Chapter 165 Another beard!
On the blue Mediterranean Sea, a cargo ship flying the British flag is sailing slowly. In the bridge, several men are sitting together and talking happily.
"Dear Lu, is this true?" A white man stood up quickly with wide eyes and said in less fluent English.
A black-haired man sitting opposite him smiled and said, "Of course, the first batch is on the way. It is estimated that it will arrive at the port of Durban in a month. All you need to do is sign for it."
"Lu! Thank you so much." Hearing what the other party said, the white man picked up the black-haired man excitedly and shouted. And several white people around him also hugged the nearest people and shouted loudly.
"God, 30,000 rifles, which is twice as much as the Germans sold to us." After the white man calmed down, he shouted, "Lu, tell me, how on earth did you get so many guns? Are you a relative of William II?
"Haha." Hearing the funny words of the white man, Lu laughed and blinked deliberately: "Dear Mr. Phyllis, have you forgotten where I came from?"
"Far East!" Phyllis remembered Lu's birth, but he still didn't understand. Didn't the Far East say that there was a war? How can there be so many guns for sale?
"I bought this batch of guns from the Hawaiians." The man known as Lu reminded.
"Young Master of Hawaii!" Even if he is in Boer, he has been in European countries for a long time. He is still familiar with the names often mentioned by the nobles of European countries today, but he is a little confused. Aren't the Hawaiians going to fight with Japan again? How can there be extra arms for sale?
Lu knew that he would have doubts and said slowly, "After my defeat, their arsenal was emptied by the Hawaiians. How many troops do you think there are in Hawaii? That's why I got this batch of arms.
"Oh." Phyllis finally understood, but before he wanted to ask how he bought this batch of arms, he heard a sudden call from outside the cabin: "Boss, there are several Russian [***] ships in front of him."
Russian [***] ship?
Lu Fei stood up quickly. To be honest, if it was another [***] ship, he would not be surprised at all. He boarded ships in the Mediterranean Sea. He didn't meet one or two warships that day, but the Russian [***] ship was different. You know, not long ago, a batch of Russian [***] ships passed from here. How could there be another Russian [* **] What about the appearance of the ship? When can the Russians come to the Mediterranean to swim?
"Are there a few small warships passing by?" Lu frowned and ran to the high side of the bridge, but as soon as he came up, he saw several crew members pointing at a huge fleet not far away.
One, two, three, four!
Lu, who counted the warships, thumped, and there were four large warships in front of him!
According to intelligence, the Russian fleet to the Far East has already arrived there, but how can four large warships appear here now? And looking at their goal, it seems to go eastward!
It's a pity that he really doesn't know Russian, and the intelligence department's infiltration into Russia is also because the language is not ideal, so he doesn't understand the letters of the bow at all, and there is a white sweat on his forehead.
"God, that's the battleships Chesma and Sinop!"
When Lu was confused, Felix's voice suddenly sounded beside him. He quickly asked, "Phillis, do you know Russian?"
"No, I don't know Russian." Phyllis smiled and pointed to the two huge figures in the middle: "But the last time I was in France, I met these two warships. A French friend told me, hehe, what two big guys!"
Phillis looked at the two battleships and his eyes lit up. He didn't notice that Lu's face on the side had changed at all. This is the only way to the Suez Canal and the nearest sea route from Europe to the Far East. Since the Russian fleet is here, it will certainly not come to hang out and fish. If these two battleships, and The last two large cruisers are also going to the Far East, so
Thinking of this, Lu's face suddenly turned very dark, which was a serious intelligence mistake!
Damn it! Everyone was misled by the Russians!
They sent two fleets! โโ
As soon as Li Mo stepped on the Pearl Harbor wharf, he received a report of the North Korean incident. Looking at the detailed incident in his hand, he couldn't help sighing.
Historically, Concubine Min of North Korea was killed on October 8, 1895, also known as the End of the B Incident. Originally, he thought that he had defeated him, and this matter would not happen again, but he didn't expect that after half a year, the Empress Mingcheng still did not escape the disaster.
This incident also represents that the Russians officially intervened in the affairs of the Far East. Although it was a year earlier than the Three Kingdoms in history to occupy the Northeast, it was not too unexpected by Li Mo. The greed of the tsars of the land was very famous, and how could they give up the fat meat of the Far East!
However, at this moment, Master Li has no time to take care of North Korea's business, because he was followed by the German Far East Cruise Fleet, who came from afar, and a nasty beard!
