His tomb was built for 53 years and was stolen four years after his death

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2024-06-21 17:19Published in Guangdong Historical Creators

Soon after the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, rumors of haunting rumors spread from the mausoleum of Xianyangyuan.

It is said that Xue Ping, the official in charge of guarding the tomb of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty, heard a strange voice in the middle of the night saying: "Although I have returned to heaven, I am still your emperor, why did you let your subordinates sharpen their knives on my grave?" ”

Xue Ping looked around, but there was no one, he couldn't help but tremble with fright, and hurried to Maoling to investigate. After a check, I learned that there was indeed a large square stone in front of the mausoleum, and the soldiers guarding the mausoleum sometimes sharpened their knives on it. Subsequently, Xue Ping, who had palpitations, ordered to dispose of the soldiers who did not know the severity.

The authenticity of this story of the apparition of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty is doubtful, but as one of the legendary anecdotes of Maoling, it has been included in historical documents. It can be seen that this eloquent son of heaven, even after his death, still has a huge influence on the empire.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty reigned for 54 years, with one hand and one hand martial arts, creating a glorious era, and was buried in Maoling after the collapse. Because of the special status of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in Chinese history, this majestic mausoleum is as famous as his great achievements during his lifetime, and it is unique in the land of Sanqin, where there are many high mounds.

Portrait of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Source: Internet

01

In the second year of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he started the project of "Zuoshou Mausoleum" (the emperor pre-built a mausoleum for himself when he was alive). This means that the construction of Maoling lasted a total of 53 years, and as the longest-reigning emperor of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of Han had the longest built mausoleum in the Han Dynasty.

According to history, when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was buried in the Mao Mausoleum, the trees on the mausoleum had been cultivated for decades during the construction of the mausoleum, and the two could hold their hands together.

From a weak sapling to a giant tree that has experienced vicissitudes, it is just like the magnificent life of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty Liu Che, whose real name is Liu Yu, is the tenth son of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty. When Liu Che was young, he and his mother Wang Huan won a fierce battle in the harem, and both mother and son were prosperous, and in January, Wang Huan was made the queen, and Liu Che, who was 7 years old at the time, was made the crown prince.

After the death of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty, the 16-year-old Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne and took over the harvest of the "rule of Wenjing". The young Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was close to Confucianism, and at first reused Confucian scholars Zhao Juan and Wang Zang to implement reforms, hoping to overthrow the policy of recuperation and recuperation implemented in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, but was opposed by his grandmother Empress Dowager Dou, who believed in the learning of Huang Lao.

The young Liu Che could not compete with his grandmother, the reforms were extinguished, and his cronies were deposed. It wasn't until after Dou's death that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was able to let go of his hands and feet. The Liu family's "little pig" (彘's original meaning is pig) finally showed the fangs of the beast.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he used his Wentao military strategy to promote the Han Dynasty from the rule of Wenjing to the cause of expanding the territory.

Politically, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty continued to implement the policy of cutting feudal domains during the Jingdi period, dividing the fiefdoms of the kingdom and weakening the power of the princes with the "Tui En Order";

Economically, he adopted the suggestions of Kong Zhi, Dongguo Xianyang, and Sang Hongyang, and collected salt, iron, and wine into the official camp, and implemented the equalization of losses and calculations, so as to stabilize prices and enrich finances;

Militarily, he appointed famous generals such as Wei Qing and Huo Quai, launched many counterattacks against the Xiongnu, and sent troops to pacify South Vietnam and Southwest Yi, immigrate to the real border, and consolidate the border defense;

Ideologically, he adopted Dong Zhongshu's suggestion, respected Confucianism, and established the Han family system of "external Confucianism and internal law";

Geographically, he ordered Zhang Qian to send two envoys to dig out the Western Regions;

Literally, he was able to write poetry, establish a music house, and recruit scribes......

Fifty years in the world, time flies, when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty completed his life's work, a magnificent imperial mausoleum stands on the Xianyang Plain.

11 imperial tombs of the Western Han Dynasty, in addition to Emperor Wen's tomb, Emperor Xuan's tomb, the other 9 are distributed in the Xianyang Plain on the north bank of the Wei River, roughly west from the south town of Xingping City, east to Zhengyang Street, Weicheng District, lined up, stretching for 200 miles. From west to east, it is the tomb of Emperor Wu Mao, the tomb of Emperor Zhao, the tomb of Emperor Cheng Yan, the tomb of Emperor Kang of Ping, the tomb of Emperor Wei of Yuan, the tomb of Emperor Mourning, the tomb of Emperor Hui, the tomb of Emperor Gaozu and the tomb of Emperor Jing.

