Chapter 964 The Lonely Emperor (Happy Qixi Festival~ Please vote with monthly tickets!)
If the estimate is correct, Lu Changgeng's tomb is now three hundred years old.
The tomb murals in an ancient tomb of a nobleman from the Southern Dynasties are still incredibly lifelike.
However, as the door opened and the outside air rushed in, Ouyang Rong wondered if it was just his imagination, but the colors on the tomb mural seemed to dim slightly, though it did not affect the clarity of his view of the whole picture.
The first image depicted in the tomb mural was of a dignified man.
He wore a crown with no fewer than twelve tassels, adorned with a celestial river belt, a black cross-collar wide-sleeved upper garment, a black-edged skirt, and a red apron... It should be a crown robe, and he wore multicolored shoes, a wide belt and a leather belt around his waist, with a jade pendant and a sword hanging on his left side...
An aura of imperial majesty wafted over me.
This kind of imperial robe was not something ordinary people could wear; it was standard attire for emperors and monarchs.
However, this imperial robe is quite different from the sage's attire that Ouyang Rong had seen at the Apricot Grove Banquet.
For example, the majestic emperors in the tomb paintings wear dark black robes with little bright yellow, and they are relatively simple and unadorned. There are also no prominent five-clawed golden dragon patterns on the robes.
Some of the ornaments were ones that Ouyang Rong had never seen before. He could only vaguely guess their names, which he had seen in some ancient books recording etiquette when he was studying at the academy.
Therefore, the era in which this majestic man in the ceremonial robes depicted in the tomb painting lived must have been a long time ago.
They didn't even belong to the emperors of the Northern and Southern Dynasties three hundred years ago.
Zhou and Gan were originally one entity, but many of Da Gan's systems were passed down from the Northern and Southern Dynasties period.
Since this imperial robe is so different from that of the Great Zhou emperors and feels unfamiliar to Ouyang Rong, it is highly likely that it also does not conform to the imperial attire of the Northern and Southern Dynasties...
Ouyang Rong pondered for a moment, then slowly looked away from the captivating portrait of the emperor in his crowned robes on the tomb mural and continued looking at it.
The torches in the hall couldn't illuminate the entire tomb painting, and in the occasional dimly lit areas, he would maneuver the white sturgeon, gliding close to the painting.
Ouyang Rong walked and looked around.
Miao Si, having grown bolder over time, mounted the white sturgeon again and rode at the front. Like Ouyang Rong, she curiously peered at the opening content of the tomb painting:
At first, the man in the imperial robes, strong and robust, slowly walked up a long staircase, looked up at a palace at the end of the staircase, and was surrounded by a dense crowd of officials and generals who all bowed to him, as if he were being enthroned.
In the next scene, a man in a crown stands before a tall palace, sword in hand, pointing diagonally at the distant sky. Countless black-clad warriors surge forth from below him and the palace.
Further away, roughly in the direction the man in the crown casually pointed, were cities of varying sizes being attacked by black-clad warriors... Occasionally, on the outskirts of some cities, the two armies clashed, fighting fiercely.
After observing carefully, Ouyang Rong felt that the victory should belong to the man in the crown and the black-clad warriors, because in the midst of the battle, there were about five or six ruins resembling palaces. These luxurious palaces had collapsed, smoke filled the air, flames raged, and palace servants and commoners knelt on the ground weeping...
The next scene shows the shadowy warriors returning from all directions, along with countless slaves they had detained along the way. These slaves included not only commoners but also many nobles and officials, all shackled. The slave caravans, coming from all directions, resembled long dragons, slowly crawling towards the capital city where the man in the crown robes and the central palace were located.
In the next scene, in the center of the tomb painting, a man in a ceremonial robe stands with his hand on his sword, his back turned to the people outside the painting. He stands very tall, and the dark palace behind him seems almost insignificant compared to his back.
Below the long steps in front of him, a large group of people knelt, including returning black-clad warriors and prisoners of war being escorted back.
Even the officials and common people at the edge of the tomb painting, representing distant cities in the east, west, south, and north, knelt and bowed to the man in the imperial robes in the center of the tomb painting.
In the entire tomb mural, apart from him, there is no one else who can stand up.
Upon witnessing this scene, only one phrase came to mind for Ouyang Rong: "To lash out at the world and awe the four seas."
This man in the crowned robes was undoubtedly a confident and powerful emperor. His repeated victories made him despise any form of disobedience.
