Heavenly Book The Great Void

Chapter 14

Mark snapped his fingers, glanced at Vice President Shang, who immediately said, "Yes, yes, I knew it all along—"

"Why didn't you report to headquarters sooner?" Mark retorted.

Vice President Shang's face flushed red and then turned pale, but he dared not argue with the silver-haired youth.

Mark didn't elaborate further on the Vice President of Commerce.

He turned around the vice president's desk with his hands behind his back and paced back and forth on the carpet.

He stopped and said, "Now I know who my competitors are, but I don't know who my customers are. Isn't that funny?"

Yuuki exclaimed in disbelief, "How is this possible? How can you collect money if you don't know the customer?"

“Of course, through a third party, and an absolutely reliable third party,” Mark said with a shrug.

Yuuki choked.

Qiqi asked, "That mysterious client wants to choose between our Prophet Company and Takashima Corporation. What are the selection criteria?"

“I don’t know yet,” Mark said bluntly.

"I was dispatched by headquarters to Shanghai to be ready to face the test of that mysterious client at any time."

"That mysterious customer, is he from Shanghai?" Vice President Shang asked in surprise.

"It may or it may not. There are investors all over the world investing in Shanghai now, so why does it have to be Shanghai?"

Mark interrupted him again, and Vice President Shang shut up in frustration.

Xi Shu asked cautiously, "Mr. Mark, which part of Shanghai's feng shui does the mysterious client want to investigate?"

“The area around Hehua Road in Minhang District,” Mark replied.

The other three all exclaimed "Ah!" and looked at each other in bewilderment.

What a coincidence!

All three of them thought of Tianyuan Apartment at the same time.

“I heard…” Mark blinked, “that a 13-story building just collapsed there, and amazingly, not a single pane of glass broke. I’d love to see it for myself. Anyone free to come with me?”

The other three could only say that they were all available.

There are many tents around the "I Collapse Building" in Fenghe Water Garden.

These tents are definitely not for outdoor survival enthusiasts.

Rather, it is the owners of Fenghe Shuiyuan.

The tents were covered with demands, and outside the tents, banners were strung up, with messages such as "Strongly demand that the developer be brought to justice" and "No demolition allowed without compensation."

While in the car, Vice President Shang made four or five phone calls and finally managed to get permission through connections to allow his group to enter the site under the name of a certain architectural research institution. However, recording and taking photos were prohibited.

The building was immediately placed under martial law by the armed police. Apart from homeowners and developers, everyone entering and leaving was subject to strict checks.

However, the group of four became a group of five.

The four of them left Vice President Shang's office and passed by the entrance of the Qinglong Department when Xiu came out from inside.

He and Mark came face to face, their eyes inadvertently colliding as they passed each other.

Qiqi felt that in that instant, the two of them had a communication—in that instant, they told each other a lot of information and reached an agreement on some aspects!

Xiu then followed Mark silently into the elevator and into the parking garage.

Vice President Shang had long heard that the new intern in the Azure Dragon Department was an oddball.

However, based on Mark's move towards Qiqi just now, he could roughly deduce that Mark and Xiu had "communicated" before Xiu followed.

The happiest one was Yuuki, who loved the feeling of Xiu always being by her side.

The "I collapsed building" stories you see in newspapers or on television are nowhere near as spectacular as what you see in person.

The scene was filled with the visual impact of films like "The Day After Tomorrow" or "The End of the World".

A thirteen-story building that should have stood upright, housing thousands of people, now lay stiffly in front of everyone.

This was also the first time Qiqi had seen "I collapsed" so closely.

If she had known that Vice President Shang had connections to get into the venue, she would have come much earlier.

For a feng shui master, nothing is more valuable than being there in person.

Yuuki immediately pulled out a solid gold, diamond-encrusted, openwork cosmetic box from her classic purple Louis Vuitton bag.

The box was opened, revealing a small mirror embedded in the upper lid and an exquisite Xuan Kong Feng Shui compass inside the lower lid.

Qiqi knew that her compass was something special, and could be said to be one of a kind in the world.

This was made specifically for Xi Shu when she made a special trip to Hong Kong to ask Mr. Deng, the owner of the "Tong Sheng Tang" shop in Hong Kong, to tailor it to her.

Hong Kong's "Tong Sheng Tang" and Taiwan's "Ri Xing Tang" are two prominent traditional feng shui product brands.

Feng shui masters and enthusiasts, both domestically and internationally, often choose from these two brands.

The position of the compass where Xi Shu stood made Qi Qi secretly admire him.

Because the spot she was standing at was the location of the main entrance before "I Collapsed Building" collapsed. If Qiqi were to choose a point to place on a compass, she would definitely choose that spot.

Xi Shu didn't shy away from watching Qi Qi from the side; instead, she beckoned Qi Qi over.

