Munitions Empire

Everyone knew that the Marquis Shireck, a woman as venomous as a serpent, was betrayed by Sofia, and everyone also knew she had been killed by an assassin sent by Tang Mo.

But everyone kept silent, as if nothing had happened. Shireck was building airports all over the world, and various countries were also constructing similar runways on their own soil.

This emerging infrastructure was still blank in the world, but as they began to welcome pilots graduating and returning to their respective countries, these nations also started constructing their own infrastructure.

It was hard to imagine that all at once, over 200 airports were being constructed worldwide, whether for civilian or military use, everyone was very enthusiastic about developing this brand new weapon facility.

The airship factories that were once active have now begun transforming, and the countries that obtained airplane manufacturing technology were tirelessly producing their own planes.

Bi-winged, two-seater planes became everyone’s favorite model to produce because these could be used as trainer aircraft, allowing for the large-scale training of pilots.

In addition, countries that obtained large bi-winged planes were eager to put these planes into transportation.

Important letters, objects, and personnel could all be transported by these planes, and in many countries’ skies, such planes could be seen soaring.

Emperor Leines I of the Laines Empire, in a show of ostentation, reviewed his newly established Air Force troops in his Imperial City, Laines.

When he saw 32 bi-winged, two-seater trainer planes fly over his head, he became ecstatic.

He had seen those rough, unclear videos of planes active on the battlefield, but none had the same thrilling momentum as today’s event.

The more than thirty planes flying across the sky also excited the civilians of Laines Imperial City, who were happy to see their homeland become so powerful.

"We are copying Tang Country’s tanks, and we’ve made some modifications to them; we’ve reinforced the frontal and side armor of the tanks, redesigned the load-bearing wheels... and equipped our own tanks with a 90mm caliber cannon," an official from the military industrial department confidently reported his achievements to the highly excited Emperor.

Thanks to Brunas’s industrial base, the industrial strength of the Laines Empire was actually quite high. Even though those factories and equipment hadn’t been improved or updated for a long time, they were still among the most advanced processing equipment in the world.

With these factories, the industrial production capacity of Laines was formidable; they not only replicated tanks but even had the strength to make some design improvements.

Although they equally hadn’t equipped the tanks with qualified communication radios, in both firepower and protection, these tanks of the Laines Empire surpassed Tang Army’s Type 4 tanks.

"Very well, how is the mass production of the tanks progressing?" Leines I shifted his gaze from the sky and looked toward the Minister to inquire.

"The nobility who took over those factories assure Your Majesty they can provide ten tanks per month," the official in charge of the military industrial department assured with a bow.

"That’s too slow, far too slow," Leines I said dissatisfied, "Tell them I want twenty per month! Find a way to make it happen!"

Though Leines I spoke with an air of wealth and power, in truth, his coffers were nearly empty.

Purchasing airplane technology cost him a whopping 30 million Gold Coins in cash. If it wasn’t for some earnings from exporting food and mechanical equipment before, he wouldn’t have been able to afford such a huge sum.

Even with the profits provided by Brunas, he was still somewhat financially stretched. Facing those greedy nobility, Emperor Leines I often felt powerless.

The times were changing too fast, and every aspect needed a large amount of money for support: his Infantry hoped to be equipped with more rapid-firing weapons, which in itself was a large sum of money.

In the battle between Tang Country and Sheng Country, many new weapons were put to the test, such as anti-aircraft guns, hand grenades, landmines...

All these weapons required money to purchase, but which military procurement didn’t need money nowadays? Buying planes needed money, training pilots needed money! Acquiring tanks needed money, and naturally, training tank crews needed money too! Buying battleships also needed money, and of course, training sailors required money.

The design of the submachine gun required money, the mass-produced hand grenades needed money, landmines needed money, anti-aircraft guns needed money, ammunition, and shells... none of it was cheap!

If you don’t buy, that’s fine, but the neighboring empires certainly will. This is a full-scale arms race, and those who are reluctant to spend money will become the losers of the next war.

Those countries that had outfitted dozens of airships were frustrated to find that their airships were all obsolete, those massive objects floating in the air had no choice but to be retired, and the millions of Gold Coins spent on their purchase had all been for naught.

