Chapter Nine, The Guardian of the Tomb

At the bend of the stream, there is a patch of grass where the old man stopped and faced me

I opened my eyes

That night, Li Fengniang was at the foot of the kang while I lay at the head. Sharing a bed with a woman truly made it difficult for me to fall asleep, as my mind was filled with endless thoughts. Fortunately, after a day of fatigue, I soon fell into a drowsy sleep.

Alright, let me tell you a story first. Do you know about Qianling? It is the tomb where Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu Zetian are interred together. In the first year of the Hongdao era, Emperor Gaozong passed away. Chen Zi'ang and others strongly advocated for the establishment of a mausoleum in Luoyang, but Wu Zetian, adhering to Gaozong's last wish of 'returning to Chang'an', mobilized over 200,000 soldiers and laborers. Following the burial custom of 'using the mountain as a tomb', she selected Liang Mountain as the burial site. A cave was excavated in the mountainside to construct an underground palace, and in the eighth month of the first year of the Wenming era, Emperor Gaozong was laid to rest.

My face flushed, and I closed my eyes, feeling a wave of warmth rising from the soles of my feet along my legs, pleasantly soothing.

"Could it be that you have caught a chill?" She reached out and gently brushed my forehead, "It is nothing serious, my husband. I will help you out of your clothes, so you can rest early."

At this moment, Li Fengniang's whisper was heard: "My husband, do not be anxious, there are still more than ten days until the day of our wedding night"

I woke up, only to realize it was merely a spring dream! Yet my lower body remained icy cold, and it was only later that I understood it was a nocturnal emission

I suddenly came to my senses, gazing at Li Fengniang, who was gracefully approaching while carrying a foot basin.

"Who exactly are you?" I gritted my teeth and asked again

The next piece is cold, and I know that I have lost my virginity

"Follow me," the old man lowered his voice

A hand tentatively reached into my bedding, and I felt as if my body had become rigid. I could hear my heart beating "thump thump," occasionally pausing for a few moments, only to then beat even more violently.

***

"My lord, are you asleep?" Suddenly, the gentle voice of Li Fengniang rang in my ears

In an instant, my mind went blank, my body felt soft and limp, and my joints were tinged with a sense of soreness and numbness. A wonderful feeling of comfort gradually sprouted and quickly spread throughout my body. A wave of heat in my lower abdomen was expanding, and an incredibly comfortable sensation of soreness and fullness filled my entire abdomen, growing increasingly intense, as if it were about to explode. That heat was crashing within my abdomen, searching for an outlet, and the extreme comfort made my whole body tremble, suddenly surging outward like a dam breaking.

Twenty-two years later, Wu Zetian passed away in the first year of the Shenlong era. A debate arose in the court regarding her burial. The ministers believed that the honored should be buried first, and the lesser should not disturb the honored for a later burial. If a joint burial were to be conducted, it would mean disturbing the honored with the lesser, which could disturb the dragon vein. The entrance of Qianling is sealed with stone, and the gaps in the stone are reinforced with cast iron; opening the tomb would require chiseling. Emperor Zhongzong announced to the world, summoning Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang back to court, but their whereabouts could not be found. In desperation, Emperor Zhongzong ordered the excavation of the path to Qianling, opening the tomb door, and in May of the second year of Shenlong, Wu Zetian was jointly buried in the Xuan Palace of Qianling. After the joint burial of Wu Zetian, the courts of Zhongzong and Ruizong also buried 17 individuals, including the two princes, three kings, four princesses, and eight ministers alongside her in Qianling. The construction of Qianling spanned a total of 57 years, from the reign of Wu Zetian through to that of Zhongzong and Ruizong.

You ... ... "I was left speechless, staring blankly.

I felt a surge of heartbeat and quickly interjected, "By the way, this corpse rat is so strange; you are not afraid at all. Have you eaten it before?"

The night is deep, and the cold moonlight filters through the gnarled branches of the old locust tree, casting mottled shadows on the window. Inside the room, the oil lamp seems to have run dry, the wick crackling, and the light growing dimmer.

I am increasingly astonished; today has been filled with strange occurrences. First, I ate something disgusting, a rat's head, and then this strange old man sneaked into my room at midnight and touched my chest. He then brought me to this riverbank, and not only does he know Ah Huang's secret, but he also recited the verses from Li Chunfeng's will.

Please provide the text you would like to have translated from Traditional Chinese to English.

As for the tomb raiders who gather in groups of three to five, they have existed throughout the ages, and the result is that not only do they fail to locate the tombs, but most of them also meet with untimely deaths.

Under the moonlight, the frail old man, who had been stooped and weak during the day, suddenly moved swiftly as if flying, light as a swallow, and I hurriedly followed behind him, running and stumbling.

