Volume Seven · The Ultimate Principles and Methods of Divination

欠字。一人書欠字問六甲，余曰：「明日生男，決非首胎。」時十月初十，到次日果生男。其人復問字理，曰：「欠加兩點為次，故知非首胎。加土為坎。坎，中男也，故知生兒。初十來占，加十一在旁成坎，則今日當產無疑矣。」

Someone wrote the character 「欠」 to inquire about childbirth. I said, 「A boy will be born tomorrow, and certainly not the first child.」 At that time it was the tenth day of the tenth month, and the next day indeed a boy was born. The person came back to ask about the meaning behind the character. I said, 「The character 「欠」 with two dots added beside it becomes 「次」, which means second, so we know it is not the first child. The character 「欠」 with a 「土」 radical added to its side becomes 「坎」. In the 「周易」 eight trigrams, 「坎」 represents the middle son, so we concluded it would be a boy. He came to consult on the tenth day. The 「十」 in 「初十」 with one horizontal stroke added becomes 「土」. Adding this 「土」 to the side of 「欠」 exactly forms 「坎」, showing that the birth would occur on the same day. This is without doubt. This example combines three methods: adding strokes, taking a trigram, and using the date to form an image, which is a typical method of 「至理测法」.

門字。一人書門字問病，余曰：「死矣！尚何問焉？」問字理，答曰：「門字之形，乃日有餘、月不足耳。」其人曰：「女病也。」余曰「必死！」閱十四日驗。

Someone wrote the character 「门」 to inquire about a sickness. I said, "It's already a fatal illness; why are you asking?" He asked what the character meant. I replied, "The character 「门」 has more strokes than 「日」 but fewer than 「月」—this is called 「日有余而月不足」, meaning that days are still enough, but not a whole month." He said, "The sick person is a woman." I said, "Then it's certain death!" — for 「月」 belongs to yin, which governs women; since the moon is insufficient, the woman's illness has no cure. After fourteen days, it indeed came true.

鄉字。一人書鄉字問婚姻，余曰：「姻緣雖易成，男女亦相得，第奈何以真童而娶再醮之女。幸末笑乃節字，到後卻能守節。」其人笑曰：「此女果作過養媳，未成婚而夫死，今翁姑欲嫁之也。不識字理何居，先生何以備知若此？」

Someone wrote the character 「乡」 to inquire about marriage. I said: "This match may be easy to arrange, and the couple also seem to be compatible. Unfortunately, it is a case of an unmarried young man marrying a woman who has been previously married. Fortunately, the last stroke of the character 「乡」 resembles the lower part of the character 「节」, meaning that this woman may be able to remain chaste in the future." The person laughed and said: "Indeed! This woman was a child bride, and before she could have a husband, he died. Now her in-laws want to remarry her. I wonder where this interpretation comes from, and how you could know so precisely?"

余曰：「此無他，乃牛郎織女巧相逢耳。因郎字全，織字只有半邊，是以知之也。」復問：「到後守節，何以不守前夫。」答曰：「節旁耳直。今鄉旁耳多一曲，是以知其節摻之囗二次嫁也。」

I said, "There is nothing else; this is merely the accidental meeting of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl. The character 'xiang' (乡) has the right half 'fu' (阝, ear knife), combined with 'liang' (良) to form 'lang' (郎). The character 'lang' is complete, so it indicates a male who is a whole young boy. The character 'zhi' (织) is only half, so it indicates a female who is incomplete, meaning she is a woman who has been married twice. " The person asked again, "If you say she will remain chaste in the future, why didn't she remain chaste in her first marriage?" I answered, "The character 'jie' (节) has a straight stroke on the side, but now the character 'xiang' (乡) has an extra curved stroke on the side. This shows that her virtue has been compromised in the middle, so she is a woman who has married twice." The same radical, straight meaning chastity, curved meaning remarriage. This is how the curves and straight lines of strokes determine human affairs.

亥字。人有遺孤五歲，偶病。其乳母以亥字問吉凶，余曰：「亥乃孩不見子之象，上是六不全，中是久不得，下是人不長；本月三十日是月盡，亥為時盡，此兒殆難矣。」

There was a five-year-old orphan in a family who suddenly fell ill. His wet nurse wrote the character "Hai" to inquire about his fortune. I said, "The character 'Hai' is the character 'Hai' without the 'zi' radical, which signifies having a child but not seeing the son. Furthermore, looking at its three parts: the top part resembles the character 'liu' but is incomplete, the middle part resembles the character 'jiu' but the long time is not attainable, and the bottom part resembles the character 'ren' but the person does not grow up. Moreover, the month ends on the thirtieth day, and among the twelve earthly branches, 'Hai' is at the last position, which is the end of the year and the hour. This child is likely to have a difficult fate."

復以一字再問，余曰：「一乃生字之終，死字之始，則生從此盡，死從此至矣。況是半個十字，祿命止於五乎？」其師又以水字參決，斷曰：「水字之形，不能永之象。五行之數，土數五。土能克水，難過五日矣。」至九月初五果殞。

The wet nurse wrote another "one" character and asked again. I said, "The character 'one' is the last stroke of the character 'birth' and also the first stroke of the character 'death'. Birth ends here, and death begins from here. Moreover, the character 'one' is just half of the character 'ten'. Ten minus half is five, so this child's lifespan is likely to end at five years old." The child's tutor then wrote the character 'water' to ask further. I interpreted, "The shape of the character 'water' is like the character 'permanence' missing a dot, which is a sign of something not lasting long. Also, according to the numbers of the Five Phases, the number of earth is five, and earth can overcome water—this child will not survive five days." On the fifth day of the ninth lunar month, the child indeed died prematurely.

