Chapter 1283 The Shock of the Military Parade
The echoes of Gu Chengyuan's speech, which seemed to herald the beginning of a new era, still seemed to reverberate in the square, mingling with the enthusiastic applause and cheers.
But he did not linger. After giving a military salute to the audience, he walked steadily back to his seat.
But this is not the end; it is the beginning of an even more exciting part.
Vice Admiral Chen Haitao, the commander-in-chief of the parade and commander of the Navy, stepped to the front of the stage again, his booming voice drowning out the gradually subsiding cheers:
"Attention all—!"
"Parade commence!"
As soon as the words were spoken, the military band, which had been preparing for a long time, immediately played the magnificent "March of the Rejuvenation of Our Country," which was specially composed for this military parade!
The piece opened with a powerful brass ensemble, the melody soaring and inspiring, full of a sense of conquest and construction, instantly igniting the atmosphere of the entire venue!
At the same time, the marching formations that were originally neatly arranged on both sides of Fuxing Avenue began to move in unison, like precision machines that had received a silent command.
"Attention, everyone! Turn left (right)!"
"Forward!"
The commands rang out almost simultaneously from the mouths of the commanders of each formation.
Swish!Swish!Swish!
Tens of thousands of people moved in unison, turning around and stepping forward, converging from both sides of the avenue toward the center.
Countless pairs of military boots rose and fell simultaneously, slamming onto the newly paved asphalt road with a deep and rhythmic "boom," as if the heartbeat of the earth was resonating with the rhythm of military music.
Their steps are precise to the millimeter; viewed horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, they appear as perfectly straight lines.
The entire massive formation, as if controlled by an invisible giant hand, seamlessly transitioned from a static "display state" to a moving "review state".
This absolute teamwork and discipline, transcending the individual and resembling a single person, instantly pushed the atmosphere in the stands, which had just calmed down, to a breathtaking climax!
The people in the audience, especially those like Chen Shitou who came from small communities and had seen some of the world but had never seen such a scene before, were so excited that they almost fainted.
Their eyes widened, their mouths agape, as they watched the column of soldiers pressing in like a moving city wall, their hearts pounding with the rhythmic sound of their marching footsteps.
What is the individual? What is the collective? What is the power of order? ... At this moment, the most direct and shocking interpretation is given!
Against this grand backdrop, the leading army contingent, marching to the resounding rhythm of "The March of Rejuvenation," advanced steadily toward the reviewing stand like a moving, upright, and austere pine forest.
This formation was composed of elite officers and soldiers drawn from the "Tiger Brigade." They wore the latest army starry sky camouflage, carried QBZ-191 assault rifles, wore new tactical helmets, and had sharp eyes. Every step they took carried the fierce aura of a veteran and an invincible confidence.
We are 50 meters away from the reviewing stand.
Thirty meters.
Ten meters!
Just as the front row of the formation was about to align with the center of the reviewing stand, the brigade commander of the "Tiger Brigade," who was located on the right side of the formation and personally leading it, let out a thunderous roar with all his might:
"Look to the right!"
Before the words had even finished, the steady "marching in step" instantly switched to a goose-stepping stance within a distance of less than two steps!
Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!
The soles and heels of the military boots slammed into the hard ground with an absolutely uniform angle and force!
The sound was no longer a muffled "boom," but a crisp, loud, penetrating, and rhythmic "slamming sound"!
Every kick is as straight as a line, every arm swing is precise and accurate, and every slam into the ground is like a heavy hammer striking a drum!
The entire formation, from the leading officer to the last row of soldiers, achieved an astonishing level of absolute synchronization in every movement, amplitude, rhythm, and even expression!
From a distance, it doesn't look like two hundred people marching; it looks more like a huge, sophisticated, and ruthless steel machine crushing the road!
The overwhelming momentum, the extremely disciplined military bearing, and the overwhelming, almost tangible discipline and combat power seemed to transform into a tangible shockwave, sweeping across the entire viewing area!
"Oh my God……"
On the reviewing stand, the core leaders from the three major war zones of the East, West, and South, along with their senior observers, felt a chill run down their spines and their scalps tingle the moment they saw the "stepping from uniform to goose step." They instinctively straightened their backs and sat up straight!
The so-called layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.
Ordinary people might just think it's incredibly cool, impressive, and glamorous, but in the eyes of these veteran generals who have led troops their whole lives, what they see is a terrifying level of obedience, discipline, and training that is hard for any of their elite units to match!
"In large-scale operations, military discipline must be strict..." Lieutenant General Li Xuemou, Chief of Staff of the Southern Theater Command, murmured to himself, his face extremely solemn.
He couldn't help but recall some Western-influenced online arguments before the apocalypse that advocated "humanization" and "relaxation leads to creativity and fighting power," which now seemed utterly absurd.
To say that the Americans can easily win... that's because they've been fighting kindergarten-level opponents for the past few decades! They've simply crushed them by throwing resources and technological advantages at them!
Whenever they encountered a tough opponent with a firm will and flexible tactics, from the Korean War to the Vietnam War, and then to the counterinsurgency war against their religious compatriots, they always ended up battered and bruised.
Throughout its modern history, there have been no exceptions!
Therefore, the primary indicator of a unit's combat effectiveness is its military discipline.
Strict military discipline and obedience to orders ensure good combat effectiveness, while lax discipline renders even the best equipment useless.
For example, Israel, a technologically and militarily powerful nation that was touted as a superpower before the war, was brought to a standstill by a group of armed men carrying homemade rockets and without even proper uniforms in Gaza...
In the end, the eldest brother had to step in to save face and negotiate a ceasefire...
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The real problem now is that it's been almost two years since the apocalypse!
For complex reasons such as stabilizing morale, boosting morale, and coping with high-intensity survival pressure, troops under the command of various theater commands have more or less consciously relaxed some non-core disciplines, such as housekeeping, etiquette, and even dress requirements in certain situations, in order to gain higher combat enthusiasm and internal cohesion among officers and soldiers.
This was a last resort, and it was also considered a necessary means to prevent the troops from collapsing in extreme environments.
But what about the Central Plains Theater?
The discipline displayed by this army, marching with hellish precision, far surpasses the parade standards of many elite units during the peaceful era before the apocalypse!
After nearly two years of brutal fighting filled with corpses and constant danger, how did they maintain, and even forge, such terrifying discipline?
This completely violates the common sense and understanding of Wei Jingfang and other generals in the war zone!
It’s incredible!
Following this initial shock came intense envy, and even deeper awe.
They admired the other side for having such an iron army, and were in awe of the organizational methods, ideological construction, and training system behind it that could perfectly combine humanity and discipline in the apocalypse and unleash such terrifying power.
They even vaguely sensed that the strength of the Central Plains Theater was not merely due to its advantages in equipment and resources, but was rooted in something deeper that they had not yet fully understood.
