In February of the following year, 955, Gengzishuo (the first day of the new year), there was a solar eclipse in the sky.

A solar eclipse is at most a rare astronomical phenomenon for modern people, and in ancient times, when the cause of which was unknown, the occurrence of a solar eclipse would cause people to fall into extreme panic, and almost everyone thought that a solar eclipse was a bad omen.

When Taishi Cheng of Qin Tianjian rushed to report the "Tiangu Eclipse Day", I was having lunch with Bao Yuan in the Qinghe Palace with the Queen Mother.

The Queen Mother and Bao Yuan were shocked when they heard this, and Bao Yuan hurriedly went to the court to prepare to lead the ministers to set up an altar in front of the palace, and burned incense to pray for the forgiveness of the sins of all beings in Shu.

The queen mother led the harem concubines to gather in the real hall to worship the gods and Buddhas, and accompanied the master to chant and pray for peace.

As I was kneeling in the hall, I heard a loud drum beat and shouts from outside the hall. I didn't know the reason, I looked sideways at Jingyi, and Jingyi whispered: "It's the Taishi officials who beat the drum and shouted, praying for heaven to eliminate disasters and avoid disasters, and to seek good fortune and avoid evil!" ”

I listened carefully, and it was true, but the earth-shattering drum seemed to hit my heart, and I only felt that my whole heart was trembling.

The sky outside the hall is getting darker and darker, and the heavens and the earth are finally plunged into an endless night, and the lights in the hall are bright, but looking at the empty and lifeless void outside the hall, my heart still hangs.

I knew that it would not be long before the sun would shine again on the earth, but I was worried about the prophecies that had been circulating for thousands of years. The metropolitan sun represents the emperor, and the solar eclipse is a warning from the heavens to the emperor.

Now that there is a solar eclipse in Dashu, will it be something unexpected for Baoyuan? I don't know that a person with a modern education could be so superstitious, but what I have experienced myself does not mean that some existence is not just a legend.

I suddenly remembered that when I was looking through the history books a few days ago, there was a record in "The Bamboo Book Chronicle" that "in the nineteenth year of King Zhao, the sky was great, the pheasants and rabbits were all shaken, and the six divisions were lost in the Han Dynasty". Could it be that this is really a harbinger of the outbreak of war that is unfavorable to Shu?

In a panic, there was a sudden cheer outside the hall, and the queen mother helped Jin Su to get up and walk outside the hall, only to hear a jubilation everywhere - the sun came out, the sun came out!

I looked up at the sky, and a blinding light behind a dark shadow shone into the sky, repelling the darkness around me......

"Amitabha, it's finally over, Amitabha ......" The Queen Mother looked at the sky and muttered the Buddha's name.

I also silently prayed to the heavens for the safety of Baoyuan and the people of Shu: "The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Three Worlds of the Ten Directions, all the heavenly beings and dragon protectors, please bless me with the safety and auspiciousness of the people of Dashu, and bless my husband and family with peace and auspiciousness!" ”

Half an hour later, the sun returned to its brilliance, and Bao Yuan returned to Qinghe Palace from the previous dynasty.

The Queen Mother sent the concubines of the harem to go back to rest, leaving only Bao Yuan and I to sit and talk with her.

After everyone withdrew from the hall, the Queen Mother said to Bao Yuan: "Chang'er, does the historian have anything to say about today's solar eclipse?" ”

"After returning to his mother, Taishi Chengdao's food today is a sign of disaster, but he can't say what he said."

"If you can't say it, how can you judge it to be a sign of calamity?" The Queen Mother had a faint look of anger on her face, and said: "These imperial historians, on weekdays, push the stars and arrange the plates, divination auspicious and evil, all of them seem to have the ability to penetrate the heavens and the earth, but now they can only blindly say some vague words." ”

"The queen mother is angry!" Bao Yuan softly persuaded the Queen Mother: "No matter how capable a mortal is, it is difficult to predict the will of heaven, even if today's food indicates a disaster, my son, as the king of a country, also has the determination to protect the lives of the people of Dashu." Therefore, the queen mother can relax and not work too hard for such things. ”

However, the Queen Mother was always worried, and kept chattering, asking Baoyuan to strengthen her own protection.