張字。維楊汪四被總憲拿問，其羽以張字問吉凶，且曰：「今已有東王爺書到，早晚能出否乎？」余曰：「此字大凶，生且難保，安望其出耶？」因斷曰：「弔客當頭，喪門煞局，內中王心已偏，恐終不能挽回矣。」時在九月二十也。至十月終，果自縊於監中。

A man named Wang Si from Yangzhou was taken by the Chief Inspector (the Grand Censor) for questioning. His followers wrote the character "Zhang" to inquire about auspiciousness or inauspiciousness, and they said, "Now there is already a letter from the Eastern王爷, will he be released soon or not?" I said, "This character is extremely inauspicious. His life is already in danger, how can he be released?" Then I made a judgment: "The character 'Zhang' has 'Gong' on the left, which is exactly 'Diao Ke' (a term for death) at the top; on the right is 'Chang', forming a 'Sang Men Sha Ju' (a bad omen for mourning). The 'Wang' inside the character is written with a slanted heart — the heart of the entrusted王爷 has already shifted, and it is likely that this cannot be reversed." At that time it was the twentieth day of the ninth lunar month. By the end of the tenth lunar month, Wang Si indeed committed suicide by hanging in prison.

繡字。一人書繡字問婚姻，余曰：「婚姻必成，且十分得意。」問：「何故？」曰：「紅絲緊繫蕭郎足，姻緣自成更美者。字末三川六段，又為地天交泰之象，夫婦可以偕老。」其人悅而去，至十二月成伉儷。

Someone wrote the character 「绣」 to inquire about marriage. I said, "This marriage will certainly succeed, and it will be very satisfactory." He asked for the reason, and I explained, "The character 「绣」 has the radical 「糹」 on the left, which signifies red threads tightly binding the feet of the beloved, with the Red Thread of Fate connecting them. The union is naturally destined and even more beautiful. The final stroke of the character splits into three rivers and six sections, with the upper and lower parts intersecting, which represents the image of 「地天交泰」 from the Zhou Changes. Here, earth is above and heaven is below, yin and yang meet and all things become harmonious, so the couple will certainly live happily together until old age." The person left happily, and indeed, by the twelfth lunar month, he became married.

青字。壬午十月，有遊宦書青字問曰：「昨聞邸報傳云，聖駕南巡已到紅衣鋪矣。弟有一故舊隨來，意欲候之，不知何日至此？敢求細推。」余曰：「字中上乃主形，又是半個來字，必應南幸來至半路矣。但作乃陰象，又是半個背字，塞北陰方必應。聖心戀戀於陰方，將至半道而返也。」其宦猶未深信。果報：駕未逾淮，得太后之旨，遂星夜迴鑾。

In the year Renwu, in the tenth month, a man who was serving in official post wrote the character "qing" to ask: "Yesterday, I heard from the official news that the sacred emperor's southern tour had already reached Hongyi Pu. I have an old friend who is accompanying the imperial court, and he wishes to go to meet the emperor. I wonder which day he will arrive here? Please sir, calculate it carefully." I said: "The character 'qing' has the shape of 'zhu' at the top, which refers to the ruler; and the top part is also half of the character 'lai', so I concluded that the southern tour of the sacred emperor has indeed reached halfway. However, the lower part of the character 'qing' is 'yue', which belongs to yin, and it is also half of the character 'bei'—'bei' means facing north, and the northern region is the yin direction. This indicates that the sacred heart is attached to the north, and the emperor will go halfway and then return. "The official still did not believe it. Later, it was indeed reported that the imperial court had not yet crossed the Huai River when they received the imperial decree from the empress dowager to return north immediately.

瓦字。一人書瓦字問搖會得否，余曰：「得會。」曰：「人眾尚在初起。」曰：「雖係初會，必得！」因批云：「瓦蓋眾人之頭，字形二十九點。得會！」其人去，頃復來曰：「會得矣，點亦如數。」

Someone wrote the character 「瓦」 to inquire about whether he would win in a lottery called 「摇会」. The 「摇会」 is a kind of collective fundraising among people, where they contribute money and use dice to determine the order. When it's someone's turn, they have to pay the amount of the contribution. I said, "You will get the money." He replied, "There are many people in the group, and it's only the first round now." I said, "Even though it's the first round, you will definitely get it!" Then I interpreted, "The character 「瓦」 can cover people's heads, indicating it can hold down all the members of the group; the character has a total of twenty-nine strokes, so you will get the money!" Soon after, the person came back and said, "Indeed, I got the money, and the dice rolled exactly twenty-nine." This example uses the number of strokes in the character to determine the number, and the number matches the event exactly.

火字。一人書火字問：「出門與在家孰利？」余曰：「出門利。此字中間有開腳之人，自宜行動。若在家中，有災害也。」

Someone wrote the character for "fire" to ask: "Is it better to go out, or to stay at home?" I said: "It is better to go out. This character contains within it the shape of a person with spread legs; since the person has already taken a step, it is favorable for action. If one remains at home, the character for fire signifies disaster and brings misfortune." The same character, taking the shape of "person" suggests movement, while taking its original meaning suggests fire, and one must consider which aspect is relevant to the question.

