Shadow of the Tomb Raider: A Complete Record of the History of Tomb Raiders in China

Chapter 33 The third wave of tomb robbery: the trend of tomb robbery in the Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (2)
After Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty arrived in Zhangye, the monarchs and ministers of 27 countries in the Western Regions came to court one after another to express their submission.Businessmen from all over the world also gather in Zhangye for trade.Emperor Sui Yang personally opened up the Silk Road, which is an achievement that only a famous emperor through the ages can have.To show off the prosperity of China, Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty held a grand World Expo on the ancient Silk Road.This is a world first.

Finally, he established the Jinshi Department and formed the imperial examination system, which was conducive to the selection of talents and improved administrative efficiency.

With the decline of the gentry family and the rise of the commoner landlords, the nine-rank Zhongzheng system, which has emphasized family status in the selection of officials since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, can no longer continue.After Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty came to the throne, he abolished the nine-rank Zhongzheng system and began to select officials by means of examinations by subjects.During the reign of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, the Jinshi Department was officially established, and the imperial examination system in our country was officially born.This system has been used until the end of Qing Dynasty.

In the second year of Daye (AD 606), Emperor Sui Yang established the Jinshi Department and established the imperial examination system. This is an epoch-making event in Chinese history.Yang Guang created the imperial examination system, which had a far-reaching influence on later generations, and set up a Jinshi department. At that time, the Jinshi department mainly focused on political essays and selected talents with "beautiful literary talents". "Tong Dian" says that Yang Guang's priority is personal quality rather than literary talent.Emperor Yangdi also increased the number of imperial examinations.By 607 AD, there were already ten subjects for the examination.This marked the birth of the imperial examination system.

In the third year of Daye (607 A.D.), Emperor Yang ordered: "Those who are civil and military officials are famous for their filial piety, their virtues are honest, they can be called righteous, their behavior is clean, they are strong and upright, they are indomitable in their constitution, and they are excellent in their studies. , Literary talent is beautiful, talent is worthy of general strategy, buttocks are strong and strong, ten imperial examinations."

In the fifth year of Daye (609 A.D.), Emperor Yang also issued an edict: "All counties should be good at their studies, excellent in talent, strong in hips, superior in ethics, hardworking in officials, capable of handling political affairs, upright in character, and not shy away from the strong. Four imperial examinations." Yang Guang, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, paid more attention to the policy of selecting talents for personal quality, and cultivated a large number of strong and upright talents for the early Tang Dynasty.The establishment of the imperial examination system emphasized the quality of talent and learning rather than family status, which weakened the hereditary privileges of powerful families. "Hundred officials must not be considered for promotion, they must have the function of virtue, and those who are outstanding will be promoted." "Wei and Zhou officials must not be shadowed." great opportunity.This is undoubtedly an extremely brilliant pioneering work, which has a profound impact on future generations of China.

The establishment of the imperial examination system was a great progress in the feudal system of selecting officials: it broke through the monopoly of official careers by aristocratic families, and played a role in restraining the elites; it expanded the source of officials and provided a large number of low-ranking landlords and intellectuals with low family status to participate in politics. Opportunity, "the big ones go to the stage, and the small ones are appointed to the county"; the imperial examination system closely links reading, examinations and being an official, which improves the cultural quality of officials; the imperial examination takes the power of selecting talents and appointing officials from the local wealthy The concentration of the aristocratic families into the hands of the central government has greatly strengthened the centralization of power and is conducive to the stability of the political situation.Therefore, this system has been used throughout the dynasties and has far-reaching influence.

In addition, he also set up schools, widely searched historical records, and promoted the development of education and culture.These measures are undoubtedly progressive.It should be said that Emperor Sui Yang made contributions to Chinese history.

However, Emperor Sui Yang was indeed another tyrant.

