The sun sets in the west, and the sky is full of red clouds.

In an official residence in Tokyo, Hirofumi Ito lay quietly on a rattan chair in the courtyard, looking at the crimson purple and crimson sky far away in the west, dazed in a daze. Hearing the familiar footsteps behind him, Ito's wandering gaze instantly condensed and he said softly: "Is it Yamamoto-kun?"

Bending and swaying, I pushed the leaves and brushed the willow, Yamamoto Honbuki appeared in front of Ito. He sat on the seat next to him and said in a deep voice: "After returning from the Prince of Germany, I went straight to the Navy Information Archives and carefully looked up the performance of all active ships in various countries around the world. The final conclusion was that the designs of the warships he gave us were very feasible!"

Hearing Yamamoto's affirmative reply, Ito was shocked, and his face showed an unparalleled shock. He looked solemn and said slowly: "Yamamoto, can you really be sure? Although I am not a special ship designer, I still have some understanding of warships in the past 20 years of development of the Japanese Navy. The patrol plan given by the Germans was more than 300 tons smaller than Asama, the caliber of the main gun was actually two levels larger than Asama, and the armor protection was even better! This kind of thing really did not modify Newton's theorem?"

Yamamoto shook his head slightly and whispered: "As for this aspect of warship design, I am afraid that this aspect of warship design is really as the German prince said; although the British navy is invincible in the world, their warship quality is not the best in the world. In addition to the plan provided to us by Germany, I have also found several designs that are obviously stronger than similar British ships from the active ships of countries around the world."

As he said that, Yamamoto took out several documents from the folder he carried with him and handed it to Ito, saying, "On the battleship, the "Iowa" built by the United States is the best example. This ship, which started construction in 1893 and entered service in 1897, has a permanent displacement of only 11,410 tons, but has super firepower of 4 12-inch, 8-inch and 4 6-inch guns. The waterline armor is as thick as 14-inches and can also be as fast as 16 knots. In contrast, the majestic level that Britain started construction in 1894 was much worse. The displacement of each ship ranged from 14,560 to 14,890 tons, but it was only equipped.

The firepower of 4 12-inch and 12-inch guns is a large difference in firepower. In terms of protection, the majestic main armor belt is only 9 inches thick, and its coverage length and height have not reached a higher level. Based on comprehensive calculations, the armor weight consumed is not heavier than that of Iowa. As for power, the majestic designed speed is also 16 knots, and it can only reach 17 knots under strong pressure and ventilation. In other words, the majestic British majestic started construction one year later than the American Iowa, with a displacement of more than 3,000 tons, but there is no advantage in protection and speed, and the firepower is weaker than that of American ships!"

Ito said suspiciously: "However, in order to pursue navigation, British ships have made their freeboards very high, while American ships have lower freeboards. I seem to remember that the tonnage utilization rate of low-freeboard warships is actually better than high-freeboard warships. It seems understandable that American ships have superior paper performance?"

"I have asked the main designer of the SUMA cruiser that sacrificing the freeboard height of a deck can only achieve partial improvement in the performance of the warship, but it is not enough to cause such a huge gap. The only explanation is that the British have technical defects in the design of the warship! There are many factors that cause this phenomenon, poor structural design techniques, poor subsystem performance, etc., which are the reasons for the sharp surge in the tonnage of the warship; but due to the insufficient information in our hands, it is impossible to know where the British had problems." Yamamoto explained.

Ito nodded slowly without saying anything. As the first protective cruiser that was completely designed and built by Japan and reached the world's advanced level, the SUMA was highly expected by the Japanese Navy. Its main designer Akiyama has been studying abroad for many years and is the leading ship designer in Japan. Since he has expressed this view, he can only choose to believe his argument. Looking at the information in his hand, he still said with some concern: "Even if the British warships have design flaws, this can only prove that there is a problem with their warships. Yamamoto, how do you know that the Germans' installation patrol plan is feasible? After all, this is a great cause related to the development of the Great Japanese Empire, and I have to consider it carefully."

"As for armored cruisers, I have also found a reference example, that is the Garibal Class built in Italy. This ship, which started construction in 1894, has a designed displacement of only 6,775 tons and a speed of 20 knots, but is equipped with 4 twin 8-inch main guns and 14 single-mounted 6-inch guns. The side has a super large area of ​​150 mm Havi armor! Ito Jun, you see, the vertical armor in the unit that goes directly to the freeboard is 150 mm thick! There are four such ships in the Argentine Navy now in service, and one in the Spanish fleet. Some of these warships have replaced the double 8-inch guns with a single-mounted 10-inch gun. In addition, the 10,700-ton large-scale armor patrol built by the Germans for Russia three years ago is also a case that can react from the side." Yamamoto said and presented another information.

After a long time, Ito reacted and said in surprise: "Italy? Isn't this the country that was beaten by local natives in Africa to the point of losing money and asking for compensation? Can they actually build such an advanced warship? Can anyone tell me that this is a breeding pig laying eggs or what is the situation?"

