The first snow in Prussia in 1879 came late, and it was not until 27 November, when Rear Admiral Dietrich's Globetrotter Fleet arrived in the port of Kiel, that the snow fell.

Snowflakes falling from the leaden-grey sky and the bitter cold wind of the black waves could not extinguish the heat in the hearts of the welcoming crowd on the docks of Port Kiel.

It lasted 14 months and 25 days, which was the exact number of days the relatives of the Grand Fleet would say goodbye to their fathers, husbands, or sons.

Located on the west side of the Baltic Sea, Kiel Port in the Bay of Kiel is itself a large seaport that combines military, civilian, passenger and cargo uses, as well as shipbuilding functions.

As the most glorious victory since the dynastic war, the Reichstag and the Federal Diet unanimously agreed to designate November 27, the day of the return of the Grand Fleet, as the official naval day of the German Empire.

Immediately afterwards, the parliament accepted Crown Prince Frederick's proposal that on the Imperial Navy Day, all factories, steamship companies, fishing companies, maritime schools, etc., all factories related to the German shipping industry, such as factories, steamship companies, fishing companies, maritime schools, etc., should raise the black, white and red flag of the German Empire, and all German ships, whether military or civilian, should be fully flagged wherever they are.

It happened that on the weekend of November 27, several German shipbuilders who had entered with Crown Prince Frederick, that is, the guys from the port of Hamburg, which had received a huge order for the construction of ships from the Qing Dynasty, made suggestions in the shipbuilding guild, gave the workers of the shipyard a holiday, and organized the workers to welcome the Grand Fleet in the port of Kiel, so as to strengthen the momentum of the empire.

The navy, which holds a huge amount of 5 million gold marks, is now a favorite in the eyes of all German shipbuilders, and the proposal of the Hamburgers is naturally full of people, considering the actual traffic situation in Germany, in fact, running 100 kilometers from Hamburg to the port of Kiel is already the limit.

When the shipbuilders of Bremen and their cheerleaders ran 200 kilometers to the port of Kiel breathlessly, they were full of joy and thought that when they hoisted the banner "Bremen welcomes the triumph of the Grand Fleet" in the port of Kiel, they would definitely make a deep impression on His Majesty the Emperor and the Imperial Navy.

Who knows, just near the Bremera team, a banner reading "The people of Stettin welcome home the Grand Fleet" has been unfurled in the wind and snow.

"Oh my god, how did these guys get from Stettin, 500 kilometers away, to Port Kiel?!" The Bremen couldn't help but ask the Pomeranians.

"It's only 500 kilometers, and you're making such a fuss?" A Pomeranian said angrily, and then he said, "Oh, look over there!" ”

Following the gaze of the Pomeranians, the Bremen saw a crowd hugging a larger banner, "The people of Königsberg welcome the Grand Fleet.....

"I said, how did you get here?!" The Bremen man asked with a somewhat sloppy gaze.

"Taking advantage of the late north wind this year, the East China Sea (the Germans like to call the Baltic Sea East Sea) has not yet frozen, so we came by boat." The Pomeranian said with some pride.

"And what about the East Prussians?"

"They? It was a group of madmen, and it was said that the sea to the north was already frozen, and they actually cut through the ice and rushed down on the north wind....."

"What a bunch of goddamn lunatics! Is it necessary to be so crazy for the sake of millions of shipbuilding funds! The Bremen man said with a look of disdain.

"Millions?" The Pomeranian glanced at the Bremen, "I said this gentleman, all Germans know that the Grand Fleet has brought back more than 40 million gold marks, not a few million. ”

"My family is indeed the Land Junkers who deal with the land, but the hillbillies in your eyes are not necessarily fools!" The Pomeranian could not resist a mockery at the end.

In addition to this group of opportunists, there were still a large number of good-natured Germans, who, after learning of the exact date of the return of the Grand Fleet, began to gather spontaneously in the port of Kiel by carriage, train, or boat. Not only were the hotels and inns on land full, but even the harbor docks, which had been slightly crowded in the past, were crowded with ships of all kinds, all waiting for the return of the Grand Fleet.