Yang Guang, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, was born with a willow personality, and he only held the thoughts of "drunk today when there is wine" and "having fun in time". Although he held the power of life and death for all people in his lifetime, he did not think about his own After death, there is no motive to build a luxurious imperial mausoleum for himself to enjoy after ascending to heaven.In the history books of the Sui Dynasty, there is no record at all.Perhaps, the smart one has already understood the truth that life and death come and go without any worries.Although since the beginning of the Sui Dynasty, that is to say, since his father Yang Jian, the Qin and Han mausoleum system of sealing earth as a tomb has been restored, what Emperor Sui Yang did was precisely a rebellion against this system.After Sui Yangdi came to the throne, he was not busy planning for his own affairs like other emperors in history, enclosing land and building mausoleums, but persistently implementing policies he thought were right.

In 618 A.D., Emperor Yang hugged a woman in the greenhouse of the Jiangdu Palace and refused to let go. General Yu Wenhuaji of Youtunwei, Sima Dekan and Yuan Li of Huben Lang finally couldn't bear it anymore and stabbed her to death with their swords.Empress Xiao ordered the palace people who hadn't escaped to remove the bed boards and make a coffin to bury Emperor Yang. Everyone ran away in a panic, only Yu Wenhua was the last one to leave the greenhouse.Chen Leng, the general of the right guard who had received great favor from Emperor Yangdi, found someone to carry Yangdi's coffin to the Wu Gongtai, and buried Yangdi hastily.

However, things are not over yet.On the third day after Emperor Yangdi was buried, two holes the size of the altar waist appeared on the side of his inconspicuous mausoleum, so people talked a lot.Some say it was chiseled by pangolins and put into the coffin to eat the brains of Emperor Yang; A beautiful woman who made him happy.Therefore, such a jade bracelet is like a symbol of power, and has become the goal that these women are chasing.Because of this kind of saying, the tomb robbers dug the hole purely for the purpose of getting rich, and searched for the beautiful jade that Yangdi carried with him.Anonymous, a scholar in the late Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years later, believed that it was impossible for Yangdi to enter the tomb with his arms full of jade bracelets, because after his death, at least three people had the opportunity to stay by his side alone. One is Empress Xiao, one is Yu Wenhuaji, and the other is Chen Leng, all of whom have the possibility of taking the jade bracelet to themselves.Judging from the act of burying Emperor Yangdi in Leitang in 622 A.D., the fifth year of Tang Gaozu Wude, Chen Leng, who descended to Tang Dynasty and was appointed as the general manager of Jiangdu, it can be seen that the jade bracelet of Emperor Yangdi, who had been dead for four years, was obviously not taken by Chen Leng. income.In this way, Emperor Sui Yang left us a millennium mystery: Did the priceless jade bracelet fall into the hands of Yu Wenhuaji, or was it taken by Empress Xiao, or was it seized by tomb robbers?

Taizong's thin burial deceived the world

Time flies by, and time ruthlessly enters the glorious Tang Dynasty that was once admired by the world.

Li Shimin was pushed to the center of the historical stage by the current situation.Tang Taizong Li Shimin, the second emperor of the Tang Dynasty, his name means "helping the world and calming the people".A native of Chengji in Longxi, whose ancestral home was Longqing, Zhaojun, he was a statesman, military strategist, calligrapher and poet.After ascending the throne, he actively listened to the opinions of his ministers and worked hard to learn how to rule the world. There is an idiom called "listen to make you bright and believe in darkness." It refers to him. He successfully transformed into one of the most famous politicians and wise emperors in Chinese history.Emperor Taizong of Tang created the "Regulation of Zhenguan" in history. After taking the initiative to eliminate the separatist forces in various places, humbly accepting advice, practicing strict economy in the country, and allowing the people to recuperate, the society finally appeared a situation of peace and prosperity.It laid an important foundation for the prosperous Kaiyuan later, and pushed China's traditional agricultural society to its heyday.

