianli at the time. Even though she was sitting in the teahouse, he had still let the opportunity slip away. In the end, it was his own fault. He no longer had the confidence to call the two of them again, but fortunately, Tan Muxing and Chu Qianli were giving him face.

Chu Qianli kindly advised, “Uncle He, I’m not trying to make you angry on purpose, but the thing is, they really didn’t make a mistake. What you asked at the time was whether the partnership would go through, and the hexagram gave the correct answer.”

The hexagram reading was not a failure on the part of the practitioner, but rather He Jianping had failed to grasp the human element. He was probably feeling quite wronged. The reading was only about whether the partnership could be secured, not about predicting what would happen afterward.

Of course, the person might not have had enough experience with the six lines, and divination, in general, tends to have vague interpretations. The amount of information one derives from it varies. The art itself isn’t wrong; it’s all about the person interpreting it.

This is the classic “human calculations cannot match heaven’s calculations.” Some people believe that metaphysics can solve everything, not realizing that practitioners of metaphysics have their own limitations.

He Jianping sighed, “So there’s really no way out?”

Chu Qianli replied, “Ah, it’s not that there’s no way, just like in a card game. At the start, you might play the wrong card, but some things can be salvaged later, and you might end up winning by chance.”

“However, as time passes, the good cards become fewer, and it gets harder to win,” Chu Qianli added. “But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to win!”

He Jianping hurriedly said, “So can you help me again and see if there’s any way to solve this?”

Chu Qianli smiled and said, “I can, but can I ask first, which system do you prefer?”

“What system?”

“Do you prefer the Eastern or the Western system? Last time, you didn’t seem to like Western ancient divination, so how about we try Eastern astrology this time?”

After hearing Chu Qianli explain the differences between the systems, He Jianping looked puzzled for a moment and then decisively said, “Any of them will do, as long as it’s accurate and solves the problem!”

Chu Qianli praised him, “That’s exactly like me—whatever works, use it.”

“It’s not just about solving my problem, it’s more about making sure there’s no more of these situations in the future. I can’t take the stress…” He Jianping quickly added, afraid of missing something again, as he truly feared a heart attack from the tension.

“I understand, I understand. The client often doesn’t know what they want, and that’s something we, the service providers, have to figure out,” Chu Qianli casually responded while preparing the divination.

He Jianping slapped his thigh in excitement and exclaimed, “Ah, talking to you is so easy! I spent so much time talking to that hexagram reader and still couldn’t make myself clear. In the end, I was left with a headache!”

He Jianping always felt like he was talking past the hexagram reader, not understanding why communication was so difficult. Every little thing had to be explained for a long time, and in the end, both sides were left feeling unpleasant.

Chu Qianli sighed, “Well, you can’t blame the other person. They probably didn’t realize that divination is a service industry.”

These big bosses always think differently from others, and the hexagram reader didn’t realize they were the service provider in this situation.