Munitions Empire

Zhao Kai was born into indescribable privilege and had never before felt such hatred towards a country, a person. In the past, if he hated, he could vent his hatred immediately.

Someone defied him? Kill them. A vassal state offended him? Issue an imperial edict to reprimand and send troops to the border to intimidate.

But with the rise of the Great Tang Kingdom, the Dahua Empire found an adversary too formidable to provoke and yet impossible to eliminate, an existence that Zhao Kai loathed but could not resolve.

The intense hatred only enraged Zhao Kai, but in that very moment, as he was bent over vomiting stomach acid, a terrifying thought struck him.

The Imperial City, the Imperial Capital of the Dahua Empire... It was an old metropolis, where much of the city was built of wood! If the Tang Army bombarded the Imperial Capital with White Phosphorus Bombs, the city that had flourished for hundreds of years could be destroyed in an instant.

Zhao Kai dared not imagine his own palace ablaze, his body burnt and skin cracked.

And so he was afraid, he felt fear, a sensation so unfamiliar and bewildering to him. At the same time, this feeling was so very uncomfortable that Zhao Kai found himself unexpectedly calming down.

Several Ministers stepped forward and began to vehemently denounce Tang Country for its cruelty and inhumanity, its heart as vile as a demon's, deserving death to the utmost!

If their curses were effective, it's likely the Dahua Empire would have united the world centuries ago, and wouldn't be in the sorry state it was in today, beaten by Tang Country.

However, the tone still had to be set. There always had to be a few low-level officials to speak first, to repeat the rhetoric, creating an opening for the real high-ranking officials to discuss serious matters.

After these Ministers shouted their slogans, the first to step forward was Chief of Staff Jiang Run. His advice this time was audaciously bold, declaring that the Empire had lost control of the war and that it would be best to end it as soon as possible.

"Your Majesty! The Empire needs to recuperate and plan for the wellbeing of the people, send an envoy to negotiate peace with Tang Country!" Jiang Run humbly lowered his head, offering his suggestion.

As the Ministry of Rites, all foreign affairs were under his jurisdiction. This time, with the defeat calling for peace, his Ministry could not shirk responsibility, so he took the initiative to shoulder it, also ensuring the Emperor remembered his willingness to undertake the task.

At the mention of peace for the first time since the war began, Zhao Kai raised an eyebrow. He truly wanted to scold, but as the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back.

Despite his continuing hatred for the incompetence of his Generals and the refusal of Tang Country to simply submit, he had to admit that seeking peace might be the best option now available.

"My opinion is that we should reinforce the front lines to stabilize our defenses..." Shen Chuan, at this point, stepped forward, contrary to the suggestion of seeking peace.

Chu Muzhou glanced at Shen Chuan's retreating figure and lowered his head once more. He had just discussed with Shen Chuan, the Minister of War, who had shared his thoughts with Chu Muzhou, the Prime Minister.

Shen Chuan's idea was simple: if you can't win on the battlefield, everything is zero. Negotiations can only happen once you've steadied your position on the battlefield and demonstrated your strength, then there's hope for talks!

If Fengjiang City were to fall and there were more defeats before winter, allowing the Tang Army to penetrate deep into Dahua, under those circumstances, why would Tang Country be willing to negotiate with the Dahua Empire?

Chu Muzhou also felt that if the Tang Army continued to win, if he were the Prime Minister of Tang Country, he wouldn't be inclined to negotiate so easily either.

That's why Shen Chuan suggested bolstering forces at the front, this was his view as the Minister of War regarding the situation: "Your Majesty! If we cannot stop the Tang Army's advance, even if Tang Country agrees to negotiate, their demands will be frighteningly high."

"That's right..." muttered the Ministers behind him, abruptly changing their previous mockery of Shen Chuan, now beginning to discuss animatedly and praising Shen Chuan's sagacity: "Minister Shen's advice is sensible."

"More troops? Weren't 500,000 conscripted just a few days ago to be sent to the frontline?" Yet, not all opinions were the same, as some Ministers immediately showed their disgust for the conscription.

Conscripting civilians into the army was no small matter. The Dahua Empire had already conscripted five times in quick succession, and it was fair to say that public discontent was boiling, with complaints everywhere.

The first conscription aimed to use a million troops to attack Tang Country and seize Xicong. Dahua drafted 700,000 new soldiers, most of whom ended up as captives with Qian Jinhang.

The second conscription was to counter Tang Country's retaliation, calling up 300,000 people nationwide, these forces were basically spent.

The third was when the Tang Army fiercely attacked South Wind Pass, drafting 200,000 people nearby. Before the 200,000 could be put to use, the Tang Army had already captured South Wind Pass, and those troops dispersed.

The fourth conscription was for the Hidden Sword Gorge defense line—Zhao Chen, in the Southern Region, drafted 900,000 in one go. The region still hasn't recovered from the floods and conscriptions to resume production.

The fifth was General Feng Ke's defense of Fengjiang, drafting 300,000 new recruits along the way, who have almost all been consumed at the Fengjiang defense line. The reserve forces are nearly depleted, in dire need of reinforcements.

In total, 2.4 million robust men were mobilized, which in the past would have sufficed for ten wars. Yet this single war hadn't concluded, and they had been utterly depleted.

Therefore, Shen Chuan brought up this new round of conscription plans that were severely criticized before, at this meeting.

Despite being a headache, the Dahua Empire had indeed reached a point where it had no choice but to conscript again for the war.