Chapter 37 of Part One

  Inside the city of Changsha, which is filled with the breath of youth, colorful flags are flying everywhere and lanterns are hung. The training ground of the General Command of the Liberation Army outside the city of Changsha is also a scene of jubilation. Today is the day when Zhu Ao, the emperor of the Chinese Empire, officially ascends to the throne - May 1st.

  I and the leaders who had arrived earlier were all standing inside the training ground waiting for Lü Jun and Ye Jun's troops from Jiangsu. Now we are all wearing brand new military uniforms. The airship's shadow finally appeared in everyone's line of sight. I looked at the high-ranking officers beside me and said, "They're here, our People's Liberation Army guerrilla commanders have arrived."

  The airship slowly descended, the cabin door opened, and Lü Jun and Ye Jun, these two "Juns", walked down. I hurriedly went up, and the two of them stood at attention with their feet together, saluting us and saying: "Commander and Political Commissar of the Eighth Army of the Imperial Chinese Liberation Army, reporting to the Supreme Commander."

  I also returned a serious military salute and said, "Today is the day of Grandfather's ascension to the throne, comrades don't need to be too polite." After that, we all hugged each other. The generals also became lively in the relaxed atmosphere. Li Dingguo said beside me, "Commander, I heard that our family's little girl has a good relationship with you now?"

  The other generals looked at me with a "good show" expression, as if they were enjoying a good play. I looked at Li Dingguo, who had an expression that seemed to say he had already "eaten" me up. In my heart, I was secretly scolding him, thinking "This old sly thing is trying to expose me now." I smiled and said, "General Li, you really are well-informed! Mimi and I have reached the point where we're discussing marriage. Unfortunately, in informal settings, I'll have to call you 'father-in-law' from now on, haha. But in formal settings, I'm still your superior, of course."

  Zhou Lun has already chimed in with "Min Min? Why are you calling so intimately? Ah, it's so sour!"

  Seeing them all cheering, I said to them "Alright, alright, the ceremony is about to start, let's hurry over."

  Inside the temporary imperial residence in Changsha City, Zhu Ao wore a newly made dragon robe. With the crown on his head, Song Yingxing said beside him, "Your Majesty, next we will first perform the grand ceremony of offering sacrifices to our ancestors. After the grand ceremony, Your Majesty will ascend to the throne."

  "Alright. Changgeng, I'm really not used to wearing this kind of clothes. Haha."

  The grand ceremony of ascension to the throne has begun. First, Zhu Ao led a group of civil and military officials to the place where Yue Luoyan was changed to offer sacrifices to heaven. The sacrifice was held under the leadership of Xinming Dashang, who came from Hengyang. First, there was a long sacrificial text reporting to heaven and earth. Then, all the sacrificial animals were lifted onto the offering table. Finally, the monk proved to heaven and earth that the emperor was the true son of heaven. After the long sacrifice, it was back to the temporary imperial palace in Changsha City. This is a new European-style ancient castle building. Later, it will be used as the emperor's traveling palace. The civil and military officials watched Zhu Ao ascend to the throne symbolizing the emperor. After sitting down, all the civil and military officials bowed three times. Three shouts of "My Emperor, Long Live, Long Live, Long Live" ended the ascension ceremony.

  Zhu Ao began to speak, his voice not loud but clear. The several thousand people present were silent, and Zhu Ao nodded in satisfaction before continuing: "Our country has just been established. Its name is Zhonghua, with the full title of Zhonghua Empire, and its era name is Xinming. However, this will be the only era name; from now on, we will not use era names anymore. Furthermore, the Liberation Army will be renamed the Zhonghua Empire People's Army. I hereby appoint Zhu Youxiao as the Xianyao King of my Zhonghua Empire. From now on, no one else will be appointed king; instead, everyone will be addressed by their official titles. The Premier of the Imperial Administrative Council, equivalent to the former Chancellor, will be Song Yingxing. The Vice Premiers will be Chen Hui and Xu Jin. We will establish the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Defense, Police Headquarters, Supreme Court, Supervision Department, Transportation Department, and Foreign Affairs Department. All department officials will be appointed by the Administrative Council. In the future, the Administrative Council will have three people - the Premier and two Vice Premiers - who will discuss and decide on administrative matters. If they cannot come to a decision, they will then consult with me. Additionally, all national officials at various levels will no longer use kneeling or bowing as greetings; instead, they will shake hands. When meeting with the Emperor, they will use the ritual of bowing."

