I consulted a feng shui master in Hong Kong.

After Feng Siyan's incident, Chen Qinghe and Huang Shouzhou's reputations on this street instantly changed.

At first, they just thought, "Those two are clueless; they rented that run-down shop." "Young and impetuous, they don't know what's supernatural. After a couple of nights, they'll be crying their eyes out."

What's being talked about on the streets now?

"Have you heard? That new apprentice is incredibly skilled. So many people have tried to rent that shop and all ended up with bad luck, but this new apprentice has been here for three days and nothing's happened yet. What else could it be but skill?"

"And another thing, don't you guys know Feng Siyan? He's usually quite skilled at determining good and bad fortune and assessing feng shui, but this new guy said he'd have a bloody disaster, and that's exactly what happened! I don't even want to know what kind of skill this guy has!"

"..."

Huang Shouzhou felt a surge of joy upon hearing these words.

He was a man who cared a lot about his reputation, and he had been holding a grudge ever since he was openly or secretly laughed at.

Now that I'm finally feeling better, I can even work more efficiently than usual.

Chen Qinghe asked him to procure the items, and without uttering a word of nonsense, he ran back and forth according to the list, procuring peach wood swords, talisman swords, compasses, cinnabar, yellow paper, ink lines, copper coins, incense burners, and Bagua mirrors—he tried to procure as many items as possible, wishing he could transform this small shop, which still smelled of dust, into a feng shui storefront that could command respect overnight.

When the last batch of items was moved in, Huang Shouzhou wiped his sweat, stood by the counter and looked around, his sense of pride almost overflowing.

Although the shop is still old, with some dampness in the corners and a missing corner on the threshold, it has finally established the necessary atmosphere.

A compass sat on the table, a peach wood sword hung on the shelf, talismans were neatly categorized and stored in drawers, and even the incense burner was polished to a shine.

Regardless of whether others acknowledge it or not, at least from its appearance, this place is no longer the unlucky shop that everyone avoids, but rather a place that can truly handle matters and ward off evil.

He turned and glanced at Chen Qinghe.

Chen Qinghe was standing by the window, slowly stroking the old compass. The edges of the compass were badly worn, and many of the engravings on the surface had been eaten away by time. At first glance, it was even less noticeable than the secondhand goods sold at street stalls.

But Huang Shouzhou knew that Chen Qinghe had brought very few things with him from other places, and the only thing he had never let go of was this compass.

He had asked before, and Chen Qinghe only said that the compass was not very useful now, but he kept it because it was a memento left by his teacher.

Huang Shouzhou didn't dare to disturb him, and only asked, "Junior brother, take another look, is there anything else you need?"

"If it's still lacking, I'll go and get it right now. I can find a way to get the copper coin sword, the whisk, the paperweight, or any of the offerings needed for the altar."

Chen Qinghe put down the compass, glanced around the shop, smiled, and shook his head, saying, "That's enough."

"Is that enough?"

"Feng shui and destiny don't depend on these external things," Chen Qinghe said calmly. "The Three Mysteries Sect values ​​people, not tools. Having all the necessary items is just for differentiation and convenience. When it really matters, what matters is never peach wood or copper coins, but whether you have the ability to do it."

Huang Shouzhou was taken aback for a moment, then nodded. If others had said such things, he would have mostly thought it was pretentious, but coming from Chen Qinghe, it sounded perfectly natural.

Just as he was about to say something more, a soft sound of high heels clicking on the floor came from outside the door.

Huang Shouzhou turned around and saw a woman in her thirties standing by the door.

She wasn't very tall, but she had a very well-proportioned figure. She wore a lotus-colored cheongsam, which accentuated her slender waist. She had bright eyes and eyebrows, but her lips were pale, as if she hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time.

She held a small leather bag in her hand, stood at the door and glanced inside first, speaking softly as if afraid of startling anyone.

"Hello, is this a newly opened feng shui shop?"

Huang Shouzhou usually puts on airs when he meets respectable women like this, but now, looking disheveled and holding a broken wooden mallet, he can't maintain his composure. He can only cough and say, "Yes, we are feng shui practitioners."

The woman was clearly taken aback for a moment, her gaze shifting between Chen Qinghe and Huang Shouzhuo.

They probably didn't expect that the so-called "feng shui masters" were actually two young people who were cleaning.

Chen Qinghe put down the tools in his hand, glanced at her, and his expression darkened slightly with just one glance.

The woman's makeup was exquisite, but her forehead was ashen, her eyes were bluish, her eyebrows were thin and scattered, and there was a faint dark line at the root of her nose.

It's not a sign of illness, but a sign of shock and exhaustion, as well as a sallow complexion resulting from being suppressed by stagnant Yin energy for a long time.

