Chapter 1900 - The Public Memorial
The Public Memorial
After intensive planning and preparation, the public memorial ceremony officially entered its implementation phase.
According to Liu Xiang's plan, the memorial could not be permitted to take on too strong a religious character—especially not one favoring any particular sect. Cui Hantang's original proposal to erect a ritual altar at the memorial site and conduct an eighteen-day Grand Luotian Jiao to pacify souls, pray for blessings, and reassure the populace was therefore rejected.
"You can hold your eighteen-day Grand Luotian Jiao inside the Temple of the Five Immortals," Liu Xiang said. "You have to understand my position—if I let you take center stage, I won't be able to function as mayor."
His attitude was so sincere that Cui Hantang couldn't even voice a complaint. He could only curse "the beasts in the Senate" under his breath, then take his marked-up zone schematic and schedule back to revise his plans.
After deliberation, the memorial ceremony was scheduled for December 1st. The venue was set at the Haipi waterfront outside Zhenhai Gate.
Riding the momentum of the law-and-order crackdown, Liu Xiang had dispatched several hundred police and soldiers a few days earlier. Under the pretext of "environmental hygiene improvement to prevent epidemic spread," they carried out forced demolition operations. All the ramshackle hovels stretching from outside Zhenhai Gate down to the riverbank were razed, and the residents were all transported to "refugee camps" on Hong Kong Island. This decisively eliminated a public order blind spot.
After a month of screening and "purification," this batch of bottom-rung urban residents would be resettled. Those who had previously held legitimate occupations could remain in Guangzhou to earn their living; those without proper work would be sent to newly established "New Life Farms" in Kaohsiung, Jeju, Hainan, and other locations. These farms were jointly operated by the Agricultural Reclamation system and the National Police, specifically designed to receive the urban "dregs" cleared out during the Mainland Offensive campaigns.
By now, the area outside Zhenhai Gate had been reduced to bare ground, restored to its original state as riverside flats. December was already the Pearl River's dry season, the waters having receded far, while the sand of the riverbank had dried into firm ground—entirely suitable for mass gatherings.
Laborers used large stone rollers to flatten and compact the ground, then laid down a layer of sand and gravel. Carpenters then rushed to erect temporary scaffolding and platforms.
Though the memorial site installations were all temporary, a small monument of reinforced concrete and granite blocks was being constructed on the precise location of the former Maojia Inn. This would commemorate the victims of the "6.5 Maojia Inn Mass Murder Case."
As this was the first major public event since entering the city, Liu Xiang took particular care. He specifically instructed the Municipal Bureau to maintain order at the site to prevent stampede incidents. Concerned about the potentially massive crowds of spectators, the public trial, sentencing, and execution segments were omitted entirely.
"The memorial's subjects include not only the Maojia Inn victims, but primarily those who died or were martyred during the plague. Executions would somewhat miss the point," explained Fang Fei, who had come from Lingao to plan the event.
Liu Xiang surveyed the site with a satisfied gaze—splendid indeed! Though the platforms and scaffolding were entirely wooden, they had been draped in black and white fabrics, creating an effect that was both dignified and elegant. Several thousand potted chrysanthemums had been temporarily rented from florists around Guangzhou, arranged in formidable grandeur.
The central altar, hastily constructed, held an incense burner and wreaths. The overall approach was to embody Liu Xiang's guiding principles of "simplicity," "solemnity," and "no feudal superstition." Therefore, while the altar featured an incense burner, no incense or candles were actually lit—the gesture alone sufficed. At the very center, chrysanthemums and black-and-white satin ribbons had been fashioned into a large character: "Dian" (Libation). Behind this "Dian" character hung three long spirit-summoning banners of white silk with black ink inscriptions, reading respectively: "Victims of the Guangzhou Plague," "Personnel Martyred Fighting the Plague," and "Victims of the Maojia Inn Case."
On either side of the altar stood three "ritual platforms" arrayed with ceremonial implements—representing New Daoism, Catholicism, and Buddhism. After considerable lobbying, Cui Hantang had secured for New Daoism a platform slightly larger than the other two religions'.
The moment Liu Xiang emerged from Zhenhai Gate, he was startled by the turnout: So many people!
He had originally assumed this memorial ceremony wouldn't draw many spectators, and had specifically instructed Mu Min to have the baochang (ward chiefs) mobilize the populace to attend.
This mobilization seems to have gone overboard. He murmured to himself, watching the crowds being desperately held back by sweat-drenched National Army soldiers on both sides of the street.
In truth, Liu Xiang had greatly underestimated the spectating habits of people in this timeline. Public cultural entertainment was severely lacking in this era, so whether it was a street fight, a court session, or a public execution, crowds of onlookers seeking amusement invariably gathered. Once word spread about the municipal government's memorial service, the whole city was stirred up. Without any need for mobilization, people came in droves with their elderly and young to "observe the ceremony." This forced Mu Min to summon the Navy as well to help maintain order.
Liu Xiang's sedan chair arrived at the foot of the main platform, and he mounted it with an imposing air. On stage were the various Elders of the Guangzhou municipal government: Lin Baiguang, Director of the Comprehensive Governance Office; Mu Min, Chief of the Municipal Police; Wu Mu, Director of the Political Security Bureau; Meng Xian, Director of Finance; Ai Zhixin, Director of Taxation; Zheng Shangjie, Director of Industry and Commerce; Judge Liang Xinhu; and so forth.
Where there were officials, there must also be "social luminaries." Leading the group was Master Gao Ju himself, dressed today in a plain blue Daoist robe—the picture of austerity. Behind him followed delegates from the Guangzhou Municipal Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Zhang Yu's father, being a representative, had also come to "personally attend this grand occasion."
