"Many people come here when they face important decisions in life, like whether to start a company, break up with a lover, get married or move to another house," says Teresa Tang, who does charts at a small art gallery in Nanhui area. She also owns a small clothing shop.

Almost all her customers are under 30, mostly between 16 and 25 years old.

"They can't make decisions because they are not sure of themselves," says Tang, who is 27. "They learn more about their own personalities from the charts and my interpretations, and they keep coming back though I tell them not to totally rely on this."

Tang works from 7-11pm, and often later. She charges around 90 yuan (US$13) for each chart and gets many students from nearby universities. On a weekday evening, she gets around a dozen of customers, and on weekends more than 30.

Many older Chinese, however, still seek advice from mysterious masters of "I Ching," or "Book of Changes," one of the oldest classic Chinese texts trying to find order in seemingly random events. Those who study I Ching and the Chinese zodiac follow a complicated system of symbols to gain insight about one's past, present and future.

Most texts about the system are written in ancient Chinese and they're difficult to understand and interpret. It is also difficult to find useful information online, even though the Internet has developed rapidly in China.

Lu's mother - who learned of her son-in-law's likely infidelities before they married - consulted a rather mysterious master known only through word-of-mouth.

He and others like him have no permanent address and do not advertise. Their reputations are made by satisfied customers who swear by them and tell their friends. They guard their knowledge jealously and famously unwilling to share and teach others.

The younger generation, however, seems to prefer the natal chart and tarot to make sense of the world and guide them. Though actually sophisticated and nuanced, these systems are on the surface easier to understand and the 78 tarot pictures are beguiling.

Many classic Western horoscope texts have been translated and are fully downloadable from Chinese forums specializing in horoscopes. It is about the same for tarot - the cards and interpretive texts are widely available in bookstores.

Blame the stars

Some young people, like 19-year-old Judy Liu, check their online horoscopes daily to find out their lucky color and direction. Traveling southeast from your home may be good one day, for example, but west may be better another day. Liu calls following her horoscope "an addiction, like cigarettes."

"It's not that I really believe it so much," she claims. "After all, I know much of the daily pronouncements are quite general and ambiguous and every individual has a distinct natal chart.

"But I just have to know the predictions before leaving my room every day, otherwise I feel so insecure," says the Shanghai University student.

She also gets tarot readings.

Before astrology and tarot entered her life, she used to feel lost and without purpose, she says. Now she believes she understands herself better and doesn't need predictions.

Liu believes in destiny and blames her problems, like trouble socializing, on the stars. Gradually she has stopped trying to make friends, saying, "Why bother?"

It's all in the stars.

"This helps me better understand my actions," says Liu. "For example, I spend a lot of money recklessly because my Mars is in the second house ruling money earning and spending." Now she feels less guilty about extravagance and also understands why she is attracted to the wrong kind of man.

"I just can't help it, it's all determined by my chart."

From her chart, Liu knows the importance of her third house, which rules siblings and social relations, and this explains to her why she has problems socializing.

"That's just how I am - it has been decided since the second I was born."

Chart maker Tang sees many such cases of the power of suggestion.

"The purpose of understanding your chart is to learn about your strengths and weaknesses and try to change, not to whine about problems," says Tang. "For many of my customers, the weakness becomes more apparent because the chart interpretation has explained it and they can blame everything wrong in their lives on being born at the wrong second." What makes a 'good face'?