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Sun Dianying, a gangster from a peasant family, is opportunistic and loves to befriend gangsters. Relying on superb social skills, he has taken refuge in several warlords and became a miscellaneous army commander. However, the good times did not last long, the warlords continued to fight, Sun Dianying's military salary was deducted, and the soldiers couldn't even eat, and they were about to mutiny.
This seemingly desperate predicament made Sun Dianying think of a "shortcut" - tomb robbery! That's right, it's tomb robbing. There are many examples of tomb robberies for military salaries in history, and Cao Cao, Sun Quan, Huang Chao and others have all done similar things. Although tomb robbing was an extremely bad thing at the time, it was a "bad idea" in the eyes of many people.
Sun Dianying set his sights on the extravagant Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty, especially those of the Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Qianlong. As long as you can steal the treasure inside, the problem of military pay will be solved. However, with the fall of the Qing Dynasty, the guards of Tanglin had long since collapsed, and some of the guards even began to resell the contents of the tombs themselves. This undoubtedly gave Sun Dianying an opportunity.
Sun Dianying, who has always been cunning, found an excellent "excuse". At that time, a group of bandits broke into Tanglin, so he led his troops to blockade the entire Tanglin under the guise of "suppressing bandits", and falsely claimed that he was going to conduct military exercises. He also spread rumours that there were landmines all around, which scared the people out of approaching.
Everything was ready, and Sun Dianying and his gang began their heinous tomb robbery operation. They first set their sights on Cixi's Dingdong Mausoleum, which was the most luxurious tomb in the entire Qing Dynasty. At that time, in order to please Cixi, Emperor Guangxu poured all his efforts into her mausoleum, with gold and silver piled up like a mountain, and rare treasures were full of dazzling.
But after digging for two days and two nights, Sun Dianying couldn't even find the entrance to Cixi's tomb! He was so angry that he grabbed an old stonemason who had participated in the construction of Cixi's mausoleum and forced him to ask about the location of the tomb. Under the guidance of the stonemasons, they finally found the tomb tunnel, but found that it could not be opened. Sun Dianying simply ordered his subordinates to blow up the tomb with explosives, and after a loud bang, the road to the underground palace was finally opened.
There were so many treasures in the dungeon that everyone was stunned. Although Sun Dianying ordered that he was not allowed to hide it privately, where could the soldiers, who had not seen the money for a long time, manage so much, so they pounced on it and looted the funeral treasures. What's even more excessive is that they actually opened Cixi's coffin and lifted out all the corpses, even the night pearl in Cixi's mouth. The whole process was nothing short of miserable.
This first tomb robbery gave Sun Dianying a taste of sweetness. He went on to steal and excavate Emperor Qianlong's Yuling, and also looted a large number of treasures. The two most valuable mausoleums in the Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty were looted by him in this way.
When the news came out, it shocked the government and the opposition. As a descendant of the Qing imperial family, the last emperor Pu Yi trembled with anger and swore in front of everyone to avenge his ancestors and ancestors. He even drew a picture of "Killing Sun Dianying" to vent his anger. At the same time, he also sent people to Tanglin to relocate the stolen mausoleum, and sent a telegram to the Nanjing government and major newspapers, demanding that the tomb robber Sun Dianying be severely punished.
This can poke a hornet's nest. Sun Dianying knew that he was at a loss, so he hurriedly acted in a low-key manner, bribing and selling stolen goods everywhere. He even gave the jewel in Cixi's mouth to Song Meiling, and gave the "golden jade watermelon" to Song Ziwen. As for the accusation of tomb robbery, he said that this was revenge, saying that his ancestors were all killed by the Manchus, and that the tomb robbery was taking revenge on the ancestors and the ancestors, and doing the right thing for heaven.
The matter was in an uproar, but under the protection of the powerful, Sun Dianying was not punished in the end, and the case was closed. The ending of the whole incident can be described as absurd and embarrassing.
Behind this tomb robbery incident, it actually reflects all kinds of chaos in that era. The warlords are fighting, the people are struggling to make a living, and there is fighting and destruction everywhere. Sun Dianying can be so rampant, which has a lot to do with the chaos of the entire society. This begs the question, what caused the turmoil of that era? Is it just the incompetence of the rulers?
