Awakening the Dragon

My apologies to my faithful readers here, though the story might looks like having missing parts on the Xuan Kong used but I do not want to waste anymore of your precious time in further full translations but nevetheless I hope that all of you here would still enjoyed the ending. Cheers.

One year later, Ah Tong had then followed Old Master Jiang instructions after meeting him at the tea house in Tai O fishing village. He then shifted to another residence as well as moving his office to another location. Old Jiang on seeing the two properties then told Ah Tong with a smile: 'From now on, both of you would be a very happy couple.'  He heard him telling Xiao Wu :'夫唱婦随啊... '

Ah Tong was then puzzled on this prose as Miss Han was still very cold towards him despite his efforts in showing his sincerity to win her back since she had recovered. It was not unusual as she is a proud woman and Ah Tong was also worried that he would be rejected if he approached her for a reconciliation.

One night when Hong Kong was hit by a typhoon, there was a loud crash and a scream which awoke Ah Tong. It came from the children's bedroom and Ah Tong rushed to see what happened. Amidst the lightnings and thunder sounds, he saw a shivering figure huddled at a corner which was Miss Han, he went to her and heard her sobbing :'Please hug me, I am very frightened.'

And as in a fairy tale, they then lived happily together and thereafter despite Xiao Wu's grim forecast of Ah Tong undergoing unfavorable marriage luck for the next few years in his bazi chart.

The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for us to unlock the chains of life that bounds us from it....

The End

偷天換日, Steal the Sky, Change the Day

Ah Tong had then bought a fish shape clock that can chime hourly to put next to his main door and also to put a big gold fish bowl just filled with water only at the balcony as instructed by Old Master Jiang. He was then told to go to the teahouse one month later to meet Old Master Jiang before Xiao Wu sent the latter back that day.

Two weeks later, Ah Tong had then called Xiao Wu to meet again at the cafe by the park. Apparently, Ah Tong wanted to discuss with Xiao Wu about meeting the old master again later in the month.

Ah Tong: 'I called you here today is because I don't know whether I should ask if the old master can find a way for me to remarry my wife again.'

Xiao Wu burst out laughing immediately but quickly stopped: 'Sorry about the laughter, I really can't help it as I wonder if there is anybody in Hongkong now or before who had met a situation like this. I had guess this could be the reason why you had called me to meet you first. Anyway, how is your ex wife now?'

Ah Tong: 'I have been monitoring her closely for the last two weeks and it shows that she had completely recovered. Apparently she also do not know why she wanted to have a divorce as I saw her once looking at her divorce papers with a puzzled look. Another reason is that sometimes the children would wake up in the night and cry non-stop when she is not around to coaxed them back to sleep. You know how to read bazi, maybe you can tell me whether there is a possibility of us getting back together again.'

Xiao Wu: 'I would be frank with you, this are all reflected in your bazi chart. If it is a one year problem in the your bazi chart, there is still a possibility of a reconciliation. However, you are a weak fire daymaster which means the next two years are still unfavorable as it is Geng Shen Monkey, strong metal which represent your wife and wealth.  The year after would be Xin You and the You Rooster have an affinity with the Chou again in your spouse palace. It is actually very bad considering that it is three years in a row starting already from this year Ji Wei influencing your spouse palace. All in, it is bad whether you understand what I am talking about or not. Haiz....'

Ah Tong sighed too and said: 'Nevertheless I am glad that Miss Han is back to normal which is my main concern. She don't looks like she is habouring any ill-feelings towards me as my office staff must have told her what happened when she went back to help in my office. Another interesting thing is also that the client who wanted to sue me for a botched property deal had dropped the lawsuit and in return, had asked me to help him to negotiate with the owner of a land that I am on good terms with as he is interested in acquiring it. Sometimes I wonder if this is all coincidence or not as this was the same guy who was driving me crazy during that period which had influenced me also into agreeing to the divorce during that quarrel.'

Xiao Wu: 'Not to worry, as the old master had asked you to meet him again. I have a feeling he must have some advice for you as the timing was probably not right for that time at your place to let you know more. I am also intrigued as there was nothing much he did apart from asking you to buy those few common items. Anyway, I am going to tell you something important but do not put your hopes too high. My uncle had told me before that Master Old Jiang knows a lost legendary Feng Shui skill called 'Steal the Sky and Change the Day' meaning he can change your destiny if he wants. This is why my uncle had not wanted to teach me Tie Ban Shen Shu but instead instructed me to learn tea appreciation so as to try to get Old Master Jiang to take me as his disciple. It is also why I am not working now but spending my time here instead at Tai O Fishing Village. Do not let him know that I tell you this as he might not help you then, remember...'

Seeing the sudden sparkle in Ah Tong's eyes, Xiao Wu immediately try to take away the excitement that the former must be feeling. He was also worried as he thinks that it is quite impossible to change destiny from his experiences gained so far from reading bazi charts. He don't want to give Ah Tong any false hopes as this is still hearsay for he have not really seen the old master at work yet.

'Tell you what, lets go for a massage later to relax and take away your anxiety of waiting to meet the  old master as thinking about it can't help much.'

