My Youth Began With Him

“Have a seat…” The old man waved his hand and signaled Huo Mian to sit down.

“What do you want to know?”

“Um… I want to know about children.” Huo Mian felt embarrassed. It was a personal matter after all.

“Tell me the date and time of your birth. I’ll take a look.”

Huo Mian stated her birth year, month, and time.

The old man shut his eyes and began to calculate.

She, on the other hand, thought he looked like a fraud…

He was just like the fortune tellers on the streets who made a living by defrauding people, telling them that they were about to run into trouble and then promising them ways to break the bad luck.

However, much to Huo Mian’s surprise, the old man sighed right off the bat…

“Elder, what’s wrong?”

“Your life…” The old man hesitated.

Hearing his hesitation, Huo Mian began to tense up.

“Elder, just tell me. I can handle it.”

“My child… you’ve been through a lot of hardships in the past,” the old man said with his eyes shut. Although he couldn’t see Huo Mian’s face, it was as if he knew what she looked like…

His words actually touched Huo Mian… what a surprise.

“I’ve told fortunes for more than 30 years but I have never seen a life like yours.”

“So… is it good or bad?” Huo Mian continued to ask.

“How do I put this? It’s not exactly good… but it’s not exactly bad either. There are the good and the bad about your life… let me tell you.”

“Okay.”

It was the first time that Huo Mian felt intrigued by something as strange as fortune telling…

“Your life is very interesting. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, but something happened while you were a baby and it completely changed your fortune. It’s not a bad thing, however, as it saved you many years of wandering…”

“Elder, I don’t really understand…”

Huo Mian became more agitated by the elder’s words that seemed to be onto something…

No one knew about her past. Other than her, Qin Chu, and maybe Huo Siqian, no one else could possibly know, but this old man seemed to know something.

The event that he had referred to, the one that completely changed her fortune… could he be talking about her being switched at birth in the hospital?

“My child… I cannot tell you everything, as some things are heavenly secrets. You must try to figure things out for yourself. What I can tell you is this… although you’ve gone through many hardships throughout your life, your life was relatively peaceful. If it wasn’t for that event during your earlier years, your life would’ve been one that was filled with displacement and escapes, one that would require you to constantly be on the run from something or someone.”

“Then will I ever meet my family?” Huo Mian asked, feeling a sense of urgency.

“Yes, but now is not the time. They will come and find you.”

Huo Mian couldn’t help but feel delirious upon hearing this…

The old man laid out both his hands. “Let me first tell you about your present life.”

“Okay.” Huo Mian nodded. She had already gained quite a bit of respect for the elderly man.

The old man spoke with confidence, “This life will be long and prosperous; every decision is made by the heart; storms prevail in the earlier years, and wellness will prevail in the later years.”

Huo Mian seemed to have understood most of what he said…

Basically, he was saying that her life would be rough in the beginning but would turn out for the better later on.

The old man continued to explain, “You are good looking and possess extraordinary charm. You are talented. You don’t take advantage of the kind nor do you cower from the evil. You are bold but careful and are very charismatic. You weren’t born into a good family and was always their pillar of strength. However, due to the helpful people you meet along the way, every difficult situation will turn into a positive one, so you don’t have anything to be worried about.”

“That doesn’t sound bad. Am I currently entering the better phase?” Huo Mian smiled, knowing full well who the helpful people the old man was referring to was. Who else could it be but Qin Chu?

To her surprise, however, the old man shook his head…

“Not yet, you will experience another hardship within the year.”

Huo Mian’s expression changed upon hearing this…

“Then… can the hardship be avoided?” Huo Mian probed, wanting to see if the elder said all those things for the sake of getting money.

The old man shook his head. “It cannot be avoided. It’s in your fate. The fortune tellers who claim that they can help you avoid bad fortune are mostly frauds… The fate of human beings is decided by the heavens and no one can change it. Otherwise, you would be going against God. You don’t need to worry too much about this trouble of yours, however, as my calculations show that you will overcome it. Just remember, whatever you’re up against, be brave, and there will be hope as long as you are alive.”

Huo Mian felt like the elder’s words had merit, so she nodded along…

“Then Elder, will I ever have a baby?” Huo Mian put her hands on her stomach, feeling dejected. The elder was quite accurate in his readings; he wasn’t one of those fortune tellers who spewed out random information for the sake of cheating money.