The gentry and great households, despite having all received notifications, had merely dispatched branch relatives or concubine-born sons to appear. Not a single principal from these families was present. However, Liu Xiang noticed a very positive change: not one household that received notification dared skip sending someone—something unprecedented in the past.
At least they're beginning to understand our power, Liu Xiang thought. Once we've compiled all your dirty secrets, I'll slaughter you fat sheep one by one!
When the hands of his watch pointed to nine o'clock, a drumroll as dense as sudden rain broke out. Mu Min, bleary-eyed and harboring severe resentment, suppressed the urge to yawn as she walked slowly toward the podium. Originally already chronically sleep-deprived, she had been forced by the pathologically excited Elder Liu to pull several all-nighters preparing for this event. As she passed Liu Xiang, she glanced at his excited yet slightly nervous little face and barely restrained herself from slapping him.
Mu Min first gave a brief summary of the Witchcraft Case. As her voice broadcast across the entire venue through the microphone, the spectating citizens' emotions were gradually stirred up. The crowd began to ripple with agitation, and some even began shouting angrily. The National Army soldiers maintaining order and the plainclothes agents mixed into the crowd grew tense, with police constantly running back and forth and calling out loudly to maintain discipline.
When Mu Min finished, Lin Motian gave a speech about the recent plague prevention work. Compared to Mu Min's somewhat "routine" address, Lin Motian's presentation was far more emotional. Particularly when speaking of those who had sacrificed themselves in the prevention efforts, he choked up multiple times, unable to continue. On stage and off, everyone sighed. Those who had lost family and friends in the plague were now openly weeping.
After the speeches, Liu Xiang announced the commencement of the memorial ceremony proper. Dense drumrolls sounded again, followed by the strains of a "Requiem" played on military bugles—the melody prolonged and solemn. The Fubo Army Requiem used the Taps tune, which had always been employed in memorial ceremonies for fallen Fubo Army soldiers.
First to appear before the crowd were two rows of Fubo Army soldiers in gray uniforms, broad-brimmed hats, pale blue puttees, rifles shouldered, bayonets gleaming. They marched out from behind the podium with slow, powerful steps—one step, then a pause—in formal parade cadence.
As the music played, the formation passed before the podium in measured steps. Liu Xiang was first to rise, followed immediately by the entire assembly. Civilian officials saluted with their eyes; military officers and police rendered military salutes. When the formation reached the altar, the soldiers formed up in files of three at the officer's command. Once the formation was set, the officer barked: "Ready!—Fire!"
The three soldiers at the easternmost end raised their rifles, gripped the stocks, stepped their left feet half a foot forward-left at a seventy-degree angle, aimed their rifles skyward, and pulled the triggers. The instant the shots rang out, they returned to attention. Following identical commands, the remaining soldiers executed the same movements in sequence before marching off in formation.
Rifle shots thundered; gun smoke drifted. The bugles began to keen.
After the wreaths were presented, Wen Desi, Liu Xiang, Lin Baiguang, Mu Min, Wu Mu, Meng Xian, Ai Zhixin, Zheng Shangjie, Liang Xinhu, Chen Ce, Zhang Yikun, and others slowly stepped forward, pausing before the wreaths to gaze solemnly, carefully adjusting the satin ribbons. Then all participants in the ceremony bowed three deep bows toward the spirit banners of the martyrs, honoring their magnificent achievements.
At the same time, the leadership of the Guangdong Greater Region, the Guangzhou municipal government leaders, and representatives from all sectors of society paid deep tribute to the innocent victims of the "Mass Murder Case" and the citizens who had perished in the citywide epidemic, expressing heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased. The entire assembly then observed three minutes of silence. Before the moment of silence had even concluded, an earthshaking wail arose from among the watching citizens. Family members of the deceased—some prostrating themselves and weeping loudly, others surging forward in emotional outbursts—had to be restrained by police and soldiers. Some even produced spirit money and firecrackers to burn and set off on the spot, but were stopped by nearby police.
After the mourning activities, Mayor Liu delivered a speech calling on all ethnic groups of the city to transform their grief into strength, to vigorously promote reform and development in Guangzhou, and to strive to build Guangzhou into the premier city of the Southern Region.
Liu Xiang then announced the conclusion of the memorial ceremony. He followed this by declaring: In light of the rampant witchcraft and vicious beggars that had plagued Guangzhou, the practitioners of "harvesting the living and maiming" who had offended Heaven's harmony, and the ignorant populace whose worship of evil spirits had brought about pestilence, the Senate of the Great Song's Guangzhou District Government had specially invited "virtuous persons" from the city's Three Teachings to perform rituals here, to deliver the souls of Guangzhou's departed citizens and to pray for blessings upon the living.
Watching monks and Daoists perform their rituals and chant their sutras was one of medieval society's most popular entertainments. The performance and entertainment aspects had become so integral to the religious ceremonies of monks and Daoists that an observer couldn't tell them apart. The spectating crowds immediately divided into three groups, surrounding each of the Three Teachings' ritual platforms until they were packed beyond capacity.
The largest crowd naturally gathered around New Daoism. Daoism—particularly the Celestial Master tradition—was renowned for its elaborate, complex ceremonies. The ritual vestments and implements were vivid and splendid, the Daoist music often quite beautiful. And if the officiating priests happened to be handsome and sang well, the crowds flocking to watch them perform the jiao ritual would fairly break down the doors.
(End of Chapter)