時旁一人即指此字問曰：「有一兒欲隨貴人上京，今在姑蘇覓一兒作伴同行，利否？」余曰：「大利。」問何故，曰：「火字疊見，乃炎字也。北方水鄉，此去有既濟之義，故利耳。」其人曰：「北方水旺，炎旁加水乃淡字也。財氣不亦淡泊乎？」

At that time, a person nearby pointed to the same "fire" character and asked, "I have a child who wants to follow the nobleman to the capital. Now he has found another child in Suzhou to travel with him. Is this beneficial?" I said, "Very beneficial." He asked why, and I said, "Just now there was already a 'fire' character, and now you are pointing to the same one again. Two fires overlapping form the character 'inflame' (yan). The capital is in the north, and the north belongs to water. This journey will bring water and fire together, which matches the meaning of the 'Already Completed' hexagram in The Zhou Changes, so it is beneficial." The person said, "The north has abundant water. Adding water to the 'inflame' character makes 'dilute' (dan). Will the wealth not become diluted?"

余曰：「否！非此之論也。兩兒皆南人，南方是火地。跟官之人勢必炎，炎而字中又兩重火。現據理斷之，嫌其太過。所幸者，遠遊北方水旺之鄉，得水制之，則火不猖狂，而兩相為用矣，烏可志其美而反謂之淡泊也哉？」其人復問二兒高下，余曰：「二火一上一下，自有高低。但子之兒高，彼之兒不及也。」請厥理，曰：「先一位以火問事已過，乃退時之火。兄仍以火字問事，乃方興之火。以此較之，是以知此兒後來高於彼兒也。」

I said, "It's not right to judge this way. Both children are from the south, where fire is native. Those who follow officials will surely have more fiery energy, and moreover, the characters themselves contain two fires. If we judge only by this, it's actually excessive in terms of fire. Fortunately, they will go far north, where water is abundant, and water can control the fire. Thus, fire will not run rampant, and water and fire can work together—how can we ignore this advantage and say the wealth is not strong?" The person then asked which of the two children would be higher. I said, "Since both are 'fire,' one above and one below, they can be clearly distinguished. However, your child will be higher, and the other's child will not be able to match." He asked for the reason, and I said, "The previous one used the 'fire' character to ask about something, and after that, it has passed, so it's fire that has already declined. But you are now still using the 'fire' character to ask, which is fire that is just beginning to rise. Comparing the two, we can know that your child will certainly surpass the other's child in the end."

鳧字。一人書鳧字問官司，余曰：「大不利。」其人問故，曰：「梟神頭，白虎腳，勾陳身，膋蛇尾，四凶齊犯。若到官，夾打俱有。一倒便見矣。」因將鳧字倒置几上，令彼自觀，時旁觀者皆歎服。

Someone wrote the character 「凫」 to inquire about a legal case. I said, "This is very unfavorable." He asked why, and I replied, "The top part of this character is the head of a bird, which is exactly the crime of the枭神; the single stroke and the hook at the bottom resemble the feet of the White Tiger; the horizontal stroke in the middle represents the body of Gou Chen; and the final curved stroke is like the tail of the Shéng Shé. The four凶 spirits—枭神, 白虎, 勾陈, and 螣蛇—are all involved. If this case goes to court, there will certainly be beatings with wooden sticks and拶刑. If you look at the character upside down, you will understand." So I placed the paper with the character 「凫」 upside down on the desk, letting him see it himself—the inverted shape looked exactly like a person being bound and beaten. At that time, all the onlookers were convinced and impressed.

元字。一人書元字問六甲：「男女何居？」余斷曰：「二八之形，巽卦之變，生女無疑。」復以問他相字者，則不察字理，輒曰：「生男。」至分娩，果產一女。

Someone wrote the character 「元」 to inquire about pregnancy: "Is the child a boy or a girl?" I interpreted it saying: "The character 「元」 has two horizontal strokes on top and two strokes below, forming the shape of two eights. Both two and eight are yin numbers. Furthermore, according to the change of the hexagram, it belongs to the hexagram Xun, which represents the elder daughter—definitely a girl." He then took the question to another fortune teller, who did not carefully examine the character's structure and carelessly said, "It's a boy." When the child was born, it turned out to be a girl.

元字。一人將元字問男女，余曰：「生男。」復以問他相字者，則用吾前效應曰：「生女。」至分娩，乃一男。其人復來問字理，余曰：「元乃乾健之體，四德元為之首。兄之所娠又係頭胎。況兼三筆寫成，可改作兒字。故知生子無疑也。」

Some people once used the character "元" to inquire about the gender of the child, and I said, "It will be a boy." They took the character to another fortune-teller, who, relying on my previous accurate prediction, said, "It will be a girl." However, when the child was born, it was indeed a boy. The person came back to ask about the reasoning behind the prediction. I explained, "The character '元' represents the Qian hexagram, which symbolizes strength and vitality. In the Qian hexagram of the Zhou Changes, the four virtues are 'origin, prosperity, benefit, and constancy,' with 'origin' being the first. Moreover, your wife is carrying her first child. Furthermore, the character '元' can be written with only three strokes, which is an odd number and thus belongs to the yang category. Also, changing just one stroke transforms it into the character '儿,' which means child. Therefore, I concluded it would be a boy, without any doubt."

