Chapter 1058 The Founding Ceremony of the Chinese Empire (1)

(1058)

February of the first year of Xiawu, Qingdao.

Emperor Chongzhen issued an edict of abdication, which brought a small problem, that is, how to era. In the thirteenth year of Chongzhen, it must have been gone. However, the new empire was not established and the era of the new empire could not be used. Fortunately, human beings were always smart, and they were used in advance in the first year of Xia Wu. Of course, in the first year of Xia Wu, they could only be used in unofficial documents.

Due to the issue of the era, the establishment of a new empire was already imminent. All the senior officials of the Hu Ben Army's Government Affairs Department have been urging Zhang Zhun to come back as soon as possible and hold the founding ceremony. At the same time, they began to prepare the ceremony in a intensive manner. Finally, Zhang Zhun responded that he would officially ascend the throne in March and formally establish the Chinese Empire.

“March!”

"Huaxia Empire!"

The relevant news will be spread immediately.

Whether it is Liaodong in the snow or the warm Lingnan, Japan in the post-war reconstruction state, or Guanzhong where the war has not yet ended, they are all busy with this news. Of course, the founding ceremony of the Chinese Empire is a remarkable thing. Who dares to underestimate it? Who doesn’t want to get Zhang Zhun’s eye to look at this time?

The first one to act was naturally the royal family of North Korea. Liu Xianqian was a very smart royal princess. She was very concerned about Zhang Jun's ascension to the throne. After getting the exact news, she immediately told the Korean king Li Zong. Li Zong naturally did not dare to neglect, so she immediately asked the prince Li Hao to take a boat to Qingdao with heavy gifts.

Prince Li Hao looked left and right and always felt that his gift was a little difficult to take. There was nothing beside Zhang Zhun? It was a bit of a headache to win the favor of this elder brother. The Kingdom of Korea could not bring any decent things for military supplies. Fortunately, Liu Xianqian gave another advice. Zhang Zhun was indeed lacking in anything, but a few maids to call. You can choose a few maids to send them over. When Li Hao heard this, it was easy to deal with, so he immediately chose twenty-four smart, beautiful and charming girls and brought them over.

The Koreans were very fast, and the Mongolians were not slow either. Zhang Zhun responded that when he ascended the throne in March, Has Qiqige was in Qingdao. Naturally, she informed her tribe as soon as possible. The leader of the Aotel tribe, namely Has Qiqige's father, immediately couldn't sit still, and hurriedly brought gifts and rushed to Qingdao.

What is the most expensive gift from the Mongolians? There are a lot of gold, silver and jewelry around Zhang Zhun. The only thing Zhang Zhun lacks is war horses. So, the Aotel tribe carefully selected three thousand best war horses and sent them as gifts. The Hu Ben Army cavalry bought a large number of war horses from the Mongolian tribe every year. The Aotel tribe sent three thousand war horses at once, which was a relatively large deal.

The Aotel tribe had made moves, and the two tribes Tumot and Halashen were naturally unwilling to be inferior. Unlike the Aotel tribe, Hardanbatel and Arislan both personally tasted Zhang Zhun's power. At such an important moment, how dare they leave a bad impression on Zhang Zhun? Since the Aotel tribe used three thousand war horses as gifts, they naturally could not be less than this number. So, they each selected three thousand war horses to send them over.

The Japanese royal family also wanted to give Zhang Jun some gifts. After thinking about it, they felt that there was nothing to do, so they finally decided to give Zhang Jun a batch of samurai swords. These samurai swords were all produced by pure Muramasa and were very sharp. During the Tokugawa Shogunate rule, Muramasa's samurai sword was a forbidden product and could only be used secretly. After overthrowing the Tokugawa Shogunate, Muramasa's samurai swords were regained.

However, the envoys of the Hu Ben Army told them tactfully that the Hu Ben Army did not need Japanese samurai swords. However, if the Japanese side could take the initiative to return the cultural books they had obtained from the Central Plains, the new empire would have expressed it. Of course there was no problem. The Japanese royal family immediately began to operate. As a result, a large number of cultural books lost to Japan from the late Song Dynasty have gradually returned to the new empire.