Yuuki stared at the position of the red line on the compass inside the makeup box, gesturing for Qiqi to look.

Qiqi looked down and saw that the red line was falling between the Ren and Zi mountains of the Kan Palace.

"It's actually 'Little Void'! No wonder it collapsed!" Yuuki exclaimed.

Qi Qi shook her head: "'Small void' doesn't necessarily mean the building will collapse. Tianyuan Apartment is a 'big void,' and it hasn't collapsed yet."

Xi Shu glanced at Qi Qi and said, "At least now we know that the collapse of the Fenghe Shuiyuan building has a basis in feng shui theory. This is very useful when writing work reports, isn't it?"

Qi Qi smiled and said, "I guess so. But I think the building collapsed because of the construction work done in the direction of Tai Sui."

After Mark and Vice President Shang exchanged a few words in English, they walked over to Xi Shu and Qi Qi. They happened to hear Qi Qi say this and became very interested, asking, "What's this 'Tai Sui Fang'? Why can't we move earth there?"

Qi Qi said, "I have many records about 'Tai Sui formulas' in my memory bank. You'll know once you read them."

Mark laughed heartily: "My 'mind-reading' ability, like hypnosis, only works when people are unsuspecting at first meeting. Right now, Miss Yang has closed her heart to me."

Qi Qi laughed and said, "It's not that bad. A clear conscience makes the world vast, and there's nothing you can't tell others."

Mark nodded solemnly and said, "These two sentences are good; I will keep them in mind."

Qi Qi sighed, "What words are easy to remember but hard to keep in your heart? There's an old Chinese saying to describe someone's daring: 'Disturbing the head of Tai Sui.' Tai Sui, also known as 'flesh Ganoderma,' is a special ancient organism that is neither plant, animal, nor fungus—a fourth form of life. Legend has it that if you dig one up during construction, it means bad luck, and you must immediately bury it and stop construction. There are two other interpretations of Tai Sui. One is 'Jupiter.' Ancient Chinese people paid special attention to Jupiter, and every year when Jupiter was in its orbital position, you couldn't disturb the earth, otherwise it would be very unlucky."

Mark nodded and said, "Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system; the combined mass of the other eight planets is less than that of Jupiter. Its equatorial diameter is eleven times that of Earth, and its gravitational pull on Earth is the strongest among the nine planets. It is truly admirable that the ancient Chinese noticed Jupiter's power so early on."

Qiqi nodded and said, "There's another theory: 'Tai Sui' refers to the direction of the Earthly Branch of each year. For example, this year is the lunar year of Ji Chou, so the 'Chou' direction is the location of the 'Tai Sui' this year, and it's not advisable to break ground there. Last year was the year of Wu Zi, and the 'Tai Sui' was 'Zi'. Oh dear, Feng He Shui Yuan was started last year, and its orientation violated the Tai Sui 'Zi'..."

Yuuki immediately added, "This year, Jupiter is exactly at noon, which is equivalent to opposing the Grand Duke Jupiter!"

Mark's eyes lit up with excitement: "Ask the construction workers if they dug up a rare fungus while laying the foundation. If so, then we've got it all!"

Seeing that Qiqi and Xishu were looking at him strangely, Mark immediately realized that he had said the wrong thing and quickly tried to make amends, "No, no, that's not what I meant... Don't you think that such an unusual thing as a building collapsing must have a reasonable explanation?"

Qiqi immediately thought of Tianxin, the gossip queen, who might know some gossip about the construction of Fenghe Shuiyuan. With that in mind, she immediately dialed Tianxin's cell phone.

Tianxin's voice sounded muffled, and Qiqi guessed that she must be eating a cream cake.

“Miss, could you please call my landline next time? I don’t charge for answering cell phones, but there’s still radiation, isn’t there? I want to live a few more years…”

Qiqi decisively cut off her rambling: "Immediately help me search for any special gossip during the construction of Fenghe Water Garden, such as digging up a Tai Sui (a rare auspicious creature) when laying the foundation?"

Qiqi imagined Tianxin struggling to swallow a large piece of cake, then reluctantly licking the cream off her index finger and thumb. After wiping her mouth with a tissue, she said, "I have all the gossip about Fenghe Shuiyuan. But I don't recall ever digging up Tai Sui (a type of rare fungus), otherwise I wouldn't have no recollection of it. I've heard that Tai Sui is very nourishing; eating it can grant immortality and eternal youth!"

Qiqi was both amused and exasperated: "Others wouldn't dare to 'disturb the Grand Duke Jupiter,' but you're even daring to mess with the Grand Duke Jupiter for the sake of beauty! Quickly check again for me to see if I've missed anything?"

Tianxin scoffed and said, "With my talent for gossip, how could I possibly miss something so important... Alright, I'll check it again for you."

