TGA Chapter 9

Chu Qianli’s astrology business officially launched at school with the help of Tan Muxing and Qiu Qingkong.

Of course, Qiu Qingkong wouldn’t just blindly promote ads everywhere. She was very good at publicity strategies. She knew that masters in mysticism typically follow a mysterious route—others need to hype them up, act as their “palanquin bearers,” and then the master makes a grand entrance.

Chu Qianli was puzzled. “Palanquin bearers?”

Qiu Qingkong excitedly explained, “Exactly! I’m an astrology apprentice, so I’ll first do simple readings for people around me. Of course, I don’t actually know how to read the stars yet. I’ll secretly ask my teacher for help, and once people believe astrology works, I’ll tell them that the more difficult questions can’t be solved by me—only my teacher can help. But she charges a small fee…”

Chu Qianli immediately understood. Ordinary people have a low tolerance for the esoteric, so by offering a little help and then charging later, Qiu Qingkong was using a long-term strategy to hook people, avoiding any feelings of resistance.

If Qiu Qingkong were to post astrology ads all over, people would start to resist Chu Qianli. Sales are never as good when pushed too hard, but when they’re gently sought after, that’s the best outcome. Chu Qianli’s approach as a hidden astrologer would minimize unnecessary explanations and problems.

Qiu Qingkong said seriously, “If you push too hard, you’ll incur the wrath of the heavens! The key is marketing. The persona is important!”

Chu Qianli was filled with admiration and exclaimed, “You’re so smart!”

Tan Muxing, looking awkward, said, “Why do I feel like we’re talking about the entertainment industry here?”

As an astrology apprentice, Qiu Qingkong had more divination tools than Chu Qianli. Not only did she spread a deep purple velvet cloth on the table, but she also placed crystals and other items in an impressive display. If it weren’t for the school’s rules, she’d probably light some incense too.

Recently, in her free time, she was busy using various tools to look for clients.

Tan Muxing looked at the array of divination tools and asked humbly, “Do you really need all these things for astrology?”

Chu Qianli replied, “No, in the words of my teacher back in the village, it’s just that the troublemakers always carry more stationery.”

Even though Qiu Qingkong couldn’t yet perform astrology, she sure had a lot of tools.

Tan Muxing said, “I thought this was the standard setup.”

Chu Qianli sighed, “That’s why so many people get charged an ‘IQ tax’ with expensive tarot cards.”

Qiu Qingkong pointed out the truth, “Teacher, the tarot deck you haven’t opened on your desk is the latest edition too!”

Qiu Qingkong had been keeping an eye on tarot cards, and Chu Qianli had indeed purchased the latest version.

Chu Qianli muttered defensively, “I never said I wasn’t paying the ‘IQ tax’ myself.”

Tan Muxing: “?”

Qiu Qingkong wandered around the hallway for quite some time, and finally, she got her first client. After throwing the astrology dice, she claimed that she needed time to interpret the results and sneaked back to class. She was practically bouncing with excitement as she said, “Nice, we’ve got a bite!”

Tan Muxing wasn’t interested in astrology, but since he was involved because of his desk mate, he couldn’t help but make a comment: “That sounds like a scam.”

Chu Qianli looked at him and said, “Well, in a way, you’re not wrong. Some people actually equate mysticism with deception!”

Tan Muxing: “…And can you really leave in the middle of a reading?”

Qiu Qingkong had left without providing any results after throwing the astrology dice, sneaking back to class. She felt like something was off.

Chu Qianli softly said, “Normally, you wouldn’t leave during a reading, but aren’t we scamming?”

Tan Muxing: “…”

Chu Qianli kindly reminded him, “If you ever meet an astrologer like her, you can be pretty sure they’re a fraud.”

Astrologers usually interpret the dice or tarot on the spot. If they don’t, they’re either half-baked or a scammer.

Qiu Qingkong was the opposite example of this, still sneaking back for help halfway through.

Ignoring their teasing, Qiu Qingkong showed Chu Qianli the astrology dice in her hand and vividly described, “Teacher, her phone is missing. These are the results of the dice throw. How should I interpret them?”

Chu Qianli glanced at the astrology dice and saw that the results were Pluto, Cancer, and the 3rd House.

She asked, “How did you phrase your question to the stars before you threw the dice?”

Qiu Qingkong looked puzzled. “Phrase the question?”

Chu Qianli patiently explained, “Astrology is about communicating with the stars, it’s like an art of language. The way you phrase your questions is very important. The stars will never lie to you, but your communication might not be clear, and you might end up talking past each other.”

“You said her phone was missing. The question could have been ‘Where is her phone right now?’ or ‘Has her phone been lost?’ The stars would focus on different aspects depending on how you phrase the question.” Chu Qianli continued, “For example, people often ask ‘Does he love me?’ This is a hard question for the stars to answer because everyone has their own understanding of love.”

“If you change the question to ‘What does he think of me?’ the stars can give a more objective answer. The way you phrase the question really matters.”