Distribution map of the ruins of the Western Han Dynasty emperor's tomb. Source: Screenshot of the documentary

Among them, the Mausoleum of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty is located in the westernmost part of the Western Han Emperor's Mausoleum in Xianyang, in the south of the town of Xingping City, and is the tallest one among the Western Han Dynasty Mausoleums. According to the "Guanzhong Chronicle": "The tombs of the Han Dynasty are all 12 zhang high, 120 steps square, but Maoling is 14 zhang high, 140 steps square. After more than 2,000 years of wind and rain, after measurement, the tomb of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty is 46.5 meters high, and the mausoleum covers an area of 56,800 square meters.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty spent half a century building meritorious deeds, and his ministers and people also spent half a century building a longevity tomb for him.

However, after years of conquest, the rich family foundation accumulated by Wenjingzhi was gradually exhausted. According to history, during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, "foreign affairs were all destroyed, internal utilitarianism was prospered, service fees were prosperous, and the people went to the capital", the burden of the people increased, and there was a serious social crisis.

As a key project in the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Maoling cost a huge amount of money no less than the war of the same period. According to the Jin Dynasty's Suo Qi research, when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, one-third of the annual tribute was used to repair the Mao Mausoleum, in addition to a large number of burial goods, to the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the treasures in the tomb were innumerable, and they could not be stuffed if they wanted to install it again ("The Emperor of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne for one year and became the mausoleum, and the world paid one-third of the tribute, one for the temple, one for the guests, and one for the mountain mausoleum. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty has been living for a long time, and he has no longer contained things compared to the collapse of Maoling").

In addition, the cost of manpower is staggering. The mausoleum of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty is not only a witness of his life's cultural and martial arts, but also a political project built by the people who repaired the tomb with their lives at that time.

In the 70s of the last century, in Chenwang Village, Nanwei Town, about 4 kilometers west of Maoling, the local people found a large number of skeletons wearing iron torture instruments when leveling the land, and these skeletons were buried in a messy manner, some were in a half-kneeling and half-squatting posture, and some were stacked on top of each other. Later, after archaeological investigation and drilling, it was confirmed that this place was a densely buried tomb, which should be the cemetery of the Maoling Xiuling people. According to the density estimates, more than 20,000 bones were buried in this cemetery.

More than a thousand years later, we cannot know what kind of mood these workers who were constantly busy on the construction site participated in this huge project during the 53 years of Maoling's construction, only that they were finally exhausted and fell silently on the land. In the era of the rise of empires, the sacrifices of countless people were drowned in songs, and future generations did not know where they came from.

02

The scope of the site selection of Maoling was originally Mao Township, Huaili County, Han Dynasty, with the north far away from Jiuzhi Mountain, and the south side of the remote screen Zhongnan Mountain, with excellent feng shui. According to the practice of the Western Han Dynasty, after the construction of the Maoling project, Maoxiang also became a central prefecture, which was upgraded to a county and placed in Maolingyi.

This involves the "Lingyi" system during the Qin and Han dynasties.

The so-called mausoleum is a castle set up near the imperial tomb. At the beginning, Qin Shi Huang built the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang at the northern foot of Lishan Mountain, placed Liyi, and "migrated 30,000 families". Han Cheng Qin system, from the Han Gaozu built the Changling Tomb to the Han Yuan Emperor issued an edict to stop the Lingyi, during which the Lingyi was built with each Lingyi as the center. While building the imperial mausoleum, the emperor used a lot of manpower and material resources to build the mausoleum, and migrated a large number of people to settle in the mausoleum.

According to historical records, during the Western Han Dynasty, the population of each mausoleum was as high as 10-200,000 people, and the population size of some mausoleums was even comparable to that of Chang'an City.

As a supporting project of the imperial mausoleum, the mausoleum has three main functions: first, to worship the mausoleum, the imperial mausoleum needs daily maintenance, supply of money and sacrifices, and the residents of the mausoleum can bear these responsibilities; The second is to crack down on the local powerful people, Lingyi needs a new population to move in, and the emperor often uses this as an excuse to move the powerful clans from all over the country to Lingyi to consolidate the central power; The third is to play a barrier role in the capital, these large and small mausoleums are distributed around Chang'an like stars and moons, acting as the "satellite city" of the imperial capital Chang'an.