Urgently came back from the South Sea. In addition to the sudden appearance of Russian elite Cossack cavalry, half of it was for the German Far East cruise fleet composed of a battleship and three cruisers, because the current commander of this fleet was Tier, who became famous in Europe a few years later and was known as the founder of the German navy. Pitz!
Li Mo didn't expect that this beard, who was supposed to be in Europe, would become the commander of the Far East Cruise Fleet a year earlier, and a battleship was also included in this visit!
You know, in the Far East and even the entire Pacific Ocean, except for Papua New Guinea and a few lonely islands, Germany has a decent colony and no port that can provide battleship supplies. This visit actually sent a battleship, and the intention to show muscles is obvious!
For a continental country and another big country trying to touch the world's emperor, Germany's current strength and status do not match. No one likes to stand by the table, holding a knife and fork, but watching a small country like Italy stuff fat into its mouth.
This annoying Tirpitz, don't you know that there is something wrong with the young master?! What do you want to do when you come to the Far East at this time?
Angry, really angry!
Finally, Master Li had to give up the impulse to immediately correct her on the spot in the resentful eyes of Xiao Yueer to welcome the German Far East Cruise Fleet.
Brandenburg!
Looking at the battleship that is coming to the port, Master Li, a half-hearted military fan and a battleship enthusiast, finally saw this famous German former Dreadnought-class battleship with his own eyes. Like its owner, the steel ship is full of cold and rigorous Prussian style.
Compared with the former dreadnought-class battleship King Power in the true sense of the first class of Britain, the Brandenburg class, which was in service for a whole year, there are obviously new changes. The first is the number of main guns, which is also where many Harder fans are most talked about this class of battleships, that is, he installed three doors along the central axis for the first time. The double 280mm main gun is arranged in the front, middle and back, but I don't know whether it is uncontrollable to increase the rectal force after the long-pipe gun, or to facilitate the rotation of the barrel between the superstructure buildings, the barrel of the No. 2 turret installed in the middle of the hull has been shortened, with only 35 times the caliber.
Although the caliber is uniform, the effect of different multiples is also different, and compared with the popular front and rear turrets, or the diamond layout created by France, this design is so anachable that the second-level Kaiser-Fredrich III in Germany abandons this design.
The Germans lost an opportunity to innovate!
Young Master Li flattened his mouth. Do you want to remind the Germans? However, when he saw that Tirupitz, who had two beards, was coming down from the gangway, he immediately aroused the hatred of being disturbed by him, and decided not to say anything!
Compared with Britain, the leader of the shipbuilding industry today, except for the faster firing speed of the main gun, the Brandenburg really has nothing to show off, especially compared with the majesty level that came out in advance by Master Li, the displacement of more than 10,000 is really a little big, not as good as the Arctic star, not to mention the Lord. The engine power is only a poor 9,000 horsepower, which is really a disgrace to the famous German engine experts in later generations.
"Dear Grand Duke, it's a great honor to meet you."
Before Master Li could continue to comment, with a beard, the energetic Tirpitz had come to the front, untied his snow-white gloves and stretched out his right hand. No need to hug?" Looking at the two-handed beard surnamed Tierpitz, Master Li finally burst out his breath. This is a hug by this guy, really!
"Li Mo, on behalf of the Kingdom of Hawaii, welcome you and wish you a wonderful journey here." Li Mo held the big hand of this generation of great men in the German navy and was excited! I really want to take out the signature book with only one name so far.
"Do you want to sign?"
"I didn't expect the Grand Duke to speak German so well. It really surprised me!" Hearing that Li Mo actually spoke to himself in German, Tiltitz couldn't help but be surprised.
"In fact, I have always appreciated your culture very much, so I specially hired a language teacher to teach me German!" The corners of Li Mo's mouth twitched, grandma! If it hadn't been for this broken German, would the young master have traveled here?
With the shouts of the salute in snow-white navy uniforms on the dock, the rumble of salute sounded, welcoming guests from Germany. Subsequently, Li Mo accompanied Tierpitz to jointly review the fleets of the two countries.
Finally, after visiting each other's battleships, the two returned to the German mansion where Tirpitz was staying. Not waiting for the attendants to bring Tirpitz's favorite beer, they heard the naval awesome man say, "Dear Grand Duke, your Pacific Fleet is really It's an eye-opener, disciplined and well-trained. This is the best fleet I've ever seen.