After absorbing the new knowledge, Qiu Qingkong pondered and said, “So, our question earlier should have been ‘Can the phone be found?’”

Chu Qianli gently guided, “What was your first reaction after seeing the dice?”

Qiu Qingkong immediately took out her book and started flipping through the basic knowledge frantically, muttering as she tried, “Then I guess it can’t be found, Pluto’s meaning is rather ominous…”

Tan Muxing glanced at the astrology dictionary, his brow twitching, weakly saying, “Are we learning this on the spot? Isn’t cramming before exams easier?”

“But there are still two dice left to interpret.” Chu Qianli pointed to the remaining dice with her pen. “While focusing on key points is one method, sometimes you need a broader perspective, linking all the fragmentary pieces of information together.”

Qiu Qingkong finished reading the explanations for Cancer and the Third House and scratched her head in frustration, exclaiming, “But I just can’t connect them!”

She had read through the meanings of Pluto, Cancer, and the Third House, but couldn’t weave them together. It was like knowing all the words but being unable to form a sentence.

Chu Qianli, facing her struggling apprentice, encouraged, “Well, as a first-time divination, having some sense of it is already good. At least you figured out Pluto.”

Qiu Qingkong sought the correct answer, “So, can the phone be found?”

Chu Qianli nodded, “Yes, it should be found, probably in the car at home, in an area near the north, in a gap or a dark corner. But after it’s found, the result won’t be great.”

Qiu Qingkong quickly flipped through the book, skimming through content, her eyes scanning the pages rapidly, seizing on key words. “Oh, I think I’m starting to get it—Cancer has the meaning of home, and the Third House relates to transportation…”

Chu Qianli reminded her, “Well… as a beginner, this is fine, but sometimes it can be a bit of a stretch.”

Qiu Qingkong, looking curious, asked, “Then why is the result bad after the phone is found? Is it because the phone is broken?”

Chu Qianli thought for a moment, tilting her head as she explained, “Because I haven’t met the person, I can’t be entirely sure. But it could be that the phone causes an argument, and the person gets scolded by their family, maybe by their mother or a female relative.”

Qiu Qingkong’s eyes went blank, “How did you come to that conclusion?”

Qiu Qingkong realized that there was a huge gap between her interpretation and Chu Qianli’s. They had both looked at the same dice, but the divination results were so different!

While Qiu Qingkong could only explain the shallow meanings, she had to refer to the correct answers and reverse-engineer her understanding. Meanwhile, Chu Qianli seemed to be able to provide a flood of information.

Chu Qianli comforted her, “This is the stage of advanced learning, but as a beginner, it’s better to only say what you’re sure about. It’s better to say less than to say something wrong.”

Qiu Qingkong’s expression was numb, “Then I’m done for. I didn’t have anything I was sure about, I guess I should just keep quiet.”

Tan Muxing, who had been quietly listening, cautiously raised his hand, “I hope it’s not too bold of me to ask, but what level of astrology are you at?”

Tan Muxing was a complete outsider to astrology. He could tell that Chu Qianli’s readings were accurate, but he couldn’t really assess her skill level. Having observed Qiu Qingkong’s learning progress, he noticed the huge gap between them and couldn’t help but be curious.

Qiu Qingkong had mentioned that Chu Qianli was more accurate than online videos, but Tan Muxing had never watched any videos.

Chu Qianli hesitated, “Well… that’s a tough question to answer…”

“Why?”

“Because I want to be modest, but telling the truth would seem a bit immodest.” Chu Qianli glanced at the astrology dice on the table. She casually tossed them, suggesting, “Let the stars answer this question since it’s hard to answer.”

The astrology dice made a crisp sound as they collided.

Chu Qianli laughed, “Ah, the stars say I’m the best in the world. But that’s not me boasting; that’s the stars’ answer. I’m just translating their words…”

Tan Muxing looked at the dice that had rolled under the book. He then looked at Chu Qianli, who was staring at him. Unable to hold back, he pointed out, “You didn’t even look at the dice before answering, did you?”

The dice had rolled under the book, and Chu Qianli hadn’t even moved the book to check them. She had answered with confidence.

This wasn’t the stars speaking—this was obviously just her own words!

Chu Qianli hummed and tried to cover it up, “No, it was the stars speaking. You just don’t understand. I’m really very modest…”

Tan Muxing paused for a moment. Not wanting to argue further, he tentatively said, “When I was a child, I heard a nursery rhyme, and I still remember the lyrics.”

Chu Qianli immediately shifted her attention, curious, “What song? Is it nice? What are the lyrics?”

Tan Muxing replied, “The song is called ‘Rubin Flower’ and the lyrics go ‘The stars in the sky don’t speak.’ It kind of fits with your divination just now.”

The astrology dice rolled directly under the book, as if the stars didn’t want to answer her question, and were utterly speechless at her “modesty.”

Chu Qianli: “…”