Chapter 26 A Sudden Turn
February 8th, Si time.
Huailiang was still not satisfied, and wanted to drag Shen Kuo to watch the next scene where Xue Tinghe's empty box turned into a civet cat, and let him guess whether the cat in the box was dead or alive. But Shen Kuo was in no mood to watch these, he was eager to go back and verify the smoke method he had just seen. When he got outside the tile house, he remembered that he had another task today, which was to go to Yongqiu to see the cracked Sheji Altar. So he asked the monk to invite him to go to Yongqiu County together.
However, Huailiang seemed to have already figured out a reason not to go, and he took out a blueprint that he had drawn from memory last night. The blueprint looked more like a birdcage than an altar.
"Master, is this what the inside of the mound looks like?"
"Yes, Taizu built this altar in a hurry. He only decided on the height, squareness and radius, but he rushed to complete it within a few months. He had no choice but to pile up the earth to compact it. However, due to rain and snow, the altar becomes shorter every year. The size of the mound must be in accordance with the weather and the four seasons, which is closely related to the country's fortune. It is very troublesome for the Sitianjian to re-measure and repair it every year, and it also wastes national funds. Therefore, we want to find a way to stabilize its foundation and outline a little, delay the time and avoid annual repairs."
"Why not tear down the altar and choose another location to rebuild it with bricks and stones? Wouldn't that be a permanent solution?"
"Cun Zhong, be careful with your words. Overthrow the country and rebuild it from scratch? Haha, that's a capital crime. So we can only repair and patch up the original site, and not demolish it."
"It is indeed the student's negligence." Shen Kuo suddenly felt that he had not considered it carefully enough.
"At that time, I was supervising the construction of a stacked-beam arch bridge over the Bian River. Because the bridge was a hollow structure without pillars, it earned the false reputation of being comparable to the wood sage Yu Hao. The late emperor also wanted to use his ingenuity to maintain the shape of the round hill and solidify the sand and soil, so that the restoration period could be extended to ten years, and there would be no need to mobilize a large number of troops every time it was repaired. This would also make it easier for the eunuchs in charge of the repairs, the West Eight Works Department, to make some money every ten years."
"You used this trick?"
"It's not about cleverness. I just added this birdcage-like thing under the rammed earth, with eight iron skeletons supporting the mud and stone, which symbolizes the iron rule of the country. I thought hard last night that if I want to fake an earthquake, maybe I can only start with this skeleton."
"Is it feasible?" Shen Kuo asked anxiously.
"After thinking about it, it seems feasible but not feasible at the same time."
"It's feasible, but also not feasible?" Shen Kuo was puzzled.
"Although the round hill is usually unattended, it is the horse ranch of the imperial guards, where cavalry often conducts drills. There are many villages nearby, and people do farming and herding cattle and sheep nearby. The Yongqiu military camp is not far away. If we want to dig up the mound and do something with the iron beam, it will take at least one or two hundred people more than a month to complete the task, and we would have been seen long ago."
Shen Kuo nodded repeatedly. Bao Zheng had indeed thought of this. He had also surveyed many times and had not found any traces of large-scale excavation from the side. The villagers and garrisons nearby had not discovered anyone sneaking around in this area.
"So I want to come, but it's actually not feasible." Huailiang said.
"What should I do then?"
"I haven't figured this out yet. So, I'd like you to go and take a look. Don't look at anything else, just look at the midpoint of the eight horizontal iron beams on the top that correspond to Gen, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Dui, Qian, and Kan. It's at the junction of the second and third layers of the round hill. I've marked the location above . You can go up and measure it and you'll know."
“Only look at these eight places?”
"If it's as you said, the round hill was shaking that day, there was thunder, and the ground underfoot was swaying, as if it was overturning. You only need to look at these eight places and don't need to look at the rest." Huailiang said confidently.
"Don't you see the crack?"
"The cracks are just a byproduct of the collapse. Whether it's east-west or north-south, it's not the key point. The key point must be the point where the truss is prone to breaking under load."
"What is the point of 'easy to break under heavy loads'?"