At this time, the story of Li Shimin forcibly taking the court lady of Empress Cao Pi, the lord of the Kingdom of Wei during the Three Kingdoms period, spread between the court and the opposition. The chapter "Women in Yezhong" tells the story of Dou Jiande, a general of the uprising army at the end of the Sui Dynasty, encountering a beautiful woman by chance while robbing a tomb.When Dou Jiande started the uprising, he had no choice but to follow the example of Cao Cao in robbing tombs and digging treasures in order to maintain the daily expenses of the rebel army in order to maintain the daily expenses of the rebel army when there was no large sum of money to support and the food was extremely scarce.I don't know whether it was God's will or a coincidence, Dou Dejian actually stole the tomb of Cao Cao's son Wei Wendi and Empress Cao Pi.After opening the coffin, it was found that there was a woman in her 20s, who looked like a fairy and was very beautiful, lying in the coffin as if she was alive.Dou Jiande looked at the clothes and funeral objects worn by the woman, and knew that she was not from that time.After a while, the beauty began to pant, and slowly opened her eyes, the onlookers were horrified.Unexpectedly, the palace maid who was buried 300 years ago was miraculously resurrected.Dou Jiande felt that this was very strange, so he took the woman back to the army for recuperation.After questioning, the woman claimed to be the maid of Empress Cao Pi, so Dou Jiande accepted her as a concubine.What's even more strange is that after Li Shimin heard about this incident, he actually wanted to occupy this woman and make her a concubine in the harem.The woman said that it was Dou Jiande who saved her and made her what she is today, and the grace of rebirth should not be forgotten.It is said that after being rejected, Li Shimin still felt very sad.The original text is as follows:
Dou Jiande, a tomb in Changfa Yezhong, has nothing else.When I opened the coffin, I saw a woman in her twenties with a lifelike color and beautiful appearance.The shape of clothing is not modern.Waiting for it, it seems to have breath.It was taken back and raised by the army. It was born in three days and could speak.Yun: "I am a member of Wei Wendi's palace. I was buried here with Empress Zhen in Ye. I was destined to be reborn, but I had no family members to appeal to, so I went to Youge. I don't know when it will be." Said that Empress Zhen saw harm, It is clear.Jiande loves it very much.Later, Jiande was destroyed by Emperor Taizong, and the emperor accepted it.Naiju made things clear, and said: "I have been secluded in the yellow land for 300 years. How can I see today without Mr. Dou? Death is the part of my concubine." Then he died of hatred, and the emperor hurt him very much.

"Three Kingdoms" records that Cao Pi's queen was indeed surnamed Zhen, and she was the daughter of Zhen Yi, the order of Cai Ling at that time.In February of the first year of Yankang, Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty (AD 220), Cao Pi became king.During the southern expedition in June, the Zhen family was left in Yedi.In the second year of Huangchu (AD 221), because she fell out of favor with Cao Pi, the Zhen family complained a lot and was jealous of other concubines. This made Cao Pi very angry, and sent someone to bestow her death and bury her in Ye.According to what the resurrected court lady said, "Empress Sui Zhen is in Ye", which is no different from the historical facts.

As for Li Shimin occupying the resurrected palace maid as a concubine, we can also find clues from the history books. "New Book of Tang" records that Dou Jiande was killed by Li Shimin, who was the King of Qin at that time.At that time, Li Shimin sent Qin Shubao out to lead Dou Jiande out. As a result, Dou Jiande was startled and hesitated, was severely injured, captured alive, and was beheaded in Chang'an.After Dou's death, his family members were all lost by Li Shimin. It is very likely that this maid was attracted by Li Shimin at this time, but it is difficult to say whether it was the court lady who got out of the tomb.Perhaps it was because people at that time harbored resentment against him for launching the Xuanwumen coup, and deliberately fabricated the pornographic news.

No matter how the ruling and opposition parties discussed, or how legendary and frightening the fabricated stories were, as Li Shimin used his knowledge of virtue and talent to accept advice and appoint talents, the rule of Zhenguan quickly formed a good situation, and the national strength became stronger day by day.However, the great ancestor Li Yuan, who fought and fought for years and galloped on the pommel horse to establish the eternal foundation, became a sad transitional person.Shimin seems to have not seen the achievements of Shimin's hard work in the past few years.The deep pain in his heart entangled his thin and depressed body.At the beginning of the establishment of the great cause, the sons fought for the succession and killed each other. Overnight, he lost the "father and son soldiers" who had fought with him, the eldest son Jiancheng and the third son Yuanji. He was distraught and unable to extricate himself; The shadow of being forced to "abide" the throne to his second son Li Shimin before he was addicted to the emperor has been difficult to dispel...

