Ryukyu is affected by the Pacific monsoon and has a typical ocean climate. The cold wind blowing from Siberia here is very weak. The temperature on the entire island is very comfortable, similar to the temperature in early autumn in northern China.
Looking around, the entire Pirates is lush and green, and the air is filled with a humid and salty smell, without any trace of the earthy smell common in Northern China.
Emperor Tongzhi stood beside the bed excitedly, looking at the extremely prosperous port, and asked excitedly about everything.
"Is that ship the Spanish flag? Is that ship the Citizen's? What are the towering racks on the pier? Are the black holes on the mountains the Shuri Castle fort that protects Naha..."
The little emperor jumped up and down excitedly, and the exotic customs appeared in front of him in a real way, which was more direct than black and white photos and watercolor paintings.
Xiao Letian patted his head and said with a smile, "Raise the flag, tell Liuqiu that I, Xiao Letian, am back..." As he spoke, a large flag with the character "Xiao" in Chinese characters rose up into the sky, flying at the top of the mast of the Roma.
Woo hoo hoo... The port was suddenly filled with the melodious sound of conch trumpets, and the cheers of mountains and tsunamis were everywhere: "The Prime Minister has returned to the country... The Prime Minister has returned to the country after a great victory."
Merchant ships from various countries on the sea hurriedly gave way, whistles rang in the sky, and gun salutes were fired on the sea. Everyone expressed their sincere respect for this legendary East Asian prime minister.
If you want to say which country in Asia is the most well-behaved among Europeans, it would be Ryukyu. The result of the offensive and defensive battle between the New Army and the French Expeditionary Force shocked the whole world.
At the beginning, everyone thought that Ryukyu would be defeated. Ten warships and thousands of marines could deal with a Pacific island country. It was not something that could be easily captured, especially since the country's most elite military had been taken to Europe by Xiao Letian. , the French still used the sneak attack technique.
The results were shocking. All East Asian observers did not expect that the resistance of this island country would be so fierce. It was as if Asians' fear of the West had all disappeared at this moment.
Until the end, the French could only rely on Gong Banlun's vicious trick to pry open Ryukyu's defense line, and the final outcome was even more shocking. France's powerful army had already landed on the island, but the final result was still failure.
Xiao Letian's final appearance brought a successful end to the entire offensive and defensive war. The entire French expeditionary fleet completely failed. Major General Bruce retreated to Hong Kong with the remaining warships, and Molière became Xiao Letian's prisoner.
The results of the war reached Europe, and the entire Western world was shocked. Although the French side has been denying and refusing to admit defeat, their propaganda has always said that it was just a draw, and they will eventually take revenge, etc... But Guisu's fleet in Hong Kong was betrayed. They, it is an indisputable fact that British hospitals are full of French wounded soldiers.
The French Emperor's reputation suddenly plummeted, and domestic opposition forces surged. What was the use of an emperor who could not bring victory to France? The revolutionary fire that the people had planted during the Great Revolution was somewhat rekindled.
Correspondingly in France, Xiao Letian's reputation soared. The United States and Prussia almost became Xiao Letian's voluntary propagandists in the West. News of the victory in East Asia lasted for half a month in various newspapers.
There are also Protestants, these heretics who split from Catholicism, once launched a religious war with the Pope that lasted for decades. Even the country of the Netherlands was founded by Protestants.
The French emperors of all generations were absolute supporters of Catholicism. All French emperors needed the pope's approval in order to successfully ascend the throne. There were three generations of emperors in the Napoleon family. Without the support of the pope, they would not win the support of the people at all.
Religious conflicts have been cruel since ancient times. The Protestants now regard Xiao Letian as the first awakener in East Asia. Whether the missionary cause in Asia can surpass the Catholic Church depends on Xiao Letian's military power. How long will it take to please Xiao Letian at this time?
Protestant churches in America and Europe mobilized collectively, and all pastors began to publicize all the glorious deeds Xiao Letian had done to their parishioners. In their mouths, Xiao Letian even became the first archangel sent by God to the East.
