"The five ills are widowhood, widowhood, orphanhood, loneliness, and disability."
"A widower is a man who has never had a wife in his life, or whose wife died young..."
At this point, I could clearly sense the sadness in Uncle Ma's tone...
Could it be? A terrifying thought popped into my head!
But I didn't say anything; I just listened quietly to what Uncle Ma had to say.
“Widowhood refers to a woman who is without a husband or who has lost her husband.”
"Gu, on the other hand, lost his father and mother at a young age."
"Being alone means losing one's child in old age."
"Disability, that is, the disability you just mentioned."
Only then did I realize that the so-called five evils were these five.
Either way, it is a great misfortune!
I couldn't help but ask again, "What about the three missing ones?"
Uncle Ma continued, "The three deficiencies are also called the three incompletes or the three things that cannot be obtained."
"It refers to the three things: wealth, life, and power."
"Almost literally, 'wealth' means that this person will never have money in his/her life, 'fate' means that this person is born with a short lifespan, and 'power' means that he/she will never have much power in his/her life."
"However, the three deficiencies are different from the five evils in that the three deficiencies can be offset by accumulating virtuous deeds."
"Many Taoist masters possess the three perfections, lacking neither fortune, prosperity, nor longevity."
"They almost all accumulate positive virtues throughout their lives."
"It's the same principle as accumulating good deeds in secret, except that good deeds in secret are blessings one will enjoy in the afterlife."
"That's why so many wealthy people do good deeds."
"Most of them have been guided by wise people, thus accumulating both public and private virtues."
I was stunned: "How can such a short four characters contain so much knowledge?"
Uncle Ma nodded: "That's right, but in the end, it's still about cause and effect."
"What you sow, you reap."
"Those who presume to steal the secrets of heaven must accept the punishment bestowed by heaven."
"Nothing in this world comes for free; everything comes at a price."
"It's just a matter of how much the price will be."
I couldn't help but ask again, "Then, what about the body double you mentioned?"
"A stand-in? It's nothing but a little trick to deceive the heavens."
“Tie a strand of your hair to the paper figure, and tear off a piece of the paper figure’s hand or foot, so that Heaven will think that you have been punished for being crippled.”
"But it is, after all, a method of deception. It can be hidden by simply drawing a simple talisman. Once someone learns the advanced techniques of the Five Arts, this method of deception will naturally become ineffective, haha."
I suddenly realized: "Oh, so that's how it is. That's why you've never mentioned the Five Deficiencies and Three Shortcomings to me."
Uncle Ma smiled faintly: "After all, you have a bright future ahead of you, and I can't force you onto this ship."
"Taoism also emphasizes fate."
"I took on a case yesterday and plan to check it out today."
"If you've memorized the contents of the book, you can go with me to review it, which will help you understand it more thoroughly."
"If you don't want to go, you can help the uncle look after his house."
I nodded: "I'll go with you. I've already memorized most of the contents of the book last night."
Uncle Ma replied, "Yes, bring the book with you too. We're going to Z Province this time, which is about 200 kilometers away from here. It will help you understand the contents of the book."
After having breakfast, Uncle Ma and I packed up and headed to Z province.
Along the way, Uncle Ma explained to me the meaning of the book's contents, as well as the things needed for drawing talismans and the techniques for concentrating.
In less than three hours, we arrived at Tianning City in Z Province.
Upon arriving in Tianning City, we visited a business club.
The club's interior decoration can only be described as magnificent; it is clearly an excellent place for local elites to conduct business negotiations.
Uncle Ma and I took the elevator to the sixteenth floor. As soon as the elevator doors opened, a woman appeared and was waiting at the door.
The woman was dressed in business attire, a pencil skirt, black stockings, and high heels; she was probably a secretary.
The woman gave a professional smile: "Are you Mr. Ma? Our boss is already waiting for you in the room."
After saying that, he glanced at me and asked, "Mr. Ma, who is this gentleman...?"
Uncle Ma returned a polite smile: "This is my assistant, I brought her here."
The woman smiled and said, "Since you're Mr. Ma's person, then come with me."
After saying that, he turned and walked towards a private room, his hips swaying as he walked.
The female secretary walked to the door of the private room and gently knocked: "Boss, Mr. Ma and the others have arrived."
This woman is very clever. She used them to tell the people inside that there was more than one person who came, thus testing the boss's attitude.
However, a man's voice came from the doorway of the private room: "Please invite Mr. Ma and the others in."
After receiving permission from her boss, the woman opened the door, turned around, and said to us, "Mr. Ma, please come in, madam."
After saying that, he even made a gesture of invitation.
As soon as he entered the house, he saw a portly middle-aged man come up to him and grab his hand: "Mr. Ma, Master Ma, oh my, you've finally arrived! Now I can finally relax."
Uncle Ma replied expressionlessly, "Boss Sun, what's the matter that you're in such a hurry to call me over?"
The owner, surnamed Sun, showed no sign of giving up: "Oh, Master Ma, you don't know, something strange has been happening here lately, this place is haunted! He..."
Mr. Sun had only spoken halfway when he turned to me and asked, "Master Ma, who is this?"
Uncle Ma then introduced, "Oh, this is my assistant I brought on this trip, her name is Chen Fang. Chen Fang, this is Boss Sun."
When I heard Uncle Ma call me Chen Fang, I immediately understood what he meant. He didn't want the other person to know my real name, so I said, "Hello, Mr. Sun, I'm Uncle Ma's assistant, Chen Fang."
Mr. Sun glanced at me and said, "What are you calling me, Mr. Sun? My name is Sun Mengcai. Just call me Brother Cai."
After saying that, he reached out to shake my hand. I instinctively tried to dodge, but Uncle Ma grabbed Sun Mengcai's hand and led him into the house: "Boss Sun, what happened? Tell me in detail."
Sun Mengcai looked a little displeased when he didn't shake my hand, though it was only for a moment, I still noticed it.
I thought to myself: This Sun Mengcai isn't a good person either. Judging from his appearance, Uncle Ma must have had some dealings with him, otherwise he wouldn't have hidden my real name.
But I can't understand why Uncle Ma would come all this way to help this person.
Afterwards, Uncle Ma, Sun Mengcai, and I sat down at a tea table in the reception room.
Only then did Sun Mengcai recount the whole story: a week earlier, a female ghost had appeared in his club!
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