Chapter 19: Li Daoyun's Divination

On the way there, Li Xian transported a coffin; on the way back, he transported another coffin. Yet, he ended up with five thousand yuan in his hands. This kind of trickery, making money without spending any, had made Li Xian feel elated as he headed back.

Not only him, but even Li Pi was so excited that he began dreaming about a future with four big rooms in his house. The house wouldn't have exposed red bricks but would be covered in tiles. The yard wouldn't be dirt but would be paved with cement slabs, and the roof wouldn't be tiled but made of iron with a decorative design.

Though he had never seen an iron roof with decorations, that didn't stop Li Pi from envisioning the future with joy.

Thus, the two of them floated back to the forestry station.

By the time they arrived, it was already past five in the afternoon. Li Xian didn't go home but went straight to Zhang Yaba. Having collected the money, he needed to make sure everything was settled, or he wouldn't feel at ease.

Zhang Yaba was eating when he saw Li Xian put two thousand three hundred yuan on the table and mention ordering over twenty coffins. He was so shocked that he forgot to chew the bun in his mouth and swallowed it whole...

After some vigorous patting and drinking water, Zhang Yaba was revived, and Li Xian finally relaxed.

This order depended on Zhang Yaba. If anything went wrong, his more than eight thousand yuan would go to waste!

After Zhang Yaba regained his composure, he patted his chest and repeatedly assured Li Xian that the job would be done well. Li Xian then felt reassured and, considering that he mainly used Zhang Yaba's genuine skills to earn the money, left an extra two hundred yuan on the table.

After giving a final reminder to act quickly, Li Xian left with Li Pi. Zhang Yaba, holding two thousand five hundred yuan, was so excited that he didn't know what to do.

...

At home.

Before even entering the house, Li Xian heard a series of groans coming from Old Li Daoyun.

At that moment, Old Li Daoyun was weakly lying on the kang, with a wet towel on his forehead. When he saw Li Xian and Li Pi enter, the old man jumped up from the kang, "Grandson, my good grandson, where have you been today? Quickly, go help me find it. I'm afraid the coffin might have been stolen by some scoundrel!"

"Pfft, cough, cough..." Li Pi couldn't hold back and laughed out loud. Fearing that the old man would be suspicious, he quickly changed his laughter into a cough.

Li Xian glared at him, took Old Li Daoyun's hand, and told a little lie: "Grandfather, I was thinking of rearranging the backyard, so Mom can plant two fruit trees for you. The old coffin was in the way, so I moved it. I'm sorry I forgot to tell you. The coffin wasn't stolen. I've brought it back, so don't worry."

Hearing that the coffin had been returned, Old Li Daoyun's discomfort seemed to vanish instantly. He didn't bother talking to Li Xian further, didn't even grab his walking stick, and rushed straight to the backyard.

Seeing his coffin safe and sound, lying quietly there, Old Li Daoyun finally felt relieved and went back inside.

"Damn it! You should have told me. I've been calculating all day, and I said according to the divination, the coffin wasn't stolen by an outsider…"

As Old Li Daoyun rambled on about his divination, Li Xian chuckled like a pig. He thought, if your divination was accurate, you wouldn't have ended up ruining three coffins later.

"Enough of that!"

"Grandfather, if your divination isn't accurate, you might as well stop doing it."

"Nonsense!" Li Daoyun might not care about other things, but he couldn't tolerate being told his divination wasn't accurate. "I've received the true teachings of the Ascension Daoist from Puyun Temple since I was young, and I've learned the genuine Three Lives Divination. By measuring the heavens with the day, interpreting the earthly branches with the month, and determining fortune and misfortune by the time, there's nothing I can't calculate!"

Li Xian grinned, "But you said ten years ago that your time was near…"

Li Daoyun paused, "Ahem, back then, if something was lost or there was a problem in the forestry station, I calculated it all. You didn't experience that time. Ask the old people in the forestry station now; who would dare say that the divination from my three coins wasn't accurate?"

Li Xian, with deadpan eyes, responded, "But you said ten years ago that your time was near…"

Li Daoyun snorted, "You don't understand. Self-divination is about probing into the heavens. The higher the skill, the easier it is for one's own karma to block the divination. I can't even predict my own fate accurately."

Li Xian laughed heartily, thinking that although the old man usually didn't take things seriously, he was quite stubborn when it came to divination.

Seeing the old man's earnestness, Li Xian decided to tease him, "Well, since that's the case, grandfather, why don't you give me a reading?"

Li Daoyun's eyes instantly lit up!

Since his son had threatened him with death to stop proclaiming superstitions everywhere, Old Li Daoyun thought all his skills were confined within him. He could only perform divinations for himself daily. Now that Li Xian, a family member, had asked for a divination, it was a golden opportunity.

Without saying another word, Old Li Daoyun pulled out a dirty red cloth bag from his waistband and deftly poured out three copper coins into his hand.

He touched Li Xian's forehead and smiled, "Let me see your fate and fortune!"

Finding a spot on the kang, he muttered and fiddled with the coins, then, with a shout of "Open!", the three copper coins clinked as they fell onto the kang.

Excited, Old Li Daoyun almost lost several of his teeth from laughing so hard. But when he saw the result of the coins, his face turned pale instantly.

He looked up in shock at Li Xian and, disbelieving, quickly recounted the coins with his hands.

Li Xian, who had initially intended to amuse the old man, grew concerned seeing his horrified expression. "Grandfather, are you alright? Is something wrong?"

He hurried forward to help but was blocked by Old Li Daoyun's arm.

The old man's lips trembled as he grabbed Li Xian's arm tightly, "Grandson, this reading isn't accurate. I need to recalculate!"

Saying that, he took the three copper coins back into his hand, muttering as he tossed them onto the kang again.

"Hey, grandfather, the position and the characters of the coins are the same as before! What a coincidence!" Li Pi exclaimed when the coins fell.

Old Li Daoyun shuddered all over.

"What should I do, what should I do…"

Li Xian didn't understand but saw the old man's agitation and worried that something might happen. He hastily gathered the coins, put them back in the little red bag, and helped the old man lie down on the kang.

When the old man had caught his breath, Li Xian comforted him, "Grandfather, I told you the divination wasn't accurate, didn't I?"

"Yes, not accurate, not accurate!" Li Daoyun nodded repeatedly.

Though he said this, his grip on Li Xian's hand tightened even more, making Li Xian wince in pain.

"Grandson, when you were one year old, I did a reading for you. Back then, you were of the metal element, but now you've become a fire element. This is contrary to the heavenly way, a rare combination of metal and fire.

Historically, those with such a fate are decisive in their actions, good at seizing opportunities. They can achieve great success, becoming second only to the ruler, and even if they fail, they would still be wealthy.

But, those with this kind of fate often face major calamities during transitions, and nine times out of ten, they die suddenly.

Grandson, maybe my reading wasn't accurate. But whether accurate or not, you must listen to me. Remember, in the coming year, stay away from water. Absolutely avoid water!"

Seeing Old Li Daoyun suddenly sit up from the kang, fervently reciting, Li Xian was alarmed.

The past few days had been too comfortable and full of hope. If not for Old Li Daoyun's ramblings, he might have forgotten about the calamity his second uncle was facing!