The Network palace (Nu Pu Gong) is one of the 12 palaces of Zi Wei Dou Shu. It reflects a person's ties with friends, coworkers, subordinates and others who rely on them. Older books call it the servants palace, and today it is mostly read from the "friends" angle: what help the people around you bring, and how you manage those ties.

What Is the Network Palace and What Does It Mean?

The Network palace stands for friends, coworkers, subordinates and every kind of social contact. Its stars and brightness show how well a person builds and keeps relationships, and how those relationships affect daily life and career.

In terms of chart relationships, the palace across from the Network palace is the Allies palace. One side is peers and juniors in society, the other is siblings and close friends. Together they show how a person handles the different kinds of peer relationships.

The Network palace also forms a trine with the Authority palace and the Nurture palace. The Authority palace stands for elders and superiors, and the Nurture palace stands for younger people and direct reports. This trio reflects how you deal with superiors, coworkers and subordinates. It can also show how the patterns you picked up while growing up shape the way you handle people.

Studying this palace also gives you a way to look at your own habits. If you tend to find loyal friends, it may be worth asking what you offer in return. If coworkers often disappoint you, the chart may point to a pattern worth noticing: perhaps you trust too fast, or perhaps you tend to expect others to share your pace. The Network palace does not decide who walks into your life, but it can suggest what kind of people you are likely to attract and what kind of support or friction tends to come with them.

In short, understanding the Network palace helps you see your social circle clearly and adjust the way you deal with people so relationships run more smoothly.

How the 14 Major Stars Shape the Network Palace

When a major star sits in the Network palace, it directly affects the traits of the people around you and the quality of your relationships. Each star has strengths and points to watch, and the real picture depends on brightness, the stars in the same palace and the four palaces that shape it.

The Pillar (Zi Wei) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Pillar stands for authority and leadership. It tends to draw loyal friends and dedicated subordinates. Relationships are often harmonious, and there may be real support at work and in your career.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Keeping up ties with friends and subordinates may take more effort. There may be distrust or opposing views inside a team, which can leave a person feeling isolated.

The Strategist (Tian Ji) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Strategist stands for intelligence and flexibility. Friends and coworkers tend to be full of ideas and quick to respond, and subordinates know how to adapt, so the team feels lively and creative.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Relationships can be more complicated and changeable. Friends and coworkers may seem unsteady, so reliability over the long run needs more watching.

The Visionary (Tai Yang) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Visionary stands for light and openness. Friends and coworkers tend to be sincere and warm, and subordinates respect you and cooperate gladly, which makes a positive and transparent workplace.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Unclear communication can lead to misunderstandings. People may compete with each other or hold back honesty, and cooperation may involve more friction.

The Builder (Wu Qu) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Builder stands for firmness and money sense. Friends and coworkers tend to be dependable and often financially capable, and subordinates are hardworking and loyal, giving strong support on business and finance projects.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Rigidity and stubbornness may affect relationships. Friends and coworkers may lack flexibility, so friction can arise when change arrives.

The Eternal Child (Tian Tong) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Eternal Child stands for gentleness and good cheer. Social ties tend to be friendly and easygoing, and subordinates are approachable and happy to cooperate, giving a relaxed, low-pressure workplace.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Friends and coworkers may seem careless or undisciplined, which can affect work efficiency and your standing in the team.

The Perfectionist (Lian Zhen) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Perfectionist stands for integrity and discipline. Friends and coworkers tend to be honest and principled, and subordinates serious and responsible, which helps keep work discipline and professional ethics.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Relationships may feel stiff, and people around you may find it hard to accept new opinions, leading to friction and a stalled workplace.

The Steward (Tian Fu) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Steward stands for tolerance, stability and shelter. Friends and coworkers tend to be reliable and loyal, and subordinates thoughtful and devoted. Social ties may grow steadily and last.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: You may meet selfish people or those who take advantage. Relationships may lean toward practicality and short-term gain, with less sincerity.

The Empath (Tai Yin) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Empath stands for tenderness and sensitivity. Friends and coworkers tend to be considerate and attentive, glad to share and support, and the relationships feel warm and emotionally safe.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: People around you may be less practical or more dependent. Emotional boundaries may blur, or things may stay vague, which can erode trust.

The Wolf (Tan Lang) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Wolf stands for social polish and energy. Friends and coworkers tend to be good at socializing and creative, with positive contributions to social life or work. Subordinates know how to please and adapt well.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Relationships may be driven by self-interest and calculation. People around you may be less honest or stir up needless trouble, which can affect your name and reputation.

