In all my years, every man I’ve ever met with strong wealth fortune (财运) shared one thing in common: extraordinarily stable emotions. Even when the sky was falling around them, their inner world remained as still as a deep lake.
This makes sense. If you want to accomplish anything in this life, you will inevitably face battles on all fronts — hardship, obstacles, setbacks at every turn. So if you fly into a rage at the slightest provocation, hot-tempered and volatile day in and day out, then without a single exception, you will achieve absolutely nothing.
Even if you get lucky and stumble into some windfall, you won’t be able to hold onto it.
Rather than high-sounding platitudes, what Master Chi wants you to understand is this: when your Chi flows smoothly and your spirit is at peace, wealth naturally follows. When your mind is restless and agitated, your fortune scatters and dissipates.
When I assess whether a man can ultimately achieve something, I look at one thing: is he an “obedient, rule-following” type? The moment I see that he is, there’s nothing more to discuss about achievement. The highest he will ever reach in this lifetime is a senior-level employee — that is his ceiling, full stop.
Because the so-called “honest, dutiful man” is, at his core, someone whose mind has been conditioned by low-level thinking. He does everything by the book, step by step, always living inside the lines that others have drawn for him.
This kind of man will never be the one calling the shots. He will almost certainly never build something that is truly his own.
Master Chi also wants you to understand this: draft animals are always the most obedient — but draft animals never get to eat meat.
The predator respects the rules, understands the rules, and ultimately masters the rules — which is exactly why the predator gets the biggest, freshest cut.
Master Chi has absolutely no intention of encouraging anyone to do wrong. But the honest truth of this world is: “A horse that doesn’t graze at night never grows fat; a man without a windfall never grows rich.”
Windfall isn’t the same as unearned luck, though. In my view, windfall means wealth earned beyond your regular salary — through flexible, creative thinking, always within legal and legitimate boundaries.
This includes brokering deals, coordinating relationships, connecting resources, investing and speculating — and much more.
These are the directions that can genuinely make you money.
Most people go their entire lives without grasping this: even the smallest side hustle yields a higher return than clocking in and out on schedule. The Chinese character for “work” (工) has no opening at the top — it has a hard ceiling, and it will keep you pinned there.
If you are past twenty-five, burn this into your memory: anyone who spends their days holding forth on national affairs and world events, passionately opining on things they have zero control over, is simply laughable.
The sharper a man’s mind, the less energy he wastes on matters beyond his reach — and the more intently he focuses on cultivating and expanding his own domain.
My own observation, one I feel very deeply: the lower the level of a social circle, the more its members love to debate grand, sweeping topics with endless heat and absolute confidence.
And when you actually look at these people? They have never held a position above middle management, never led a meaningful organization, and have never gotten close to a credible business opportunity or real capital.
Makes perfect sense. Precisely because they have achieved nothing themselves, they care desperately about the opinions of equally unaccomplished people around them — it is the only source of confidence they have.
By contrast, at genuinely high-level dinners, everyone talks about specifics: concrete collaborations, practical viewpoints, actual methods. The kind of conversation where, by the time you leave the table, a new opportunity is already on the agenda for tomorrow.
That is the wealth-building mindset: efficient, direct, clear — no wasted words.
I am a man myself, so I understand very clearly where certain readers are weak.
You carry a grievance in your chest. You feel that in this world you have lacked the noble benefactors (贵人, Gui Ren) and true patrons who could recognize you. You feel you are a hidden talent in an unjust world — unable to rise because the deck is stacked against you.
I am sorry, but you are wrong.
This world is not perfectly fair — but it is ruthlessly efficient and pragmatic. If you genuinely have powerful abilities, if you can bring wealth, resources, and opportunity to the table, then you will never lack for people who recognize your worth.
Because noble benefactors desperately need real talent too.
So the honest answer is this: as a man of true insight and real ability, you must be willing to openly admit that your current mental model is outdated — and that you yourself have become outdated.
That is fine. Only by admitting it openly can you correct and strengthen your weaknesses with genuine confidence.
Look at history — every great leader who ever rose to power undertook a thorough strategic overhaul of himself every five to ten years. I feel this profoundly myself: the higher a man’s business acumen and standing, the more willing he is to hear my counsel, because his mindset is open and his thinking clear.
It is the narrow, small-spirited ones — inwardly weak and insecure — who stand there, poor in body and anxious in heart, shrilly insisting: “I’m not wrong! You’re all wrong! I am right! Right! Right!”
Brief misfortune lies in your luck cycle; prolonged misfortune lies in your roots.
Because my immersion in classical Chinese wisdom runs very deep, I want to leave you with one final, crucial point.
If you have only been in a rough patch for two or three years, it is quite possible this is not your fault. After all, who gets through life without a few valleys?
But if you have been working hard, fighting diligently — and yet after three to ten full years you have nothing to show for it, no sign of daylight on the horizon —
Then in all likelihood, the reason is this: you do not understand your own life pattern (格局), and as a result you have been walking the wrong road entirely — missing the opportunities, the noble benefactors, the prospects, and the wealth that were always meant to be yours.
A person of worth must know how to adapt like a dragon or serpent when the moment demands it; a true hero must also possess the wisdom to recognize the right path.
I remember this clearly. Many years ago, a man in his thirties came to me for a destiny reading.
He arrived with his head low and defeat written across his face. He said: “Master, I have truly hit rock bottom — I only thought to come to you because I was desperate. I never much believed in destiny before. I always felt that my fate was mine to make.
But reality has shown me that circumstances are stronger than any man. Several of my closest brothers strongly recommended you, so I am here — please, I am asking for your guidance.”
I answered him directly and without hesitation: “Don’t worry. This is nothing more than a temporary setback in your career. Compared to the real life challenges I work through every day, this barely registers.
A true man carries great burdens on his shoulders — that is what strength means. If a small difficulty has you in tears and gasping for breath, how could you ever amount to anything?
Just remember: as long as you are on the right path, three years of serious effort can open a crack in even the most desperate dead end.
Now — regarding your life pattern, your future, and your path to wealth, allow me to walk you through it…”