Supernatural Events in the Military 352: Chapter 362
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墨書 Inktalez
The professor looked at me and Dragon Girl, lost in thought for a moment, then slowly said, "I remember it was a bronze mirror. It seems that something happened to that girl just when the mirror was being handed over." 0
 
"Bronze mirror," both Dragon Girl and I exclaimed in unison. 0
 
"Yes, it's a bronze mirror from the Jin Dynasty, the most valuable cultural relic found in that tomb." Seeing our puzzled expressions, the professor smiled and began to educate us. "Don't underestimate bronze mirrors. The bronze mirrors and their surface residues we discovered from tombs can directly or indirectly reflect the funerary customs, religious beliefs, and traditional concepts of ancient people surrounding the use of mirrors. Moreover, based on the residues and accompanying items found with the bronze mirrors, there were various ways in which they were placed. For instance, they were often simply wrapped in cloth and placed down; some were put into round or square containers; others were hung from waist pouches. Larger ones were placed on mirror stands or framed within mirror screens. The way these mirrors were buried reflects filial piety customs in funerary activities as they were used by the deceased during their lifetime." 0
 
"Is it really that mysterious?" I muttered. 0
 
Dragon Girl nudged me. 0
 
"Haha," Professor Zhang laughed heartily. "Did you know that ancient Chinese bronze mirrors were used for over four thousand years? This is the longest usage period among all ancient bronze artifacts. For a long time, academia has placed great importance on the study of ancient Chinese bronze mirrors. There are countless monographs and papers, but the research scope has mostly been limited to aspects such as the shape, decoration, and casting techniques of the mirrors themselves. Very few have studied the burial conditions of bronze mirrors across different eras—specifically their burial orientations and forms—let alone the information related to how ancient people used them. I find this particularly interesting; I've spent five or six years just on this topic, writing extensively about it. The Western Jin tomb I excavated has provided a wealth of detailed data for my thesis." 0
 
"I just want to know what’s special about that mirror," I couldn't help but mumble again. 0
 
"Be patient and listen to your teacher," Dragon Girl urged me again. 0
 
"The mirror itself isn't particularly special; it's just that its use in tombs for warding off evil reflects ancient people's views on ghosts during funerary activities. The copper mirrors depicting Buddhist and Taoist themes reflect the religious beliefs of the deceased and are very valuable cultural relics. Among thousands of tombs, many burial methods for bronze mirrors are quite unique. As mentioned earlier, some mirrors were placed on various parts of the body—head, chest, abdomen, hips, knees, feet—of the deceased. Some mirrors covered the face of the deceased; others stood upright at their head or foot; some were held in their hands; some were embedded within face masks or nailed to coffin walls; others were placed at tunnel entrances or hung on tomb walls. In some tombs, bronze mirrors were paired with specific objects; for example, a pair of scissors might be placed next to a mirror at the head of the deceased or weapons beside another mirror." 0
 
Regarding the ghost-repelling function of bronze mirrors, there are many records in literature after the Han Dynasty. According to Longjiang Record: "Emperor Han Xuan had a precious mirror like a five-zhu coin that could see demons; he often wore it." During the Eastern Han period, sorcerer Guo Xian mentioned in Cave of Darkness: "On top of Moon Viewing Pavilion is a golden mirror four feet wide; during Yuan Guang's reign, this was offered by a country and could see demons and spirits that dared not hide." After the Han Dynasty, there are numerous inscriptions on bronze mirrors with ghost-repelling content such as "May no harm come from above; skilled artisans carve it into words; left dragon right tiger ward off misfortune; vermilion bird and black tortoise follow yin and yang. May descendants be complete in central positions; may parents enjoy wealth and prosperity; may longevity be as solid as gold and stone like lords." These inscriptions clearly indicate that by at least the Han Dynasty, bronze mirrors had been used as tools for warding off evil spirits. The reason ancient people believed in the magical power of mirrors lies in their worship and superstition surrounding them. Crafting a copper mirror involves a complex process making it quite valuable. Mirrors can accurately reflect images of everything around them, enhancing their mystery; thus people naturally regarded copper mirrors as elite objects imbued with spirit. Additionally, since copper mirrors have shiny surfaces that can reflect sunlight while ghosts are imagined as shadowy entities from another realm, it was believed that as long as a copper mirror was present, any invisible or shapeshifting demons would be forced to reveal their true forms. 0
 
