My hotel is full of emperors throughout history.

Chapter 161 Zhenguan Divine Iron? Rebar?

(It won't directly affect the modern world; it's like a parallel universe. It will only affect unearthed artifacts and the like.)

Modern Zhaoling

Afternoon sunlight filters through the dense cypress forest, casting dappled shadows on the massive earthen mound and the ruins of the offering hall at Zhaoling Mausoleum.

Professor Liang Jinsheng, a renowned Chinese archaeologist specializing in Tang Dynasty archaeology, is currently teaching his students at Zhaoling Mausoleum.

"Note the changes in the rammed earth layers and the brick and stone masonry method here, which are significantly different from those in the main mausoleum area, suggesting that there may have been later additions or modifications..."

Professor Liang explained, his laser rangefinder and recording tablet never leaving his hands.

Suddenly, a dull creaking sound came, followed by the sound of earth and stones falling.

"Professor! Over there! The sidewall of Excavation Square D3!"

A sharp-eyed graduate student exclaimed.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound.

A section of the wall had somehow collapsed, revealing a dark, jagged hole!

Dust filled the air, forming a murky pillar of light under the sun.

"Step back! Be careful!"

Despite the shock, Professor Liang remained calm and immediately directed his team members to retreat to a safe distance. He then put on a protective mask and helmet, turned on a powerful flashlight, and cautiously went forward to investigate.

The dust gradually settled.

The beam of the flashlight pierced the darkness, providing initial illumination of the cave interior.

It appeared to be a small stone chamber that had been sealed off for a long time.

"Quick! Get the equipment! Carefully clean the hole, and make sure it's supported!"

Upon seeing this, Professor Liang became very excited, and his voice even trembled slightly.

The team members acted quickly, setting up lighting equipment and carefully widening and reinforcing the opening with professional tools.

Professor Liang then cautiously entered the stone chamber.

In the middle of the stone chamber, there was a dark, heavy metal bar with spiral patterns on its surface. Although it had been sealed for thousands of years, it still gleamed with a cold, hard luster in the darkness of the Zhaoling Mausoleum.

It lay there quietly, forming a stark contrast with the exquisite Tang Dynasty stone carvings and murals surrounding it.

Professor Liang looked at the long metal bar, his voice becoming even more excited.

"No mistake! Look at the texture, look at the material!"

He stepped forward, his white-gloved hand lightly stroking the metal surface, as if afraid that touching it would tarnish this priceless treasure.

"The Veritable Records of Emperor Taizong clearly state that 'in the ninth year of the Zhenguan era, the emperor placed a divine iron at the Zhuque Gate, called the Zhenguan Immortal Iron, which withstood countless blows without moving an inch!' This spiral pattern perfectly matches the strange spiral pattern described in historical records!"

He suddenly turned around and saw the stunned students behind him, especially the girl who had first noticed the strange thing.

"Kobayashi! You've done a great job! This is a crucial artifact that corroborates historical records!"

"This is the 'Zhenguan Divine Iron' that Emperor Taizong used to inspire the people and demonstrate the power of the nation!"

The girl called Kobayashi stared blankly at the Zhenguan Divine Iron.

Is this the legendary Zhenguan Divine Iron?

But why does this Zhenguan Divine Iron look like... the rebar on a construction site?

She opened her mouth, but seeing the professor and the group of students' excited expressions, she couldn't help but speak.

"Professor Liang, this... looks like rebar."

"Nonsense!"

Professor Liang turned around abruptly.

"Kobayashi! Archaeology is a discipline that requires a rigorous attitude!"

"Rebar? That's a product of modern industry! Did your country have blast furnace rebar rolling mills in the Tang Dynasty?"

He pointed to the metal strip, his tone resolute.

"This pattern, as clearly recorded in historical texts, is a unique spiral pattern, a distinctive feature of the immortal iron!"

"This is a national treasure, irrefutable physical evidence of the prosperous Zhenguan era!"

"Don't use your superficial modern knowledge to make wild guesses!"

Other classmates also cast strange glances at them, some with sympathy, some with incomprehension, and some with mockery.

Does anyone know of any threaded steel bars from the Tang Dynasty?

Xiaolin's face instantly turned bright red.

She examined the Zhenguan Divine Iron several more times.

The more I look at it, the more it resembles it!!!

Isn't this just rebar?

Professor Liang carefully cleaned the Zhenguan Divine Iron with his white-gloved hands, sighing with emotion.