Ah Tong: 'All-right , I also do not want to go back early yet and faces Miss Han for I feel guilty whenever I see her. I am also thinking of the children for the future as it feels odd living as a divorce couple in the same house together. I really still love her a lot and I don't think anybody can replace her in my heart.'

To be continued......

Hidden Dragon Crouching Tiger

The next day, Ah Tong decided to call the Miss Han’s father to check whether she did went home. He felt suspicious that she could have purposely provoked him for a divorce. Strangely, she was at home and the father told him that she had cried upon coming home and locked herself in the bedroom. When asked about it, he told the father that he would explained to him later on. 

After a few days, Miss Han called him and told him to contact her lawyer on the paperwork for the divorce.  He however was more concerned about the custody for the children and asked her about it. She then told him that she will leave the children with him but will visit them anytime she wants. She also wanted a separate bedroom for herself if she wanted to stay overnight.  He was also curious as Miss Han now appeared to be more coherent in her speech and actions. He then started thinking that she might really have a lover outside as what the last Tie Ban master had hinted in a prose 明有夫,暗有夫(Open and Secret Husband). He decided he will  call Xiao Wu to discuss about it further later.

Miss Han then did come back and visited the children when he was at home and sometimes stayed overnight. He has no objections to it as he does not intend to look for a companion yet. However, she will still at times behave erratically. Once she had ordered a set of travelling luggage from a friend’s shop which he did not feel strange until after a few days, she threw them all down from the apartment. He found out when the building supervisor had called him and complaint that it was dangerous as it might hurt someone. Later on, he thought she could also be rebuking him indirectly for not going for a honeymoon as he had promised during their wedding that they will do it once his new company had been established.

Once in the middle of the night, she threw down all the pillows and bed sheets. All these also confused him as to whether she has recovered from her mental illness. She would also at times disappear for weeks and did not go back to her father’s home. This also puzzled him as he felt that if she have a lover, she have no need to be secretive as they have now agreed on the divorce. This mystery of her whereabouts before marriage and after was finally solved when one day; a woman called him and told him that she is the aunt of Miss Wu in Macau. She apologized for not attending their wedding but had called him now because she finds that there is something wrong with Miss Han. In the past, she would come by to her place when she was unhappy and seek solace from her. However this time, she refused to say anything when the aunt had wanted to know further and then she found her crying in the middle of the night. Further, Miss Han had never stayed in her place for such a long period before and she found it strange and decided to call him to ask about it.

Ah Tong then started having misgivings as whether he was right to agreed to a divorce before finding out things further. However both of them had already signed the divorce papers though it had also consoles him that she did not have someone new in her heart. He then decided to call Xiao Wu to discuss about his situation. He arranged to meet him at the old café when they had first met at the part.

Xiao Wu: ‘I am not surprised that things have come to this stage as I had said that there is a clash on Chou in your spouse palace by the Tai Sui Wei this year in your bazi chart. Normally, either separation or divorce would follow in this situation. I had hoped that Master Iron Bone would have solved the problem for you which apparently were not.’

Ah Tong: ‘She did improved after the masters had visited my place and conduct their rituals. However, the divorce was over another matter and nothing to do with her being unsound. It was over some clay materials for pottery works that she bought.’

Ah Tong then told him what happened that night and that he was hasty as he was angry and jealous that she might have someone new in her heart.

Xiao Wu: 'I think maybe we can try to enlist the help of this master whom I have lately met again at a teahouse in Lantau every morning. He is a close friend of my uncle, the one who did the Tie Ban Shen Shu reading for you. He is very good in solving difficult problems from Destiny as he is a Da Liu Ren (大六壬 )expert.'

Ah Tong: 'What is Da Liu Ren? How come I have never heard of this before? Is the same art as Master Iron Bone uses.'

Xiao Wu: 'No, it is not. Da Liu Ren is is a form of Chinese astrology using the Sun position relative to Earth in anticlockwise movement dating from (at least) the later Warring States period. Along with the divination methods Qi Men Dun Jia 奇门遁甲 and Taiyi 太乙—collectively known as the "Three Styles" (San shi 三式)—Da Liu Ren is considered in China to be one of the highest forms of Chinese metaphysics.'

Ah Tong: 'How come I have never heard of all these three arts before if they are that good.'

Xiao Wu: 'When the communist took over, most of these masters went into hiding or fled overseas as they had already know that they will be targeted. Those who fled overseas had then maintain a low profile as it is believed that secret operatives of the Communist Party continued to hunt them down in Taiwan, the base of the Koumintang Party or in Hong Kong. It is believed that Chairman Mao had uses Qi Men Dun Jia successfully against the better equipped Kuomintang party supported by the West. He was also afraid that these Hidden Dragons and Crouching Tigers might be used against him by internal rivals and had proceed to wipe out this threat.'

Ah Tong: 'I see, then in this case, we must sought his advice to see what I should do next. I am beginning to regret as I have just found out that Miss Han did not have someone else in her heart and it would be unfair to have divorce her in that moment of anger. Though I don't think there is much this master can do as we are already divorced.'

Xiao Wu: 'There would be no harm giving it a try as matter have already come to this stage. However, I have to think of a way to introduce you to this master so that you could sought his help.'