"Any hard object, when encountering external force, will bend but will not break." Huailiang never took out a bamboo chip from a gambling house from his pocket, and no one knew why a monk like him would have this thing.
He held both ends of the bamboo stake with his hands, as if trying to break it, but the stake seemed to bend but not break.
"You see, force is the reason why the shape is excited. At this time, although the hard object is under the force, it has not broken. However, the internal and external forces are gathered at only one point, which is the point where the weight is about to break."
"The place where the load is about to break is the place where the truss is subjected to all the internal and external forces and is expected to deform but does not change?"
"Yes, look at the bamboo stick in my hand. If I use both hands to exert force, where will it break?"
"Broken in the middle?"
As Shen Kuo finished speaking, the bamboo stick broke in the middle.
"So, after much thought, I can only start here to get twice the result with half the effort. However, even if we start here, we still need to dig up the earth mound and do some work . It will definitely not be completed in a few days. You go and see if there are any bulges in the earth in those places. You can bring a shovel and a pickaxe. The truss is more than a foot below the rammed earth. Dig it up and see what's going on underneath. I'm lazy, so I won't go. If there's anything strange, come and tell me and we'll see."
"Thank you for your advice, Master." Shen Kuo saluted quickly, and then they returned to the shop together. It was just in time for the morning market, and Huailiang put on an apron and took charge of the cooking. Shen Kuo took the horse and headed straight out of the city, and found a shop on the way to buy a shovel.
He ran all the way to the round hill in Yongqiu County. At this time, the snow nearby had melted and most of the footprints had disappeared, leaving only shallow puddles.
He carefully recalled Xu Chong's memory. At that time, he saw footprints in the snow from afar, and everyone on the altar also felt eight vibrations, which was the same number as the eight trusses below. If the trusses broke eight times in sequence for some reason, the effect would be that the altar tilted and collapsed eight times, which was indeed similar to the effect of an earthquake.
It seems that Master Huai Bing's advice is always on point.
He ran towards the altar excitedly. When he and Xu Chong came here a few days ago, the altar was covered with snow and looked solemn. But now it was muddy and dilapidated, and even had some small grass growing on it. There were already a few goats crawling on it and eating the grass.
When Shen Kuo reached the second floor, he saw several goats standing right in front of him. They seemed to be from a nearby village and were not afraid of people. But why did they climb to such a high place to eat grass when the fields were already covered with spring?
Although the eight cast iron trusses were underground, their orientation was fixed. As long as he found the direction of true north, he could find the other seven equally divided trusses according to the angle. He found true north, took a few steps forward, and calculated the distance in his mind. He saw a goat in front of him chewing mud, probably looking for grass roots, but it was in the position he was looking for. So he went forward to drive it away. When the goat saw that he was holding a shovel in his hand, it left reluctantly.
However, the soil here was not as bulging as Huailiang had expected, but actually a little concave. Shen Kuo picked up the shovel and dug down. After a few digs, he saw the iron frame below. He found that there was no soil underneath, and there was a huge hole under the iron beam. Bao Zheng and other government offices also sent people to dig the soil, but without Huailiang's guidance, they did not dig to the key point.
The iron frame was indeed broken right here. I couldn't help but sigh that Huai Liang was a god. Shen Kuo dug the hole and squatted down to check. He saw that the soil layer under the hole was also very loose, just like loose sand compared to the compacted soil nearby. In addition, he found some bamboo and sacks in the fine sand. It's not surprising to have sacks. It seems that a whole bag of soil was used to fill the bottom. But why did the soil disappear later? But the sacks were left? What is this bamboo used for? It seems that I have to ask Huai Liang.
The broken part of the iron beam is severely rusted. A few inches away from the break, you can see the original colored paint, which is used to prevent rust. However, there is no paint at the break and it is severely rusted.
"What is the mystery behind this?"
He stood up and dusted himself off, still unable to figure out what was going on, so he looked for the next spot. When he looked up, he saw the goat had stopped right in front of him, and this time it had stopped exactly where he was going to dig.
