Chương 616: Wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever rivers flow, all is Han territory.

On an open space not far away, hundreds of black lacquered coffins were neatly arranged, covered with the red dragon flag of the Han Dynasty.

Those are the coffins of hundreds of soldiers who died in this campaign. They did not return home alive, but their names will be engraved on stone tablets, worshipped for generations, and forever remembered by their descendants.

Within Luoyang City, the ten-mile imperial road from Mingde Gate to Zhuque Gate had been swept spotless, with a red dragon flag planted every ten steps, fluttering and rustling in the wind.

The viewing platforms on both sides of the imperial road were packed with people, and even the trees were filled with people, some of whom had climbed onto the rooftops.

Everyone craned their necks, gazing at the distant horizon, waiting for the army that had created the miracle.

...

At nine o'clock in the morning, the palace bells and drums rang out in unison, the bells chiming melodiously and the drums beating rapidly.

Liu Ce, dressed in a crown and robe with twelve imperial symbols, rode out of the palace in the emperor's grand procession.

Three thousand imperial guards, each wielding a long halberd, stood guard on either side, the tips of which gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

Xun Yu, Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and others accompanied him, and civil and military officials, dressed in court attire, followed closely behind in a grand procession arranged according to their rank.

The imperial carriage slowly traveled to the Central War Zone's garrison, thirty miles outside Luoyang City. Liu Ce climbed the steps, stood in the center of the high platform, and looked south, the wind blowing his dragon robe.

10 o'clock sharp.

"Thump—thump—thump—" Three powerful blasts of the horn echoed through the sky, and the earth began to tremble slightly.

A black line appeared on the distant horizon.

That was the vanguard of the army.

Five hundred Imperial Guard cavalrymen, armed with muskets, rode in, their armor gleaming in the morning sun, their hooves striking a uniform chord.

Upon reaching the high platform, the cavalrymen simultaneously raised their guns and pulled the triggers towards the sky.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three volleys of gunfire rang out in unison. Amidst the billowing smoke, the vanguard cavalrymen reined in their horses and lined up on both sides with clean and swift movements.

Immediately afterwards, the contingent of prisoners of war and spoils of war slowly walked in.

A dozen or so prison carts were at the front. The once invincible rulers of various countries, including the Xianbei Chanyu, the Xiongnu Chanyu, the Japanese King Himiko, and the King of Yanqi in the Western Regions, had their hands tied behind their backs and were kneeling in the prison carts. Their hair was disheveled, their faces were ashen, and their eyes were empty, as if their souls had been taken away.

Behind the prison van was a seemingly endless procession of spoils.

Soldiers carried jade seals, gold seals, and bronze tripods from various countries, pushed carts filled with gold and silver jewels, and carried wooden boxes containing the severed heads of tribal chiefs who had resisted and refused to surrender.

Every piece of spoils of war bears witness to the formidable martial prowess of the Han Dynasty, and each one gleams in the sunlight.

"Destroy the Xianbei! Expand our territory to the North Sea!"

"Conquer the Western Regions! Reopen the Silk Road!"

"Suppress the southern barbarians! Submit to the hundred barbarians!"

"Destroy the Japanese invaders! The seas will be calm!"

The military merit display formations passed by one after another. The soldiers, dressed in brand-new armor and holding captured weapons, marched in neat steps and shouted slogans loudly, each shout shaking the heavens and the earth.

Each time an army passed by, the cannons on the high platform would fire a corresponding number of times—ten, six, three, two, for a total of twenty-one shots. This was the highest triumphant ceremony personally set by Liu Ce.

As the last military merit formation passed by, the cheers from the entire audience reached their peak.

Everyone saw that at the very front of the procession, five armored generals rode warhorses, holding imperial halberds bestowed by the emperor, slowly approaching, exuding an awe-inspiring presence.

These were the commanders of the various military regions who were on this expedition: Li Jing, Xu Da, Su Lie, Yue Fei, and Qi Jiguang.

Behind them followed Li Ji, Xue Rengui, Zhang Liao, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Lü Bu, Cheng Yaojin, Qin Qiong, Yuwen Chengdu, Chang Yuchun, Li Wenzhong, and others, all of them standing tall and straight.

Li Jing, Xu Da, Su Lie, Yue Fei, and Qi Jiguang arrived at the high platform, dismounted, knelt on one knee, and raised the general victory report of the three armies high with both hands. Their voices were as loud as bells, making the ears of those around them ring.

