On a summer night, there are stars everywhere. A star-observatory was built in the outskirts of Xiyang City. A little fire on the ground reflects the high platform. In a semicircular building on the roof, several people are using astronomical mirrors to observe astronomical phenomena.

＊m

This mirror was created by craftsmen by Yu Wen Wen, the general manager of Huangzhou. It is 1 2 feet long and has a diameter of one foot and two inches. It is mounted on an iron rack and has a semicircular wooden roof that can open and close and rotate.

There is another small mirror on the astronomical mirror, called the "Star Search Mirror". A man put his face on the bottom of the astronomical mirror and used his eyes to observe the astrological signs through this treasure.

There can only be one person and others in a circle at a time, waiting to observe the astrological signs in turn. In order to avoid affecting the observation effect, only a dim oil lamp was lit in the room.

The room next door was brightly lit, and the curtains had been put down for the dark. Several people sat around the desk and discussed in a low voice. There were many white paper painted with figures on the desk.

"The nebula on this picture is spiral, with three spiral arms..."

Liu Zhuo introduced his observation results. Seeing that others were listening with relish, he couldn't help but feel complacent. After he came to Xiyang City, Huangzhou, he was able to study freely with Yuwen Wen's strong support.

During the day, I teach at the state school. In my spare time, I go to the observatory to observe the astrological signs at night. I am busy every day, constantly busy. Years of time have been like a white horse for Liu Zhuo, and the year is like sunshine.

Huangzhou Prefecture School has a library with a huge collection of books, some of which had never been seen before. They were almost exclusively used astronomical mirrors for personal purposes in the first year. The books and various ancient books that he had proofreaded were constantly published. Liu Zhuo was like a fish in water in Xiyang.

The books published in Huangzhou are sold all over the world, and the name of Liu Zhuo, the capital of Xindu, has also been spread all over the country. Liu Zhuo, one of the "Two Lius", has a more famous reputation than it was a few years ago.

His whole family settled in Xiyang, obtained hundreds of acres of fertile land, two mansions, and several servants. He had no shortage of family income. He also received generous salary for his studies in the state, and he also received tutors. He also received rewards for proofreading books for bookshops.

Every time the Duke of Xunji is granted funds, Liu Zhuo no longer worrys about his livelihood. Now he dares not say that his family is rich, but his life is full of fun and wealth is not short of money. The rest is to keep his name in history.

To write books and compile an accurate calendar, and thanks to an unprecedented astronomical mirror, he also had to draw detailed starry sky maps.

The moon full of potholes, Saturn with aura, and the nebula like clouds and mists, and the astrological signs that have never appeared in the classics will be compiled into picture albums one by one.

These things are very work-intensive and Liu Zhuo cannot complete them alone, so he thought of his old friends and relatives. Now the few people in front of him, as well as the few people watching the star next door, were all scholars who came to Xiyang as guests at his invitation.

To observe the starry sky, you must rely on a magical astronomical mirror. Xiyang City has the only two astronomical mirrors in the world. Although the astronomical mirror in the Imperial Heavenly Supervision of Yecheng was also presented by Yu Wenwen, Duke of Zhu, it is not possible for ordinary people to use it.

Therefore, the astronomical mirror in Xiyang is the only hope for scholars who are interested in astronomy. As soon as they receive Liu Zhuo's letter, they will come to Xiyang as much as possible.

Since ancient times, people have linked the celestial phenomena to the fate of the dynasty. Even solar and lunar eclipses can lead the emperor to lead the ministers to sacrifice to the sky or issue self-destruction. Therefore, the theory of astrology has always been controlled by the court. If anyone learns privately, it is easy to be said to be a bad intention, and it is difficult for the people to study it in depth.

After the Yongjia Rebellion, there were constant wars and chaos in the Central Plains for hundreds of years, and frequent dynasties changed frequently. The control of astronomical astrology theory was not so strict. The environment for folk scholars to learn astronomical astrology calendar was quite relaxed, so a lot of astronomical knowledge gradually spread.

Even so, the observatory in Huangzhou was submitted by Huangzhou General Manager Yuwen Wen to the court and started construction after the emperor's approval. The so-called "instruction" was naturally approved by the emperor.

There are also officials stationed in the court to strictly prevent people with ulterior motives from taking the opportunity to spy on the astronomical phenomena. All those who study on the observatory must have certificates issued by the government to prove their origins are innocent.

Therefore, within the Great Zhou territory, except for the capital Yecheng, only the Xiyang City in Huangzhou can openly study astronomy and astrology. This observatory on the outskirts of the city has become a gathering place for scholars from all over the world.