"Even you want to hint something to me?" Shen Kuo asked himself. The goat stared at him blankly, chewing something in its mouth.
He walked past the goats and circled the second mound. He found that the scattered goats all stopped at the points where Huailiang predicted the iron frame would break. This didn't seem to be a coincidence? Could it be that they received some kind of divine will and wanted to give him some kind of hint?
Shen Kuo looked around. The surrounding wilderness was originally a pasture for raising military horses, covered with green grass. Why would these stupid goats come to this bare earth hill to look for grass? Although he could not see the "path to follow", the clue seemed to be right under his nose, but he had not touched it yet.
“Everything that exists has a reason.”
He dug into the second and third pits, and the conditions below were similar. The iron frame was broken, and the fracture was severely corroded, and the sand underneath was also loose. He scooped out a handful of fine sand and put it in the pocket he was carrying.
He dug some soil from different pits and put it into another pocket, then hurried back.
They rode as fast as they could and arrived at Daxiangguo Temple at 3 pm in the afternoon. However, the night market was about to start and Huailiang was busy at the stove, so it was difficult to disturb him. So Shen Kuo found an empty seat and wrote down what he saw on a note, and gave the bags of soil and the pieces of linen he found to Huailiang who was busy. Then he hurried back to Yang Weide's house while the city gate was still open, waiting to visit Yang Weide again the next day.
After returning to Yang's house, he was still thinking about all the details, but the suspicious points were too confusing and he still couldn't sort out the clues. He was also worried that Huailiang didn't care much about the affairs of the Sheji Altar. After struggling for a while, he fell asleep.
February 9th, Mao hour.
In the early morning, Shen Kuo had not yet gotten up, but Yang Weide got up and went to the yard to practice the Five Animals Exercises. Today, he asked Bao Zheng for leave again because he had to entertain an important guest at home. It was Taoist Li Cheng'an, the first disciple of the Heavenly Master. From today on, Taoist Li will officially join Bao Zheng's investigation team. This matter was reported to the government by Shi Yaban, and the government has already nodded. This is equivalent to skipping Bao Zheng's personnel authority, which will definitely cause dissatisfaction to the old man, but this is exactly what Yang Weide wants.
Of course, because of the great success in predicting the whereabouts of the hat monster, Yang Wei De has gained enough say in front of Bao Zheng. I believe he should learn to be forbearing.
Hearing someone knocking on the door, Yang Wei De excitedly went to open it. He only thought it was Li Cheng An. He shouted, "Master, I'm here."
Unexpectedly, the person standing behind the door was not a Taoist but a monk. The tall monk was holding a bundle in his left hand and saluting with his right palm. Yang Wei De was stunned for a while before he quickly returned the salute.
"Master is looking for someone?"
"But at Yang Shaoqing's residence?"
"Exactly."
"I'm looking for a Mr. Shen."
Shen Kuo hurried over with sleepy eyes. He heard the knock on the door and thought it was Xu Chong. He was a little worried because he hadn't been to Bao Zheng for two days. He was afraid that Bao Zheng had some instructions, so Xu Chong came to convey them early in the morning.
He was a little surprised to see Huailiang. First, he had not told Huailiang that he lived in Yang Weide's house, but he did not expect the monk to come by himself. Second, he did not expect the monk to come in person. The monk had given him the impression that he was somewhat lazy and unwilling to walk. Yesterday, Huailiang accompanied him to the tile house next to Daxiangguo Temple to watch magic, but he declined when he heard that they were going outside the city. Why did he walk such a long way to Yang Weide's house so early in the morning?
Shen Kuo quickly introduced Huai Liang to Yang Weide. Unexpectedly, Huai Liang laughed.
"In fact, I have met Yang Shaoqing several times before."
Yang Wei De also felt that the fat monk with a stubble beard looked familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen him before.
"Lord Yang is indeed a noble man. In the first year of Kangding, the wooden man on the water-powered armillary sphere of the Sitianjian was not striking the bell accurately, and the circle was out of balance. I went to the Sitianjian and checked the errors of the ratchet and the water clock with Shaoqing."
