Each branch has two characters (such as Jia Zi, B Chou, C Yin, etc. ), so it is also called eight characters. The blind people in Chaoshan don't have paper, pens and abacus, but just stretch and bend with their fingers, which is different from the fortune-telling of the discerning people in big cities.
Blind fortune tellers start with four pillars, and then calculate the five elements in the main branch of a birth (that is, fire, water and earth in Jin Mu), from which they can calculate good or ill luck, pros and cons, wealth, dignity, longevity, diseases, disasters, joints and even the situation of their wives and children. He will also teach you how to get rid of fierce difficulties and get good luck, so fortune tellers also know how to ask people's psychological state, and they often leave room for improvisation to gain the favor and trust of people who ask for their lives. Some gentlemen play the flute instead of the bronze mirror. Once upon a time, there was a blind man playing a small flute with only four holes while walking in Shantou city. At night, the crisp and loud flute sounds a little musical.