其人問：「師曾斷此字生女，弟遂寫此字求數；因復以問於貴同道，彼亦斷女。何故卻生兒子乎？何故師所斷與前異乎？願聞其說。」餘筆曰：「夫一字之來有一字之機，彼人烏足以語此！蓋前一人之元字中，二橫如橋，字乃四筆寫成，數屬偶，故生女。兄所問之元字，頭尾昂藏，字乃三筆寫成，數屬奇，故生男。奇偶尚不清，曷為乎測字哉？邵康節先生曰：「字同事不同，不宜此而宜彼；事同字不同，倏變吉而變凶。」此之謂也。

That person asked, "Master, you once predicted that this character would mean a daughter, so I wrote this character to seek a prediction; I then took it to ask your fellow practitioner, and he also predicted a daughter. Why did I end up having a son? Why is your prediction different this time? I would like to know the details." I picked up my brush and wrote, "When one character is brought, it carries its own inherent signs. That practitioner did not understand this principle. The previous time, the person wrote the character 'yuan,' with two horizontal strokes level and flat like a bridge, and the entire character was written with four strokes, which is an even number, and evenness belongs to yin, hence predicting a daughter. This time, the character 'yuan' you wrote has its beginning and end raised and spirited, written with only three strokes, which is an odd number, and oddness belongs to yang, hence predicting a son. If you cannot distinguish between odd and even strokes, what is the point of predicting characters? Shao Kangjie said, 'Characters may be the same but the situations differ, so it is not suitable for this but suitable for that; situations may be the same but the characters differ, so it may suddenly change from auspicious to inauspicious.' This is exactly the principle being explained."

門字。一官欲赴京選，問行期，書門字，兼叩功名事。余曰：「此字問功名，可謂大利，但行期遲緩，當為年翁細析其疑。夫門，可開可閉。今方冬令，天地閉藏猶門之閉，進出不通。若交春令，萬物萌芽猶門之開，往來甚便。以此推之，今歲尚未能行也。且字體乃朋來未齊之象，年翁必然等候親友同行，大抵在於新正耳。」其官曰：「弟實欲等浙中二友同行，約燈節前到，故問以決疑也。」

There was an official who was about to go to the capital to seek a position, and he asked about the date to start his journey, writing the character 「门」, and also inquiring about his official rank. I said, "This character used to ask about official rank is very favorable; however, the departure date should be delayed. Let me explain this matter in detail for you. The character 「门」 can be opened or closed: at present, it is the winter season, and heaven and earth are in a state of concealment, just like a door that is closed, with no passage in or out; when spring comes, all things begin to sprout, just like a door that is opened, allowing easy movement. According to this reasoning, he will not be able to go this year. Moreover, the character 「门」 has two doors on either side facing each other, with an empty space in the middle, which indicates that friends have already arrived but are not yet complete. The official definitely wants to wait for his two friends from Zhejiang to travel together, and they have agreed to arrive before the Lantern Festival, so he came to ask, in order to make a decision." The official said, "I indeed want to wait for my two friends from Zhejiang to travel together, and they have agreed to arrive before the Lantern Festival, so I came to ask, in order to make a decision."

幸字。一人書幸字問病，余曰：「不吉。」因問病人年庚，曰：「四十九歲。」余曰：「幸字反有三不幸焉。問病不宜見士與木，今數中士木交加，一不幸也。木中桑木為最堅久，今不成桑木，二不幸也。不完五十，三不幸也。人不能全天命之年，雖幸，實不幸。逢辛日或辛月，恐不能僥倖。若捱過八月至十月，方可謂之幸也。」一月後果卒。

Someone wrote the character 「幸」 to inquire about illness. I said, 「It is not auspicious.」 Then I asked the patient's age, and he replied he was forty-nine. I said, 「This character 「幸」 actually contains three layers of misfortune. First, when asking about illness, it is most inauspicious to see 「士」 or 「木」 — 「士」 resembles the tablet before a coffin, and 「木」 is the coffin itself. Now the character 「幸」 has 「士」 and 「木」 combined at top and bottom, which is the first misfortune. Second, among woods, mulberry wood is the most durable and strong, but this character cannot form 「桑」, which is the second misfortune. Third, forty-nine years is one year short of fifty, the age of heavenly destiny is not complete, which is the third misfortune. To live less than the years granted by heaven, although the character is called 「幸」, it is actually misfortune. Moreover, 「幸」 differs from 「辛」 by only one stroke. If it occurs on a day or month of 「辛」, one might not be fortunate. Only if one survives until August to October can one truly be called 「幸」.」 A month later, the patient indeed passed away.

麟字。一人書麟字問終身，筆跡肥濃，橫直停勻而有神采。因顯唬骸按俗鄭？貴人之格也。其人曰：「我貧漢耳，何貴焉？」余曰：「年翁勿諱言，年翁之貴非自得之也。字後庇廕起手，當是襲職之官。字有戈戟之形，必居元戎之位。

Someone wrote the character 「麟」 to inquire about his entire life. His handwriting was thick and heavy, with even strokes and a brilliant appearance. I then said in front of him (the original text here had some characters that were misread and difficult to read, the general meaning being 「this character has the structure of a nobleman」). The person replied, 「I am just a poor man, how could I be considered noble?」 I said, 「Old sir, you need not be shy. Your nobility is not something you have earned yourself. The latter part of the character starts with 「粦」, indicating it comes from inherited protection and favor. It must be that you inherit the official position from your father and ancestors as a military officer. The character also contains the shapes of halberds and spears, so you must certainly hold the position of a commander in charge of troops.」

貴則貴矣，但一生不利於南。純水之形，宜往北方便利。二十上下，妻宮寂寞，夫人早已仙遊。三八之時，作事多應迷舛。末筆生三尾，子有河東。上有「六十」形，下有「死年」局，問壽只許六旬。縱然自少至老榮顯，若不升往北方不宜，兄弟不得力，六親無依。此狂瞽之言，請貴人取擇。若云非貴，豈其然乎？」

"Being noble is indeed noble, but it is not favorable to go south throughout one's life. This character has a pure water shape, and water is suitable for the north, so going north would be more advantageous. Around the age of twenty, the wife's section is cold and barren, and the respected wife has already passed away. Around the age of twenty-four (a number resulting from multiplying three and eight), there will be many confusion and mistakes in affairs. The final stroke splits into three tails, indicating that matters concerning children are connected with other things. The top part of the character resembles the shape of 'sixty,' and the bottom forms the pattern of 'death year,' indicating that one's lifespan is limited to sixty. Even if one is prosperous from a young age to old, it is not suitable to stay in the south; siblings are not helpful, and the six relations have no support. These are my foolish opinions; please the nobleman judge for yourself. If you are not noble, how could it be like this?"

