A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 231 Auspicious Land
It was a rare windless day in winter, with warm sunshine and evergreen pines, resembling a scene of early spring. Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, we followed a small river into the mountains, where the verdant cypresses stood out against the desolate winter landscape, creating a sense of tranquility and vastness.

The carriages and horses inevitably slowed down.

"What do you think of this place, my two esteemed physicians?" Yin Zhong, one of Dong Zhongshu's four disciples, asked.

Luo Shu and Tang Ping opened their eyes, smiled and nodded, "Green mountains and clear waters, the Daoist principles govern heaven and earth, truly a blessed land."

"How about using it as the burial site for the Grand Master of the Heavenly Palace?"

"Blessing one's descendants is certainly excellent, but..."

"But what?"

“This place is already inhabited by celestial beings. If we were to perish here, it would be a small matter of us overstepping our bounds, but a great matter of us disturbing the peace and tranquility of the celestial beings. We fear that this will implicate others after our deaths,” Luo Shu said with sorrow.

Tang Ping was the same.

Clearly, the two astrological masters were not surprised by the impending "murder to silence"; their expressions showed more pity for what would happen after death.

“The High Scholar is a Grand Master bestowed by His Majesty. Even if there are celestial beings buried here, they are not as noble as the High Scholar. How can there be any talk of overstepping one’s bounds?” Yin Zhong said unmoved.

Luo Shu said earnestly, “Heaven has authorized that virtue is the only kinship. This place is not the burial ground for us brothers. Even if His Majesty has decreed that we die here, we will not be able to rest in peace after death. Dong Sheng’s disciple might as well walk a few more miles forward and cross this mountain. In the future, you will be well, we will be well, and everyone will be well.”

"The road is easy to walk, but the mountain is difficult to cross. I don't have time to see Dr. Tian off any further."

Yin Zhong shook his head. His mentor had trained a large number of students, and his disciples were so accomplished that they became high-ranking officials, and there were hundreds of others who served as court attendants, censors, and historians. However, he was only very close to four of them.

Chu Da, Yin Zhong, Ying Gong, and Lü Bushu.

Among them, Chu Da was ordered to return to the Chang'an court to serve as a scholar of classics, while Lü Bushu was ordered to travel around the city and countryside of Chang'an, engaging in eloquent speech.

Only Yin Zhong and the seemingly dull-witted Duke Ying, who had been around their mentor for a long time, and Wuqiu Shouwang, who had entered their inner circle later, seemed to be favored by their mentor, but their mentor could not entrust him with many of his secret plans.

In other words, the four of them, fellow disciples, are their master's secret weapon and the main force in maneuvering the political situation of the Han Dynasty. The "Secret Book" and the "Blood Pact" have been completed. Next, he will hold the "Secret Talisman," the key part of the Secret Book, while Ying Gong will hold the Emperor's Blood Pact, to persuade the officials, powerful families, wealthy merchants, and wandering knights and thieves of the Han Dynasty.

The Yin Fu is a bamboo slip with lines of varying lengths and colors drawn on it. It is used to arrange scattered Yin-style bamboo slips. It can be said that no one can understand it except when the Yin books and Yin Fu are gathered together.

The secret letter is written openly and sent out in three parts, arriving in one or five parts, conveying complex secret orders. The secret talisman is written secretly and sent out openly, arriving in one go. No one is afraid of being intercepted, as long as they are not intercepted together.

As for the Emperor's Blood Pact, it only recorded the benefits promised by the Emperor to all those who were lobbying for his services. It was "written and sent secretly, and arrived in one go." Even if it was intercepted, there was no crucial information on it.

In preparation for the rebellion, Dong Zhongshu made thorough preparations, employing trusted individuals in both his methods and personnel selection to ensure there was no possibility of leaks.

Under his master's command, Yin Zhong must return to Ganquan Palace as soon as possible and then travel the world to persuade the people.

"Is it really not going to work?"

"No!" "In that case, let Dong Sheng's disciple do it." Luo Shu and Tang Ping looked at each other for a while, and without the slightest fear of facing death, they burst into laughter at the same time.

Yin Zhong felt a surge of irritation. As a disciple of a great Confucian scholar, he followed Confucius and believed in the saying "The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits." He was extremely disgusted by the tricks of astrologers, diviners, and sorcerers who used superstition to deceive the world. He sneered, "Even when death is imminent, you still do not repent. If everyone takes the will of Heaven as their own, how can we talk about the good and evil of human nature?"

