[Explanation] The 63-year-old Huang Junhu is from Houjie Village, Sanji Township, Pingshan County, Hebei Province. Although he has retired, in his free time, he still likes to visit the Zhongshan Ancient City Ruins, which is 5 kilometers away from home, where he has been guarding for nearly 30 years. Mausoleum of King Zhongshan.
In the 1970s, precious cultural relics such as the wrong gold, silver, four dragons, four phoenixes and fifteen copper lamps were unearthed from the tomb of the King of Zhongshan, shocking the world.
At the 3rd China Archaeology Conference held not long ago, the Tomb of King Zhongshan in the Warring States Period in Pingshan, Hebei was selected as one of the "Top 100 Archaeological Discoveries in a Hundred Years".
[Concurrent] Huang Junhu
Now we see the Tomb of the Cuo and the Tomb of Aihou, these two tombs are of special significance to Zhongshan Kingdom (the ruins of the ancient city). There are quite a lot of cultural relics unearthed in it, and they are exquisite.
After the establishment of the management organization in 1992, I came to take up the responsibility of protecting the tombs of the kings, that is, the tombs of the cemetery and the tomb of the queen of mourning. We insisted on patrolling here twice a day.
[Explanation] According to Huang Junhu, when he came here that year, it was still a cropland. He and his colleagues built a simple house next to the tomb for office and residence.
Without electricity, you can only light the kerosene lamp at night, and you have to pick up the draft a few kilometers away.
[Concurrent] Huang Junhu
At that time, we were behind when we were picking water, and we walked all the way to a small river ditch. The small river ditch was also (often) dried up (with only) very little water. At that time, we went back and forth for more than an hour.
[Explanation] Although the living conditions are difficult, Huang Junhu is not at all ambiguous at work.
No matter day or night, or rain and wind, he will patrol around the tomb every day. The villagers call him "the king of tomb patrol".
Once, he led the staff on duty and arrested 4 tomb robbers in one fell swoop.
[Concurrent] Huang Junhu
At around 11 o'clock in the evening on October 17, 1992, our three staff members came here to patrol and found the tomb robbers.
At that time, we were in this position when we found it. There were some bushes on it, there were guards in the bushes, and some were digging down underneath.
At that time, after we came, we shook them, (made) them squat, and finally tied them up with their ropes and sent them to the police station.
[Explanation] Guarding the royal tombs has the thrill of capturing tomb robbers, and there are also unintelligible grievances.
Huang Junhu said that one year before the Spring Festival, a nearby villager digs soil in the reserve. He heard about it and went to stop it, but was injured and hospitalized. He spent that Spring Festival in the hospital.
[Concurrent] Huang Junhu
It is our duty to protect cultural relics. Since I am doing this (work), I will do it well.
Now if I encounter those who destroy the ruins, I will come out to fight them.
[Explanation] While guarding the king's tomb, Huang Junhu always has a dream in his heart to build it into a heritage park one day.
Under his active promotion, the Zhongshan King's Tomb Exhibition Hall was completed and opened in 2017, and the Zhongshan King's Tomb Protection Exhibition Hall was completed in 2018.
Nowadays, a heritage park integrating heritage protection, scientific display, and archaeological research has appeared on the deserted slopes of the past. Every year hundreds of thousands of tourists come here to explore the mysterious ancient Zhongshan country.
[Concurrent] Huang Junhu
I think the protection of cultural relics is not only the responsibility and obligation of our cultural relics workers, it should be that every citizen has this right and obligation to protect it.
Because this is a precious legacy left by our ancestors, it is non-renewable and must be passed down and protected from generation to generation.
Reporter Ai Guangde reports from Shijiazhuang, Hebei
Editor in charge: [Ji Xiang]