其人始點頭曰：「弟非他，乃京口郭某也。現授廣東水師參將，今年二十九歲矣。二十四克妻。舍弟尚未登仕途。吾本籍北京，十五歲因難廕，即來江南，至今十五年矣。雖有一官，其實百事不遂。幸遇高明指教以南北之向，可謂之半仙也。」揖謝而去。

That person then nodded and said, "I have no intention of deceiving you, sir. I am not someone else, but Tuo from Zhenjiang. I am currently serving as a commander of the Guangdong naval forces, and I am twenty-nine years old. I lost my wife at the age of twenty-four. My younger brother has not yet entered officialdom. I was originally from Beijing. At the age of fifteen, I received a hereditary appointment due to my father's death, and I came to the Jiangnan region. It has been exactly fifteen years since then. Although I hold an official title, nothing in my life has gone smoothly. Today, I am fortunate to meet such a wise person. You can truly be called a semi-immortal for guiding me on the auspicious and inauspicious aspects of the north and south directions." He then bowed in gratitude and left.

茆字。一人書茆字問婚姻，余曰：「極易成，但妓者耳，兄何留戀於彼耶？」其人笑曰：「果是！一美妓與我相處有年矣，今彼有從良之願，吾欲娶之，不識字理若何？而先生真可謂神見也。」余曰：「此字全是殘花敗柳之象，是以知其為妓也。末筆從節，猶可以為善，兄當娶。」

Someone wrote the character 「茆」 to inquire about marriage. I said, "It is very easy to succeed, but the person is just a prostitute. Why do you cling to her?" The person laughed and said, "Indeed! There is a beautiful prostitute who has been with me for several years, and now she has expressed a desire to reform. I want to marry her. I wonder what the meaning of this character is? You truly have divine insight." I replied, "This character has a grass radical at the top, which forms the shape of a crooked willow and flower, and the whole character conveys the atmosphere of withered flowers and broken willows, so I concluded she is a prostitute. However, its final stroke is from the character 「节」, which suggests a possibility of improvement, so you can go ahead and marry her."

陸字。釗生書陸字問天晴雨，余曰：「必晴。」曰：「此時將午，已霏霏矣，安得晴乎？」曰：「包晴！字左乃陰不陰、陽不陽之象，本日天色自然晦而無雨。字右卻有兩個土字，土能克水，豈有雨乎？但土空則陷，恐來日當有雨耳。」果然。

Zao Sheng wrote the character "Lu" to inquire about whether the weather would be clear or rainy. I said, "It will certainly be clear." He said, "But now it is nearly noon, and the rain has already started to fall in a fine drizzle; how can it be clear?" I said, "It will certainly be clear! This character on the left is the ear-plate (fu), which is neither yin nor yang, so today's weather will naturally be gloomy without rain. However, the character on the right has two 'tu' characters, which represent earth, and earth can overcome water; where there is earth, there will be no rain. But earth, when it becomes hollow, will collapse, so I fear that rain may come tomorrow." Later, it indeed turned out to be the case.

病字。一人書病字問病，余曰：「女乎？」曰：「然」。曰：「無妨！內省不疚，何憂何懼？上面主人安穩，下面內人端正，決無害。丙屬火，逢土日洩其氣，可愈。」其人去，未十日來雲病已愈。

Someone wrote the character 「病」 to inquire about illness. I said, 「Is it a woman who is ill?」 He replied, 「Yes.」 I said, 「No problem! The Analects say, 「If one's inner reflection brings no guilt, what have we to be anxious or afraid?」 The character 「病」 contains the character 「丙」 inside its head. Self-examination without guilt, how can there be anxiety or fear? The top part of the character, a dot and a horizontal stroke, is steady and secure, indicating the master is safe. The lower part, the character 「内」, is upright and proper, meaning the wife is unharmed, definitely harmless. 「丙」 belongs to fire in the heavenly stems, and when it meets a day of earth, the fire's energy is released, and the illness will recover.」 The person went back, and within ten days he came to report that his illness had already been cured.

家字。一遊宦書家字問家中事，余曰：「一家完全，人口皆安逸。守字頭，緣字腳，且在此地守祿，家中毋庸慮也。」至新正赴郡，得起復之信，自來述喜。

There was a man who was serving in official post away from home. He wrote the character "home" to inquire about his family affairs. I said, "The family is entirely complete, and all members are at ease. This character has at the top the head of the character "guard" (宀), and at the bottom the foot of the character "connection" (豕), which shows that you are now staying here and keeping your salary, and there is no need to worry about your family." By the time of the first lunar month, he went to the county town and received a message that he was to be recalled and reinstated in his post. He came personally to express his joy.

