Chapter 1274 On the Eve of the Military Parade 2

After everyone in the car had mostly processed the scene before them, the cadre's voice rang out again, tinged with amusement and urging:

"We are about to enter the city! According to the arrangements of the celebration command, the military parade will start promptly at 9:00 a.m.! After our convoy arrives at the designated drop-off point, we need to immediately follow the guidance to the viewing area to assemble, line up, and take our seats. Time is very tight!"

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the carriage: "Therefore, there's no time to arrange a group breakfast! Please take out the rations you were given when you set off and eat some now to tide you over! Only when you're full will you have the energy to participate in the upcoming grand ceremony! Let's get moving!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a rustling sound came from inside the carriage.

Chen Shitou glanced at his companions. Old Wu had already torn open the bread packaging, Sister Li was carefully opening the jar of eight-treasure porridge, and Uncle Zhang the bamboo craftsman and Xiao Sun the herb gatherer had also taken out their food.

He also took a bread out of his cloth bag, slowly tore open the packaging, and took a bite.

The soft, slightly sweet taste melted in his mouth, mixed with the complex atmosphere of excitement, anticipation, and solemnity in the carriage, making him feel that this simple breakfast had an extraordinary meaning.

He chewed while looking out the window again.

The city's outline grew closer and clearer, and one could even vaguely make out the silhouettes of some tall buildings that had been blackened by gunfire or partially collapsed, as well as the increasingly dense traffic lights merging in from other directions on the roads.

.......

As dawn broke, it was seven o'clock in the morning.

The No. 5 bus carrying Chen Shitou followed the Panjiang Town convoy and slowly merged into a long, slow-moving "steel dragon" composed of various buses.

At the end of the long queue is the west gate leading into the night market—the West Checkpoint.

The sight before them made Chen Shitou and everyone in the car instinctively hold their breath. The slight commotion caused by their impending arrival at their destination subsided, replaced by a silence that was a mixture of shock and solemnity.

This area clearly experienced the most intense fighting and was also a key area for post-war cleanup and reconstruction.

The messy and crowded self-built houses that were common around the checkpoint in my memory or imagination have long since disappeared. Even the ruins have been completely leveled, and the view is exceptionally open.

Large tracts of land were leveled and compacted, then paved with brand-new, dark asphalt, forming an astonishingly wide eight-lane road. The newly painted road markings reflected a striking white light in the rising sun.

At this moment, the four lanes heading into the city were filled with convoys of buses, all from various places, of different models and colors, but all reinforced and modified. Many of the buses had eye-catching banners on their sides:

"Children of Chongyi celebrate the recapture", "Representatives from the community gathering place", "Prime Minister's New District celebrates the victory", "People of Xingyi pay tribute to the heroes"...

The handwriting may not be exquisite, but the red background and yellow characters stand out vividly in the morning light, silently proclaiming their origin and intention.

What is even more chilling is the powerful armed force displayed by the checkpoint itself and its surroundings.

The main body of the checkpoint is a sturdy fortification made of steel frame and concrete. There are four inspection channels on each side. The internal security soldiers, wearing combat uniforms with ink-wash cloud patterns, wearing bulletproof helmets and holding automatic rifles, stand at their posts with cold expressions.

Along the edge of the newly expanded open area surrounding the checkpoint, there are camouflaged fixed firing positions:

Behind the sandbag bunker, the thick barrel of a 12.7mm heavy machine gun pointed out into the wilderness; the quadruple 25mm anti-aircraft gun, half-covered by camouflage netting, was now leveled, also pointing towards the ground where an attack might come from, like a crouching steel hedgehog.

Further away, the turret outlines of two 122mm self-propelled howitzers, simply concealed by vegetation, can even be seen.

The most impressive sight was the two Type 99A main battle tanks parked on either side of the checkpoint entrance, like guardian deities.

Their thick composite armor, long and thick 125mm smoothbore gun barrels, and additional reactive armor blocks covering the turrets gleamed with a cold, eerie light in the morning light.

On the vehicle body, the tiger head emblem of the "Fierce Tiger Brigade" is still faintly visible, and the tracks are still covered with dark red mud that has not been washed off - this is an elite iron cavalry that has just been withdrawn from the front line of the recaptured battlefield and directly transferred to the ceremonial guard!

They stood there silently, without making any move. The oppressive feeling that had settled after the bloodiest battles, crushing everything, was enough to terrify any ill-intentioned person.

A rough estimate suggests that the number of internal security forces stationed in this area alone is equivalent to a reinforced battalion.

They not only guarded fixed fortifications, but also had mobile patrol teams of three people riding in Lynx all-terrain vehicles, repeatedly patrolling the perimeter of the convoy and the nearby ruins and wreckage, vigilant for any abnormalities.

"Attention all escort vehicles! As per the pre-arranged plan, turn right at the intersection ahead and proceed to the 'Jiasan Assembly Point' to unload personnel. Then, follow the guidance to the 'West Outer Command' to report for duty and change assignments!"

As clear instructions came through the vehicle radio, the Mengshi assault vehicles and armored personnel carriers from various local detachments or squadrons, who were carrying out the escort mission, began to separate orderly from the bus convoy and turn onto a side road.

Not far away, a logistics park that had been leveled has now become a field vehicle assembly point and supply station for the western internal security forces, densely packed with all kinds of military vehicles.

Buzz buzz————

'One, two, one! One, two, one! One, two, three, four!'

...

The sounds of engines, commands, and the clanging of metal could be faintly heard, creating a solemn scene of troops being mustered on the battlefield.

Thousands of fully armed soldiers from different regions are eating their individual field rations, repairing vehicles, and replenishing fuel and ammunition in squads and platoons, either squatting or standing.

Some officers, who looked like military officers, hurried toward the “West Outer Defense Command Post of the Night Market” (abbreviated as West Outer Command), which was set up in several camouflage tents not far away.

Clearly, the nature of their mission changed immediately upon arrival, shifting from long-distance escort to undertaking peripheral security and area defense tasks during the celebration.

Soon, a fleet of military vehicles, having completed their resupply and mission assignments, roared out of the assembly point and headed to their newly assigned defense nodes, patrol routes, or reserve positions, in accordance with the new deployment.