Under the mottled moonlight, an ugly old face is staring at me just above, its grayish-white eyes reflecting a dim light

My heart was pounding, my face was flushed, and I was at a loss, not knowing where to place my hands and feet

I immediately held my breath, not daring to make a sound or move my body

"Killed by the tomb guardian," the old man said

Someone crawled over from the edge of the kang, and my heart raced uncontrollably, the blood coursing faster through my veins

The mausoleum is divided into the Imperial City, the Palace City, and the Outer City, encompassing an area of approximately 80 li. The city walls are double-layered, and the inner city has four gates: the East Qinglong Gate, the South Zhuque Gate, the West Baihu Gate, and the North Xuanwu Gate. Within the city, there are the Hall of Offerings, side rooms, corridors, watchtowers, and a shrine for the statues of 60 court officials, including Di Renjie, as well as the lower palace. After the Anshi Rebellion, over the course of more than 1,300 years, only the more than 120 stone carvings along both sides of Sima Dao outside the Zhuque Gate remain, while all other ground structures have completely vanished.

Strange, how could he know the secret between Ah Huang and me? Who on earth is this old man?

"My lord, why are you trembling? Is something wrong?" Li Fengniang asked with concern

"My lord, please loosen your clothing and unfasten your belt," Li Fengniang said with a gentle smile.

Li Fengniang laughed even more, and simply reached out her hand to unfasten my clothing buttons, while her other hand swiftly loosened my belt

"Well, the development is quite good, and the foundation is excellent. At eighteen, it should be the time to cultivate the 'Corpse Technique'" the old man said

"Grave keepers? Has it been over a thousand years, and there are still grave keepers?" I was perplexed.

At this moment, I detected a peculiar odor of bad breath, which was mixed with hot air that was directly blown onto my face

The following words astonished me even more

The world covets the treasures buried in the tomb of Qianling. During the Five Dynasties, Wen Tao, while serving as the military governor of Yaozhou under the Later Liang, excavated all the Tang tombs located within his territory, extracting the gold and treasures stored therein, but the Qianling tomb remained untouched by wind and rain. At the end of the Tang dynasty, Huang Chao's army, lacking military resources, mobilized 400,000 soldiers to dig into the Qianling tomb, creating a trench over 40 meters deep, yet they could not find the entrance to the burial passage. To this day, a deep trench on the western side of the main peak of Liangshan is still referred to as 'Huang Chao Trench.' In the early years of the Republic, amidst warlord conflicts, the looting of ancient tombs became rampant. General Sun Lianzhong of the Kuomintang, under the pretext of protecting the Qianling tomb, stationed his troops there and secretly used a division's worth of soldiers to excavate the tomb. At that time, explosives were used in several locations, but they still could not find the entrance to the burial passage. Suddenly, a thunderstorm broke out, lasting for several days, and rumors spread among the troops that Wu Zetian had manifested her spirit, prompting Sun Lianzhong to hastily lead his men away.

Li Fengniang laughed heartily, without further ado, seized my foot, removed my shoes and socks, and plunged it into the water

The old man remained silent, and after a long while, he sighed and said: "On the Bailuyuan, the Jin Gang Tomb, a friend comes from fifteen miles away. I do not see the face of the flower protector, yet every night the host opens the firewood gate."

"Hush." A withered hand withdrew from my chest, extending a finger to gesture for silence at the corner of the old man's mouth

The moonlight was enchanting, cool as water, and the old man's eyes, glowing with a white light, stared at me unblinkingly, making my heart tremble with fear

"My lord, it is time to retire for the night. I will first serve you a foot bath. After a long day of travel, soaking your feet will be very comforting." The gentle voice of Li Fengniang reached my ears

I perked up my ears to listen intently, and sure enough, that delicate, almost imperceptible voice of longing came through again: "My little husband, are you really asleep?"

You are still a virgin, while Li Fengniang is already an old woman in the twilight of her years, and in just over ten days, she will be married off. It truly is a pity for you

Why? I asked softly, filled with curiosity

That hand was hot and soft, gently caressing my chest, occasionally pinching my bones and muscles... Subsequently, the dreadful event that I had anticipated finally occurred; that hand quietly slid down to my abdomen, crossing over my navel, moving past my lower abdomen

Since childhood, I have never had a woman come into such close physical contact with me, and I involuntarily shuddered all over.

Who are you? I asked boldly

I lowered my head and calculated for a moment; tonight I have consumed at least seven or eight rat heads. Although it is extremely disgusting, it may greatly benefit my impending practice of "Corpse Technique." That being said, if the old man at the inn is not an exceptionally generous person, then he must have intentionally made me eat them. Moreover, he even mentioned "Corpse Technique." Who exactly is he? Could it be that he also possesses unparalleled skills in the art of corpses?

No, please don't. I sat on the kang, feeling at a loss and shrinking back.

I, I feel a bit cold. I do not know what I am saying.

The soles of my feet were itchy, as if countless little fish were touching my skin. I quietly squinted my eyes to take a look, and it turned out that Li Fengniang was gently massaging my feet

The old man gazed silently at the sky, two lines of tears quietly streaming down his face

I feel a buzzing sensation in my head

The old man chuckled a few times and retorted, "Has the yellow dog not taught you any skills?"

I got up, put on my clothes, and when I was about to go out, I turned back to take a look at the kang, where Li Fengniang was sound asleep

Li Fengniang smiled and said: "I have not had such fortune, but since my childhood, I have diligently studied the Tang history and have also explored numerous esoteric texts. The 'Shan Hai Jing' records this kind of corpse rat, and the 'Bencao Gangmu' lists its medicinal properties; it is indeed a sacred tonic for the body"

I nodded nervously