My autobiography is definitely not a tragedy!
Chapter 626 - 400: Secret Anecdotes and Unofficial Histories_3

Chapter 626: Chapter 400: Secret Anecdotes and Unofficial Histories_3

However, seven years after the Palace of Bright was completed, it was destroyed by a fire. Wu Zetian then spent a significant amount of manpower and resources on reconstruction, which was said to employ ten thousand workers daily.

Latterly, she constructed Heaven north of the Palace of Bright, where it is said the Buddha statue in front of the temple was so enormous that ten people could stand on just its little finger, indicating the grandeur of this building and the Buddha.

Regrettably, this structure was completely destroyed during the An-Shi Rebellion, with few ancient relics preserved.

"And this so-called ’age-old Palace of Bright Buddha head’ should merely be from a relatively smaller Buddha statue worshiped inside the hall."

"Hmm! You did quite well on your homework!" the elder said with some satisfaction, nodding his head.

"Since you know that the Palace of Bright was built by Wu Zetian, do you know any of the secret tales or rumors from that time?"

"Secret tales and rumors?" The young scholar’s eyes lit up.

"Mentor, you like those too?

"Do you prefer the 1994 ’Wu Zetian’, the 1999 ’The Palace of Bright’, or the 2004 ’Song of the Inscriptionless Stele’?

"Actually, I’m rather fond of the 2012 ’Secret History of Princess Taiping’..."

Mentor: "..."

Who digs into historical materials through TV dramas?

This guy couldn’t have chosen archaeology just because he liked watching these, could he? How could I have been so blind to accept such a disciple?

It’s really tough to manage the post-90s generation...

He couldn’t help but rub his temples.

"Cough! Pretty much, well, since you’ve watched these, then you should know some of the rumors about Wu Zetian.

In the Tang Dynasty, Wu Zetian revered Buddhism. It could be said that Buddhism only began to flourish in the Central Plains with the onset of the Tang Dynasty.

Wu Zetian stirred a major controversy by welcoming the ’Buddha’s relics,’ and didn’t hesitate to burden the populace and exhaust resources to build the Palace of Bright.

’The Comprehensive Reflections of Governance-Tang Dynasty-The First Year of Tiance Wan Sui’ contains this record.

Once the Palace of Bright was completed, Empress Dowager commanded Seng Huaiyi to craft a large statue housed within, whose pinkie alone could fit dozens of people. To the north of Palace of Bright, Heaven was constructed to shelter it.

"So, does that ring any bells?"

"’Once the Palace of Bright was completed, Empress Dowager commanded Seng Huaiyi ...’"

The young scholar looked again at the Buddha head, repeated the words to himself, and after a moment, his eyes widened.

"Damn! You can’t be saying, Mentor, that this Buddha’s appearance was modeled after that particular Xue Huaiyi?"

The elder smiled.

"This is just a theory of mine, after all, during Wu Zetian’s time, the Tang bureaucratic scholars held the power of the pen and did their utmost to discredit her.

Therefore, much of the historical material concerning Wu Zetian is unreliable.

However, regardless of whether Xue Huaiyi was an actual consort of Wu Zetian, considering his status and contributions during the construction of the Palace of Bright, it’s likely not impossible that Wu Zetian had a Buddha statue made in his honor..."

The young scholar was speechless.

This... having a Buddha statue carved in memory of the favorite official, and placing it in the hall for daily viewing...

What an oddly specific hobby...

...

"Xue Huaiyi? That’s quite interesting..."

Meng Lang was originally spying on Iwazaki Yuhei but inadvertently became captivated by the conversation between the two, as heard from the surveillance. After all, enjoying gossip is human nature.

Furthermore, with Iwazaki family’s people persistently harassing him, Meng Lang stroked his chin, sensing that this Buddha head was becoming a bigger and bigger source of intrigue...

Xue Huaiyi, from Hu County, Jingzhao County, was a favored official during the Wuzhou era of Tang Dynasty.

According to historical records, he was tall and handsome and, recommended by Princess Qianjin (daughter of Emperor Tang Gaozu), became the first chief favorite of Wu Zetian.

Later, Xue Huaiyi was ordained as a monk, spending a long time beside Wu Zetian under the guise of a monk.

Due to his supervisory roles in the construction of the Baima Temple and the Palace of Bright, he was titled Duke Liang.

He repeatedly served as the chief military commander, leading troops to fend off Turkic attacks and was appointed Great General of the Left Guard.

In the First Year of Tian Shou, he inspected the Right Guard Great General, received the title Support Nation Great General, and was titled Duke E.

Yet, as the emperor’s favor waned and his demeanor grew haughty, particularly after setting the Palace of Bright on fire, he finally fell out of favor with Wu Zetian.

In the Second year of Yanzai (695), he was condemned to death for his crimes, and his body was sent back to Baima Temple for cremation...

If there were ever a founding figure for men thriving on feminine support, Xue Huaiyi, who clung to the only female emperor in Huaxia’s history, certainly topped the charts in that league!