Similarly, with the emergence of planes and battleships, the previously mass-produced cruisers and destroyers were all outdated; they had to either go back to the factory for renovation and upgrades or could only be relegated to second-line service as nearshore gunboats.

The old, outdated gun batteries of the past all needed to be upgraded and transformed; the fragile harbors needed larger caliber, more powerful cannons to enhance their defense.

At the same time, many regions required the construction of airstrips, establishment of ground command centers, and the outfitting of countless aircraft.

Even though these airplanes, made of wood and canvas, were actually not expensive, the sheer number ordered made the costs substantial.

According to the contract, all nations purchasing airplane technology needed to send personnel to the factory on Dragon Island to learn the technology of airplane manufacturing.

Meanwhile, the Great Tang Group also provided supporting production equipment, supplied blueprints for manufacturing aviation engines, and offered training on theories such as lift and thrust.

After these technicians returned to their own countries, the first batch of airplane manufacturing factories was born. Everyone was frantically building aircraft, with some countries placing orders for thousands of units at a time.

Even though everyone was aware that these airplanes were technically outdated, to master the technology and train new pilots, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and build these wooden planes.

At the same time, engineers who had mastered early aviation technology started their own creative developments.

Some factories produced triplanes with superior lift, while others began to enhance engines, looking to install more powerful new engines onto the aircraft.

The engineers from Shireck were even more direct; they began to imitate metal fuselages, preparing to copy Tang Country’s metal monoplane fighter with a propeller, directly elevating their product to a level close to the current Tang Army fighters.

For a time, all sorts of bizarre aircrafts made their debut, truly like a dance of demons. However, many pilots who returned from overseas expressed that the best airplane they had ever flown was still the original "Camel" fighter plane, unaltered, in its authentic form.

They fondly remembered the times they tangled in the skies with their instructors in these single-seat fighters. That feeling, in their view, was more comfortable than anything else.

In fact, with airplanes, the war that was originally confined to land had expanded to the skies above, and this ability to fly also upgraded the understanding of the world for many countries in many aspects.

With airplanes, more detailed and accurate maps could be made more conveniently, and the maps of the countries around the world were no longer those primitive, almost unusable versions.

Drawing from the leaked military maps of Tang Country, each nation began using aerial photography to create precise maps of their own territories.

Everyone began to understand and recognize their own lands more deeply. Viewing the Earth from above became a trend.

With airplanes, the mobility of people increased like never before; Shireck’s consultant from the Ice Cold Empire could even take a plane and rush back to Gobur within a week, an impossibility in the past.

A traveler from Dorne broke the world-circumnavigating record, reducing it by 70 days in one go!

Actually, his record was not that fast, as if Tang Mo wanted, he could simply dispatch a C47 transport plane to break his record. And he didn’t even need to deploy the FW-190 Butcher, as that would be too overbearing.

Without exaggeration, the world was undergoing a dramatic change, and such change was also creating incredible wealth.

The common people worked frantically and then exchanged the money they earned for electric lights, radios, bicycles... things they wouldn’t have dared to even dream of in the past.

The wealth of nations was increasing at an unprecedented rate, and money previously hidden away by the nobility was now rolling around at an astonishing speed. Once this money began to circulate, it seemed that everyone became beneficiaries almost instantly.

The lives of the common people were improving, the wealth of nobles, landlords, and merchants was increasing, national taxes were soaring, and the massive wealth accumulated by the state was being spent at an astonishing rate...

Those who had controlled the means of production and hoarded the wealth—nobility, merchants, landlord financiers—were shocked to discover that their original economic theories had collapsed, replaced by a more advanced operating model.

It was a process both painful and joyful for them. Because they had never found it so easy to make money, yet they also had to accept that spending money was just as easy.

"I understand, Your Majesty. I will go to Brunas at once to oversee the production of these people," the Minister said with a slight nod to Leines I, and quietly retreated when he saw a wave of the hand.

Leines I returned to his palace, a building that was also constructed by the Great Tang Group. It was magnificently luxurious and certainly symbolized the power of the Laines Empire.

The place where he had stood was just the outer office area of the palace. Further inside was his castle.