Start to be a martial arts hero from the famous people of Hengshan

Chapter 447 Zhengde Military Parade

September is also known as the Chrysanthemum Month.

It is not the chrysanthemum that is preferred among the flowers.

At this moment in the capital, in preparation for the Zhengde military parade, the Five Cities Army collected a large number of chrysanthemums from around the capital and decorated the Meridian Gate Square.

The yellow flowers are elegant, the white flowers are noble, and the purple flowers are warm and deep. They are scattered all over and blooming beautifully in the autumn breeze.

Emperor Zhengde once again put on the iron-steel gold-plated dragon-patterned helmet, red velvet belt and waist-length armor. He looked at the Meridian Gate in the distance and exhaled slowly. He held the empress's hand and said, "In the eighteenth year of Yongle, Emperor Taizong received envoys from various countries here. All the envoys performed the kowtow ceremony, but the envoy from Timur insisted on bowing, saying that other countries did not have such a custom. Emperor Taizong did not care."

"After the diplomatic etiquette, Emperor Taizong arranged for the delegation to travel around Shandong, Henan, and Jiangsu. They visited many scenic spots and historical sites, including the Confucius Temple in Shandong, and saw with their own eyes the prosperity of the inland cities of the Ming Dynasty. Two months later, the delegations of various countries received a notice that Emperor Taizong would start a large-scale hunting trip around the capital, and invited the delegations of various countries to come and watch."

"In March of the 19th year of Yongle, the hunt officially began in Huailai, north of the capital. A total of 100,000 troops were mobilized. Emperor Taizong carefully selected the three elite troops of the Five Army Battalion, the Three Thousand Battalion, and the Divine Machine Battalion to perform cavalry encirclement, infantry assault, and infantry-cavalry joint attack. Coyote soldiers and white-pole soldiers were also transferred from Guangxi, Yunnan, and Sichuan to practice infantry crossbow volleys and long-lance infantry assassination training, etc."

"After the hunting, Emperor Taizong received envoys from various countries at the camp in Tumubao. This time, the Timurid envoys took the lead in kneeling and kowtowing, completely disregarding the customs of other countries. The Timurid envoys flattered him by saying that the famous horse Timur presented was the imperial mount used by Timur's father when he was alive during his conquests, and that the gift to Emperor Taizong was to express the highest respect."

At this point, Emperor Zhengde closed his eyes and pondered for a moment. When he opened them again, his eyes became extremely sharp: "I am the descendant of Emperor Taizong. I inherit the will of my ancestors and do what Emperor Taizong did. I will ensure that my Ming Dynasty will be forever stable and the people will be safe and healthy. Today, I will let the world know that my Ming Dynasty is the destiny of heaven. All nations will come to pay tribute to me and submit to me!"

Queen Xia wore a crown with nine dragons and four phoenixes on it and a Zhai robe with twelve pairs of Zhai bird patterns woven in between small wheel flowers and small golden cloud and dragon patterns. It was noble and elegant, and complemented her extraordinary temperament.

The queen raised her clear eyes, looked at her husband affectionately, and said with a smile: "Your Majesty has the world in his heart and tolerates everything. I admire you deeply. It is my fortune to be able to accompany you in this life."

In the past, there was no precedent for the empress to participate in such military parades in the Ming Dynasty. This time, Empress Xia was able to appear with Emperor Zhengde at the suggestion of Ou Zanghua. This practice seemed to be unnecessary, but it made a different sense in the hearts of the soldiers.

In ancient times, the emperor and empress would only appear together on a few important occasions, such as grand court meetings, sacrifices, coronations, and enthronements.

Now the emperor and empress also appear together at the military parade, which is to convey a message to the soldiers that the royal family attaches great importance to them.

As for the etiquette system, there are plenty of loopholes.

The emperor and empress are one, the soldiers are also the people, and the emperor and empress love the people, which is a good story.

As the drums sounded, Emperor Zhengde looked at Empress Xia and encouraged her, "Don't worry, Zitong. I'll take care of everything."

"Yes." Queen Xia nodded with a smile and followed Emperor Zhengde towards the Meridian Gate.

When the civil and military officials and envoys from various countries on both sides saw the emperor and empress appear, they all knelt down and saluted.

The emperor and empress ascended the Meridian Gate, and the people watching the ceremony outside the Meridian Gate Square saluted and shouted in unison under the shouts of the Honglu Temple: "Long live the emperor, and may the empress live long!"