About five minutes later, Tianxin said, "I've checked, and it's definitely not possible to dig up a Tai Sui. There was no trace of Tai Sui last year or this year. The last report about digging up a Tai Sui was from two years ago in Fengyang, Anhui, when a farmer dug it up while renovating his ancestral home. And then that farmer—"

Qi Qi immediately interrupted her: "I don't want to know about what happened to that farmer later—I'll hang up without him."

Tianxin said with a hint of resentment, "You only ever think of me when you need something, and then you run away after you've used me. You never come over to talk to me at other times. You're not even as good as your little intern Weiwei..."

When Tianxin said that, Qiqi really couldn't hang up the phone right away. She coaxed her, "Okay, Tianxin, I'm busy right now. How about I treat you to dessert at Egg House tomorrow?"

Tianxin immediately brightened up from cloudy to sunny: "So delicious! I love the desserts there the most, I never get tired of them, Qiqi understands me best... I just wanted to tell you, that farmer, he raised the Tai Sui he dug up, and later became rich because of it. However, after he got rich, he bought a new motorcycle, drove it drunk, and fell into a ravine and died... Do you think this has anything to do with 'disturbing the Tai Sui'?"

Qi Qi listened patiently and said, "There is some connection, I suppose... The Buddhist concept of cause and effect never considers the process, only the result. No matter how powerful that Tai Sui is, it can't just jump up and swallow that Anhui farmer whole, can it? Even if we want to take revenge on him, we still have to use methods that conform to common sense in the world."

“Hey… there was a news article about Fenghe Water Garden last year, published in the Oriental Morning Post, it was quite interesting, let me read it to you…”

Qiqi couldn't take it anymore and said in a drawn-out voice, "Sister Tianxin...please...if it's not about the news about the Tai Sui being dug up at Fenghe Water Garden, can you read it to me again when I get back? Please!"

"Don't worry! You'll know when you hear it!" Tianxin's voice was filled with excitement.

Qiqi didn't dare hang up the phone, so she had no choice but to continue listening reluctantly.

"According to this newspaper: Yesterday, this reporter learned from the Shanghai Zoo that the zoo received a call for help yesterday afternoon from a construction worker at a site in Minhang District. The worker claimed that he had accidentally unearthed a large, unidentified snake while digging a foundation. The zoo immediately dispatched snake experts to the scene, who found that the snake was pure yellow, about two and a half meters long and forty centimeters wide. Its tail had been severed. The experts were unable to identify the snake's species, but due to the zoo's lack of funds, they were unable to provide any assistance and abandoned their plan to take the snake in for scientific research..."

Qiqi asked urgently, "Are you sure the construction site mentioned in the morning paper is the Fenghe Shuiyuan construction site?"

Tianxin said, "Of course, because that reporter had a follow-up report the next day, about the dam collapse caused by heavy rain near Fenghe Water Garden. The article mentioned the construction workers who dug up the strange snake. The workers cooked and ate the snake the night before, and the dam collapsed the next day because of the heavy rain. The workers all said it was because they ate the snake..."

This time, Qiqi really hung up the phone.

She relayed the news that Tianxin had just mentioned to Mark, Vice President Shang, Xishu, and Xiu.

As she relayed the story, she felt a chill run down her spine.

"Because of killing an animal, one is punished. That's a very old-fashioned trope in Chinese mythology," Mark said dismissively after listening.

"This yellow snake is the river god of the Pudian River."

The person who spoke was actually Xiu!

From the moment he and Mark made eye contact until they arrived at Fenghe Water Garden, Xiu never uttered a single word.

As far as Qiqi could remember, this was the first time she had ever heard him speak. His lips were usually tightly pursed. She had never heard him speak, nor had she ever seen him smile.

After saying that, he pursed his lips and didn't say another word.

Seeing Mark's puzzled expression, Qiqi Daixiu explained, "That's what I thought too. Where there's a river, there are dragons, and snakes are a type of dragon. This snake is like the 'local deity' of the Pudian River. It's probably because the construction site of Fenghe Shuiyuan is too close to the river that they accidentally dug up this yellow snake. If they had released it then, there would have been no problem. Unfortunately, the snake was eaten by the construction workers, so of course it will bring misfortune to this construction site..."

Mark understood. He snapped his fingers and said happily, "Just as I expected! The reason this thirteen-story building collapsed was because it offended two different Tai Sui (Grand Duke Jupiter) and also offended the River God. It was a 'triple threat,' so it would be strange if it didn't suffer great misfortune!"

Qiqi admired Mark's language skills, but felt that his attitude towards the collapsed building had an element of schadenfreude, which was annoying. Perhaps it was because he was just a foreigner who was not involved, and at the same time, a child.