Munitions Empire

In a farmstead on Northern Ridge, a man shouldering a hoe gossiped with a neighbor outside the fence about the new information he had gathered, "Do you know what a rich person is like?"

In the past half year or so, the people of Northern Ridge have been living very happily and peacefully.

Recently, after defeating the Suthers Kingdom and acquiring a large region along the Ice Crystal River, Northern Ridge's economy was revitalized.

With substantial funds and embracing the advanced technology from Brunas, Northern Ridge's economy was completely revived.

Thanks to the swift victory in the war, Northern Ridge's agriculture wasn't much affected but rather benefited from the climate to achieve a bumper harvest.

Furthermore, with the rent and interest reduction policy carried out by the old Earl and the new Earl, Northern Ridge's farmers could simply be described as happy over the last six months.

Having money brings a good mood, and with a good mood naturally comes gossip.

The neighbor farmer was hanging vegetables to dry in his yard, and while hanging them, he curiously asked, "Rich people? Are you talking about our Lord Earl?"

"No! No! No! Someone richer than our Earl!" the hoe-carrying man quickly shook his head, indicating that it was incomparable.

"How much money are we talking about?" The vegetable-drying farmer asked incredulously upon hearing that.

In his mind, the concept of someone being richer than the new Earl was beyond his understanding.

After all, in his eyes, someone as wealthy as the Lord Earl should be the richest being in the world.

Because he had heard that the new Earl's assets were so vast that they were beyond ordinary people's estimation.

The hoe-carrying farmer mysteriously brought up a name that everyone was familiar with, "Have you heard? That man named Tang Mo, the Baron who is very close to the old Earl..."

The vegetable-drying farmer paused, then slightly nodded and acknowledged, "Lord Tang Mo, of course, I have heard of him..."

The hoe-carrying farmer immediately continued with an exaggerated tone, gesticulating earnestly as he spoke, "Recently, he laid down an iron road..."

Upon hearing this, the vegetable-drying farmer's eyes widened, "My God... are you joking?"

"No, I'm not joking. That road goes through Dunst and then directly connects to Wolf City," explained the man with the hoe.

Hearing about Dunst and Wolf City, the vegetable-drying farmer became even more astonished, "Such a long road? Are you sure?"

The hoe-carrying farmer nodded and said, "I'm sure. My nephew just came back from there, and he said he saw with his own eyes a road with two long iron 'Zhu Zi' linked together over there."

Even then, the vegetable-drying farmer found it hard to believe that a man existed who could build a road paved with iron, "Gods above... how much money would that require?"

"At least 100,000 Gold Coins! Believe me!" the hoe-carrying farmer exaggerated the figure with his hands as if he himself had that much.

The figure astonished the vegetable-drying farmer yet again; he hadn't even dreamed of seeing 100,000 Gold Coins, let alone dreamed of owning 20 Gold Coins...

Thus, his breathing became rapid, he looked at the man in amazement, "A hundred, hundred thousand? A hundred thousand Gold Coins? How rich must he be, to lay a road with 100,000 Gold Coins?"

"I don't know how rich he is, but I do know that those workers at the Great Tang Group, each one of them is quite wealthy," the hoe-carrying farmer quickly said.

"How so?" the other became more interested.

100,000 Gold Coins was still out of reach for him, but a job that could earn a few Gold Coins was definitely attractive to him.

So, the hoe-carrying farmer continued to boast about his nephew, "It's still my nephew, he said his friend works over there and earns 9 silver coins a day!"

"A day? 9 silver coins? That much?" The vegetable-drying farmer looked enviously, feeling he could also take on such work.

"Isn't it? Even I want to give it a try... but guess what? They require you to learn, to learn calculations and geometry... all sorts of complicated things... I barely recognize a few big characters, how could I possibly learn all that..." the hoe-carrying farmer lamented.

Hearing that, the vegetable-drying farmer also extinguished the idea of trying—like the other, he was illiterate, and it seemed impossible for him to take on such work.

The conversation seemed to have nowhere else to go from there, so the two of them started busying themselves with their own tasks again.

After all, farmers can't live by just farming; they also have to repair their own houses, tidy up their yards, dry crops, and look over the fields. There is a lot of work to do every day.

...