Ouyang Rong continued walking, his gaze slowly shifting to the next tomb painting.
The four kingdoms seemed to have regained peace after the war, but the walls of the defeated cities had all been demolished and occupied by black-clad warriors. Small figures dressed in black, symbolizing officials, seemed to be exchanging runes and began to guard the various occupied territories.
Meanwhile, crowds from all directions continued to surge toward the royal palace where the man in the crowned robes was located, like thin snakes... However, unlike the previous defeat parades, these crowds now seemed to be transporting rare treasures and scarce resources from all over the world.
The capital city where the man in the ceremonial robes lived became increasingly prosperous, and the man in the ceremonial robes gradually became overweight, sitting and lying down more often and standing less often.
The long sword that he used to carry at his waist was now held up by two graceful palace maids behind him.
Upon seeing this, Ouyang Rong stopped, let out a slight sigh of relief, and began to analyze the situation rapidly in his mind.
This mysterious circular hall is much larger than the Pure Land Palace. He has only walked a quarter of the way through the entire hall so far, and the progress of the tomb painting should be about the same.
Ouyang Rong glanced ahead and saw many more tomb paintings, so he quickened his pace.
Miaosi also nudged the white sturgeon to make it swim faster.
Ouyang Rong refocused his attention on the tomb painting.
The tomb paintings that followed depicted processes he could roughly guess. For example, the country where the man in the ceremonial robes lived, after unifying the world, began to undertake large-scale construction projects, gathering manpower from all over the country to build magnificent projects and luxurious palaces... Apart from the strict enforcement of the law, it was a picture of a newly founded country full of vitality and vigor.
This section was depicted in many murals, so Ouyang Rong observed it quickly and, finding nothing unusual, passed by in a hurry.
About two-thirds of the way through, Ouyang Rong noticed a strange tomb painting. He stopped and let the white sturgeon approach, examining it closely by the glowing light:
In the tomb painting, the man in the ceremonial robes appears to be middle-aged, with a plump figure and a majestic appearance. At this moment, he is no longer strolling leisurely as depicted in the previous tomb paintings, but is instead slumped on the throne in the palace. The long sword that was often held by the palace servants has returned to his hand.
However, the posture was somewhat strange. The man in the ceremonial robes had his long sword stuck in the ground, and he was sitting with half of his body supported by the sword.
Ouyang Rong glanced around and noticed something.
Something was amiss inside the palace. Unlike the usual scene of it being filled with singers, dancers, and civil and military officials, the palace was now somewhat "empty." It wasn't that there was no one there, but rather that many people had collapsed.
All the palace servants attending the man in the ceremonial robes and the black-clad guards on duty collapsed to the ground, some with their heads severed, and others with daggers and short swords stuck in their faces.
On the palace in front of him stood a group of brightly colored figures.
They were all blood red, and there were one or two figures among them who were dark purple.
Not only their clothes, but their entire bodies were covered in this vibrant color.
Ouyang Rong looked at it carefully and felt that it was definitely not because their skin was that color, but rather it was a technique used by the painter of the tomb mural.
This group of people is somewhat special; they are highlighted in red and purple paint on the tomb murals.
Many of the red figures had already fallen to the ground, their bodies seemingly torn to pieces.
Two purple figures stood on the hall, seemingly confronting the man in the imperial robes.
This painting made Ouyang Rong feel somewhat oppressed.
He looked away and saw that the palace was surrounded by a dense array of black-clad elite soldiers. Besides this, there was another detail:
Outside the palace windows and behind the screen behind the man in the ceremonial robes, there were some small figures painted in green.
I don't know what it specifically represents.
These green figures, wearing tall hats and hunched over, peered out from behind windows and behind the men in ceremonial robes. Their eyes were painted long and narrow like a fox's, staring intently at the red and purple figures in the hall.
Based on his analysis of the previous tomb paintings, Ouyang Rong concluded that this sudden change of scene might be depicting a sudden assassination attempt on the man in the imperial robes during a palace ceremony.
However, Ouyang Rong was unsure of the artist's intention in using the colors on these red, purple, and green figures to distinguish something...
Is that the color of a Qi cultivator's spiritual energy? Does it represent their cultivation level?
But what does this green figure mean? The lowest-ranking Qi Refiner has blue spiritual energy, the middle-ranking Qi Refiner has red, and the highest-ranking Qi Refiner has purple. The latter two match up, but what about green?
