Chapter 3193
The official district located on the north side of West Lake was one of the first large-scale infrastructure projects started after Haihan took over Hangzhou, and Victory Square was the first part of it to be completed.
Before this, there was no large square like this in Hangzhou, and it was a new thing to many people. The military parade marking the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China became the first major event hosted by Victory Square.
It is worth mentioning that the originally selected location for the military parade was not here, but in the port area at the mouth of the Tokyo-Hangzhou Canal in the city, where the Executive Committee disembarked after arriving in Hangzhou.
The terrain there is also flat and open, and it is close to the Qiantang River and the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal. It is not only convenient to gather troops, but also to inspect the armed fleet of the Haihan Army.
However, Shi Diwen later changed his mind. The hardware environment in the port area is far inferior to that of the recently completed Victory Square, and it is further away from Hangzhou city. For the audience, transportation is definitely not as convenient as the West Lake outside the city.
The most important thing is that such a solemn large-scale event as the military parade would not be serious enough in the port area. In comparison, Victory Square is more suitable.
Yue Shizong's carriage was blocked at Yongjin Gate for a long time. After stopping every step, it finally left the city.
However, the traffic situation outside the city is not much better, and the official road extending north along the city wall is still relatively congested. A large number of horse-drawn carriages and rickshaws, which have only emerged in Hangzhou in the past two years, are crowded on the official road that is only about a foot wide, making it impossible to move fast even if you want to.
It was not until entering the newly built government district that the congestion was relieved. The roads in this area have been newly built in the past two years. The roads are flat and wide, and there are dedicated personnel to direct traffic. The traffic conditions are much better than those in urban areas.
When Yue Shizong heard cheers coming from outside the car, he raised the curtains and looked around. He saw that a large number of naval and Han troops were gathering on the roadside. They must be those who were waiting to participate in the military parade.
In addition to individual weapons, the equipment carried by these troops also includes many heavy weapons that are hard to see in ordinary times, such as fire of various calibers and styles, which attracted many people to stop and watch on the roadside.
Yue Shizong actually wanted to get out of the car and take a closer look at these equipment. Although he was a civil servant and had limited knowledge of weapons, he had also heard that the Haihan artillery was extremely fierce, with far greater range, accuracy and power than Ming Dynasty's artillery.
If it could be imitated, it would undoubtedly greatly improve Ming's military strength.
However, he then thought about it. Since Haihan dared to take out these weapons and equipment and publicly display them in front of envoys from various countries, he was obviously confident and not worried that other countries would imitate their own weapons.
Thinking again that even his own imitation of Haihan rifles are far from reaching the level of mass production, and even the batch of assassins who were accidentally captured the day before yesterday were said to have used firearms purchased from the black market made by Haihan, Yue Shizong couldn't help but feel a little discouraged. .
About two miles away from Victory Square, an armed checkpoint appeared on the official road. From here on, the general public and invited guests began to divide.
After presenting the invitation letter from the government, Yue Shizong's carriage passed the checkpoint and continued along the official road, heading directly to Victory Square.
Ordinary people need to follow the route instructions at the checkpoint and detour to the designated area around Victory Square to wait to watch the military parade.
After Yue Shizong arrived at Victory Square, someone led him to sit on the viewing platform set up next to the square. The guests in this area are basically diplomatic envoys from various countries. But Yue Shizong's appearance still caused a small commotion at the scene.
The assassination case was reported in the newspaper yesterday, and Haihan officials publicly identified Daming as the mastermind behind it. The news that the Ming Dynasty embassy had been banned by the Haihan Army since yesterday had already spread in Hangzhou.
It is a common view at the moment that Haihan would fall out with Ming Dynasty because of the assassination. Some people think that Haihan will be next
Under such circumstances, Yue Shizong actually appeared here as an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, which was beyond the expectations of most people.
Yue Shizong also knew that many people were waiting to see his joke. If he showed cowardice at this time, he would lose more than just his own face. So he tried to keep calm and greeted all the guests he met one by one.
He looked around and found that the senior officials of Haihan were not sitting on this viewing platform, but on a higher viewing platform nearby. There was no passage to that platform from where he was. It seemed that I can't talk to the executive committee here.
Seeing that there was nothing he could do, Yue Shizong calmed down and no longer thought about how to talk to the executive committee. Since the other party invited me to watch the ceremony, he will probably make arrangements, so just wait patiently.
It was Yue Shizong's first time to participate in the military parade held by Haihan, so he could not help but find it a bit strange. He had done some homework beforehand and knew that this kind of activity was similar to the Ming Dynasty's military parade. However, the Haihan Army was known as the best in the world and was always victorious. He thought that this military parade would have some unique features different from the Ming Dynasty.
Among the many guests on this viewing platform, there are some people who are very familiar with the military parade. For example, the Su family and his son who attended the event on behalf of the Netherlands are such people.
Su Keyi has been in Sanya on and off for more than 20 years, and has participated in military parades at least a dozen times. He already knows the entire process of this event, and he immediately started to educate the surrounding guests.
Yue Shizong was not far from him, so he also listened to his introduction.
Then Su Keyi said loudly: "...The main purpose of Haihan's military parade is to show strength, so the troops participating in the military parade are almost all elites transferred from various places. You will see later that they are well-equipped and have high morale. There is no need to be shocked, after all, they are selected top troops, and the Haihan Army may not all be of this level.”
Everyone smiled knowingly, but they had their own thoughts in their hearts.
Some people think that the strength of the Haihan Army, with its solid records over the past few decades, is not something you, the Dutch, can comment on.
Some people also believe that what Su Keyi said makes sense. The Haihan people gathered their elite troops to display here for the sole purpose of deterring other countries with force, but not every troop may be that capable.
Su Keyi continued: "We will display various weapons and equipment later, so you can take a good look. According to past practice, new weapons made by Haihan are often unveiled at military parades."
"It's a pity that this military parade was not held on the riverside. Otherwise, we might have a chance to see the Haihan Navy's newly commissioned new ship up close."
The new ship Su Keyi mentioned naturally refers to the Zhoushan, the first ship of the Glory-class battleship built by the East China Sea Region. Who wouldn’t be greedy after seeing such a huge warship that breaks through traditional cognition?
(End of chapter)