Sun Dianying's story actually has a lot of intriguing. For example, Cixi was so noble during her lifetime, but what happened after her death was so miserable; Another example is Sun Dianying himself, who made a windfall by robbing tombs, what will happen in the end?
Sun Dianying succeeded in robbing the tomb and sold the stolen goods on a large scale, thinking that he could sit back and relax, but he didn't know that the mockery of fate had quietly come.
The news that the tombs of Emperor Cixi and Emperor Qianlong had been looted soon spread throughout the country. The people were indignant and accused Sun Dianying of his despicable behavior. Even scholars and celebrities, who have always been indifferent, have begun to speak out against them. The famous scholar Liu Wendian sighed: "The rich family is more than 10,000. And Gu Ren is not a bad guy for this!" This speaks to the hearts of many.
What Sun Dianying didn't expect was that even his subordinates began to talk about it. Although these rough people are greedy for profit, they also know that tomb robbing is an unpopular act. Some people even muttered behind their backs, saying that Sun Dianying was challenging Tianwei and would be punished sooner or later.
Sun Dianying naturally didn't take these rumors to heart. He feels that he has done it seamlessly, he is rich and powerful, what wind and waves are he afraid of? However, there seems to be an invisible hand in the dark, which is secretly arranging and waiting for the opportunity.
After 19 years of tomb robbing, Sun Dianying's life suddenly took a sharp turn. In 1947, he was diagnosed with a terminal illness and his health deteriorated. Sun Dianying, who was lying on the sickbed, began to have nightmares constantly, dreaming that the Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Qianlong came to ask for her life.
According to the recollection of the doctor at the time, Sun Dianying once shouted when he was dying: "I was wrong, I shouldn't have robbed the tomb, please let me go!" His eyes were frightened and desperate, as if he had seen some terrible vision. In the end, Sun Dianying died with hatred, and the painful and distorted expression before dying made people feel chilled.
Sun Dianying's ending is seen by many people as self-inflicted blame and retribution. It has to be said that it is ironic that this former warlord who called for wind and rain ended up so desolate. However, there seems to be some kind of mystery behind this.
We all know that the Empress Dowager Cixi was the de facto supreme ruler of the late Qing Dynasty. She was known for her majesty during her lifetime, and many dignitaries trembled when they saw her. It is conceivable that she must have accumulated a lot of resentment during her reign. It is said that before her death, Cixi made a poisonous oath that if anyone dared to desecrate her mausoleum, she would also ask for her life after her death.
Not to mention Emperor Qianlong. He is the grandson of Emperor Kangxi, the son of Emperor Yongzheng, and the emperor of the Qing Dynasty. During his reign, the world was peaceful and the country was strong, and even the Western powers had to bow their heads to the Qing Dynasty. Such a "perfect old man" was humiliated after his death, and it is no wonder that he will hate the world.
Sun Dianying was unscrupulous when he robbed the tomb, and pulled out the bones of the two royal nobles. Although he made a windfall, it seems that the seeds of bad luck were also planted in this money. In fact, Sun Dianying's life began to decline all the way after robbing the tomb. He was originally an opportunist and had little foresight, and quickly squandered the money. When bad luck came, he realized that he was at the end of his rope and that it was too late to regret it.
This is reminiscent of an old saying: "Don't take evil as small, don't do good as small." To be a person and do things, of course, the big evil is unacceptable, and the small evil is actually absolutely unacceptable. Because if you do too many evil things, you will be punished one day. Retribution may not be imminent, but you never know when it will set up a game in the shadows until the consequences finally come to you.
The story of Sun Dianying's tomb robbery actually gave us a profound lesson. That is, we must know how to be in awe, whether it is for our ancestors or for the laws of nature. Don't think that if you have the power, you can do whatever you want, because Skynet is magnificent and not leaky, and what should come will always come. At the same time, we must also understand that wealth does not equal happiness. Most of the money that comes from the wrong way will become a shackle on you, making you uneasy.
Of course, there is a deeper problem behind this story. That is, in a turbulent era, the weakness of human nature is often infinitely magnified. The reason why Sun Dianying dared to act so recklessly was, in the final analysis, because of the special environment of that era. Frequent wars, the collapse of order, the disgrace of the cult of knowledge, and the incompetence of those in power have led to this absurd farce.
