Robbing the Tomb

The year was bad, the crops were burnt,

The dragon turned his back,

The River Wei was almost dry

The earth was brown, and cracked,

The peasant army, risen up

Destroyed the House of Chin,

Set fire to all their palaces,

Their army turned and ran.

 

But we were left with nothing since

The death of Chin Shi Huang,

That first and greatest Emperor

Who'd ruled across the land,

He lay within his tomb up there

Hid deep within Mount Li,

And left us all with nothing but

A distant memory.

 

So Wang and Tong, my neighbours

With both Zheng and Shao along,

Had thought about the riches that

Lay underneath the ground,

They'd murdered all the builders and

The architects, the slaves,

So no-one could reveal the plans

Of Chin Shi Huang-ti's grave.

 

The ruling class were weak, had fled,

We thought this was our chance,

Why shouldn't we be rich, we thought,

We'd fought with sword and lance,

We'd long defended Chin Shi Huang

So now we should be paid,

The riches of the tomb lay there

Down where his corpse was laid.

 

'You know the penalty for this,'

Said Shao, 'we'll lose our heads,

If anyone should get to hear

That we've disturbed the dead.'

'We're going to die soon anyway,'

Croaked Zheng, 'you'd rather starve?

I'd risk my head for just one ring...'

The rest of us just laughed.

 

'What if his ghost has roamed abroad

To rage and roar at us?

Down in that ghostly sepulchre

Where he was laid in trust?'

'No man survived to see beneath

Those workings that were done,

They buried all his concubines

And workmen, every one!'

 

'I'd face a thousand ghosts,' said Tong,

'A ghost can't do you harm,

'I hope you're sure of that,' said Wang,

Who blanched in his alarm.

'Of course they can't, we'll get to work

The moon is full tonight,

We'll tunnel down, lie low by day,

Work while the moon is bright!'

 

It took us just a week to find

The steps to take us in,

The air was musty, smelt of death

The death knell of the Chin.

Then Shao had lit a candle, and

Cried out, a note of fear,

We stood and stared agape at horses,

And each charioteer.

 

And lines of archers, infantry,

That glared us in the gloom,

A whole division of the Chin

Had filled that darkened room,

But soldiers, made of pottery,

They stood as if in death,

To wait for Chin Shi Huang to rise,

To take a mortal breath.

 

We made our way between the rows

An army from the past,

And every face was different there,

A grim, unsmiling mask,

There must have been a thousand, or

Ten thousand, who could tell,

The army of an Emperor to

Breach the gates of hell!

 

Eventually we found a way

To tunnel through the walls,

Some passages led out of there

Deep down into the halls,

Where concubines were lain, asleep,

The beauties of the land,

But when Shao touched a tender cheek

The flesh was yellow sand.

 

So down, and deeper down we went,

The tomb must lie below,

We had no thought for safety, we

Just wandered anyhow,

And then a twang had sounded, as

A bolt took cousin Zheng,

Straight through the skull, the crossbow

That he'd tripped, was meant for him.

 

He died before he hit the floor,

Then other bolts flew yet,

The traps for plunderers like us

The Emperor had set,

One took Shao, entered at the throat

And pinned him to the wall,

His eyes had glazed, and then he died,

He couldn't even fall.

 

That left just me and Tong and Wang,

To crawl along the floor,

We came to heavy cedar doors

We knew we'd found the core,

The pictographs said 'Don't come in,

Or you will feel the curse,

Of Emperor Chin Shi Huang, your sin

Will drive your pauper's hearse!'

 

Tong kicked the door in with his boot,

Then ducked, and fell instead,

A blade came snaking to the floor

And Tong had lost his head!

It rolled unknowing down a stair

And landed, staring up,

From diamonds, rubies, sapphires,

And gem encrusted cups.

 

The coffin was magnificent,

A massive copper sheath,

And round about, such artefacts

That gleamed, beyond belief,

Wang couldn't stop, he crawled right down

And over Tong's dead form,

I screamed a warning, turned and ran,

And cursed that I'd been born!

 

I never saw Wang Bin again,

I made my way outside,

I slunk back home and hid for weeks,

I'd lost face, and my pride!

As Wang went down those chamber steps

I just wished that I'd hid,

For as Wang reached the jewels, I saw

The coffin raise its lid!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Ellen Hammond]

Such an intriguing story poem that kept me hanging onto every word, written with you wonderful flair. I've often thought of all the riches buried in tombs while many starved and of the servants, concubines, etc. who were buried in the outer chambers. It says a lot as to the priorities of those emperors and kings. I really enjoyed this read as I always love to read your work. Thanks for sharing.

[Ferg]

creepy as ever with an Indiana Jones/Tomb Raider feel to it, but set in China! I can see the extensive work that went into this historical fantasy.