Then Fung Wa Chun went back to his village to resume his studies of the classics.
FENG SHUEY
FENG SHUEY
Feng Shuey literally translated means wind-water, and is a general term denoting the superstitious feeling with regard to the topographical surroundings of cities or houses, the good fortune or luck of a district being in proportion to its propitious relations to mountains, rivers, etc.
HING FAI was angry and annoyed. Many things had happened to produce this condition of mind. To explain. Hing Fai lived in the province of Fo Kien or the “Consummation of Happiness,” and was a merchant of considerable respectability, his business being in hogs’ bristles and plaited rice straw.
Intelligent reader, you perhaps think that neither of these articles interest you, but you are wrong, they do; the insignificant tooth-brush which you use on your honourable molars is made of finest hogs’ bristles from China, and perchance the hat you wear during your summer holiday saw its birth as rice in the province of Fo Kien.
All the hot morning that persistent beggar Wang had moaned and groaned in the dusty road opposite the business-house of Hing Fai. For a long time Wang had been an annoyance to all decent merchants and wealthy persons, and to-day he had hit on an admirable plan for gathering “cash.” Early he had stationed himself opposite the office of Hing Fai, and had brought with him a large stone. The stone he had placed in the dusty road, and with great persistence continued to beat his inadequately shaved head on it. It was now well after noon. Wang’s groans had disturbed Hing Fai for the last four hours, and the stone and Wang’s head were both liberally spattered with blood. Wang continued to groan and beat his head on the stone, and there was every reason to suppose that if he continued this unpleasant occupation he would eventually fracture his skull and die in front of the honourable door of Hing Fai’s business-house.
A junk laden with bristles belonging to Hing Fai had sunk in the river this morning, and recently a go-down belonging to him had been burnt down with its contents of several tons of straw braid. These two misfortunes meant the loss of hundreds of taels, and now added to all these misfortunes were the groans and blood sprinklings of the despicable Wang. Hing Fai was justly angered. He threw his rabbit-hair pen across the room, closed his paper ledgers in anger, and strode to the door and out into the dusty road, where he bestowed three kicks and five cash on the despicable Wang, after which he was carried in his chair by three sweating coolies to his residence on the outside of the town.