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Even if they couldn't become friends, she didn't want a young girl to face such misfortune.

When Xia Huan left, the onlookers let out a series of sighs.

"I truly believe that when you empathize with someone, you inherit their fate."

"Heaven says there are consequences for every action. Sometimes, interfering in others' karma doesn't end well."

"I helped Cousin Zhu repay his debts before, and now I'm the one drowning in debt."

"I have a relative who did the same, shielding a friend from her ex's harassment. In the end, she was the one stabbed in place of her friend."

Chu Yuening collected the payment for her divination, took a sip of tea, and glanced at the wall clock. It was already ten o'clock in the morning.

Focusing back on the neighbors, she continued, "Everything in this world has a spirit. Each person and event has its own energy field. If we forcefully disrupt someone else's energy, we inherit their karma."

"Miss Xia is actually a perfect example. Attempting to save someone unworthy is a futile endeavor. We must all learn to see people for who they truly are."

The entrance had become congested, blocking most of the light.

Chu Yuening rose to switch on the lights inside the shop, and with a click, the hall brightened significantly.

She smiled slightly. "Alright, onto the next reading."

—

The second customer was a man in his thirties, tall and fair-skinned, with a somewhat handsome appearance.

He wore a black waterproof jumpsuit for wading, paired with a short-sleeved white shirt underneath, and had been patiently waiting in the partitioned area.

Chu Yi and Wei Yanlin were trapped within the partition.

One held their nose with two fingers, leaning their head against the window of the sugar water stall outside.

The other pulled off a red plastic bag from their head, tying it into a bow around their nose.

Upon hearing that it was his turn, the man's eyes lit up, and he promptly stepped out.

An intense mixture of body odor and fishy smell immediately filled the air.

At the entrance, someone couldn't withstand the smell and clutched their nose, retching. "Mai Yufeng, I really shouldn't have let you leave the house with perfume on. The combination of body odor and fishy smell is unbearable!"

Mai Yufeng also felt embarrassed. He bowed apologetically to the person who had just arrived. "I'm sorry, sorry. I heard that the Master opened a new shop today and rushed over without proper preparation."

Finished speaking, Mai Yufeng looked at Chu Yuening with a face full of remorse, too awkward to sit down. "Master, I truly am..."

"It's alright," Chu Yuening said, not showing any disgust towards his scent. This smell was still far less pungent than the stench of decaying corpses she had smelled on the deck that night.

She could sense his nervousness. With a gentle smile, she said, "Take a seat."

Mai Yufeng was taken aback.

From a young age, this was the first time someone hadn't shown any disdain for his smell. As he sat down, his tense shoulders relaxed.

"Thank you, Master."

Following the usual procedure, Chu Yuening asked for his birthdate. "What do you want me to calculate?"

Mai Yufeng hesitated, his fair face tinged with unease and distress. He glanced behind him before moving his chair closer.

Feeling the unpleasant odor, Chu Yuening leaned back silently. "It's alright, you can speak at a normal distance."

"Oh, oh, oh." Mai Yufeng promptly moved his chair back, then hesitantly said, "Master, I know Fish Bro. He said he got a charm from you that could enhance his romantic luck. I… I also want to ask for one."

A few days ago, at the fish stall, Mai Yufeng had coincidentally encountered Fish Bro with a pink Pi Xiu pendant.

Out of curiosity, he had asked about it.

Fish Bro had said it could attract romantic luck, and Mai Yufeng had taken note of it.

Before Chu Yuening could even check their birthdates, she blinked in surprise and lifted her head. "You want romantic luck too?"

"No," Mai Yufeng's face flushed crimson as he struggled to speak. After a moment, he said embarrassedly, "I… I want to avoid romantic luck. Is there something like a charm that, when worn, would make no one be interested in me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, bursts of laughter erupted from the entrance.

Mai Yufeng had taken over his elderly father's position selling fish on Jiu Long Street Market since he was seventeen, so many of the neighbors present were well aware of his situation.

Upon hearing that Mai Yufeng wished to avoid romantic entanglements, they all teased him playfully.

"Mai Yufeng, you say that the very scent on you is enough to repel romantic interests, yet you're seeking an amulet to further avoid them?"

"Indeed, Mai Yufeng, are you intentionally trying to amuse us?"

"We've been classmates since childhood, and I've never seen you successfully pursue any girl. Why would you need to avoid romantic entanglements now?"

Mai Yufeng's face flushed red. He was on friendly terms with a few people and didn't mind their teasing, so he replied, "No, I want to avoid gay suitors when I ward off my love interests."

With Hong Kong following the pace of international openness, minds there had also liberalized early on. If a man was attracted to another man, he would be called a gay man.

In Hong Kong, being gay was not an uncommon phenomenon.

A classmate was curious, "Gay? Hey, does that mean someone's taken a fancy to you?"

"Who knows what's going on," Mai Yufeng said, feeling disgruntled, his fair face bearing a hint of frustration. "Lately, a guy has been coming to my stall and just sitting there staring at me for hours. It's really getting to me."

If not for his good temper.

Feeling stared at like this, he really wanted to challenge the person to a fight.

Seeing how troubled Mai Yufeng truly was, everyone refrained from joking around.

"Could it be that you're mistaken? After all, your smell is so strong; few people can withstand it."

"Indeed, even as a man, I couldn't bear it. Standing next to you for just ten minutes would make me not want to eat for the whole day."

"Many gay men nowadays have cleanliness obsessions. They tend to look for very clean guys."

"When you stink up, you don't have any advantages."

Seeing that no one believed him, Mai Yufeng grew anxious. "I'm telling the truth. That middle-aged man was really strange."