During the construction of Maoling by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, a large number of people were migrated to Maoling Yi three times: in the third year of the founding of the Yuan Dynasty (138 BC), there was a flood in the eastern part of the country, and there was a famine and cannibalism after the disaster, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty moved the victims to Maoling, and announced that 200,000 yuan of money and 2 hectares of land would be given to the people who migrated to Maoling; In the second year of Yuan Shuo (127 BC), "the heroes of the county and the country of the county and more than 3 million were in Maoling", that is, the powerful families and wealthy households with assets of more than 3 million were dispatched from all over the country; In the first year of Taishi (96 years ago), "the officials of the county and the people were heroic in Maoling".

After three migrations, Maoling became the most populous mausoleum. According to the "Hanshu Geographical Chronicle": "Maoling, Emperor Wu placed. The household is sixty-one thousand one hundred and eighty-seven, and the mouth is twenty-seven thousand two hundred and seventy-seven. This is 30,000 more than the population of Chang'an City at that time.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty migrated the wealthy and powerful to Guanzhong, which was also one of his measures to weaken the local power.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he was worried about the expansion of local powerful forces. So, he adopted the advice of the minister's father, and moved the world's wealthy families to Maoling. As a result, the local tyrants moved their families westward, leaving their original lands and moving to live under the emperor's nose, where they were under surveillance, and they did not dare to indulge too much.

Therefore, the "Historical Records" recorded, "Maoling was first established, the world's heroes, and the family, and the people of the chaos can all migrate to Maoling, and the inner Jingshi is the master, and the export is cunning, and the so-called harm is eliminated without punishment."

The film and television image of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Source: Film and television stills

However, in the wave of migration to Maoling, it is inevitable that there will be dissonance.

Guo Jie, a native of Hanoi Yi County, was a famous ranger in the Kanto region and was ordered to move to Maoling. Guo Xie knew that he would definitely be wearing small shoes when he went to Chang'an this time, so he asked the general Wei Qing to intercede. Wei Qing agreed to help Guo Xie and found an opportunity to tell Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty: "Guo Jie's family is actually very poor, so there is no need to be included in the migration list." ”

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty knew that this matter was greasy as soon as he heard it, Guo Xie was a grass citizen, and he could actually let the general speak for him, I am afraid that the family has a little background, and he is even more reluctant to let Guo Xie go.

Guo Xie had no choice but to set off on the road and move to Guanzhong. Soon after, Gongsun Hong, who was the imperial historian at the time, took the opportunity to report Guo Xie for exercising power and rebelling. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was furious when he heard the news and ordered a strict investigation, and Guo Xie was beheaded all over the house.

It can be said that Guo Jie's death was also Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in order to implement the policy of relocating the wealthy and wealthy to Maoling, so as to deter the powerful and powerful in various places.

During the Western Han Dynasty, after the wealthy and powerful families from all over the country moved to Guanzhong, they led to the local construction by virtue of their prestige and wealth. After years of vigorous development, the families who migrated to Lingyi, dignitaries, and wealthy people formed a prominent family, especially the five tombs of Gaozu Changling, Huidi Anling, Jingdi Yangling, Wudi Maoling, and Zhaodi Pingling were the most developed, so the locals called "Wulingyuan".

"Xijing Miscellaneous Records" records, there is a rich man named Yuan Guanghan in Maolingyi, sitting on a million family assets, there are eight or nine hundred servants, spending money extravagantly, the garden area where he lives is four miles from east to west, five miles from north to south, draining water into the garden, the stone is a mountain, the sand is a continent, the garden raises white parrots, purple mandarin ducks, yaks, green birds and other strange beasts and birds, and also planted a variety of strange trees and plants, even the emperor's garden is not as good as this broad guy.

Therefore, Yuan Guanghan was later killed for his crimes, his garden was confiscated by the emperor, and the birds, beasts, plants and trees were also moved to the Shanglin Garden.

Regarding the power and wealth of Lingyi, Ban Gu wrote in "Liangdu Fu":

Overlooking the Five Tombs in the north. The name is to Guo, and the Yi is inherited from each other. The handsome domain, the crown of the crown. The crown is like a cloud, with seven phases and five males. With the heroes of Huzhou County, the goods of the five capitals, three selections and seven moves, and the Lingyi. Cover with strong trunks and weak branches, and look at all the nations on the top.

