Munitions Empire

Tang Mo wanted so much, so very much. He wanted mobile phones, artificial satellites, ballistic missiles, nuclear weapons, airplanes, and yachts!

He wanted to return to the life he was familiar with, where he could take an Airbus A320 from his King City to Linshui for a vacation, lying on a yacht and frolicking with his wives.

He wanted to take out his phone with facial recognition unlocking, casually press a few buttons, and be able to find his Prime Minister to hear him report on yesterday's stock market trend and the future national development plans.

He wanted to eat lobsters from the North Seas and taste the sweetest moonlight wine, let the whole world appreciate the music from his memory, and see those movies that spread the positive energy of Great Tang!

But all of this was not something that could be achieved effortlessly; the whole world needed to develop, and some things could not be conjured out of nothing.

Take stealth fighter jets, for example—if your opponent doesn't have radar, then a J-20 or an F-22 is actually less practical than an F-15 or an SU-27.

In order to return to the life he was familiar with as soon as possible, to enjoy the many conveniences brought by modern society sooner, Tang Mo did not want to waste precious time.

He didn't want to keep the technology and blueprints in his head, foolishly wait for twenty years, and then hold a bulky mobile phone and grin stupidly... That would be too tragic; by the time he could use an iPhone 4S, he would be 60 years old. How could he get excited about that?

What constrained him was not technology but the time it took to popularize these technologies! What restricted Tang Mo were not those brilliant flashes of inspiration that needed time to settle, accumulate, and explore, but damn it, the raw materials that loomed higher than mountains!

Tang Mo was clearer than anyone that only the fragile, practically non-existent industrial foundation of the world could stop him.

As long as he pushed his country to a basic level of excellence, its development speed would enter the fast lane. If Tang Country entered the level of the late World War II era in various fields, then he would only need one year to produce a real computer!

Then, after two more years, he would be able to manufacture rockets and artificial satellites easily and create atomic bombs. Another two years and he could send people to the moon!

That's why he revealed his airplane technology and his own outdated battleship technology, to pay for the raw materials necessary for the development he needed.

He no longer had time to engage in a colonial plundering system which, while tempting, required a massive amount of time.

Tang Mo was very clear that by the time his troops swept through the Dahua Empire, restored the local production order, and forced the local Dahua civilians to willingly send the raw materials produced to the factories in Tang Country, it would take at least thirty years.

After Parker and Mathews left, Li'ao, responsible for intelligence, walked in with a cane. He looked quite hale, naturally feeling much better since he had returned to his homeland.

Smiling, he reported while standing on the carpet, "Shireck has responded; they have sent a delegation of 300 people who will soon arrive at Dragon Island."

"The Laines Empire is also very interested in the airplane technology; they have sent a large delegation. The Emperor of Laines Empire also sent a telegram saying that their appointed special envoy will explain the misunderstanding of the Laines Empire's reclamation of the port of Brunas." After saying this, he paused when bringing up two other countries, "Dorne and Suthers..."

Tang Mo was startled, then he remembered that the official stance of Tang Country had not yet recognized the existence of these two empires, "No problem, if they want to call themselves empires, let them be, I don't mind."

Li remained unchanged and continued reporting, "These two countries have also sent special envoys; it seems they will arrive on the same ship as the delegation from the Laines Empire. They are traveling on Sir Bailu's merchant ship."
Continue reading at My Virtual Library Empire

"In addition to purchasing airplane technology and inspecting battleship technology, they have other requests..." After reporting the first purpose of the delegations, Li raised their other intention.

"Hmm?" Tang Mo looked towards Li.

The old man explained with a smile, "Remember we thought the diplomatic environment had deteriorated and all the empires had withdrawn their ambassadors? They want to restore diplomatic relations and have asked for our permission to establish embassies in Chang'an, Tongcheng, Linshui, Dongwan, Dragon Island, and other places."

"They have quite the appetite, have the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reject their request, and tell them that at most we will only allow them to establish an embassy in Chang'an." Tang Mo knew right away what these people were up to and therefore coldly rejected the requests of the countries.

During the Cold War, the embassies of various countries were almost open intelligence collection bases. Allowing for their existence was equivalent to leaving an espionage risk in the host cities, and Tang Mo wouldn't easily allow so many embassies into technologically sensitive areas.

Selling technology is one thing, but having it stolen is another matter. Tang Mo was a businessman, not a philanthropist.

Li immediately nodded, "Your servant understands."

"Is there anything else?" Tang Mo continued to ask.