Ah Tong: 'Mmm, I don't understand. I thought you know him well as he is a friend of your uncle.'

Xiao Wu: 'Yes, but my uncle had told me that he would always claims that he is not skilled enough when people asked him for help. He would always asked them to look for my uncle or to go somewhere else.'

Ah Tong: 'In this case, I think we might as well forget it and leaves it to affinity as in my case with Miss Wu which I think have ended.'

Xiao Wu: 'Not really, he had told me in one of our breakfast session that he is just tired of the mudane world and he prefers a carefree life. However, I can tell that he is very capable as at time, he would hint to me about certain events that would happens to me which came true. He is very good as I had managed to avert a major disaster which I would tell you another time.'

Xiao Wu: 'Talking about affinity, I believed I can convince him to help you. This master likes tea and is always talking about tea appreciation which I no longer have interest while you are still a tea connoisseur. Both of you might get along fine and he might consider helping you if he likes your company. Why don't we do this, you come by to this teahouse in Tai O fishing village the day after at 6.30 am and take a seat in a corner. He would normally goes there at 7.00 am and I will be there at 7.30am, my usual time. I would then chat with him for a while and pretend to need to use the latrine. We would then acted out that we had met coincidentally and I would invite you to join me and that master. It would be like affinity for you to meet him and he might consider helping you based on that.'

Xiao Wu then took out a small notebook and wrote the address on it and tore off the page and gave it to him.

Ah Tong:'All-right, I really regret having agreed to the divorce but I would still like to help Miss Han to recover as she still at times behave irrationally though not as bad as before.'

Xiao Wu: 'All-right, so let's do as what I have proposed and I will see you on that morning there.'

On that morning, things then went smoothly as planned and Xiao Wu had then bought Ah Tong along to sit at his table after acting out that they have met coincidentally there. He then introduced Ah Tong to the old master who is named Old Jiang after explaining that they were old friends and Ah Tong is a tea lover. Further, Xiao Wu added that it was such a coincidence for them to be meeting in such a remote place. Old Jiang smiled on hearing the word 'coincidence' and acknowledge Ah Tong. As both of them sat down, they were surprised to see Old Jiang using his fingers to count something as what Xiao Wu's uncle had done in the Tie Ban Shen Shu reading. After a while, he then says something that really surprised both of them.

Old Jiang with a serious look on his face then said: 'Mmm, it looks like your friend Ah Tong here have some serious domestic problem and would like to see whether I can help or not. So it is not so much of a coincidence to be meeting here eh?'

Seeing Xiao Wu looking sheepishly, Old Jiang then said with a smile: 'Don't worry, I won't blame you as we have been having breakfast often for the last few months together and I know your character well. You are a friend in deed when there is a need.'

Ah Tong then quickly: 'Yes old master, do not blame Xiao Wu as I am the one at fault. I have a problem with my wife for the whole year and Xiao Wu have been trying to help me with it unselfishly.'

Old Jiang then said: 'It is all right as we still have affinity to meet despite that I have purposely chooses this remote place to stay away from the mudane world. I would help also on account of Xiao Wu's uncle who is a good friend of mine. If Old Abacus is still here in Hong Kong, he would also help you on account of Xiao Wu.'

Both Ah Tong and Xiao Wu replied simultaneously: 'Thank you, thank you old master.'

With that, it was arranged that they would meet at Ah Tong's office on a day that the old master had chose and after which they would go to his residence. Xiao Wu volunteered to chauffer the old master on that day to Ah Tong's office as he have been impressed by the skill of the old master and curious to see what he would advise Ah Tong to do.

On that day, they met at Ah Tong's office and as Old Jiang was looking around, Miss Han suddenly appeared. She appeared to know what they are doing as Old Jiang was holding a Luopan (Chinese Feng Shui Compass) and spoke loudly:

'I am born in the year of 1949 old master, see if this office is suitable for me?'

Seeing the puzzled look on Old Jiang on whether she is a staff or a relative as Ah Tong and Xiao Wu was struck speechless to respond, she said with a laugh: 'Haha, I was once his wife and now no longer, wonder if it is of any use to know this now.'

Old Jiang with a kindly smile to her: 'Not to worry, you might be surprised.'

Miss Han suddenly fall silent and then went and sat on one of the office chairs with a magazine that she have been holding.

Ah Tong then bought him with Xiao Wu to look at his office room where Old Jiang then told Ah Tong in a quiet voice: 'Take this little bell that I have bought along and hang it now at your main office door and then come back here.'

After Ah Tong have done it and came back to the room, they then proceed to the car to go to his residence.  Miss Han suddenly also appeared as they did not see her when they left the office. She rushed to the car to open the door and accidentally knocked her head and exclaimed in pain while using one of her hands to massage that part. Ah Tong was concerned and rushed to her side to check whether if she is all right.

She just keep saying :'I am okay, I am okay.'

Xiao Wu whispered to Ah Tong as they got into the car: 'Looks like she got a nasty bump on her forehead.'

Ah Tong: 'Never mind first, let Old Jiang settle my matter first, I would bring her to a bone setter (chiropractor) later to check.'