Early in the morning of November 27th, all kinds of ships moored in the port of Kiel hoisted their full flags early, and in the noisy and busy Kiel Bay in the past, there were no more large and small ships cruising, and the wide bay and the huge military port were quietly waiting for the return of the wanderers.

One, two, three..... More and more gray figures jumped out of the distant sea level, and against the background of the gray-black sky, a black eagle flag with an iron cross on a white background on the mast was particularly dazzling.

The crowd began to cheer!

As the Grand Fleet led by the flagship "Caesar" got closer and closer, the rumbling salute began to sound in the Kiel port area!

One, two... It didn't stop until the twenty-first ring, then the twenty-second ring, the twenty-third ringing... In the end, it stopped at forty-two rings.

Standing on the deck of the command platform of the "Caesar", Prince Heinrich, dressed in a white naval captain's uniform, saluted the shore, and finally couldn't help but smile, and the corners of his mouth were raised high.

The first twenty-one rings represent the national salute, and the last twenty-one rings represent the presence of His Majesty Emperor Wilhelm I in person, and sure enough, Commander Dietrich did not lie to himself, his grandfather really came to greet the Grand Fleet.

As he got closer to the pier, Prince Heinrich could see clearly everything on the shore of Kiel Bay with his eyes, and the shore, both on the boat and on the shore, was crowded with people, waving whatever he could wield, and even faintly hearing their cries in the wind.

There are also a large number of people on the dock, but the slight difference is that the people on the pier are either neatly holding banners full of various welcome slogans, or waving two small black, white and red national flags and the royal black eagle flag.

The people on the shore represent the romance of the Germans, and the people on the docks represent the sanity of the Germans, and underneath the romance and reason is the passion and hope for a strong navy that is hot like magma.

Prince Heinrich could clearly feel that the generals around him, especially the commander, General Dietrich, kept rolling their throats, and they had never seen them so nervous during this round-the-world voyage, even if it was a big storm.

When the pilot ship signaled for the Caesar to arrive at the berth, the wind band on the shore began to play the naval song "Unsere Marine"

At the moment when the ramp of the battleship was lowered, the music "Hoch Deutchlands Flotte" was quickly picked up.

When all the mid- and high-ranking officers and representatives of the Honored Soldiers of the Grand Fleet had assembled at the docks, and to the music of "Heil dir im Siegerkranz" (Long Live the Victors) played, Wilhelm I, who was full of military uniform, accompanied by the infantry admiral Stockch, began to inspect the fleet, which represented the elite of the Imperial Navy.

When the whistle sounded after the delegates' review, a 42-gun salute rang out again in the port of Kiel.

Mixed with the whistles of ships of different lengths, the salute of the harbor, the cheers of the crowd and the sound of the wind and snow in the Baltic Sea, Joey also threw his military hat high into the air, and immediately a strong wind with snowflakes swept by.

Looking at Joey's messy hair in the wind and her two younger sisters wrapped in thick cloaks, she giggled very unprincipledly.

Joey grimaced at his two younger sisters, and then grinned happily as well.

It's been eight months since I came to this world, and looking at everything in front of me, Joey finally believes that she has really brought a little difference to the world, how can she not be happy.

A young eagle in Hohenzollern Castle flapped its wings a few times, and it really brought a tornado to this world.

Immediately after the parade, before the award and commendation ceremony, His Majesty the Emperor delivered a speech to the officers and men of the Grand Fleet.

Just when everyone was worried about whether the old emperor's speech in the wind could continue, the wind and snow that had been raging all morning stopped, and the sky as thick as lead was suddenly torn open, and the early winter sun showed its long-lost face, and a beam of light shone over the port of Kiel.

