Since the construction of the Eastern Tomb of the Qing Dynasty, there has been a mausoleum protection agency to guard it. There are people in charge of the mausoleum, and there are flag soldiers, green battalion soldiers guarded, as well as Zongren Mansion, Ministry of Rites and other institutions to undertake all the affairs of the mausoleum.

However, since 1914 (the third year of the Republic of China), after the Ministry of the Interior placed the area within the Tanglin red pile under the jurisdiction of the Qing Dynasty, the mausoleum guards have reported to the Qing Office by the Minister of Tomb Protection in the name of having no salary and solving the living difficulties of the banner people, and the Minister of Tomb Protection has reported to the Qing Office for permission to reclaim the land for subsistence purposes. Since then, the destruction of Tanglin land and forests has gradually escalated.

In 1921, Cao Rui, the governor of Zhili Province (now Hebei Province), sent a regiment to confiscate all the property of Tianfengyi in the Tanglin area and set up a reclamation bureau in the name of investigating and prosecuting Tianfengyi shop merchants for stealing and buying mausoleum trees. At this point, Tanglin completely fell into the hands of the Beiyang warlords.

The Reclamation Bureau was actually an institution that openly cut down the mausoleum trees, and the Tanglin Mausoleum Trees were robbed many times, and the "Yi Tree" and "Sea Tree" were stolen and cut down, and the green mountains that used to be covered by pine trees and lush green mountains had become bald mountains by 1928.

What's more, the ground buildings of Tanglin were also stolen and demolished by warlords and local natives, first all the copper decorations of the temples such as copper nails and copper characters were all stolen, and then the partitions, sill frames, and window lattices of each hall were dismantled. In 1927, Concubine Hui's tomb was stolen, the funeral jewelry was looted, and Concubine Hui's body was disposed of outside the coffin.

In the winter of 1927, Yue Zhaolin, commander of the 28th Army of the Feng Army, went to Malanyu to collect bandits, and Ma Futian, a local native, was entrusted with the post of regiment commander. In June 1928, Ma Futian led his troops from Baoding to Luan County, and found out that Ma Lanyu was empty and empty, so he led his troops to occupy Ma Lanyu in the middle of the night and changed the ** banner.

Ma Futian has always been restless, and he has long coveted the treasure of Tanglin, but he didn't have a chance to start. When Sun Dianying's ministry was stationed in Zunhua County, he often saw a large amount of wood from the demolished Tanglin Temple transported abroad along the way, and he felt itchy in his heart.

Sun Dianying found his boss, Xu Yuanquan, the commander-in-chief of the legion, and told him about his hardships. Xu Yuanquan, who was also a gambler, ignored Sun's complaints, spread his hands, "alas, alas" sighed a few times, and said: "Commander-in-Chief Jiang is also nervous, and he has to deal with **, which costs a lot of money." I hope that the brothers will put sincerity and unity first and endure for a while. ”

Sun Dianying reluctantly said beautiful words such as "understanding the difficulties above", and then came to Xu Yuanquan's ear, and said very confidentially that someone under his subordinates suggested digging up the emperor's tomb to raise funds and pay salaries. When Xu Yuanquan heard this, he was startled at first, and then calmed down.

He also felt that this was a good opportunity to make a fortune, but he also knew what was at stake, so he didn't say yes or object.

When Sun Dianying saw this formation, he was overjoyed in his heart, and the commander-in-chief did not object, which was a tacit acquiescence. So he decided to give it a go.

Dig!

Sun Dianying called several division commanders to discuss it, and of course several division commanders actively agreed. At the beginning of July 1928, a notice of the Twelfth Army suddenly appeared on the wall of the intersection of various streets in Malanyu, announcing that from now on a military exercise would be held in Tanglin, strictly prohibiting the people of Li from entering, and ordering the residents in the exercise area to move out as soon as possible, otherwise they would not be responsible for accidents.

The common people read the notice, who dared not move out, even those flags guarding the mausoleum, and none of them left the mausoleum area.

