The wind is biting, snow is flying all over the sky, and the Forest of Boulogne is covered in snow.
In a corner of the forest, you can hear the sound of falling snow quietly. Behind this place is a small hill with a small river flowing beside it. It can be said that it is surrounded by mountains and rivers. According to Chinese customs, this is a geomantic treasure land.
The Chinese Soldiers Cemetery is located here.
The atmosphere today is particularly solemn. A group of soldiers came over early and started busy. The black gauze on their arms, the white silk above the cemetery gate, and the small flowers for people to express their condolences can be seen everywhere, all indicating that something is about to happen here.
At eleven o'clock in the morning, all kinds of cars and carriages came in an endless stream. Everyone who knew the news and everyone who had interacted with the Chinese troops of the Foreign Legion came to attend the burial ceremony. They would witness this moment and pay tribute to the funeral.
The martyrs made their final journey.
As an important part of the Allied Forces, this ceremony also attracted the attention of the Allied Powers. French President Raymond Pouengale and British Prime Minister Lloyd George both came to attend the ceremony in person. Although U.S. President Wilson did not attend, he sent
U.S. Army Commander-in-Chief Per Xing attended the ceremony as his special representative, and called Qin Zhiyuan to express his respect for the martyrs and his regret that he could not attend the ceremony in person.
These fallen soldiers all came from ordinary families in the Far East. They did not receive much honor during their lifetimes, and they may have died silently, but to be able to receive such mourning and honor now can be regarded as a well-deserved death.
As the host, Qin Zhiyuan and Julie greeted the important guests at the entrance of the cemetery.
Qin Zhiyuan's status now transcends that of an ordinary Allied general. He is also the king of the Grand Duchy of Lanfang, which is unique within the Allied Powers. Although Qin Zhiyuan did not take office for a day, after the Grand Duchy of Lanfang issued a statement, the French government
He expressed congratulations to Qin Zhiyuan for a while, which was undoubtedly an acknowledgment of the relationship between Qin Zhiyuan and the Grand Duchy of Lanfang, and at the same time, it also recognized that the Grand Duchy of Lanfang was an independent country.
Yes, independent countries, regarding the relationship between Lanfang and the Republic of China, the British government that colonized Malaya, the French government that colonized French Indochina, and the U.S. government that colonized the Philippines all expressed concern. The distance between them is really too close.
After careful consideration, Qin Zhiyuan stated that the Grand Duchy of Lanfang was now an independent country and had no affiliation with the Republic of China. Only then did it receive reserved recognition from the governments of various countries.
It is impossible not to be independent. If the Grand Duchy of Lanfang and the Republic of China become one country, then this country will be too huge. They occupy almost most of the land in East Asia and Southeast Asia, which will cause strong uneasiness in the relevant countries.
As for an independent country, it is much easier to say, at least it seems that the threat is not that great, and countries such as Britain, France, and the United States can also accept some of the extraordinary actions of the Grand Duchy of Lanfang.
Otherwise, Lanfang's acquisition in Germany may not go so smoothly.
Qin Zhiyuan's identity is very special. Qin Zhiyuan is a native of the Republic of China and a Frenchman. Now he also needs to add a native of Lanfang. In fact, Qin Zhiyuan should represent the interests of the three countries of the Republic of China, Lanfang, France.
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But in fact, no matter which side he is on, Qin Zhiyuan cannot represent it.
France does not need Qin Zhiyuan's representative. The Republic of China government was busy with the civil war and did not authorize Qin Zhiyuan. The Lanfang Grand Duchy established during the World War did not declare war on Germany at all. Now that the spoils are being shared, there will naturally be no trouble for the Lanfang Grand Duchy.
It seems that Qin Zhiyuan is in danger of getting nothing.
But in fact, everyone knows about Qin Zhiyuan's relationship with the Foreign Legion.
It can be said that if there were no Qin Zhiyuan, there would be no Chinese troops in the Foreign Legion, there would be no victory in the Battle of Ferenta de Noir, there would be no victory in the Second Battle of Reims, and even if there were no Foreign Legion to hold on to Lans
St. Louis and Paris will be in great danger.
Therefore, Britain, France and the United States acquiesced in the acquisition of the Grand Duchy of Lanfang in Germany and regarded those machines as compensation for Qin Zhiyuan.
Not to mention that Britain, France, the United States and other countries also have demand for those machines, they don't need them at all.
During the war, the arms industries of all countries have made great progress. Except for Germany, the production scale of all countries has actually increased. Now that the world war is over, the production scale of Britain, France, the United States and other countries has to shrink. For German machines
Naturally, there is no demand.
Almost everyone who attended the meeting would chat with Qin Zhiyuan. Foch, the commander-in-chief of the coalition forces, and Lyautey, the minister of the army, actually stood with Qin Zhiyuan after communicating with him.
Welcoming guests and acting as half host.
This makes the standard of this ceremony seem even higher.
At 11 o'clock sharp, the ceremony begins.
As the host, Qin Zhiyuan first came up to give a speech: Ladies, gentlemen, friends, thank you very much for taking the time to come out of your busy schedule. Today we are together to commemorate those who sacrificed their lives in the world war.
Qin Zhiyuan's speech was not long, he simply said a few words of thanks and then made room.