In Bai Juyi's "Pipa Xing" in the Tang Dynasty, a sentence "Wuling teenagers fight for their heads, and a song of red silk is unknown", which shows that in the Tang Dynasty hundreds of years later, there was still no shortage of gentlemen in the Wuling Plain, and many of them were the descendants of the wealthy families who moved to the Han Dynasty.

03

The imperial tombs of the Qin and Han dynasties embody the political concept of "death is like life".

Some scholars believe that "the Western Han Dynasty Emperor's Mausoleum was built in imitation of the capital Chang'an". After the death of the emperor, with the emperor's mausoleum as the center, the layout of the cemetery with a regular layout is formed, there is a dynasty in the front, there is a bed in the back, the palace and the hall are readily available, and many external pits and burial tombs are distributed in an orderly manner, symbolizing the supremacy of imperial power, just like the reflection of the above-ground world in the underground.

The shape of the Maoling Tomb of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty also has this characteristic.

Maoling Cemetery, divided into the inner city and the outer city, is modeled on Chang'an, and there are "city gates" all around. Around the mausoleum, there are buildings such as sleeping halls, ben halls, and mausoleum temples.

The dormitory was closely connected to the Ben Hall, and in the eyes of the people of the time, these two buildings were the places where Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty rested and feasted in the other world. If the dormitory is compared to the great dynasty of the front hall of Chang'an Weiyang, then, the hall next to the dormitory is quite similar to the back pavilion in the north of the front hall.

The Book of Han records that "the Jingshi descended from Gaozu to Emperor Xuan, and set up temples next to the mausoleum with Emperor Taishang and Emperor Mourning."

The mausoleum temple, the building shape imitates the temple, is the place to worship the first emperor in the cemetery. There is a passage between the mausoleum and the dormitory, called "the way out of the crown", when the relatives of the emperor and the princes and ministers come to worship, they will send the crown of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to the mausoleum through this road, for people to worship, and then send the crown back to the dormitory after the worship. The mausoleum of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty is called "Longyuan Palace", located in the east of Maoling, according to the research of scholars, the cultural relics such as "Longyuan Palace Xingju" and "Longyuan Palace Ding" that have been circulated in later generations should be the relics of Maoling Mausoleum Temple.

According to historical records, around the outer city of Maoling, there are also "expulsion roads" and "West Garden", which means that it is exclusively for the amusement of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in the underworld. At 350 meters southeast of Maoling, archaeologists have excavated the ruins of the White Crane Pavilion, and the ruins are full of brick and tile fragments of the Han Dynasty, and jade gui and jade walls have been unearthed. Known as the "fairy bird", this white crane pavilion is also one of the underground paradises of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, which was hit by fire during the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Han Dynasty.

The Maoling Tomb of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty seems to be a microcosm of his life during his lifetime, from which it can be seen that this monarch rode a horse to hunt and recite poems.

When Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was alive, he repaired the palace garden, used to place the palace people, Haiyou, and dancers, and built the Bailiang platform in Chang'an, used the cedar as the palace beam, the incense floated for several miles, usually set up a banquet on the stage, and the ministers composed poems. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty himself was also a talented man, and there were poems and texts such as "Song of the Gourd", "Song of the Heavenly Horse", "Mrs. Li's Fu" and "Autumn Wind Speech".

After the burial of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, there are still hundreds or even thousands of palace maids accompanying the cemetery day and night, plus other officials, miscellaneous servants, etc., and there are thousands of people responsible for guarding the entire cemetery.

In addition, there are many burial tombs in dozens of square kilometers around Maoling.

When planning the cemetery of the Western Han Emperor, a certain area will be reserved as a burial area, and only the heroes and magnates who have been blessed can accompany the burial cemetery after death and continue to accompany the emperor. The burial tombs are generally located on both sides of Sima Road in the east of the imperial tomb, which is also modeled after the layout of Chang'an City. Han Chang'an City and Weiyang Palace are all to the east gate as the main gate, when the emperor held the court ceremony, hundreds of officials and civil and military columns on both sides, waiting outside the palace gate.

Therefore, judging from the location and layout of the burial tomb of the emperor's tomb, the closer it is to the east Sima Gate of the emperor's tomb, the higher its status is often higher, which is the supreme glory of the ministers of the Han Dynasty.