筆字。周龍從儀真至揚，攜一筆字問終身，余曰：「篤字頭，律字尾，中一豎有精神。逢丑年，交鴻運。十二年順利，家業長二千餘金。二十歲上下即走關津渡口，以建立功名。丰神雖瀟灑，但眉間定有傷痕。筆之為物縱然貴重，卻隨人掌握而行。以吾觀之，早年即當為入幕之賓，妻遲子晚，祖業又凋零虧煞個算頭，著實也，到後來受用些墨沈餘芬。」

Zhou Long came from Yizhen to Yangzhou, bringing a "pen" character to inquire about his destiny. I said, "This character has the top part of the 'du' character (bamboo), and the bottom part of the 'lv' character (yu). The central vertical stroke is very spirited. The 'du' character includes the radical for horse; encountering the year of the Ox (which belongs to horse and ox), he will meet great fortune. In the following twelve years, everything will go smoothly, and his family's business will grow to over two thousand taels of silver. In his early twenties, he will have to move around in the areas near the river crossings, and achieve success through this. Although his demeanor is elegant and free-spirited, there must be a scar on his brow — the two strokes of the bamboo top of the character fall exactly on the position of the eyebrows. Although a pen is a precious object, it is always used by someone else's hand. Therefore, in my opinion, he should have been a guest in someone else's household early on; he will marry late and have children late, and the family property will have declined to almost nothing, resulting in a real financial loss. Later on, he will enjoy some food and clothing obtained through the lingering fragrance of ink and brush."

批畢，周友曰：「名不虛傳，此乃敝友邵令銘所書之字。今年二十八矣，尚未娶。本貫浙紹人，在敝衙門作幕數年。今又有吳江邑尊杜至彼，欲應聘，未知利否？至傷痕之說，尤屬如見。」余曰：「若往吳江更利。」於是別去。後十餘日復至，攜邵謝貼來，兼有詩曰：「閉臥青山愧丈夫。」可想見其平生矣。

After the divination, Zhou Long said, "Master's reputation is well deserved. This is a calligraphy written by my friend Shao Lingming. He is twenty-eight years old and has not yet married. He is originally from Shaoxing, Zhejiang. He has been working as a legal assistant in our office for several years. Now Du Xianling, the county magistrate of Wuxi County, has invited him, and he wants to accept the position. He doesn't know if it will be beneficial. Especially the remark about the scar on his forehead, which sounds as if he had seen it with his own eyes." I said, "Going to Wuxi County will be more beneficial." Then we parted. After about ten days, he came again, bringing a thank-you note from Shao Lingming, which also included a line of poetry: "Resting in the green mountains, I feel ashamed to be a man." — A scholar who is talented but not recognized, sitting alone by the mountain, his whole life's experience is easy to imagine.

用字。一人書用字問求謁，余曰：「斷難見。」而其人曰：「我屢候之。」余曰：「雖屢候，彼終不能見也。」問何故，曰：「字之上半全是閉門不納之象，不獨閉門，而門內復將一木緊緊撐之，如此安能見之耶？」曰：「彼不出耶？」曰：「字乃截角之形，彼再不肯出頭也。」旁觀者皆撫掌稱快。

Someone wrote the character 「用」 to inquire about meeting a certain person. I said, "It is definitely difficult to meet." He replied, "I have waited several times already." I said, "Although you have waited many times, he will ultimately not see you." He asked why, and I said, "The upper part of this character is entirely like a closed door refusing entry; not only is the door closed, but there is also a wooden pole across the door, firmly blocking the way—like this, how can you meet him?" He asked, "Is he not coming out?" I said, "This character is shaped like a corner being cut off, with all four corners incomplete. He will never come out again." The people watching all clapped and cheered.

齒字。有人書齒字問：「一人出外十餘年，何時回來？」余曰：「死矣。」問何故，曰：「太歲當頭，外邊重重險厄，終歸於凶，是以知其死也。不知年幾何？」曰：「三十六矣。」曰：「必死！齒，年數也。普天之下，從無三十七齒之人，今以此字問之，恰值三十六歲，吾知其必不能生還也。」

Someone wrote the character 「齿」 to ask: "There is a person who has been away for more than ten years, when will he return?" I said: "He has already died." He asked for the reason, and I said: "The character has '止' on top, which means being stopped, with the Tai Sui (the year god) pressing down on top; the outer part is wrapped around many times, indicating danger layer by layer; ultimately it is a凶象 (auspicious omen), so I know he has died. Don't know how old he is this year?" He answered thirty-six. I said: "It is certain he will die! 「齿」 means age — so-called 「序齿」 and 「齿德」 refer to the number of years. Throughout the world, there has never been a person with thirty-seven teeth, and now he is exactly thirty-six years old and uses this character to ask, showing that the number of teeth has reached its end, so I conclude he will not return."

其人泣曰：「神數！此吾弟也，一出不歸十餘年，杳無音信。昨有一友從比來，言在某處會見，適吾弟病篤，不能作書，剪髮辮寄歸，令其妻嫁，死後行囊如洗，蒙此友施棺殮葬。吾猶未深信，故特來一決。今如先生所斷，則事果實矣。且三十七齒之說，尤匪夷所思，寧不令人歎服？」

That person was crying and said, "What a divine prediction! This is my younger brother, who left home over ten years ago and has not returned, with no news at all. Yesterday a friend came from there and said he had seen my brother somewhere: just as my brother was seriously ill, he was unable to write a letter, so he cut off his hair and sent it back with him, telling his wife to remarry. After his death, his belongings were completely empty, and he was buried with a coffin provided by this friend. I was half-believing and half-doubting, so I specially came to ask the master to decide. Now according to the master's prediction, the matter is indeed true. Moreover, the saying about 'thirty-seven teeth' is especially surprising, how could one not be convinced!"

