A Prophet - Chapter 16 (Part 2)
Chapter 2 - The Five Elements and Naming
Inside the living room, Feng Siyuan personally poured a full cup of tea for the Patriarch, and then said obediently, "Please wait a moment, sir. General Dai will be here shortly." His eyes were filled with boundless respect for the Patriarch.
"Adjutant Feng, please don't be so formal. To be able to serve General Dai is a profound honor for this humble person."
After about half an hour, Dai Li arrived.
The Patriarch stood up to greet him, laying eyes on the living Dai Li for the very first time in his life! When enemies meet, their eyes turn exceptionally red with hatred. The Patriarch tried his utmost to conceal the inner fury burning within him, but the figure of Wang Yaqiao still kept flickering incessantly before his eyes.
"I have long admired your great name, sir. Seeing you today, you truly possess the demeanor of a Daoist immortal!" Dai Li extended his hand to shake hands with the Patriarch.
"General Dai is divine in martial prowess and brilliant in strategy, your prestige shaking the four seas. To be able to meet the General is my greatest fortune, my greatest fortune!" the Patriarch chimed in.
"Please, sit!" Dai Li said with great courtesy.
After the two of them took their seats, Dai Li suddenly asked, "I've heard that you and Wang Yaqiao have always had dealings with each other?"
The Patriarch had anticipated this scenario, and Jiang Feiyan had also repeatedly admonished him not to lose his composure. Calmly, the Patriarch replied, "Dealings is hardly the word; it was simply that when King Yama summons one to arrive, the lesser ghosts dare not refuse. Whether it is Wang Yaqiao or General Dai, both are made of flesh and blood. That humans fear death is a principle ordained by heaven and earth, which is why the sages created the I-Ching to seek good fortune and avoid misfortune. Before his life ended, Wang Yaqiao also had this humble person calculate fortunes and misfortunes for him."
This reply cleverly bypassed Dai Li's trap and possessed a high degree of truthfulness.
Dai Li smiled and said, "What you say is entirely correct, sir. Much like a doctor whose vocation is to save lives and heal the wounded, in the eyes of a doctor—regardless of whether someone is a good person or a bad person—there are only patients. If they are a patient, they must be treated. The ancients said: 'A skilled physician cures diseases; a skilled diviner cures fates.' Divination and medicine share the same origin; both traditional Chinese medicine and numerology follow the principles of Yin and Yang, and both rely on the generation, restriction, transformation, and control of the Five Elements. That is why the ancients said, 'If one does not become a virtuous prime minister, one should become a diviner.' If one cannot enter government to serve as a general or minister and govern the state to pacify the nation, then one should steadily become a doctor or a fortune-teller, serving the common people honestly and faithfully. Your divinatory integrity is upright, sir!"
The Patriarch thought to himself: Dai Li is truly Dai Li. Regardless of whether it is eloquence or erudition, he surpasses ordinary secret agents by a notch.
The Patriarch also smiled: "General Dai is deeply versed in the principles of divination and well-read in both ancient and modern learning. I am impressed, highly impressed."
Dai Li took a sip of tea and said, "I invited you here today to consult you on matters of state."
The Patriarch stated, "Ask whatever you wish; I will answer and exhaust my utmost strength."
Dai Li nodded: "The Japanese bandits have invaded China, and our nation is in critical danger. Ever since our Founding Father, Mr. Sun Yat-sen, established the republic, our China has faced a catastrophe of this magnitude for the very first time. Nanjing has fallen, and hundreds of thousands of common folk have been slaughtered all at once. The Chairman's heart aches. Would you be so kind, sir, as to view this from the perspective of grand national righteousness and thoroughly analyze: in the battle between China and Japan, who will emerge victorious? And when will victory be achieved?"
The Patriarch nodded and said, "General Dai's ardent patriotic loyalty commands deep respect. To examine the destiny of a nation, one must employ the methods of the Qimen Dunjia; especially in wars between countries, one must rely all the more on the arts of the Qimen cosmos. My learning is shallow and my talents are meager, and I am not deeply proficient in this method. I can only rely on the method of astronomical phenomena and display my clumsy skills before experts."
"You are too modest, sir. Please go ahead."
"Observing the nine stars, the principal star is dim while the Po-Jun star glares menacingly—this is the manifestation of ominous events. However, the Wen-Qu and Wu-Qu stars are shining in mutual support, and this is an auspicious sign. When the Japanese invaded China, the Ju-Men star opened and the Tan-Lang star arose. In the first two years, they will definitely seize the upper hand. But once those first two years have passed, the Japanese military will inevitably find itself at a disadvantage. Japan is a mere pellet of a country, yet it has recklessly charged into the heartland of our China, and it will surely sink deep into the quagmire of war. As the months and years drag on, they will inevitably be dragged down and exhausted by our military. By then, our counterattack will surely drive these wolfish invaders out of our China! There is only one thing..."