At present, a total of 113 (groups) can be identified as the burial tombs of Maoling, and the identity of the tomb owner has been confirmed, including Wei Qing, Huo Quai, Princess Yang Nobunaga, Gongsun Hong, Huo Guang, Jin Riyan, Shangguan Ji, etc., and the closest to the east Sima Gate of Maoling is the tomb of Wei Qing and Huo Quai.

Emperor Mao Mausoleum of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Source: Picture Worm Creative

04

In the construction process of Maoling for more than half a century, Huo Quai's tomb is the closest to Maoling and the earliest burial time. It can be seen that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty is very partial to this famous general who died young.

Huo Quai, the nephew of Empress Wei Zifu and General Wei Qing, was favored by Wei Zifu at that time, and the talents of Wei and Huo were promoted. The young Huo Qu was sick and good at riding and shooting, and became a courtier of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, gradually showing his edge.

At the age of 18, Huo Qubing went to the Xiongnu with Wei Qing. He led a group of 800 light cavalry alone, leaving behind a large army of hundreds of miles, to launch a surprise attack on the Hun army, killing and capturing many Huns, and even killed the nobles of the Xiongnu Yizhi and his grandfather's generation, and captured Shan Yu's uncle. Huo Quzhi won the whole army twice in a row at a young age and was named the champion Hou.

After that, Huo Qubing led the army to gallop through the Hexi Corridor and the Qilian Mountains, and won a decisive victory in the Battle of Hexi, driving the Xiongnu forces out of Hexi and ensuring the smooth flow of the Silk Road; In the battle of Mobei, Huo Qubing went deep into the heart of the Xiongnu, broke the Xiongnu Zuoxian Wang's department, sealed the wolf Juxu Mountain, and Zen in Guyan Mountain (these two mountains are in the territory of present-day Mongolia).

In history, Huo Qubing was a man of few words, silent, but daring to do anything. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once wanted to teach his grandson and Wu Qi the art of war, but Huo Qubing replied: "War only needs to look at strategy, and there is no need to learn the art of war of the ancients." After Huo Qubing made military achievements, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ordered the construction of a mansion for him, but Huo Qubing refused politely, and said with extraordinary momentum: "The Huns have not been destroyed, why do you want to be at home!" ”

After the battle of Mobei, "the Xiongnu fled far away, and there was no royal court in the south of the desert", and the border troubles of the Xiongnu that had threatened the northern border of the Han Dynasty for more than 100 years were basically solved. Unfortunately, only two years after the decisive battle of Mobei, Huo Qubing died of illness at the age of 24.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was extremely saddened by Huo Quai's early death, and dispatched the ironclad army of the five border counties into Beijing, and lined up from Chang'an City to Maoling to send Huo Quai's funeral. Huo Qu's tomb was built in the shape of Qilian Mountain in recognition of his outstanding exploits in the Battle of Hexi for "breaking the arm of the Huns".

At that time, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty issued an edict of "for the tomb like Qilian Mountain", which was busy with the craftsmen of Maoling.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty not only asked Huo Quai's tomb to look like Qilian Mountain, but also asked craftsmen to carve a large number of stone carvings to restore the plants, trees, flowing water, and beasts of Qilian Mountain. The tomb of Huo Qubing fully shows the stone carving art of the Western Han Dynasty, and there are a large number of exquisite stone carving statues in the tomb, such as the war horse jumping, the tiger wants to pounce, the wild boar lurking, the monster swallows the sheep, and the man and bear fight, depicting the strange birds and beasts in the Qilian Mountains, just like the natural landscape that the general saw in the mountains during the expedition.

The most famous stone carving of Huo Qu's tomb is the statue of "Horse Stepping on the Huns". This stone carving is 1.68 meters high and 1.9 meters long, originally located in front of the tomb of Huo Quai, which is considered to be the main carving in the stone carving group of the tomb of Huo Quai, and is also a monument to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to fight back against the Xiongnu. The posture of the horse in the stone carving is majestic and magnificent, and the Hun figure under the horse lies on the ground, struggling in embarrassment. This dramatic picture is just like the heroic deeds of Huo Qubing when he went out to fight against the Xiongnu.

Since Maoling has not yet been scientifically excavated, the current Maoling Museum is mainly built with the tomb of Huo Qubing and its stone carvings as the main body. The young general who was deeply loved by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty has become one of the protagonists of the Maoling Cemetery today.

Huo Quai's tomb at the beginning of the 20th century. Source: Internet

Huo Quai's uncle Wei Qing is another character with the halo of the protagonist in the Han-Hungarian War.