On the outskirts of Wolf City, the newly established train station features a platform paved with concrete, looking very modern.

There is a shelter and a place for checking tickets. Separated by a fence, on the other side, is the freight station; both areas are distinctly defined.

Tang Mo stood on the platform, staring blankly at the railway extending into the distance. The scene before him could hardly be compared to the familiar high-speed rail platforms, as every detail here seemed primitive and shabby.

Yet, for this world, it could be said to be the most advanced and cutting-edge place, as even the officials and nobility who came to visit were curiously examining everything around them.

Technicians from the Great Tang Group were introducing the platform to these wealthy nobles and showcasing a booklet about the train to everyone.

Alice stood beside Tang Mo, filled with curiosity about the upcoming train. She really wanted to see how a heavy chunk of iron could race along the tracks without any external force.

Tang Mo shifted his gaze back to Alice and began to explain, "We'll set up a station in the southern part of Northern Ridge and in Wolf City. In the end, this railway will pass through the crossroad and extend all the way to Ice Crystal City..."

"That long?" Alice was taken aback by this statement. She always thought Tang Mo was simply sparing no expense to shorten the connection between Brunas and Wolf City, for the two of them, as well as for the collaboration between Northern Ridge and Brunas.

But she hadn't expected that Tang Mo would actually lay a railway line straight to Ice Crystal City, which took her by complete surprise.

Because she knew just how much money Tang Mo had spent on this railway! The astronomical sum could be described, with each kilometer of the railway costing at least 700 Gold Coins!

Although as the railway was built, this cost would be diluted, becoming lower and lower, it still represented a significant amount of real silver!

However, Tang Mo was unconcerned about these expenses, for he knew that the world would eventually accept this new invention, "Trust me, once people see the benefits of this railway, you will find countless individuals willing to pay ten times the price to build such railways."

He knew of a country that had built the most magnificent transportation network in the world with unparalleled determination and perseverance.

In that country, known as the infrastructure maniac, the cost of a single cross-sea bridge could shake the economy of the world he currently lived in...

That was true construction, that was true railway transport development, that was the attitude of taking on significant enterprises.

Now, he had only laid a little over 100 kilometers of railway, which was nothing more than child's play, barely worth mentioning!

Alice looked at Tang Mo, seeing determination and confidence on his handsome face. She then smiled assuredly and said, "I believe you because when you gave me the information, I believed that this thing is definitely the most worthwhile investment for the future."

After all, the amount of ore produced by the mines had recently doubled, and as a minor heiress who had inherited the Shireck Consortium's assets in Northern Ridge, she had her fair share of resources.

In her view, if Tang Mo ever went bankrupt, she could support him. Worst case scenario, she could have him move to Northern Ridge to be a pretty face for Lord Earl, what's the big deal?

Tang Mo was unaware that the woman beside him was fully prepared to take care of him financially as he continued to explain to Alice the future development of the railway, "This is still far from its final form. Once it develops, it'll be able to transport thousands or even tens of thousands of tons of materials daily.

It will completely replace existing traditional methods of transport and fundamentally change people's lives."

Seeing that Alice was not very interested and seemed to be lost in her thoughts, Tang Mo could only bring out his trump card to continue explaining, "Now, the trip from Wolf City to Brunas takes less than a day. If you're willing to visit me, you can have breakfast on the train in the morning, and by evening, you can have dinner with me."

"Why?" Alice immediately showed more interest in this subject and asked without any context.

"Hmm?" Tang Mo didn't catch on and looked at Alice with confusion.

Alice started to laugh, feigning annoyance, "Why should I come to you? Why don't you come to me instead?"

Scratching his head, Tang Mo looked in the direction where the train was supposed to appear, trying to sidestep the topic with a silly laugh, "Haha!"

Alice didn't make it difficult for him, understandingly she said, "Alright, I won't trouble you anymore!"

Tang Mo started to feel a bit embarrassed, realizing that he was the one who had benefitted, "You know, my career has just started. Focusing on romantic affairs isn't a good thing right now."

"I know, I know! I will support you, and so will Northern Ridge!" Alice said nonchalantly, comforting Tang Mo in return.

"Thank you." Tang Mo grew even more embarrassed, feeling that he should not disappoint such a good girl and should offer more to this somewhat naive Earl of Northern Ridge.