"What thing?" Dai Li pursued.
"In China's War of Resistance, millions share a single heart. If the Nationalist army thinks only of suppressing the Communists, it is going against the will of heaven and will inevitably invite failure. The Xi'an Incident involving the two generals Zhang and Yang is a portent of this."
"What you say is entirely correct, sir!" Dai Li nodded. "It's just that how can a country tolerate two masters? The Communist bandits are far too unruly..."
The Patriarch smiled faintly: "He who wins the hearts of the people wins the realm. General Dai cannot be unaware of this."
"Then... how many years of fighting will it take before victory is achieved?" Dai Li pressed on.
"Shortest five years, longest ten years."
"So long?" Dai Li said in surprise, then reflected for a moment, "However, that makes sense."
At this point, Dai Li had already been led right into the Patriarch's trap. People who hire fortune-tellers are often like this: they clearly have figured something out themselves, yet they lack confidence and insist on hearing it spoken from the mouth of a fortune-teller to feel a sense of release. Viewed from this perspective, fortune-tellers also shoulder the role of psychological counselors.
In truth, the nation's assessments regarding the outcome of the anti-Japanese war at the time boiled down to two possibilities: one was that Japan would triumph and China would perish; the other was that China would undoubtedly win, though the timeline for victory remained uncertain, divided into theories of swift victory and protracted war. In any case, those holding the victory theory formed the majority—how could a vast and magnificent country possibly lose to a tiny band of dwarf invaders?
These conclusions were also pervasive within the Military Statistics secret agent system. Sometimes, after engaging in pillow talk and intimacy with Jiang Feiyan, Feng Siyuan would chatter about these matters. Jiang Feiyan meticulously collated them and recounted every single one to the Patriarch. Only because of this was the Patriarch able to speak with such grand eloquence, leaving Dai Li filled with admiration. As for the conclusion of "shortest five years, longest ten years," it was a pure guess by the Patriarch himself, as he had no idea how long the fighting would actually last. Yet as a Chinese person, he firmly believed one thing: China would not perish.
Having finished asking about affairs of state, Dai Li began inquiring about personal matters. Before asking, he cast a knowing glance at Feng Siyuan. Knowing his cue, Feng Siyuan tactfully withdrew from the room.
"I have long heard that you are a master of the Tieban Divine Numerology, sir. Provide the Eight Characters, and fortunes and misfortunes are clear at a glance. These are my Eight Characters..." Dai Li handed over his birth chart.
The Patriarch had finally waited for this opportunity.
After pondering for a moment, the Patriarch said, "If we analyze this according to conventional theories, General Dai's birth chart lacks Water, making Water the primary favorable element of your destiny! Therefore, whatever encounters Water is auspicious; whether it is the layout of your Feng Shui or your given name, both must carry the element of Water."
Upon hearing this, Dai Li nodded repeatedly. He himself understood the Eight Characters well and knew his own chart lacked Water, which was why he had consecutively given himself over a dozen names containing Water.
"However..." The Patriarch's tone took a sharp turn.
"However what?" Dai Li asked hastily.
"However, this is absolute nonsense!"
"Nonsense?" Dai Li was so startled he nearly leaped to his feet.
"An Eight Characters chart is generally divided into eight categories, but there are also special formations that cannot be evaluated by the balance of the Five Elements. This is because if one of the Five Elements in a chart is excessively prosperous—so prosperous that it cannot be suppressed—you must let it continue to thrive. If you stubbornly try to take the opposing element to suppress it, it will instead provoke a rebellious reaction. This is akin to two fists being unable to match four hands, or a brave hero being unable to withstand a multitude of opponents. The ancients wrote extensively on this principle. General Dai's chart features blazing Fire. If evaluated conventionally, you ought to supplement Water, using Water to extinguish the Fire and maintain the balance of the Five Elements. But look closely: your Day Master is Bing Fire, and you were born in the thriving terrain of Si Fire. With Ding Fire on the Heavenly Stem of the year and Ding Fire on the Heavenly Stem of the hour providing peer support, and the Yi Wood on the Heavenly Stem of the month coming to generate Fire as well, Wood and Fire illuminate one another. The raging fire is only growing more prosperous and unstoppable! Therefore, you must absolutely never use Water!"
"Then what should be used?" Cold sweat broke out on Dai Li.
