Munitions Empire

Despite having seen much prosperity, the first sight of Chang'an in Tang Country still left the Prince of Chu Country speechless with shock.

Although Chang'an was far from being the most prosperous city in Tang Country, due to geographical reasons, the truly flourishing city was the port city of Linshui.

Many called Linshui the Brunas of the Western Continent, and those who had been to Brunas Port in the Laines Empire knew well that Linshui had completely surpassed Brunas to become the wealthiest city in the world.

Here, ships were ceaselessly coming and going, and trains followed one after another, where anyone who wanted to get rich could go to Linshui, where everyone could find their own business opportunities.

The prosperity of Linshui was of a kind that had surpassed Brunas's, while the prosperity of Chang'an City was a completely new kind, built on a new order and a brand-new political center.

The streets, cleaned by watering carts, were spotless, and the passersby on either side all wore a pride as if to say "who else but us?"

In just a few short years, the people here had grown accustomed to everything and regarded merchants and travelers from other places as "outsiders."

They took pride in being born in Chang'an; every person from Chang'an carried an aura of being a cut above the rest. Even if these merchants came from Linshui, even if they were wealthy beyond measure, they were still not from Chang'an.

Stepping out of Chang'an's train station, the Prince of Chu Country was intimidated by this deeply ingrained nobility.

The train station in the capital city of Chu Country was clearly not of this caliber. When he had gone to study in the imperial capital of the Dahua Empire, they didn't even have a train station.

So when he saw the train station in Chang'an City, he was startled by the glittering and towering roof.

He even thought for a moment that he had gotten off the train directly in the Royal Palace of the Great Tang Kingdom, and the Guards around him were also a bit overwhelmed by the opulence.

"Ah! Respected Prince, you need not be so formal, this is only the train station of Chang'an City, we have not even entered the city yet," a Tang Country diplomat accompanying the Prince of Chu Country explained helpfully.

He would have been better off not explaining, as his words only made the inexperienced Prince of Chu Country feel even more ashamed: he wished his demeanor hadn't been noticed by others, but everyone had already seen him clearly.

His visit this time was actually on behalf of Chu Country, to attend the military parade in Tang Country. After this parade, Tang Country was soon to become the Great Tang Empire, the most powerful empire acknowledged in the Western Continent.

And that "grand-uncle" he had yet to meet would become the Emperor of this empire and ruler over its vast territories.

Indeed, in the treaty where Chu Country inclined towards Tang Country, the two countries were siblings, with Chu Country being the younger and Tang Country the elder, and the King of Chu would have to call the Emperor of Tang his "younger brother."

The 54-year-old King of Chu Country calling the not-even-30-year-old Tang Mo "elder brother" became a joke among the citizens of Tang Country.

Sadly, the Prince of Chu Country, already into his thirties, found himself having to call Tang Mo "grand-uncle." And while he already had several children in Chu Country, Tang Mo instantly became practically of the grandfather's generation.

The Prince of Chu Country had two "elder brothers" in Tang Country—yes, elder brothers: the two Princes of Tang Country. Although they were younger, in terms of address, they were still the "elder brothers" of the Prince of Chu...

If he wanted to change this relationship, it was not difficult. He just had to wait for the King of Chu to pass away, and once the Prince of Chu Country became the King of Chu, then he could be fraternal with Tang Mo.

Or... winning a war against Tang was another way to change his status, but this path might be more difficult. A misstep could very well reduce him to an even lower status.

Another purpose of the Prince of Chu Country's visit to Chang'an was to stay and study after the Tang Country military parade ceremony, entering the Great Tang Military Academy to learn political science and international relations.

This period of education was not short, for he had to reside in Chang'an City for at least three years, which was almost like being a hostage. This too was a guarantee of Chu Country to Tang Country: sending the future monarch to Chang'an as a hostage was a sign of submission.

It must be said that the Prince of Chu Country had a rather miserable life; as a child, he was sent to the Dahua Empire as a hostage. Hardly had he grown up and returned to his country to live a few peaceful years when he was sent to Tang Country to continue being a hostage.

"Your country, your country is really... truly at the height of prosperity," the Prince of Chu Country said admiringly as he looked up at the huge clock on top of the station.

He truly envied such strength, for his country had been feeble and vulnerable as long as he could remember. The entire Chu Country was eroded by the Nobility; the royal family was very weak, often compromising with the Nobility, and in critical moments even scapegoated by them.

Thus, he had always been eager to revitalize Chu Country, hoping to establish a powerful nation. He used to think the Dahua Empire was the model he aspired to, but now, at this moment, he realized that true might was like this.

"The K413 train to Linshui is now checking tickets, please head to gate number 4 for ticket checking!" a gentle female voice in the broadcast advised passengers to proceed with timely ticket checking.

With this voice as a backdrop, the diplomat accompanying the Prince smiled and led the Chu Country Prince toward the VIP passage.