Since the Japanese royal family has made some statements, the Tokugawa family, which has divided half of Japan's places, cannot help but express it. Tokugawa Iemitsu is also a smart person. After discussion, it decided to hand over the Soko Point of Hokkaido to the Tiger Army Navy for free. Soko Point of Hokkaido is an important strait between Hokkaido and Sakhalin Island. The Tiger Point of Hokkaido has established a base here and will greatly accelerate its advance towards Sakhalin Island.

"Governor, there are many benefits!"

Wang Junyu received a big gift from various countries and said with a happy smile.

"Go back!"

Zhang Zhun said calmly.

At the end of the first month, Zhang Zhun set off from Hainan Island and headed north. He happened to encounter the annoying north wind on the sea, and the ships were sailing very slowly. It was not until February that Zhang Zhun returned to Qingdao. At this time, Qingdao was already crowded. After Zhang Zhun returned, it was even more lively. Everyone was filled with hopeful smiles, hoping for the formal establishment of the new empire.

Considering that a large number of people will flood into Qingdao before the ceremony. Therefore, Gao Hongtu and others considered how to provide sufficient reception capacity early in the morning. A large number of ports have been expanded in various coastal areas of Mawan, which can be parked with 500 large ships at the same time. A large number of ports have also been prepared in Wulong Bay on the other side of Aoshanwei, which can provide more than 400 berths. Between Wulong Bay and Qingdao, a cement expressway has been opened, with spacious and comfortable four-wheeled carriages, and it is picked up and delivered.

In fact, it was indeed very wise for Zhang Zhun to finally decide to make his capital in Qingdao. At least, water transportation is much faster than land transportation. To prepare such a great founding ceremony, material preparation is essential. Not to mention other things, food alone requires millions of stones.

If you transport millions of stones of grain from land, you are afraid that the convoy can be shipped from Qingdao to Jinan. However, transporting by water is much easier. Two hundred ordinary transport ships can be handled. The government department specially requisitioned 200 transport ships to transport various materials, which can fully meet the needs.

In addition to food and accommodation, it is also a difficult problem. Gao Hongtu and others conservatively estimated that at Zhang Zhun's throne ceremony, at least 300,000 foreign populations were to pour into Qingdao. It is indeed a bit difficult to arrange accommodation for so many people. No inn in any city can withstand so many foreign populations. However, this problem was solved by Shen Lingfei.

Chen Lingfei's solution to the problem was very simple, which was to auction Qingdao's land to the public. Although Qingdao had corresponding plans at that time, although it was planned to expand its permanent population to about 500,000 people, this plan had not been realized yet. Nearby near Laoshan, there was still a large amount of vacant land waiting to be sold.

Taking advantage of Zhang Zhun's chance to ascend the throne, the Government Department of the Great Governor's Government of the Huben Army was able to sell the land it controlled and make a small fortune. Many of the guests who came to attend the ceremony this time were rich and generous. They could fully accept the price of land offered by the Huben Army. So, they happily bought a large amount of land and built their own offices, specifically for the induction ceremony.

It can be imagined that in the future, they will definitely have many places in Qingdao where they need to deal directly with the Ministry of Government. If they don’t have their own office in Qingdao, it will be somewhat inconvenient. Moreover, in terms of face, this is also a symbol of their own economic strength. Just like in the future, if you didn’t even have an office in Beijing, would you dare to say that you are of high quality?

The original Yangzhou salt merchants and Jiangnan merchants were the first to react. They immediately seized the opportunity to buy land and build their own offices. They also built this office as beautiful as possible to show their strength. Since these people lived in the office, the others could be diverted to inns or other places.

The problem of living was finally solved, and the rest was the problem of being able to do it. With so many foreign populations coming in, transportation is indeed a problem. So many carriages are running around in the city, and it will be strange if nothing happens. Fortunately, Zhang Zhun is quite knowledgeable about transportation arrangements. After giving instructions, the problem will be solved?