"Hello, officers and men of the Imperial Royal Navy, hello! I want to say to everyone, please relax, you guys are home! You're back at home after a long absence! There were 25 days at sea in 14 months, which is a remarkable achievement, thank you for a great performance, really. ”

"General Stockch, thank you for your excellent leadership of the Navy, thank you!"

"Admiral Dietrich, thank you for your dedication and work, your famous fleet has achieved remarkable results, thank you!"

"In the same way, thank you to the Prime Minister, the President of the Imperial House, and the President of the Bundestag for joining the welcoming ceremony today..."

"I want to say that today is a great day for the entire Imperial Royal Navy, and it is also wonderful for you, and I and all the people of the Empire have heard and seen the achievements of all of you!"

"Without you, the Empire and I would never have achieved such brilliant achievements, I would like to thank all the admirals and your families, the Empire and I would like to express our highest gratitude to you, you have done your job extremely well, thank you very much!"

"Choosing to join the Royal Navy is the most important decision in the lives of each of you, you have chosen the path of hard work, sweat and sacrifice, you have chosen honor, courage and commitment, you have chosen the Iron Cross Black Eagle naval flag, you have chosen to serve the Reich and defend the rights and interests of our great Germany."

"Germany is in your hearts, the sea is in your souls, salt water is flowing in your veins, you are willing to bind your life according to the final guidelines of the Imperial Royal Navy, and in your hearts there will never be the word "impossible", because I know you, and know that the Imperial Royal Navy will never give up! ”

"Don't give up, don't give in, don't back down, never give in and surrender, no matter where it is, no matter what kind of work, no matter what the task brings you, you only need to remember one word, and that is victory! That's why you should join the Navy. ”

"That's victory!"

Cheers poured out like a tidal wave!

"Compared to other great navies in the world, we are still very weak, and we have no glorious history of the navy to show off, and there are no great heroic stories to accompany you, this is a fact and a reality."

"But I want to say that you, you are writing the history of the Imperial Royal Navy, you are the heroes of your children and grandchildren, and from this day on, the Imperial Royal Navy and you have left your own mark on the history of our great nation."

"Many years from now, people will stand here, saluting your great service, proud of what you fought for, telling your stories, telling your applications."

"You are shaping tomorrow, and you are a heroic legacy for future generations!"

The screams were louder than the north wind that had just stopped!

"I also want to tell you the good news, from today, a new unit will be added to the sequence of the Imperial Royal Navy, the Imperial Royal Marines."

"From today onwards, you have one more robe, a comrade-in-arms who fights side by side, and a brother who lives and dies together! I want you to be united, you are the tip of the spear, you are the blade, you are the shield that protects our great Germany! ”

"There is no hill that our marines cannot occupy, no sea that our navy does not dare to enter, no storm that we cannot overcome, because you know that as long as we are united, there is nothing that Germany cannot do, absolutely nothing!"

"I am proud and confident about your future! Germany will be great because of you! ”

"As long as we are united for the same mission, goal, and patriotism, we will win because we are one family, a great country."

"Wait, I'm going to stay, not just to shake hands with these 110 officers and men who are ready to be commended, but I'm going to stay for a few more hours, or a day, to shake hands with you, with all your naval officers and men!"

"As long as you don't dislike it, I'm an old man with slow hands and feet."

Laughter again!

"Finally, I want to say to you, the pursuit of excellence, to live for adventure, not only to have thoughts, but also to have big dreams, to run farther, to sail faster, never to stop the pursuit of greatness, never to stop chasing the ambition of the stars, to have self-confidence, you are better than anyone else for this job, you are the best, smartest, strongest people in this world."

"You are warriors, you are warriors, you are champions, you will lead the empire to victory, you will make us proud, and glory will surround you!"

"Good luck to you guys, may God bless Germany, thank you!"

The whistle in Kiel Bay was again long and the 42-gun salute resounded through the military port.

Joey stared at the Iron Cross Black Eagle Navy flag fluttering over Kiel Harbor, white and unbearable.