Zhong Kui Attains the Way
Neutral
The poem
Original: 上下传来事转虚 / 天边接得一封书 / 书中许我功名遂 / 直到终时亦是虚
The story
Zhong Kui of the Zhongnan mountains sat the examinations under Emperor Dezong. He finished his essay at a stroke, and the chief examiner Han Yu and his deputy Lu Zhi read it and declared him a marvel, placing him first. At the palace audience, his ugliness cost him the honour that was already his. The letter had promised everything and delivered nothing.
What it means
The image is empty reputation: much appearance, little substance, hold what you have. News passes up and down and dissolves the moment you turn round; a letter arrives from far away promising that your name will be made, and at the end it is still air. The lot warns that the good thing in front of you is probably a promise on paper, visible but not edible. Do not throw your weight behind that promise, and do not lose sleep over it. Hold what is already solid in your hands and you stay safe; not moving means not losing.
By area of life
Wealth
Wealth on paper that you never get to eat. Gain is obstructed and deals mostly fail; the more you commit the sharper the disappointment.
Love
Even good news is a false gladness. Someone who seems interested disappoints on closer acquaintance, and reconciliations do not become real.
Work
A promising job proves to be a feint, and a venture with good prospects underdelivers. Do not resign on the strength of it.
Health
An apparent improvement may not be real, so do not relax your guard. Keep to steady care rather than hoping for a miracle remedy.
Travel
You expect much from a distant venture and get little. Staying put is more solid than chasing a promise across a border.
Advice
Do not stake your reserves on a promise that has not yet been honoured; hold the part that is already real.