Under the towering Oriental Pearl Tower, the magnificent Jiangnan Conference Center stands solemn and majestic.

In Pearl Square, the fully armed security guards were on high alert, and there were even speedboats patrolling on the river.

The winter sun shines into the venue through the golden glass ceiling. In the center of the dome, a sun and moon pattern is inlaid with precious red colored glaze, and seven red five-pointed stars surround it.

This is also the new banner that Jiangnan Group will soon adopt!

The sun and moon represent the Great Ming Dynasty, and the seven stars represent the rule of the seven seas! It comes from "The History of Emperor Mu": "The flag of the sun and the moon, the pattern of the seven stars."

This is a flag for carrying on the past and forging ahead into the future, a flag for pioneering and forging ahead! It is also a flag for revolutionary creation!

Zhao Hao then spoke under the sun, moon and seven stars flag to a large delegation consisting of group executives, senior engineers, senior police officers, first-class model workers, first-class meritorious service personnel, and combat heroes who had been employed for more than ten years:

"Then everyone will inevitably ask, without the protection of Grand Tutor Zhang, will we be targeted? Will we be implicated when Emperor Wanli liquidates Zhang's party? Now the group is large and powerful, affecting the fate of millions of employees and tens of millions of people. It also shoulders the historical mission of dominating the Age of Exploration and the century-long immigration. There is no room for error!"

"At this critical turning point, there are naturally many emotions within the group, and our representatives have many voices. These days, I have learned that everyone's starting point is for the good of the group, and they hope that our business will not be affected. This is beyond doubt. But how will the situation develop, how should we respond, and most importantly, what will our future be like? Everyone has different views. Today, I will give my answers to these three questions one by one."

The representatives in the audience listened attentively. Since taking notes was not allowed at the preparatory meeting, they could only try their best to write down every word Zhao Hao said.

"First, how will the situation develop? As far as I know, there are three main opinions - one is, it's like trying to find a nephew with a lantern - let's keep it as it is. Their reason is that my father is in the cabinet, and Lord Shen is one of their own. The new Lord Liu is also the same age as my father, so there should be no problem getting along with him. There are so many officials trained by us in the court and the local areas, so there is strength in numbers, and we should be able to continue to withstand pressure from all sides."

"The second view is that once the emperor has stabilized the situation and has time, he will go all out to wipe us out! Those who hold this view use the fact that the court sent ministers to eliminate the Wufeng ship owner as an argument, and believe that the court will never give up on the forces that threaten its rule."

"Another possibility is that, because we are now so large and involved in so many aspects, the imperial court will be cautious and will not kill us. Instead, they will continue to suppress and erode us until we are weakened to the point where we are no longer a threat."

"The three views have one significant common point, which is that they believe that the imperial court must punish us." Zhao Hao couldn't help but laugh: "Is that the case? I think so. Because we ourselves think we deserve to be punished, let alone outsiders."

"Hahaha..." The whole meeting room burst into laughter. The big boss really kept his word and spoke his mind!

"Let's analyze them one by one. First of all, the first view is too optimistic. Indeed, the group has worked hard for 20 years and is no longer a soft persimmon that can be easily squeezed! This is true! But we must also admit that under the political system of the Ming Dynasty, the emperor has supreme and unrestricted power - although in the past few decades, it seems that the Holy Son of Heaven ruled the country with all orders from the cabinet. But that is just the result of the emperor's laziness and young age! Once he wants to take back his power, he can turn the cabinet into a decoration in a minute! Beat the butts of all officials!"

"In addition, through observation, we found that Emperor Wanli inherited his grandfather's stubborn character and strong desire for power, and would never compromise with his ministers. His determination to settle accounts with Zhang Taishi, who had devoted his life to him, shows that for the sake of his own power and ambition, he did not even care about his own country. So what else would he not dare to do? So we think that the first view is too optimistic."

"The second view is too pessimistic. It took the imperial court nearly twenty years to wipe out the Wufeng ship owner. Our group is no match for the King of Jinghai back then! If the day comes when we have to overturn the table, at least militarily, we can guarantee victory!" Zhao Hao said domineeringly, "It's a pity that the Wanli Emperor is just bad, not stupid, and he has very limited courage, so he probably won't dare to overturn the table."

The audience laughed again, and the delegates could not contain their excitement and whispered to each other for the first time. In the final analysis, military strength is the guarantee of security and the source of courage!

"The third view is a relatively reliable prediction, but it is not accurate enough." Zhao Hao continued in a deep voice:

"On the one hand, we have enough strength to protect ourselves. Anyone who wants to eat us up will only break their teeth. So they can't rush and can only take it slowly. But on the other hand, does the emperor have the patience to take one step at a time? I don't think so. He is 25 years old this year and has been waiting for 15 years. At the age when he has the least patience, he has worn out all his patience. So we will see him in the future, showing his teeth and claws and trying to eat us from time to time. After breaking his mouth full of blood, he will have to stop and even lower himself to ask us to help him solve his difficulties."