A wry smile appeared on Yamamoto's lips and said, "The breeding pig did not lay eggs, but this situation really happened. Compared with our Asama class, this kind of cruiser in Italy has the same firepower and speed as our Asama class, and the protection is above us. The most important thing is that there are less than 6,800 tons of this warship! Although the five ships that were first approved for construction seem to be suspected of insufficient wind and wave resistance, Italy increased the tonnage to 7,200 tons among the three ships built for the country later, but this is still 2,500 tons less than our Asama class.

.The 7,000-ton cruising patrol given by the German prince today is roughly the same level as this Garibaldi. As for its feasibility, the four well-used ships of the Argentine Navy are enough to illustrate any problem." Ito nodded slowly and whispered: "I didn't expect that Italy's second-rate navy and third-rate industrial countries could build such advanced ships. If it weren't for the fact that there was no money in the empire's pocket, we could not have this vampire-like loan and chose to order warships from the Italians!"

Yamamoto shook his head slightly and said, "Ito-kun, although the Italian design is as good as the Germans, their price is really high. Due to the insufficient industrial capacity of Italy, the price of its industrial products is quite expensive; the cost of a 6,800-ton Garibaldi is more than 550,000 pounds without counting the weapons. If we really want to buy it, it will cost almost 650,000 pounds; while the price of the 7,000-ton cruiser in Germany is only 11.5 million marks, which is equivalent to 560,000 pounds, which is almost 100,000 pounds cheaper. In addition, it is also because of Italy's industrial strength that it takes 6 and a half years to build a 6,600-ton Pisa I-class cruiser, and the Germans can complete it at most 2 and a half years! If we ask us Italians to buy warships, the construction period will be delayed very long, which is a great disadvantage for the empire that urgently needs a navy."

Ito sighed a long sigh and said, "Forget it. Now that things have come to this point, my great Japanese Empire has no choice but to avoid being swallowed by Lucia's colonial whale. The German prince is right. France even loans issued to their allies of Lucia are high interest rates of 7 cents, not to mention that our relationship with Germany is not a friend or an enemy? One point is 1 point. As long as we can defeat Lucia on the Far East battlefield, all this loss can be compensated for in the war!"

Hearing Ito's words, Yamamoto finally felt a sigh of relief. For him, the only purpose was to expand and strengthen the Japanese Navy. As for how much financial pressure the country has to bear, what does it have to do with him as a soldier? Yamamoto smiled and said, "At present, the Empire's Six Six Fleet has only completed 4 battleships and 2 equipped patrols, and it is still a long way from the final goal. With this loan, there is no need to worry about the funds for naval construction! I suggest that all the remaining main ships be handed over to the Germans to build, and the warships they built are much stronger than British ships."

"Don't you know, one of the prerequisites for the Germans to issue this loan to us is that the purchase share of this money cannot be used as a way, it is only enough to buy German goods! Now the remaining part of our Six Six Fleet is counting on this money to complete. What else can we do if we don't buy German goods?" Ito was a little annoyed and shook the pages in his hand and said sternly, "These German robbers who took advantage of the situation will one day make them pay the price for their actions today! Yamamoto, in order to defeat Lucia, my great Japanese Empire has accepted the highest interest rate loan in the world, and the total loss will reach more than 25 million pounds; you and your navy must not disappoint His Majesty the Emperor and the 40 million Japanese citizens!"

Seeing Ito say this like a storm, Yamamoto was also in awe of his heart and replied seriously: "Please rest assured by Ito. Based on the excellent design of the German warship, I will make major changes to the original Six Six Fleet plan, and its ultimate power will definitely exceed the previous plan. If I cannot defeat the show, I will be the result of the blame!"

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In the next few days, Germany and Japan discussed a series of details such as loan dates and repayment methods. Since the main purpose of Qing and Ying had been achieved, and these things were not his best, he disappeared from the sight of Japanese politicians, allowing German Ambassador to Japan Radman to shoulder the banner of negotiations.

According to Qingying's original idea, he was to visit this country before leaving. However, a telegram from William sent him to set off immediately and return to Berlin. Due to the Otsu incident of Nicholas II in 1891 and the lessons of Li Hongzhang's assassination during the Japanese negotiations in 1895, William was extremely worried about the people under the Japanese government's rule; he was afraid that any manure-green who was deeply brainwashed by the Japanese government would come out and take his own crown prince.

There was an explanation. For his safety reasons, William ordered Qingying to set off without delay. At the end of May, the sun was scorching in Tokyo, as bright as fire, and summer cicadas screamed at the top of their lungs on the trees, and the air seemed to be slightly distorted due to the high temperature. When Qingying stepped onto the deck, sweat had already rolled down from her forehead; feeling the moist and salty side of her mouth, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart: The weather in Tokyo is really hot...
Chapter completed!