Emperor Zhengde waved his hand with a smile and said loudly: "No need to be polite, stand up!"

The Mingzan immediately repeated the emperor's words three times in a loud voice, and the people bowed again in thanks: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

When the emperor and the empress were seated safely, Xianning Marquis Qiu Yue walked to the Meridian Gate with steady steps, saluted and said, "I am Qiu Yue, your humble servant, and I would like to ask your Majesty whether the military review ceremony should be started immediately?"

"Let's start it!" Emperor Zhengde said happily.

Qiu Yue received the order and took three steps back before turning around and leaving. A moment later, a deep and melodious horn sound echoed in the air, like an ancient call, instantly awakening the sleeping world.

Soon, waves of drum beats followed, passionate, steady, and stirring, shaking the hearts of everyone present.

The clear and crisp sound of the pipa, the profound and vast sound of the flute, the plaintive sound of the erhu and the elegant and lingering sound of the guzheng.

Various musical instruments cooperate with each other and echo each other, jointly creating a majestic and profound atmosphere.

The envoys from various countries present revealed a hint of surprise in their expressions. This is the charm and heritage of the great Eastern country!
They only needed to make a slight move to feel the insurmountable gap between the two sides.

With the background of stirring music, the first to appear on the stage were the left and right sentinels from the Fifth Army Camp.

Led by the commander, Chen Ru, the Marquis of Taining, four thousand cavalrymen were dressed in shining armor and were majestic. The soldiers in the front row held long-handled iron guns, looking majestic and awe-inspiring, as if they could instantly penetrate all obstacles. The soldiers in the back row held extremely sharp long swords, with cold light flashing and cold eyes.

Chen Ru drew out his long sword and shouted loudly: "Look to the right! The sun, moon, mountains and rivers will last forever, and the Ming Dynasty will last forever! Long live His Majesty!"

The four thousand cavalrymen behind him turned their heads in unison and looked towards the Meridian Gate, repeating in unison, their voices resounding through the sky: "The sun, the moon, the mountains and the rivers will last forever, and the Ming Dynasty will last forever! Long live His Majesty!"

Emperor Zhengde stood up excitedly and waved to the soldiers. Empress Xia also quickly stood up and came to the side of Emperor Zhengde, imitating him and waving downwards.

"Zi Tong, this is my Fifth Army Camp!"

Emperor Zhengde pointed to the army slowly passing by below and introduced to Queen Xia: "Two months ago, Ou Qing led 25,000 soldiers to block Dayan Khan's 100,000 troops in the Kharachin tribe for seven days! Finally, on a rainy day, he led his cavalry to charge directly into Dayan Khan's camp, and in one fell swoop, he broke through Dayan Khan's 50,000 vanguard troops and went straight to the camp!"

"Dayan Khan fled in panic, and Ou Qing turned to attack the front and right armies again, defeating them!"

At this point, Emperor Zhengde looked at the Mongolian envoy Alechubolot who was not far away, and asked with a smile: "Is there any distortion in what I said, Alechubolot?"

"Every word your Majesty said is true." Alchuborot bowed and replied.

When the envoys from the surrounding countries heard this, some envoys from small countries could not help but exclaimed, saying that they could win by fighting against a hundred thousand with only 20,000 troops. This was something that many countries could not even imagine.

"What a pity!" Emperor Zhengde sighed and said, "The Shenji Camp and the Sanqian Camp were not there at the time, otherwise you Mongolian army of 100,000 should have left at least 80,000 for me."

Alchuborot forced an ugly smile, opened his mouth, and didn't say a word for a long time.

After the left and right sentinels passed by, the infantry camp of the Five Army Camps followed closely behind. The infantry was divided into several types of soldiers, including shield soldiers, musketeers, spearmen, etc. They cooperated well with each other and were able to cope with various battle situations.

Behind the infantry camp was the artillery camp. When the horses laboriously pulled the cannons past the five gates, not to mention the envoys from various countries, even the common people of the Ming Dynasty had never seen so many cannons. For a moment, the discussions were even louder than the music.

However, Emperor Zhengde did not care. Although the Five Army Camps had many artillery pieces, they were still a level lower than those of the Shenji Camp.

　Sorry, I will resume the second update tomorrow!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)