"Generals are too polite. Compared with your country, they still have many shortcomings. When it comes to discipline, they are not as strong as your country's army. In my opinion, they are models of soldiers." Li Mo thanked and despised it in his heart! It's a good thing for you to disturb the young master, just so I use the army to stimulate you.
Tirpitz is worthy of being a strong man in the navy. Hearing Li Mo praise the Imperial Army, a trace of unhappiness flashed on his face, but this loyal militarist and right-wing man were very good at covering himself. He smiled and said, "Dear Grand Duke, I heard that you will be challenged in two years?"
Dive it! This is what the young master doesn't like to hear. What does it mean to be challenged? I can piece together the garbage and pinch out the egg yolk! Master Li turned his face and pretended to have a pitiful expression: "Yes, damn myself, how dare you challenge me! But you can rest assured that I will never let the British succeed! In any case, I will interrupt their black hands here!"
Tirpitz touched his beard, raised his eyebrows, and laughed: "Dear Grand Duke, do you really hate the British so much? You should know that all the warships in your fleet are made by Britain.
"Oh!" Master Li sighed bitterly: "General, in fact, I have no hatred with Britain, and I was very grateful to them in the past. I have always regarded Britain as a friend of Hawaii, but when I knew that they deliberately delayed the construction cycle of my battleships in order to wait until I was launched with the warships I ordered. I feel betrayed!"
"They are deliberately instigating war in an attempt to let me and I lose both sides and dominate the Far East forever!" The more Young Master Li said, the more angry he became. He wanted to jump on the chair, but he thought that he might lose his temper, so he chose to sit down and wave his fist fiercely and said, "General, you can't understand this kind of pain. Hawaii is just an island country. We just want to live a peaceful life!" And it's not good to be betrayed by a good friend who I once thought it!"
Tirpitz had known about the British slowing down the construction of warships for Hawaii for a long time, so when he heard Li Mo say so, he couldn't help nodding and pretending to be angry: "These British, damn it!"
Tirpitz scolded and suddenly blinked: "Mr. Grand Duke, why don't you choose Germany? China's shipbuilding technology is not worse than that of the United Kingdom, and it has surpassed it in some aspects. Why don't you go to Germany to build ships? If you need it, we can build two battleships and two armored cruisers for you within a year, and we won't betray our friends!"
"Bah! Why does the young master want to build so many battleships!" Hearing Tierpitz's words, Master Li spat secretly. Bah! This old guy just saw the young master get a ticket and deliberately came to promote the warship! And even calculate how many warships the young master needs!
Last Japan's large-scale military expansion plan, Germany had not benefited. Although it finally sent a minister to negotiate, it had no money at that time, so it only got a business of a few torpedo ships, and Britain obtained the manufacture of a total of four battleships and two heavy patrols. Compared with the contract of theyang yangship, it is not worth mentioning at all. Even the United States, which has always looked down on, not only controlled the Japanese economy in one fell swoop, but also successfully entered the Far East because of this opportunity. It is said that after returning to China, the minister was immediately scolded by William II and kicked out of the diplomatic team.
Germany has long been looking for an opportunity to set foot in the rich Far East and the Pacific Ocean. In order to enter the Far East, it showed its existence, and even spent a lot of money to form a Far East cruise fleet, hoping to take a bite on this cake, but in the past few years, a lot of money has been spent, and it is still wandering around the periphery!
Now the proud Prussian Empire, who has just defeated France and established the status of European land king, is no longer willing to be a mainland country. He needs a strong sea power that can match his own status! Seeing that the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries are now fishing in the Far East and Japan, but they can't get involved. Naturally, they are anxious and difficult to send people to find themselves. What's more, this Hawaiian young master really needs to supplement new warships.
Now he not only sent people here, but also a generation of awesome people, Tirpitz, as a lobbyist, and he has no choice but to order several warships by the God of Wealth, who has just "earned" 30 million pounds! But Li Mo also has difficulties, because he really doesn't need so many battleships that are about to become scrap metal. What's more, if the young master wants to fight Maozi, will he spend money and be detained in the end?
Thinking of this, I couldn't help drooling from the bottom of my heart and pretended to drip: "General, is this true? But why did your minister tell me last time that your country is going to build a large number of ships to replace old warships recently. Is there an empty dock?
Tirpitz didn't know that there was still this, so he shook his head quickly: "Dear Grand Duke, please rest assured, as long as you place an order as soon as possible, the German political axe can provide you with four large ships in a year."
