Chapter One Hundred and Thirty-fifth National Founding Ceremony
PS: Thanks to Yun Hai Shu You Shi Tong Zhou classmates for the reward!
On November 12, after personally observing several resettlement sites for retired soldiers, Li Mingyuan returned to Porto Alegre and began preparations for the founding ceremony.
The founding ceremony is scheduled to be held on December 1. Before that, Li Mingyuan needs to arrange manpower to send invitations to Paraguay, Peru, and Bolivia's three quasi-allies.
Bolivia and Peru are thousands of miles away from the Rio Grande do Sul region. More than half a month is not enough for Peru. The Bolivian representative arrived in Porto Alegre. However, just two days after the Brazilian peace talks, the Chinese sent people to notify Peru, which participated in the peace talks, in advance.
, representatives of Bolivia and Paraguay. At the beginning of the founding ceremony, negotiators from the three parties participated in the ceremony as representatives of the three heads of state.
In addition to the three countries of Peru, representatives from the United Kingdom, Prussia, Belgium, the Netherlands and other countries that have business dealings with the Chinese are also included in the invitation.
The formal founding of the country was a major event for the Chinese in South America. The dispatched messengers dispersed and rushed to the envoys or commercial representative offices of Britain, Prussia and other countries in the La Plata area. Groups of soldiers selected from each army were sent to
Under the leadership of the leading officer, the team set off and marched on dirt roads, preparing to participate in the military parade at the ceremony.
The empty Rio Grande do Sul area became lively because of the founding ceremony. Soldiers and retired soldiers who gathered spontaneously continued to flow towards Porto Alegre. The increasing influx of people exceeded the expectations of the top leaders of the Chinese Independence Army.
, To this end, Li Mingyuan ordered a temporary tent area to be set up in the open space in the south of the city for retired soldiers participating in the founding ceremony to rest.
The time for the celebration to begin is getting closer and closer, representatives from various countries who have received invitations gradually arrive in Porto Alegre, and preparations for the celebration are becoming more and more complete.
On the morning of December 1st, south of Porto Alegre,
Thick crowds crowded in front of the venue,
Chinese soldiers wearing dark military uniforms stood in a line, separating the ordinary Chinese attending the celebration from the venue.
In the middle of the crowd, a group of ten military policemen wearing red epaulettes walked back and forth to maintain order at the venue.
The sun slowly rose from the sea, and the coolness of the morning gradually dissipated. At a quarter past nine, the south gate of Porto Alegre opened, and a group of majestic cavalry walked out from the city gate. The cavalry lined up in two rows, with a horse riding in the middle.
A young general on a black horse, wearing a newly customized black military uniform, holding a sword on his right side, holding the reins in his left hand, marching steadily in front of the queue.
The cavalry walked out of the city gate, and the ordinary Chinese waiting outside the city consciously gave way to the road, and the noisy venue quickly became quiet.
Li Mingyuan was riding a horse, his eyes sweeping over the Chinese standing on both sides. Among the crowd, most of the Chinese were wearing shabby linen clothes, some of the Chinese were wearing old black military uniforms with patches sewn on, and there were some Chinese with physical disabilities on their chests.
There is a rough circular nameplate hanging on it, which is a medal obtained for military merit.
In the early days of the medal system, there was a lack of machinery and raw materials for making medals. The first batch of military medals issued were hand-made using native methods with crude workmanship, and the total number was less than a thousand.
The Chinese who wear medals have all made meritorious service in battles. They were either injured due to bravery in battle or contracted injuries during expeditions, resulting in loss of combat effectiveness and eventually leaving the army.
The medals were handed out personally by Li Mingyuan. The retired Chinese Li Mingyuan in the crowd who wore the medals were all impressed, and most people could still call them by their names.
Seeing the retired soldiers still standing at attention in the army, Li Mingyuan's increasingly hardened heart was also moved. The life-and-death battle time left a deep mark on the Chinese soldiers. Even if they have left the battlefield, the trust formed on the battlefield
And the belief remains indelible.
Facing the retired soldier who looked at him firmly, Li Mingyuan did not speak, but slowly raised his right hand and saluted the crowd with a solemn military salute.
The black military horse continued to move forward. Li Mingyuan kept the military salute posture with his right hand flat, and responded with the same movement. The entire venue seemed to have become a huge military camp. Whether they were soldiers on guard or retired Chinese, their military salutes were
may not be correct enough, but the meaning conveyed is the same. They are paying tribute to Li Mingyuan and at the same time paying tribute to their own fighting years.
After riding all the way to the high platform in the center of the venue, Li Mingyuan dismounted and walked to the high platform. Like reviewing the troops many times, he shouted "The ceremony is over!"
There was a sound of arms being lowered from the audience.
"In the mainland, we gathered in front of the coastal ports for various reasons and took a boat to South America."
What Li Mingyuan said at the beginning was beyond the expectations of the foreign representatives in the guest seats. There was no false politeness or welcome ceremony, but he slowly told the process of the Chinese arriving in South America.