"The special envoy from the Ice Cold Empire wishes to visit our Tank production line; he said that if that's not possible, he can first visit Tongcheng..." Li followed up immediately with an answer to Tang Mo's question.

Tang Mo once again sneered disdainfully, "Ha! Wishful thinking! Still wants to probe my bottom line? Let him stay put in Anpu properly! The surveillance on him cannot be withdrawn! Instead, additional manpower should be added!"

Hearing Tang Mo's command, Li'ao once again responded, "Yes! Your Majesty!"

"Right, they are going to see them sooner or later anyway. If they are interested, why not let them take a look at the Dongwan-class battleships?" Tang Mo then seemed to remember something, immediately adding another sentence.

Since the battleship technology was already prepared for sale, it made sense to show them the disparity. Once they realized just how rubbish Shireck's so-called battleships were, they would be willing to spend money to purchase Tang Mo's battleships.

However, whether battleships would still be the core of naval warfare in the future and how much combat power they could exert, that was not something Tang Mo was willing to explain to these fools.

"They will be interested," Li'ao said with a smile, bowing slightly.

"Hmm, that would be best," Tang Mo agreed.

"Furthermore, the delegation from the Dahua Empire crossed the border yesterday and is heading towards Chang'an. We have dispatched personnel to escort them along the way," Li'ao continued to report on the movements of the envoys from various countries.

Tang Mo was indeed interested in these people from the Dahua Empire but was only interested, nothing more. Therefore, he gave his orders in a businesslike manner, "Keep a close eye on them. If they dare to wander off, treating them as prisoners is also acceptable."

"Yes! Your Majesty!" Li'ao too responded in an official manner, nodding in agreement.

Tang Mo then remembered his neighbor to the south, "What about Chu Country?"

"Envoys from Chu Country have also been dispatched, but they will only reach the border area tomorrow," Li'ao was just as well-informed about the envoy group still within the territory of Chu Country.

He even knew the identity of the special envoy from Chu Country, who was in the delegation, the unit number of the troops escorting the delegation, and the weapons they were equipped with.

In fact, the focus of Tang Country's intelligence infiltration was Chu Country; compared to the Dahua Empire, Tang Mo's intelligence department knew much more about Chu Country.

Tang Mo was aware that Li'ao had always been personally handling the Chu Country side of things, and that Chu Country had been infiltrated like a sieve; thus, he did not continue to inquire about Chu Country.

Because he knew if there were any explosive news from that side, Li'ao would definitely report it to him immediately.

So, he asked about the last group of envoys, "Then tell me about those adorable little creatures from Shenguo."

Li'ao chuckled, knowing full well that the adjective 'adorable' used by his own monarch was actually a term of cruel and heartless mockery.

Moreover, he also knew that for some reason, the monarch sitting before him harbored a deep-rooted hatred for Shenguo.

He did not know why, but who cared about the why? Perhaps a goblin stepped on Tang Mo's shoes during his time in Brunas? Who knows? As long as Tang Mo disliked them, those goblins were as good as dead in Li'ao's mind.

Of course, Li'ao was also aware of the events that took place in Beiyuan City and Dongwan City. Simply based on what the goblins did in these areas, Li'ao saw nothing wrong with Tang Mo's disgust for them.

His thoughts aligned with Tang Mo's: it was only right for these damned goblins to be buried alongside those humans they had killed!

Thus, when it came to the demands of the goblin side, Li'ao's tone was clearly filled with scorn and sarcasm, "Shenguo has requested that we halt our assault on Beiyuan City. According to them, they can withdraw the troops stationed in Beiyuan City and hand over Beiyuan City to…"

Sure enough, upon hearing these demands, Tang Mo's expression showed contempt, "They sure have some nerve! Tell them that the goblin military in Beiyuan City… they no longer matter! If they don't accept our terms, don't bother coming this time!"

"At once, Your Majesty!" Li'ao nodded, then stepped back. Clearly, his report had come to an end.

Tang Mo lowered his head and continued with his drafting. After all, he was a ruthless humanoid automaton of drafting, who had to dedicate time each day to develop new technologies that did not belong to this era.

He really had no other choice, for the technology of the Great Tang Group had already surpassed the understanding of this world, and if he did not work hard, those responsible for realizing these technologies might not even understand the blueprints…

My shoulders… Two hours later, Tang Mo moved his aching arms from busyness and was forced to put down his pencil, straighten up, and take a walk.

The job of being King… is not easy at all.