1: Chapter 1: Brain Tumor - Only 90 Days Left, I Rely on Fortune Telling to Extend My Life

“Move along, buddy. You can't set up a stall here,” said a uniformed security guard, tapping his rubber baton against the concrete with a dull thud.

Jiang Feng sat on a small folding stool and lifted his eyelids slightly at the sound.

The afternoon sun was harsh, making his bloodless face look even paler.

The tumor in his brain was acting up again, and a sharp pang of pain shot through him, casting a ring of dark shadows around the edges of his vision.

He ignored the guard and calmly pulled a piece of blue cloth from a worn-out canvas bag, slowly spreading it on the ground in front of him.

On the cloth were four crookedly written brush characters: Specializing in Marriage Fortune-Telling.

Beside them was a line of smaller characters: Three Divinations to Settle Fate; No Waiting Past the Hour.

Seeing his stubborn attitude, the guard’s temper flared. He took a step forward and bent down to flip over the stall.

“Hey! Do you not understand human speech or what? I’m telling you one more time—pack it up, now!”

Jiang Feng spoke, his voice hoarse. “From two to three—one hour.”

“Not even a minute!” The guard pointed his rubber baton at a nearby sign. “Do you know where this is? Engaging in feudal superstition here... do you have any idea how bad this looks?”

Jiang Feng didn't say another word, nor did he move. He just sat there, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.

A week ago, he had been diagnosed with Stage IV glioblastoma. The doctor had told him calmly, in a professional tone, that he had at most three months to live.

On the day he received the diagnosis, a voice had echoed in his mind.

[Fortune-Telling System Bound]

[New Mission Released]

[Location]: Entrance of the Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau Registration Office

[Time]: Daily 14:00–15:00

[Method]: Traditional Physiognomy

[Field]: Marriage

[Goal]: Receive three customers and provide accurate divinations

The rewards for completing the mission were tangible money and health.

Jiang Feng didn't want to die.

So, he had come.

The guard was about to get physical when someone tapped his shoulder from behind.

He turned around to see the security captain.

The captain pulled him aside and whispered, “Forget it, let him stay. Look at him, his face is so pale, maybe...”

The captain didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.

The guard looked back at Jiang Feng's thin figure, sighed, and didn't try to drive him away again.

Time ticked by. People came and went from the Civil Affairs Bureau, looking joyful and festive.

Jiang Feng’s small stall was completely out of place in its surroundings.

Most passersby cast curious or disdainful glances, while some pointed and whispered.

“Look, there’s a fortune teller over there.”

“People still believe in this stuff nowadays? He looks like a total scammer.”

“Telling marriage fortunes at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau? Isn't that just asking for trouble? What a character.”

Jiang Feng turned a deaf ear to these comments. He just sat there, waiting.

Waiting for his first customer.

A girl in her early twenties, pushed by her best friend, walked up to his stall with a half-joking expression.

“Hey, fortune teller,” the girl said with a mischievous smile, pointing at a handsome young man in the queue nearby. “Read my fortune. Can he and I... get married?”

Jiang Feng slowly raised his head.

The moment he looked at the girl's face, the world changed in his eyes, which were clouded by pain.

In his mind, the infusion of system knowledge was complete.

In the eyes of others, the girl was in high spirits, overflowing with the joy of her upcoming marriage.

But in Jiang Feng’s vision, he clearly saw that the area at the corner of the girl’s eyes—the husband and wife palace, known as the Jian Men in physiognomic methods—was currently shrouded in a wisp of gray-black air, ruining her entire complexion.

[The Jian Men is dim, indicating an unfortunate marriage; easy to encounter a partner who is not virtuous.]

Jiang Feng spoke, his voice flat. “Miss, I see that your husband and wife palace is dim. I’m afraid this marriage is not as perfect as it appears on the surface.”

The smile on the girl's face froze, and the friend beside her complained, “Hey, watch your mouth! It’s a happy day, can’t you say something nice?”

“Nice words are lies. Do you want to hear them?” Jiang Feng countered.

The friend was suddenly at a loss for words.

The girl’s curiosity was piqued. She crouched down and asked seriously, “Then tell me, in what way is it not perfect?”

Jiang Feng’s gaze moved down her face and settled on her nose.

In Physiognomy, the nose represents a woman’s Husband Star.

“The bridge of your nose is high and the tip is fleshy; this is originally a good face for bringing prosperity to a husband and children. But right now, the tip of your nose is dark in color.”

“This is the ‘wealth palace covered in dust,’ meaning the person you have entrusted yourself to has a failing fortune. He is strong on the outside but hollow within, and is heavily in debt.”

At these words, the girl’s expression changed.

Her boyfriend had indeed mentioned a few times recently that the company was having cash flow difficulties, but every time he said it wasn't a big deal and had already been resolved.

“Impossible!”

Not far away, the boyfriend, who was waiting in line, overheard the conversation. He walked over quickly and shielded the girl behind him, his face full of anger.

“What is wrong with you? We’re being kind enough to give you business, and you’re here talking nonsense and cursing us?”

Jiang Feng looked up at the man.

The problems on this man’s face were even more severe.

“Sir, I see that your the area between the eyebrows in physiognomy, also known as the space between your eyebrows, is filled with black air that is pressing downward. This is a sign of ‘Legal Troubles Looming.’ At best, it's a lawsuit; at worst, it's imprisonment.”

Jiang Feng extended a finger and tapped the outside of his own temple, the location of the Migration Palace.

“Looking at your Migration Palace, which represents travel and trade. You have a vertical line here, deeply set, which is known in Physiognomy as the ‘Severed Post-Horse.’“

“It indicates that you recently had a crucial long-distance business deal, but the final result will likely be a futile effort, and you might even get into trouble because of it.”

Hearing this, fine beads of cold sweat broke out on the man’s forehead.

He had indeed flown out of town recently to negotiate a big deal that he thought would save his company.

Seeing his blustering but inwardly fearful appearance, Jiang Feng slowly delivered the final blow.

“The face reflects the heart, and the aura arises from events. All the signs of failure on your face stem from one thing—something you thought was foolproof, but has already left its mark on your face.”

Jiang Feng’s tone was calm, but every word pierced the heart.

“I can only tell you that the word ‘fraud’ is already written on your face. As for who you cheated and how much, you know best. With this kind of face, once it’s triggered, you’re destined to serve time.”

The man’s head buzzed.

He had lied to his fiancée, forged company bank statements and asset certificates, and tricked her into marriage just so she would share the massive debts he owed after they wed.

He was the only person in the world who knew this!

How did this sickly-looking fortune teller figure it out?

The girl was also completely stunned. Looking at her fiancé’s pale face, she asked in a trembling voice, “Is... is what he said true?”

“Don’t listen to his nonsense!” the man roared, blustering, but his trembling voice had already betrayed him.

“Whether it’s nonsense or not, you know the truth yourself.” Jiang Feng withdrew his gaze and lowered his eyelids again. “Miss, the divination is over. Whether to go through with this marriage or not is for you to decide.”

The girl stared blankly at her fiancé. Seeing his evasive manner and the constant cold sweat, the castle she had built with love was collapsing inch by inch.

She suddenly remembered something and lunged for the man’s briefcase. Ignoring his attempts to stop her, she unzipped it and began frantically searching inside.

She pulled out a personal debt certificate that she had never seen before.

The numbers on it made her vision go dark.

[Ding! Valid divinations: 1/3]