How to solve it? Of course, it is to vigorously develop public transportation. Before and after the throne ceremony, private carriages were prohibited from passing through Qingdao and surrounding areas. All people who need to enter and exit either walk or ride in large four-wheeled carriages. This kind of four-wheeled carriage can be held at the same time. Hundreds of four-wheeled carriages flow continuously every day according to a fixed route, which can basically meet everyone's needs.

However, when the senior officials of the Ministry of Government thought that their arrangements were perfect and there were no omissions, an accident still occurred. They mistakenly estimated the number of guests coming to Qingdao. It was originally estimated that it was about 300,000. In fact, later I found out that a total of 500,000 foreign population poured into Qingdao before the throne ceremony.

Because there were indeed too many guests. Not only were the ports in Mawan full of ships, but there were almost no spare berths in the nearby Wulong Bay port. Outside Mawan, there were a large number of ships that needed to enter the port. The warships in charge of the Hu Ben Army Navy hurriedly reported the relevant situation to Li Jicheng urgently.

Fortunately, the logistics department of the Hu Ben Army was still very flexible. After a brief discussion, the backup ports such as Laoshan Bay and Nanlong Bay were immediately opened as temporary ship docking places. The two bays combined can also be moored nearly a thousand ships, which barely met the needs. The congested ships in front of Ma Wan were finally disbanded.

There were nearly two thousand ships docked in four bays. Even Li Jicheng, who was used to the big scenes, couldn't help but sigh. When did the Hu Ben Army actually have so many ships among the people? It is estimated that in less than a few years, all the ports in Shandong will be opened and all the ships will be unable to be parked.

The commander of the First Navy Fleet of the Hu Ben Army, a middle-aged man who temporarily served as the commander-in-chief of the maritime alert, couldn't help but remember the situation when he followed the Zheng family fleet and came to attack Fushan Site as a disguised as a pirate. At that time, Zhang Zhun had only a few sampans at most. Unexpectedly, in less than ten years, Zhang Zhun's subordinates had already owned thousands of ships, and they were still large ships.

All of this came too quickly. Even he himself could not fully understand what skills Zhang Zhun had to build so many ships in such a short time. Where did he get such powerful skills? Where did he get rich knowledge? What kind of secret is this emperor of the new empire?

...

"Master, the relevant procedures are like this..."

When it was busy outside, Zi Yuan seemed very calm.

As a temporary instructor at the ceremony, Liu Rushi shouldered the important task of guiding Zhang Zhun about etiquette. Zhang Zhun also wanted to finish this matter as soon as possible, so he was naturally very cooperative. After a few days of guidance, Zhang Zhun was already quite familiar with the relevant procedures.

For the future new empire, Zhang Zhun made many simplified regulations to appear more humane and civilized. For example, he avoided the etiquette of kneeling three times and nine times. In the future, others would not need to kneel down in front of him. For example, the place where he worked was in the center of the hexagon, and there was no need to build another palace.

The only thing that needs to be changed is to relocate his women from Ziyuan. After all, Ziyuan is in the city center of Qingdao, with every inch of land and dazzling economic interests. It is not suitable for him to occupy such a large area and there is no guarantee of safety. With the emergence of steel and concrete, a house with three or four stories high is no longer a new thing in Qingdao. Some of the tall buildings are right next to Ziyuan. Snipers are on the tall buildings, which can easily pose a threat to Ziyuan. His Majesty's privacy is also difficult to guarantee.

Just halfway up the mountain in Laoshan, there is a Pearl Tower, which was built by a senior official of the court for vacation. The Pearl Tower was solemn and gorgeous, with magnificent momentum, with picturesque scenery on the outside, with small bridges and flowing waters inside, pavilions and towers. It is close to Qingdao, and his women like it, so his harem moved to Pearl Tower collectively.

