Zhang Run spotted Lin Ya, who was wearing sunglasses and setting up a stall at the bridge, from a distance. After getting out of the car, he saw Lin Ya facing towards him. Although he knew Lin Ya had some eyesight issues and might not recognize him clearly, he still waved.
“A fortune-telling stall? Cousin, why did you bring me here?” The boy was no longer sleepy and asked with curiosity.
In recent years, this practice had been banned, and even though no one said anything now, it was rare for someone to set up a stall so blatantly.
He had never seen one of these before but had heard about it.
“I’m here to get your fortune told. Let me tell you, this is the real deal! If Master hadn’t told me to avoid that car accident, we would be separated by life and death right now!”
As Zhang Run pulled him along, he continued, “Aunt and Uncle must have told Mom and Dad about this, so why didn’t they tell you?”
“… I don’t know.” The boy, who had just argued with his parents and hadn’t reconciled yet, averted his gaze, unwilling to admit he had just received a beating.
“I wandered around here a few days ago but didn’t see the Master. Today, I finally spotted him. Let him read your fortune, and we can buy some talismans for peace.” He was considering whether he had enough money in his pocket for more talismans to give to relatives and friends in the family.
“Master! I’m here!”
Lin Ya had noticed him from the moment his car parked nearby, especially since he had started waving from afar.
After sizing up the boy beside Zhang Run, Lin Ya smiled and took out ten of the pre-made talismans for him to choose from.
“Here. Choose for yourself, 100 each, no haggling,” he casually tossed out the price, then adding after seeing the boy’s shocked expression, “I only sell ten of these a day, so it’s first come, first served.”
“Master, I’ll take them all!” Zhang Run declared, ready to buy out the stock.
“100 each, cousin. Do you even have that much money?!” The boy was stunned by the price. Even if his family was wealthy, spending that much was excessive. If he spent 1,000 yuan on ten of these, his parents would kill him.
“Aren’t you afraid of Uncle beating you up? That’s not pocket change!”
“It’s money my dad gave me.” Zhang Run exclaimed, pulling out a wallet stuffed with bills from his pants pocket.
“Ah?”
The elderly man nearby watched him pull out a wad of cash, and after Lin Ya calmly accepted it, his jaw dropped. He then got up, somewhat dazed, and walked away with his cane.
As he walked, he muttered, “These days, fortune tellers are so well off?”
Zhang Run gleefully stuffed the talismans into his wallet, then pulled out another stack, eager to have Lin Ya read his fortune.
A glimmer of hope and curiosity showed in the boy’s eyes, with an undercurrent of excitement.
Lin Ya raised his hand to stop the money coming toward him and explained when he saw their confused faces, “I only read three types of fortune.”
“One is for those barely alive, two is for those who will die soon, and three is for the deceased who need help finding someone.”
“Your cousin doesn’t fall into any of those categories, so there’s no need for a reading.”
Both Zhang Run and the boy were taken aback.
“… So does that mean I have a good fate?” The boy asked, trying to comprehend, looking towards his cousin for clarification.
Zhang Run scratched his head, pondering for a while, “Maybe?”
Lin Ya smiled without saying more. Behind his sunglasses, he noticed some shady figures nearby paying undue attention to the three of them and kindly reminded them to put on the talismans now.
“Don’t display your wealth. When you took out the money earlier, you made it obvious. Someone is already eyeing you. It’s best to put on the talisman now. This yellow talisman is impervious to water and fire—no need to take it off even when washing.”
“Impervious to water and fire?!”
“Impervious to water and fire?!”
Zhang Run and the boy exchanged glances, both visibly eager to try it out, completely ignoring the previous warnings.
Lin Ya felt a bit helpless. They likely wouldn’t get into any real trouble, so he refrained from further advice. However, the yellow talismans had no holes for hanging, so they would need to think of a way to attach them at home, perhaps using a small scented pouch.
Seeing many people eyeing his stall, Lin Ya began gathering his things, preparing to move to a different location.
“I won’t be setting up here anymore. If you need to find me, just call.”
After saying this, he left, carrying a pile of items.
Zhang Run and the boy quickly ran back near the car, compelling those eyeing them to reluctantly abandon their pursuit and instead chase after Lin Ya.
In this era, the security was poor, there were no surveillance cameras, and many thieves roamed the city. Some even carried knives, making it impossible to track them down after a robbery. The narrow alleys and remote areas were the hangouts of these delinquents, with few daring enough to go there.
As the group followed Lin Ya through the bustling streets and complex alleyways, they quickly lost sight of him.
“Where is he?! Hurry up and find him! Don’t let him get away!”
“That kid has at least a few hundred yuan on him. With that money, we can eat for a while in another place.”
“Hey, are you looking for me?”
The group wandered like headless flies in the alley until they heard a voice. They looked up to see their target sitting comfortably on a second-floor balcony with his arms crossed, a smug look plastered on his face, which ignited their anger.
They couldn’t help but shout furiously, “Get him down here!”
The leader, scruffy in appearance, pulled a knife from the small of his back while others began picking up bricks and stones to hurl at Lin Ya, hoping to force him down for an unpleasant welcome.
Lin Ya chuckled lightly, extending his hand to easily catch the thrown rocks, then expertly tossed them back, hitting each one squarely, leaving them all dazed on the ground.
The leader was taken aback. Seeing everyone down, he panicked and tried to run, but was suddenly hit with a sharp pain at the nape of his neck. The world faded to black, the knife fell from his hand, and he collapsed.
“With debts from life, you can go inside and enjoy peanuts,” came a voice that jolted him awake, but before he could react, he lost consciousness entirely.