Munitions Empire

Tang Mo hadn't seen such interesting people in a long time.

In front of him sat Nangong Hong, elegant and poised, looking every bit the cultured rogue. Beside him, the little Attendant Student was holding a chicken leg in each hand, happily nibbling away like there was no tomorrow.

To be honest, at least in terms of appearance, they made a striking pair, memorable and distinct.

"You'd better make it quick, as I'm quite busy," Tang Mo remarked, glancing at Li'ao who had introduced this man in his thirties named Nangong Hong.

Nangong Hong didn't dare put on airs; after all, he was no Zhuge Liang waiting for Liu Bei's three visits. He was more like Mao Sui, promoting himself proactively...

Of course, in this world there was no Zhuge Liang, so Nangong Hong had no need for pretenses. He introduced himself directly.

After introducing himself, he was ready to present his "Longzhong Plan". However, he fell silent for a long time, only to look up at Tang Mo and ask, "Mr. Tang, I really want to confirm one thing, may I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead," Tang Mo gestured for him to speak.

"Why not... establish an Empire?" Nangong Hong asked eagerly, anticipating an answer.

"Actually... there's no special reason," Tang Mo replied. "As an arms dealer, if I became the Emperor of an Empire, I would lose the ability to exert my influence in many different countries."

"Why do you think becoming the ruler of a country will make you lose such influence?" Nangong Hong pressed on. "The Dahua Empire can certainly exert its influence on Zheng Country, or Qin Country, with unquestionable power."

"That requires absolute strength, Mr. Nangong," Tang Mo answered with a smile. "Though the Great Tang Group is strong, it is not yet strong to that extent."

"Mr. Tang has great talents. Having firmly established yourself in Brunas, you wield influence far and wide but seem to lack a suitable development plan for the Great Tang Group," Nangong Hong shifted the conversation away from the previous point, broaching other aspects of the Great Tang Group instead.

"Over two thousand years ago, the Dwarves rose to prominence, establishing their capital in Furnace Fortress, and nearly consumed the world. They minted currency, gathered the wealth of the world, and their influence persists to this day," he said, standing up and walking over to the large map in the conference room.

His finger traced over the numerous Dwarf Kingdoms in the north until it rested on the city marked Furnace Fortress; there, he paused, turned back, and looked again at Tang Mo: "In my opinion, Mr. Tang's promotion of paper currency and abandonment of Gold Coins in Brunas... your ambition is certainly no less than that of the ancient Dwarf Empire."

"You've opened schools and cultivated talent with far-reaching purpose, aspirations that certainly extend beyond little Brunas," he continued, lifting his hand from the map. "To command the world, all you need are people, money, weapons, food, and hearts..."

"People, I don't mean the population, but talent! Those commoners are merely the masses to be ruled. What's truly important is talent!" As he spoke, he looked towards Yulin and Wes standing behind Tang Mo. "Mr. Tang's recruitment of wise men means you've already got the advantage in this aspect."

Having mingled in Brunas for a few days, Nangong Hong naturally wouldn't fail to inquire about things. His awareness of the renowned Great Tang Military Academy was not surprising in the least.

On the contrary, due to the fair's publicity, if one had spent a few days in Brunas without hearing about its several universities, that would truly be considered ignorant.

"As for money, Mr. Tang, you've already started to undermine the old Dwarf Empire's foundations by destroying the Gold Coin system... Thus, you've also gained the upper hand here," said Nangong Hong as he walked back in front of Tang Mo. "Regarding weapons... Mr. Tang made your fortune from selling arms.

To my knowledge, your Troops' combat effectiveness is unmatched. The Great Tang Group is absolutely formidable in this respect."

He spoke quickly about these two points without much analysis, but everyone present could sense the self-evident truth.

The Great Tang Group was neither short of money nor weapons, and as for combat power... it was peerless, an invincible presence.

After finishing, he sat down with a smile and added, "Let's not even talk about food. Mr. Tang, you're the richest man under the heavens. If you were to lack supplies or food, I fear half the powers in the world would starve to death."

"Initially, I was quite worried about hearts, that is, winning over the people... but after begging for my meals in Brunas for a couple of days, I've come to think... in terms of winning hearts, the Great Tang Group might just be the strongest," he said, snatching a chicken leg from the table and biting into it fiercely.

