Munitions Empire

Actually, Tang Mo had never planned to bring about any systemic changes to the world; from the start, he simply wanted to become a merchant who could support himself.

But step by step, he found himself in today's position, becoming an Emperor of an empire and also the head of a massive conglomerate.

People are inherently selfish, and Tang Mo was no exception. He was not particularly inclined to indoctrinate the world with capitalist ideologies, forcibly dethroning the Emperor and then engaging in parliamentary elections and the like.

He had no interest in such matters, even though he was well aware of a more mature system; he was not willing to share it with the people of the world.

Was it not good to pass his empire and his wealth on to his own descendants? Who decreed that a transmigrator must be utterly selfless?

Even if his descendants could not maintain his family's estate, that would be their own incompetence, which had nothing to do with him, right?

Tang Mo simply wanted to enjoy his life surrounded by beautiful women, wielding ultimate power over all beneath the heavens. As for other matters, he did not plan to consider them at all.

Implementing a more efficient monarchical feudal centralization would meet with collective resistance from the lords and nobility, not to mention introducing the so-called "political cooked system." That would lead to even more bloodshed and greater costs.

Then what? What could Tang Mo bring to himself? By then, his power would be curtailed by the newly born ruling class, and his decisions would be vetoed by a new layer of the power hierarchy.

Promoting such a decentralized system at this time was simply looking for trouble for himself. He would rather see dynastic changes after his death than relinquish power during his lifetime.

Selfishness is human nature, and Tang Mo was no different. Emperors who founded dynasties throughout history had the opportunity to change their systems, hand over their power, and entrust it to an official class selected through examination, which would likely preserve the wealth and status of their descendants indefinitely.

However, their ambitious aspirations did not allow them to back down, so they held onto their power until death, continuing the tradition of ruling as if the country were their own family estate.

To them, retaining only the throne while relinquishing sovereign power was too cowardly and did not serve their interests. Therefore, they preferred to let their descendants face the catastrophe of national collapse rather than make concessions during the empire's zenith.

For the same reasons, or perhaps thoughts, Tang Mo had no desire to export any political ideologies to this world. He kept everything he knew to himself, playing the primitive game of imperial power with the natives of this world.

He merely casually modified some systems, modernizing the grassroots level, which was enough to outcompete all other countries in the world.

Before World War I, most advanced nations in Europe were monarchies, and most weren't even constitutional monarchies.

At that time, Tsarist Russia had an Emperor, the German Empire had an Emperor, the British Empire also had an Emperor, Italy had a King, and so did the Austro-Hungarian Empire…

Yet none of this prevented the European nations from modernizing; they still completed their industrialization and continued to advance on the path of technological development.

As for that so-called checks and balances system, devised when Lighthouse Country was still at a preliminary stage of slavery, it was not advanced in any way. That system, frankly, had no fundamental difference from the decentralized systems like "The Three Departments and Six Ministries" under imperial rule.

What? You mention elections? That's even more of a joke. At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, Wang Mang Great Brother ascended through popular election; and during the late Eastern Han period, the Three Kingdoms era, officials were recommended based on the approbation of their local community in aspects such as morality and ability…

Well, you could see it as if, at that time, wanting to be an official meant having a good background (wealth, fame, or a great father), a good reputation in your hometown (being well-connected in a certain province), and then being recommended for office (running for governor or president)… Does this process seem familiar?

If someone has the time and wants to engage in wits with nobility, lords, and merchants who only think of exploiting election loopholes to become superior, let them do it. Tang Mo did not believe he had the time or energy to waste on that, so he simply didn't plan to give these people any opportunity.

Think it's unfair? Ask yourself how tough your neck is, and try how sharp the bayonets of soldiers from the Great Tang Empire are; that's all there is to it.

In Tang Mo's view, if an empire has a good Emperor who can make the right decisions and keep his subordinates running efficiently, there is actually nothing wrong with the feudal system.

The biggest problem with this system is the inconsistency of the heirs, unable to guarantee the national leader always remains at a high level. But this would only become a problem after Tang Mo's own death, and it was no longer a concern he needed to consider.

To put it bluntly: After I die, why should I care if the flood comes?

So the system currently implemented in Tang Country is somewhat similar to that of the Second Reich—namely, the political system of the German Empire during that period.

