The vines in front of us acted like a wall, blocking the view of the jungle from the outside.
A chilling wind swept over us, carrying with it a pungent, putrid stench that made it hard to open our eyes. And looking inside from the outside, it was pitch black, like a room without windows.
The monkey, startled by the stench, took a few steps back and gasped for fresh air: "Whoa! What's that smell in here? Aren't plants supposed to purify the air through photosynthesis?"
"Photosynthesis requires light first. The trees here are significantly taller than those further away, so there probably aren't any plants growing inside!"
Song Laosan took out masks from the medical kit and distributed them to everyone: "We lost our gas masks when we entered the jungle, so let's make do with these. Although the vegetation here is lush, it's not completely airtight. The air inside is just smelly, but it's not poisonous."
As soon as he finished speaking, Song Laosan pushed his flashlight aside and went in first, and I followed behind.
As soon as I took a step, I felt like I had stepped into mud.
Looking down, I saw that the ground beneath my feet was covered with decaying plants and piles of leaves, almost reaching my knees.
The monkey hadn't gone far when it tripped over the pile of debris. Shaking its hands, it said to me, "Young Master Duan, the debris here is so thick. Can you pinpoint the location of the tomb through all this?"
"We don't need to look at feng shui to find a burial site here; there are things that can guide us."
I shone my flashlight ahead: "The buildings on the ground here are still there."
Under the light, a wall made of stone appeared in front of them.
Over time, half of this wall has collapsed, and it is now covered with vines.
As soon as I saw the wall, I knew I had found the right place. I used my knife to cut off the branches and vines that were in my way and continued on my way.
Passing through the courtyard wall, there is a threshold stone on the ground, the tomb door on it has long since rotted away.
Further ahead, there are steps made of bluestone, and above the steps is a square paved with stone slabs.
Even after more than a thousand years, the square remains well-preserved, with only some withered weeds growing in the gaps.
Because there are no plants here, some sunlight can still get through, but the visibility is still poor due to the tree canopy blocking the view.
In the center of the square, there is a courtyard with a row of houses, most of which have collapsed and only their general outlines can be seen.
In this square, there are also two groups of stone sculptures, which are also severely damaged and their original appearance is no longer visible.
The monkey walked up the steps, plunged the knife into the crack of the stone bricks, pulled it out to look at the soil in the blood groove, and then measured the length of the stone bricks. He looked at me with some difficulty: "Young Master Duan, the blood groove of this knife is at least twenty centimeters long, but the soil it brought up is completely unchanged. The stone bricks here are all over one square meter in area, and their weight is probably in the tons. With our tools, we simply can't dig them down."
I explained, “We don’t need to dig down. The method of digging tunnels to raid tombs is mainly for ancient tombs where the above-ground structures have disappeared. Although the structures here are not well preserved, the basic outline is still there. As long as we find the entrance to the underground palace, we can enter the tomb passage.”
"I only learned how to dig tunnels from Lao Tian; he didn't actually tell me this." The monkey scratched his head. "Then where should the entrance to this tomb be?"
"Not necessarily. Throughout history, tombs have hidden the entrances to their passageways very well. For example, Qing dynasty tombs usually place the entrance to the underground palace under the glazed tile wall of the courtyard, which looks like ordinary floor tiles at first glance, and you can't tell that it's an entrance at all. Ming dynasty tombs also hide the entrance to the passageway under the spirit path screen wall or under the feet of the stone statues, all to prevent others from looting it."
As I walked toward the group of buildings ahead, I explained to everyone, "Many ancient tombs would build a fake entrance to prevent theft, and set up a lot of traps inside, while setting up the real entrance elsewhere. Later people could only rely on experience to judge."
The monkey asked unwillingly, "According to you, does that mean we can only rely on luck to get here?"
"You could say that very few Jin Dynasty tombs have survived. One of their main characteristics is their large size. Take the Jin Dynasty imperial tombs in Fangshan, Beijing, for example. They cover an area of tens of square kilometers. Even if you average it out, each tomb would occupy several square kilometers. If such a tomb really has a hidden entrance, we can only find it by sheer luck."
I then comforted them, saying, "However, Jin Dynasty tombs have a unique feature: they would build a mound of rammed earth above the underground palace. You can think of this as a high-class burial mound. Since Hu Shahu's tomb was built according to the imperial burial system, the mound commonly used in royal mausoleums must also exist. The rammed earth of the Jin Dynasty was mainly composed of lime, sand, and loess. After being compacted layer by layer, it was then poured with glutinous rice soup and reinforced with iron nails, making it very sturdy. If this thing exists in this mausoleum, it probably hasn't been corroded yet."
The monkey pressed on, asking, "What shape is this treasure dome you're talking about?"
"The shape of the jewel is not fixed; common shapes include round, waisted round, or pagoda-shaped."
As I spoke, we arrived at a square foundation surrounded by scattered stones and tiles. I lifted the tiles and picked up a stone engraved with inscriptions in bronze script: "Judging from the shape of the foundation, this should be the stele pavilion of Hu Shahu's tomb. A stele pavilion is a pavilion used to protect a stone tablet. This pavilion is located in the very center of the square and serves to replace the archway. Therefore, the building behind it should be the sacrificial hall."
The monkey was completely confused: "What's this ancestral hall?"
I patiently explained: "In a typical layout of a mausoleum, the entrance should be a memorial archway; behind the archway is the spirit path leading to the tomb, which is usually built on the central axis. If it is a burial complex, it will serve as the main road; while the ancestral hall is a hall for worshipping the deceased, and it is usually built in the middle of the spirit path."
Perhaps because Hu Shahu was punished after his death, his tomb didn't have a memorial archway; only a pavilion was built to record his life's deeds. Or perhaps a memorial archway originally stood there, but the court, disgusted by his unjust actions, stripped him of the right to use one. I lean towards the former explanation, because there's no trace of a memorial archway at the site.
Song Laosan's face lit up with joy: "If that's really the case, then we can find the entrance to the tomb by just walking along this row of buildings, right?"
For tombs in above-ground cemeteries, there's almost no need to specifically mark the edges and shape. As long as you understand the layout and architectural knowledge of the tomb, it's like having a map. I felt much more relaxed: "According to the architectural layout, it's like this. We just need to continue walking along the spirit path. When we see the treasure mound, we'll basically find the tomb."
The collapsed stele pavilion wasn't worth investigating; we just glanced at it briefly before continuing on our way, walking deeper into the sacred path.
Compared to the outside stele pavilion, the sacrificial hall is better preserved. Although the roof and a corner have collapsed, you can still see its original magnificent appearance.
When we were about twenty meters away from the sacred path, Sasha shone his flashlight in that direction and then quickly raised his gun: "There are people inside!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com