When they have reached Ah Tong's apartment, Miss Han immediately eagerly went to the children's room as with any loving mother. Old Jiang then walked around the apartment after which he sat down at the living room and suddenly started laughing hysterically and holding his stomach which reminds Ah Tong of the Tie Ban Shen Shu prose: 哭笑不得.(To laugh or cry). Old Jiang then slowed down his breath and said: 'My apologies, I don't know what came over me. Could be I am amused and suprised that both your office and house have the same fengshui setup which I have never encounter before. Your wife must have given you a lot of unexpected headaches this whole year.'

Ah Tong nodded and sighed.

Miss Han suddenly then walked out from the children's bedroom and strangely then in a quiet voice says to Ah Tong.

'Ah Tong, you must listen carefully to what this old master have to says and do whatever he tells you about this house. I am going back to my father's place now and will come back tommorow to visit the children.'

With a smile at Old Jiang, she then turned and walked out of the house as if they were still the loving couple before. Ah Tong was then confused in the change of her behaviour as he was quite skeptical about the small bell that Old Jiang had asked him to hang at his office door. He had then thought whether it could be related to her getting a knock on her head while opening the car door as she had also injured her head in the previous incident that had resulted her behaving abnormally. He just can't believed that it is as easy as that to have solved the problem though he can see some abrupt changes which he is unable to explain logically.





To be continued.....

The Exorcist

Well, well. You all will have to thank Eileyn Chua for making me continue translating the story if you like it as she had PM me on my Facebook and I had told her that it was boring for me as I felt that this part was uninteresting and I do not know how to go about it. Actually, at that moment I had no intention of carrying on with the story, me BAD. I was amused when she said that ‘How can a real life story be boring!’ and so here we go,

John: 'The doctor says that most of the impact was absorbed by her skull in the fall and therefore nothing else was affected. However, she is still unconscious and the doctor says it could be a while before she regained consciousness.'

Ah Tong: 'Thanks for sending her to the hospital as it must have hard on you. My apologies for the trouble it had caused you.'

John: 'It’s not a problem as this is something I have to do but I still think it is inauspicious and it would be best to leave that property alone.'

Ah Tong then immediately thought of Xiao Wu as he is the only person who knows more about spiritual matters. He then decided to give him a call but the public phone was hogged by an old lady for the past half hour and he do not want to create any fuss. It was then that John told him that Miss Han had awoke and he was glad but then she just stared blankly at him and John when she saw them.

Ah Tong: 'Don't worry, I am here, you must have received a shock after the fall. The doctor says that you are all-right except that you might have a bit of a headache.'

Miss Han still stared at him and then said:  'I was going down the stairs when I thought I heard somebody called and as I looked up, somebody then pushed me from behind.'

She then smiled to herself but in a while started sighing. Ah Tong was shocked and told John to stay by her side while he looks for the doctor.

The Doctor, an old man in his sixties looked up from a file as Ah Tong went into the office without knocking.

Ah Tong: 'My apologies, I am worried that there is a problem with my wife.'

The doctor kindly asked instead of being offended by his abrupt interruption: 'Hmm, what is your wife's name?'

 Ah Tong realizing that he has been impolite: 'Sorry, it is Miss Han Si Xun'

Doctor: 'Its' all right, I was told earlier by your colleague that you were not around as I want to brief you on what is her situation.'

'Your wife has a previous history of neurotic disorder before and her skull had absorbed most of the impact from the fall she had. Because of this, she might have a relapse and suffer from a nervous breakdown. Physically she looks all-right but....'

Ah Tong interrupted abruptly again: 'Yes, she does not appear to recognize me.'

The doctor: 'It’s all right as sometimes for cases like this, it is normal that the patient will take time to recover in a few days’ time. You just need to monitor her every day and in the worst scenario, then you let us make a confirmation and send her for mental rehabilitation.'

Ah Tong was shocked that his wife had a history of mental problems as she have never mentioned to him before.

Ah Tong: 'Well, all-right, I will get back to you if there is any further problem when I bring her home.'

The next day, Ah Tong bought Miss Han back home. He then informed his secretary to cancel all appointments in the night as he do not think that the maid alone would be able to handle any problems having to take care of his two children.

After 2 days, Miss Han insisted on going to work with him but he refused as he do not think that she have recovered yet. She would at times ignored him and sit by herself staring blankly at the wall. She would also talk to herself and laughed for no reason. The rest of the routine was normal for eating, bathing and this surprised him as she still looked normal as before.

One day, she then suddenly went out by herself one without informing the maid who called him when she can't find Miss Han. He then rushed home and was relieved when he saw her going into the apartment with two bags of what he thought was groceries. It was not as it is clay materials for pottery and which then he felt more at ease; he then hoped that in this case, she might go back to her normal self soon by doing things that she liked.

One day, he returned home and found her with her hair disheveled, sitting on the sofa in the living room with her hand full with clay and the whole living room was scattered with clay debris.

Ah Tong: 'What happened?'

Miss Han: 'They don't listen to me and I punished them by dumping them into the toilet bowl.'

Ah Tong was struck speechless as this would choke up the whole plumbing system in the building. He immediately went to look for a maintenance supervisor and told him the problem. In the end, he had to spend a substantial amount of money to get a team of plumbers to remove the clay materials from the plumbing system of the whole building.