An Emperor makes the decisions, below him are the Prime Minister and a whole array of feudal departments. However, these departments further down align with the structure of a modern state, a setup that maximizes the smooth operation of the nation.

The grassroots structure follows that of a modern state system, which provides Tang Country with tremendous mobilization capacity and comprehensive national strength.

A wise ruler, capable enough to make correct decisions to steer the machinery of this nation and guide its developmental direction.

During the time of the Second Reich, Bismarck, a Prime Minister of blood and iron, was relied upon. Tang Country has no such Prime Minister but has Tang Mo, a carrier of an "external device" who has seen the "future direction of development."

Of course, if compared in terms of abilities, Tang Mo might not be as shrewd as Bismarck on a micro-management level, but Tang Mo has his own advantages.

His advantage lies in Tang Country's own strong national power, which acts as his backing and ensures that even if Tang Mo makes some wrong decisions, Tang Country can still break through brute force without collapsing.

This is something Bismarck could not achieve. Because in Bismarck's era, the United Kingdom was the world's foremost superpower, with Germany always second. But Tang Country is not second; it is the genuine top superpower with the strongest industrial system, the most resources, and the most combat-effective military.

So-called "overwhelming force can conquer all"—Tang Mo's makeshift team may be slightly lacking in ability, but their weapon technology can help bridge this gap.

It's somewhat like the old Western approach to Huaxia: no matter how clever your strategies, I'll just set up some big cannons on the coastline and start bombarding.

...

General Feng Kezhi was already able to walk, so he absolutely did not want to lie in bed. He was currently on a train heading to Linshui to witness the prosperity of the Great Tang Empire.

This was a journey to persuade his own heart; he wanted to see the Tang Country he was about to join and carefully ponder whether this Tang Country was worth overturning his life's earlier beliefs.

Every person has their own convictions, no matter if they are good or bad. Only when the value system they have built collapses do they seek new values, establish new intellectual dependencies, and find a reason to continue living.

From this perspective, every person has an ideological imprint; it's just that their beliefs, that is what they staunchly believe in, are easily shattered.

Some people's beliefs can be destroyed by huge sums of money, some by hedonism. For superior people like Feng Kezhi, their beliefs are not easily shattered but once they do collapse, rebuilding them takes much longer.

Talking with Qian Jinhang, it was true—he had seen a different scene. He stayed in Tongcheng for a few days and here, he witnessed how truly spectacular and bustling a real industrial base could be.

The machines here roared every day, the railways crisscrossed through the city streets like fishing nets. Everywhere there were chimneys and smoke, and even people's clothes were covered in a layer of coal ash.

Yet, everything here delighted him more than what he had seen during his time in the Dahua Empire. The children here were lively, the people here smiled, and the cries of the traders were rhythmically appealing.

Everything in Tongcheng was fresh to him; he even saw a completely new type of refrigeration equipment here, allowing the Tongcheng's elite, far inland, to access seafood from the ocean.

Such a thing had been unthinkable in the past, but the latest technology had turned the impossible into possible. It was said that such freezing technology could also preserve food for a long time which, for a world that had not yet fully resolved the food crisis, was undoubtedly a technology worth promoting.

Having decided to stay, he was fortunate enough to visit Tang Country's tank factory in Tongcheng, and even though it was just the production line for the Number 4 tanks, he was astonished at the advanced production technology of Tang Country.

No joke, compared to the tank production of the Dahua Empire, Tang Country's workshop was more standardized, their production speed faster, and their processes more advanced.

It can responsibly be said that Tang Country's industrial production level completely surpassed that of the Dahua Empire, the difference between the two was truly vast.

Although currently, this gap was not enough to create a significant disparity, the tanks used by both countries seemed to have no generational difference. Yet someday, the accumulated difference would be large enough to change everything.

When Feng Kezhi was preparing to transfer trains to Linshui, he was shocked once again: this segment of the railway had increased its speed, and the locomotives responsible for this section of railway transport seemed to be using some brand-new technologies.

The new train was faster and had a more impressive carrying capacity, the entire first half of the train comprised passenger carriages, and unbelievably, the latter half even included freight carriages, a long procession that was simply magnificent to behold.