吝字。一人書吝字問婚姻，余曰：「上有交歡之象，下有和合之形，姻緣可謂美矣，必成！」其人曰：「神數！本係成事，姑問之也。」

Someone wrote the character 「吝」 to inquire about marriage. I said, "This character has the top part of the character 「交」, which suggests the image of intimacy; the bottom part is the mouth of the character 「合」, which implies harmony. The top represents union, the bottom represents harmony. With the top and bottom combined, the relationship is certainly complete and fulfilling!" The person replied, "You are really a divine calculator! It was already decided, but I just asked out of curiosity." This example clearly demonstrates the use of the method of combining meanings from the beginning and the end of a character to form a judgment.

弦字。一人書弦字問曰：「聘一夥友，約在臘月前來，今已新正尚未見到。」余曰：「此人不來矣！字左乃膋蛇，字右乃玄武，二人相合已共事矣，豈來乎？」因批曰：「龜蛇二將相連，彼已別生枝葉，祖師不可認真，夥計須當另覓。」其人曰：「龜蛇之說信有之。吾聞其新遇一人，將有共事之意。吾疑信未定，故來問耳。」

Someone wrote the character 「弦」 to ask: "I hired a partner friend, agreeing that he would come in the twelfth lunar month, but now it's already the first lunar month and I haven't seen him yet." I said: "This person will not come! The left side of the character is 「弓」, which is bent and resembles the snake called Téng Shé; the right side is 「玄」, which corresponds to the Black Tortoise. With Téng Shé and the Black Tortoise combined, it indicates that he has already joined forces with someone else, so how could he come?" Then I wrote: "The two generals of the tortoise and snake are connected, he has already taken another path; the True Martial Ancestor cannot be trusted, you must find another partner." The person said: "The story of the tortoise and snake is indeed true. I heard that he recently met someone who showed interest in working together. I was half-believing and half-doubtful, so I came to ask."

虯字。一人書虯字問婚姻，余曰：「必係寡婦，先私後娶，然卻易成。」其人背後一友笑曰：「請教字理。」余曰：「花燭之餘，豈非寡婦；傷風敗化，必有私情；幸王化雖敗壞之極而風聲只缺微邊，往來雖久而知者猶少也。」其人復問：「何日成婚？」余曰：「L 為半九之象，立春前五日成婚。」二人皆嘆曰：「神數！果日期盡不爽。」

Someone wrote the character 「虬」 to inquire about marriage. I said, "The person in question is certainly a widow. There was first an affair, then a formal marriage. However, this marriage is easy to accomplish." The person behind him laughed and said, "Please explain the meaning of the character." I replied, "The character 「虬」 is composed of 「虫」 and 「丩」. The character 「虫」 is the character 「烛」 without the fire radical, which means the candle has already burned out, which is not it? It is a widow. The character 「虫」 also signifies illness and moral decline, indicating there must have been an affair. Fortunately, although moral standards have declined to the extreme, the character 「风」 is missing only the outer dot, meaning the wind has not yet fully revealed itself. This suggests that although the two have been in contact for a long time, not many people know about it." The person asked again, "On which day will they get married?" I said, "The final stroke, which is a hook, resembles half of the character 「九」, indicating the marriage will take place five days before the Beginning of Spring." Both of them exclaimed, "What an accurate prediction! The date is exactly correct."

一人手持一錢置於几上，復指錢上順字問婚姻，余曰：「必成，況已成矣。」問故，曰：「錢乃團圓之物，外圓內方，地天交泰之義也。倒指順字，可謂手到即順也。」復問財氣，余曰：「惟財氣欠旺，只可二三分之利。」曰：「何故？」曰：「錢乃外實內虛之物，衣服什物雖有而資財恐不多也。且順字從三寫起，願字結局，只得三分如願耳。」

This is an example of "Observing the Plum Blossom" divination, where one does not write characters but instead interprets the situation based on the objects present. A person was holding a copper coin on the table and pointing with his fingers to the "shun" character on the coin's surface to ask about his marriage. I said, "It will certainly succeed, and in fact, it has already succeeded." He asked why, and I replied, "A coin is a round and complete object, with a round outside and a square inside. Round represents heaven, square represents earth, and heaven enclosing earth corresponds to the meaning of the Zhou Changes' 'Heaven and Earth Interacting to Bring Prosperity,' which signifies the communication of yin and yang. Moreover, you are pointing with your fingers to this 'shun' character, which can be interpreted as 'hand reaching immediately brings smoothness.'" He then asked about his fortune, and I said, "Your wealth is not strong, at most two or three parts of profit." He asked why, and I replied, "A coin is solid on the outside and hollow inside, showing that although there are clothes and utensils, the money may not be much. Furthermore, the 'shun' character starts with three strokes of the 'chuan' character and only reaches the 'yuan' character as its conclusion. Starting with three strokes but not reaching ten, so only three parts of wishes can be fulfilled."

寅字。正月初八，一人指時憲書上月建之寅字，問曰：「聞得聖駕南巡否乎？」余曰：「宇宙一人之象，正是兆民仰問聖上之字也。上有離宮之形，下有甲胃之人衛之，財巡必矣。寅，陽木。下月水日到。」後到二月初七壬午日，駐蹕維揚。

On the eighth day of the first lunar month, someone pointed to the "Yin" character in the monthly section of the almanac (Shixian Shu) and asked, "I've heard that the imperial court is going to tour the south. Is it true?" I said, "The 'Yin' character has a roof top like a canopy, and a horizontal and vertical line in the middle like the universe, which is exactly the image of 'cosmos and one person.' It is precisely the character that the people look up to the Son of Heaven. The upper part has the shape of the Li palace, which represents the south; the lower part shows a person in armor guarding—this clearly indicates that the southern tour is certain. 'Yin' belongs to Yang Wood in the Five Phases, and Wood is born from Water. The next month will meet a Water day, and then the southern tour will take place." Later, on the seventh day of the second lunar month, the imperial court indeed stayed in Yangzhou.

