Munitions Empire

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Leading the fleet southward, Bernard flipped through the supply list irritably in the already hot weather of Hotwind Port.

Honestly speaking, with the support from the Dorne Kingdom and prior arrangements, the supply level here had far exceeded his expectations.

Here they ensured the sailors were well-provisioned, even every one of them got to drink milk, enjoy sweet tea with sugar, and they could go ashore to enjoy unique local delicacies.

After resting at Hotwind Port for two days, their morale was high… but they had yet to set sail southward when they received Tang Mo's order prohibiting them from heading to Taren Kingdom.

In Bernard's view, this command was somewhat awkward, as he had originally thought he would make his mark in the Taren Kingdom, but now he had to stop in his tracks, waiting in such a tranquil place.

Hotwind Port had expanded its docks, possessing a fleet of 5 sail warships as a escort, and outside the city there were power plants and some textile factories.

The Great Tang Group had built a military factory here, transitioning to produce needle guns and various types of shells, and the plan was to move the production of C64 cannons to this place as well.

Training workers was now the biggest obstacle to factory expansion, and getting as many people as possible exposed to the industry had become the best way for Tang Mo to expand his influence.

As a result, several civilian factories began popping up like mushrooms after rain. Suddenly, this world had a few hundred thousand, even millions, of "proletariats".

In Hotwind Port, the factories belonging to the Great Tang Group numbered over a hundred, including power plants, steel plants, textile factories, cement factories, glass factories, fertilizer factories, bulb factories, arms factories, telegraph offices...

The same was true in Osa, with even a smelter added to the list—there were gold and copper mines there, after all.

Compared to these two enclaves, Dragon Island, as the "homeland" of the Great Tang Group, was built as a super-sized factory.

Aside from the extensive petroleum industry on the island, there was also a power plant on a scale already close to that of Brunas.

There was no choice, as future aluminum electrolysis and new-style smelting forging would require electricity, and it was necessary to build up reserve power generating capacity.

In addition, these places also had some red-light districts and casinos, which were the traditional projects of the Great Tang Group's entertainment business, and were naturally not absent.

If not for the war breaking out, the Great Tang Group had recently begun planning to popularize the wondrous "machine" known as the "radio".

With this device, the Great Tang Group could increase its influence in the cultural and public opinion domains, completely crushing the fragile traditional channels of opinion dissemination.

What a pity though, that the war erupted, affecting the pace of electricity popularization and temporarily shelving the production of radios.

As a future port of significant importance to be developed by the Great Tang Group, Hotwind Port actually had another vital function—transporting increasingly large amounts of rubber for the Great Tang Group!

Rubber is one of the most important materials for modern industrial civilization, and natural rubber is a material that is very difficult to replace.

At least in the foreseeable future, the rubber industry is irreplaceable, and artificial rubber cannot replace it completely.

Besides, the cost of synthesizing artificial rubber from other raw materials is enormous, the output is insufficient, and the quality is very poor.

It is estimated that it would take several more years for the Great Tang Group to develop a product that could replace natural rubber, and even with Tang Mo's modern technology support, production capacity is still a major challenge.

Just like products made of aluminum and titanium, Tang Mo knows the manufacturing processes, including the most cost-effective ones.

But even so, he cannot immediately produce a large amount of aluminum and titanium products—that's where production capacity is a constraint.

There's no way around it; this has to be built up little by little. What Tang Mo can save on is merely research and development time and the cost of trial and error.

So you see, Hotwind Port is very important for the Great Tang Group. Once Tang Mo acquired this port and secured twice as much rubber raw material as before, he understood this principle.

In the future, he planned to establish large rubber plantations within the southern kingdoms like Taren Kingdom and Xilun Kingdom, making them provide a substantial amount of rubber products for the Great Tang Group.

"It really is an irritating day; when can we finally take action?" Bernard mumbled as he put down the telegraph in his hands, sighing with a sense of resignation.

...

Recently, the Great Tang Group's military academy welcomed a few special students, whose arrival made all the other students in the school extremely curious.

Among these students, a male and a female became the center of attention, representing the new students and even causing many senior students to feel immense pressure.

Previously, there were many nobles' children at the Great Tang military academy, including many legitimate sons of earls, whose status was esteemed beyond words.

However, these children were still treated equally in the school, and so they had their share of hardships. With their efforts, they integrated themselves into the school community.

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Yet, a boy who joined the school yesterday has a status that not even a group of Earl's sons could match.