"Oh... I remember now, it's Master Huai Bing."
Huai Bing and Yang Weide's past more than ten years ago, he never mentioned it to Shen Kuo, so Shen Kuo naturally didn't know about it. In any case, Huai Bing's claim that he had a photographic memory was probably true, because Yang Weide could no longer remember him, but he could still recognize Yang Weide.
The three of them entered the yard together, and Shen Kuo then mentioned that Master Huai Bing, now changed his name to Huai Liang, was staying at the Daxiangguo Temple, and was currently working with him to crack the hat monster.
After hearing this, Yang Wei De couldn't help but feel a little worried. He knew that Lao Bao was an unreasonable person and would definitely be dissatisfied with Shen Kuo for leaking the case without permission.
Shen Kuo brought the monk Huai Liang into his room. He was anxious to ask more questions, but before he could close the door, Xu Chong arrived on horseback. It turned out that Lao Bao hadn't seen Shen Kuo and Yang Wei De for a few days, and was a little angry about being alone there, so he sent Xu Chong to check on them.
Shen Kuo then introduced Xu Chong to Huai Bing, and the three of them discussed together in the house. Yang Weide continued to practice the Five Animals Exercises in the yard, waiting for Taoist Li.
In the room, the three of them sat together at an octagonal table. Huailiang slowly unpacked his bag and took out the blueprint he had drawn at night.
"After I saw the things you left behind, I thought about it all night and finally figured out how you did it."
Xu Chong looked at the two men, then at the strange drawings on the table, feeling a little confused. He had no idea what Shen Kuo and the monk had experienced yesterday.
"Xu Jieji, I went to the Altar of the Land and Grain in Yongqiu County again yesterday. The master had designed a method to stabilize the earth, so I asked the master to solve the mystery of the shaking of the earth mound that day."
"Master, the earthquake that day was actually caused by someone, not the invisible fire dog?"
"Haha, since the fire footprints were designed by someone, how can we explain that the earthquake was not man-made? I'm afraid all the ministers and officials in the court have been deceived."
"Master, can you please tell us what happened?" Shen Kuo asked anxiously.
"Look at this picture." Huailiang pulled out a picture, on which you can see a birdcage-like support with eight beam-like supports on top.
"If each of these supports breaks in the middle, it will cause the top floor to tilt to one side, like a landslide. If eight of them break in succession, it will feel like an earthquake."
"But how?"
"Do you remember what I said yesterday? When the Imperial City Department asked me to rebuild the altar, I had one request. I didn't want it to be done once and for all. I just wanted a minor repair every ten years."
"I said, yesterday you also said that you wanted to let the eunuchs of the Xibazuosi, who are in charge of the repairs, get some money from it?"
"Yesterday I said that it is not impossible to make eight trusses break at the same time, but it requires a lot of effort and must not be kept secret. Later, after reading the description you left, I realized that I was wrong. If someone is interested, it may not be impossible to use a trick during the minor repairs every ten years."
"So, this person is among those who are doing the routine altar cultivation?" Xu Chong thought of the last question in a hurry, "Then can we arrest people according to the list?"
"Don't worry, Xu Jieji, listen to me slowly. I already know who this person is, and I can definitely help you two find him."
Just as he finished speaking, there was a bell ringing outside, thinking that the Taoist priest had arrived. Through the door, one could vaguely hear Yang Wei De and Taoist priest Li Cheng An talking loudly at the gate. The two flattered each other for a while before entering Yang Wei De's study to discuss their own business.
In fact, Xu Chong came here today to receive another mission from Bao Zheng, which was to ask Yang Weide about the time and place of the next appearance of the hat monster. Bao Zheng was also anxious to know what Yang Weide was busy with behind his back recently.
“I’ll go on…” Huai Bing changed the picture, which showed a deep pit with an iron beam across it.
"Master, is this the point where the iron beam is most likely to break and bend?" Shen Kuo saw that it was the diagram he drew yesterday.