He then ordered the maid to dump whatever clay materials left and forbids Miss Han to do any more pottery works. She then quarrel with him saying that he also do not allow her to accompany him to work and she feels bored doing nothing at home.

That night, she slept on the sofa and refused to be coaxed to bath by the maid.

He then shook his head and sighed and went to bed.

The next morning, he then got ready for work and went to the dining hall to have his breakfast and was surprised to see Miss Han all dressed up properly. She smiled at him and said: ‘I am going with you to the office as I will be bored now that you forbid me to do my clay potting.’

He shook his head and said: ‘Why don’t we do it another day as I will be busy the whole day and unable to keep you company.’ He was actually worried that she might create further havocs after what happened the other day as he would be too occupied to monitor her.

She just stared blankly at him and then looked down on the floor while keeping quiet.

He then immediately left as he was afraid that he might acceded to her request as he find it’s heartbreaking when feeling the disappointment in her slumped posture. However when he stepped into his office, he was immediately preoccupied in a meeting with his staffs and after that, went to meet his corporate client who is having a major acquisition deal of a prime land in the commercial business district. It kept him busy the whole morning and he soon forgot his worries, after taking his lunch, he then got back to the office with the client to finalize some documentation works.  He reached his office building and at the entrance, he got out of the car to hand the car keys to the valet to park. Suddenly, there were loud banging sounds on his car boot, he turned and looked and was shocked to see his wife there and she shouted loudly on seeing him looking at her: ‘Finally you are back!’  He was embarrassed as he tried to explain to his client who was clearly shocked.

He quickly ushered his client to the office and asked John to attend to him while he immediately sent Miss Han back home despite her protests. From then, whenever he was not in the office, he would call back at times to check whether his wife was there but however could not do anything about it. She would really sneaked back to the office unexpectedly despite his instructions to his maid to keep her at home. Apart from other erratic behavior while there, she would at times  ordered an employee into his office room and berated that unfortunate person for an hour or two for no reasons. However, at times, she would be friendly and make an employee chat with her about the latter domestic life while treating the employee to snacks that she made and bought along from home.

She would also sometimes disappear for days after telling him she wants to go home as she was unhappy when he reprimands her for ordering the staff around for no rhyme or reasons. He had called her father to make sure that she was all-right and was shocked when told that she was not there. He was perplexed every time when she comes back and refused to tell him her whereabouts. The worse was sometimes when he was in sound sleep in bed at night; she would just slap him out of sleep or hit his head claiming that there is something strange on him. This started to drive Ah Tong crazy and he really felt that he now understand the Iron plate divination prose of ‘….哭笑不得’  of ‘being unable to laugh or cry’   

He then suddenly remembered Xiao Wu again and immediately called him. He was glad when Xiao Wu was the one who answered the phone. He told Xiao Wu about the problem after the usual formality chat and arranged to see him for lunch. Xiao Wu told him to get the exact birth time of Miss Han as he wants to check the bazi chart to see if he can find out the problem. As the medical report from the last visit to the doctor had the birth details, he bought it along for the appointment.

At the restaurant, he saw Xiao Wu was already waiting for him, greeting him warmly despite that they have not kept in touch with each other because of his business commitments and he felt guilty about meeting him only after he had encountered problems. Xiao Wu greeted him warm heartedly and does not look offended that Ah Tong had contact him only after encountering problems. They then sat down and after ordering their food, he immediately handed the medical report to Xiao Wu where the birth details are written.  Xiao Wu looked at it and immediately exclaimed: ‘No wonder, she is still considered born in the year of the Rat as her birthday is still in January before the handover to the Ox year in February.’

Ah Tong was taken aback and said: ‘I thought January is considered the New Year as it is the first month of 1949.’

Xiao Wu: ‘No, because for our Chinese astrology, the first month starts with Li Chun in February for that year 1949 and she is still considered born in the year of the Rat.’

Ah Tong: ‘Oh no, that means the Iron plate divination has come true and in a way that I have not expected. What can we do now? Is your uncle able to give any advice on how to resolve this issue?’

Xiao Wu: ‘Did you try asking your doctor about mental rehabilitation for her?’

Ah Tong: ‘Actually I had bought her to the doctor to verify her conditions as sometimes she would be normal and at times, becomes another person. The funny part is in front of the doctor, she behaves normal and the psychology tests done were favorable. The doctor insisted that she have recovered. ’

Xiao Wu: ‘When you called me, I had immediately called my uncle but his assistant told me that he is no longer practicing and had left for Mainland China to retire while leaving him to inform clients. We might have to look for other masters, give me a few days and I tried to find a reliable one who we can get advice from. Her birth chart is too complicated for me to solve the problem as all I can see is that she is now in unfavorable luck period.’

Xiao Wu added on: 'Further, it is reflected in your birth chart too as your Eating God Chou the Ox in your spouse palace is being clashed by this year Tai Sui, Ji Wei the Goat and as you are weak Fire, it is unfavorable. We will need to do another Tie Ban reading to see if we can find where the problem is.'