"Peru is full of precious minerals and dense plantations, and the island of Cuba is rich in sweet and rich sugar. It is a fertile land beloved by God, but everything there does not belong to us, nor does it belong to the Chinese workers who came across the ocean.
Carts of ore are transported out of the mine, and boxes of sweet sugar are placed on the table. We are in the mine and the labor of the manor has created the wealth of the mine owner and the manor owner, but what about us?
Still living in a dark and humid mine, lying in a manor full of mosquitoes.
We are not slaves, but we live a life that is worse than slaves. Mine owners and plantation owners ignore us, Indian overseers whip us, and even black slaves bully us because of our height.
We endured the hard work and dark life of living in an ignoble existence, muddle along, being deceived and beaten by others. Even if others pointed guns at their heads, they still fantasized about the development of their conscience or relied on the resistance of others.
,
As a result, I escaped death, but in the end I still couldn’t escape the fate of being buried in a bone mine or abandoned in a forest.”
The environment in the mines and plantations was harsh and the labor intensity was high. Many Chinese workers could not bear the heavy labor but did not dare to resist. They could only jump into the hot syrup or commit suicide by jumping into the middle of the ore. It can be said that every Chinese worker committed suicide.
The lives of Chinese workers are buried in the desserts produced in South America and the steel refined in South America.
The Chinese standing at the venue were all laborers. They had personally experienced what Li Mingyuan said. The time in the mines and plantations was an unbearable past, but the words in their ears brought back the bloody memories of the past.
"The memories of the labor period are cruel and painful, but we cannot forget them.
, If you are willing to fight, you will be in danger; if you forget to fight, you will be destroyed. Why are we reduced to laborers and slaves of others? Why do we die at the hands of millions of Tartars with a population of tens of millions on the mainland?
Just because I don't dare to resist, I can just muddle along as long as the knife is not placed on my neck.
Those who resist will not necessarily die, but those who surrender will surely perish.
In Peru we launched an uprising and defeated our oppressors. Now we have land and will be able to marry a wife soon. The danger seems to have left us.
No, no, once we relax our vigilance and fail to make progress, the threat of death will come to us again.
So I hope every Chinese brother in the audience will not give up the muskets in their hands, train diligently, and if others invade us, use the muskets in their hands to defend our land and homeland!"
After saying this, Li Mingyuan suddenly said loudly, "What should we do if someone else cedes our land?"
"Fight, fight, fight." He was answered by a hoarse shout.
"What will we do if someone attacks us?"
"Fight, fight, fight"
Two consecutive high-spirited answers gave Li Mingyuan the answer he wanted. He raised his hand to stop the shouts of the Chinese below. Li Mingyuan suppressed his excitement and continued, "Thousands of miles and hundreds of battles, all the Chinese present today will
Witness the establishment of our own country with our own eyes."
"Long live! Long live the Crown Prince!" The tsunami of mountain shouts drowned out all the sounds in the venue.
The cheers in the audience lasted for three minutes before they stopped. Then representatives of the Brazilian Empire walked up to the stage and announced that Li Mingyuan would be awarded the title of Duke of Rio Grande do Sul and the establishment of the Autonomous Principality of Rio Grande do Sul.
After the announcement by the Brazilian representative, a military parade ceremony was held. The cavalry, artillery, infantry, and navy troops walked through the parade square one after another. However, representatives from Brazil and other countries who participated in the establishment of the Principality of Rio Grande do Sul obviously did not pay attention to the military parade.
They are still digesting Li Mingyuan's speech on the stage just now and the reaction of the Chinese people in the audience.
Duke Forrobert of the Brazilian Empire sat in the guest seat. He was not among the Brazilian representatives participating in the founding ceremony of the Principality of Rio Grande do Sul this time. He participated in the celebration in a private capacity.
Canudut, the son of Duke Forrobert who was captured during the Battle of Oliva, was returned to Brazil as the first batch of prisoner exchanges after the peace agreement was signed. From his son's mouth, he learned the specific process of the Battle of Oliva.
I was curious that a force composed of cowardly Chinese laborers actually burst out with huge fighting power, so I took advantage of the celebration to come to Porto Alegre to observe the Chinese troops up close.
The Chinese Independence Army, no, it should now be called the National Defense Force of the Principality of Rio Grande do Sul. On the stage, Li Mingyuan just announced the new name of the Chinese Independence Army, the National Defense Force of the Principality of Rio Grande do Sul, or the National Defense Force for short.
Duke Roberto had never seen the actual combat capabilities of the National Defense Forces with his own eyes, but he saw all the reactions of ordinary Chinese at the scene.
Fanatical and warlike, Roberto understood the reasons for the failure of the Brazilian army from the eyes of ordinary Chinese.
An army with fanaticism and belief, coupled with a young, wise leader who is supported by the soldiers, even if they are thin and shabby.
Armed with muskets, they are still an excellent army, and the Brazilian army will not suffer a loss if it is defeated by them.
Roberto quietly left the guest seat and took his servants and guards back on the carriage, intending to tell Pedro II everything he saw and remind Pedro II to make the right decision and not to make the wrong decision.
Subjective impressions easily start a war with the Chinese.