Chapter 32: The Tricky Thing in Zhanghe River
In the spring of 208 AD, three years after the Battle of Red Cliff, Cao Cao built a famous structure in Yecheng, the Three Bronze Sparrow Terraces - Bronze Sparrow Terrace, Golden Tiger Terrace, and Bingjing Terrace. The three platforms were built along the walls of Yecheng, with the tallest one casting a large bronze sparrow on top of the building, making it a symbolic building of the Cao Wei regime. The three platforms are connected by a pavilion, which is so majestic that it is called the Three Platforms of the Cao Wei Dynasty. Historical records show that Cao Cao often climbed up to Bronze Sparrow Terrace to listen to songs and watch dances, or to write poems and express his feelings.
In the village of Santai in Linzhang County, Hebei Province, there is an earthen platform that is no longer too high, and this is the Bronze Sparrow Terrace built by Cao Cao. Nowadays, the Tongqueitai has long since lost its splendor. Due to the floods of the Ming Dynasty, it was partially washed away, and further north, Bingjingtai has been completely washed away by the floodwaters of the Zhanghe River. In the past, the three platforms were 60 paces apart and were connected by a bridge, which was a very famous building in Yecheng at that time. The most famous of these three platforms was the Bronze Sparrow Platform. If you can see Cao Cao's mausoleum from the Bronze Sparrow Terrace, it means that Cao Cao's mausoleum is not too far away from the Bronze Sparrow Terrace. Moreover, it was also very likely that the Bronze Sparrow Terrace was an altar for Cao Cao's tomb?
Fatty touched his not-so-lucid head and squeaked, why are we talking about the Bronze Sparrow Terrace again?
Seeing that they were still confused I was speechless and sighed: "Obviously, the Bronze Sparrow Terrace is another important reference for Cao Cao's tomb. And in terms of metaphysics, this Zhanghe River also conforms to the various feng shui five elements."
These words piqued Old Hu's curiosity, asking me if this Zhanghe River had good feng shui. Fatty, on the other hand, muttered, "It's said that it's better to be buried in the ground, but I've never seen anyone buried in the water after death. Half Immortal, could it be that you've got it all wrong from the start?
I said, "Although we usually talk about burying in the ground, but for the pattern here, it can't be interpreted this way. The five elements are gold, wood, water, fire and earth, and the five elements are interlocked and unending. Let me ask you guys, do you know what a copper sparrow is?"
Old Hu was the first to answer, "Isn't a copper sparrow a phoenix?"
I nodded, "Yes, the Copper Sparrow is the Phoenix, which is also known as the Vermilion Bird."
"So what? And does this thing have anything to do with Cao Cao's tomb?" Fatty asked.
"Of course there is a correlation, Yin house feng shui and pay attention to the Green Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, Xuanwu, the Green Dragon for the eastern wood, White Tiger for the western gold, Vermilion Bird for the southern fire, Xuanwu for the northern water, and this Bronze Sparrow Terrace is exactly located in the south, does not that mean the five elements of fire Vermilion Bird?" I analyzed.
Old Hu slapped his head and said excitedly, "According to you, the five elements are mutually reinforcing, water is the fire, so the last one is water? That means this river?"
I sighed, really stupid and unteachable, I said, "Xuanwu represents water in the north, and according to the pattern here, the ice well platform is in the north, and doesn't ice well refer to water?"
Old Hu hemmed and hawed and laughed, then said, "Right, right, right, it seems that this really needs a good refresher course later. But now I also know what you mean, water can restrain fire, so the ice well platform below is on behalf of the Vermilion Bird Bronze Bird platform, and the Vermilion Bird belongs to the fire, the fire can restrain gold, so the next should be the White Tiger, White Tiger for the western gold, and the Golden Tiger platform in the west, so the Bronze Bird platform below is the Golden Tiger platform. Then gold can overcome wood, but this wood is in the east, there is no more stage in the east ah, so where does this refer to?"
I saw that Old Hu had gotten into my way of thinking, so I pointed to the Zhanghe River in front of me and laughed, "Isn't the position we are in now the east of the three stations? So this Eastern Green Dragon's Wood should refer to the Zhanghe River in front of us!"
"What? No way, this Zhanghe is obviously water ah, how become wood? Is not we think wrong again?" The two were surprised, after all, no one thought that the five elements of the wood will refer to the Zhanghe River.
In order to let the two understand, so I said: "Zhanghe is water, but in the five elements of the Bureau but take its shape, this Zhanghe looks like a dragon, just in the east of the three Taiwan, so it is the East of the Green Dragon is right. In Feng Shui, the dragon is the Dragon Vein, so Cao Cao's old house is located in the Dragon Vein (Zhanghe River), and now we just need to find his cave eyes."
Old Hu two people heard me say so, immediately excited, as if the Zhanghe River in front of me is filled with piles of gold treasures in general, eyes glowing, and praised me for being so powerful, so difficult to analyze the secret.