More importantly, her cheeks were flushed but her lips were pale, clearly indicating that she was outwardly strong but inwardly weak, with a fiery heart and weak kidneys. She often couldn't sleep well at night and dared not show her face during the day.

She wasn't just passing by; she came with a purpose.

Sure enough, the woman hesitated for a moment before speaking softly, "I didn't really believe in these things, but some things have happened at home recently, and I heard that a feng shui shop is opening here, so I wanted to ask. If you two are truly skilled, could you... take a look at my house?"

Then he added, "I heard that the two new masters on this street are very capable, which is why I came here without warning. If they can really help me solve my family problems, money is definitely not a problem!"

Huang Shouzhou's eyes lit up, and he was about to ask about the price when Chen Qinghe spoke up: "Okay. Let's go see it tomorrow."

The woman seemed surprised by his straightforward answer and glanced at Chen Qinghe again.

The boy's clothes were old, and there was dust on his cuffs, but his expression was very calm.

"Then I'll pick you up tomorrow." She took out a business card from her purse and handed it over with both hands. "My surname is Su, Su Yulian."

Huang Shou-chou took the business card and saw the words "Su Residence" printed on it, followed by an address in the Repulse Bay area. His heart skipped a beat.

Few people who live in that area are simple.

Su Yulian pursed her lips, as if she wanted to say something more. Her fingertips unconsciously rubbed the edge of her handbag a couple of times before she finally added in a low voice, "My husband... jumped off the building a while ago. Everyone in the family says he couldn't think straight. But I always feel something's not right. Since then, there hasn't been a single peaceful day in the house. If you two can really see anything, I will definitely treat you well."

After saying this, the composure she had been maintaining finally crumbled in her eyes.

She didn't cry, and her voice didn't even tremble.

Huang Shouzhou was at a loss for words to make a joke.

But Chen Qinghe noticed something else.

When Su Yulian said the words "my husband," her throat tightened noticeably twice. It was an unconscious choking that couldn't be faked, showing that she was truly heartbroken.

But when she said, "My family all said he couldn't think straight," her nostrils barely moved, and her breathing didn't become disordered. This shows that she didn't truly believe this herself, but rather that it was something that others had said too many times, and she had to repeat it.

In other words, in her mind, her husband's death was at least not a simple "suicide".

As for the fact that "there is not a single day of peace in the house," that is even more worthy of contemplation.

Many people become easily paranoid when a death occurs in their family.

Even the slightest breeze at night, causing the curtains to flutter, can be frightening; a creaking sound from the expansion and contraction of a wooden floor can be considered strange.

But Su Yulian was not the kind of naive housewife who had never seen the world. Given her background and status, the fact that she could still come to ask for help on her own when something happened showed that she was not weak-willed.

The fact that she was forced to personally visit a stranger, a feng shui master, indicates that what happened in that house was far more than just a "psychological effect."

Moreover, the way she looked already told the story.

She wasn't dragged down by sadness; she was worn down day by day by something else.

After Su Yulian finished speaking, as if she would lose her composure if she stayed any longer, she simply nodded to the two of them and turned to leave.

Huang Shouzhou followed to the door, watching the car slowly drive away from the street corner until its taillights disappeared around the bend. He clicked his tongue and couldn't help but lower his voice to say, "A house in Repulse Bay, a husband who jumped to his death, and a beautiful widow personally came to his door... Junior brother, this deal looks pretty big."

Chen Qinghe didn't respond to the joke, but looked at the business card in his hand thoughtfully.

As Su Yulian stood up, Huang Shouzhuo's gaze was fixed on her slender waist.

She nodded to Chen Qinghe and then turned to walk out.

As she reached the car door, she seemed to sense something and suddenly turned around to look.

That glance was so fleeting, so quick it was almost an illusion.

But Chen Qinghe still saw it—the person she was looking at wasn't him, but the direction of the corner at the end of the street.

In that instant, a hint of the tension hidden beneath the vulnerability in her eyes finally surfaced.

Huang Shouzhou was still looking down at the business card and didn't notice this. He just felt a mix of warmth and unease in his heart: "Junior brother, this deal looks...not small."

Chen Qinghe turned his gaze away from the end of the street and said calmly, "It's not small."

Huang Shouzhou had never met such a beautiful woman before, and he was at a loss for words, only able to sigh, "Such a pitiful person..."

Chen Qinghe smiled and shook his head: "She didn't just come here for help."

"She was afraid, but she wasn't afraid of just one room. When she spoke earlier, she was genuinely heartbroken when she mentioned her husband; she didn't believe the doctor she had hired; but when she mentioned coming to pick us up tomorrow, her voice became steady. This shows that she had planned to come all along, and it wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision."

