Before the Qing dynasty went to war with other countries, it was so luxurious here that Cixi had higher requirements for the mausoleum after death. In the twenty-first year of Guangxu, the guardian minister of Dongling wrote to the court to rebuild the mausoleum of Cixi in order to please Cixi. After approval, Guangxu allocated 20 years10.5 million yuan to repair the mausoleum of Cixi.
1908, Empress Dowager Cixi died, and the Qing government held a very grand state funeral for her, and there were a lot of gold, silver and jewels. Three years after the death of Empress Dowager Cixi, the Qing Dynasty perished, but the China government at that time kept the promise signed with the Qing royal family to protect the Qing imperial tomb.
However, during the Beiyang period, wars continued. 1928, Sun Dianying, a warlord, decided to steal the imperial tomb in order to collect money, but this move stole a large number of gold, silver and jewels from Cixi's tomb. The most precious thing should belong to the pearl in Cixi's mouth. According to Jiang Buli's book The Theft of Cixi Mausoleum:? 5 1 Night Pearl weighs 422 yuan and 77 cents (now 133.475 grams) and is worth10.82 million yuan. ? According to legend, as long as the pearl is contained in the mouth, the body will not rot for a long time.
But at that time, Sun Dianying's behavior was widely condemned by all walks of life. Even the government issued an arrest warrant for Sun Dianying. In order to avoid disaster, Sun Dianying used the jewels stolen from the imperial tomb to please the military and political dignitaries at that time. Where did the night pearl finally go?
According to Sun Dianying's recollection: She (Cixi) has a night pearl in her mouth, which is divided into two pieces. When it is closed, it is a ball, transparent and dull. When you close it, it reveals a green cold light, and you can see your hair within a hundred steps at night. It is said that this treasure can keep the body from melting. It is no wonder that after Cixi's coffin was split open, Lafayette seemed to be asleep, only seeing the wind, his face turned black and his clothes were not suitable. I gave the night pearl to Mrs. Jiang for me. ?
That is to say, according to Sun Dianying's logic, he entrusted this pearl to Dai Li and gave it to Mrs. Song Meiling, Chiang Kai-shek, to avoid disaster. However, whether this news is reliable is unknown, and Song Meiling does not admit it. However, it is undeniable that Sun Dianying was not punished for robbing the Qing tombs. During the Anti-Japanese War, he also served as commander-in-chief of Ji Cha Travel Notes and commander of the New Fifth Army. It can be seen that the treasure he took out still played a role. According to legend, this night pearl was used as a shoe ornament when it was introduced to Song Meiling.
However, after Song Meiling went to live in the United States, the whereabouts of this bead were unknown, and it was impossible to find out what material it was made of. Some scholars believe that the pearl finally buried with Empress Dowager Cixi should be a rough stone with a spherical shape and a weight of about 700 carats. According to the price of 1908, 1080000 silver, it is now worth 800 million RMB. To be sure, diamonds don't have the function of emitting light at night as described by Sun Dianying, so the whereabouts and materials of this night pearl have become a mystery in history, which I hope will be uncovered one day.