Combination and Alignment (Pei He)

The chart is judged by how its parts fit

Fortune and misfortune are not read off single elements but off how the stems and branches sit next to each other — what combines, what clashes, what supports what. Two identical elements can produce opposite outcomes depending on their neighbours, which is why this book resists the 'one star, one verdict' style of reading. Read the arrangement as a whole before naming a result.