The tomb of Huo Qubing is just a wall away from the tomb of Wei Qing, one is respected by thousands of people, the other is overgrown with weeds
One of the strongest emperors in history, Emperor Wu of Han, his mausoleum - Maoling is known as the Chinese pyramid, a 2-hour drive from Xi'an, located on the Xianyang Plateau stretching for hundreds of miles northeast of Xingping. Maoling of Emperor Wu of Han began to be built after he ascended the throne, lasting 53 years, it is the longest-built, largest-scale, and most burial objects among the 29 imperial tombs in the 400-year history of the Han Dynasty.
About 1000 meters away from Maoling is the resting place of the young war god Huo Qubing, located in the current Maoling Museum, the tomb is shaped like the Qilian Mountains. Huo Qubing was awarded the highest honor in the military - Wolf Ju Xu, he started leading troops at the age of 18, and together with his uncle Wei Qing, it took only 6 years to penetrate the Hexi Corridor, defeat the Huns in the lonely smoke of the desert, and hit the furthest Lake Baikal, making great contributions to Emperor Wu of Han's ultimate mission of unifying the Central Plains dynasty since Qin and Han. The Huns sang: 'Losing my Qilian Mountain, makes my six animals not multiply; losing my Yan Mountain, makes my married women colorless', creating a myth in the history of wars at home and abroad.
Huo Qubing left the world at the age of 24, Emperor Wu of Han was heartbroken, his funeral was second only to the emperor, it is said that Emperor Wu of Han used a million troops to send him off. Now standing at the highest point of Huo Qubing's tomb in the Maoling Museum and looking around, tombs of all sizes can be seen everywhere. Apart from Emperor Wu of Han's Maoling, the most spectacular is Huo Qubing's tomb. Next to Huo Qubing's tomb is the tomb of Wei Qing, who has repeatedly made military exploits. The tomb is shaped like Yin Mountain, the two form a sharp contrast, one is carved beams and painted buildings on both sides of the steps, several vermilion birds circling the beams, respected by thousands of people, the other is piled with weeds, slightly desolate and neglected. The reason why people particularly love this young war god, apart from his brilliant military achievements, is his untimely death.
In front of the tomb of Huo Qubing in the Maoling Museum, there is a group of rare and well-preserved stone sculptures of burial objects on both sides, one of which is a national treasure - the stone statue of a horse stepping on a Hun soldier. This horse is mighty and tall, strong and vigorous, realistic in image, and of high historical value. Under the horse's feet, a Hun soldier who is thrown off his horse is stepped on, showing the mighty divine power of the young general.
Around Maoling, there are also the tombs of Emperor Wu of Han's beloved concubine Lady Li, beloved minister Dong Zhongshu, Huo Guang, Jin Midi and others. Emperor Wu of Han, because of adopting Dong Zhongshu's cultural strategy of 'abolishing all schools of thought and exclusively honoring Confucianism' and the concept of governing the country with 'heaven-man interaction', Confucianism officially became the official philosophy and the political concept that the Central Plains dynasties strived to build.
There are many tombs around Maoling, and when you look at each tomb, the magnificent history of the Western Han Dynasty will be presented in front of you. It's a pity that Zhang Qian, the diplomat who made great contributions to the Western Han Dynasty, is buried in his hometown of Chenggu in Hanzhong, Shaanxi, which is relatively far from the Jiuzong Mountain burial group, otherwise it would be a way to pay homage and recall.