Chapter 55: Nine Palaces Flying Stars

“The Feng Shui here is quite good. Even ordinary people living here for a long time can gain some noble air…”

After the old man carrying the watermelon entered a small building, Ye Tian finally took the time to survey this large compound. Since it was too dark to make out the scenery clearly, he directly used Geomancy techniques, concentrating Primordial Qi in his eyes.

“Hmm? Someone has altered the Feng Shui layout here?”

Although Yin Energy was strong at night, Ye Tian could still see that the Yin-Yang Qi in this place was evenly distributed. Any small amounts of Sha Qi were suppressed in the corners of the walls. Moreover, in many spots, there seemed to be traces of deliberate alteration.

“The Nine Palaces Flying Stars diagram?”

After carefully examining it for a while, a look of surprise appeared on Ye Tian’s face. He never expected to encounter the nearly lost tradition his Master had mentioned right here.

The so-called Nine Palaces meant taking the central point of a single structure or a group of buildings, identifying the eight directions: east, south, west, north, southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest. Adding the central Middle Palace position, these together were called the Nine Palaces Flying Stars.

After arranging the Nine Palaces positions, one then channeled the power of celestial constellations into them. This was the Nine Palaces Flying Stars Formation.

However, in Ye Tian’s view, the so-called constellation power was essentially about blocking or channeling the Yin-Yang Qi to make it orderly, thereby benefiting people’s health and fortunes. It wasn’t as miraculous as the legends described.

In the past, there was a Feng Shui school in the Jianghu that specialized in combining the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams with the Big Dipper in the sky for Feng Shui and occult calculations. However, this legacy had rarely been heard of even before the Liberation. Even the Old Taoist didn’t know if this tradition had survived.

“Wait, this Nine Palaces Flying Stars diagram is incomplete. The formation’s anchor in the southwest position has been damaged. It must have been like this for some years.”

Ye Tian climbed up a tree that looked to be about a hundred years old. After surveying the surroundings from there, he immediately understood.

In Feng Shui, every plant and tree serves a purpose. The big tree Ye Tian was in was the northwest palace position.

But from his perch, Ye Tian saw that the formation anchor in the northeast position had been deliberately destroyed and turned into a stone pavilion for people to relax and play chess.

Therefore, Ye Tian deduced that this compound must have originally been the private residence of some wealthy family. They had invited a highly skilled Feng Shui master to set up the Nine Palaces Flying Stars diagram. However, with changing times, such a minor Feng Shui layout couldn’t withstand larger trends. The family either moved away or fell into decline.

The current compound was built upon this Feng Shui foundation. But because later generations didn’t understand Feng Shui, they made some alterations to the layout laid out by that expert.

Still, this place had inherently excellent Feng Shui. Even though the Nine Palaces Flying Stars diagram was incomplete, the overall fortunes of the location remained very good.

“Never mind all that. Let’s finish looking and go back quickly, or Dad will start worrying again.”

After sliding down from the big tree, Ye Tian ran straight to the fourth small building in the compound. According to the information Feng Kuang had gathered, someone named Dai Rongcheng should be living there.

“This guy sure has good luck…” After circling the small building with its courtyard once, Ye Tian felt a bit indignant in his heart.

In Feng Shui theory, the “Qi” from all directions in the world flows constantly. These different types of “Qi” are further categorized as “Sheng” (generative), “Wang” (flourishing), “Si” (death), or “Jue” (exhaustion) depending on changes in the year and environment.

The small building where Dai Rongcheng lived was located in the southeast position. Its main gate directly faced the direction associated with generative and flourishing auspicious Qi, allowing this beneficial Qi to be drawn into the house. Naturally, it was filled with auspiciousness and prosperity.

“Tough luck for you, crossing paths with this Little Master…”

Ye Tian didn’t need to use a Luopan to determine directions. Using just his eyes, he identified a few key spots. After weighing things in his mind, he nodded in satisfaction and turned to leave the compound.

The guards at the gate naturally didn’t question a child. Returning to the streetlight where he found Feng Kuang, Ye Tian couldn’t help but laugh. Feng Kuang had several paper strips stuck to his chin and was playing cards with others.

Looking up and seeing Ye Tian back, Feng Kuang threw down his cards. He took out cigarettes and offered them around, saying, “Hey, guys, it’s getting late, time to head home. We’ll play another day…”

Under that streetlight, there were both acquaintances and people who stopped by on their bikes to join the game. So when Feng Kuang left, others could take his place. Those playing cards and enjoying the cool breeze didn’t mind, even urging the young man who’d shared several rounds of cigarettes to come and play often.

Since the bicycle from the Recycling Station was stolen during the beating, the two had walked there and now had to walk back. But they had only taken a few steps when Feng Kuang couldn’t help asking, “Ye Tian, so how did it go?”

“Let’s go home, Brother Fengzi. Tomorrow, could you buy eight small mirrors for me? Very small ones. I need them…”

A smug smile appeared on Ye Tian’s little face. Seeing Feng Kuang’s utterly confused expression, he added, “This matter should be resolved within ten days to a half month at most. Don’t worry.”

“Really?”

Hearing Ye Tian’s words, Feng Kuang felt as if he had just downed an icy bottle of beer. All the restless heat in his body seemed dispelled. Overjoyed, he picked Ye Tian up and insisted on carrying him home on his back.

As for why Ye Tian wanted him to buy mirrors, Feng Kuang wisely didn’t ask many questions. He had witnessed Ye Tian’s methods before—even finding the remains of someone who died decades ago. Dealing with a living person was surely not a problem.

…

“Dad, on such a hot day, why are you drinking hard liquor?”

When Ye Tian and Feng Kuang returned to the Recycling Station, it was already past one in the morning. As soon as they entered, they smelled strong alcohol. Ye Dongping was sitting at the table, drinking over a plate of peanuts.

“Beer’s too weak. This stuff is better. Feng Zi, want a sip too?”

Seeing his son and Feng Kuang return, Ye Dongping managed to force a smile. He was purely drinking to drown his sorrows, but it only made them worse.

The theft at the Recycling Station was one thing. The lost calligraphy and paintings might be recovered someday. But the waste pickers not coming to sell scrap had strangled the lifeblood of the Recycling Station.

The station’s location wasn’t good, with no households nearby. There was no hope of people coming on their own to sell scrap. So Dai Xiaohua’s move truly pushed this Recycling Station to the brink.

“Uncle Ye, I can’t hold my liquor like you. I’ll just have a beer.”

Smelling the cheap liquor, Feng Kuang quickly shook his head. But thinking he was in a good mood today, he went to the corner, took a bottle of beer, and opened it with his teeth, not bothering with a bottle opener.

“Hmm? Feng Zi, why so happy? Did that girl agree to go out with you?”

Even Ye Dongping could see the joy on Feng Kuang’s face. He felt a bit puzzled. This kid usually carried more worries than he did. He had left with a grim expression earlier.

Feng Kuang couldn’t keep things to himself. Hearing Ye Dongping’s question, he immediately became animated. “Uncle Ye, nothing like that. Wang Ying and I are just friends. Hey, you don’t know—our Recycling Station is saved! That guy Dai won’t be strutting around for much longer.”

“Cough… cough cough!”

Seeing Feng Kuang blabber without restraint, Ye Tian pretended to choke on water and started coughing violently.