Wei Qing came from a humble background, and in his early years, he worked as a squire knight in the palace of Princess Yang Nobunaga, the sister of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Princess Yang Nobunaga is the sister of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, married to Pingyang Hou Cao Shou, so she is known as "Princess Pingyang" in history. Princess Yang Nobunaga has a very good relationship with her younger brother, and she often introduces girlfriends to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and Empress Wei and Mrs. Li, who have been favored by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, have all been recommended by Princess Yang Nobunaga to enter the palace. Later, Wei Qing established meritorious deeds, and Princess Yang Nobunaga was widowed, and the former master and servant became husband and wife under the fate meeting.

At this time, Wei Qing was no longer the same as before. After Wei Zifu entered the palace and was favored, Wei Qing was also reused by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and began his career as a horseman. After the battles of Longcheng, Henan, Monan, Mobei and other battles, Wei Qing grew from a little-known young general to a general who was in charge of his own affairs.

When Princess Yonobunaga was widowed, she had to choose a new husband among the princes. Many people recommended Wei Qing, and the princess smiled and said: "Wei Qing used to be my subordinate, how can he be my husband?" But left and right said: "The general is now a great man, his sister is the queen, and his three sons are all marquises, and the family is full of nobles, who else in the court is more worthy of you than him?" When Princess Yang Nobunaga heard this, she happily went to tell her brother about it, and Emperor Wu of Han immediately agreed to marry.

After the death of Wei Qing and Princess Yang Nobunaga, they were buried in Maoling. The tomb of Wei Qing imitates the shape of Lushan (a mountain called Lushan, the peak of the Yinshan Mountain Range), which is to commemorate his significant contribution to the Han Dynasty.

The tombs of Wei and Huo are guarded next to Maoling, telling the illustrious status of this family of relatives and the great military exploits of the era of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.

Portrait of Wei Qing. Source: Internet

05

In the burial tomb of Maoling, there is also the tomb of Gongsun Hong.

Gongsun Hong served as a prison official in his early years, was dismissed, his family was poor, he went to the seaside to herd pigs for a living, he began to learn "Spring and Autumn" at the age of more than 40 years, became a generation of Confucianism, and at the age of 60, he raised the "virtuous literature" to enter the court, and later lived the position of prime minister, at the age of 80.

There is also the tomb of Kim Il-pan.

Jin Riyan was the son of the Hun Hutu King. In the second year of Yuanzhan (121 BC), Huo Qubing sent troops from Longxi to subdue the Xiongnu Hun evil and Hugh Tu two kings. Jin Riyan entered the dynasty with his mother and younger brother, and at first raised horses for Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and then gradually rose to the rank of official, and was appointed by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty as one of the ministers of Tuogu.

Before the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the other two ministers of Tuogu, Huo Guang and Shangguan Ji, also accompanied the burial of Maoling.

Huo Guang is Huo Quai's half-brother. In that year, after Huo Qubing once led the army to fight against the Xiongnu, he passed through his hometown in Hedong County and took his young brother to Chang'an. In his later years, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty thought that Huo Guang was worthy of a great responsibility, so he ordered someone to draw a picture of "Duke Zhou Becomes King" for Huo Guang to watch, and encouraged him to assist the young prince Liu Fuling.

After the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty, who was only 8 years old, ascended the throne, and Huo Guang, Shangguan Ji, Jin Riyan, and Sang Hongyang were assisted by Emperor Wu's edict. But Huo Guang and Shangguan Ji disagreed. At this time, Liu Dan, the other son of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, thought that he should replace the young lord Liu Fuling as the emperor, so he conspired with Shangguan Ji in the court to oust Emperor Zhao of Han and Huo Guang.

After Huo Guang discovered the conspiracy of Shangguan Ji and Liu Dan, the king of Yan, he attacked first and killed Shangguan Ji and others. Huo Guang and Shangguan Ji were originally in-laws, and the empress Shangguan of Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty was both the granddaughter of Shangguan Ji and the granddaughter of Huo Guang.

After Huo Guang eliminated his political opponents, he covered the sky with one hand, and until the time of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, he was still in power. With his assistance, Emperor Zhao and Emperor Xuan made great efforts to develop production, so that the people could live and work in peace and contentment, and alleviate various crises since the end of Emperor Wu. After Huo Guang died, Emperor Xuan of Han and the Empress Dowager Shangguan came to the funeral in person and buried him in the east of Maoling.

But soon after the funeral, Emperor Xuan of Han launched a liquidation of the Huo family, and this powerful minister still could not escape the fate of the family's decline.

