xymnovel 100: The Case of Yitian
100: The Case of Yitian
Just then, Cui Lingyu stood up, walked to Su Wen's side, and whispered, "Su Lang, there's actually another possibility!"
Su Wen looked at Cui Lingyu and asked, "What's possible?"
Cui Lingyu said, "When I lived in Chang'an, I heard Qutan Xida from the Imperial Observatory say that there would be signs of a solar eclipse at the end of May or the beginning of June this year. The Emperor even ordered a ten-day fast, bathing and burning incense, and personally went to Xiangji Temple to offer incense!"
Su Wen looked at Cui Lingyu and asked, "A solar eclipse?"
Cui Lingyu replied, "If a solar eclipse occurs tomorrow, this thief will take advantage of it."
"According to records since the Six Dynasties, the occurrence of a solar eclipse was an ominous sign that evil spirits were invading the emperor's rule, and it was often regarded as a manifestation of the emperor's lack of virtue and the rise of treacherous officials."
"Furthermore, the Sage and Prime Minister Yao Chong are currently implementing reforms and innovations. If this is publicized, the people will inevitably associate it with these events!"
"In addition, most people believe that the appearance of a solar eclipse is usually accompanied by disasters such as the fall of a country, the death of a monarch, chaos in the world, the fall of cities, and the loss of territory."
"In summary, if the Tibetans attack Shazhou and Dunhuang fall, and this becomes public knowledge, it will shake the foundation of the sage's rule, and could even escalate into large-scale rebellions or the fragmentation of the country into warlordism!"
After hearing Cui Lingyu's guess, Su Wen suddenly understood and realized everything.
But Su Wen was still somewhat shocked and asked, "But how could he be so sure that there would be a solar eclipse tomorrow?"
Cui Lingyu said, "Su Lang, don't forget, Buddhism flourished in Tibet, and Buddhism was originally introduced by the Indians. I once heard Gutan Siddhartha say that the Indians were very good at numbers (mathematics), and many of them were even obsessed with the study of celestial phenomena. Solar eclipses are simply the laws governing the movements of the sun and moon. With careful study, it is certain that they can be calculated. Although the timing may not be exactly accurate, it will certainly be very close!"
Su Wen was even more shocked when he heard Cui Lingyu's explanation. He never expected that they were already this powerful in the Tang Dynasty!
Su Wendao said, "If that's the case, then everything makes sense. However, how can we prevent it in advance?"
Cui Lingyu smiled slightly and said, "Su Lang, your methods of solving cases are so amazing, why can't you figure it out now? Have you been too tired lately? After the case is over, take a few days to rest!"
Su Wen smiled but didn't say anything.
Cui Lingyu said, "We'll beat him to it and post notices all over Dunhuang County, saying that according to Qutan Xida of the Imperial Observatory, a solar eclipse will occur in the next few days, and everyone should not believe the rumors!"
Upon hearing this, Su Wen nodded repeatedly, even praising Cui Lingyu, "Lingyu, thanks to you, otherwise I would definitely have fallen behind him!"
As he spoke, Su Wen couldn't help but pull Cui Lingyu into his arms and hug her tightly, whispering his gratitude once more, "Thank you so much!"
Cui Lingyu was stunned for a moment, then smiled, as if she was thoroughly enjoying herself.
Xiao Bi, who was standing to one side, covered her face with her hands, but still couldn't help but peek through her fingers.
Qin Zhan, who had just entered the courtroom, saw this scene, turned around, and coughed lightly twice.
Seeing this, Su Wen quickly released Cui Lingyu and looked at Qin Zhan, saying, "Commander Qin, you've arrived just in time. Please draft a notice immediately and inform the people that, according to Qutan Xida of the Imperial Observatory, a solar eclipse will occur in the next few days. Everyone should prepare in advance to avoid causing chaos. Also, please do not believe any rumors circulating among the people!"
Qin Zhan responded, "Yes, I will take care of it immediately. The people will see the notice when they wake up tomorrow morning!"
Su Wen nodded in agreement.
Nothing happened tonight, but Su Wen couldn't sleep at all. He tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep, his mind racing with thoughts, from the strange case in Youzhou to the Lotus Case in Qingzhou, and now, how many lives have been lost.
The entire process spanned a full year, and if we start counting from the flower shop, the planning took more than a decade.
It must be said that this man named Yi Tian was incredibly meticulous. Unfortunately, he was destined to fail because this was the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, the first half of Li Longji's life, not the second half. Even without Su Wen, he was destined to fail.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Zhang Yi was leading eight hundred men at full speed towards Dayanshan.
......
The next day.
Su Wen herself didn't know when she fell asleep; she only knew that when she woke up, it was almost noon.
This was the best sleep Su Wen had had in a long time. For some reason, even though the situation was not optimistic, Su Wen slept even more soundly.
After Su Wen finished washing up and getting dressed, he opened the door and saw Cui Lingyu sitting on the railing chair by the door.
As soon as she saw Su Wen leave, she immediately stood up and called softly, "Xiao Bi, quickly go and heat up the food and bring it to Su Lang!"
Upon hearing this, Su Wen asked, "Lingyu, have you eaten?"
Cui Lingyu shook her head.
Su Wen said, "Let's go together then!"
Cui Lingyu nodded.
After a while, Xiao Bi brought the food to the stone table on the side of the pavilion, where Cui Lingyu and Su Wen sat facing each other and ate together.
Su Wen couldn't find any topics to talk about, so he could only serve food to Cui Lingyu. Although Cui Lingyu didn't say anything, she was smiling the whole time. Moreover, the women of noble families ate very elegantly, taking small bites, unlike Su Wen, who was like a mad dog, wanting to finish the whole thing in one bite, as if he would starve to death if he didn't eat the next bite.
Just as the two were eating, the ground began to gradually darken. Su Wen hurriedly put down his chopsticks, walked out of the pavilion, and looked up.
Cui Lingyue followed closely behind.
Just as Cui Lingyue had predicted, the solar eclipse occurred.
As the sun turned completely black, the entire earth was plunged into darkness, devoid of light, but a golden circle appeared around the sun in the sky.
However, at this moment, something even more unexpected happened to Su Wen: a huge white Buddha figure gradually appeared in mid-air, which looked at least thirty or forty meters tall.
The golden circle on his head seemed to be behind his head. Upon seeing this, Su Wen immediately frowned.
Cui Lingyu was also shocked by this scene.
It should be noted that even Su Wen, a modern person, might not have ever seen such a scene, and he couldn't even understand how the other party had managed to do it.
A few minutes later, the eclipse began to recede, and the sun's rays shone on the earth again, but the giant Buddha statue had already disappeared.
As the sun gradually rose, Su Wen looked at Cui Lingyu and said, "It seems we underestimated Yi Tian!"
Upon hearing this, Cui Lingyu smiled and said, "Young Master Su, this is nothing more than a clever trick. In the Mozi Canon, there is a method that uses the principle of pinhole imaging. Did you see those birds in the sky?"
Su Wen frowned and looked up.
Sure enough, there were several birds flying in the sky, but strangely, they seemed to be hovering, frantically flapping their wings but unable to fly away.
Cui Lingyu said, "I guess the other party must have tied the bird's leg with a thin rope, released the bird, covered the thin rope with a black cloth, and then created a pinhole image through the black cloth, which is how the image of the Buddha appeared. I was just surprised because I thought it looked beautiful."