"Your Majesty, we have lived up to your expectations! We have annihilated the Xianbei in the north, pacified the Western Regions in the west, settled Annam in the south, and destroyed the Japanese in the east! We have expanded our territory by 30, 000 li and destroyed dozens of countries! All barbarians have submitted, and the world is unified! Now we lead our army in triumph and respectfully wish Your Majesty good health!"

Liu Ce did not have the eunuchs help him up, but instead walked down the high platform himself.

He walked up to Li Jing, Xu Da, Su Lie, Yue Fei, and Qi Jiguang, stretched out his hands, and helped them up one by one, patting each of them on the shoulder.

The entire venue fell silent instantly; even the sound of the wind blowing the flags could be heard clearly.

Liu Ce looked at Li Jing, Xu Da, Su Lie, Yue Fei, and Qi Jiguang, and at the soldiers behind them, their bodies covered in wounds but their eyes resolute. His voice trembled slightly, yet it carried clearly throughout the entire area:

"The general expanded the territory of the Han Dynasty by thousands of miles, and his achievements will last for a thousand autumns."

"Long live the Great Han! Long live His Majesty!"

The soldiers shouted in unison, their voices resounding through the sky, startling birds into scattering and even shattering distant clouds.

..................

At noon, Liu Ce rode in his imperial carriage in front, followed closely by his army, and entered Luoyang City along the imperial road.

People along the way threw flowers and cheered, and wine was everywhere. Some people even stuffed wine jars into the soldiers' hands.

When the army reached the Vermilion Bird Gate, another twenty-one-gun salute was fired, marking the successful conclusion of the first phase of the triumphant return ceremony.

...

The day after their triumphant return, Liu Ce, his civil and military officials, and the generals who led the expedition prepared to report their victory to their ancestors.

The gates of the Imperial Ancestral Temple slowly opened with a creak, like an echo of history.

The Imperial Ancestral Temple was spotless, filled with the pleasant aroma of incense.

The ancestral tablets of Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang, Emperor Xiaowu Liu Che, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu, and Liu Ce, who were posthumously honored as ancestors of the three generations, sat solemnly and respectfully on the shrine.

The Vice Minister of Rites, holding a jade tablet, guided Liu Ce and the officials into the Imperial Ancestral Temple.

The ceremonial music played, with bells and drums resounding in unison, the music solemn and dignified.

Liu Ce, dressed in black sacrificial robes, performed the kowtow ceremony to welcome the ancestral tablets, his forehead touching the ground, and remained there for a long time.

Jia Xu presented a grand sacrificial offering, consisting of one ox, one sheep, and one pig, which were offered before the altar, with all three kinds of sacrificial animals present.

Liu Ce personally offered incense and poured wine as a sacrifice, his movements meticulous.

Then, Xun Yu stepped forward, unfurled a scroll of yellow silk, and loudly read aloud the "Proclamation to the Imperial Ancestral Temple" personally written by the emperor. His voice echoed throughout the ancestral temple for a long time.

"In the seventh year of the reign of Emperor Shenwu, the year of Gengchen, on the twenty-ninth day of the ninth month, your subject Ce, the Emperor, dares to solemnly announce this to the spirits of Emperor Gao and Emperor Guangwu:" In the past, the Han dynasty collapsed, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, warlords carved up the land, and the common people suffered greatly. Bones lay exposed in the wilderness, and for a thousand miles, not a rooster crowed.

I, a commoner, was appointed by Heaven and responded to the mandate of Heaven to raise an army in You and Ji provinces, sweep away the warlords, and restore the land of my great Han dynasty.

However, the surrounding barbarian tribes have not yet submitted, and border troubles remain unresolved. The Xianbei have repeatedly invaded the northern frontier, killing our people; the Western Regions have been fickle in their allegiance, disrupting the Silk Road; Annam has repeatedly raided the southern frontier, and Japanese pirates have plundered the coast. Although the world has been pacified, the people are not at peace.

Now, I have dispatched generals to lead an army, and have instructed them in strategies. Generals Li Jing, Xu Da, Su Lie, Yue Fei, Qi Jiguang, and others led an army of 400, 000, fighting a bloody battle for one year and five months.

They drove the Xianbei northward, expanding their territory to the North Sea, and their horses drank from Lake Baikal; they pacified the Western Regions and reopened the Silk Road, reaching as far as west of the Pamir Mountains; they pacified Funan in the south, subjugating the various barbarian tribes; and they crossed the sea to the east, annihilating the islands of the Japanese invaders, and the seas have remained calm ever since.

He expanded the territory by 30, 000 li and destroyed more than 50 states. Wherever the sun and moon shone and wherever rivers flowed, all became Han territory; wherever his teachings reached and wherever people went, all became Han subjects.