Seeing Hu Tudao's otherworldly demeanor, Ma Dajun's respect deepened. Hu Ergou was so famous; his son must be no ordinary person either.
"Master Hu, is there anything wrong with my house?" Ma Dajun asked, noticing Hu Tudao looking around his house and frowning from time to time.
"There is a problem," Hu Tudao nodded, his expression grave.
Ma Dajun immediately tensed up and hurriedly asked, "Master Hu, is there something wrong with my family?"
"Hu Tudao, what did you see?" I was also curious. Could there really be something wrong with Ma Dajun's family?
"The ancestral altar in this house is placed in the wrong position," Hu Tudao said calmly as he sat down on the sofa.
When I heard Hu Tudao's words, I looked at the ancestral tablet in the center of the hall, looking left and right, but I didn't find anything wrong.
The so-called ancestral shrine refers to the altar for burning incense and candles for ancestors. Originally, ancestral shrines were usually located in the main hall of the family. However, some people who built new houses would ask a master to perform rituals to separate their ancestors and make an altar for them to be enshrined at home. This saved them the trouble of having to return to the main hall to pay respects during festivals. In particular, some people who moved to a distant place would bring their ancestral shrine with them.
"Then where should it be placed? When I moved in, I had someone make this ancestral altar for me, and I just casually put it in the middle of the hall. I didn't expect there to be so many rules. No wonder I've had a lot of bad luck these past few years, and my young daughter even left me." Ma Dajun nodded in sudden realization, his expression sad, and he became even more respectful to Hu Tudao.
Hu Tudao took a sip of tea, said nothing, and instead took out his phone to play a game.
Ma Dajun's face stiffened, then he remembered something, slapped his forehead, and rushed towards a room.
I sat down next to Hu Tudao and said, "Since you noticed that there's a problem with the placement of this ancestral altar, why don't you tell him how to place it?"
“Changming, those of us in this line of work pay the most attention to cause and effect. I have no relation to him, nor any connection with him. Why should I reveal heavenly secrets to help him and needlessly invite such karmic retribution that would be bad for me?” Hu Tudao patted my shoulder and said earnestly.
I nodded with a look of realization, but inwardly I thought to myself, "What nonsense about cause and effect! He's just after other people's red envelopes. He talks so high and mighty, just like his father. They're both money-grubbing bastards."
A short while later.
Ma Dajun rushed out of the inner room, took out a red envelope from his pocket and handed it to Hu Tudao with a fawning look on his face. He said with a smile, "Master Hu, this is a small token of my appreciation for you. I hope you will be kind enough to give me your guidance."
“Since Uncle Ma has gone this far, then I’ll step in and fix this terrible feng shui layout for you,” Hu Tu said, taking the red envelope from Ma Dajun and putting it in his pocket with a righteous air.
I was furious. This Hu Tudao, he slept with a prostitute and then tried to build a memorial arch for himself. He was a real scoundrel. But I didn't have the ability to do that myself, so I could only stand aside and watch helplessly.
Hu Tudao stood up, took out a compass from his satchel, and walked around the hall, glancing at the compass in his hand from time to time. When he reached the west side of the hall, he stopped, pointed to the shoe cabinet in the corner, and said, "This place is yin in nature and is extremely suitable for ancestral shrines. Move this shoe cabinet and place the ancestral shrine here, and your family will have good weather and abundant wealth in the future."
Hu Dajun thanked Hu Tudao repeatedly and hurriedly told his wife to move the shoe cabinet away and the ancestral altar over.
"No rush," Hu Tu said, extending his right hand and touching his index, middle, and ring fingers with his thumb in turn. He then nodded, pretending to be deep in thought, and said, "I've calculated that it's not advisable to move today. Noon tomorrow would be more suitable."
"Good, good, good, Master Hu is truly a master." Hu Dajun hurriedly told his wife to stop and showered Hu Tu with compliments.
I curled my lip in disdain for Hu Tudao's approach. I just didn't believe that simply setting up an ancestral altar would lead to promotions and wealth, and that one could eat without any effort.
Ma Dajun is currently in a frenzy, and since both parties are willing to participate, I'm too lazy to bother with him, lest I be blamed for being nosy and disrupting the feng shui of his house.
"It's a piece of cake. If I didn't have some skills, how could I dare to learn how to castrate a sow?" Hu Tudao waved his hand, accepting all of Ma Dajun's compliments without any modesty.
"Master Hu, then I'm entrusting my daughter's matter to you." Ma Dajun, accompanied by his wife Pang Meilian and a reluctant Ma Jiabao, bowed deeply to Hu Tudao at a ninety-degree angle, their expressions full of respect.
"I take people's money and do their bidding; this is what I should do. This is what I make a living from." Hu Tudao gladly accepted the salute from the three members of the Ma family.
"Master Hu, have you had lunch yet? It's still early before dark. My wife has already cooked a few dishes in the kitchen. Would you like a drink?" Ma Dajun asked, bowing respectfully.
I stood aside, eyes downcast and minding my own business. Damn it, this Ma Dajun is now treating Hu Tudao like a god, ignoring me completely, and doesn't even ask if I've eaten.
"Sigh!" I sighed inwardly. Ma Dajun lost his daughter in middle age and was tormented by her ghost. He was already terrified. Now that he saw Hu Tudao, it was as if he had grasped the last straw. It would be strange if he didn't try to please him.
Actually, I'm not much better off myself. I've been bothered by Ma Jiajie for two consecutive nights, and I want to get rid of her as soon as possible, otherwise I probably won't be able to save my life.
"No need for alcohol. I haven't had lunch yet, so you can ask her to bring it up," Hu Tudao said casually.
"Alright, Master Hu, please wait a moment." After saying that, Ma Dajun instructed Pang Meilian, "Old woman, go and bring the food up."
After the food was served, Hu Tudao didn't stand on ceremony and started eating as soon as he picked up his chopsticks.
It was only then that Ma Dajun noticed me standing to the side playing on my phone, and said, "Brother Zuo, you should eat with us too."
"I've already had lunch, thank you." I waved my hand. Although the food looked delicious—a plate of roast duck, a bowl of braised pork, fish, and vegetables—I had already eaten lunch, and more importantly, I really didn't have much of an appetite.
At that moment, all I could think about was getting Ma Jiajie off as soon as possible so I could work in peace. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare walk alone at night.
Actually, I was really unlucky. Why did Ma Jiajie have to get into my car when there were so many other people she was looking for?
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