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While everyone was immersed in the emotional reunion of the mother and son, the Taoist priest spoke up.
“Ha! Where did you find this fraud? You’re all in cahoots, aren’t you?”
“This old woman’s son has been gone for years. How could he just come back? Miss, you’re so deliberately trying to ruin my reputation. Do you have a grudge against me?”
The Taoist priest couldn’t believe it. He couldn’t believe that such a young girl could tell fortunes, and he wouldn’t let her destroy the reputation he had painstakingly built.
He had been a menial worker at the Jiuli Temple for so many years, only secretly learning a few rudimentary skills. He knew that a true fortune-teller wouldn’t be like Qingli.
It took at least a decade or two to learn real skills. The disciples at the temple had been studying for over ten years and still hadn’t graduated.
If she had truly calculated this, her skills wouldn’t be low.
But at such a young age, it was impossible to learn such impressive skills. Therefore, he concluded that Qingli was a fraud.
He just couldn’t figure out how Qingli could have conspired with so many people to deceive him.
But upon further thought, it made sense. Perhaps this woman saw that he was making money and wanted to take his business. She might have found some people to act with her, ruin his reputation, and promote her own fame.
That way, she could replace him and earn this money.
The Taoist priest was familiar with this tactic, as he himself had paid people to act, allowing him to become famous.
Seeing his angry expression, Qingli found it amusing. “Taoist Master, you must be dreaming! How could I be so idle as to conspire with so many people to deceive you? Do you have some kind of persecution complex?”
The Taoist priest scoffed, “Hmph! Who knows what’s on your mind. You’re the real fraud. Stop making excuses. You’ve lost, and now your life is mine.”
The Taoist priest’s affection for Qingli had vanished, leaving only anger. He thought to himself that he would make her pay later.
Before Qingli could speak, several people from the crowd intervened.
“Master Zhu, you’re mistaken. This is truly Lady Qiao’s son. We’re all from the same village, and I know him.”
“Yes, Master Zhu. Lady Qiao’s son is named Qiao Ming. We’re all from the same village. We wouldn’t be mistaken. This is indeed Qiao Ming.”
Someone else explained, “Brother Qiao came back looking for Lady Qiao, but couldn’t find her. So we brought him to the city. Lady Liu next door said that Lady Qiao came to the city and wanted to consult Master Zhu to see if Brother Qiao could return. It turned out Lady Qiao left not long ago, and Brother Qiao came back, bringing his wife and son with him.”
“Lady Qiao, you’re so lucky! Brother Qiao is now very wealthy, and he has a wife and child. They came back in a horse-drawn carriage, with servants! You’ll be able to enjoy your life now, Lady Qiao.”
The villagers from the same village couldn’t help but express their envy.
Hearing this, the people couldn’t help but get excited.
“Goodness, it’s exactly as this girl said! She just said that the old lady would not only see her son but also her grandson, and she would live a wealthy life. This is completely accurate, amazing!”
“Yes, yes! It’s completely the opposite of what Master Zhu said. The only thing Master Zhu got right was that the old lady’s son didn’t die. Everything else was wrong.”
Everyone was thrilled.
Those who had trusted Master Zhu also began to question him, as he had always been accurate in the past.
The crowd’s discussion made the Taoist priest’s face turn cold, and he couldn’t wait to shout angrily.
“Nonsense! If she can calculate so accurately, I’ll eat dirt! You’re all just putting on a show, conspiring to deceive people. Don’t believe them.”
The Taoist priest absolutely refused to believe it. He still thought he was being tricked.
After Qiao Ming finished crying, he calmed down and, after understanding the situation, thanked Qingli solemnly.
“Miss, thank you! Thank you! This was the five taels you gave my mother. I’ll give you fifty taels. Please don’t refuse.”
Qiao Ming took out the silver and handed it to Qingli.
Qingli smiled and didn’t refuse. After accepting the silver, she said, “Sir, you’ve endured a turbulent first half of your life, but you’ll have a stable and prosperous second half, with many children and grandchildren. You’re a blessed man.”
Qiao Ming heard these words and smiled happily. “Thank you, thank you for your kind words, Miss.”
Qingli continued, “I won’t accept this fifty taels for nothing. I’ll give you another fortune-telling. You came back just to take your mother away. I advise you not to travel by water. Take the land route. Take my advice, and it will ensure your mother lives a few more years. If you insist on traveling by water, your mother will perish at sea.”
Qingli’s previous words had been pleasant, but these words were not good.
Qiao Ming was about to speak angrily, but his mother stopped him.
“Son! This girl really can tell fortunes. She’s the real master. Let’s listen to her.”
The old woman now truly believed in Qingli. Qingli’s predictions had been so accurate.
Qiao Ming could only agree helplessly. “Alright, Mother, I’ll listen to you.”
The Taoist priest couldn’t stand Qingli any longer. She was actually telling fortunes for other people.
“This little brat, you actually believe she can tell fortunes! You’re truly foolish.”
Qiao Ming was eager to leave with his mother and didn’t want to stay any longer. After thanking her, he left with his mother.
As they walked, he said, “Mother, I got married while I was away. Now I have a child, just three months old. If my wife hadn’t been pregnant, I would have returned long ago. The pregnancy, childbirth, and then the baby being too young to travel long distances, all delayed me. After the child was born, he was too young to travel far, so I waited until he was three months old to come back. Mother, I’m unfilial for making you wait so long.”
The old woman’s joyful voice came through, sounding full of energy. “This is great news. You have a wife and child, and now you can see each other again. Mother has no regrets even if she dies.”
“Let’s hurry. I want to see my grandson.”
The mother and son’s voices gradually faded away, but everyone heard their conversation.
The main characters had left, and everyone’s eyes turned to the Taoist priest and Qingli.
The Taoist priest frowned and said coldly, “Your partner is gone. You’re still here. Are you ready to leave with me? You’re wise.”
He said this, packed up his things, and prepared to take Qingli away.
Some people started to stand up for Qingli, feeling that she was right and the Taoist priest was wrong. Therefore, it should be the Taoist priest who apologized. Why should Qingli leave with him?
The crowd began to denounce the Taoist priest.
Qingli looked at the stubborn Taoist priest and said calmly, “Fraudulent Taoist, you’re an orphan, aren’t you? You wandered from place to place as a child. At the age of ten, you were taken in by someone and lived a stable life for ten years. Then you started wandering again, but these ten years of wandering were spent swindling, not begging like you did as a child. Am I right?”
The Taoist priest stopped packing his things and looked at Qingli incredulously.
“You! Who are you?”
The Taoist priest suddenly felt a little uneasy and couldn’t understand how she knew.
Qingli continued, “I can also tell you that you broke your leg when you were sixteen, broke your hand when you were twenty-three, and at the age of thirty, this year, you were severely injured and almost didn’t survive. Am I right?”
This time, the Taoist priest was truly frightened. He was filled with panic and could no longer deceive himself into thinking that Qingli couldn’t tell fortunes.
“You! You really can tell fortunes?”
He couldn’t help but ask, his expression tense.
After swindling for so many years, he had never encountered a true fortune-teller.
Those from the Jiuli Temple, with their self-importance, wouldn’t set up stalls, as they would consider it a disgraceful act. So he felt comfortable setting up fortune-telling stalls everywhere. Because he often changed locations, he had never encountered anyone from the Jiuli Temple.
But now he realized that, besides those from the Jiuli Temple, there were others who could tell fortunes, and they were so accurate.
He was truly scared.