The group entered the main hall one after another, discovering that it wasn’t particularly large—roughly the size of a small conference room.
However, the hall’s arrangement resembled a miniature imperial court. Aside from the massive bronze seat at the front—which couldn’t really be called just a seat, as it was as large as a bed—the space was filled with standing Terracotta Figures dressed in Court Uniforms, all bowing in reverence toward the bronze bed.
“!!!”
Not to mention the awe-inspiring giant bronze bed, even the Terracotta Figures bowing toward it were astonishing. The craftsmanship was so exquisite that the patterns and styles on their Court Uniforms remained sharp and clear, unaffected by the erosion of thousands of years.
It was evident that this Royal Tomb had been exceptionally well-preserved, likely untouched for millennia, allowing it to remain in such perfect condition.
The hall was also illuminated by numerous eternal lamps, still burning brightly. It was only because of these lights that the group could see the hall’s interior clearly upon entering.
“There are eternal lamps here too? That means we’re the first visitors since the tomb was sealed. This Mausoleum hasn’t been plundered by tomb raiders in advance—that’s already fantastic news.”
Bai Lishen was too excited to contain himself and spoke aloud.
These so-called eternal lamps, capable of burning for thousands of years without extinguishing, were actually a testament to ancient ingenuity. They utilized whale oil combined with highly flammable substances like yellow phosphorus. When the oxygen in the tomb depleted, the lamps would temporarily go out. But once visitors entered and reintroduced oxygen, the lamps would reignite, creating the illusion that they had burned continuously for millennia—a clever tactic to intimidate intruders.
Of course, none of the present company was frightened by such a spectacle. As staunch materialists and individuals well-versed in historical knowledge, they were impervious to such tricks. Everyone present, from Qiu Yunzheng and Bai Lishen to Gu Hanfeng and the others, had received thorough training and education.
Qiu Yunzheng stood motionless beside Gu Hanfeng, silently contemplating these cultural relics that had existed for over a thousand years, feeling an indescribable sense of awe.
“Let’s find out who the tomb owner from a thousand years ago really is—exactly which ruler this was,” Bai Lishen declared, eager to approach the Stone Tablet in the hall. But before he could, Gu Hanfeng grabbed his arm to stop him.
Gu Hanfeng first glanced down at Qiu Yunzheng beside him and asked, “Where are the other Mechanisms? Let’s disable them first before you go take a look.”
Only then did Bai Lishen remember that they were in a Royal Tomb, one that had never been visited and was fraught with danger. He promptly halted and stood still, not wanting to cause any trouble.
Soon, with Qiu Yunzheng’s unnaturally adept assistance, various arrow Mechanisms were swiftly neutralized the moment they triggered. The floor was littered with disabled Mechanisms and arrows, giving the impression to any uninformed observer that these contraptions had always been there.
Moreover, not a single cultural relic or antique at the scene had been damaged. Even the mechanisms and arrows had merely been disabled without being destroyed.
Qiu Yunzheng marveled, “Truly worthy of China’s special forces. In those tomb-raiding TV dramas I watched before, whether it was the protagonists or antagonists, even with the help of foreign mercenaries, they’d be scrambling around with countless casualties. And all those burial objects shattered along the way… Now, seeing the methods of China’s special forces on site, it’s clear that television is just television after all.”She wondered if it was intentional arrangement by the directors – after all, no matter how awkward foreign mercenaries appeared, it had nothing to do with China.”
Thus, very quickly, the group continued forward and soon reached their destination.
With the additional illumination from the eternal lamps and their head-mounted detection lights, they could see farther and more clearly.
Before long, they located the stone tablet among several others that recorded the tomb owner’s life experiences.
“How is this possible! It’s actually him! This… this is simply unbelievable!”
Among those present, aside from Qiu Yunzheng who could roughly interpret some information (though less proficiently and therefore slower), only Bai Lishen could read it the fastest and clearest.
As for Gu Hanfeng and the others nearby – don’t joke about it, special forces soldiers couldn’t be expected to be that versatile. However, they had their own mission: continuously photographing the inscriptions and transmitting them to their superiors. After all, for veteran professors with decades of archaeological experience, interpreting various inscriptions was no challenge at all.
Whose tomb could this be, to make even the usually mature and steady Bai Lishen unable to contain his astonishment?
Qiu Yunzheng stepped closer. With System 288’s scanning and translation, she could also read faster and clearer. The more she read, the more shocked she became.
Qiu Yunzheng and Bai Lishen shared the same thought – neither of them had ever expected it to be this person.
It was the historically first king to move east to Luoyi, King Ping of Eastern Zhou – also the son of the famously notorious King You of Zhou who fooled his feudal lords with beacon fires.
However, according to historical records, after King You of Zhou deposed Ji Yijiu (King Ping of Zhou), Marquis Shen held a grudge, which nearly led to the kingdom’s destruction. Subsequently, King Ping was installed by his maternal grandfather, Marquis Shen.
Most importantly, he later moved east to Luoyi, present-day Luoyang in Henan Province.
Historical records indicate that after the eastern relocation, King Ping’s capital was surrounded by covetous feudal states and the Quanrong tribes, making him history’s most famous puppet emperor.
There are even unofficial historical rumors that King Ping couldn’t be buried promptly after death due to poverty – yes, this emperor was extremely poor at the time. It’s said he was eventually buried hastily with borrowed money, though this remains unverified folklore.
Regardless, by any measure, such a puppet emperor should neither have been able nor had the capability to construct such an extravagantly luxurious mausoleum.
Moreover, the geographical location of the mausoleum was incorrect – this wasn’t the historical location of Luoyi.
Just comparing King Ping’s tomb with his father King You’s would be like comparing a luxurious villa to a mud-brick house.
Could it be that King Ping of Zhou was taking revenge on his own father? But that seems unlikely. King You of Zhou’s mausoleum was historically quite grand.
The burial offerings and sacrificial objects would have been even more impressive had they not been looted.
Thinking this, Qiu Yunzheng quickly shook her head, dismissing the melodramatic scenarios swirling in her mind, and continued reading.
The text each stone tablet could hold was limited, offering only a general outline of events. The rest required Qiu Yunzheng and Bai Lishen to piece together by combining the tablet fragments with historical context, gradually forming a rough understanding of the situation.
King You of Zhou’s notorious deception of lighting beacon fires to amuse his concubine Bao Si provoked severe consequences for the Western Zhou dynasty. Compounding this, he deposed the reigning empress and her son—the daughter of Marquis Shen and her child (who was King Ping of Zhou). Instead, he elevated Bao Si and her son to the positions of empress and crown prince.
This inevitably stirred up a hornet’s nest with Marquis Shen.
As Marquis Shen was King Ping of Zhou’s maternal grandfather, how could he tolerate this? He promptly allied with foreign forces and eliminated King You of Zhou at Mount Li.