Munitions Empire

Compared to the capital Chang'an, the living conditions in Anpu actually aren't very good. This place serves merely as a temporary frontline command center, hosting liaison officers from various troops, as well as a large group of staff officers. Everywhere one looks, there are radio antennas used for communication.

In addition to the alert troops, officials' cars, and logistics supply troops, the originally not-so-large city is almost filled to capacity.

Like the other cities of Tang Country, this place is also undergoing a series of modernization reforms, including the addition of complex sewage systems, the construction of more tall buildings, and the building of various factories in the suburbs.

The entire place seems like a gigantic construction site, albeit an odd one where soldiers can be seen everywhere.

Even a temporary airfield was built here, so that commanders from other regions could quickly and conveniently visit their ruler.

And the general headquarters where Tang Mo resides is a manor on the outskirts of Anpu. Previously, this manor belonged to a nobleman from Zheng Country who fled to Qi Country at the time of Tang Country's conquest of Zheng, and whose life or death is now unknown.

Compared to the capital Chang'an that has been developed for many years, there's almost nothing noteworthy here apart from a power plant for electricity.

The room Tang Mo occupies has undergone minor renovations, and the conditions are relatively good—at least he has his own bathroom and can bathe inside his room.

Even with the victories of the war, the sandbags piled up at his window were moved away, suddenly improving the lighting in the room, so that during the day, at least, there's no need for electric lights.

This made Tang Mo feel somewhat better, since at least he didn't always have to conjure up images akin to an underground bunker environment, and naturally his mood improved considerably.

Alas, such a good mood ultimately vanished after the Sun Ze incident erupted. Now the whole of Tang Country is undergoing a massive purge, with a bloodbath of killing.

How terrifying was the scale of this purge? Frightening enough that during the operation, even the Tang Army suffered casualties! This shows just how fierce the resistance faced was and how bloody the purge.

Nangong Hong realized that the new policies of Tang Country would face opposition from traditional forces and anticipated resistance in implementing similar policies.

But he hadn't expected Tang Mo to start the purges in such a decisive manner, not even intending to give any leeway for those old forces to survive.

Such pushback even sparked turmoil, and in some rural areas, private armies even took on a rebellious stance. However, due to the strength of the Tang Army, the situation remained under control.

That's why he came to meet with Tang Mo, to discuss whether it was reasonable to initiate such purges without first concluding the external war.

Yet, after seeing Tang Mo looking spirited and lively, he knew all such chaos was far from making his lord feel anxious.

Tang Mo was continuously in control, even the purging and slaughtering of the old powers had been proactively initiated by him after careful deliberation.

At this moment, Tang Mo was eating breakfast, just like when he was in Chang'an, with the day's newspaper laid next to his table and a lavish breakfast spread before him.

In a past life, Tang Mo was a successful businessman, and in this life, he is a wealthy monarch, so he has never skimped on himself.

He doesn't believe that living frugally is any kind of laudable personal example. He feels that he deserves to enjoy gourmet food, wear the most luxurious clothing, drive a good car, and live in palaces.

In these respects, he does not deliberately deprive himself and believes that a certain amount of splurge is a good habit.

Therefore, his breakfast consists of several varieties, but the diet is one designed by nutritional experts—the combination of meat and vegetables does not mean he can binge without limit, as a healthy diet is still a rule that must be followed.

At the dining table, while eating soy milk and deep-fried dough sticks, Tang Mo remarked to Nangong Hong, who had come to see him, "Sun Ze was just too young. He was a student, merely a student. He had ideals and capabilities, but he imagined the world to be far too wonderful."

He didn't have the habit of not talking during meals; in fact, he often spoke while eating and even issued various orders at mealtime.

For him, apart from sleeping, any time could be office time. By relying on such methods, he could squeeze at least an hour more out of each day to do even more things.

Nangong Hong was actually ready to swallow back the words he had prepared to persuade Tang Mo to downsize the purge. Yet, to his surprise, Tang Mo brought up the matter himself.

So he was slightly startled as he heard Tang Mo continue, "He had calculated every detail, feeling that the enemy would not recklessly come to kill him, or to put it another way, he had calculated that the enemy would come to kill him, and that he could use his own life to push forward a reform that we previously did not have the resolve to initiate."

When Nangong Hong heard these words, he could distinctly sense the pain in Tang Mo's heart, a profound sorrow for the loss of a talent because the Great Tang Kingdom was in dire need of them.

