Yanzhou Cemetery for Martyrs mainly buried martyrs from the Qi 'an warzone during the Period of Destruction. After the establishment of the New Era, another batch of graves had been moved over from other parts of Yanzhou. According to official data, there were tens of millions of people buried here. Most of the corpses had been cremated and compressed, so they only took up a small space. There were also some people who didn't even have a corpse left behind, only some belongings from when they were alive or just a written record of their name.
People in the New Era had a habit of going to the Cemetery of Martyrs every year around Memorial Day to pay their respects. Some people believed that after paying their respects, the martyrs would bless them with their wishes, while others simply followed tradition and paid a visit.
Just as the taxi driver had said, because Memorial Day was approaching, there were indeed more people at the Cemetery for Martyrs. While on the road, Fang Zhao had been prompted by the driver to get a number online and queue up.
The Cemetery for Martyrs had a designated area for paying respects, but space was limited. Every year during Memorial Day, it would be full, so he had to queue up.
There were too many people paying their respects, and Fang Zhao's number was slightly behind. He would probably have to wait another two to three hours before it was his turn. However, before that, Fang Zhao planned to take a stroll around the other parts of the Cemetery for Martyrs.
As he neared the cemetery, Fang Zhao could see a huge 500-meter-tall tombstone in the distance. This was the landmark of the area.
The taxi driver only dropped Fang Zhao off near the cemetery. Because there were too many people, the parking lot was full, and there were still some cars queuing up on the road. Occasionally, Fang Zhao could see armed police patrolling. Every year at this time, a large number of police officers would be transferred over to maintain order.
Seeing this, Fang Zhao decisively got out of the car. He could enter faster if he walked.
There was no charge to enter the cemetery. All he had to do was check his identity. If there were no issues with his identity and the number of people in the cemetery was within the limit, he could enter directly.
The roads outside the cemetery were very crowded, but once inside, it felt much more spacious. The cemetery was huge and was divided into several areas: the cemetery's core area, the Period of Destruction Memorial Hall, the plaza, the scattered graves area, the public worship area, and so on.
The huge tombstone was part of the cemetery's core area and couldn't be casually entered. Most people who came here would head to the public worship area to pay their respects before heading to the teahouses and taverns at the side of the plaza to have tea and chat. The descendants of the martyrs would go to the scattered graves or the core area of the cemetery to pay their respects.
Walking along the wide avenue, there were sidewalks on both sides of the avenue and shaded by trees. The species of the trees were Longxiang Tianluo, evergreen all year round. Even though Qi 'an City had already entered the cold winter, the trees were still green and full of vitality.
In front of the main road was the square of the cemetery. One could see many people walking around with their families. The shops on the side of the square were bustling with customers.
Apart from the solemn moment when they paid their respects, most of the time, be it when they were walking on the square or resting in the teahouse, the people who came were mostly smiling.
This was not a sign of disrespect to the martyrs. At the beginning of the New Era, there had been a requirement that the cemeteries be solemn and respectful, but that had changed later on. Before his death, a general who had been born during the Period of Destruction had told his descendants to smile more when they paid their respects to him. The New Era that he and his comrades had fought so hard for wasn't for the sake of seeing them weep and weep.
Therefore, gradually, people no longer deliberately put on a solemn face to pay their respects.
Memorial Day was a day of celebration. Even if people came here to pay their respects, it was with a sense of celebration. They thanked the martyrs of the Period of Destruction for bringing peace to the New Era.
After the end of days, the people of the New Era saw the people buried in the ground as their religion. These people were their saviors.
The elderly would pray for the younger generation during their prayers. The younger generation hoped that their wishes would come true. They prayed for peace, marriage, fortune, and so on.
There was still plenty of time to line up at the public memorial area. Fang Zhao did not head there. Instead, he crossed the square and headed for the core area where the tall tombstone was located.
"Are you a descendant of the martyrs? Please show me your identification, "the receptionist at the core area asked Fang Zhao.
"No."
"Apologies, sir. You are not a descendant of the martyrs buried in the cemetery. If you wish to enter the core area, you will need to verify your identity and pay a $1,000 security deposit. Would you like to enter? "the receptionist asked.
The security deposit would not be refunded. This rule also stopped most people from entering. The core area of the cemetery was more important. It was not suitable for everyone to enter. Therefore, this rule was made after careful consideration by the park. The money paid by non-martyrs to enter the core area would be used for the maintenance of the park. It would not be pocketed by private individuals.
"Yes."
Fang Zhao submitted his identity information. After the verification, he paid a $1,000 security deposit. The receptionist put a blue bracelet on Fang Zhao. It was used to pinpoint Fang Zhao's location and ensure that he would not wander off to places he was not supposed to.
Most people who entered the core area of the cemetery were given bracelets. Different colors had different meanings. Blue represented ordinary worshippers, red represented descendants of martyrs, white represented civil servants, and black represented people with special status.
Although he had to pay an additional fee, when Fang Zhao entered, he discovered that there were quite a number of people wearing the same blue bracelets as him walking around. However, there were surveillance cameras and police watching the surroundings. Those people had to think twice before doing anything.
The most obvious feature in the core area was the tall tombstone. People beside it seemed minuscule. The huge grayish-white tombstone was like a pillar supporting the land. It stood there silently but resolutely. After 500 years of wind and rain, it was solemn and proud.
Fang Zhao stood in front of the tombstone and looked up for a long time before withdrawing his gaze. He walked around the tombstone and walked behind it.
Behind the huge tombstone were rows of smaller tombstones. With the big tombstone as the apex, they were arranged in a fan shape and extended backward.
Each of these small tombstones represented a person who had passed away.
The first row, which was also the row closest to the big tombstone, had 10 tombstones. They were slightly bigger than the tombstones behind. The tombstones closer to the front were bigger because the bigger the tombstone, the more words were engraved on them and the more important they were.
Starting from the left, the first tombstone was that of Founding Era great general Wu Yan. The word "Yan" in Yanzhou was taken from his name.
The 11 great generals of the founding era, other than Huangzhou, where the alliance headquarters were located, the other 11 continents were named after their surnames or names. For example, Leizhou was named after the founding era great general Ha Wen Renault, "Renault." After them, the alliance no longer had a "great general" military rank.
"Wu Yan: (17 years of the Period of Destruction - 56 years of the New Era), Founding Era great general, second commander of the 5th Division, recovered Yanzhou..."
Wu Yan's tombstone had a brief description of his life, fully embodying the awe-inspiring and domineering nature of a general who had ended the calamity and created the New Era.
Fang Zhao smiled faintly as he read the official text.
Probably nobody knew that Wu Yan was actually afraid of dogs. He just hid it well.
As he continued walking forward, the smile on Fang Zhao's face disappeared.
The second tombstone read: "Fang Zhao (? 99 years of the Period of Destruction), first commander of the 5th Division... "
The 5th Division was the predecessor of the Yanzhou military. The 5th Division had been established during the later stages of the Period of Destruction. After the founding of the era, it had become the Yanzhou military of the New Era.
In the New Era, people used a new chronological system. The Period of Destruction began in the year of the Period of Destruction and ended in the year of the founding of the New Era, lasting 102 years.
99 years of the Period of Destruction...
According to the history books of the New Era, after the most difficult period of the Period of Destruction, 99 years of the Period of Destruction, by the 100th year of the Period of Destruction, most of the threats had been eliminated. The next two years had been spent cleaning up the remnants and rebuilding the homeland.
It had really been just one step away.
Fang Zhao's gaze moved down from the tombstone.
It seemed like he was buried under this tombstone?
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