  "I hereby appoint Zhu Xiao as the Crown Prince. He will take over the throne after my death. Now, I appoint Zhu Xiao as the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial People's Army and Minister of National Defense, with the rank of Marshal. Additionally, my grandson Zhu Xiao and General Li Dingguo's daughter are in love, so on this day of my ascension to the throne, I have arranged for their engagement. My grandson had vowed not to get married until China is unified, so we will choose a date for the wedding after unification. As for personnel appointments in the military department, they will be arranged by the Commander-in-Chief and the General Staff."

  All civil and military officials then bowed three times and hailed "Long live" ten thousand years.

  Next was the ceremony of foreign envoys visiting after ascending to the throne. The Portuguese envoy walked up and bowed deeply to Zhu Ao, saying "Your Majesty, Emperor of the Great Chinese Empire, I represent the King of Portugal, and extend sincere congratulations to you and your nation on behalf of my king. His Majesty hopes to rent Macau from your country for the purpose of suppressing pirates and ensuring safe navigation. May Your Majesty grant this request."

  Zhu Ao glanced at the envoy and said, "Thank you for the Portuguese king's kindness. As for the leasing issue, please discuss it directly with our Foreign Ministry officials. However, the lease term will not exceed five years."

  Next were the merchants and envoys from Annam, Koryo, Holland and France who expressed their desire to establish friendly relations or become a vassal state.

  It wasn't until after everything was ready that the master of ceremonies announced the start of the ceremony.

  We see that in the newly equipped broadcasting room, the announcer is saying: "This is where the military power of the Chinese Empire lies. It is the crack troops who have defeated and driven out the invaders. First to come forward is the ceremonial squadron of the Chinese Empire. They are a team that was just established today, specifically set up for the reception of foreign guests. I hope our ceremonial team can show off our country's prestige and military might in the days to come. Next is the infantry squadron of our army, they come from a certain department of the First Army, which is one of the earliest armies established by the Empire. They have made great achievements in battles such as the capture of Nanchang and the breaking of the Nine Rivers. Following that is the cavalry squadron of our army, the cavalry squadron was specifically established for combat on the northern grasslands and has a strong targeting capability. They have achieved brilliant results in occupying Xi'an and demonstrating military might in the western regions. Next to pass through is the sniper squadron of our army, this is a special branch of our military that was established early on. They have also killed famous generals such as Wu Sangui, Ao Bai, and Hong Chengchou of the Qing army, making great contributions to our military victories. The next to pass through is our engineering squadron, although they were not established for long, they have always been a model of hard work and endurance. They have made huge contributions to the construction industry of our empire. Next to come forward is the artillery department of our army, the artillery department is the main military force of our empire. The excellent command of the artillery department is the prerequisite for our empire's victory in battle. Finally passing through are the students from the Naval Command Academy, these students are the first batch of regular university students of our empire. The prosperity of our empire will be in their hands in the future."

  I glanced at Li Min, who was sitting next to me with a happy face, and said, "Min Min, look at those foreigners, they're already pale with fear." Li Min gave me a white eye and said, "You're so excited, what are you looking at? Look at the parade."

  Next came the naval infantry contingent, which was the empire's first naval force and made a great contribution to defending Jiangsu by launching a surprise attack on Nanjing.

  Here is the translation:

  "Next, a female announcer's voice explained, 'The following unit to pass by is the Marine Corps. This branch was established specifically for amphibious warfare and recovering Taiwan. I believe they will make even greater contributions in other contexts in the future.

  Next up is the Empire's new military branch - the Air Force pilots' unit. Since its establishment, our air force has undergone rigorous training with strict requirements. They have achieved great results in precise ground strikes. This time, they rushed back from the Zhejiang front line. Let us pay tribute to the airmen.

  Look, our female soldiers' unit is passing by! This is our Empire's greatest creation. These female soldiers are active in their respective posts every day. Some of them are female doctors from our First Military Medical University. The first batch of female soldiers in our Empire fear neither sacrifice nor hardship on the battlefield. They have made great contributions to the lives and stability of our soldiers.

