Tian-Zhu

A star with an edge on it. One end is the fighting end — an appetite for the kill, damage done, things broken off and things snapped in two. The other end is the pillar the star is named for: a thing that stands from floor to roof and holds the load at the moment the load is at its worst, arguing its case the whole time it does so. Both ends are the same star, and neither is the true reading with the other as an exception.

• People and trades: soldiers and police, teachers, lawyers, actors, diplomats — all of them living either by the mouth or by a hard spine. The persuasive talker and the slippery one both belong here.
• Breakage and impact: blows, destruction, accidents, serious injury. These are the words that come up first when this star lands.
• The other end: the beam that carries a roof, the pillar that holds against the current mid-river. It cannot be read as inauspicious across the board.
• The body and objects: the mouth, the lungs, the respiratory system; crucibles, bowls, buckets and quilts.

"Mildly inauspicious" is a default reading, not a verdict. Asked about a lawsuit or a negotiation, and asked about damage or a quarrel, the same Tian-Zhu is being read from two completely different ends.

Nature

Right and wrong come without a grey zone. Anything unfair, or any hint of being doubted, and the temper is up at once. The talk is hard; underneath it, the person involved cares a great deal about winning.

Style

Says it straight, with no going round. A disagreement gets put on the table face to face, and the argument clears the head rather than clouding it — the heavier the pressure, the less willing this one is to move to the back of the room.

Strength

Expression, argument and persuasion, well above the ordinary level. The person involved can hold a position inside a dispute, and can hold a hostile room alone.

Impression

Hard, opinionated, not easily pushed, carrying a visible edge — which is why they end up opposite other people so often. A single sentence lands on the point, and it takes a while before anyone sees that the edge is backbone.

Pitfall

Trouble finds this one. A small thing gets argued into a big one rather than conceded, words thrown in anger do real damage, and refusing to give ground leaves the person involved with nowhere to turn round.

The feng shui list for Tian-Zhu does not look like the star that appears in the divination and destiny sections. What is set out here is a set of objects and places that run dark, and run towards water.

• Character: secretive, unsettled and disorienting, governing deception, change, challenge and losing the way.
• Places: the lavatory, and the pillars of a gatehouse.
• Objects: rainwater, ink, blood, perfume, the darkroom, black cloth, and hidden places.

None of that squares with the Metal, the sharp tongue and the hardness this star shows in the other two paths. It is not a copying error — feng shui simply runs its own reading here. Each path takes what belongs to it, and neither is used to correct the other.