"But once he recovers from his wounds and gets through this difficult time, he will definitely come back and try to beat the old master with random punches again." Zhao Hao said confidently:

"As for using more sophisticated strategies and more sophisticated operations. Sorry, that is beyond his ability. Because no matter how sophisticated the plan is, it still needs a strong organization to implement it. The biggest problem of the court is the serious lack of organizational ability. Zhang Taishi's performance evaluation system is aimed at this chronic disease. By focusing on organizational ability, the court's administrative ability can be improved. But the civil servants in the world have suffered from performance evaluation for a long time, and Emperor Wanli will definitely not keep this system with the distinct imprint of Zhang Taishi. He is not even sure whether he trusts the civil servants!"

The representatives all nodded. Now the court officials were divided into three parts. The most powerful were the Tian Party composed of officials from the southeast coastal areas; the Mian Party composed of officials from Shanxi, Shaanxi and Henan; and the Zhang Party which had become a thing of the past.

Among them, it goes without saying that the Zhang Party is the one that the emperor wants to wipe out completely; as for the Tian Party, their backers are now holding a meeting to discuss what the emperor will do to them; as for Lao Xier, he is the most cunning one, who will only add insult to injury and never help in times of need. Anyone with a brain will not count on them.

Although there are always opportunists like Gui E and Zhang Cong among the civil servants, how many of them are truly trustworthy?

So Zhao Hao said with a hint of sarcasm: "So we judge that he will rely more on eunuchs to do these things. You can always trust the quality and integrity of eunuchs. There must be nothing they can't do, only you can't think of it!"

The representatives all smiled, but they were also worried. Would the eunuchs recalled by Emperor Muzong to guard the various places be about to make a comeback?

"So our judgment is that this will be a protracted confrontation, but it will not be a constant battle. Instead, there will be intermittent outbreaks of fierce conflicts, and the intensity of the conflicts will spiral upward until they evolve into the Red Lotus Karma Fire that will reduce the instigator to ashes!"

~~

“That’s my assessment of the future direction of the situation.”

Zhao Hao took a sip from his teacup and continued, "Let's talk about how we should respond. I've heard three different opinions on this: the theory of attacking, the theory of passive defense, and the theory of staying away."

"Let's analyze them one by one. First, the proactive attack theory. The spirit of those who hold this view is precious. If we want to lead China to victory in this era of great navigation, we need this proactive and aggressive spirit! But everything must be analyzed based on specific circumstances. We must make one thing clear, that is, our strength comes not only from our organization, our management, our technology, but also from our beliefs!"

"Because we are not only fighting for ourselves, we are also fighting for our descendants and all the Chinese people to create a new world that breaks out of the cycle of order and chaos, lives happier and has a brighter future!"

Zhao Hao raised his voice and said to the representatives: "So we firmly believe that we are just and progressive! All the soldiers of our armed forces - the Coast Guard, the People's Liberation Army, the Reserve Force, the Security Group, and the Workers' Guard - also firmly believe that we are just and progressive! This glorious sense of mission is the source of our strength!"

"For a just and civilized army, the justice of the war is of vital importance. This kind of justice is not just because I say it is just, nor is it just because you say it is just, but it must be considered just by the majority of the people!" Zhao Hao said in a deep voice:

"We must admit that this is not easy. Emperor Taizu has made great contributions to China, and the Ming Dynasty has been established for 200 years. The moral principles of monarch and ministers have been rooted in China for 2,000 years! As the saying goes, if the monarch wants his subjects to die, the subjects have to die. If the subjects dare not die, it is a great rebellion! Dare to resist? That is rebellion!"

The reactions of the audience were different at this time. Some people were so excited that their faces turned red, some laughed happily. But some people were pale and sweating...

This just proves what Zhao Hao said.

"This means that we can only respond to one side, and cannot take the initiative to attack. We must at least make all the employees of the group, all the officers and soldiers, the people of the 18 administrative regions, and the people of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, and Jiaodong firmly believe in the justice of the war. Otherwise, once the faith is shattered, we will pay an unbearable heavy price!"

"It's even more wrong to stay away from them. The 18 overseas provinces are our strategic rear, but they must not be treated as isolated places! If the Jiangnan Group leaves Jiangnan, it will become a tree without roots and will surely die. Moreover, we want to create a new world for China. What's the point of a new world that does not include China?"

After hearing this, the representatives felt relieved. Most of them were living in the mainland, and they were really worried that they would not be able to bury their bones in their hometown...