The Longest Pesach: R’ Yechezkel Landau was walking one day, when he noticed a nochri boy sitting and crying. He inquired, and the boy replied that every day he sells a basket of his uncle, the baker, ‘s bread but today it fell and he can’t sell it and his uncle will beat him mercilessly. R’ Landau gave him the amount of money he needed.
Years later, one Pesach, the boy–now a man–knocks on his door, and informs him that his uncle is plotting to kill all the Jews in the city. After Pesach every year, they all come to buy bread from him. He would poison the bread this year. R’ Landau must foil the plot, but without the uncle discovering the nephew gave him away.
On Acharon Shel Pesach, R’ Landau made an announcement in shul that there was a mistake in the calendar and that it was really the 7th day of Pesach. That night, or next morning, when everyone was observing Acharon Shel Pesach, he contacted the chief of police, who fed the bread to a dog, and found it to be poisoned. The baker was arrested, and R’ Landau announced that the calendars were right after all.
1. Why was he not oveir lo sichaneim?
2. What heter was there to extend Pesach and cause all those brachos levatalos?
3.Even if there is a heter, would it have been so hard to concoct a different story, maybe that all the flour in the country was found to be owned by a Jewish heretic (and came in contact with water), and hence no one may eat it?