"Earth!" the Patriarch declared with unyielding finality.
"Please explain in detail, sir." Realizing he had lost his composure, Dai Li instantly regained his calm.
"Fire generates Earth; Earth can drain away the excessive prosperity of Fire, yet it will not provoke the fierce backlash that Water would," the Patriarch said.
Dai Li nodded, "Ah, that makes sense."
The Patriarch's theoretical framework stemmed from the rules of the generation and restriction of the Five Elements, a doctrine he would frequently impart to his junior brothers later on.
The Five Elements are Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. They represent the ancient Chinese abstraction and categorization of all things in the world. As recorded in the Book of Documents - Great Plan: "The Five Elements: first is Water, second is Fire, third is Wood, fourth is Metal, fifth is Earth. Water is characterized by moistening downward; Fire is characterized by blazing upward; Wood is characterized by straightening and curving; Metal is characterized by following and reforming; Earth is characterized by sowing and reaping."
The Five Elements form the foundation of all divination arts. The ancients believed that all things in heaven and earth fall within the Five Elements, and all good fortune, misfortune, disasters, and blessings are caused by the movement and mutual interaction of the Five Elements. Once the principles of the Five Elements are mastered, the mysteries of predictive arts are easily unlocked.
When they first began their studies, the junior apprentices would sometimes ask: With heaven being round and earth being square, and the red dust holding countless myriad things, there are many objects in this world. Aside from gold, wood, water, fire, and soil, there are many other entities—such as pig head meat, long robes, gramophones, stray cats, stray dogs, feces, and so forth. How can mere five elements possibly cover all of them?
The Patriarch would smile and say: "If you view Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth merely as actual gold, wood, water, fire, and soil, you are vastly underestimating the intelligence of the ancient sages and worthies. Every concept has its connotation and extension. Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth are merely the abstract expressions of the Five Elements and a high-level generalization of all things. In our daily lives, virtually everything we lay our eyes upon can be classified within the Five Elements."
Metal: Anything that possesses a hard texture and a killing/stern aura is classified as Metal. This includes not only gold, but also silver, copper, iron, aluminum, steel, diamonds, pearls, agate, Hotan jade, emeralds, and all other metals and hard elements. Silver dollars, copper coins, pig-slaughtering knives, pistols, cannons, human bones, jade bracelets, and other such everyday common objects all belong to Metal in terms of the Five Elements.
Wood: Anything that grows straight or curls upward and possesses a benevolent, ancient aura belongs to Wood. This includes trees, flowers, grasses, wooden furniture, wooden accessories, wooden combs, human hair, body hair, tobacco, and more.
Water: Anything that possesses fluidity and a nimble, dynamic aura belongs to Water. This includes oceans, torrents, rivers, lakes, drinking water, various fruits, fish and shrimp, medicinal decoctions, and so on.
Water: Anything that possesses fluidity and a nimble, dynamic aura belongs to Water. This includes oceans, torrents, rivers, lakes, drinking water, various fruits, fish and shrimp, medicinal decoctions, and so on.
Fire: Anything that is hot and blazes upward, possessing a warming aura, belongs to Fire. This includes all kinds of everyday flames, steel-smelting furnaces, the sun, brick kilns, electrified lightbulbs, matches, firecrackers, and the like.
Earth: Anything that possesses restraining qualities and a steady, honest, and unpretentious aura belongs to Earth. This includes towering mountains, soil, city walls, deserts, houses, highways, sand, ceramics, mud, and so forth.
The Patriarch taught us that the rule of generation among the Five Elements is: Metal generates Water, Water generates Wood, Wood generates Fire, Fire generates Earth, and Earth generates Metal.
Why does Water generate Wood? Plants require water to grow; countryfolk growing crops know that crops need irrigation to flourish; wealthy matrons who love tending flowers and plants all understand the importance of regularly watering them... These ordinary everyday occurrences reveal the principle that Water generates Wood.
Why does Wood generate Fire? Wood can burn; the ancients used wood to make fires for warmth and cooking, and the earliest man-made fire sources originated from friction with wood. In ancient times, wood was virtually the sole material for making fire. The principle of Wood generating Fire is self-evident.
Why does Wood generate Fire? Wood can burn; the ancients used wood to make fires for warmth and cooking, and the earliest man-made fire sources originated from friction with wood. In ancient times, wood was virtually the sole material for making fire. The principle of Wood generating Fire is self-evident.
Why does Fire generate Earth? Fire generates Earth because the burning of vegetation produces plant ash, which ultimately gradually melts into mud. Country folk burning forests to clear wasteland apply this very principle.