In fact, I carefully observed Bao Yuan's expression on the side, and found that he was also trying to hide his worries, and after thinking about it, I felt that I still had to say something to comfort him and the Queen Mother.

"Queen Mother, Your Majesty, in fact, in Yi Rui'er's opinion, a solar eclipse is just an astronomical phenomenon like the rising and sinking of the sun and the sinking of the stars, and it is not enough to predict blessings and misfortunes." I chimed in.

"Oh?!" The Queen Mother looked at me and said, "Is there any evidence for Rui'er's opinion?" ”

"After returning to her mother, a few days ago, Rui'er happened to look through some historical books of the previous dynasties, which recorded a lot of records of the phenomenon of 'solar eclipse', and the "Sui and Tang Jiahua" written by Liu Yu in the Tang Dynasty has more about the deeds of Li Chunfeng, an astronomical official in the early Tang Dynasty, predicting the 'solar eclipse' and revising the calendar."

Bao Yuan nodded and sighed: "Rui'er buried herself in reading history all day a few days ago, and I think I must have seen a lot of anecdotes, so it is better to tell me and the queen mother to listen to it." ”

I bowed my head and agreed, and told him the historical materials I had seen in detail.

It is said that in the early years of the Tang Dynasty, the state used the "Wuyin Yuan Calendar" at that time. Li Chunfeng, who was 25 years old at the time, made a careful study of this calendar and found that it had many flaws. So he wrote to the imperial court, pointed out many mistakes in the "Wuyin Yuan Calendar", and proposed a revision plan. Tang Taizong was very enlightened when he heard this, and not only adopted his suggestion, but also selected him to serve in the Taishi Bureau.

After Li Chunfeng arrived at the Taishi Bureau, he devoted himself to studying the calendar of his predecessors, and after synthesizing the advantages of the calendar of his predecessors, he incorporated his new insights and compiled a new calendar. A year later, according to the new calendar he had calculated, there would be a solar eclipse on the first day of the lunar month, but according to the old calendar, there would be no eclipse on this day. So he reported to the imperial court the precise time of the occurrence and end of the solar eclipse.

Since Taishi Cheng predicted, Tang Taizong couldn't ignore it, so on this day, he led the officials to the front of the palace in disbelief and prepared the rescue ceremony.

It's almost time for Li Chunfeng to say, and the round sun in the sky still doesn't move. Taizong said unhappily: "If the solar eclipse does not appear, you are guilty of deceit!" ”

This crime of deceiving the king is to be beheaded, but Li Chunfeng said without fear: "Holy Lord, if there is no solar eclipse, the minister is willing to die." ”

After that, Li Chunfeng put a wooden stick on the ground, and the shadow was projected on the wall, and he drew a mark next to the shadow on the wall, saying: "Holy Lord, please look, when the sun shines half a finger again, when it shines here, the solar eclipse will appear immediately." ”

Sure enough, as Li Chunfeng said, the sun in the sky began to be invaded by a dark shadow, and the hour was exactly what he said. So the officials bowed down and prayed, and the sound of gongs and drums rang out in one piece. After that, in the second year of Lin De (665 AD), the imperial court decided to use Li Chunfeng's calendar instead, and named it the "Lin De Calendar".

I am also known as the Queen Mother and Bao Yuandao, and there are as many as 37 solar eclipses recorded in the book "Spring and Autumn".

After listening to everything I said, Bao Yuan's eyes were full of light, and he said with a smile: "Queen Mother, Fang Cai'er is actually not very worried in his heart, but after listening to the records in the history books that Rui'er said, he is now relaxed." Thinking that this can be predicted by people, it must not be a mysterious thing, and the sons also have the impression that solar eclipses are a common phenomenon in ancient times, although there are occasional disasters, but most of the time it is peaceful. ”