The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

This gesture excited Liu Xiang, and her right hand, held to the side of her head, trembled slightly. In the Ming Dynasty, apart from officials, ordinary people could not experience such a grand appearance in front of others.

"This is Yu Yuan. Civil servants and students definitely know him. He is the vice principal of our school, the head of the workshop, and also an instructor in our navy."

When Liu Xiang came out, most of the people except the navy didn't recognize him. But Yu Yuan was well-known among the civilians and students. Half of the officers present had studied under him.

No one knows who started it, but applause broke out. Yu Yuan clasped his hands in a salute to everyone. He also had some regrets. He had always wanted to join the military system, but Liangshan really couldn't do without him.

Clapping is now very popular within the Huaxia Group. In the past, it was difficult to express feelings in formal occasions, and of course, there was no need to express unpleasant feelings. However, clapping when happy made everyone very satisfied, and this new way quickly became popular.

Raise your hand to signal everyone to stop clapping. Anyone who's been through it knows that when you're happy, you can clap your hands in a spectacular fashion.

"This gentleman, there should be very few people here who don't recognize him, is Song Yuzai, the supervisor of Liangshan. He is in charge of everyone's food, daily necessities, and business operations in Liangshan. Let's all applaud to express our gratitude to him."

Chen Er led the way, and the applause immediately became enthusiastic. Song Yuzai was so excited that his face turned red, and he stretched out his hands and bowed repeatedly.

Among those present, none were more senior than him, so no one objected to Chen Er's way of introducing him. After all, he was an old man who had fought his way back from Manila with the old sea lord.

After a long while, Chen Er raised his hand to stop everyone from applauding.

"Next year is a very important year for our group. As everyone knows, the Dutch have occupied our Penghu and sent warships to block Zhangzhou Bay. A war with the Dutch is inevitable."

"The craftsmen in the workshop must work hard. They cannot rest even on New Year's Day. Everyone in the navy must also be on high alert. This is the first battle for our Chinese navy. We must not disgrace the navy."

The officers stood up again and shouted in unison, "Fight to the death to win!" Ever since Chen Er started reorganizing the army, he had developed some routines.

For example, like today, there is no unified way to answer, which often leads to awkward silences. How to respond to different commands in different situations has become a set routine.

This approach not only appeared impressive but also boosted morale. Hearing the officers respond in unison, the others in the room couldn't help but feel excited, especially the school children, who had never seen anything like it before.

The entire audience stood up. At first, they shouted in a few scattered voices, but then they all shouted in unison, "Fight to the death!"

Chen Er and his colleagues from the civil affairs and workshops went to great lengths to set up the venue for today's meeting. What's the point of just sitting there watching the show?

With nearly 500 people together and no amplification equipment, the sound couldn't be heard from a distance, so the carpenters remodeled the auditorium into a stepped structure.

Tea, snacks, and dried fruit are a must; it's much more fun to watch the show while eating and drinking, isn't it?

"I now declare that the 1622 annual meeting of Huaxia Group has officially begun. Now, please enjoy the program."

Aside from the children at school, Li Xi, Yu Yuan, and no one else knew what was going on today. Now, when they heard that they were watching a show, they wondered what a show was.

As Chen Er and the others took their seats, a sweet-looking girl of about sixteen or seventeen years old, dressed in formal attire, walked out. She was the emcee chosen by the school.

"Good afternoon, officers, sergeants, and mentors. Our first program is a male-female chorus of the Naval Guerrilla Song. Please enjoy."

Chen Er was too lazy to do anything fancy, so he just kept it simple. The girl announced the program, bowed, and left.

Everyone on the field was dumbfounded. Is this how meetings are held? Everyone had heard of "The Song of the Naval Guerrillas," which the men on the parade ground often sang.

But what happened to the meeting we were supposed to have?

To everyone's astonishment, more than thirty male and female students walked out of their seats, and some of them headed towards a place covered with a curtain in the middle of the field.

Musical instruments, all covered with cloth.

Who among us hasn't participated in a large choir a few times since childhood? We might not be able to do individual parts, but we can always do duets.

Who in the Ming Dynasty has ever heard of this? In the past, when the army sang in a chorus, everyone just thought it was powerful, but they all felt that today's kids have sung it beautifully.

Clapping, clapping enthusiastically, led by Chen Er, the atmosphere on the field immediately became lively.

Singing and dancing were fine, since everyone had seen them before, but storytelling and acrobatics also came.

The auditorium was filled with one climax after another, and many people's hands were red from clapping.

Aside from the civil affairs managers, the officers and master chefs, despite earning high incomes that year, had never seen anything like it before, and were all flushed with excitement.

The performance lasted a full hour, and everyone in the audience was happy. When the annual meeting ended, everyone was still reluctant to leave, except for Chen Er, of course.

It has to end here. Today, all the officers have come out. It's alarming for a military camp to be without officers for an extended period. Although all the military police are in the camp today, it's inappropriate for officers to be absent for so long.

Unfortunately, all the officers, including platoon-level officers, had to return to their camps. Chen Er saluted and shook hands with each of them and personally escorted them to the school gate. They would not be able to attend the banquet that followed.

The student canteen was converted into a banquet hall today, which was basically just a temporary arrangement of some round tables. The square benches in the hall were also moved over by the students; normally, there are long benches in the canteen.

More than thirty large round tables were set up in the dining hall in a grand manner. Everything today was novel. Even wealthy families would rarely set up such a large setup for weddings and funerals.

Most of the people here had eaten with Chen Er. They ate in the canteen at school just like the other children, and they often ate together squatting next to the machines in the workshop. Needless to say, in the military camp, as long as Chen Er was there, everyone ate together in the same nest.

But this is the first time I've been to such a formal occasion, and perhaps without the previous programs, many people will feel constrained.

But his interest in watching the show hadn't waned yet, so he chatted with acquaintances while waiting for the students to set up their chairs.

Those with sharp eyes quickly noticed that, in addition to Song Yuzai, Liu Xiang, and Yu Yuan, Chen Er had summoned all five master craftsmen to his side, as well as two stewards and a captain.

The steward and captain were fine, but the five master craftsmen were immediately terrified, since they were still Chen Er's servants after all.

Without giving them a chance to struggle, Chen Er beckoned a few people to pull the master craftsmen to their seats. Once the wine and dishes were served, Chen Er took a wine cup and went to the center of the room.

"Today, the first toast should be to the master craftsmen. Without them, we would have no ships, weapons, or guns. Everyone has seen the workshop, and I'm sure you are all amazed by it. This is all thanks to the master craftsmen. I won't say more, but I'd like to toast to all the master craftsmen."