In October of the ninth year of Zhenguan (635), Tang Gaozu Li Yuan passed away forever and went west by crane.Jujing fell into grief.For a while, there was a heated debate surrounding the construction of the mausoleum for the Supreme Emperor.Between the monarch and his ministers, each of them insisted on his own words.

According to the first ninety-fourth volume of "Zizhi Tongjian", Tang Taizong Li Shimin, who was weeping and disorganized when he first encountered the funeral of his elders, had a blind eye, and casually issued an edict to the civil and military officials in white clothes on both sides: "The Mausoleum of the Taishang Emperor follows the story of the Changling Mausoleum of the Han Dynasty, and strives to preserve the grandeur."

All the ministers know that the Changling Mausoleum of the Han Dynasty is the mausoleum of Liu Bang, the great ancestor of the Han Dynasty.Liu Bang cut the white snake with a three-foot sword in his hand and ordered the world to seize the country. When he became the founding emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, he promulgated the burial regulations.From his second year on the throne, he took one-third of the national tax every year to build a large-scale Shouling for himself.Special personnel were appointed to supervise the establishment process of Shouling, and the emperor himself went to inspect it in person from time to time.

Why did Li Shimin use the burial regulations of the Han Dynasty as a reference for the construction of his father's tomb?This is mainly because the Han Mausoleum is located in Wulingyuan, and its scale and shape are too eye-catching. The Wuling Mausoleum was originally located in Xianyang, a short distance from Chang'an. First of all, Liu Bang and the Supreme Emperor Li Yuan have something in common, that is, they are both the founding kings.

Li Shimin issued an edict that the scale of his father's mausoleum should be in accordance with "the story of Changling", and that it should also be "preserved and generous". Obviously, he wanted to show the love of father and son and bury his father well.

Quiet and silent, both civil and military classes bowed their heads in silence.Li Shimin was waiting for further orders to build the mausoleum. At this time, Yu Shinan took a step forward, knelt down on the ground, and expressed his opinion. He disagreed with Taizong's idea of ​​burying the Supreme Emperor generously. It's not unfilial, it's not unfilial, it's thoughtful, and it's a burden for relatives to have a rich burial, so it's not an ear. There is a saying in Zhang Shizhi in the past: "Let there be desires in it, even if it is imprisoned in Nanshan, there will still be gaps."... His Majesty Fu Wei's holiness Over the Tang and Yu Dynasties, it was the Qin and Han dynasties to bury his relatives generously, and his majesty would not take them if they were stolen. Although gold and jade were no longer hidden, later generations saw that the hills and ridges were so large, and they knew that there was no gold and silver!  … "Bai Hu Tong" is a tomb of three renmin, the system of utensils, the rate of complete damage, is still engraved on the side of the mausoleum standing on the stone, a book of other books, stored in the ancestral temple, and used as a permanent method for future generations."

Yu Shinan said that lavish burials are "tired of relatives", not unfilial to respecting relatives. There is such a good reason, so respectful burials for one's relatives are not acceptable.

The rich burial method of the Qin and Han Dynasties cannot be imitated, such as the Dafeng Tuling, even if there is no burial gold, silver and precious jade in it, but when people of later generations see such a large pile of soil in the tomb, it is inevitable that there will be discussions about the gold and silver in it, let alone the special use of gold and silver. A thief who robs graves for a living.

Yu Shinan also eloquently put forward his own proposition in this series of essays: "According to "Bai Hu Tong" is a three-ren grave, the utensil system... carved stones stand next to the mausoleum, don't read a book, and store the ancestral temple. Use it as a permanent method for future generations." It is certain that Yu Shinan's "advocacy" contains a strong "critical realism" principle in its simplicity, and it has the effect of awakening the world.In fact, whether it is the mausoleums of the monarchs and princes of the past dynasties before or after the Tang Dynasty, all those who were extravagant and buried with the national wealth have escaped the palms of princes, warlords, local officials, and even folk tomb robbers!

Regarding Yu Shinan's objection to a generous burial, Li Shimin himself fell into deep thought unconsciously.Because what Yu Shinan said was reasonable and straightforward.

Li Shimin was at a loss, and immediately hesitated, unable to make a decision.