Now let's talk about this Western Jin Tomb. Due to continuous warfare during this period, the Yellow River basin—historically an economic, political, and cultural center—suffered severe destruction with a sharp population decline and economic downturn until some development occurred during the Northern Dynasties period. In contrast, southern regions experienced less plundering and maintained continuous development. Similar to many handicraft sectors, there were differences between northern and southern bronze mirror casting industries overall during this decline period. During this time, bronze mirrors still belonged to Han-style categories but did not develop as much as during the Han Dynasty due to a lack of innovation; their shapes, decorations, layouts, and techniques largely followed Eastern Han bronze mirrors with generally inferior casting quality compared to Han mirrors. Compared between north and south: northern bronze mirrors retained more traditional elements while southern beast-mirrors and portrait-mirrors showed variations in decoration with slight developments within inheritance. The characteristics of mirrors from this period include: round bodies with large round knobs; common round knob bases adorned with various floral patterns or geometric designs; inwardly curved patterns or plain edges also appeared frequently. The main decorative themes favored half-relief or shallow relief styles with common subjects differing between north and south—the northern ones featuring persimmon-stem curved patterns, grid patterns, beast-head motifs, Kui Phoenix patterns, dragon patterns etc., while southern ones mainly included beast-mirrors, portrait-mirrors, auspicious beast-mirrors etc. The layout of decorations showed no new changes remaining primarily axial symmetrical or surrounding styles where thematic decorations might be arranged in segmented rows alongside inscriptions similar to those found on Han knobs. 0
 
"So what kind of mirror is this? Is it from the south or north?" Moya suddenly asked while standing next to Professor Zhang early on as if regretting missing out on excavating an ancient tomb. 0
 
"Strangely enough," Professor Zhang gently shook his head and said slowly. "It is neither a beast-mirror nor a portrait-mirror." He continued thoughtfully: "I've never seen such an odd mirror before—it resembles a Shikigami beast-mirror featuring four divine beasts surrounding a circular knob base as its main form along with several smaller beasts accompanying them between gods and beasts forming various types like four divine beasts with six beasts etc. But it's truly not a beast-mirror because only Qinglong (Azure Dragon) and Xuanwu (Black Tortoise) appear above along with several ambiguous demon-like figures intertwined within its patterns. I feel it resembles a specially crafted mirror with unique functions." 0
 
"Where exactly was this mirror found in the tomb?" Dragon Girl suddenly asked. 0
 
Actually, I found myself getting more engrossed in listening—it seemed quite interesting! "Well asked! Since Qin and Han times," Professor Zhang continued enthusiastically, "in addition to placing mirrors within large or medium-sized tombs' chambers or passageways most bronze mirrors were typically placed inside coffins. The placement methods inside coffins varied including positions at head level behind feet level near chest sides or held by hand etc. Noble tombs generally contained two or more bronze mirrors each while larger tombs sometimes had one at head front one behind feet or vice versa—some had both types positioned at head front feet back or jade walls within partitioned chambers where passageway's bronze mirrors usually lay bare while those inside main chambers could either be bare or placed within containers." He paused before adding: "The mirror we discovered is quite strange—it was embedded within the coffin lid." Professor Zhang's expression appeared quite peculiar. 0
 
"Wait! Professor," I interjected suddenly realizing something important he had mentioned earlier about noble tombs typically containing two mirrors—given your excavation scale should be above noble level then could there possibly be another mirror?" 0
 
 
Professor Zhang looked up at me in confusion. "I really hadn't thought about that. I can't tell you the specifications of the tomb; all I can say is that it ranks above the Three Dukes, which means it's not much different from that of a prince or nobleman. However, we cannot determine who the tomb owner is. Moreover, we only found a mirror inside." He murmured again, "Could it have been stolen by tomb raiders? No, that's impossible; there were no signs of a break-in." 0
 
"Professor, could you tell us about tomb culture? For instance, does this mirror have any special functions?" Dragon Girl deliberately steered the conversation toward the mirror. I instantly understood her intention; she must also think there was something off about that mirror, which had affected the intern who participated in the excavation. 0
 