He felt it wasn't so much a simple division of spiritual energy, but more like... a division of some kind of group.
The crimson color of the little figures on the walls of the hall stood out starkly against the somber tomb mural.
The crimson color, like blood, subtly conveyed to Ouyang Rong, who was observing, a sense of rage akin to "a crown-breaking out of anger, blood splattering five steps away," as if he himself were standing in the palace, confronting the emperor's wrath with the anger of a commoner.
There's a subtle, almost aesthetic beauty to this scene, a kind of blood feud revenge...
Similarly, those little green figures crouching in the background, with their eerie green color, give a visually strange and mysterious feeling.
Ouyang Rong, however, felt that the artist who painted the circular hall tomb mural, whose identity was uncertain, was painting it spontaneously. The three colors he used were intended to distinguish the different factions in the painting, allowing later viewers to understand through visual impact rather than by following the painting exactly.
Ouyang Rong pursed his lips.
Miao Si looked around and muttered to herself:
"Little Rongzi, this painting is interesting..."
Ouyang Rong nodded and continued forward, looking at the tomb paintings behind him.
At this moment, he, along with the spirit and the fish, had already covered two-thirds of the distance in front of the tomb mural in the hall.
The scene of the confrontation inside the hall is cut off in the next tomb painting, and the subject is never mentioned again, nor is any further explanation given.
However, Ouyang Rong already knew the outcome.
Because in the later tomb murals, the man in the ceremonial robes and the little green figures are still depicted moving around inside that palace.
However, the man in the ceremonial robes remained lying on the high couch, the sword in his hand gone, replaced by a handkerchief covering his mouth.
He appeared to be seriously injured, and some Confucian scholars surrounded his bed.
The reason Ouyang Rong was certain that the figures helping the man in the ceremonial robes recover from his injuries were all Confucian scholars was because they all wore ceremonial hats and ancient-style Confucian robes.
In addition, Ouyang Rong was well-versed in Confucian classics and history. He knew that long before the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Confucian scholars were not only pedantic scholars but also proficient in the Six Arts of a Gentleman. Furthermore, many great Confucian scholars were also skilled in medicine.
He is a true all-rounder.
Around the man in the ceremonial robes, besides these Confucian scholars, there were also some small figures painted in green, standing at a distance from the sickbed, gazing at the sickbed surrounded by Confucian scholars, seemingly lost in thought.
Ouyang Rong had a vague premonition and shifted his gaze to the next tomb painting.
Sure enough, the next tomb mural was quite simple:
A jade plate hung high, as if it were late at night. The palace was empty. The man in the imperial robes seemed to have improved a bit, and he sat up on the high dragon bed.
There were no Confucian scholars, armored soldiers, or palace servants surrounding them.
The main hall was deserted. A small green figure seemed to emerge from behind and came to the bedside, leaning down to whisper in the ear of the man in the imperial robes.
I don't know what they were saying.
Ouyang Rong turned to look at the next picture.
It was the same moonlit night, the same empty palace.
However, the only difference from the previous picture is that the little green figure whispering has also disappeared.
Apart from the men in ceremonial robes, the entire hall was empty.
The man in the imperial robes sat quietly on the couch, his eyes seemingly staring straight ahead.
Gazing at the empty palace in the dead of night.
This gaze seemed to be directed at someone outside the painting, at Ouyang Rong.
But obviously, that's not the case. They weren't from the same period, so how could they be looking at each other through a tomb painting?
This tomb painting, which appears to be a "duplicate," has a slightly darker color tone compared to the previous one.
In fact, because there are no figures in red, purple, and green, the entire tomb mural is much more monotonous and seems unremarkable.
At least, unless someone like Ouyang Rong, who is in someone else's ancestral graveyard, has the time to look so carefully, it would be easy for others to overlook it.
However, Ouyang Rong stopped in his tracks, stood below the tomb painting, and looked up at it.
He appears to be facing directly at the tall, crowned man seated in the palace within the tomb painting.
Miao Si rode the white sturgeon forward for a while, then the white sturgeon suddenly stopped, as if waiting for someone. Miao Si turned her head and saw that Xiao Rongzi looked a little strange.
After waiting a while, her expression turned curious.
It wasn't the absence of a tomb painting that made Xiao Rongzi stop.
But at this moment, it was this "simple and monotonous" tomb painting in front of him that made him stop for the longest time, and he still hadn't come back to his senses...
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(End of this chapter)
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