To tell the truth, looking at the two of them high color column appearance, my heart is endless bitterness. After all, Zhang Zhenren had said that I had committed the "fate of the lack of" above, a year later is my fate, the only way to change the fate of accumulation of virtues and good deeds. But now I have told the secret of Cao Cao's mansion, which will inevitably damage my virtue, although I do not dare to say that the calamity will not come early, but the virtue is certainly a lot of loss.
You know who Cao Cao is ah, although he did not call himself emperor, but Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian to abdicate, he became emperor and established the state of Wei, and then Cao Cao posthumously named Wei Wu Di. Posthumous title, that is, to the dead man's title, this is his son Cao Pi to give, but also counted as the character of the Purple Violet Star down to the earth, I will be the stars of the sky to the yin house out of the way, this is no metaphor for broken heaven, it seems to be their own really not a long life.
Thinking of these, I can not help but long sigh of fate, I intend to come out to do more good and virtue, so as to cross the next year's robbery, but the reality is pushing me step by step into the abyss of evil. Am I just waiting for the end of the year? Thinking of my mother in my hometown who is looking forward to my return, I can't help but make up my mind that I can't die, not even for myself, but for the sake of my family, I can't leave this world early. However, thinking about the future will come, my heart is full of confusion, what should I do?
Thinking about my own mind, the old Hu may be able to see my expression of sadness, so asked me what's wrong? Is there something on my mind, or have you thought of something else, is this Zhanghe River not the real location of Cao Cao's unlucky bastard?
Naturally, I wouldn't tell them what was on my mind, for one thing, they probably wouldn't believe me, and for another, having done it all, telling them would only make things difficult for them, so I hastily put it aside and shook my head, saying, "Nothing, I'm just worried that entering the underground palace will be dangerous. But it's true that Cao Cao's netherworld is right here in Zhanghe, and I've heard a few legends about Zhanghe being associated with Cao Cao's tomb!"
Upon hearing that there were stories to listen to, the two began to gather around the cage again, excited to hear me tell stories again. See they listen to my storytelling is addicted, so I told them up.
The story goes that during the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty, there was an orphan by the Zhanghe River who had lost both his parents since he was a child, named Zhu Sae'er. As he had no one to turn to, he had to make a living by herding sheep for a landlord's family. One year, there was a drought in the Central Plains, and the water dried up, so the Zhanghe River gradually silted up and grew full of reeds, turning into land. When Zhu Saer was herding sheep here, he suddenly found a large tomb with a stone tablet lying on its side in front of it in the tall artemisia grass. Zhu Saer could not read or write, but he was curious, so he asked a private tutor to identify it. When the private tutor read the inscription, it turned out to be the tomb of Cao Cao, Emperor Wu of Wei. So, they informed the Magistrate of the Magistrate County. When the magistrate was informed, he immediately rushed to the river in a sedan chair, but strangely enough, when he led his men to pluck away the weeds, the large mound was nowhere to be seen. The magistrate was so angry that he thought the private school teacher had cheated him, and ordered his soldiers to beat him with 300 canes, while the boy, Saeko, has never been found.
This story heard the old Hu two a shock, then said you did not say there are a few stories, there is a it, quickly said to hear.
I was speechless sigh, and then told a Pu Songling "Liaozhai Zhiyi" book in the story, the words of Xuchang outside the city there is a river, called Zhanghe, the river's water flow is rapid, rough waves. Near one of the cliff banks, the color of the river turned deep black. In the height of summer, someone jumped into the river from here to take a bath, and suddenly, as if he had been chopped by a knife or axe, his body was broken in two and floated out of the water. Later, another person did the same. People were deeply surprised. When the magistrate heard about this, he sent someone to cut off the upper stream of the river, drained the remaining water, and saw that there was a deep hole under the bank of the cliff, in which a rotating wheel was mounted, with sharp blades arranged on the wheel. After removing the wheel and going deeper into the cave, he found a small stone tablet, on which the characters were all in Chinese seal script, which, upon close examination, turned out to be Cao Cao's tomb. So he broke the coffin, scattered the rotten bones, and took out all the gold and silver treasures that had been martyred.
Upon hearing this, the two of them asked me urgently, "The second story can't be true, can it? If it is true, that would be bad, the treasure inside may be that bird magistrate to empty.
I laughed, said it is Pu Songling "Liao Zhai Zhi Yi" book of stories, you think it will be true? So you don't have to make a fuss, let's think about what to do next!
Fatty first proposed to go back to the county town to rub a meal, and then find a hotel to sleep well, anyway, this side of Cao Cao's old camp has almost been confirmed, so there is no hurry to do it first.
And old Hu this time really agree with the fat man's good suggestion, said the Yin soldiers disappeared in this place, think Cao Cao that unlucky man's old house should be in this section of the river, so first back to the city to rest for a few days, when to buy some diving equipment, and then turn around, Cao Cao this unlucky man launched an all-out strike, a one-off end of his lair.
