Red Alert 1895

Chapter 171: Warship Transactions (Part 1)

In Tianjin, the residence of the Governor of Zhili, Wang Wenshao, who succeeded Li Hongzhang as the Governor of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang, listened to the report from Taiwan and felt extremely headache. |经|苏|xiao|说|.|Wang Wenshao is Li Hongzhang's successor after he was dismissed, but he is also Li Hongzhang's favorite student, so it is actually Li Hongzhang who is behind the scenes. And Li Hongzhang was humiliated by Wang Guorui in Taiwan, and his son also broke an arm, which made Li Hongzhang very depressed. However, the Taiwan issue was also very worrying to the Manchu Qing government. After all, Taiwan's strength was getting stronger and stronger, and there was a tendency of alienation.

Even if the Qing court knew that Taiwan was not independent, it was because Wang Guorui was ambitious and wanted to seize the central government. But they could only grit their teeth and sign the special administrative region plan with Wang Guorui, because China has had the idea of ​​maintaining national unity since ancient times, so even if Man Qing knew that Wang Guorui had bad intentions, he could only bear with it. Now Taiwan originally did not have a navy, but now a Taiwan navy has been established, and its strength is still very strong. This makes Zhili Governor Wang Wenshao very toothache.

Because the backbone of the Taiwan Navy was formed from the sailor officers of the Beiyang Navy, and the Beiyang Navy was dug out this time, but it was hollowed out a lot. Especially those sailors with combat experience, and even many officers were poached away, and the hearts of the Beiyang Navy were floating. And the Beiyang navy is now in a state of mind, so they have nothing to do. Even if you force them to stay, if you can keep people but not your heart, then what is the best way?

"My lord, how can you stabilize the hearts of the people in the Beiyang Navy! Now everyone in the Beiyang Navy seems to have left, what should we do?" Wang Wenshao asked Li Hongzhang.

Li Hongzhang just said two words: "Warship!"

Hearing these two words, Wang Wenshao immediately understood. If there is no warship for a long time. How could those sailors without warships be at ease? If a navy does not have warships, the hearts of the people will be scattered sooner or later, so what is the cohesion? So we must get warships as soon as possible. If there are no warships for a long time, then those sailors will naturally have to find their own way out, and Taiwan is the only way out in China. Anyway, in Taiwan, it also belongs to China. In the eyes of most people, it is not treason, so there is no psychological pressure to seek refuge. so. It is imperative to re-acquire warships and form a navy.

Soon, Wang Wenshao also proposed to Manqing Haoying to reorganize the Beiyang Navy. And repurchase warships. And this suggestion has been supported by many people, even Emperor Guangxu, because one of his reform and reform plans is to form a navy, and he can't face himself. And people in the Qing Dynasty also know that if there is no navy, they will not be invaded, and even their own safety will not be protected.

The relevant provisions were sent to Cixi, and Cixi gave an instruction: "Anhydrous, how can Taiwan be controlled!"

Cixi still understands very well, knowing that this navy must not be omitted. At present, even if the Manchu and Qing dynasties are selling iron, they still have to form a navy. After all, Taiwan is an isolated island, but it has a powerful navy, so if Taiwan wants it. It can land and fight from a certain point in the coastal area of ​​the mainland at any time, and then seize the land of the mainland at any time. Even, if Taiwan's army lands directly from Tianjin under the cover of the navy, it can threaten Beijing at any time. What should we do at that time? Taiwan's army is recognized by the world's major powers as not necessarily an opponent's army, if it is not too small in number. That's probably enough to become the world's number one army. And Cixi, who got this evaluation, how could she not panic. Since the army cannot confront Taiwan. That is to form a navy. Anyway, as long as Taiwan's navy is intercepted, Taiwan's army is like a toothless tiger, which cannot hurt anyone.

"Master Wang Wenshao, I am the general manager of the Hans Shipyard in Germany. My name is Adolf. I heard that your country is going to form a navy, so we specially recommend our warships. I hope you can accept it. This is my deputy manager, yes You Chinese!" said a foreigner with a big nose.

And Wang Wenshao immediately felt strange, when did the Germans have a Hans shipyard? And I want to purchase warships, and this shipyard who doesn't know where they come from actually wants to get involved in the warship business, which is a bit strange.

"Where did your Hans shipyard come from?" Wang Wenshao asked.