After lunch, they both then parted ways with Xiao Wu assuring Ah Tong that he would try to find a solution. Ah Tong was also glad as he found that he have someone to share his problem with. That night, he finally was able to have a good sleep and wondered why he had forgot about Xiao Wu after initially  wanting to contact the latter while at the hospital that day after the incident had happened.

One day, Xiao Wu suddenly asked to meet Ah Tong at a Tim Sum Restaurant saying it is urgent and that he wanted to introduce a person to him. Ah Tong cancelled all his appointment for the day and went immediately as he hoped that it would put an end to his problems. Previously before, they had already went to see another Iron Plate Divination master and had made no further progress on his problems.

On reaching the table where Xiao Wu was seated, there was a strange looking man with him. Strange in that there is faint gold tine on his face and he was thin as a bamboo. Xiao Wu then introduced him as Iron Bone Ye, the name is probably is because of the metal color tine and his skinny frame. He was told that he is the disciple of a famed Exorcist named Strange Whispers 聶異人.

Both of them specialized in spiritual problems and Xiao Wu explained that since the last time that they had approached another Iron Divination Plate master for advice and had made no headways, he thinks that it is probably a spiritual problem as it started from the visit to the haunted house.( Actually they had met a bogus Iron Plate Master, some of these masters were actually conned into paying thousands of dollars by unauthentic masters who just gave them the theories without the application part and they had no choice but to hope to recoup their loss through what the meager knowledge that they were given on unwitting clients. These masters were said to have a set of specially formulated questions to make the clients give away their personal details unknowingly in the考时刻 part ).

Anyway, to carry on, Ah Tong agreed as he had become more worried with Miss Han as she had sometimes disappeared for days and he could not trace her whereabouts even after instructing the maid to tail her. Further, that bogus Iron Plate master had unintentionally makes matter worse by giving him a prose ‘暗有夫?’ ‘A secret husband?’  using the checking of the minutes segment of the hour of birth 考时刻 as an excuse in order to find out whether he have any marital problems unethically and then gleefully confirmed to show off his expertise when he see the shocked face of Ah Tong. Ah Tong was shocked as he thinks that her frequent disappearance could be a possibility of a third party involved because of this prose given‘暗有夫? After all, there are many things that he did not know and that he only found out after marriage.

Iron Bone Ye: ‘Mr. Tan, this sounds like a serious spiritual problem to me and I might not be able to handle it alone. Tell you what, I will arrange with my master Strange Whispers to go with me to your office and then to your home to do some checking and put some charms to help you avert this disaster.’

Ah Tong: ‘I appreciated it very much and I would be very grateful if my present problem can be resolved.’

It was then agreed that it would be arranged in the following week after Master Iron Bone informed his master.

That day, exactly at the time they had arranged to meet after Xiao Wu had informed Ah Tong later, the exorcists punctually arrived at his office. Ah Tong was surprised to see that the master of Iron Bone looks more like an elder brother of the latter instead of an old sagely man which he had envisaged as in movies. After the usual formality, both of them solemnly went around the office and Ah Tong had no idea of what they were actually doing, as at times, one of them would chant and the other would use some hand gestures. Master Iron Bone then took out from a bag he was carrying, two metal calabashes and told Ah Tong to hang it at the main door into his company without any explanations.  He then instructed Ah Tong to bring them to his home.

On reaching Ah Tong’s apartment, they then go through almost the same routine but however, when they reached his master bedroom, Master Strange Whisper then said something to his disciple Iron Bone who took out a talisman and burn it in the air, scattering the ashes at the door. Master Iron Bone then took out a sword made from coins stringed together and told Ah Tong to hang it at his main door to the Apartment. They then left, telling Ah Tong to contact them if things don’t improved after which Ah Tong had as instructed by Xiao Wu gave them the stipulated fees in a Chinese red envelope/packet.

Coincidentally, Ah Tong’s apartment have the same sitting or facing in Feng Shui as his office. As mentioned before in my previous post, his main door have Star 1 and Star 2 at the South East Sector which coincidentally is the same.The combination of Star 1 and Star 2 which in the Xuan Kong script,:'一加二五伤及壮丁，坎流坤位，买臣常妇贱之羞 . Kan flow at Kun trigram bad for man and women.'

It is strange that often destiny goes in hand with Feng Shui and that most people would find that they have the same Feng Shui chart for their house and workplace.

Now interestingly, the spiritual cures which in this case are metal material that the Exorcists uses is the same as used in Flying star Feng Shui  to counter the two delinquent stars 2 and 5. After the masters had left, his wife then came back as he was on the ladder putting the coins sword and Ah Tong panicked as he had the impression from ghost movies that the possessed victim would go into some kind of excited frenzy on seeing stuffs like this. He was disappointed though glad as Miss Han nonchalantly walked in and went straight into the master bedroom without saying a word.

It was to Ah Tong surprise that the following week, Miss Han started to behaved normally without going into her unusual routine that he has been accustomed to now. This could be a reason why the spiritual masters can coexist with Feng Shui masters in the Chinese culture with both having their supporters and as explained above on their methods used. 