Portrait of Huo Guang. Source: Internet

06

The people who accompanied Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to sleep in Maoling were not only famous ancient and modern military generals, but also a beauty who captivated the country and the city.

The Western Han Dynasty Emperor's Mausoleum implements the joint burial system of the emperor and queen, as the name suggests, that is, the emperor and the queen are buried in the same mausoleum area, but not in the same tomb.

But the "Empress Xiaowu" who was buried with Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was not the previously favored Wei Zifu.

In the later years of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, there was a witch curse. The son Liu Ju, born to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Wei Zifu, faced with the accusations of the traitorous minister Jiang Chong, raised troops to punish Jiang Chong, and fought a bloody battle with the imperial army in Chang'an, but was defeated and died, and Empress Wei was also forced to commit suicide. Liu Ju, who has always been considered weak, died at the moment when he was most like his father. Later, Liu Ju was posthumously named "Prince Er", and Wei Zifu was posthumously called "Queen Si".

Although Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty learned of Liu Ju's grievances, he built the Si Palace, but still did not let Empress Wei's mother and son accompany the burial of Maoling, and the "Empress Xiaowu" in Maoling was another beauty favored by Emperor Wu of Han during his lifetime - Mrs. Li.

More than 500 meters in the northwest of Maoling, there is a mausoleum, the shape has a circle of two-layer steps, the local people call it "Mozi Mausoleum". After research, this is the tomb of Mrs. Li, which is 24 meters high, 127 meters long from east to west, and about 110 meters wide from north to south, and is the second largest tomb in the Maoling cemetery.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the musician Li Yannian was a well-known celebrity in the entertainment industry and often performed in the palace. Once, Li Yannian brought a new song and dance to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and the lyrics sang: "There is a beautiful woman in the north, peerless and independent, who cares about the city and the country." Rather than know the city and the country, the beauty is hard to get! ”

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty couldn't help but be moved when he listened to Li Yannian's singing, and asked, "Is there really such a beauty in this world?" Princess Yang Nobunaga on the side had already heard about the gossip and immediately said, "Yes, that person is Li Leshi's sister." Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty hurriedly summoned this beautiful woman, and when he saw it, he was really moved, so he was included in the palace.

Mrs. Li can sing and dance, is beautiful and moving, and soon pampers the harem. It's a pity that Mrs. Li became seriously ill within a few years of entering the palace and became thinner and thinner. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty visited many times, but Mrs. Li was always covered with a quilt and did not want to meet, she said, "The concubine has been sick for a long time and her appearance is ruined, so she cannot see Your Majesty." Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty insisted on seeing her, and promised: "Madame, let me see her, and I will give you a thousand gold and grant your brother a high-ranking official." But Mrs. Li still didn't want to show her face. Emperor Wu of Han had no choice but to leave in a huff.

Afterwards, Mrs. Li's relatives complained that she was too stubborn and annoyed the emperor. Mrs. Li said: "I am favored by the emperor with the beauty of my appearance. The husband is a man who does things with sex, and he loves relaxation when he is weak, and he loves relaxation. Your Majesty is so obsessed with me, that is, he values the beauty of my life, if he sees me like this, he will definitely dislike me, how can he think of rewarding? ”

After Mrs. Li died of illness, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty really missed her, buried her with the rites of the queen, and even summoned Fang Shi to set up an account for her to summon spirits, dreaming of seeing her again. In a practice of a monk, Emperor Wu of Han seemed to see the ghost of Mrs. Li, but in the blink of an eye, the shadow disappeared, and Emperor Wu of Han had no choice but to chant a poem sadly, saying: "Is it evil? Non-evil? Looking at it immediately, why is it too late? ”

After the death of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Huo Guang, the auxiliary minister, wrote a letter asking Mrs. Li to be honored as "Empress Xiaowu" according to his thoughts before his death.

Since then, the love story of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Mrs. Li has been passed down forever in the two thousand years of wind and frost in Maoling.

Lady Li, the favorite concubine of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Source: Film and television stills

07

Even a generation of heroes who have been in power for 54 years can hardly predict what will happen after death. Only 4 years after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was buried in Maoling, there was a tomb robbery incident in Maoling.

According to the Book of Han, Maoling is "rich in money and property". The Emperor of the Han Dynasty spent one-third of the world's taxes on the construction of the mausoleum, and the mausoleum of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty was naturally full of all kinds of rare treasures. Around the tomb of the emperor, there are as many as 150 external pits distributed in a radial pattern.

When Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was alive, the Kangju Kingdom of the Western Regions admired his heavenly might and paid tribute to a jade box and a jade staff. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty put these two treasures and more than 40 volumes of miscellaneous scriptures that he loved to read, together in a gold box and buried them in the tomb for him to continue to enjoy in the underground world.

It is unknown whether the dead Emperor Wu of Han can still enjoy these treasures.

However, there are records that 4 years after the burial of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, someone spent 30 horses of green cloth and 90,000 yuan in the market of Fufeng to buy these two treasures offered by Kangjuguo. After the matter was reported, some palace people recognized that these two things were indeed the burial objects of Maoling, and it can be seen that tomb robbers broke into Maoling and stole it out. The court quickly took back the two treasures and ordered the merchants not to tell anyone about it again.

In the second year of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty (64 BC), a medicine picker got another treasure in the gold box, that is, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty collected more than 40 volumes of books during his lifetime, including "Lao Tzu", "Taishang Ziwen", "Lingji Sutra", "Taisu Zhongzhi Sutra", "Tianzhu Sutra", "Six Dragons Bu Yuanwen", "Ma Huang Shouzhenshu" and so on. Although Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty admired Confucianism, he spent his life seeking immortals and superstitious arts, and it is not surprising that there are a large number of Taoist works in his tomb.

After the imperial court learned of this, it asked Ran Deng, an official who managed the classics during the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, to identify it. Ran Deng was old at the time, but when he saw the book of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he couldn't help but weep bitterly, and said: "This is the funeral of Emperor Xiaowu!" ”

As the great-grandson of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty Liu Xun was shocked by this matter, but after investigation, the surface of Maoling was "as safe as before", and it was really impossible to explain why the things in the gold box appeared outside the tomb.

Portrait of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Source: Internet

Since then, the tomb of Emperor Mao of the Han Dynasty has experienced many tomb robberies.

During the Xinmang Rebellion, the Red Mei Army entered Chang'an and plundered and excavated the tombs of the Western Han Emperors. They opened the tomb door of Maoling, searched for burial goods, and moved them for dozens of days, but because Maoling was too gorgeous, "the things in the tomb could not be halved."

Maoling has experienced many wars, to the Western Jin Dynasty, the tomb "still has the accumulation of decay and silk, and the pearl and jade are not finished". According to the research of scholar Xin Deyong, during this period, some people mentioned a kind of document called "Maoling Book" when annotating the Book of Han, which should be a simple document of the Han Wu Emperor period unearthed in Maoling. Although there are not many remnants of the "Maoling Book", it can still be seen from the limited entries that these slips have high historical value.

At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Huangchao rebel army entered Guanzhong, and Maoling suffered another catastrophe, and a large number of burial objects were scattered among the people.

Tang Dynasty Li He has a poem that says: "Maoling Liu Lang is a guest in autumn, and there is no trace of the neighing of horses at night." ”

The sound of horses' hooves on the ancient road of Chang'an went away with the wind, and the ancient Maoling was lonely in the desolate moonlight, burying the first generation of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, as well as the rise and fall of the dynasty. Maoling has been silent in the world, but the world has come to this point, and it can be vaguely seen that it is a majestic and heroic era.

Bibliography:

Sima Qian: Historical Records, Zhonghua Book Company, 2022

Ban Gu: Hanshu, Zhonghua Book Company, 2012

Written by Liu Xin, edited by Ge Hong: Xijing Miscellaneous Records, Zhonghua Book Company, 2022

Liu Qingzhu and Li Yufang: The Eleventh Tombs of the Western Han Dynasty, Shaanxi People's Publishing House, 1987

Wang Zhijie, ed., Han Mao Lingzhi, Sanqin Publishing House, 2014

Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology, et al., "Archaeological Investigation and Exploration Brief of Emperor Maoling of the Han Dynasty", Archaeology and Cultural Relics, No. 2, 2011

Xin Deyong, "On the First Unearthed Slip Literature in History<茂陵书>", Wenshi Zhe, No. 4, 2012

Xu Weimin, "The Imperial Mausoleum System of the Qin and Han Dynasties and the Society at That Time", Journal of Northwest University (Philosophy and Social Science Edition), No. 5, 2015

Shen Ruiwen, "The Order of the Mausoleums of the Western Han Emperors", Wenbo, No. 3, 2001

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