The Skeptic (Ju Men) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Skeptic stands for speech and communication. Friends and coworkers tend to be good at debate and often offer creative, useful ideas. Subordinates are proactive and happy to suggest improvements.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Relationships may be stirred up by gossip and misunderstanding. Coworkers may envy you, or it may be harder to get along because of differing views.

The Loyalist (Tian Xiang) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Loyalist stands for support and backup. Friends and coworkers tend to be reliable and ready to help, and subordinates loyal and hardworking, which helps keep work steady.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: Coworkers or subordinates may lack responsibility and become a drag instead of a help. Disagreements may come up more easily, leaving a feeling of being isolated or disrespected.

The Sage (Tian Liang) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Sage stands for protection and kindness. Friends and coworkers tend to be upright and willing to help both emotionally and materially, and the relationships feel calm and stable.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: You may meet people who say one thing and do another, which makes trust harder. Disputes may come up more often and weigh on your mood.

The Blade (Qi Sha) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Blade stands for decisiveness. Friends and coworkers tend to be strong and fast at making decisions, and relationships are focused on goals and practical value.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: An overly hard attitude and little understanding may cause conflict with friends and coworkers. Subordinates may be harder to manage, which can unsettle work.

The Disruptor (Po Jun) in the Network Palace

• With helpful stars or favorable transformations: The Disruptor stands for innovation. Friends and coworkers tend to dare to think and act, and are ready to change for better results. Subordinates are proactive and enthusiastic, helping lift work efficiency.
• With harsh stars or Entanglement Transformation: You may meet people who love risk but think little before acting. Relationships may break because of disagreement or sudden changes that are hard to control.

Minor Stars That Influence the Network Palace

Minor stars in the Network palace help adjust and show the influence of friends, coworkers, subordinates and others who support you. They make the character of your social ties clearer, whether it is cooperation, competition, or positive and negative effects from outside.

Helpful stars

• The support stars (Zuo Fu and You Bi): In the Network palace, these two stars point to friends and coworkers who support you, stick together and can be relied on. You tend to get timely help in work and life, building a solid support network.
• The writing stars (Wen Chang and Wen Qu): These two bring skill in communication and creative talent. In the Network palace, they suggest friends or coworkers who are knowledgeable and refined, offering valuable ideas for work and personal growth.
• The patron stars (Tian Kui and Tian Yue): These two stand for luck and helpful people. In the Network palace, they point to talented friends or coworkers who are willing to guide you through difficulties, and who open the way to advancement and success.

Harsh stars

• The void stars (Di Kong and Di Jie): These two may stir up conflict and disruption in ties with friends, coworkers or subordinates. You may meet unreliable people who harm your reputation or interrupt your work.
• The edge and the drag (Qing Yang and Tuo Luo): When they appear in the Network palace, these two bring tension, conflict and unhealthy competition into social ties. Friends or coworkers may turn into rivals or put heavy pressure on you.
• The flare and the smoulder (Huo Xing and Ling Xing): These two bring a hot temper and clashes into ties with friends or subordinates. People around you may be impulsive and impatient, making the workplace or home life less steady and prone to arguments.

Basic Rules for Reading the Network Palace

The Network palace looks at a person's social map. To read it clearly, follow these steps.

1. Look at the stars in the palace and the ones shining into it

Helpful stars such as the support stars, a patron star and the writing stars favor harmonious ties and a solid network. Harsh stars such as the edge, the drag, the flare and the smoulder may bring conflict, disagreement or even obstruction from friends and coworkers.

2. Look at its relationship with other palaces

• The palace across (the Allies palace): It reflects the link between outside social ties and ties with siblings. The interplay of the two shows how much friends and siblings influence each other, and how a person balances family and society.
• The trine (the Authority palace and the Nurture palace): The Authority palace shows how you relate to elders and superiors, and the Nurture palace shows how you deal with younger people and subordinates. Habits learned while growing up show up here.

3. Look at the decade and the Annual layer

When reading timing, pay attention to the Network palace in each decade and each Annual layer to see how social ties change over time. The mix of stars is different at each stage, so the way helpful people, partners and rivals appear differs too.

4. Look at brightness and the mix of helpful and harsh stars

The same star behaves very differently at S-tier and at D-tier. With high brightness and helpful stars in the same palace, support is more visible. With low brightness or harsh stars and Entanglement Transformation, you may need to work harder at relationships and choose partners with care.

Final Thoughts: Reading Your Social Circle Through the Network Palace

The Network palace shows a person's social map: who your friends are, who your coworkers are, and who looks to you for leadership. The stars show the quality of those ties and the places where you may need to adjust.

Understanding the Network palace can help you build your network more deliberately and put your energy into people who are worth it. To see which stars sit in your own Network palace, you can enter your birth details on HOROS and generate a chart.