The entire military competition, from planning to preliminary preparations, took nearly half a year and involved a total of tens of thousands of participants.
The opening ceremony was officially scheduled to begin at 8:30 in the morning.
However, due to the large number of family members attending, the Beijing General Military District had made arrangements a week in advance.
All vehicles normally used for transporting supplies were requisitioned and would be used to transport family members on the day of the competition.
For the Huo family, this year's military competition felt more like a family-wide competition.
Father Huo, needless to say, was one of the overall persons in charge of the event.
Mother Huo's General Political Department Song and Dance Ensemble was responsible for all performance items for the opening and closing ceremonies.
Second Brother Huo's Logistics Department was in charge of the distribution and transportation of all supplies.
Furthermore, the family had two seeded contestants participating.
One can imagine how lively it was.
Sure enough, as soon as dawn broke, Jiang Si was already up and getting ready.
They would be at the competition site all day, so they needed to bring plenty of food and drinks.
By the time she finished packing and went downstairs, Old Master and the others were already up and having breakfast.
"Si, come over here and have something to eat."
As she spoke, Grandma Huo also packed some boiled eggs and steamed buns for her. "Remember to take these later for Weidong and Weimin."
Jiang Si nodded with a smile.
As they were finishing their meal, the sound of a car engine roared in the courtyard.
It was Uncle Chen returning.
He had just dropped off Father Huo, Mother Huo, and Second Brother Huo at the training base and had come back to pick up Old Master and the others.
With so many people in the family, one car couldn't fit everyone. Jiang Si put the packed items in the trunk.
She said to Old Master and Grandma, "Grandpa, Grandma, I'll head out first then. The clothes for Suisui and Zhaozhao to wear later are on the sofa."
Seeing that Old Master and the others were still eating breakfast, Uncle Chen quickly said, "Let me drive you to the pick-up point at the military district."
The military district was close by; he could make two trips and still have time.
"No need, Uncle Chen. Please sit down, have something to eat, and rest for a bit."
Knowing Uncle Chen was a stickler for propriety, Jiang Si had already served him a bowl of congee when he went to park the car earlier.
"It's fine, it's fine, I'm not tired," Uncle Chen waved his hand. "I should still drive you."
How could he not be tired! He had been driving for hours already. Jiang Si said, "Uncle Chen, really, it's not necessary. I've already called a taxi; it will be here soon."
After all, Beijing was the capital, and getting around was quite convenient.
It's just that taxis were scarce in this era; you had to call the nearby dispatch station in advance.
You'd give your name and address, then wait about half an hour for the car to arrive.
And they didn't go just anywhere; at this time, taxis only operated within the main city area.
Besides these, there was also a type of covered three-wheeled motorcycle, similar to Shanghai's "turtle cars," called "Dongfeng little bouncers" here.
They were cheap, but service only started after 6 a.m.
Hearing that Jiang Si had already called a taxi, Uncle Chen finally gave up on the idea of driving them.
"Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Chen, I'll be off then."
Seeing that time was getting late, Jiang Si quickly grabbed the buns and eggs and headed over to the courtyard house next door.
As luck would have it, she had just knocked on the door.
Two taxis arrived one right after the other.
The two sisters-in-law didn't know they would be taking a taxi to the military district. When they came out carrying their things and saw the small cars parked outside, they were quite surprised.
"Hey, where did these cars come from?"
Why were they blocking the entrance?
Jiang Si explained, "Sisters-in-law, these are the taxis I called to take us to the pick-up point at the military district."
Hearing they were taxis, the two were stunned for a long moment.
Weidong and Weimin curiously touched the car hoods. "Mom, the capital is really different. Even the taxis are so impressive."
To be honest, Jiang Si was also surprised.
She hadn't expected taxis in this era to be imported models.
"Alright, alright, stop touching things. Get in the car quickly," Hu Meili called them to a stop. She got carsick easily, so she directly took the front passenger seat.
As soon as she got in the car, Hu Meili rushed to pay the fare.
Seeing her hand over a ten-yuan bill, the driver didn't take it but frowned instead.
Xu Mingjuan, thinking it wasn't enough, quickly pulled out another bill from her pocket. "Here you go, driver."
"Sisters-in-law, it doesn't cost that much." Jiang Si quickly stopped them, took out one yuan from her bag, and handed it to the driver. "Driver, to the General Military District."
In Beijing, taxi fares were calculated based on squares on the city traffic map.
Each square was 0.8 to 0.9 kilometers, costing 0.25 yuan. For distances under four squares, it was charged as four squares.
From here to the General Military District was about three and a bit squares, so one yuan was enough.
Hearing this, the two sisters-in-law actually thought it was quite reasonable.
For this distance, taking the bus would cost several mao.
The key was that this little car was much more comfortable than the bus.
And it was faster too.
It's just that they couldn't go outside the city, otherwise Hu Meili would have definitely splurged today.
A little over ten minutes later, the taxi stopped near the pick-up point at the General Military District.
The street was now packed with people, mostly military family members with children, carrying bags large and small.
Perhaps worried about being late and having nowhere to sit, many had even brought their own folding stools.
With so many people, it was impossible to check everyone's documents thoroughly. Since the trucks wouldn't stop on the way, young soldiers with loudspeakers kept shouting for everyone to find their own seats, and the trucks would depart when full.
As they were talking, several more trucks arrived.
Goodness, it was almost like the Spring Festival travel rush. Before Jiang Si knew it, a sister-in-law behind her was boosting her up by the rear to get onto the truck.
Just like that, with pulling and boosting, the truck bed was soon full.
The driver was also fierce, covering a journey that should have taken over two hours in less than an hour and a half.
Jiang Si didn't get sick, but she felt like every bone in her body had been rattled loose.
It wasn't time to enter the venue yet, so they found a spot to rest for a bit.
Not long after, Uncle Chen arrived with Old Master and the others.
By now, it was already seven o'clock, and everyone began queuing up to enter in an orderly fashion.
The sentry soldier checked the family member passes in Jiang Si's hand. "Sister-in-law, your seats are in Stand Number One. Go straight after entering the main gate, turn left when you see the Number One sign. Here are your seat numbers."
The main participants in this competition were soldiers from various military districts. Besides them, there were also public security personnel, militia, recommended military academy students, and so on.
The seating in the stands was arranged accordingly.
"Okay, thank you."
"You're welcome!"
The young soldier grinned, then pulled out a few sheets of paper from below and handed them over. "Sister-in-law, this is the schedule for the competition period. Please keep it."
Jiang Si took it and thanked him again, then led everyone inside.
Fortunately, she had been here once before, so finding their seats was quite straightforward.
They were in the 12th row. Originally, when she saw the seat numbers, Jiang Si wondered if the position was a bit far.
But when they reached the stands, she realized the seats were actually just right.
They were neither too close nor too far from the rostrum.
When watching a flying race, you don't have to keep your head tilted back the whole time.