Every cultivated talent was precious beyond measure; they were the ones who truly understood the new policies, and they were the ones who could truly bring the new policies' power into effect.

In the early years to quickly expand the pool of talent, each graduate spent only three to five months in further study. They were barely different from trade school students, only capable of performing the few tasks they had learned.

Later, as time went on, the time needed to train talents in various schools gradually increased, resulting in students taking three to five years to graduate.

These students' learning was more profound, and they acquired a broader range of skills. Such talents were more capable than those who graduated earlier and were also more suited for management and leadership roles.

Sun Ze was such a talent! The Great Tang Group had spent years nurturing him, preparing to use him as a pillar of the state!

How could the loss of a talent like him not bring Tang Mo sorrow? Bear in mind, even for those early-stage talents who had received only a few months of training, the loss of a few would spur Tang Mo to wage a war to avenge them.

Now, having lost a talent like Sun Ze, Tang Mo found himself merely killing some ignorant fools within his own country, and he felt that his temper had somehow grown milder recently!

According to his old personality, he should have picked an unlucky country to declare war on, then exhumed the ancestral graves of its king—that would truly vent all his pent-up fury.

Without waiting for Nangong Hong to speak, or perhaps Tang Mo was just venting and not actually giving Nangong Hong the chance to reply, he went on, "But in the end, he was too idealistic, or to say, our young academic officials were simply too idealistic. They lacked flexibility and the ability to cope with the complexities of society."

"Thus, our young officials either quickly become corrupt and serve as a shield for local tyrants, or they rigidly follow my orders and pursue their governing ideals. This is our weak spot, a shortcoming that cannot be changed," Tang Mo said, while pointing at the newspaper, indicating for Nangong Hong to pick it up and read it.

Hearing Tang Mo say this, Nangong Hong remembered the two young people who had been dealt with before; they took what they shouldn't have and thus lost their heads, literally.

It's a pity—if they had resisted those temptations, they might have seen a different world, reaching heights that they couldn't have even imagined for themselves.

When Nangong Hong picked up the newspaper and saw its contents, he knew that this time, those self-important old nobility, old finance magnates, and old bureaucrats had lost.

They lost thoroughly, and there would be no one to light incense and reminisce about them. Because the man in front of him, the Tang King, had issued a decree of tax reduction nationwide.

The common people, especially those with lower incomes, saw a five percent reduction in their monthly taxes. Although it didn't seem like much, it was a substantial benefit that directly affected them.

Moreover, this was on top of agricultural subsidies for farmers, who hardly had to pay any taxes at all. Essentially, this policy was equivalent to giving all workers a five percent pay raise!

To compensate for the shortfall created by this tax cut, Tang Mo increased the tax burden on the wealthy class—and by a considerable amount, to twelve percent!

Nangong Hong knew that the man sitting before him, named Tang Mo, was the greatest tycoon in the country. He imposed a twelve percent tax hike on himself and would surely enforce it strictly!

In an instant, Nangong Hong wasn't sure why Tang Mo was doing this. If it was just to accumulate wealth, he already had more than enough.

Meanwhile, Tang Mo continued talking about Sun Ze, "If we want to implement new policies and overturn the old social system, to advance the nation's politics, we must rely on our own trained cadres and officials because those from the old system cannot grasp the essence of this political theory."

As he spoke, he sighed, "But employing our own officials leads to a governmental structure that's too young, inevitably leading to various issues."

"The good news is, we have the support of the people and the military. As long as we don't mess up, our enemies won't be able to cause any turmoil," Tang Mo finished his meal and, wiping his mouth, signaled to the maid that the table could be cleared.

Wes, who hadn't said much throughout the entire time, wolfed down the last of his deep-fried dough stick and then poured the remaining soy milk down his throat with abandon, casually handing the bowl to the maid. Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

Tang Mo looked at Wes's mannerisms and shook his head, "The bad news is that in this revolution, the price we have to pay will be significant; there will be sacrifices, just like Sun Ze. He's not the first, nor will he be the last."

"I hope this killing makes everyone realize that we have limits! Those who don't cooperate may lose money or status, but resisters will certainly die! That's why we're seeing a roll of severed heads now," he made a cutting motion with his hand, "Killing, so that in the future we may not have to kill. The more we kill now, the less we may have to kill in the future. This is the benevolence of the system; this is my humane rule."