The villainous second male lead at the beginning? No! He's the white moonlight!

The highest authority in the Dragon Kingdom is the Cabinet, composed of ten permanent council elders. The largest authority below the Cabinet is the Elder Council, which consists of 36 elders, including one speaker and two vice speakers.

The recent events in Haicheng have already attracted the attention of these high-ranking officials, especially the appearance of remote-controlled bombs this time. For a country like China with extremely strict gun control, this is simply a blatant slap in the face!

"I'm sure you've all received the recent intelligence about Haicheng. So, what do you all think we should do?"

Speaker Zhao Yuansheng spoke slowly, his tone calm, making it impossible to discern his true thoughts. However, everyone present was astute enough to know that the calmer Zhao Yuansheng's tone, the stronger his inner rage.

"Is there even a question? Of course, it's blood for blood, tooth for tooth! Anyone who dares to provoke our Dragon Kingdom should be prepared for our Dragon Kingdom's retaliation!"

An elder surnamed Ye spoke slowly, his tone icy and filled with murderous intent.

Anyone would be just as furious upon learning that the most outstanding descendant of their family had almost perished.

"That's right. These foreign powers are really taking our policy of keeping a low profile for granted, thinking we're easy targets. We need to show our fangs and let the world know that China cannot be humiliated!"

"Yes, this is no longer the era of the Dark Ages. The current Dragon Kingdom has plenty of manpower, military, and money. But there are always some people who think that our Dragon Kingdom is weak and easy to bully. We must take this opportunity to show them what a Celestial Empire is!"

"Let me add something. The Dragon King Palace is a legacy issue from the past. We should take this opportunity to completely eradicate it and prevent future troubles. Therefore, I suggest delegating command to the executors so they can make their own decisions."

"And another thing, in recent years, Japan has become increasingly arrogant in its visits to the Yasukuni Shrine. This is a good opportunity to let them know who the real master of this dog is!"

Listening to everyone's opinions, Zhao Yuansheng nodded and slowly said.

"I understand everyone's opinions. In short, we must take this opportunity to let the Thousand Sun Kingdom know that our Dragon Kingdom is no longer the poor and weak Dragon Kingdom of the past, and we must make them pay the price for this incident!"

Zhao Yuansheng is a true democrat and a staunch supporter of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. He is capable of doing anything to make China strong.

Even if it meant doing something shady against his conscience, he would do it without hesitation.

So even though it's still unclear who the real culprit behind the recent events in Haicheng is, that doesn't stop him from pinning the blame on Qianri Kingdom.

Who told us that the Kingdom of Thousand Days has a history of enmity and recent grievances with us!

If we don't pin the blame on them, who should we pin it on? We can't just act without a legitimate reason, can we?

"I think it's feasible."

"Furthermore, I believe it is necessary to issue an ultimatum to the Thousand Japan Kingdom and notify its government. In addition, preparations should be made; I suggest conducting high-intensity, long-duration military exercises in the Taiwan area as a form of military deterrence!"

As Elder Ye Xiong finished speaking, the entire council was instantly shaken.

High-intensity, long-duration military exercises?

Is it really necessary to go to this extent?

After hesitating for a moment, an elder surnamed Zhang spoke up.

"Old Ye, is it really necessary to do this? You need to understand that military exercises cost a fortune. Although this year's defense budget is a trillion, only a little over 2000 billion has been spent so far. But once military exercises begin, the money burned every day will be astronomical!"

"Yes, Lao Ye, a country like the Thousand Sun Kingdom doesn't need to go to such lengths. A diplomatic note would be enough to deter them from acting recklessly."

Ye Xiong smiled and pulled out the powerful weapon he had prepared beforehand.

"I'm sure everyone knows what the Ye family does. The expenses for this military exercise..."

Before Ye Xiong could finish speaking, all the elders present lit up in unison.

What's this old man up to? Is he planning to have the Ye family cover the costs of this military exercise?

If that's the case, holding a military exercise wouldn't be a bad idea. Exercises can not only improve the army's combat effectiveness, but also deter neighboring countries. Most importantly, if the Ye family bears the military expenses instead of the state paying for them, that would be perfect!

It's important to understand that conducting a military exercise around Taiwan costs at least 10 billion red coins per day. If it lasts for a month, it would cost at least 300 billion. If you add the cost of live ammunition, it would probably cost at least 500 billion over a month!

This is equivalent to 1/20 of the annual defense budget. Even though China's economy has developed rapidly in recent years, spending 500 billion on a military exercise, while not enough to cripple China, is still something to be saved on if it is not necessary.

"What are you thinking? Although our Ye family is wealthy, money doesn't come from thin air."

Ye Xiong couldn't help but roll his eyes at Zhang Ze, who had spoken first, and said irritably.

"Huh? It's not your Ye family that's covering it? Then what are you trying to say? You can't exactly tell me the exercise expenses are still borne by the state, can you? You can take back what you just said. Although there's still 8000 billion left in this year's defense budget, don't forget that the second half of the year is when the major expenditures will begin. Various projects will be launched, and even 8000 billion might not be enough."

"Alright, alright, Zhang Ze, shut your mouth! You just don't want to pay, do you have to make it sound so high and mighty? Besides, I never said that military expenses would be entirely borne by the state."

Ye Xiong smiled, placed the documents in his hand on the table, and gestured for everyone to pass them around and read them.

"What I want to say is that this time, the seven families of Ye, Xiao, Bai, Mo, Liu, Su, and Gu from the eight major families of Haicheng, along with the Luo family from the capital, are willing to share the military expenses. Moreover, this time the scale will be huge, so the eight families have decided to cooperate and contribute 100 billion to make the exercise full of pressure and make the Thousand Sun Kingdom truly feel fear!"

As Ye Xiong finished speaking, everyone present nodded.

This is not a big deal. In fact, the country has benefited from this. After all, military exercises are an essential part of the country's annual budget, and a considerable portion of the budget is allocated to them. Now, even the expenses for military exercises have been saved.

Why not?

"In addition, as everyone knows, our Ye family's prodigy has business in the United States and is very capable in all aspects. Around last year, he designed a small nuclear reactor in the research center in the United States called Abyss, just like the Ark nuclear reactor in the movie Marvel. In fact, according to our little Abyss, the inspiration came from Marvel's Ark. Once it is built, it can easily meet the power supply needs of a town."

"This provides more, cleaner, and safer energy than a nuclear power plant."

As Ye Xiong spoke, he took out a small reactor and placed it on the table.

With the appearance of the Ark Reactor, which Ye Linyuan renamed Abyss, the eerie blue light instantly stunned the entire Elder Council. Everyone first stared intently at the Abyss Reactor in the center of the conference table, and then turned their gaze to Ye Xiong's smug old face.

Looking at this old man's expression that says, "Come on, praise me!", there's a 98% chance it's true!

Damn it, the Ye family must be incredibly lucky! They've actually produced a future energy technology that the Longke Academy is currently only showing on PowerPoint presentations!

A moment later, when the professional team distributed the test report of the Abyss Reactor to the elders, everyone was astonished.

After a long silence, Zhao Yuansheng finally spoke and asked.

"So your Ye family is planning to cooperate with the government?"