Whether Leite VII was putting on an act or genuinely moved, in the end, he gritted his teeth and stamped his foot, sending his own Crown Prince, his eldest son, to the Great Tang Military Academy.

That means, barring any accidents, after Leite VII breathes his last, Leite VIII would have to address Tang Mo as Principal...

Of course, this 'Principal' title isn't called in vain. The Crown Prince will soon discover that his position has become unshakeable and as stable as Mount Tai, thanks to his academic experience.

The students standing by his side at this moment will become the Kingdom's Ministers in the future, his true confidants, his support, his capital!

For such an unlucky Crown Prince sent to endure hardships and training, this can definitely be considered a blessing in disguise.

Of course, this true "second generation king" quickly made the acquaintance of many "second generation nobles," "second generation officials," and "second generation riches" after enrolling...

And then, he became friends with these people, becoming their admired "Old Eighth" — yes, "Old Eighth," you read that right.

In the eyes of the students at Great Tang Military Academy, the most awesome person is undoubtedly their Principal, Mr. Tang, who is their sun, their deity, the light in their inner world...

The second most formidable person in the academy is a legend, a legend who has now become the nightmare of all the students there.

There was once a young girl who hit an inexplicable stroke of luck and became part of the first batch of students admitted to the school. She was exceptionally gifted, intelligent, and eager to learn, always achieving the top rank in every exam.

Over time, the young girl became known as the "Queen" among the mouths of the first graduating class, while those "first period instructors" still tremble at the sight of her.

There's no helping it, she hasn't graduated yet, and is already the academic summit of the entire school, personally selected by the Principal as one of the first postgraduate students.

She is nearly all the male students' idol, the object of their secret adoration, the strong unattainable figure they are doomed never to pursue...

Indeed, Yulin is no longer the little girl who passed messages to Tang Mo; she is now a talent meticulously cultivated by the Great Tang Group, a presence that surpasses her era in her field of expertise.

The third student everyone admires is named Galsa, who I heard was once merely an apprentice to a Blacksmith.

But now this senior doesn't often come to study at the school anymore. He follows Mathews and has pretty much become one of the main technical backbones of the Great Tang Group.

The fourth big shot is named Dino, who was known as the invincible fighter of the entire school. No matter if you are the beloved son of an Earl or the direct descendant of a wealthy merchant, none are unafraid of him.

The only person in the school who has beaten him is the Queen, Yulin, and the only one he dares not fight is Galsa.

Further down the line, come the outstanding figures from the second batch of apprentices. Great Tang Military Academy has now been running courses for two years, naturally cultivating a second cohort of students.

In fact, Tang Mo, eager to develop talent, recruits a new batch of students every half-year; the Great Tang Military Academy now has four batches of students.

However, strictly speaking, the Great Tang Military Academy has yet to have any graduates — according to Tang Mo's requirements, one must study for four years to formally graduate.

As for the geniuses like Yulin, still counting Galsa and others, they are currently studying while interning, not yet considered graduates.

As they haven't graduated, they remain the big sisters and big brothers of the academy. They are still the targets for the juniors to chase, still the direction of their efforts, still the invincible figures in their hearts.

Another person who caught attention with this batch's enrollment is a girl, or rather, a cat girl. Her mere presence standing there has already had a lethal effect.

You could definitely say Yue'er is one in ten thousand, sent by Tang Mo to the school for education, which certainly makes the fifth cohort of the Great Tang Military Academy's students feel extremely honored.

Those gossipy students were even more excited about Yue'er's arrival, unable to hold back their screams: they obviously knew the school's tyrant, Her Majesty the Queen Yulin, had a crush on Principal Tang Mo. And this newly joined cat girl Yue'er, was almost Yulin's rival in love.

Indeed, has the school become a battleground for fierce fighters, a valley of joy? Everyone's eyes shone, ready to watch a grand drama of palace intrigue unfold.

After all, during the freshman self-introduction, this young girl revealed her identity, "I am an Orc given as a gift to Mr. Tang Mo; my name is Yue'er. Mr. Tang Mo gave me my name, I am very pleased to meet everyone..."

The students waiting for the drama were not disappointed as this girl named Yue'er became famous in the first military training session. She unexpectedly had learned combat skills and had a high combat value.

In fact, Yue'er's father was a soldier, but died in the battle between Gales and Poplar on the Sena Plains.

Yue'er had been learning combat from a young age, but she never showcased her true strength. Her swordsmanship was quite good, and she also had a natural talent for unarmed combat.

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My body is still not feeling great. Update presented, further updates delayed by one day to see how things go. Please be patient, everyone...

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