Munitions Empire

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"Damn it, why does every random girl I run into on the street have a background? Shit." He kicked a trash can by the roadside, the Zhang family's eldest son cursed angrily.

He had been locked up in the police station for 20 days before he was released, and that was after paying a hefty bail.

In Zheng Country, he had never suffered such humiliation, so the moment he got out, he vented his rage in every possible way.

Then he saw a cop in the distance looking at him with a mean stare, seemingly ready to teach this public property destroyer a lesson.

The Zhang family's eldest son instinctively shrank his neck and nodded apologetically, hurriedly leading his people away from this troublesome spot.

He had realized now that in this Brunas, the small fry were hard to deal with, and Yama even harder; as a dragon crossing the river, he was thoroughly suppressed by the local snakes.

"Once I return to Zheng Country, I'll definitely make Brunas pay! If their goods want to come ashore, we'll levy twice! No! Three times the tax! I'll let them know what it means to mess with the untouchable!" he said hatefully as he walked.

"Young Master, we've also looked into it these days, and actually... Brunas's main business isn't with our Zheng Country. Most of their goods are shipped to the Ice Cold Kingdom, Poplar Kingdom, and Taren to the south... which is now called Winterless City," his longtime butler explained.

Previously, because he was negotiating with several bigwigs from Brunas, he couldn't stay by his young master's side, which led to the mishap.

It was also he who had been active in negotiating and paying the fines to bail out the Zhang family's eldest son.

"What? Hundreds of thousands of Gold Coins a year... you're telling me that's a small business?" The Zhang family's eldest son didn't believe it, looking at his family's butler and saying, "Can crossing the sea really be so profitable?"

"As far as I know, Brunas, or rather the Great Tang Group's annual business amounts to tens of millions of Gold Coins... Their business includes arms, medicine, transportation... and so on. To say they're making a fortune is an understatement," the butler, who had come to understand a bit about the scale of the Great Tang Group over the past few days, said with apprehension.

In terms of the efficiency of making money, a hereditary household like the Zhang's was absolutely no match for such wealthy tycoons.

When it comes to influence, the butler also deeply knew the power of a consortium that could pull out hundreds of thousands of Gold Coin effortlessly.

The Zhang family may have absolute control in Zheng Country, but if this Great Tang Group wanted, they could easily establish a position in Zheng Country and even in the Dahua Empire behind it with their financial power.

Even if it were the Prime Minister of the Empire or the royalty and nobility, who would say no to Gold Coins? These people may cherish their reputations, but that's just for show. They might scorn small money, but they don't truly regard wealth as dirt.

"You're joking, the kind of bribes that a giant like the Great Tang Group could offer could never be small change. Money moves people's hearts; they could offer so much..."

In front of such a colossus, even the head of the Zhang family would have to act cautiously and carefully; this was not a problem that could be resolved by waving a hand recklessly.

"Tens of millions? Heh... this Great Tang Group is really so rich?" The Zhang family's son seemed to be getting some crooked ideas again.

"Young Master, when the old master left, he made it clear that this cooperation is crucial; you must not..." the butler, who knew his young master well, immediately interjected a reminder.

"Ah? Therein lies the error! Fortunes must be sought amidst danger," the Zhang family's eldest son waved his hand dismissively, looking profound: "I heard the founder of this Great Tang Group is a black-haired, black-eyed... convict?"

"Hm? Young Master, what do you mean?" The butler looked at his young master with a puzzled expression.

"A convict... No matter how well they live on the outside, they can't return, right? It's like that in Dahua, and it's the same in our Zheng Country..." the Zhang family's eldest son confirmed with satisfaction.

"Indeed, that is the case, though there are always exceptions..." the butler considered and nodded, admitting to this point.

According to the law, convicts are barred for life from returning home, unable even in death to return as spirits to their native land, doomed to be lonely ghosts overseas forever.

However, there are indeed exceptions. Most convicts on the road die from illness due to lack of medical care, and some starve to death. But indeed, there are a few who are strong and survive.

Among those who survive, of course, some make a name for themselves overseas. Some accumulate a bit of wealth, some manage to make something of a home for themselves.

Those who come to terms with it, who don't believe in returning home after death to pay homage to their ancestors, might just settle down overseas, considering themselves as good as locals.

But those who can't let go are bound to desperately try to return home—Li'ao is one of those people. Their lifelong desire is to go back, to catch a glimpse of their hometown just one more time.

