Within the domain of Treasure Bottle Continent's Western Sacred Mountain, in the capital of Yuxuan Kingdom, one of the many vassal states of the Great Li Dynasty, the first lanterns had just been lit beneath the night curtain. At a fortune-telling stall by the roadside, the Middle-aged Daoist Priest sprawled over the table in a drunken stupor suddenly jolted awake. He raised his head, still looking bleary-eyed and drunk, then picked up the wine jug at hand and took a sip of Soul Returning Soup, using wine to cure wine. Only then did he let out a long breath and prepare to pack up his stall and head home. The Daoist priest reached into his sleeve and secretly weighed his money pouch. He had earned some loose silver, though there were more copper coins than anything else.
On the street were some sons of officials returning late from spring outings. Green grass, yellow willows—how many frivolous youths had spring intoxicated to death? They rode their horses back into the city at night, as though even the horses' hooves carried the fragrance of spring grass.
The Middle-aged Daoist Priest began tidying the fortune sticks on the table. He pinched up several copper coins used for divination; after years of rubbing, their patina gleamed brightly. He tossed them into the fortune-stick tube together, then pulled up a tablecloth covered in surnames. Usually, the Daoist priest interpreted fortune slips to predict luck and misfortune, read palms to calculate marriages, analyzed written characters, wrote family letters on others' behalf, and so on. All of it helped supplement his household expenses. The cost of living in the capital was far greater than in Yuxuan Kingdom's local prefectures and counties; prices were enough to make one click one's tongue.
As for guessing people's surnames, that was