Though Miss Han started to behave normally now, she would sometimes look strangely at him when they were together having dinner or accompanying the kids. The other interesting thing is that since the day she had that unfortunate incident, she did not show abnormality when she is with the children, still treating them lovingly as a mother which is why Ah Tong was in a dilemma on whether to put her in a nursing home or not initially. 

Surprisingly a week later, she had then asked permission to follow him to work which he had declined as he was still worried though things had been eventful after the Exorcists had come. That night when he went home, he saw two big bags on the table in the living room. He was curious and opened it to see what it was. It was again the clay materials used for pottery which had then reminded him of the last incident. He immediately took it out and threw it away in the rubbish dump. An hour later, he heard Miss Han shouting for the maid and then scolding the maid. He went out of the bedroom to see what the commotion was. He then told Miss Han that he had threw the materials away as he was afraid that she might throw it into the toilet bowls again. She apparently could not recollect that incident as she started to berate him for doing it. When he told her that she could be having neurotic disorders, she immediately felt insulted and it got worse. She then out of the blue said:

‘I want a divorce.’

Ah Tong was stumped and to be frank, he actually had the thought sometimes ago during the period she was giving him a lot of stress and as he was thinking that since the Iron plate divination was unfavorable for him to marry a woman born in the year of the rat, it would be best for them to separate. Ah Tong had also been under pressure the whole week for a property deal that went awry with the owner threatening to sue him and with this; he just could not take it anymore. He had also remembered the last Tie Ban reading from the bogus master about: ‘Secret husband’ and in a fit of anger and jealousy, angrily retorted: ‘All-right. It’s you who want to have a divorce, I would not object as I have been suffering for so many months from your unruly behavior.’

On hearing that, Miss Han immediately turned and went to the Master bedroom. He could hear her packing her clothes after taking out the luggage from the storeroom. He was surprised when after packing her clothes, she went to the children’s bedroom. He then got worried and followed her and saw her hugging the children who were already asleep.  She did not make any sounds while ignoring him at the same time. She then walked to the main door and said: ‘You don’t have to worry, I would leave the children with you and I would be staying with my father until our divorce is finalized.’

To be continued…….

Mariage D'amour 1

Well, the first week of the New Year have just gone by. And for today I thought that instead of just jumping in to continue the story, I would rather put a E-book first on The Luck Factor by Professor Richard Wiseman here for you to carry around for the rest of the year first. Read it if you are tired of the hula bula stuff, the usual run of the mill routine yearly forecast and so forth in Feng Shui.

I had also happened to read it in an article in the beginning of 2008 and it could perhaps help towards a better life if you are sick of paying top dollars for Feng Shui that did not work. I am not saying that Feng Shui don't work, just that you might have not met the right one yet but for the moment, this book will help I must say. It’s all in the mind, isn’t?

Okay, let me again wish you a Happy New Year and I would be back to continue the last story before Chinese New Year.

Till-then, cheers.

This is where you can download the E-book and Good Luck  :  )

www.richardwiseman.com/resources/The_Luck_Factor.pdf

OR

http://nitrodownloads.net/search/The+Luck+Factor+Richard++Wiseman

Hero

The next morning, in a small quiet cafe next to the park where Ah Tong exercises daily, Xiao Wu was already there waiting. Now Xiao Wu is in a dilemma as being a prudent man, he was worry that he might says the wrong thing and made Ah Tong back out of the wedding at the last minute. To be frank, he had met Miss Han once and had found her likeable as she speaks her mind outright with no hidden agenda. He was thinking of how to assure Ah Tong's worry when the latter arrived.

Ah Tong: 'Sorry to keep you waiting as Miss Han had called me regarding the appointment to collect the wedding gown.'

Xiao Wu: 'Not a problem, I am on leave today as I had arranged to meet a relative from overseas this afternoon.'

Ah Tong then blurted out: 'What do you think I should do now, postpone the wedding to a later date until I get another opinion from your uncle?'

Xiao Wu: 'No, no. My uncle would not advise on a marriage that is going to take place and I cannot lie to him.'

Ah Tong: 'Then what should I do?'

Xiao Wu: 'I do not know why you are so worried about the word Fen which is different from the one that is mentioned in the divination. Anyway, as long as she is not born in the year of the rat 1948, it should be all-right. Sometimes I do think that we should not take fortune telling to the extreme of letting it dictates our life or it shows that your love for her is not strong enough.' Xiao Wu had used the play of words intentionally to make Ah Tong think more about his own feelings more than what the divination says.


Ah Tong: 'Yes, I do feel guilty thinking about this but there is this uncomfortable feeling that I have. I was thinking why it is so coincidental for me to find out about it before the wedding. She had never mentioned this to me though the father thought she had.'

Xiao Wu: 'Simple, as she had accepted the name her father gave and it is always used in her documents right? This shows that it is just the mother only who uses this name. Further in destiny analysis, what is predicted had happens as you have already met a Xiao Fen would means that it won't be repeated again.'


Ah Tong: 'You are correct, I did hear about this before. Yeah, I should not think further about it as my wedding is only a few weeks away as I don't think anyone can else that can replaces her.'

He also had enough of those lonely days with strangers before meeting Miss Han.