"What do you want to ask?" The professor seemed still lost in thought about his previous question and showed a sudden lack of patience toward Dragon Girl's inquiry. 0
 
"Uh, what I mean is, is it possible that ancient people used some kind of magic to place special things in the mirror that could affect those who touched it?" 0
 
"The Western Jin Dynasty saw a rise in Taoism; it's possible," he said with a sigh. "But these are all superstitions; I'm just saying this casually—don't take it too seriously." The professor spoke absentmindedly. 0
 
I was somewhat confused; wasn't a bronze mirror supposed to ward off evil? How could it also be used to harm people? 0
 
But for some reason, I noticed that Dragon Girl's gaze seemed somewhat unfocused, which was strange. 0
 
"Professor, if such magic really exists—whether to prevent tomb raiding or accidents—what should one do if someone experiences some unusual situation?" 0
 
"What to do?" The professor took a sip of tea that had been sitting for a long time and frowned. "We would need to find another identical bronze mirror and see if it triggers any reactions. From ancient literature, we know that as early as the Jin Dynasty, bronze mirrors became tools for Taoists to deal with demons and monsters. Ge Hong, a Taoist from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, wrote 'Baopuzi,' which contains twenty volumes detailing numerous tales of immortals, alchemy, talismans, and more—all from a Taoist perspective. The book states: 'After all things in the world grow old over time, they will gain spirituality and supernatural powers. Their essence can transform into human forms to haunt and confuse people; however, they cannot change their true form in a mirror—the mirror reveals their true appearance.' There are many related tales of Taoist immortals and monsters associated with bronze mirrors that had considerable influence in both ancient times and later folklore. Ah, I'm just speaking casually; actually, some tombs after the Tang Dynasty also contained Bagua Mirrors and mirrors depicting immortal figures as Taoist-themed burial items. However, their burial forms were no different from ordinary grave goods, and there were no other items proving that the tomb owner was a Taoist priest. It's possible these bronze mirrors were primarily used by the deceased for daily grooming while also serving as protective tools against evil spirits. Ha! Well, I have other matters to attend to; let's leave it at this for today." The professor clearly wanted to leave. 0
 
After supporting the professor out, Xiao Mo Ya and I stood there for a while, exchanging glances. 0
 
"You mean there's something wrong with that mirror?" I finally spoke up; staying silent wasn't going to help. 0
 
"Yes," Dragon Girl nodded. "I suspect that after the intern touched the mirror, they fainted and then triggered a series of events upon returning to school." 0
 
"If that's the case, then what happened later at school makes sense. But why did nothing happen to the professor after he touched the mirror?" I countered. 0
 
"I don't know. Maybe there are triggering conditions or perhaps the professor was more cautious and wore gloves while that intern touched it barehanded. Any of these scenarios could be possible," Dragon Maiden said with a frown. I looked at her; sunlight streamed through the window onto her fair skin with a hint of pink, almost as if she were coated in golden light—quite charming indeed. 0
 
"What are you looking at me for?" She seemed to notice my gaze and retorted. 0
 
To cover my embarrassment, I casually changed the subject. "What do you think is really inside the mirror?" I asked her. 0
 
 
"I don't know, maybe there are ghosts," Long Xia said softly after a long pause. 0
 
Even though it was daytime, I felt the hairs on my arms stand up. I seemed to see that night at the excavation site, a malevolent spirit clinging to the Intern, invisible to everyone else. 0
 
"What should we do?" 0
 
"We can only do what the teacher said and find another bronze mirror to try. Maybe it will trigger some reactions." 0
 
"But we need to find another mirror from the same dynasty," I murmured. 0
 
"It's easy for you to say. Where are we supposed to find one from the same era? The teacher also mentioned that this one was specially made; there might only be one," Dragon Girl said, clearly feeling a bit frustrated. 0
 
Bronze mirror, bronze mirror... Suddenly, I remembered something.(THE END) 0
 
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  • Amy
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  • Smith
  • Edward
Supernatural Events in the Military

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  • Amy
  • Mary
  • John
  • Smith
  • Edward