And the big-nosed foreigner immediately said, "Let's ask my deputy manager Zhang Dekai to introduce this!"

And the deputy manager Zhang Dekai immediately said: "Our Hans Shipyard is a powerful shipyard that can manufacture all kinds of warships. As long as the world can have warships, then our Hans Shipyard can also manufacture them, even You need the most advanced battleships of the British, the Sovereign-class battleships, and we can provide them."

It was only then that Wang Wenshao felt a little interesting. The Hans Shipyard had such a huge tone, and even said that it could manufacture the most advanced British battleship Sovereign Class. This obviously made him feel bragging. But soon Wang Wenshao also began to be a little tempted, because is this true? After all, if you dare to brag in front of important officials of a country, you need capital.

"My lord, if you don't believe me, then we can produce some evidence. For example, the Taiwan fleet in your country is also the warship we provided. This is the warship procurement contract signed by the governor of Taiwan and our Hans company. There are dozens of warships in total. All warships were purchased from us."

Wang Wenshao suddenly took a deep breath, he did not expect that the warships in Taiwan were provided by the so-called Hans company, this is too scary. Wang Wenshao is also a person who has been engaged in foreign affairs for many years, so he naturally knows how difficult it is to manufacture warships, but this Hans company is so powerful that it can manufacture so many warships? And if Taiwan's warships are really provided by this Hans company, then it is really a good purchaser. After all, they can even manufacture the most powerful warships of the British, so what kind of warships do you want? Can't get it out yet?

Soon, Wang Wenshao also took a look at the warship procurement contract between Wang Guorui and Hans Company, which finally convinced Wang Wenshao of the situation.

"Why do you want to bypass our central government and trade warships with Taiwan?" Wang Wenshao asked.

But that Zhang Dekai immediately said indifferently: "We just need money and have no other purpose. No matter which country in the world comes to buy from us, we will agree. We will not participate in politics, we just need to sell things. Now, as for your conflicts, we will not take care of them."

And Wang Wenshao has nothing to do. Now that Taiwan's warships have been obtained, the deal is done. What else can Wang Wenshao say? Moreover, if this Hans company really seems to be so powerful, then it is not impossible for Wang Wenshao to purchase warships from them.

"Can you provide any warships you really want?" Wang Wenshao asked.

"As long as you can afford it, then choose any warship in this world, and we can copy it. Moreover, our delivery speed is very fast, at least ten times faster than other warships. .” Zhang Dekai said.

Wang Wenshao almost sat down on the ground, because of course he knew the construction period of a warship. A battleship takes at least two or three years to build, but this Hans company can actually shorten it by ten times, that is, it can obtain a battleship in less than three months, which is simply amazing.

You must know that Wang Wenshao needs warships very much now, he must get warships as soon as possible, and then form his own navy. Only when the mainland has a navy can the mainland be able to defend against the Japanese and Taiwan attacks, otherwise it would be a tragedy for a country as big as theirs to have no defense against the sea. The sooner the warship is the better, the Qing court can't wait, and if the Hans company can deliver the goods within a few months, then Wang Wenshao can be sure that the court will be tempted. Time is money~lightnovelpub.net~ Time is life, this is the case for the current situation of Manchu Qing. They didn't know if Wang Guorui would take the initiative to attack at any time, then they would be in big trouble.

"Besides, if you are willing to purchase warships from us, then we can give 20% of the price as a rebate and return it to you adults!" Zhang Dekai said.

And Wang Wenshao suddenly felt that this Hans company was too good at making troubles, and actually offered a rebate, and it was a high rebate of 20%! This company is not only powerful, but also so capable, which is simply great. A warship can cost millions of taels of silver, which is a huge number. You must know that this time the imperial court did not hesitate to allocate a huge amount of money in order to guard against Wang Guorui's Taiwan forces, and then to buy powerful warships! If you can make a fortune out of this huge sum of money, you will have a lot to eat. I am afraid that the whole court will be very satisfied with this Hans company.

"Even if you pay two-tenths of the deposit, then we can produce. After the production is completed, we can pay the final payment again. If you can't pay that much money for a while, we can't afford it." You can pay by installments, but you will have to pay interest. Moreover, if you choose to pay in installments, the rebates will also be returned in installments, I hope you will consider it carefully." Zhang Dekai said. (to be continued)