A Prophet - Chapter 1 (Part 4)

Chapter 4 - Fortune-Telling Psychology

I joined the faction during a time of swaying wind and rain. Because during that period, with the Kuomintang and the Communist Party fighting each other, business was poor for all major factions, especially in the liberated areas. Many factions had "skipped pitches," and Abao from the northern regions began "drifting with the wind," sneaking down to the southern regions to snatch business. Grandfather specifically convened several faction meetings regarding this matter to cope with the increasingly chaotic situation in the Abao circle. After new recruits entered the trade, they needed veterans to guide them. The Abao ranks possessed a strict hierarchical system, ranging from high to low: Grand Academician, Second Class Scholar, Third Class Scholar, Imperial Guard, Jinshi, Juren, and so on. The Grand Academician was the leader of a local faction, addressed outwardly as "Great Master." Grandfather was the "Great Master"—this title was a symbol of identity and status, and anyone in the underworld upon hearing this moniker would show a few points of respect. When Abao from different places met in the Jianghu, if seniority was unclear, the younger ones would often address the older ones as "Great Master" to show respect for their elders. The second rank was the Second Class Scholar, also called the "Regional Boss." Previously, Abao had to start from the primary rank of "Xiucai" and needed a "Juren" to guide them, but after the Xinhai Revolution, the Abao community splintered, and many rules changed. Grandfather abolished the brotherhood ranks within his own faction; apart from the Great Master, the second rank consisted entirely of the Regional Bosses, and everyone else remained little feet without further sub-rank distinctions. This was Grandfather's management method.

After entering the trade, the little feet all had to follow a regional boss. As for whom to follow, the regional bosses had to pick. Every regional boss possessed his own unique skills; he had to see whether you were cut out for it and whether you were suited to do his kind of work. For instance, the First Regional Boss was a hitman, so he naturally recruited brutes under his command; the Second Regional Boss excelled at Zhafei, and anyone with a talent for playing at ghosts and gods was bound to be chosen by him; the Third Regional Boss was of the genuine academic type—if you didn't read, didn't know characters, and didn't understand the Four Books and Five Classics, he wouldn't want you; the other regional bosses were all the same, selecting people and teaching them accordingly. At that time, the seven regional bosses repeatedly observed for several days. All the new recruits were taken, except for me—nobody chose me, and nobody was willing to take me. Finally, Grandfather pointed at me and asked with a smile, "Does nobody want this one?" All the regional bosses remained silent. After a good long while, the Second Regional Boss yawned, scratched his head, and said loudly, "He can come with me!"

Actually, I didn't want to follow him. Unlike normal people, he only had nine fingers; every time I saw his bald little finger stump, a cold shiver ran through my heart.

Even though I thought this in my heart, I still hurried to kneel before the Second Regional Boss and said, "Thank you, Second Master."

Because of my dull appearance, no regional boss had been willing to take me. In the end, the Second Regional Boss took me in out of reluctance. Afterward, he said to me, "With the kind of mug you've got, Grandfather surprisingly seems quite fond of you. Among all you newly entered little feet, you're the one Grandfather scolds the least. Strangely enough, Second Master here has taken a liking to you too."

After a period of tempering and training, we new recruits began studying the Six-Word True Mantra. This was the supreme realm of scam psychology, personally taught by Grandfather.

The Six-Word True Mantra are: Examine, Knock, Strike, Cheat, Flatter, Sell. As the saying goes:

First examine then knock, urgently strike slowly cheat;

Flatter and sell simultaneously, knocking and striking combined.

Ten cheats nine ring true, ten flatteries nine succeed;

First cheat then advance, going forward with unfailing success.

With cheat and no flatter, a talent of imperial longevity;

The Six-Word True Mantra originates from the Jianghu secret manual Yingyao Chapter.

This could be said to be the supreme realm of scam psychology, utilized to varying degrees by Jianghu sorcerers. What Abao relied upon to carry out their scams were precisely these six characters. Those capable of wielding the Six-Word True Mantra to perfection were deemed ghost geniuses—moving with ease in all directions, invincible in every endeavor.

