After hearing Tang Long's suggestion to embed a Chief of Staff in Hu Hao's headquarters, the Emperor agreed, stating he would dispatch personnel the moment the rainy season ended and a supply corridor could be opened.
"Your Majesty, there is another deeply concerning issue regarding Hu Hao's forces. According to my intelligence network, Hu Hao has conscripted hundreds of thousands of men in the occupied territories. How exactly is he equipping them?
"My sources confirm that Hu Hao has restarted production of light weapons and ammunition! Furthermore, he is currently reorganizing the workforce to resume production at the tank and aircraft manufacturing plants!
"It seems he only paused those efforts initially because the skilled engineers had fled. But the fact remains: he is actively manufacturing rifles and ammunition! This is a severe violation of Imperial Law! Unauthorized weapon production is absolute treason!" Tang Long pressed his attack against the Emperor.
He harbored a deep, abiding hatred for Hu Hao. In his mind, attacking Hu Hao was a proxy attack on Jiang Kai. Tang Long blamed Jiang Kai entirely for his humiliating demotion from Grand Marshal!
"I am already aware of this. Hu Hao reported the situation to me, and I formally authorized his production of weapons and ammunition," the Emperor replied dismissively, waving a hand.
"What?!" Tang Long stared at the Emperor in profound shock.
"Your Majesty, this is highly irregular and incredibly dangerous! Unauthorized—even conditionally authorized—weapon production is a massive risk. Furthermore, we have absolutely no oversight personnel embedded in his command! If Hu Hao harbors treasonous ambitions, the Empire is in grave peril!" Luo Xin interjected, deeply alarmed by the strategic implications.
"I am aware. I informed Hu Hao that we would dispatch Imperial personnel to assume control of those armories as soon as a corridor is opened.
"However... what puzzles me is that in his initial after-action report regarding the retreat to Late City, Hu Hao explicitly stated that he had blown up the specialized manufacturing equipment at those armories to deny them to the enemy. How is he able to resume production now if the equipment was destroyed?" the Emperor mused, a seed of doubt taking root in his mind.
He could believe Hu Hao had managed to jury-rig a light weapons assembly line, but resuming production at the highly specialized tank and aircraft plants? If the equipment had truly been destroyed as reported, restarting production should be physically impossible. The discrepancy made the Emperor highly suspicious.
"Exactly, Your Majesty! Hu Hao reported that the armories were destroyed! Where is he getting the equipment to manufacture weapons?! Heavy industrial manufacturing equipment requires custom fabrication; he couldn't possibly scavenge it! He lied in his official report!" Tang Long seized on the Emperor's doubt immediately.
"Mm. Crown Prince, you must contact Hu Hao and demand a full explanation regarding this discrepancy!" the Emperor ordered, his expression darkening.
"Understood!" the Crown Prince nodded, his own suspicions aroused.
"Your Majesty, we have absolutely no idea what Hu Hao is truly planning behind enemy lines! Why hasn't he attempted to punch a corridor through to our lines?
"Look at his previous combat record! When he commanded a mere corps, he simultaneously engaged and defeated three or four Allied corps! Now he commands an army of hundreds of thousands! He is absolutely capable of breaking the encirclement!
"I strongly suspect he is deliberately remaining encircled. He is hoarding troops, building an independent military-industrial complex, and consolidating power. He intends to become an independent warlord!" Tang Long continued his vicious character assassination.
"General of the Left, those are grave accusations! Hu Hao is barely twenty years old. Why would a young man harbor such treasonous ambitions? Do not speak of this again!" the Emperor reprimanded Tang Long sharply.
"Jiang Kai is not a young man, Your Majesty! It is highly probable that Hu Hao and Jiang Kai are coordinating this! Jiang Kai holds the central front, while Hu Hao anchors his flank and builds an independent power base! Your Majesty, you must take this threat seriously!" Tang Long refused to back down.
"Do not make baseless accusations without evidence! Jiang Kai has proven his absolute loyalty to the Empire! He would never engage in treason!" the Emperor roared, his face flushing with anger.
"Yes, Your Majesty. But we must remain vigilant!" Tang Long insisted, pushing the issue despite the Emperor's obvious fury.
"Enough! We will not discuss this further! We will demand an explanation from Hu Hao regarding the armories. Right now, our primary focus must be the massive training initiative!
"We have authorized a massive expansion; our total military strength will soon exceed six million men! We have the manpower, but their combat effectiveness depends entirely on the frontline commanders. While we have promoted many new generals, their actual capabilities remain untested," the Emperor declared, firmly shifting the topic.
The generals quickly pivoted to discussing the logistical and administrative hurdles of the massive training program.
After the meeting concluded, the Emperor and the Crown Prince walked back toward the inner palace. The Emperor walked with his hands clasped behind his back, his brow furrowed in deep thought.
"My son... do you truly believe Hu Hao intends to become a warlord?" the Emperor asked suddenly.
"Ah? Surely not! Hu Hao is so young! Why would he even consider such a thing? He literally just saved the Empire from internal collapse! Would he really dare to risk universal condemnation to crown himself a warlord?" the Crown Prince asked, shocked by the question.
"The other generals wouldn't dare because they haven't won any battles, nor have they protected the common people. But Hu Hao? He has held his defensive lines against overwhelming odds. He is operating deep within enemy territory.