公字。一人以公字問事，久不與斷，平國先來者先測，而後至者次序應之，故不笪即斷也。至臨測時問之曰：「何事？」則曰：「忘之矣。」轉身即走。余曰：「來，且勿行！爾非真忘之也，不過因我之遲而生恚耳。」其人曰：「請說。」余曰：「字雖公字，卻有一團私心；況分字頭、去字腳，汝必與人共事，今欲分頭而去也。」

Someone brought a "gong" character to ask a question, but I couldn't answer him immediately. Usually, I answer those who come first first, and those who come later wait their turn. So I couldn't answer him right away. When it was his turn, I asked, "What is your question?" He said, "I have forgotten." Then he turned around and left. I said, "Come back, don't go yet! You didn't really forget, but you were impatient because I was slow." He said, "Please tell me." I said, "This character is 'gong,' but inside it there is a hidden private heart. The lower part of 'gong' is 'si,' which means private. Moreover, the upper part of 'gong' is the head of 'fen' (division), and the lower part is the foot of 'qu' (to go away). This shows that you must be working with someone else, and now you want to split up and go your separate ways."

其人曰：「誠如所言。我與表兄合夥開一銀店，將及三載。今欲分賬自開，不知吉凶何居？」余曰：「一言成訟，此話可謂難講矣。末筆更帶玄武，其中必主小人刁唆，不日將見官司，宜止之。」其人歎服。後旬日復來測定，自言：「承指教歸，並不言及分賬之事，而表兄與我甚相得，親許來歲分店各開矣。」

That person said, "Indeed, as the master said. I have been running a silver shop with my cousin for nearly three years, and now we want to divide the profits and open separate businesses. I wonder if this is auspicious or inauspicious?" I replied, "The character '公' is composed of 'eight' and 'private,' and one word can lead to disputes. This is a difficult matter to bring up. Moreover, its final stroke resembles the form of Xuanwu, indicating that there must be a small person inciting trouble from the side. A lawsuit is likely to occur soon. It would be better to stop now." That person was convinced. After about ten days, he came again to consult, saying, "Thanks to the master's guidance, I have not mentioned the matter of dividing the profits at all. My cousin and I have become very harmonious, and he has verbally agreed to separate and run our own businesses next year."

求財二字。一人云：「我欲求財，請測一字。」余曰：「甚字？」其人呆視不動，余曰：「汝又不寫字，又不拈字，我即將求財二字測之。」其人曰：「知我作何生意？」余曰：「當是賣果子，否則必是樹上所生之物。」曰：「何方買賣？」曰：「東南買至西北方賣，先曾做過。有本而藝術不精，以致虧折。目今第二次矣。生意雖精而本又不足，意欲與人合夥同行也。是乎？否乎？」

Someone said, "I want to seek wealth, please the master divines a character for me." I asked, "What character do you want to divinate?" The person stared blankly without moving. I said, "Since you neither write nor pick a character, I will use the two characters 'seek wealth' you mentioned to divinate." He asked, "Does the master know what kind of business I do?" I said, "It must be selling fruits, or else definitely something that grows on trees." He asked, "In which direction do you do your business?" I said, "You buy from the southeast and sell to the northwest. You have done this once before, with capital but lacking skill and eye for the business, which led to a loss. Now it's the second time. This time the business is more refined, but the capital is still insufficient, and you want to partner with someone to go. Is that right?"

其人曰：「神數！果是往洞庭山買木瓜、香櫞等至淮北賣，前歲之貨大半黑爛，本折過半。今實約龍同行，利否？」曰：「利。」旁觀者問：「先生所言句句對針，而其理何所據，遂如此之應。」余曰：「求財二字皆有木形，故知買者果子也。求中全然見本而有不永之象，財中只有半本而有搬販之形，是以又知其前後事也。」又問：「何以知其前此藝之不精，而此番之精？」余曰：「求如喪字頭，是以知其不精；財如射字形，是以知其可中也。」

That person said, "You really have a divine insight! I did indeed go to Dongting Mountain to buy wood apples and fragrant citrons, and transport them to the Huaibei region to sell. Most of the goods from last year turned black and rotten, losing more than half the capital. Now I really have arranged to go with someone named Long. Is it profitable?" I said, "It is profitable." The onlookers asked, "You spoke word for word accurately. But what is the basis for your reasoning, and how did it come to such a precise result?" I said, "The characters 'seek' and 'wealth' both contain the shape of 'wood,' so I knew he was buying fruits. The character 'seek' clearly shows the character 'origin' within it, but it also carries an image of something not lasting, so I knew he had lost money last time. The character 'wealth' only has half of the 'origin' character, and the 'shell' radical represents the shape of carrying and trading, so I knew about his two previous affairs." They asked again, "How did you know he was not skilled before, but is now skilled?" I said, "The character 'seek' looks very much like the head of the character 'sorrow,' and sorrow means failure, so I knew he was not skilled before. The character 'wealth' looks very much like the shape of the character 'archery,' and archery means hitting the mark, so I knew this time he would succeed."