There are so many people who are qualified to speak, including Raymond Perngale, Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, Ferdinand Foch, and John Pershing.
Even Secretary of War Lyautey was not given a chance to speak.
At 12 o'clock, the ceremony officially started.
The fallen martyrs have now been placed in coffins made of nanmu, covered with the national flag of the Republic of China and the flag of the Foreign Legion. Four generals carried the first one into the cemetery.
These four generals are Qin Zhisheng, Chen Kangjian, Ge Lifu and Liu Zizheng, all with the rank of lieutenant general.
These four people were Qin Zhiyuan's roommates when he first came to France, and were the first batch of Chinese to join the Foreign Legion. It can be said that if the martyrs in these coffins had not died in battle, then their status would not be as good as those of these generals.
, then there won’t be much difference. After all, when they first joined the Foreign Legion, their starting point was the same.
With solemn expressions and solemn but slow steps, the generals placed the first coffin into the dug cemetery. The inscription in front of the cemetery narrated the life of this martyr: Tong Guangming, male, September,
Tong arrived in France as a Chinese laborer and headed to the battlefield on the fourth day. He was killed in German shelling while delivering supplies to the frontline positions.
A simple sentence summarizes Tong Guangming's 20-year-old life.
He is only one year older than Qin Zhiyuan.
As the generals carried the coffins into the cemetery, an honor guard of forty people had already raised their rifles and fired together to see off the martyrs.
The members of the honor guard were wearing school officer uniforms. They were also the first batch of soldiers to join the Foreign Legion. The one with the lowest rank is now a major, who works in the logistics department with Qin Zhisheng. If he is in a combat unit, the one with the lowest rank will be a major.
Already a lieutenant colonel.
The gunshots rumbled, the sound shook the surrounding areas, and the snow on the trees fell, adding to the already falling snowflakes, adding a bit of solemnity. The emotionally fragile ladies couldn't help crying, while the men had serious expressions.
All the soldiers saluted with attention. At this moment, respect for life reached its peak.
Regarding the firing of condolences, there are no relevant regulations on the number of shots fired. The Foreign Legion uses age, and the number of shots fired is determined based on age.
The work of sealing the land was carried out jointly by Raymond Pengale and Lloyd George.
Of course, it can't be all of them, but Raymond Poongarai and Lloyd George still insisted on sealing the first cemetery, which can be regarded as a dedication.
Once the first cemetery is sealed, the ceremony is complete.
Of course, the follow-up work will continue for some time. It is normal for tens of thousands of soldiers to continue for several months.
After the ceremony, the guests left one after another. There was naturally no banquet on such an occasion, but Qin Zhiyuan had already prepared to hold a cocktail party at Black Swan Castle in a few days, not only to thank him, but also to say goodbye.
With the end of the world war, troops from various colonies will return to their places of origin to disarm and return to their fields. After Christmas, the French Indochina Annam servant army led by Wu Yuanting and Nguyen Juncai will return to Annam.
Not all of them have been disbanded. For example, the troops led by Wu Yuanting and others still have relatively strong combat effectiveness. They will serve as colonial troops to maintain France's rule over French Indochina.
As for those troops with weaker combat effectiveness and larger numbers, such as the Indians, it is estimated that most of them will be demobilized. The retention of such troops will have no effect other than increasing the numbers on paper.
Qin Zhiyuan's Chinese troops are about to return to the Far East. In fact, more than a month ago, a troop escorting some heavy weapons had returned to the Far East as the vanguard. They wanted to find a place for Qin Zhiyuan's foreign legion to stay.
Qin Zhiyuan's men don't have 200,000 people at the moment, and the number of new recruits being trained in the new barracks must exceed 200,000. It is impossible to disband such a huge army.
You must know that after the World War, although there were not many wars in Europe, they were by no means without them.
For now, there are already voices within the Allied Forces expressing their intention to intervene in the Russian Civil War, and many countries are echoing their voices. The Americans and the French are both interested.
After the Bolsheviks led by Lenin came to power, they unilaterally signed the Brest Treaty with Germany. This treaty was actually a betrayal of the Allies. Although Lenin had his own considerations, it was precisely because of Ludendorff's planning that Lenin was able to return to Russia.
But Lenin could not stop the Allies from hating him.
The dominance of the working class also opened a window for workers in other European countries. In Germany, some workers launched riots in an attempt to overthrow the Kaiser and establish a worker-led democratic Germany.
This has aroused the vigilance of European countries. They cannot accept workers' rule in Europe, which will fundamentally subvert the ruling order they have established for hundreds of years.
Therefore, the current mainstream thinking in Europe is to overthrow the Bolshevik government in Russia, the United States wants to play a greater role in international affairs, and France wants to regain an ally.
When the Tsar ruled Russia, Russia was France's traditional ally. After Lenin came to power, he actually had the opportunity to repair relations with France, which was to continue participating in the war, but Lenin voluntarily gave up this opportunity.
Compared with Europe, the Republic of China is currently in raging war, and the Japanese are eyeing it. Qin Zhiyuan must retain some strength in his hands as capital for contingency.
But this is not easy. The ongoing war in the country is essentially the warlords fighting for territory. If Qin Zhiyuan leads his troops back to the Republic of China, it may destroy the current balance of power between the north and the south and become a brand new force.