"Oh?" Tang Mo uttered a noncommittal query.

"There's only one Brunas in this world! If Mr. Tang could truly turn every city into another Brunas, who wouldn't look forward to your unification of the world?" Nangong Hong confidently munched on the chicken leg, his words slightly muffled.

He started from the simplest perspective and explained a simple truth: whoever can make the common people live a good life will gain the support of the people!

This principle is straightforward, nothing profound, yet so many fail to understand or notice it. These rulers always forget this fundamental issue, neglecting the essence to study bizarre and odd matters instead.

These rulers always hope that their subjects would rather starve to death than consider why their governance prevents the people from having a full meal.

The attendant student by Nangong Hong's side was still gobbling up food on both sides, seemingly unconcerned about these issues. Perhaps starving, he kept swallowing, continuously stuffing delicious food into his mouth.

"..." Tang Mo made no comment, only smiling as he watched Nangong Hong.

Having eaten two bites of a chicken leg, Nangong Hong tossed it onto the plate before him, rubbed his greasy hands on his chest, and with a shift in conversation, said, "However! Now, the biggest problem for Great Tang Group lies with you, Mr. Tang."

"How so?" Tang Mo found Nangong Hong more interesting by the minute. He had never before seen such a so-called mad scholar.

Mad scholars come in two kinds, those with ability and those without. For those without ability, being a madman is their only attribute, and no one would grieve their passing. However, mad scholars with talent are different. Despite disregarding minor details, they possess capability, which makes them somewhat useful.

"Mr. Tang, without the heart of a conqueror, what can one do?" After half-heartedly wiping his hands on his clothes, Nangong Hong swallowed the meat in his mouth and spoke. He paused, grabbed his cup of wine, drained it in one gulp, and then let out a satisfied shout.

Tang Mo casually explained, "Becoming an Emperor, a King, has no benefits for me. Why should I pursue such an empty title?"

After speaking, Tang Mo made a gesture of spreading his hands: "If I became an Emperor, my current allies would have to guard against me, my market would greatly shrink, my business would be affected, and the implementation of my currency policies would encounter obstacles. Isn't that just seeking trouble for myself?"

To be frank, one of the main reasons Tang Mo currently has little interest in becoming an emperor is because a change in position would affect too many aspects.

As a company, a group, it can remain detached from the world, allowing kings and emperors to lower their guard.

After all, a company seeks profit, with no direct conflict of interest with the monarchs and the ruling class. Therefore, it can bind these people with interests, achieving the purpose of advancing and retreating together.

But if, if Great Tang Group were to become an equal state, everyone's thoughts would instinctively shift.

For example, the many talents cultivated by Great Tang Group are currently in high demand by various states. But if Great Tang Group turned into a state, these graduates would all be suspected of espionage, and other states might not dare to rely on them.

This would greatly impact the modernization process of the world and affect the speed of Great Tang Group's influence.

Similarly, Great Tang Group is currently sparing no effort to implement its own currency system, with its ambition equally obvious.

As a company promoting this kind of paper currency, people might only think of it as a way to amass wealth. But if a state were backing this move, everyone would become wary, and the currency reform would be tinged with heavy political colors.

And this is precisely what Great Tang Group is currently trying to avoid—they have always been avoiding politics as much as possible in order to maintain an ambiguous cooperation with the power groups.

Therefore, Tang Mo has not entertained the thought of becoming an emperor or king to date because of his considerations and reservations.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Your concerns are valid, but there are benefits to becoming an emperor, too! It can allow Great Tang Group to develop faster and better! You have your own military, the sale of weapons, and the re-equipping of your troops can be somewhat self-sufficient.

You have your own sphere of influence, which is a huge market," Nangong Hong did not immediately refute Tang Mo but instead listed the benefits of becoming an emperor.

Obviously, there are benefits to not becoming an emperor, and there are certainly benefits to becoming one—all things are relative.

He said, "If you become an emperor, you can expand your military without restraint. With these troops, you can enforce your policies through stronger means!" He spoke incessantly, as if dictating strategies for ruling the land.

"Bribery and binding are only influential, but domineering threats can sometimes be a direct and effective method as well! And only by owning your own empire can you adeptly use a variety of methods in all aspects!" His words made sense, even Tang Mo had to admit—they were reasonable.