With strong military and economic power, coupled with religious brainwashing, Europeans at this time respected and feared Xiao Letian. When Xiao Letian appeared in Naha Bay, the foreigners in the entire port were even more attentive than the Ryukyu soldiers and civilians. fanaticism.
The sound of whistles and gun salutes rang through the sky. The captains, first mates, and sailors of all ships stood at attention and saluted the Roma. Even the French merchant ships had to bow their heads and salute.
The Roma slowly docked on the pier, and the pier was full of welcoming people. Countless new troops were maintaining order. Many people were even pushed into the sea in exchange for a burst of laughter.
However, the Roma has been berthed for half an hour, and all the Ba Dao team members have landed, but Xiao Letian is still nowhere to be seen.
Nohira, who was dressed in military uniform, loudly announced the Prime Minister's order to the crowd: "By the Prime Minister's order, all soldiers and civilians are evacuated immediately. They should perform their duties and work and live their own lives. Please do not greet... You all should be dispersed. The Prime Minister has just secretly boarded a small boat." It’s an island, I guess they’ve reached Shuri Castle now…”
"It's gone, it's all gone..." The crowd shook their heads with great regret and dispersed.
Xiao Letian really does not want to paralyze the entire port because of himself. The enthusiasm of the people is good, but this enthusiasm cannot be allowed to delay production and life. Moreover, if there are too many people, accidents are prone to occur. This is what no one wants to see.
Xiao Letian took Emperor Tongzhi and Lord Long and other escorts from Qixing Mountain to the city of Ten Thousand Miles along the winding mountain path. After all, King Shangtai was the king in name only, and Xiao Letian still had to pay homage to him when he came back.
Taking this road, you will inevitably pass by the most powerful Shuri Fort. The 280-caliber security cannon is hidden in the reinforced concrete fortifications to protect the entire bay.
Emperor Tongzhi had long heard of the reputation of the largest cannon in East Asia. Er Mao often talked to him about the Ryukyu Defense War in private. He had long wanted to see this outstanding cannon with his own eyes.
However, as they gradually approached Shuri Fort, they heard the sound of reading loudly above their heads.
"...The wisdom of young people will make the country wise; the richness of young people will make the country rich; the strong young people will make the country strong; the independent young people will make the country independent; the free young people will make the country free; the young people will make progress, and the country will progress; if the young people are better than Europe, the country will be better than Europe; young people will be better than Europe, and the country will be better than Europe; young people will be better than Europe, and the country will be better than Europe. If the country is strong on the earth, then the country will be strong on the earth. When the red sun rises, its path will shine brightly. The river will flow out, and it will flow. Dragons will rise into the abyss, scales and claws will fly. Tigers will roar in the valley. All beasts will be frightened. Eagles and falcons will test their wings. Wind and dust will spread. , the first birth of a strange flower, the emperor is the emperor, the generals are hairy, there are awns, the sky is blue, the ground is yellow, even though there are thousands of years, there are eight wastelands, the future is like the sea, the future is long, it is beautiful, my young China, and the sky are not old , I am a strong Chinese young man, and I have no borders with my country."
The unique voice in the voice-changing stage was reading "Young China" plagiarized by Xiao Letian, and a masculine energy like the first cry of a tiger came to his face, and Emperor Tongzhi couldn't help but be stunned.
"A strong young man will make a country strong. When the red sun rises, its path shines brightly. When the river rises and flows, it flows... Good words and passionate words. Whose article is this?" the little emperor asked with a look of admiration.
Xiao Letian blushed a little. In his previous life, Liang Qichao's famous work had been plagiarized by him after he had changed it casually. With his limited knowledge of classical Chinese, he was really embarrassed to say that this article was written by himself.
But Mr. Long was not so polite, "It's the Prime Minister. It's "Young China" written by the Prime Minister. I guessed it. This is another group of children who are going to travel across the ocean to study... This is already a common practice for students studying. As long as students go abroad, they must swear an oath and have their hair cut off in the bloody battle of Ryukyu..."
