Mysterious Lotus Casebook

Chapter 11: Xiling Underground Palace (Part 1)

The seven men looked around the dark entrance. There was a slight wind blowing from within, but it was warm, and there was no smell of years-old dust.

Ge Pan excitedly said, "It seems that there's a vent at the bottom. Xiling has so many hidden secrets!"

Generally, people who build imperial tombs are very cautious in making sure that the tombs are fully sealed, so why would there be vents? Everyone was a little surprised.

Zhang Qingmao asked someone to bring some torches to guard the entrance of the cave. Ge Pan volunteered to go down first, and with the torch in hand, he jumped through the dark entrance.

The fire light was visibly not far from the bottom, with the drop to the bottom being only two feet, and the other six people descended into the passage one by one.

If the slab of stone had not been immovable by the natural laws of physics, they would have feared that it would slam on them.

They all held torches, and as the four walls of the passage were illuminated by the flames, everyone felt amazed: it was a very finely carved passage made of stone slabs, and the four walls were engraved with words. Not Chinese characters, but words with slender and graceful lines. On the top of the passage, there were also paintings of Buddhas and monks from India, and some buildings that appeared to be tombs.

But if Xiling was just the resting place of Emperor Xicheng and his concubines, why build a tunnel accessible to the outside world? Did Murong Wuyan and Wu Guang really die in this underground tomb? If so, how did they find the entrance? Everyone walked along the passage silently, thoughts spinning wildly in their hearts.

After a long silence, Fang Duobing asked, "Lianhua, what's written on this wall? Why does it seem endless?"

"This is Sanskrit writing, and it's telling a story." Li Lianhua said absent-mindedly, "The story of a son."

"The story of a son?" Fang Duobing asked, "What son?"

It was quiet in the endless tunnel, and everyone became increasingly suspicious and nervous. The fact that the murderer of Zhang Qingshi was lurking around them was fresh in their minds.

Unknowingly, they all concentrated on listening to the conversation between Li Lianhua and Fang Duobing to prevent themselves from thinking too much.

They heard Li Lianhua speak:

"This is a story from the fifth volume of the Lotus Sutra. The story is told by a Tathagata, and it's called The Parable of the Doctor. The story is like this - There was a miracle doctor who had very good medical skills, and he had many sons. One day, the miracle doctor had to go on a long trip. While he was away, his sons accidentally ingested poison and they were all in great pain. When the miracle doctor came home, he saw that his sons were in pain, so he immediately prepared a miracle medicine for his boys to take. The sons who were very filial believed the medicine would work, but the unfilial sons suspected that it was just another poison. The sons who trusted the medicine got better after taking it, but the sons who didn't trust it refused to take it, saying they would rather suffer in bed.

They groaned and groaned, thinking that their father was trying to kill them. The miracle doctor didn't blame his unfilial sons but left a letter saying that he was getting very old and was nearing death. He also told them that he left his elixirs and medicines at home, and they could use them if needed. Then the miracle doctor went to a distant place and asked someone to send a letter back to his home saying that he had died. The sons who didn't trust their father thought of their father's death, remembered his love, and figured that he wouldn't leave poison instead of medicine, so the medicine must not be fake. So they took the medicine that they had been untrusting of, and their bodies recovered. Then the miracle doctor came back home, and the unfilial sons realized how stupid they had been."