As a historian, Guo Moruo also wants to leave a deep impression on people. Of course, it is difficult to make a breakthrough in studying history in ancient books. The best way is to dig the emperor's tomb. Guo Moruo's idea coincides with that of Wu Han, then vice mayor of Beijing. It happens that Wu Han is an expert and scholar in the research field of Ming history. Their original plan was to dig Judy's grave, but it didn't come true. Instead, I dug the Ming Dingling Mausoleum, the tomb of Emperor Wanli.
The excavation process of the Ming Dingling Mausoleum is quite violent. Some precious cultural relics are placed at will after excavation, which leads to the rapid oxidation of national treasures and the loss of cultural value. The most regrettable thing is that the remains of Emperor Wanli were set on fire. As the host of the excavation work of Ming Dingling, Guo Moruo is hard to blame. In any case, the excavation work of the Ming Dingling Mausoleum has indeed gained a lot, which strongly supports some historical research arguments. After the excavation of the Ming Dingling Mausoleum, Guo Moruo was very excited to learn that the entrance to Wu Zetian's tomb had been discovered. As a calligrapher and an archaeologist, he has no reason not to be moved by the original preface to Lanting Collection.
In addition, Guo Moruo threw out a statement that the original preface to Lanting was not written by Wang Xizhi, and it was false from beginning to end. Guo Moruo and Preface to Lanting are inseparable, so he especially wants to dig Ganling. Guo Moruo twice applied for robbing Wu Zetian's tomb, but both of them were beaten back. There is a simple reason. In view of the catastrophic damage caused by the excavation of the Ming Dingling Mausoleum, the superior set the tone of "not actively excavating the emperor's mausoleum", and Guo Moruo's idea of excavating the tomb of Wu Zetian ran aground. Then, why did Guo Moruo dig the tomb of Wu Zetian when he dug the Ming Dingling? Lao Liang's statement is worth learning from.
Lao Liang pointed out that there is a saying in the history circle that there is a great possibility of an original "Lanting Preface" in Wu Zetian's tomb, and there are countless other rare treasures. However, Lao Liang also pointed out that the tomb of Wu Zetian was stolen 17 times in history, and the largest time, 400,000 people were not dug up, largely because the tomb door was unknown. In fact, in the 1950s, historians agreed that the Preface to Lanting was in Ganling, not Zhaoling. From this, it is not difficult to understand why Guo Moruo was so excited after learning that the entrance to Wu Zetian's tomb was discovered.
Guo Moruo wanted to dig the tomb of Wu Zetian because Lao Liang's statement is worth learning from. The old couple said that the original preface to Lanting Collection was in the tomb of Wu Zetian, which really attracted Guo Moruo to dig the tomb of Wu Zetian. Before Guo Moruo learned about the tomb gate of Wu Zetian's mausoleum palace, his greatest wish was to see the original appearance of the Preface to the Lanting Pavilion. Although it is said that the whereabouts of the original preface to Lanting are unknown, many historical facts point to the tomb of Wu Zetian.
Guo Moruo finally failed to dig the tomb of Wu Zetian, but his original intention of digging the tomb of Wu Zetian was known to everyone. In any case, the whereabouts of the original craftsmen became a mystery. Guo Moruo's excavation of Ganling on the grounds of "Lanting preface is in Ganling" is too risky. It's not far from the excavation site of Yin Jian in the Ming Tombs. Fortunately, Guo Moruo did not dig the tomb of Wu Zetian, leaving a valuable cultural wealth to future generations.