Say! This bastard, not to mention the good things of destroying the young master, climb up with the pole! The annual maintenance cost of four large warships alone is hundreds of thousands of yuan. Isn't it going to bankrupt me? But looking at the other party's demeanor, it seems that it may not work. What should I do?
Master Li turned his eyes and said sadly, "General, it's not that I don't want to order warships. It's really that your navy system is completely different from the British system used in our country. As you know, our Kingdom of Hawaii is geographically narrow, and it is impossible to afford two sets of logistics at the same time!"
Hearing Li Mo's words, Tirpitz's eyes lit up and became more enthusiastic!
hurriedly said, "Mr. Grand Duke, you can rest assured that our country can provide you with a full set of logistics equipment. Of course, if you feel troublesome, we can also provide equipment and send engineers to help you build your own logistics system like Italy."
Looking at Tirpitz's red eyes, Master Li was stunned. He really didn't expect that this naval man knew so much about business. If he rebuilt a logistics system according to what he said, he would probably directly declare bankruptcy!
Knowing that this barrier could not be passed, Master Li sighed from the bottom of his heart. This girl drove a warship to extort himself. Unfortunately, he is now powerful and can't offend this great man for a few warships!
It's just spending money! The young master is afraid of everything, but he is not afraid of spending money! However, it can't be so cheap for the Germans, so he immediately said, "General, I have an idea. I don't know if it's okay. If possible, I would be very willing to order two battleships in your country."
"If Mr. Grand Duke has any needs, please let me know that my country and I will try our best to meet your needs." Tierpitz touched his beard and said.
"General, the difference between my [***] ship system and your country is mainly in artillery, so I wonder if you can build two battleships for me, and all the weapon systems will be installed by me. Do you think this is okay?" Li Mo came up with a compromise.
"Only produce warships?" Tierpitz's eyes were cold and he was surprised, "Can the Duke's factory produce its own guns and build battleships?"
"Not yet." Li Mo gritted his teeth. He didn't tell a lie this time. He gritted his teeth and scolded, "Damn the British have withdrawn all the experts, so my shipyard can only produce some protective cruisers at present, but they seem to forget that Italy can also produce 305mm artillery."
"In order not to let the British get stuck in my neck, I have ordered eight double-coup 12-inch main guns, which are ready to be used as a backup for the current battleships, but if your country is willing to build a hull for me, I will install them." Young Master Li said.
Tirpitz understood that this guy was going to install an Italian naval gun. Although Italy also has 305mm naval gun technology, it is not at all the same level as Britain, but he doesn't care about this kind of thing, as long as this guy is willing to order warships, so he immediately said, "Mr. Grand Duke's I will report it to the Admiralty immediately, and it will be up to them to decide whether to do so.
"Thank you very much, General." Li Mo pretended to be happy and took the initiative to hold Tiripitz's hand. While thanking, he asked, "Is it because the general came this time to order me to build a warship? There is no need to bother you for such a trivial matter.
Tirpitz's lips hooked: "This time I come here. In addition to inviting your Pacific Fleet to hold exercises together, I also want to meet Lord Li Hongzhang of the Qing Dynasty, hoping to find a suitable supply station for our fleet."
Supply station!
Li Momei's heart beat a few times, Qingdao! Isn't it forced to be rented by these guys? But he can't ask more about this. Tierpitz is an old fox!
"I think Zhoushan is good. The general can consider it."
"No, Zhoushan is too small to dock on large warships. I prefer Xiamen, Taiwan or Jiaozhou Bay, but the last time I wrote back to the ambassador that Qing Dynasty did not agree with our conditions, because Jiaozhou Bay is too close to his Beiyang Fleet, and Xiamen is too close to the Nanyang Fleet, so I plan to negotiate again this time. Just a moment." Tierpitz said, staring at Li Mo's change from the corners of his eyes.
Li Mo didn't know what the old fox was paying attention to. He was deliberately testing himself. He wanted to know if he would be moved because the Qing Dynasty was his home country, so he immediately said, "I think Xiamen is good, and our country is also negotiating with the Qing government recently, hoping to get a trade port. Why don't we be together?"
"Oh, no, I think we should still separate, otherwise the British will definitely dictate to you again!" Tierpitz frowned and wondered secretly, is it true that the Duke really doesn't care about his mother country? He knew that Master Li, as a latecomer, had no sense of belonging to the braided country at all. At this moment, he was thinking about Liaodong.
"Well, I wish you success, General!" The corners of Li Mo's mouth twitched, and a cold light flashed in his eyes.
These great powers!
There is no good thing! ......
(to be continued)