"Furthermore, he now controls an independent military-industrial complex and commands massive resources. If he truly decides to declare independence, I am utterly powerless to stop him. His prestige—both among his soldiers and the civilian populace—is undoubtedly astronomical!" the Emperor sighed heavily, the weight of his paranoia pressing down on him.
"Imperial Father, what should we do?!" the Crown Prince asked, anxiety gripping him.
"We must extract Hu Hao from that encirclement! We cannot allow him to remain isolated out there! At the very least, we must force him to punch a corridor through to our lines so we can embed our political commissars and Chief of Staff! The armories must be brought back under the direct control of the Ministry of Defense!" the Emperor stated firmly, his pace quickening.
"But Hu Hao has explicitly stated he currently lacks the combat power to break the encirclement!" the Crown Prince argued, worried about pushing Hu Hao too hard.
"In two months, I expect he will have the power. It doesn't matter if he can't do it right now. The rainy season prevents the Allied forces from attacking anyway, giving him ample time to train his recruits and expand his forces.
"But the moment the rainy season ends, he must break the encirclement! It is an absolute imperative! We must bring Hu Hao back under our direct control!" the Emperor commanded.
"Understood!" the Crown Prince nodded.
"When you return to your office, contact Hu Hao immediately! Demand a full explanation regarding the armories! He must provide a satisfactory answer!" the Emperor reiterated his order.
"Yes, Imperial Father!" the Crown Prince bowed.
Meanwhile, in Daman City, Hu Hao was immersed in the monumental task of organizing his massive, unruly army into a cohesive command structure. He was drafting the official Order of Battle, assigning the countless independent regiments into proper Divisions and Corps.
He could leave the Division Commander slots vacant for now, but every single regiment needed to know which Division it belonged to for logistical and operational purposes.
As he was agonizing over the spreadsheet, a communications officer hurried over. "Hao-ge, Commander Jiang Kai is on the secure line!"
"Oh!" Hu Hao immediately picked up the receiver.
"Greetings, Commander. This is Hu Hao," he answered with a smile.
"Good. Listen to me, you little brat, what exactly is going on over there?! I just received a backchannel report. Tang Long just accused you of illegally manufacturing weapons! He claims you've restarted production at the tank and aircraft plants!
"He says you lied about blowing up the manufacturing equipment before the retreat! Is this true?! The Crown Prince will be calling you any minute now to demand an explanation!" Jiang Kai demanded urgently.
Hu Hao's heart sank. He knew this secret couldn't be kept forever, but the timing was terrible.
"Well... Commander... it's true I didn't blow up the equipment. But how the hell did Tang Long find out?!" Hu Hao rubbed his temples, frustrated.
"Tang Long oversaw the entire Imperial military-industrial complex before the war! Of course he still has loyalists embedded in those armories! Do you think he's blind and deaf?!
"You foolish brat! Why didn't you just blow the equipment up?! Why did you bring this massive political disaster down on your own head?!" Jiang Kai scolded him frantically.
"Commander, you don't understand! How was I supposed to blow them up?! The warehouses weren't empty! They were packed to the rafters with completed weapons! Tanks, artillery, APCs, rifles... and mountains of ammunition!
"If I had set off demolition charges in those factories, the sympathetic detonations would have leveled half of Late City!" Hu Hao defended his decision vehemently.
"What did you just say?! Packed with weapons?! The official logistics reports stated those armories were completely empty!" Jiang Kai was stunned.
"They were full! Every single warehouse was packed to capacity with brand-new weapons and munitions!" Hu Hao insisted.
"How is that possible?! They were full?!" Jiang Kai couldn't believe it.
"I can provide photographic evidence! There were enough weapons and munitions stockpiled there to fully equip an army of over a million men! Tell me, Commander, how could I possibly blow that up without killing tens of thousands of my own men?!" Hu Hao argued.
"I see... Alright. You will report exactly that to the Emperor! Since Tang Long wants to play political games and accuse you of treason, the Emperor is going to demand a very thorough explanation from Tang Long as to why a million men's worth of weapons were secretly hoarded in Late City while the frontline troops were fighting with empty rifles!" Jiang Kai said, his voice turning ice-cold as he realized the magnitude of Tang Long's corruption.
"Understood. But Commander... why would Tang Long bring this up now? If he knew I didn't blow up the armories, he must also know I secured that massive stockpile of weapons. By exposing me, isn't he just exposing his own massive embezzlement scheme?!" Hu Hao asked, utterly confused by Tang Long's self-destructive maneuver.
"He probably assumed you did blow them up, or at least that you hadn't discovered the full extent of the hoard. Alternatively... you simply know too much. He wants you dead.
"He knows you've recruited hundreds of thousands of troops. He probably deduced you're arming them with the stockpile he hid in your sector. Whatever you say now, Tang Long will vehemently deny it. But that doesn't matter. As long as the Emperor believes you, that's all that counts!" Jiang Kai explained the vicious political calculation.
Hu Hao remained skeptical. He couldn't believe Tang Long was stupid enough to employ a "kill a thousand enemies to lose eight hundred" strategy. It was political suicide!
"Report! The Crown Prince is on the secure line!" another communications officer interrupted.
"The Crown Prince is calling? Speak carefully! Deflect the blame onto Tang Long's logistics department! I'm hanging up!" Jiang Kai ordered before cutting the connection.
As the line went dead, Hu Hao's mind continued to race. Why would Tang Long do this? There is zero benefit for him...
Pushing the thought aside, Hu Hao took the receiver from the other staff officer and answered the Crown Prince's call.
(End of Chapter)