Among them is not just the heavens. Some of them were invited by Liu Zhuo to teach in Huangzhou Prefecture, and some of them came to learn that the Huangzhou Prefecture Library has a rich collection of books.

Those who come to Xiyang not only want to have a mirror, but also because the observatory here has a large armillary sphere and a muddy image, a tall watch, and a sophisticated "Xiyang Bell", which are rare things elsewhere.

"Xiyang Bell", as a unique timekeeping tool, has gradually become known to the world. The Xiyang Bell presented to the court by Huangzhou General Yuwen Wen has been displayed in Yecheng many times every year.

Compared with hourglass leakage, the driving force of this Xiyang clock is a "pendulum", which does not require hydraulic drive and is very convenient to use. Although the failure rate is a bit higher, it is very accurate in walking, which is really amazing.

For ordinary people, surprise is also amazing. No matter how accurate the time is, it is useless to most people, but for the heavens, this is a powerful tool, because if you want to compile an accurate calendar, you need to know the exact time.

In order to observe sun shadows and to record the trajectory of the sun in different solar terms within a year, it is necessary to ensure that the observations are all at the same time, which requires precise time.

At the same time, to observe the trajectory of the sun and the moon, we need an armillary sphere, and to observe the astronomical stars, we need an ambulatory image. These two instruments are very complex and difficult to make, and there are both star observatory platforms in Xiyang.

Not only that, the Xiyang Observatory used to measure sun shadow is also much taller than elsewhere, providing a strong guarantee for the precise measurement of sun shadow.

The so-called guibei is composed of two parts, one is a benchmark or stone pillar standing on the flat ground. After the Han Dynasty, it was changed to copper and was called a table.

One is a ruler placed flat on the ground in the north and south directions, which is made of jade or stone. After the Han Dynasty, it was also used to make copper, called Gui.

The gui and the table form the gui table perpendicular to each other. According to the length of the gui shadow at noon, the twenty-four solar terms can be inferred. From the periodic changes in the length of the gui shadow, the number of days in a return year can be determined.

The ancient representatives generally had a height of eight feet, but it was once changed to ten feet in the Han Dynasty. When the Liang Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties, there were nine feet high watches for shadow measurements. Today, the Xiyang Star Observatory used a high platform as a watch, and the height reached forty feet.

At the same time, the gui is more than 70 feet long. With this huge guitar, it will be more accurate to measure the sun's shadow. In addition, the magical astronomical mirror, the Xiyang Observatory has an infinite attraction to the sky.

With such a powerful tool in hand, it is no longer a fantasy.

"What Xiaochong asked just now was asked, and Yang Sima had to answer the question. The Xiyang Bell was complex in structure and was Yang Sima's masterpiece."

Liu Zhuo turned the problem of Xiyang clock to Yang Ji who was here. He had already figured out the principle of the clock, but if you want to explain it in detail, the main person still has to do it.

"Mr. Fang asked just now, and it is hard to explain the urgent matter." Yang Ji talked happily. As Yuwen Wen's "contractor", he was also very busy. "First, you need to know what 'escape' is."

He took out a special model of the escapement and explained to the people present what "escape" is. This is the core device of the clock, which is related to whether the clock can operate normally.

Everyone was listening to Yang Ji's explanation, and the door was gently pushed open. A boy about seven or eight years old tiptoed in and sat aside with the escapement in Jingjingji's hand.

"Escape, so that's it. No wonder Xiyang Bell can run accurately."

"Not only that, the agitated sphere of the observatory also uses escapement when operating, which are all Yang Sima's strange ideas."

When Liu Zhuo said this, he saw the servant at the door making a gesture, clapped his hands and whispered: "Everyone, it's time to go to the mirror."

When everyone heard this, they looked anxious and stood up one by one and walked to the next door. Fang Yanqian, who had just asked, walked to the child and asked, "Have you just now?"

"!"

The boy nodded and said excitedly: "Aye, the nebula is really spiral!"

"It's not just spiral shapes, but also various other shapes. You can observe them carefully in the future." Yang Ji walked aside and said to the father and son with a smile, "Mr. Fang, the son has read a lot of books at a young age, and he is really good at teaching."

Someone praised his son, and Fang Yanqian was naturally happy. Of course, he still wanted modesty on his face. Liu Zhuo came up and asked the boy interestingly: "Xiao Lang, are you used to living in Xiyang?"
Chapter completed!