Chaos of the Three Kingdoms Summons

Chapter 2672 National Day Ceremony, Southeast Hostage

Before we knew it, it was October 1st of the second year of the Qian Yuan era.

At dawn in the Great Jin Imperial Palace, the morning light was still faint, but on this day, the entire Great Jin palace woke up earlier and faster than usual, and was busier. All the halls and pavilions had already been cleaned up.

Today is destined to be a special day. The palace servants in all the palaces are like clockwork, getting up early to wash and dress, and no one dares to delay.

The palace eunuchs and guards were also racing against time to make the final arrangements for the celebratory decorations. The joyful atmosphere had quietly permeated the imperial city and spread beyond the palace walls.

As early as six months ago, Li Xiang had officially ordered that today be a National Day celebration to commemorate the unification of the Central Plains, the return of Southeast Asia to Jin, and military exercises for all armies.

The so-called celebrations of the unification of the Central Plains and the return of Southeast Asia to Jin were merely pretexts. If they really wanted to celebrate, they wouldn't have waited almost a year.

The most important thing is not the so-called National Day, but the military exercises that follow.

Firstly, the reorganization of the armies in each state has been going on for almost a year, so let's have them each transfer a small portion to the capital for a short training exercise and a simple test of the results.

It was precisely to review the results of the reorganization of the armies in each state that the order was issued six months in advance. After all, if it had been delayed any longer, some of the more remote states might not have been able to catch up.

Even so, for those relatively remote states like Nanzhou and Jiaozhou, this timeframe was extremely tight.

Of course, Qiongzhou did not allow them to come.

Within Qiongzhou, all the troops belong to the eight princes. There is no unified command among them. It's impossible to ask each of them to send a troop.

Furthermore, the eight of them who took office later only started at the beginning of the year, so it would be inappropriate to ask them to send a team back at this time.

Furthermore, if we include them, even with six months' notice, that timeframe probably wouldn't be enough.

Secondly, it was to intimidate those Southeast Asians and let them once again recognize the military strength of the Great Jin.

In the first half of this year, the sons or nephews of Southeast Asian nobles were all "invited" to the capital in a friendly manner.

After all, it's impossible to kill all the nobles in Southeast Asia, and it's also impossible to govern Southeast Asia entirely by Han Chinese without employing any Southeast Asians.

In fact, in addition to suppressing Southeast Asia through vassal kings, the Great Jin also adopted a policy of using barbarians to govern barbarians, promoting a group of obedient Southeast Asian officials to assist them in managing Southeast Asia.

The presence of these noble children in the capital serves not only as a means to bring them here as hostages, but also deters the Southeast Asian nobles from engaging in any underhanded activities.

In addition, it is also to let them learn the culture of the Central Plains, to assimilate them with the culture of the Central Plains, to win their hearts, and in the future, to make these people also part of the "using barbarians to govern barbarians" approach.

Now, they are merely the sons and nephews of the great nobles of Southeast Asia; in the future, they will become the great nobles of Southeast Asia themselves.

First, assimilate this group of people into Han culture, and then have them spread it throughout Southeast Asia, allowing the entire region to adopt Central Plains culture. After several generations, they will no longer be considered Southeast Asians, but rather people from Shanxi.

In the Chaolu Palace, Consort Wang rose earlier than usual to meticulously dress and groom herself.

The Imperial Concubine Wang, nearing forty, exudes a captivating charm and alluring demeanor.

Attended by palace maids, and dressed in a magnificent imperial concubine gown, she appeared even more radiant and elegant, exuding an aura of nobility. "Mother!" Guided by palace eunuchs, Prince Li An of Jin entered and respectfully bowed to his radiant mother.

Now a father, Ang Lee is no longer the mischievous child he once was, and has become increasingly dignified and poised in his every move.

"Is everything packed?"

The current Crown Prince is still in the Nanjing court, handling affairs there, and therefore is not in Luoyang at this time.

For this reason, some scenes that originally required the Crown Prince's presence at today's National Day celebrations were temporarily performed by the Prince of Jin.

Li An nodded, his dark, bright eyes darting around a few times. Looking at his mother's visibly heavy palace attire, he said, "It's still early, and there's still time before the ceremony. Mother, why do you have to work so hard?"

"Your father attaches great importance to today's National Day celebrations. You are allowed to accompany him in the sacrificial rites, military review, court audiences, and imperial banquet. On this grand occasion, with everyone watching, you must make a good impression," Wang Zhaojun reminded her.

Everyone says that Prince Jin is the prince most qualified to threaten the position of Crown Prince.

If we talk about maternal lineage, what was the Empress's original background? However, the noblewoman Wang came from the Wang family of Taiyuan, which was a well-known family in the country, and had been on good terms with the Li family for generations.

However, although the Empress's initial background was not good, her younger brother and nephew were so successful that the Taiyuan Wang clan could not compare to her.

However, three years before the pandemic, His Majesty had already arranged a marriage for Prince Jin, and the bride was none other than Bai Qian, the daughter of Bai Qi. Furthermore, the two had officially married seven years ago and now have more than one child.

Leaving aside Bai Qi's achievements in conquering Japanese pirates and pacifying the south, he was a key figure in the recent Southeast Asia campaign. With 30,000 troops, he clashed with the Kushan Empire's 100,000-strong army, and not only did he not suffer losses, but he also gained considerable advantages.

This allowed Yang Su and Chang Yuchun to better conquer Southeast Asia.

Now, he has become one of the six ministers of the Nanjing court.

It can be said that with this blessing, Prince Jin is no less capable than the Crown Prince in any aspect.

However, only Wang Zhaojun, who was in this position, truly understood that this honor also forced them to constantly walk on the edge of a cliff, never daring to relax or be careless for a moment.

I'm afraid that one careless mistake could lead to a fall off that cliff and a tragic end.

Listening to his mother's earnest instructions, Ang Lee's expression was equally solemn.

"Yes! I understand!"

The autumn air was crisp and clear, a cool breeze was blowing, and as the auspicious hour arrived, the bells rang, marking the start of a grand celebration that would last all day.

Under the arrangement of the Ministry of Rites officials, Li Xiang and the Empress walked side by side, leading a group of concubines, members of the imperial family, and officials to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to worship their ancestors, pray to Heaven and Earth, and report their merits.

Afterwards, he rode in the imperial carriage with Empress Wei to tour Luoyang. They went straight to the main street and received cheers and praises from the people of Luoyang. The common people were overjoyed and the crowd was packed, creating a very enthusiastic atmosphere.

After the sacrificial ceremony, the highlight of today's National Day celebration will begin: the military parade and the grand military review!

(End of this chapter)