Although nearly a century has passed since the tomb robbery incident of Sun Dianying, it has left a strong mark in China's modern history. This is not only because of the shocking nature of the event itself, but also because it reflects many unknown historical details of that era.
In fact, Sun Dianying's tomb robbery is not an isolated case. According to historical records, in that era of warlord warfare, tomb robbing was prevalent for a while. In addition to Sun Dianying, warlords such as Feng Yuxiang and Wu Peifu have also been involved in tomb robbery. Whether they were to make a fortune, or to hunt for treasure, or even to demonstrate against rival warlords, they all targeted the tombs of ancient emperors and generals.
There is one detail that speaks volumes. It is said that a warlord at that time heard that there were countless gold and silver treasures buried in Cixi's mausoleum, and he became greedy. He first sent someone to find out the specific location of the mausoleum, and then selected a feng shui gentleman, ready to pretend to find a "respectful" reason to start.
This feng shui gentleman's name is Liu Banxian, and he is a well-known charlatan in the local area. He pretended to be a ghost, claiming that the Empress Dowager Cixi had given him a dream, saying that there was no peace in the mausoleum and that the tomb needed to be relocated. The warlord was naturally overjoyed when he heard this, and thought he had found a suitable reason.
However, Liu Banxian is a liar after all, where does he know how to rob tombs. He just wanted to take the opportunity to make a profit, and he didn't really explore the structure of the tomb. As a result, he led his men and horses to dig seven or eight large pits around Cixi's mausoleum, but he did not find the entrance to the tomb. In the end, the warlord became angry and scolded Liu Banxian, and gave up.
Although this episode did not cause substantial damage, it also reflected the rampant trend of tomb robbery at that time. However, among the many warlords, there are not many who can succeed like Sun Dianying. The reasons are, first, the imperial tombs of the Qing Dynasty are heavily defended and deeply buried; Second, although many warlords coveted the treasures of the mausoleum, they did not dare to act rashly due to the pressure of public opinion. And the reason why Sun Dianying was able to succeed was more because of the behind-the-scenes forces such as Zhu Peide and Yan Xishan to support him.
The details of Sun Dianying's tomb robbery are actually far more appalling than we imagined. According to the memories of a reporter accompanying the army at the time, after Sun Dianying dug up Cixi's coffin, he saw that her body was not decomposed, and he exclaimed excitedly: "She has preserved it so well, it seems that the previous jade liquid elixir was not drunk in vain!"
What's even more outrageous is that Sun Dianying's subordinates actually pulled out Cixi's hair on the spot, saying that they would make it into the strings of the huqin. There were even soldiers who wanted to cook on the spot, so they used Cixi's coffin as firewood from local materials. All kinds of evil deeds are simply outrageous.
After these details were disclosed by the newspapers, they caused great shock and indignation among the people. All of a sudden, there were voices of condemnation and public opinion in an uproar. Many newspapers published articles denouncing Sun Dianying one after another. One scholar wrote in the article: "Sun Dianying's sin of burning coffins and bones is not limited to bad morals? It's just immorality and morals!" The people said that Sun Dianying's move was simply inferior to a beast and would be punished by heaven.
However, in the face of the overwhelming crusade, Sun Dianying seemed to be full of indifference. He even said that although he burned Cixi's coffin, it was better than burning the living. These words caused public outrage, but he had the support of the warlord, and in the end he was not punished substantively.
Sun Dianying's tomb robbery incident ended in such an absurd way, leaving many intriguing question marks in history. It is both a product of the chaos of the warlord era and a reflection of the distortion of human nature in that era. Driven by the desire for money, once the evil in human nature is rampant, the results are often shocking.
This is a sobering lesson that warns us to always be vigilant and not to be blinded by profit. No matter when and where, we must stick to the moral bottom line and keep the goodness in our hearts. Only in this way can we live up to history and ourselves.
Although Sun Dianying was not punished by the law in the end, the tragic ending of his later years may be the best portrayal of his crimes. In the dark, there is a clear reason for it.
This story will eventually fade away with history, but the thinking behind it will never go out of style. Let us take this as a lesson and always uphold a heart of awe on the road ahead. As the philosopher Immanuel Kant said, "The moral law hangs above me like a starry sky, and the moral law is in my heart." May each of us be able to keep the moral law of our hearts, worthy of the world, worthy of our conscience.