Why does Earth generate Metal? Mineral ores, jade, and emeralds are mostly excavated from layers of earth.
The junior apprentices easily understood the previous four scenarios, but the single exception was Metal generating Water. The Patriarch refused to explain it, joking: "If anyone can explain why Metal generates Water, he can come and sit in my position!"
Consequently, the junior apprentices guessed away in a flurry of voices. Some said that metallic substances possess a cold nature and a chilling aura, which is why Metal generates Water; others said that melting metal yields molten steel or iron; yet others said that in the Eight Trigrams, Qian represents heaven, and its Five Element attribute is Metal, while rainwater comes from the heavens, hence Metal generates Water.
The Patriarch shook his head, signaling that none of them were right.
Regarding the restriction among the Five Elements, the Patriarch explained it to us even more vividly. He was always able to break down profound principles using the most ordinary phenomena so that one could understand them instantly upon hearing. The basic principle of the restriction of the Five Elements is: Metal restricts Wood, Wood restricts Earth, Earth restricts Water, Water restricts Fire, and Fire restricts Metal.
Why does Metal restrict Wood? A thriving little tree, struck once with an axe, is injured; strike it a few more times, and it snaps. An axe is made of metal—this is Metal restricting Wood.
Why does Wood restrict Earth? Into a level plot of land, a wooden stake driven down instantly shatters the soil. Ancient people tying up livestock by driving stakes or pitching tents by hammering wooden pegs all applied the principle of Wood restricting Earth. A plant seed sprouting and breaking through the earth is also a manifestation of this principle.
Why does Earth restrict Water? As the saying goes, "Let the general come, block him with troops; let water come, dam it with earth." This captures the exact principle. Earth possesses strong water-absorbing properties, and in the event of a flood, the best method is to use earth for drainage and containment.
Why does Water restrict Fire? This is even easier to understand: when a fire breaks out, people generally use water to extinguish it.
Why does Fire restrict Metal? Metal is hard and stubborn, but no matter how hard a metal is, as long as it is heated to a sufficient temperature, it can be melted. This is dictated by their intrinsic properties.
Now, the Patriarch applied this theoretical framework to Dai Li. The Patriarch had his own hidden agenda—he wanted to use this to avenge Wang Yaqiao. Anyone proficient in Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements knows that fortune-telling is akin to medical diagnosis. If the diagnosis is wrong and the person needs Water replenishment, but you instead prescribe Fire replenishment, that constitutes prescribing the wrong medication, which will worsen the condition. Reflected in one's destiny, it spells terrible misfortune! The Patriarch deliberately claimed that Dai Li's Water-deficient chart could not tolerate Water replenishment and must instead be supplemented with Earth, with the explicit intent of disrupting the balance in his chart and driving Dai Li to his doom.
To outsiders, this procedure seemed almost laughable, yet the Patriarch expended immense mental effort on it, meticulously planning the layout and drilling his persuasive phrasing. But upon careful reflection, what other methods does a mere fortune-teller possess besides this? This is both the sorrow and the cunning of the fortune-teller.
Having finished speaking, the Patriarch quietly observed Dai Li.
Dai Li blinked his eyes and remained silent.
The Patriarch added another sentence: "This is merely the humble opinion of this person. General Dai should weigh and reference it, and not take it as absolute truth."
Dai Li was Dai Li after all; his suspicious nature came into play at that moment, and he abruptly asked, "What does the sir think of my 'Peach Blossom affinity'?"
When ancients examined birth charts, they frequently touched upon terms like "Peach Blossom affinity," "Peach Blossom curse," or "Peach Blossom tribulation," and clients would frequently ask fortune-tellers: "Master, does my destiny carry Peach Blossom?" The phrase "Peach Blossom" has been endowed with an excessive degree of mystical coloring. In reality, "Peach Blossom" is merely one of the divine stars in the Eight Characters. When the ancients initially discussed destiny, they based it on the Five Element interactions of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches; later, during historical evolution, many feudal practitioners of the occult incorporated a great deal of superstitious elements, and "Peach Blossom" was one of them.
Among the divine stars of the Eight Characters, Peach Blossom is also called the "Salt Pool," which is the place designated by heaven for fairy maidens to bathe. The ancients also said: the sun rises at Fusang and enters the Salt Pool. If this divine star is present in an Eight Characters chart, it is said that the person's destiny carries Peach Blossom. What is the function of Peach Blossom? The ancients believed that Peach Blossom carries dual value: if the Eight Characters combination is favorable, it represents handsomeness, cleverness, romantic charm, favorable affinity with the opposite sex, and a blissful marriage; if the Eight Characters combination is unfavorable, it represents unfaithfulness, promiscuity, lewdness, and multiple marriages; if one falls victim to the Peach Blossom curse, one might even die on account of a romantic crime. Therefore, whether a destiny carrying Peach Blossom is good or bad depends on the specific combination of the Eight Characters.