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If these people can save up some money during their exile, they will "redeem themselves," which means using almost all their wealth to absolve themselves of their crimes.

In this way, they can be buried in their homeland, and their descendants can go back to the native soil to start their lives anew as ordinary citizens.

"The founder of the Great Tang Group, named Tang Mo... with black eyes and black hair, looks like a criminal, doesn't he?" The eldest son of the Zhang Family said with a sordid grin, "Tell me, do you think he's willing to redeem himself?"

"Only if he's gone mad! Spending tens of millions of Gold Coins to redeem himself?" The old butler looked at his young master as if he were looking at an idiot.

"Hmm, maybe he would be willing?" The eldest son of the Zhang Family feigned a profound and inscrutable air as if everything was under his control, "Our Zhang Family might be able to speak on his behalf, right?"

"Of course, if he's unwilling, it's not important." The Zhang family's eldest son shook his head, "As long as we find a way to lure him to Zheng Country... once there, isn't everything up to our Zhang Family?"

"How could he possibly go to Zheng Country in person..." The old butler felt that his young master's ideas were becoming more and more impractical.

Such a wealthy man would surely be very cautious in his movements. He might go anywhere, but the one place he surely wouldn't return to was the country that had exiled him!

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"Hmm, of course I must make a trip to Zheng Country. Everything here has already entered the development phase, and I'm going to Zheng Country and Dahua Empire to expand the market. Besides, wouldn't it be reasonable to buy a couple of plots of land in my hometown, and see my kinsfolk?" Tang Mo, while eating grapes peeled by Yulin, said to Li'ao and Luff among others.

"But it's hard to say, those greedy officials in Zheng Country might not act against you because of your identity..." Luff had been looking at the issue from a safety standpoint from the start.

In his view, it didn't matter how much money the Great Tang Group made; his first priority was ensuring the safety of the soul and engine of the Great Tang Group—Tang Mo himself.

Everything else was secondary; he even thought that going to Zheng Country was superfluous. Why not just send someone else to explore the market?

"The scouts have already gone ahead; there's actually nothing more to say. The master won't move lightly without making thorough preparations," Li'ao interjected with an explanation.

He himself hoped to return to his homeland, but he really didn't want Tang Mo to come with him. Going back implied certain risks which none of those present were willing to take.

"Rest assured, I'm not planning to go right now. At the very least, I'll wait until the Jade City is fully constructed," Tang Mo reassured them with a smile.

To him, if a few sailing ships could blockade the doorstep of the Great Qing Dynasty and trample the Qing Government into the ground, then there was no reason he should be in danger when knocking on their door with a real dreadnought battleship.

The other side was not some language-barrier cannibalistic tribe. They would surely realize the power of the cannons, wouldn't they?

"I still think this kind of thing is unsafe," Luff persisted in his reluctance to let Tang Mo take the risk himself.

"I don't mind at all, with that car and the guard squad arranged, even if we have to fight our way back to the Jade City, I'm confident," Wes said, eager for action.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

As Tang Mo's personal bodyguard, Wes had recently glimpsed the technological prowess of the Great Tang Group: A bulletproof Rolls-Royce car custom-made for him was finally handcrafted to completion.

The whole car weighed nearly five tons! The doors were a foot thick and even required auxiliary power to open! The wheels were made of solid rubber, and it had virtually no weak points—its chassis could even withstand the blast of a grenade!

With this car, Wes could ensure Tang Mo's absolute safety on the road. There was no question as to where the two of them could go.

Inside the car, there was a weapon box; underneath the rear seats, there were two Thompson Submachine Guns with 8 magazines and 4 drums!

The glass of the car could withstand pistol bullets, and effectively defend against close-range spray from submachine guns.

Even in the event of direct fire from heavy machine guns or rifles, by ducking down, the passengers could use the car doors for protection.

This Rolls-Royce, made specially for Tang Mo, also had a dedicated eight-cylinder engine that enabled this armored-car-sturdy vehicle to reach a terrifying speed of 100 kilometers per hour on flat ground, enough to shake off most pursuers.

It could be responsibly stated that to ensure Tang Mo's safety, the Great Tang Group had piled up nearly all of their most advanced technologies in this car.

"I have no objections either, as long as you let me accompany you," Yulin said as he peeled another grape and handed it to Tang Mo.