Simply speaking, "Examine" means scrutiny, including the other party's attire, temperament, and bearing; poverty, humbleness, wealth, and nobility all leave outward traces, allowing one to determine a person's tier at a single glance. The second layer of meaning for examine is listening—letting the other party speak out and talk more. The more they spoke, the more information they revealed.

"Knock" means probing, as the saying goes: "A single knock hits home, follow the rod to strike; another knock without spilling, seek the snake in the grass." Building upon the foundation of examination, you suddenly "knock" once. If your guess hits the mark, you can employ the "strike" tactic. If two knocks fail to hit the mark, things become dangerous, akin to searching for a snake in the grass where you might get bitten. When reduced to the state of "seeking the snake in the grass," an Abao would generally "discard the blade."

"Strike" means making a resolute and decisive judgment. "Strike" values speed above all—delivered abruptly, with the words landing with a solid ring. A deeper meaning of strike is to shatter the other party's will. Because your "knock" hit the mark, they place absolute trust in you, and you then tell them they are about to face misfortune—telling a high official he will lose his post, a tycoon he will suffer financial ruin, a resentful woman she will be abandoned—"striking" until the other party's psychological defense collapses completely.

"Cheat" means deception. You can execute scams on the spot or deploy them through elaborate setups. "Cheat" is blended throughout the other five characters, valuing the word "slow" above all. Executing a scam cannot be rushed, or else you will show a cloven hoof; hence the saying: "Urgently strike, slowly cheat."

"Flatter" means adulation, telling the other party what they love to hear and promising them hope. Because you "struck" them, they are terrified, their mood plunging to the lowest valley. At this moment, you "flatter" them a bit, telling them it is not entirely without hope—if they follow your instructions, they can still avert disaster and turn bad luck into good. Then you "flatter" them a little more, telling them that if they clear this hurdle, they will attain great wealth, nobility, and a long life. Naturally, they become exceedingly happy. "Strike" and "flatter" correspond to each other: first make the other party despair, then give them hope. At this juncture, the other party is firmly tethered.

"Strike" and "flatter" are actually both methods of "cheating" and cannot be separated. If you only deploy the "strike" cheat, no matter how well the deception is executed, it is useless, because the other party falls into despair—thinking, "Well, this is my fate, I accept it"—and will consequently refuse to take the bait. Therefore the saying goes: "With cheat and no flatter, a talent of imperial longevity." "Imperial longevity" is underworld slang meaning a dunce or a fool.

The final character is "Sell," which represents a state of effortless mastery and unconstrained poise. Whatever you say, the other party listens accordingly. The second layer of meaning for sell is that it is time to collect the money. Everything done previously is ultimately for the glittering silver dollars in the other party's pocket, so the selling must also be executed cleanly and decisively.

When Grandfather taught everyone these mantras, he combined theory with practice. For every single character he explained, he detailed the events he had personally experienced to corroborate them.

The Six-Word True Mantra sounds easy, but truly mastering and integrating them is exceedingly difficult. If all six characters are deployed and the other party still remains somewhat skeptical or clings to a wait-and-see attitude, there is still one final resort: "Releasing the Kill!"

The prerequisite for "Releasing the Kill" is that the other party must be a plump roe deer who somewhat believes yet harbors doubts, lingering in an ambiguous state. For example, if you tell them they will encounter a "bloody disaster" in the near future and they are half-skeptical; you offer to avert the disaster for them, but they do not agree, only coughing up a little money for the divination without taking the bait to shell out big money for disaster-aversion, at this point you can request Grandfather to "Release the Kill."

Grandfather would dispatch a foot to follow that person and scout out their location, figuring out their daily activity range. Then, within three months, he would find a few thugs to block them on the road and pick a deliberate fight, beating them black and blue. The next day, that person would obediently come running back, saying, "Master, it has come to pass! It has come to pass! I truly regret not listening to you back then!"

There is another kind of tycoon whose fortune you tell, predicting they will suffer a major financial loss. If they do not believe it, Grandfather would find someone to set a fire in their backyard, and within a few days, they would obediently come running to have the disaster averted.