The method for determining Peach Blossom is very simple. The ancients had a set of mnemonic chants: "The Peach Blossom for Monkey, Rat, and Dragon lies in Rooster; the Peach Blossom for Tiger, Horse, and Dog lies in Rabbit; the Peach Blossom for Snake, Rooster, and Ox lies in Horse; the Peach Blossom for Boar, Rabbit, and Sheep lies in Rat."
Discussed in terms of the Earthly Branch of the year pillar, anyone born in the Year of the Monkey (Shen), Rat (Zi), or Dragon (Chen), if the Earthly Branch "You" (Rooster) appears anywhere in their Eight Characters, is said to have a destiny carrying Peach Blossom; anyone born in the Year ofemate Horse, Dog, or Tiger, if the Earthly Branch "Mao" (Rabbit) appears in their Eight Characters, is said to carry Peach Blossom. The other two pairs follow the same logic.
For instance, a person born in the Year of the Monkey who was born in the Month of You (the eighth lunar month) has encountered Peach Blossom; being born during the Hour of You in the afternoon (roughly between 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM) also constitutes encountering Peach Blossom.
Directing countermeasures against these heavily superstitious doctrines, successive generations of I-Ching masters launched pointed critiques, arguing that these dregs should have been swept into the dustbin of history long ago. Yet to this day, many occult practitioners still rely on them to divine destinies.
Now that Dai Li was asking the Patriarch about his Peach Blossom affinity, given the cunning cunning of an old fox like the Patriarch, he naturally would not play by conventional rules.
The Patriarch pinched his fingers to calculate, nodding repeatedly, and then broke into a slight smile, speaking aloud: "General Dai possesses a heroic and vigorous bearing; the women you win over are bound to be breathtakingly peerless beauties. If they are not descendants of wealthy elite households, they are certain to be top-tier reigning movie stars."
Upon hearing this, Dai Li thought: Brilliant! He had secretly harbored a crush on Shanghai film queen Butterfly for years, harboring a fierce determination not to stop until he won her over—this was his most closely guarded secret. How could he possibly know that the fact he had dispatched secret agents to investigate Butterfly's background had long ago been recounted by Feng Siyuan under the covers as a joke to Jiang Feiyan? A few years later, Dai Li finally pulled Butterfly—the fallen premier beauty of the Republic—into his embrace in Chongqing, thereby 'validating' the Patriarch's assertion that "if they are not descendants of wealthy elite households, they are certain to be top-tier reigning movie stars."
Fortune-telling having reached this stage, Dai Li began to hesitate. He was wavering over whether he should still introduce the Patriarch to Chiang Kai-shek. He harbored two major misgivings: First, this fellow calculated with such terrifying accuracy; what if he calculated that I harbor political ambition, arousing the Old Man's suspicion? Wouldn't that spell trouble? Furthermore, factions were rife within the Military Statistics Bureau, and far too many people wanted to pull him down! Exposing himself at this moment would likely cost him his little life. Second, wouldn't keeping this individual tethered to his own side be far superior to presenting him to the Old Man? In moments of crisis, casting a single hexagram could both ensure his own safe passage through disasters and allow him to devise strategies and win favor before the Old Man following the diviner's guidance—wasn't that killing two birds with one stone?
At that moment, Dai Li, whose wings were not yet fully fledged, pondered bitterly.
All of this had been anticipated by the Patriarch and Jiang Feiyan; this precisely explained why Jiang Feiyan had insisted on having the Patriarch meet Dai Li. Jiang Feiyan was far too familiar with the rules of officialdom. For hundreds of years, the "Over-the-Sea Begonia" network had maintained exceptionally broad connections within the imperial court, navigating deftly and playing both ends against the middle. From the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China, how an emperor thought, how a eunuch thought, how a president thought, and how a general thought were matters the female Abaos understood crystal clear.
In the end, Dai Li left alone.
The Patriarch let out a long breath: today he had successfully preserved the reputation of the premier master of Jianghuai without arousing Dai Li's suspicion, keeping the "River-Phase Faction" temporarily safe; at the same time, he had avoided entangling himself in the monarch-subject conflict between Chiang Kai-shek and Dai Li. As for how Dai Li reported back to Chiang Kai-shek upon his return, there was no way of knowing; in any case, Chiang Kai-shek never granted the Patriarch an audience.