“Then what do I have to worry about?” Mr. Bai inquired.

“You have trouble sleeping at night?” asked Li Yun.

Mr. Bai’s face remained cordial, but internally, he was wondering if any of his maids and servants had leaked the information. He planned to perform a thorough check to make sure they remain loyal.

“Young man, where did you learn your abilities?” Mr. Bai asked.

“The internet,” Li Yun replied, pausing for dramatic effect. “There are a lot of streamers who like to share information with others.”

“You have to be careful, those types of people make money from people like you,” Mr. Bai advised. “But I have to admit, your readings are much more specific than most people using the Barnum statements, so you must have been watching them carefully or talking to them personally.”

Barnum statements were generalized statements that could be applied to the vast majority of people, but appear individualized like horoscopes and personality types.

“No wonder he’s more difficult to read than the poker players,” Li Yun thought. Mr. Bai likely had psychologists and consultants on his team. 

“You’re quite intelligent, why become a gardener?” Mr. Bai asked.

“My family is too poor to pay for a good education and I don’t like to study in school. I heard from the neighbors that Mr. Bai was a self made man from a poor family and became a judge with your own ability.”

Mr. Bai thought back to his younger days. If he hadn’t sabotaged some of the students in high school and college, he wouldn’t have been able to make it to the top. At that time, he felt some of the wealthier students had an unfair advantage compared to him. They had private tutors and lessons, but he had nothing to back him up. Even with his superior intelligence, he couldn’t compete directly with people with money and power. The only resort was to spike some of the students with depressants or get them disqualified. His plan worked, and from then on, he realized that he had to put fate into his own hands. He would stop anyone who would get in his way. As long as he was careful to prevent any evidence against him, everything would be fine.

“You seem to be actively investigating me, is there anything you want?” Mr. Bai confronted him.

Li Yun scrambled to bow and apologize, causing the bodyguard to react, but Mr. Bai stopped him before he could pull out a gun from his holster. 

“You have to forgive the intrusion,” Li Yun said as he was bowing. “But I heard you’re an active board member at the Yide University Law Department. As you are aware, I lack education to make it into college, but a recommendation from the board would almost guarantee an admission.”

“So you are looking to impress me for an admission,” Mr. Bai repeated to himself to see if the reasoning made sense.”But it’s a rather roundaway method.”

“I have been writing to you for weeks, but you haven’t responded,” Li Yun replied. 

Mr. Bai regularly received hundreds of emails everyday, and rarely read everything that didn’t come from important people. He vaguely recalled several emails requesting recommendations. 

“Hm…. I see, although you are tenacious, I don’t see you making it through law school,” Mr. Bai said. “Parlor tricks do not work well on other magicians.”

“I understand.” Li Yun looked a bit disappointed. He really wasn’t trying to get a recommendation, but Mr. Bai was difficult to crack. 

“Wait, I’m curious about what he saw earlier when you were reading my hand,” said Mr. Bai. He didn’t believe in fortune telling, but he was curious about what Li Yun had seen.

“I’m afraid what I say will offend you.”

“Oh? Now I am more curious.”

“Mr. Bai, you don’t have much time left to live,” Li Yun stated. It wasn’t just from Mr. Bai’s physical body, but his yin Jing was decreasing steadily. “You have at most four months left to live. You have been accumulating karma to balance out your sins, but the darkness I saw is already beyond redemption.”

Mr. Bai narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“I have said too much, I should go.”

“What is the darkness you see?”

“All the people you had stepped on and all the people you have harmed. They are all inside of you. When did you start developing a conscience? It couldn’t be when you were a judge. Was it after you suffered from your first heart attack?”

Mr. Bai stared cautiously at Li Yun for a moment. “Who are you? You’re not here for a recommendation.”

“Mr. Bai, was my act very convincing?” Li Yun asked.

“What do you mean?

“I am kidding. It’s a very common Barnum statement,” Li Yun said with an innocent smile. “Everyone has harmed other people and regretted it. It’s human nature. You’re a judge, so I have assumed you have made many regretful decisions in court.”

It took a moment for Mr. Bai to realize that Li Yun was right. What he had said before could be applied to anyone. “But how do you know that I don’t have much time left?”

“I don’t, but you don’t either. Since the future isn’t fixed, I can say something specific to make it sound more believable.” Li Yun knew for sure and was just screwing around with Mr. Bai’s head.

“And the heart attack?”

“Mr. Bai, are you forgetting that it was on the news?” Li Yun asked.

The more Mr. Bai thought about it, the more unusual the gardener appeared to be.

“Can I try something?” Li Yun asked.

Mr. Bai was curious about what the gardener planned to do next. Strangely enough, the gardener took out a paper and pen, and asked Mr. Bai for his hand again.

Li Yun felt Mr. Bai’s pulse with his left hand and concentrated. His right-hand made markings on the piece of paper. The more Li Yun wrote, the more mysterious the markings on the paper appeared. Sweat appeared on Li Yun’s face and the color drained from his face.

Suddenly, he faltered on the stone table. Mr. Bai looked at his bodyguard to check on Li Yun’s condition.

“Mr. Bai, his condition isn’t good,” said the bodyguard as he held Li Yun up.

“Do you need to see the doctor?” Mr. Bai asked.

“Ah, no, I’m just a bit anemic,” Li Yun responded. He took a cup of tea and gulped it down quickly.  “I should be fine after some rest.”

“What did you write on the paper?” asked Mr. Bai.

“Data,” Li Yun said as he analyzed the markings, which were Mr. Bai’s genetic information. Most genetic materials were meaningless to Li Yun, but there was a portion that revealed a lot of information about a person.

“Data? What does that mean?”

“You don’t use drugs, not even painkillers, but you often fight the temptation,” said Li Yun. “Your father was an addict. You started smoking when you were young but quit in your fifties. You married twice, but they never truly loved you. Your children only visit during holidays for appearances’ sake, and you’re miserable in ways that only Buddha can understand. You did everything for them, but no one knew the extent you had gone through to achieve everything.”

Mr. Bai was suddenly lost in thought. 

“So, how was it Mr. Bai?” Li Yun asked with a smile. “Do you think I have what it takes to be a future judge?”

“How do you know?” asked Mr. Bai.

“Mr. Bai, I am really good at reading people.”

Mr. Bai rarely talked about his family. Even if Li Yun guessed correctly the nature of his relationship, how was he aware that he never took any painkillers? There was specific information that he didn’t even share with his own doctor.

“Tell me the truth, what is it that you want?” Mr. Bai was sure Li Yun wasn’t who he said he was, but he was also sure the man in front of him had other abilities.

“Your body is deteriorating, but your fear of dying is actually keeping you alive,” said Li Yun. “You want to gather as much karma as possible before you depart and enter the next cycle of rebirth. However, your sins are much bigger than you think and you will suffer an endless cycle as livestock to other humans. And you will retain your memories after every rebirth, but unable to break out of the cycle.”

“How can I escape that cycle?”

“I think you know better than anyone what you need to do.”