  Next up is our Armed Police unit, which protects the property and lives of our citizens. Finally, the last two units are the male and female militia from the Yueyang Shipyard and Changsha Cigarette Factory. These militiamen are active in their respective workplaces, voluntarily maintaining local security, assisting police stations with investigations, and playing a significant role in destroying the remnants of the Qing dynasty's forces."

  After deceiving Li Min back, I walked back to the General Command Center and pushed open the door. All levels of officers were seated there. I took a look and said, "Now I will announce the appointment of the Command Center."

  "Appointment, People's Army Chief of Staff Peng Ying, promoted to General. People's Army Political Department Director Zhou Lun, promoted to General. People's Army Equipment Department Minister Han Zhi, promoted to General. Equipment Department Deputy Minister Fan Jie, promoted to Colonel-General. Logistics Department Minister Huang De, promoted to Colonel-General. First Group Army Commander Li Dingguo, promoted to Colonel-General. First Group Army Political Commissar Zhang Zhitao (transferred from Fourth Army), promoted to Colonel-General. First Group Army Chief of Staff Xiao Rang, promoted to Colonel-General. Subordinate First Army Army Commander Li Lei, promoted to Major-General. Political Commissar Li Keming, promoted to Major-General. Chief of Staff Song Dian, promoted to Lieutenant-General. Second Army Army Commander Ding Desheng, Political Commissar Zhao Zhe, Chief of Staff Tang Zhi. Military ranks same as First Army. Third Army Army Commander Yi Tianxing. Political Commissar Li Yun, Chief of Staff Tong Zhifa. Military ranks same as First Army."

  "I took a sip of water from the tea cup and said, 'The next military ranks are all the same as the First Army Group, so I won't say them. The commander of the Second Army Group is Lyu Jun, the political commissar is Ye Jun. The chief of staff is Xia Fan. Under him, the commander of the Fourth Army is Chen Hua, the political commissar is Wang Mingfei, and the chief of staff is Long Yi. The commander of the Fifth Army is Zhong Cheng, the political commissar is Liu Shan, and the chief of staff is Zhou Hua (transferred from the First Army). The commander of the Sixth Army is Zhou Wenbing, the political commissar is Jiang Kaitao, and the chief of staff is Yu Tianlong.'"

  "Below is the Third Army Group. Commander-in-Chief Yue Yulong, Political Commissar Wu Shuang, Chief of Staff Wang Hu. Under it are the Seventh Army, led by Military Commander Lei Ting and Political Commissar He Lanxing, with Zhang Shun as Chief of Staff. The Eighth Army is led by Military Commander Liu Tai and Political Commissar Leng Yunfei, with Xie Bo as Chief of Staff. The Ninth Army is led by Military Commander Gao Wenguang and Political Commissar Song Man, with Pan Zengwei as Chief of Staff. This is the Third Army Group; the Fourth Army Group has not been established yet."

  I continued, "In addition, the commander of the sniper team, Jiang Zuo, was promoted to Major General and the sniper team was renamed the Eagle Special Brigade. Yuan Yongzhi was appointed as the commander of the newly established artillery unit and was also awarded the rank of Major General." I paused for a moment before continuing, "As for the Navy, Shi Lang is temporarily serving as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. Since there is only one fleet, there are no other fleet commanders. Zeng Qing serves as the Political Commissar of the Navy and Deng Zhijiang serves as the Chief of Staff of the Navy, all of whom have been awarded the rank of General."

  I turned to the last page and said, "Air Force, the sky is for the Air Force Commander who also serves as the Political Commissar and Chief of Staff. Due to the small danger in fighting against the enemy, it's temporarily arranged this way. Also, since there's only one squadron in the Air Force, the squadron leader can take on both roles or be appointed. Awarded the rank of General." Finally, I looked at them and said, "Comrades, do you have any opinions?" Everyone stood up and said, "No opinions." Zhou Lun said, "Commander, when will we get to drink wedding wine?" Fan Jie said to Li Dingguo, "Father-in-law, the wedding wine money..." "Alas, this group of rascals," Li Dingguo muttered to himself.