If divine will truly exists, and everyone acts according to it, wouldn't people become "puppets" of divine will? Wouldn't they be mindless, living corpses?

Luo Shu and Tang Ping, not being good at arguing, silently closed their eyes.

"Fire arrows!"

"Fire arrows!"

Yin Zhong gave orders to the accompanying gatekeeper.

With a swift draw of the bowstring and a release of the string, a sharp whistling sound erupted, and amidst the frenzied barrage of arrows, Luo Shu and Tang Ping were instantly riddled with holes, their blood staining the green hills.

Like a ground being washed, many arrows flew behind the chariot, clanging and clattering loudly—the sound of iron arrowheads hitting the rocks.

Yin Zhong paid no attention and ordered the gatekeeper to push the carriage and horses directly down the mountain. The carriage and horses rolled down the ridge and disappeared below the cliff.

Perhaps due to the tremor, a section of soil slid down the mountain. As he hurriedly dodged, Yin Zhong noticed a stone tablet. After things calmed down, he stepped forward, brushed away the soil covering it, and stared at it intently. His body trembled as if struck by lightning.

The words "ten thousand years" were clearly written on it.

This is not an unnamed hill, but "Wannian Mountain" in Wannian County, north of Liyang City.

In the second year of Emperor Gaozu's reign, "he pacified the elders outside the pass and returned to the capital, Liyang."

In the seventh year of Emperor Gaozu's reign, the capital was moved to Chang'an, and Liyang was established as a county. In the tenth year of Emperor Gaozu's reign, Emperor Gaozu buried his father north of Liyang City and named his mausoleum Wannian Mausoleum. Wannian County was established in Liyang City to support the mausoleum.

The Zhou and Qin dynasties shared a common origin and successively became the rulers of the world. Liyang City was the place where the Zhou and Qin dynasties rose to power. During the Chu-Han Contention, Liyang City was the base of Emperor Gaozu. After Emperor Gaozu ascended the throne on the north bank of the Si River, he adopted the advice of his strategist Lou Jing and decided to establish the capital in Guanzhong, choosing Liyang City as the first capital of the Han Dynasty.

To preserve the imperial aura of both dynasties, even after Emperor Gaozu moved the capital to Chang'an, he welcomed the retired emperor to reside in Liyang Palace in Liyang City, while Emperor Gaozu and Empress Lü resided in Weiyang Palace and Changle Palace in Chang'an City. After the retired emperor's death, he was buried in Wannian Mountain in Wannian County, Liyang City. The imperial mausoleum is called "auspicious land," so the mausoleum of the retired emperor of Han is known as "Wannian Jirang" (meaning "auspicious land for ten thousand years").
As time passed and the Han dynasty changed hands several times, the green hills and clear waters remained the same, but they had long been neglected. The names of the five mausoleums gradually rose, including the Changling Mausoleum of Emperor Gaozu and Empress Lü, the Anling Mausoleum of Emperor Hui, the Baling Mausoleum of Emperor Wen, the Yangling Mausoleum of Emperor Jing, and the Maoling Mausoleum of the current emperor, while the mausoleum of the retired emperor of Han gradually fell into disrepair.

However, even if the tomb of the retired emperor of Han were to fall again, it would still be the "tomb for establishing the dynasty" in which Emperor Gaozu placed his hopes on seizing the dragon energy of the Zhou and Qin dynasties to nourish the Han dynasty.

This is tantamount to disturbing the imperial aura and the ancestors of the Han Dynasty!
According to the laws of the Han Dynasty, anyone who uses force to destroy the imperial tombs will be punished!

What exactly did he just do?
Yin Zhong subconsciously covered the stone tablet on Wannian Mountain with soil. Feeling uneasy, he simply summoned several gatekeepers to push the stone tablet down the mountain as well. After hurriedly cleaning up the scene, he mounted his horse and returned to Ganquan Palace.

Just after Yin Zhong and the others left, the tomb guards, who had heard the commotion, arrived late. Although the retired emperor had never been an emperor, the tomb guards still existed here. For many years, the area had been peaceful, so no one had ever thought that someone would dare to trespass on the emperor's head. They only thought that a wild beast had fallen. It wasn't until they saw the bloodstains and arrow marks at the scene that they realized the seriousness of the problem.

The commander of the Wannian Mausoleum Guard dug a broken iron arrowhead from the mountain. After seeing the markings on it, he immediately said, "Take the arrowhead to the capital and quickly report to His Highness the Crown Prince!"

(End of this chapter)