With that, Xiao Wu heaved a sigh of relief instead of Ah Tong as he was thinking that he should have actually told Ah Tong that it is already pre-ordained in his destiny when a  鐵板 Tie Ban Iron Plate reading is used. But then, it might have affected and change his destiny for the worse if he decided to stay unmarried. After all, Ah Tong had already avoid girls born in the year of the rat and that should be good enough to avoid this prediction. At the same time, he was wondering whether the father or somebody had got the birth year mixed up as 1949 was a few years after World War 2 and the British administration was still undergoing changes however he thinks it was unlikely. He had remembered Ah Tong is going through good luck cycle from the bazi chart that he saw on that day of the fortune telling. This should be a favorable event though both destiny analysis are different methods but they should tally.

Soon the wedding day came and Xiao Wu was given preferential treatment at the dinner. Ah Tong had felt that after meeting Xiao Wu, he had managed to avoid marrying a girl born in the year of the Rat. He had been amazed about the accuracy of the fortune telling that Master Tie Pan did for him and believed in it strongly.

Well, as what Xiao Wu had analysed on the bazi chart was correct, Ah Tong, a weak fire Fire Day master was undergoing a Bing Zi (Fire and Water) luck pillar and further got married in a Ding Si year. It was not surprisingly that even before the marriage, Ah Tong had closed a major property deal and had made a substantial commission from it. Ah Tong had then decided to set up his own property company and in fact, had already found an office which was undergoing renovations. He had told Miss Han that he wants to postpone their honeymoon to a later date in that year because of new company. He also had wanted to clear some of the matters at his previous company and therefore would be very busy in between. Miss Han was very supportive and in fact, resigned from her job to help Ah Tong to oversee his company at times when Ah Tong had to go back to his previous company to settle some documentation for those previous property deals that he had closed.

One interesting thing about the office that Ah Tong rent is an Age 6 building facing South, the main entrance  however is at the South East sector where there is a combination of Star 1 and Star 2. In the Xuan Kong script, :'一加二五伤及壮丁，坎流坤位，买臣常妇贱之羞 . Kan flow at Kun trigram bad for man and women.' as  '腹多水而膨胀.' which is a clash between water and earth when one of the elements turn strong (Anyway, this interpretation I will leave it to readers to research). For commercial uses, it is still good as it brings prosperity for Age 6.

It was another good news for the couple when a few months later, Miss Han got pregnant. Soon she gave birth to a baby boy and Ah Tong was overjoyed and in fact, held a celebration dinner to share his joys. His company is also doing well as it had clinched several new projects in the booming Hong Kong property market. It was indeed, a double joy.

Another year passed and they have another new addition with the birth of a baby girl to the family. Soon Miss Han was bored with staying at home and taking care of the children and voices it out to Ah Tong. Ah Tong immediately suggested that she can help out at his company as certain projects that he have to personally handle can be assigned to her as in his line of business, he don't trust anybody because of the competiveness.

One fine day, Ah Tong came to hear about an old bungalow put up for sale after being unsold in an auction. Apparently, there were rumours about it being haunted and nobody wanted to buy it. Ah Tong had then thought: 'Well, I can just buy it and sell it at a good price as it is cheap. Afterall, I am not going to live there.' He had not thought of calling Xiao Wu as they have not kept in contact as Ah Tong have shifted to another property and did not go to the same park to jog anymore. Further, his company had also kept him busy and with entertaining clients more for his benefits, he had less time to socialize as well as being married. It is strange that most people when they are in good luck, they don't bother much about spiritual or metaphysical stuffs. It is only when they meet with a mishap or problem that can't be solved by coventional method, they then resort to unorthodox means.

After contacting the lawyer who is acting for the trustees, he asked Miss Han to inspect the property with an assistant as he was busy that day. It was about evening time when Miss Han and the administration assistant by the name of John Khoo went to look at the property. It was an old decrepit house with musky smell and an overgrown garden. Apparently it was vacant for several years, and while in the house, Miss Han noticed that John tried to stay around areas where there are windows and sunlight. She thought that then he might have been influenced by the rumours of it being haunted. She personally felt that there is nothing to worry about, not that she don't believed it but she thinks that as long as she don't provoke anything if there are any, there should not be any problems. She then went up to the second floor of the house alone as she do not want to force John to go along. After looking around and feeling satisfied, she then proceed to go back to the ground floor. As she was going down the stairs halfway, she thought she heard somebody called her and instinctively look up. At that moment, one of her foots was halfway in the air onto a step and she miscued and fell headlong down the remainder of the staircase to the ground floor. John heard her shouts and rushed immediately to the staircase as he was already being wary of the place. By then, she was lying unconsciously on the ground and he immediately carried her to the car and rushed to the hospital as the house was in a too remote area to get to a telephone. At the hospital, he immediately called Ah Tong to tell him about the mishap.

To be continued........

Dear friends, my apologies as I had wanted to complete translating the story by this year but as it needs to take another two parts of a page like this, I can only finished it by next year. A Facebook friend Lucy had requested me not to kill the story so I will try to give a more complete translation which I had actually not wanted to, Haiz. Anyway, I would LIKE to thank everybody here for the support given to my blog and I would like to wish everyone :

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!!

And no, the world is not going to end yet.....