The location of Mingzhu Tower is also very conducive to alertness. The mountain it is located in is independent, with cliffs behind it, and it is impossible to climb without special tools. Just arrange a special guard post to ensure absolute safety. Compared with the Hexagon, Zhang Zhun is more suitable for appearing here. Therefore, after the founding of the new empire, Zhang Zhun often handled government affairs in Mingzhu Tower. These are all later stories.

Zhang Zhun's instructions greatly simplified the red tape of the throne ceremony and greatly shortened the time required for the ceremony. In the past, when the emperor ascended the throne, he needed to worship the mountains and the sea, and the entire ceremony was impossible to complete without half a month. However, after Zhang Zhun's simplification, it would only take three days.

Of course, some old officials felt that this was not respectful enough. If you don’t worship the mountains or sacrifice to the sea, would you be a little disrespectful to the heaven and earth? What if you get angry all day long? However, since Zhang Zhun asked this, they had to do so.

...

On February 22, Zhang Zhun came to the Government Affairs Department of the Huben Army General Administration and, as the Jung-Emperor, announced a comprehensive restructuring of the Huben Army General Administration Office.

The Grand Governor's Office has been officially abolished after more than five years. Instead, it is replaced by the highest-level title of the Huaxia Empire. The original five departments all became the Ministry of Government, Military Affairs, Law, Work, and Finance of the Huaxia Empire. At the same time, two new departments were added, namely the Ministry of Education and Internal Affairs, the former is responsible for education, and the latter is responsible for intelligence agencies.

The supreme ruler of the Chinese Empire was of course the Emperor Zhang Zhun. Below Zhang Zhun, there was a new cabinet. Since the election system was not yet perfect, the six Grand Secretary were temporarily elected by the ministers. Gao Hongtu, Zhang Shenyan, Qiao Yunsheng, He Fengsheng, Yang Tinglin and Lu Xiangsheng were all among them.

According to Zhang Zhun's arrangement, Gao Hongtu served as Minister of the Ministry of Government, Zhang Shenyan served as Minister of Finance, Qiao Yunsheng served as Minister of Law, Lu Xiangsheng served as Minister of Military Affairs, Yang Tinglin served as Minister of Works, and He Fengsheng served as Minister of Education. The Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was temporarily vacant.

According to regulations, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet can only serve as a central official position. Therefore, Zhang Shenyan, Yang Tinglin, He Fengsheng and others must remove the local official positions and take office in the central government. Lu Xiangsheng must also remove the official positions of the army and serve as a full-time civil servant.

The internal rectification is relatively simple, and you only need to change the name. However, the rectification of the military seems to be more cumbersome and cautious. In addition to the Ministry of Military Affairs, Zhang Zhun decided to set up the General Staff to specifically manage the combat troops.

The Ministry of Military Affairs and the General Staff are side by side, and both are directly under the jurisdiction of Zhang Zhun. However, the areas under which the General Staff are responsible are more professional, mainly responsible for marching and fighting, and mainly in charge of field corps. Other affairs are handed over to the Ministry of Military Affairs for handling.

The General Staff consists of senior executives of the Tiger Ben Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, with five or seven members. They directly accept Zhang Zhun's leadership. All the members of the General Staff are military generals. To a certain extent, this changed the dilemma of military generals in the late Ming Dynasty that the late Ming Dynasty did not have the opportunity to face the emperor, and at the same time, it also retained a certain control of the civil servants over the army.

Considering the need for the new empire to expand externally, Zhang Zhun decided to reorganize the Hu Ben Army in a comprehensive manner. The original battalion-level organization could no longer meet the needs of the strategy. Due to the battalion-level organization and the legion-level organization, this led to a little chaos to a certain extent. Therefore, Zhang Zhun decided to form a large number of legions.

The army continues to maintain the four major legions of Qinglong, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird and Xuanwu. They are the most powerful mobile combat force in the Chinese Empire. They will receive the best soldiers, the most exquisite equipment, and the most favorable treatment. Of course, their training will also be the strictest. The strength of each legion will be maintained at about 30,000 people.
Chapter completed!