"That's right, but the points that are begging for change may not actually deform, and the parts that are prone to breaking may not actually break."
"Because there is soil underneath, the force is borne by the soil underneath?"
"That's right, so the bottom must be suspended in the air. If the truss has nothing to support it from below, it will break easily over time. I didn't think of this yesterday."
"If the bottom is hollowed out during the repairs, how can we hide it from the eunuchs in the Imperial City Department who are supervising the work? I only heard that the supervisor Lei Yungong was sentenced to death because the imperial mausoleum leaked. This round mound for offering sacrifices to the sky is even more serious. It carries the responsibility of beheading. It is impossible to bribe it."
"I saw the sack you left behind last night, and it suddenly occurred to me, if it was hollowed out, why did you leave the sack behind?"
"Yeah, I thought so too, but I didn't understand it clearly."
"Now I understand. There is indeed a way to conceal the truth from the world."
"Master..." Shen Kuo and Xu Chong looked at Huai Liang anxiously.
"First, in the name of minor repairs, dig up the trusses from above and remove the soil underneath. This way, one person can go down and knock around to pretend to do the repairs. Then, fill the soil wrapped in linen back in full view of everyone. This way, even if the supervisor is nearby, he won't be able to see anything."
"Fill the soil back in? Wouldn't that support the iron beam again?"
"I saw what you wrote and saw goats grazing on grass roots on the hillock, and suddenly I thought of this clever idea. To verify it, I even boiled the soil sample you brought, and it really released salt."
"Is salt put into the soil wrapped in sackcloth?" Shen Kuo asked.
"Goats are cunning and are naturally good at finding mineral salt. They feed on salt that seeps into the soil instead of grass roots. According to this strategy, the salt will soon be lost from the burlap under the truss as long as it rains. The soil will not be enough to support the iron frame, and the salt will corrode the iron beams. It will only take a few months for them to break. Therefore, you can find the sacks underneath, and the burlap has not rotted, which shows that it has not been long."
"Then why are there still bamboo fragments?"
"That's used as a fuse, to prevent rain from soaking the gunpowder inside after being buried underground for several months."
"Then the shaking that appeared along with the fire dog's footprints was caused by gunpowder?"
"Yes, put gunpowder in a wax-sealed bamboo tube under the iron beam, and then use the bamboo tube to guide the fire. Once it is ignited, it will break the iron beam in an instant."
"How many pounds of gunpowder would it take?" Xu Chong asked, "But no one heard the explosion that day."
"According to my estimation, if the ratio of six saltpeter, one sulfur, and one charcoal is used, one ounce and three or four coins will be enough. The sound came from underground, and it was a bit muffled, and was covered by the louder footsteps of the giant wolf."
"As far as I know, the gunpowder formula of the Military Arsenal is one saltpeter, two sulfurs and three charcoals?" Xu Chong said.
"There is a lot of charcoal, and although the flame is big, it burns slowly and is likely to leave burn marks. Just trust me on this matter." Huai Liang said firmly without explaining further.
"How can you break pig iron with less than two taels?" Shen Kuo asked again.
"The fireworks we see every day are slow burning, so the flames last for a long time but are not fierce. However, if they are put into a sealed object, they will burn quickly, without fire or flame. Their force is like thunder piercing the top of the head, destroying everything in an instant."
"Is that the difference between firecrackers and fireworks?" Xu Chong asked.
"That's probably it. Besides, although the power of gunpowder is fast, it will disappear when it comes into contact with soil. Therefore, it cannot be buried in the soil, but can only be suspended above the soil."
"Is this another reason for replacing the earth bags with salt bags?"
"good."
"Who is this person?" Xu Chong was so anxious that his teeth were itching.
"As far as I know, there is only one person who has the insight to know where to start and is able to participate in the repairs."
"Please give me some advice, Master." Xu Chong said.
"Hey... he's an old friend of mine... He worked in the East and West Eight Works Departments. His name was Yu Jing, the chief craftsman. He was Yu Silang. He once participated in the reconstruction of the Sheji Altar with me. He knows the ins and outs of it."
