Seeking Truth with a Sword

The weather was cool, with crystal dew glistening on the grass and flowers by the roadside, and assorted fallen leaves piled under the trees like a thick carpet.

In the southeast of East Chang'an, Furong Garden was the Royal Forest Garden of both the Former Sui and the Yu Dynasty. Located on the south bank of Qujiang Pool, it covered an area of over 30 hectares, abutting the Outer City of Chang'an, and was surrounded by tall walls.

It must be said, though the emperors of the Former Sui were known for their indulgence and decadence, their aesthetic standards were nonetheless impeccable. The palaces they had constructed in Furong Garden were countless, with a tower every ten steps and a pavilion every five, undulating continuously.

Dance pavilions, viewing platforms, and clusters of artificial mountains were all thoughtfully arranged. Every few steps revealed a completely different beautiful scene. No wonder Furong Garden was the liveliest spot in Chang'an, attracting the largest crowd.

However, Bian Chenpei, stationed high up in a pavilion, had no interest in enjoying the scenery.

He and a group of disciples from Taihao Mountain sat together, peering through the window at the bustling crowd below, his hand unconsciously rubbing a waist token.

The outer part of Furong Garden was open to the citizens of Chang'an, but there were several Forbidden Gardens within, each of a different level, and one needed to hold tokens of various grades to enter.

At this moment, the people standing below were students from various countries, and in the distance, one could faintly hear an even noisier crowd.

Somehow, word had spread about Li Ang's bet with the guests from Taihao Mountain.

How could the foreign students participating in the academic exchange miss such a spectacle? And the citizens of Chang'an, who held the Academic Palace and Li Ang in the highest regard, also flocked to Furong Garden voluntarily after hearing about it, joining in the excitement as if on an autumn outing.

One thing led to another, and the scene became even livelier than a holiday festival.

If one looked beyond the wall, they could even see vendors setting up stalls, beginning to sell snacks, sweets, and toys.

Bian Chenpei's expression was slightly troubled. Back in the Zhou Kingdom, in Taihao Mountain, he had always been the center of attention, the protagonist. He had never been treated like this before.

These people of Yu Country...

"When will the people from the Academic Palace arrive?" a disciple from Taihao Mountain couldn't help asking. "Wasn't it agreed upon for the Si Chu hour?"

Another person said, "Let's wait a little longer; the Haotian Bell hasn't rung yet."

Before he had finished speaking, a wave of noise surged from the floor below. Bian Chenpei immediately stood up and looked down. Sure enough, he saw the Academic Palace crowd approaching in a mighty throng from the garden entrance.

At the forefront was the Academic Palace Sacrificial Official, Chen Danqiu. He led the way, flanked by the Doctor of Science Su Feng and the Talismanic Master Tantai Leshan. Following them was a group of Academic Palace Instructors and Assistant Tutors.

Li Ang walked in the middle of the group, a faint smile on his face, followed by a procession of flatbed horse carts, each covered in thick layers of cloth.

Through the cloth, one could vaguely see the protruding shapes of the cargo.

He really came.

Bian Chenpei pursed his lips slightly, his heart involuntarily tensing as a flicker of regret passed through his mind.

"Let's go down."

Yu Feiyu, who had been flipping through the Haotian Classics in the corner, stood up. Leading the Taihao Mountain disciples down from the pavilion, his brows slightly furrowed, he approached the Academic Palace crowd.

"Chen Jijiu."

"Yu Envoy."

Chen Danqiu and Yu Feiyu exchanged cool greetings. Chen briefly explained, "This model aircraft was built by the Academic Palace with considerable manpower and resources, so we had to bring extra horse carts for its escort."

"Mhm." Yu Feiyu was not inclined to dwell on it. "Shall we begin then?"

"Alright." Chen Danqiu turned his head and glanced at Su Feng, who nodded and beckoned his disciples to unload the cloth-wrapped bundles from the horse carts, revealing the components piece by piece.

「 」

"Is that the new flying machine developed by the Academic Palace that can carry people?"

From the palace towers in Furong Garden in the distance, Emperor Yu leaned against the railing, peering through the telescope recently offered as Tribute by Lu Li Academy.

"Let me see." Empress Xue, at his side holding her young adopted daughter, also used a smaller, exquisitely made binocular telescope with fine gold chains to gaze into the distance.

"Mom, I want to see too," the little princess in the Empress's arms babbled, reaching out with her plump hands. The Empress then lifted her higher, and mother and daughter each used one side of the telescope to look into the distance.

At this moment, the Emperor's family, ruling over four hundred million Yu Country people, seemed just like an ordinary family of three out on an autumn day, content and serene.

Li Leqing and the other princes and princesses sat around the fireplace inside the tower, smiling at the scene. The irritation and gloom that had arisen from the recent court turmoil had lessened considerably.

"Right, Leqing," a slightly older princess smiled and said. "Aren't you going down to have a look? Your Mr. Li is over there."

"What are you talking about, sister?" Li Leqing's cheeks flushed slightly, and she instinctively shrank her neck, cautiously glancing at Emperor Yu nearby.

After confirming her parents hadn't heard, she smacked her lips and also took out a small telescope from her arms to look into the distance.

In Furong Garden, the Academic Palace Disciples were unloading components piece by piece from the horse carts.

Li Ang stepped forward, took a deep breath, and squatted down, quickly beginning to assemble.

He connected hollow, light, internally grooved metal tubes, attaching cranks, flywheels, gear discs, chains, seats, and pedals.

Soon, a strange and peculiar machine was put together. It had a seat in the back, a steering helm in the front, and above the rear, a huge metal propeller was connected. It looked somewhat similar to a water-powered mill.

Mechanical structure...

Li Leqing frowned slightly. In Natural Science class, they had learned about the structural principles of water-powered mills and seen finely complex gear assemblies. A water-powered mill uses the flow of water to turn the waterwheel's axle, which, via gears, turns the millstone, changing vertical circular motion into horizontal circular motion. And that machine seemed to use chains to convert the circular motion applied to the pedals and gear disc into the propeller's circular motion.

After completing the assembly of the most crucial power component, Li Ang and others began to assemble other parts.

First were the wings, their span an almost exaggerated thirty meters on both sides. The leading edge consisted of tubular Wing Beams, while the middle section featured ribs made of light, thin planks and metal wire, all enveloped in a layer of sturdy paper. At intervals, metal wires connected from the Wing Beam to the central column to reduce weight pressure.

At the back of the central column was the propeller. Beneath it, the bicycle-like structure served as both the cockpit and the vertical tail fin. In the front was a metal mast, with its other end connected to a smaller horizontal tail fin.

Viewed from above, the entire flying machine was shaped like a capital "I".

The surrounding disciples couldn't help but discuss the oddly-shaped flying machine.

"Can this really fly?"

"I understand the concept, but why are the wings so big?"

"Didn't they mention that lift coefficient formula in Natural Science class? The larger the wing area, the larger the lift coefficient..."