In the anthem of the Rhein Empire and the sound of salutes, the East African Lion flag slowly rose, and all East Africans present stood up to sing the national anthem, which gave the attending diplomats quite a shock. This detail was not just a show but a demonstration of cohesion.

Today, the number of people observing the ceremony exceeded more than two hundred thousand, and the scene of two hundred thousand people singing the East African National Anthem was naturally an unparalleled manifestation. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"East Africa's cohesion is incredibly strong. No wonder East Africa has risen to become a world power in just thirty odd years. The grasp of the Heixinggen Royal Family on the hearts of the East African people is beyond imagination," objectively commented Ambassador Lawrence of France.

"Indeed, although East Africa is a nation of many immigrants, their sense of cultural identity is not something the nouveau riche United States can compare to. In East Africa, I've never seen any friction between yellow-skinned and white-skinned people, whereas in the United States, even among white people, there is a hierarchy of varying levels. Thus, the East African Government has very clever ways of indoctrinating its people," agreed Ambassador William of Spain.

Regarding the cohesion demonstrated by the East African people at this moment, William felt both shocked and envious, as his own country Spain was very internally fractured, which has always been one of the Kingdom of Spain's weaknesses.

As a Frenchman, Lawrence could not experience this firsthand. The French have always had a strong sense of national identity, even in the 21st century many black people view France as their homeland, indicating that French culture is inclusive.

Of course, East Africa is not as perfect as they imagine. As a country forcefully mixed and matched by the Heixinggen Royal Family, East Africa has had a hierarchy of disdain since the colonial era. However, over time, with the spread of the German language and intermarriage among immigrants, these conflicts have gradually been resolved. As a country that initially enforced marital pairing, different immigrant groups in East Africa find it hard not to integrate into a whole.

With the switch from the national anthem to military songs, today's highlight finally begins. The inspection team led by the East African Defense Army starts marching towards the direction of the platform.

This is a program the diplomats from various countries and East Africans love to see. The military itself carries various mysterious and legendary colors, always being the most topical group throughout history.

"Approaching are the Rhein Empire Royal Guard Division Second Brigade Third Regiment Fourth Company, a unit that played an important role in the South African War, establishing in... later participating in... and other battles, showcasing the spirit of the Rhein Empire Royal Guard Division soldiers and their strong courage to defend the country..."

Amid the awkward expressions of UK and Portuguese diplomats, the Royal Guard Division reviewed troops marched in orderly steps, revealing white blade tips of bayonets with a handsome rifle action, creating a deafening sound as leather shoes trod on National Avenue.

And from the guests on the viewing platform and the crowd alongside National Avenue came overwhelming applause, though it sounded rather piercing to the UK and Portuguese diplomats.

Ambassador Thomson remarked sourly, "Just like a group of machines, lacking any distinctive features, an army should have its own soul, not lose its character, appearing rigid."

Waguri, the president of the Portuguese-East African Business Trade Association, agreed strongly with Thomson's statement. "Right, right, this kind of superficiality has no use on the battlefield after ten years of peace."

Due to the South African War, Portugal has yet to establish normal diplomatic relations with East Africa, so the so-called Portuguese-East African Business Trade Association is essentially Portugal's diplomatic body in East Africa. After all, East Africa is one of the world's great powers, and no matter how much the Portuguese Government dislikes East Africa, it cannot avoid interacting with East Africa, especially as business activities between the two countries become increasingly frequent nowadays.

The whispered remarks from UK and Portuguese diplomats naturally did not resonate with others. In contrast, Maxim, who had previously suffered from Wilson's antics, couldn't resist approaching Wilson. "This kind of superficiality made the UK lose everywhere ten years ago. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

Wilson responded gloomily, "We the UK chose to cease fire due to geographic reasons, not because we were defeated. Compared to the East African army, capable of matching our British Army, the Russian army is utterly ineffectual. After all, in Crimea, you were defeated by us, your gray clothing resembling beggars. Look at the East African army in front of us; their investment would not be weak in Europe, certainly not resembling beggar armies."

Wilson's sharp tongue angered Maxim, who was about to retaliate when East African personnel unknowingly approached the two.

"Ambassadors, today is an important day for us in East Africa, so please avoid unpleasant incidents. Additionally, Ambassador Maxim, leaving your position without permission is not appropriate."

To prevent verbal clashes between the British and Russian diplomats, East Africa intentionally placed Maxim and Wilson far apart, but Maxim, being so grudging, specifically came to cause trouble. Thus, under East African staff mediation, Maxim returned to his position indignantly.

The small episode on the viewing platform ultimately did not affect everyone's interest in watching, for this was a rare opportunity to learn about the East African army's situation.

"The East African Defense Army is highly qualified whether in terms of appearance or behavior, with extremely strong discipline, only comparable to our German army."

"Their weaponry is not inferior to any army; Mauser rifles are excellently maintained, machine gun quantities are remarkable, and artillery of various calibers form a complete system, covering large, medium, and small types. Only the personnel for towing artillery differ from ours."

Many East African units have completely handed over some artillery towing to military trucks, so reverting to using mules and horses naturally lacks proficiency, given that a seventy-five millimeter rapid-fire gun requires six military horses to coordinate, which is considerably difficult, so artillerymen trained in a short time are still somewhat inexperienced.

"East Africans have a discerning eye. Our France is equipped with large quantities of seventy-five millimeter artillery. According to my observation, this type of standardized artillery was the most numerous in East Africa's parade. Early this year, East Africa specifically ordered ten seventy-five millimeter artillery pieces from our country, so it seems many East African generals share similar thinking with our military."

Undeniably, East Africa favors seventy-five millimeter artillery, but not exactly as Ambassador Lawrence of France thinks. This is actually a historical legacy issue.

Early on, East Africa indeed did not need many large-caliber artillery, because most of East Africa's opponents were aboriginal, using artillery against them was overkill, coupled with East Africa's weak early development, lacking proper trench warfare encounters, resulting in artillery troops leaning towards mobility, producing many seventy-five millimeter artillery pieces at the time.

But in recent ten years, this situation has changed dramatically; East African artillery production has become diverse, especially after researching trench warfare in South Africa, facing military fortresses like Maputo and Luanda, enriching East African Defense Army's research topics.

After infantry, cavalry, artillery, and machine gun squads passed by, the highlights of this parade were essentially over. This time, East Africa's so-called "Air Force" also mobilized, with two domestically produced airships flying over National Avenue to wrap up the parade.

This parade ceremony was a visual feast for the attendees, difficult to witness such a large-scale parade even in Europe.

Simultaneously, this East African parade demonstrated many weaponry and equipment, clearly indicating no obvious gap between the East African Defense Army and the military powers of Europe, standing on the "same level," with common weaponry, especially heavy firepower, richly equipped.

Although the reviewed troops were less than ten thousand in size, many countries' regular army sizes are only tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. Apart from countries like Tsarist Russia and the Far East Empire; of course, correspondingly, their weaponry is the worst among the great powers.