When Yu Shinan saw this, he knelt down and couldn't get up, and went up again: "The emperor of Han will camp the mountain mausoleum for more than [-] years. Now it takes a few months to count as decades of work. I'm afraid that manpower will not be able to catch it."

"From ancient times to the present, there has never been a country that is immortal, and every tomb has been dug. Since the turmoil, all the mausoleums of the Han family have been excavated, and even the jade boxes and gold strands were burned, and the bones were all gone. Wouldn't it be a pain!"

"..."

Yu Shinan's restatement and vigorous admonition made Li Shimin a little moved, so he ordered everyone to focus on discussing Yu Shinan's "opinions".

Zuo Pushe, Wei Guogong Fang Xuanling, Doctor You Guanglu, Song Guogong Xiao Li, etc. came out to state their opinions one after another. They believed: "The height of the Han Changling Mausoleum is nine feet, the original one is six feet, and today's nine feet is too high. Three Ren is too humble, please follow the system of the original mausoleum."

Undoubtedly, the proposition of Fang Xuanling and others is a good idea.Yu Shinan quoted scriptures and used "Bai Hu Tong" as the reason for "three renmin as a grave" to insist on the thin burial. In Li Shimin's opinion, this is too simple. He asked everyone to discuss Yu Shinan's "opinion". There is no better way.This is good, Fang Xuanling's words hit his heart.Three feet is too humble, nine feet is too lofty, so a compromise, six feet, let alone six feet, the original mausoleum.The original mausoleum is the mausoleum of Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and it can be imitated completely.This is tantamount to giving Li Shimin a good step down smoothly and maintaining the dignity of being an emperor.

Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

Although the dispute over the scale of the Gaozu Mausoleum disappeared due to Li Shimin's "nod", after all, Li Shimin tossed and turned for a while, and his brain was completely troubled.

At this time, the Tang Mausoleum did not have a complete mausoleum system.

One year later, Empress Changsun died of illness. Li Shimin ordered craftsmen to build the Zhaoling Mausoleum on Jiuyi Mountain according to the Empress' last words "Because the mountain is a tomb, and the utensils are only made of tiles and wood", so as to finally determine the mausoleum system of the Tang Dynasty. Two situations: one It is to inherit and develop the system of using mountains as mausoleums in Wei, Jin and Southern Dynasties, that is, to dig tombs in the middle of majestic mountains with good Fengshui to build mausoleums with extraordinary atmosphere;Unexpectedly, the burial of Empress Changsun became the focus of the continuous "dialogue" between the Li Tang Dynasty's anti-tomb robbery and the subsequent tomb robbery trend.

Empress Changsun (AD 601~AD 636), Empress Changsun is the daughter of Changsun Wuji, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, and she is a rare woman with both ability and political integrity.The maidservant of Avalokitesvara in small characters, whose name is unknown in history.He is "benevolent, filial, thrifty, and good at reading".Empress Changsun was born in Chang'an in the first year of Renshou. Empress Changsun was the descendant of the Tuoba family of the Northern Wei Dynasty.His biological father, Sun Sheng, was General Youxiaowei of the Sui Dynasty, a famous diplomat, and a hero in the suppression of Turks. His biological mother, Gao, was a descendant of the Northern Qi royal family and the sister of Gao Shilian, a famous official.Daye nine years (13 years old) married Li Shimin as his wife.After Li Shimin was promoted to the throne, he was established as the queen.

As the queen of Li Shimin, she has made great contributions to Li Shimin's political achievements. On the one hand, she is a good wife to Li Shimin. Ten volumes.She advocates frugality. Once, someone told her that there were too few utensils in the crown prince's uterus, which could not show the royal aura. She asked the queen to grant some more. Virtue is not established, reputation is not well-known, so why not use utensils!" In the end, the prince gave up the idea of ​​buying gold and silver utensils.

In June of the tenth year of Zhenguan (AD 636), Empress Changsun died in Lizheng Hall at the age of 36.In November of the same year, he was buried in Zhaoling.The first posthumous posthumous name was Wende. In August of the first year of Shangyuan, the title of honor was changed to Empress Wende Shunsheng.The most famous empress in Chinese history.

(End of this chapter)