"It's good that young people have imaginations, but it's even more important to respect history and physical objects."

"You must remember that we are not facing cold, lifeless objects, but witnesses to a rich history."

"This 'Zhenguan Divine Iron' embodies Emperor Taizong's ambition, the Tang Dynasty's formidable military achievements, and the spirit of that open and progressive era!"

Professor Liang paused, then looked at Xiaolin again.

"As for that rebar?"

"How is that possible!"

"We archaeologists need to be rigorous. How could such a thing have existed in the Tang Dynasty?"

"If that really happened, wouldn't that mean the Tang Dynasty had blast furnace rebar rolling mills?"

"How is that possible?"

The students nodded and took notes attentively.

Xiao Lin glanced at Professor Liang, who looked very serious, then at the rebar, and found it all increasingly absurd. He simply took a picture and sent it to his father.

Professor Liang immediately called for help.

It's also a way of having someone come and witness it.

Soon, several elderly professors who were also visiting Zhaoling with their students arrived.

"Old Zhang, look at this oxide layer! This patina!"

An elderly professor with gray hair, wearing a magnifying glass, almost pressed his face against the rebar.

"Perfectly natural; this cannot be artificially aged in modern times! It has been in a naturally formed state for at least a thousand years!"

The metallurgical expert, known as Old Zhang, carefully scanned the elements on the screen with a portable spectrometer, his brow furrowed as he looked at the composition displayed.

"Iron, carbon, manganese, silicon... and trace amounts of sulfur and phosphorus... This composition, this ratio, is very... very well-balanced, even advanced."

"But strangely, the content of impurities and the proportion of certain trace elements do not match the known smelting techniques of the Tang Dynasty..."

"If it doesn't match, that's fine!"

Another expert on Sui and Tang history slapped his thigh excitedly.

"What do the history books say?"

"Iron remnants from the Celestial Realm!"

"Is it comparable to the technology used in our mortal realm? Look at these patterns!"

He gestured with his hand towards the clearly defined spiral pattern.

"So uniform and consistent, it's imbued with a certain...industrial aesthetic!"

"This could never have been forged by the hand of Tang Dynasty craftsmen! This in itself is the best proof of its celestial origin!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, their gazes toward the rebar becoming even more intense.

Xiaolin stood on the periphery of the crowd, secretly glancing at the WeChat message her father had just sent on her phone.

"Girl, where did you get this picture? This is HRB400 rebar, the old national standard. It's used less now, but you can definitely still find a lot in the construction site warehouse."

"What's wrong? You archaeologists test this stuff?"

It was followed by a meme of someone picking their nose.

Xiao Lin:......

Looking at Professor Liang's expression, she spoke again.

"Professor, um... I asked my father, and he said this is exactly the same as the HRB400. Could it be a mixed-in one?"

"Blending in?"

A professor adjusted his glasses and first offered a word of praise.

"Kobayashi, your spirit of inquiry is commendable."

Then he pointed to this place and said.

"But look closely, this is the core area of Zhaoling Mausoleum, the undisturbed burial chamber!"

"The soil stratification is clear, with no trace of modern intrusion!"

"The location where this sacred iron was unearthed perfectly matches the historical record that Emperor Taizong moved it to the side of the Imperial Ancestral Temple for worship in his later years!"

"How could it possibly be some modern building material that was mixed in later?"

He pointed to the meticulously prepared archaeological excavation squares and stratigraphic markers around him.

Another expert also said with a smile.

"We must trust science, trust stratigraphy, and trust carbon-14 dating!"

"We must trust the clear records in historical texts! All of this points to one conclusion—this is the lost Zhenguan Divine Iron, a treasure lost for a thousand years!"

Another veteran expert spoke up with a smile.

"Little girl, I know this is hard to understand. But history is often more amazing than we imagine."

"Perhaps, in some unknown area, the Tang Dynasty did indeed possess technologies far beyond our imagination, but they have been lost."

"And this 'divine iron' is the key to opening that door!"

"I told you long ago it was impossible! My student is just stubborn."

Professor Liang criticized, but his tone was full of pride.

The other professor chuckled.

"In our line of work, stubbornness is actually an advantage."

He patted Xiaolin on the shoulder.

"Great! I have high hopes for you."

After saying that, he walked up to the Zhenguan Divine Iron and examined it carefully.

"Don't be fooled by its resemblance to rebar; it absolutely cannot be rebar!!!"