Novel Full Chapter 1001 - 87: The Military Parade Begins
Chapter 1001: Chapter 87: The Military Parade Begins
On the last day of the trade conference, which is also the day of the parade ceremony, before dawn, Zhao Yao was shaken awake from his dreams by Tong Xi.
The parade ceremony starts during the hour of Si, but before it begins, Zhao Yao still has to attend morning court.
The usual morning court starts at the hour of Chen, but because there’s a parade today, it has been moved up to the fourth quarter of the hour of Mao.
Zhao Yao originally didn’t want to attend the court today, but the ministers thought that holding the parade ceremony was very important, and it was necessary to have court before the parade began.
Regarding attending court, Zhao Yao was somewhat reluctant, but he couldn’t avoid it.
Zhao Yao donned the prince’s formal attire and went next door to the dining hall for breakfast, unexpectedly finding Uncle Gao and He Lianfang there.
"Second Uncle, Uncle Gao, you don’t have to attend the morning court, why are you up so early?"
He Lianfang replied lightly, "I woke up."
Uncle Gao, on the other hand, said excitedly, "I couldn’t sleep."
Seeing Uncle Gao’s bloodshot eyes and ecstatic demeanor, Zhao Yao twitched his lips slightly, "Uncle Gao, did you stay up all night out of excitement?"
Uncle Gao nodded sheepishly, "Yes, I couldn’t sleep."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yao showed a trace of astonishment on his face, incredulously asking, "Couldn’t sleep because of the parade?"
Uncle Gao: "Yes."
He Lianfang chimed in from the side, "He was nervous all night."
"Uncle Gao, didn’t you watch the parade rehearsal earlier?" He remembered how Uncle Gao attended every rehearsal since coming to Swamp Prefecture.
"It’s different; today is the official parade." Like the members of the Personal Guard participating in the parade, Uncle Gao, regardless of how many rehearsals he’d witnessed, remained full of anticipation for the official parade.
Zhao Yao thought that during the final rehearsal, the members of the Personal Guard wore their battle armor, which was no different from the official parade.
"It’s a pity, Your Highness, you didn’t agree to let me participate in the parade." Uncle Gao, more than just watching the parade, wished to personally take part.
"Uncle Gao, sorry, you’re not tall enough and a bit too old." Zhao Yao apologized profusely, yet uttered the blunt truth.
Uncle Gao’s expression stiffened, then he said with a helpless laugh, "Your Highness, you didn’t need to put it so bluntly."
Zhao Yao glanced at Uncle Gao with amusement, getting straight to the point, "Uncle Gao, you just want the armor, don’t you?"
Having his thoughts seen through, Uncle Gao chuckled awkwardly, "You’ve figured it out, Your Highness, I..."
Zhao Yao raised his hand to interrupt Uncle Gao, coldly and ruthlessly saying, "No, give up on that idea."
Rejected once more, Uncle Gao: "..." His Highness is usually very generous, so why is he so stingy about the armor? His request wasn’t high; he just wanted a set of armor, yet His Highness refused.
"Uncle Gao, I’ve said only my Personal Guard can wear the armor, and you’re not part of my Personal Guard."
"Your Highness, I can become part of your Personal Guard." Uncle Gao was more than willing to become one of Zhao Yao’s Personal Guards.
"Uncle Gao, you’re the one to become the Emperor of Japan," Zhao Yao reminded Uncle Gao, "You can’t forget your duties."
"Your Highness..." He wasn’t keen on becoming Japan’s Emperor.
"I can design a set of armor for you. Once back in Japan, you can have someone make it."
Though reluctant, Uncle Gao had to accept this outcome, "Alright, sorry to trouble Your Highness."
"Uncle Gao, don’t be unhappy, Japan is rich in gold. I’ll help design golden armor for you," Zhao Yao added, "It would definitely not be inferior to what my Personal Guard wears."
Upon hearing this, Uncle Gao stopped dwelling on getting the Personal Guard’s armor.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Seeing Uncle Gao no longer entangled in getting the Personal Guard’s armor, Zhao Yao breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. Since he had morning court to attend shortly, he didn’t chat long with Uncle Gao and the others. After a quick breakfast, he went to the morning court.
Today’s morning court centered around the upcoming parade ceremony.
Although the Ministry of War was mainly in charge of the parade, several other departments were providing assistance. After listening to the Minister of War’s report on the preparedness for the parade, Zhao Yao nodded in great satisfaction.
Once morning court concluded, the officials proceeded to the pier to make arrangements.
The parade location was set at the pier primarily because it was spacious enough. Another reason was that only one thousand soldiers were participating in the parade, so there wasn’t a need for a large venue, and the pier was just right.
Zhao Yao’s Personal Guard numbered over twenty thousand, but that couldn’t be revealed openly. Officially, Zhao Yao had only slightly more than fifteen hundred Personal Guards. As for the soldiers of the Southern Garrison, Zhao Yao never considered having them join the parade.