Sun Dianying was afraid of revealing secrets, so he set up a guard around the cemetery, not allowing any outsiders to enter, and spread rumors that there were mines around the cemetery. In this way, no one dares to take a step closer to the mausoleum.

At the same time, Tan Wenjiang, commander of the 8th Division of Sun Dianying's division stationed in Ma Shenqiao, led his troops to attack Ma Lanyu and Ma Futian, and fought fiercely for several hours. After that, Tan Wenjiang and brigade commander Han Dabao led the engineer battalion and other units to begin digging graves in Tangling.

The first to dig was Cixi's Putuo Yuding Dongling.

The engineer battalion dug all over the mausoleum for two days and two nights, but did not find the entrance to the underground palace. Sun Dianying was in a hurry and sent someone to find the local land security.

Dibao is a small landlord in his 40s, and when he heard that he was going to be a "staff officer" for the robbery of the emperor's mausoleum, he was immediately frightened and his face was sallow, and his legs trembled, but he couldn't afford to provoke this military commander, so he had to say: "The mausoleum area is so large, I don't know the specific location of the tomb, so let's ask a few old flag people nearby!" ”

These words reminded Sun Dianying, and he immediately sent someone to find five or six old banner people. But these old people didn't know the entrance to the underground palace, Sun Dianying thought that they were unwilling to tell the secret, and at first they were kind to coax and persuade, but gradually lost patience, so they used whips and soldering irons.

How could the old man withstand this toss, and two died in less than half a day. One of them really couldn't stand this sin, and said that there was a ginger stonemason more than 10 kilometers away from here, who had participated in the construction of the mausoleum, and he might be able to remember the location of the underground palace.

In order to prevent outsiders from knowing the entrance to the underground palace, the craftsmen who built the last project of the imperial tomb in ancient times, the tunnel, were often executed. So how did this ginger stonemason survive? There's another wonder here.

Accidentally saved his life.

At the time of Cixi's burial, 81 of the craftsmen were selected to remain as the final closure of the tomb and told the stonemasons to exit through another pre-dug tunnel. The craftsmen knew very well in their hearts that this was just a scam inherited from the previous dynasties, and since they were left behind, they didn't want to get out alive.

This ginger stonemason was in his 40s at the time, and a few days ago he heard a letter from the villagers that his wife had given birth to an only son for him, but he was so happy that he wanted him to stay, and he died without even looking at his son. So, as soon as he was moving the stone, he slipped under his feet, and just as a large rock fell on him, he fainted on the spot.

At the right time, the overseer, who was busy, thought he was dead, and was afraid that he would defile the golden voucher (i.e., the dormitory), so he ordered someone to drag it out and throw it on the barren hillside. When the ginger stonemason woke up and found that he was not at the mausoleum site, he ran home desperately in surprise and joy, so that he could be regarded as picking up a life.

In the middle of the night, Jiang Mason was suddenly carried to the Qing Dongling Tomb by several soldiers, and he was in a daze and didn't know what was going on.

Sun Dianying said to Jiang Stonemason, tell me the entrance to the tomb of Cixi's bedroom, and I will send you back.

Jiang Mason understood what was going on this time, so he was so frightened that his calf cramped and he fell on the chair. I thought to myself, how could I do something to betray my ancestors?

Sun Dianying immediately used ingots and gold bars to lure, but Jiang Stonemason still didn't say a word. Sun Dianying was furious, and ordered his subordinates to bring torture tools to prepare for torture, and then thought about it, my gang of animals are too ruthless, in case Jiang Stonemason can't stand it and dies, where can I go to find the entrance to the tomb?

So he gave up his plan to punish Jiang Mason. slapped the table at the moment: "His grandmother's, don't you say it?" Arrest your son, I have to peel him off! ”

This move was really spiritual, and before Sun's men could go out, Jiang Stonemason knelt down with a thud.

I say! (To be continued.) )