Huang Shouzhou felt a chill run down his spine: "You mean, she has other intentions?"

"Yes," Chen Qinghe said, "but we don't know yet whether she came of her own volition or was forced to come."

Huang Shouzhou opened his mouth, wanting to ask another question, but Chen Qinghe had already put the business card into his pocket and turned to continue looking at the empty space in the hall that had just been cleared.

"Should we still get involved in this matter?"

"Why don't you intervene?"

Huang Shouzhou's expression was serious: "But didn't you say something was wrong?"

"Something's not right, but if there's money to be made, why wouldn't we take it?" Chen Qinghe retorted.

……

……

night.

Fu'anli, a small courtyard.

After Huang Shouzhou realized that something was wrong, his attitude completely changed.

Before, he was so drooling over Su Yulian, that young widow, but now he's been cursing her in the yard for more than an hour.

On the contrary, Chen Qinghe was left somewhat amused and exasperated.

He himself didn't really care what deep secrets lay behind this matter.

He only cares about one thing: money.

If Su Yulian's case could bring him enough money, Chen Qinghe would be willing to take the plunge, even if it was dangerous later on.

When Master was alive, he often said that what was truly regrettable about the Three Mysteries Sect was not that the techniques had been lost, but that this skill was trapped in the mountains and in the old temple. It was clearly useful, but people could not get out of it. It could clearly save people, but no one knew about it.

The old man spent his entire life wanting to see his disciples enduring hardship in a dilapidated temple, but rather for the Sanxuan sect to stand upright with its incense burning continuously, its prosperity flourishing, and for people all over the world to think of Sanxuan sect first when they mention feng shui and destiny.

Unfortunately, the times were not right, and the opportunity was not right either. My master died before that day came.

That's why he traveled across the ocean to Hong Kong.

There are many people and many things to do here. There are even more people who believe in feng shui, and even more people who strive for fame and fortune.

What others see as a dazzling world is, in Chen Qinghe's view, the most suitable place for him to carry on the legacy of the Three Mysteries Secret Manual.

Thinking of this, the loneliness in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by an almost cold and resolute certainty.

Sometimes at night, when he closes his eyes, he still thinks of the old days at the Sanxuan Temple in Hunan Province.

The mountain breeze passed through the corridor. Master sat under the eaves drinking tea, while Uncle scolded someone in the side hall. The incense was not burning brightly, but the place was quiet and clean, as if even if the sky collapsed, it wouldn't hit that small courtyard.

But now, my master is gone, my uncle is gone, and I can't even go back to the Three Mysteries Temple.

If you can't keep the old one, you can only create a new one yourself.

If you're going to build something, you can't just build a shop that barely makes a living, and you can't just be a quack doctor who looks after houses and exorcises evil spirits.

What he wanted was to re-establish the roots of Sanxuan in Hong Kong, to create a name that no one could ignore. Only when the Taoist temple was truly built and the incense was lit, and everyone knew about it, would he have lived up to his master's lifelong obsession.

Huang Shouzhou was unaware that he had already thought so far ahead, and simply followed up by asking, "So, you mentioned before that you wanted to build a Taoist temple in Hong Kong. How big of a place were you planning to make it?"

Chen Qinghe paused, as if he had seriously considered the matter: "If we're going to do it, we can't do it on a small scale. We'll need at least several dozen acres."

This is the former size of the Sanxuan Temple.

At that time, the Three Mysteries were renowned for their power and prestige.

Master Lao Ti.

But all of that is now in the past.

Huang Shouzhou's eyelids twitched upon hearing this: "Dozens of acres? Don't even mention dozens of acres, the land alone could crush a person. Even if you did get the permit, don't even think about it without tens of millions."

"Tens of millions..."

Chen Qinghe repeated it in a low voice, but there was not much disappointment on his face.

This amount sounds large, but if you break it down, it's simply something earned one sum at a time.

What others find unattainable, he sees as merely a bigger goal and a longer journey, nothing more.

The real issue has never been how much money he has, but whether he can successfully navigate this path in Hong Kong.

To put it bluntly, it's about whether there are really that many people in Hong Kong who are willing to entrust their lives, their fortunes, and the rise and fall of their families to Chen Qinghe.

He's not in a hurry.

Right now, he only has two things to face.

One thing is waiting.

Wait for the cause of my uncle's death to come to light, and wait for the hidden thread to come to us.

The other thing is to do it.

First, establish the reputation of Sanxuan, make money, and get the shop up and running. Then, step by step, turn this street and this city into a place where Sanxuan can re-establish itself.

If the first thing can't be done yet, then let's do the second thing first.

Take it one step at a time, slowly.