Emperor Tongzhi's eyes were filled with stars when he looked at Xiao Letian. Being able to write such a powerful and majestic article made Xiao Prime Minister of the East China Sea well-deserved.
When everyone walked up to the Shuri Castle Fort, they saw a dozen young people holding a hair-cutting ceremony, and an older disabled veteran was shaving the heads of each of the young people.
"Zhili...Liu Anchen...this time he studied in Prussia and cut off his hair to show his ambition, and asked veterans to do so..."
"Zhili... Qiu Wei... studied in Prussia and asked to be ordained..."
"Beijing...Jiang Yuheng...study in Prussia, requesting to be ordained..."
"Beijing... I have favored many people and asked for my hair to be ordained..."
Young people stepped forward one after another and signed up loudly. The veteran just used scissors to ritually remove his braids, then held up the black suit next to him and whispered a few words of encouragement.
"Have a good journey, kid. Remember, my leg was blown off by the French. We are not as powerful as their cannons, so we can only be beaten passively..."
"Listen to the Prime Minister's order, complete your studies and return home as soon as possible. Don't be greedy for the wealth and glory of a foreign country. A big arsenal will be built for us, and we will fight out."
This is a group of Enyang soldiers who have just arrived in Ryukyu by sea ship from the Qing Dynasty. Here they will conduct the last few months of training, especially military training. Xiao Letian wants them to become a disciplined student army.
There are countless commemorative ceremonies in Ryukyu for them to participate in. Xiao Letian hopes that they can leave here with pride in their mother country and let them know where their roots are.
"Prime Minister." Just as the ceremony was about to end, a sharp-eyed Ryukyu international student saw Xiao Letian outside the low cement wall of the fort, and everyone present became excited.
"The Eighth Company of the New Army ranks three in a row. Veteran Yan Hu salutes the Prime Minister." The veteran, who was missing a leg, held a crutch under his arm and gave a standard military salute to Xiao Letian, with tears in his eyes.
Xiao Letian's eyes were also red. He quickly walked over and supported the veteran Yan Hu, "Okay, okay, after you retire, you are also a new recruit. After you retire, you are also a tiger. You have contributed to the road of national rejuvenation..."
At this point, Xiao Letian looked at the children in front of him and nodded, "It seems that the oldest among you is only ten years old, and the youngest is only fourteen or fifteen years old. This time, traveling thousands of miles to Europa, are you afraid?"
"Don't be afraid." All the children shouted with their chests raised and their heads raised.
"Okay, just don't be afraid. Remember what I taught you about young China. When young people are strong, China will be strong. From now on, you will always remember it. When someone asks you why China is so weak, how should you answer? .”
Xiao Letian shouted, "You should point to your own hearts and declare to the whole world that I am responsible for China's weakness. From today on, all the officers and soldiers of Xiao Letian can only have this answer."
"China is weak, and the responsibility lies with us. We must shoulder the responsibility to shoulder the future. The future belongs to those who dare to take responsibility, not those cowards who shirk the blame. You must always remember this. No matter how strong China is, the responsibility lies only with us." On the body."
Emperor Tongzhi's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly recalled the mediocre court life. Who could say such a thing among those bureaucrats who quickly grabbed credit for their merits and only knew how to shirk their guilt?
"If the Qing Dynasty does not change its stalemate, it will really fall sooner or later."
Xin Jing’s talk: There will inevitably be times in life when I’m going to blame myself. My current life is not good. I can blame society, my parents, or even my ancestors’ country, but no one has ever complained about myself.
Yes, the most uncomfortable thing in life is not being stumbled by fate, but criticizing yourself and denying yourself. There is a selfish ego wrapped in the fragile skin. No one is willing to admit that they have made mistakes. This kind of ego The process of correcting mistakes is extremely painful and will tear you to pieces.
But life is like this. It is difficult to make money without self-denial. People say that life is a practice, but practice is not so easy and happy.
Living is hard, but living knowing is even harder.
