After seeing the questions raised by Wesley, the traversers were also very admired, the rigorous style of the Germans really lived up to its reputation, and the questions raised were quite pertinent, and it was obvious that they had done their homework.

Of course, at this point, there is no need for the traversers to have any reservations. Although the contract stipulates that the materials and equipment that can be purchased in China should be purchased in China as much as possible, the traveler also knows that this article is actually a show, because the materials and equipment that can really be purchased in China are estimated to be only 20% at most, and the East China government may not even be able to provide 10%.

Of course, the main material of a warship is steel, although now Qingdao Iron and Steel Plant has been put into production, and has also produced several furnaces of steel, but the quality can not be on the table, even the steel produced by Hanyang Iron Works is not as good, of course, this is also a very normal thing, after all, Qingdao Iron and Steel Plant has only been built for less than half a year, the equipment may not be bad, but excellent skilled workers and smelting experience still need time to accumulate, after all, the smelting technology of this era, experience still accounts for a large component, an experienced worker can pass through smoke, The subtle color difference of molten iron is used to determine the quality of the steel and the measures that should be taken during the smelting process.

Hanyang Iron Works has been established for 7 or 8 years, and the accumulated refining experience and skilled workers are not comparable to Qingdao Iron and Steel Works. Therefore, the steel and iron produced by Qingdao Iron and Steel Plant can only be used for the manufacture of daily necessities or light industrial products, and can be used for steel bars in the construction industry. Although several buildings with more than eight floors were built in the administrative district, the main reinforcement was made of high-quality steel bars brought by the crossing, and the rails used by the East China government and the steel used to make weapons were all purchased from the Hanyang Iron Works, not to mention the steel used to build ships.

Of course, even if the Hanyang Iron Works can provide, it is only a minor part of the steel for the warship, and the main steel for the warship, such as keel steel, outer structure steel plate, sealed cabin steel plate, case-hardened armor steel plate, etc., can only be purchased from Germany, which accounts for more than 80% of the entire warship's consumption. The East China government can only provide deck timber, windows, vents and other very few materials.

In terms of equipment, the main equipment such as steam engines, boilers, generators, and the turrets of the main guns and the under-deck shell loading equipment should be purchased from Germany, while in terms of shipboard weapons, the main guns are 155 mm caliber, and the Qingdao Arsenal can theoretically manufacture artillery of this caliber, at least the equipment capacity is sufficient. However, the manufacture of artillery does not depend only on equipment, but also on the experience and skills of workers, and now the Qingdao Arsenal has not even completely neatly organized 125 mm caliber artillery, let alone 155 mm caliber artillery.

However, there are three levels of shipborne artillery, in addition to the main gun, there are 100 mm caliber secondary guns, and it is in the form of contour gun surrounding, there is no turret, but there is still shell loading equipment, after all, 100 mm shells weigh between 30-40 kg, it is impossible to reload purely manually, and it is necessary to supply ammunition from below deck; in addition, there are 50 mm caliber rapid-fire guns, and it is in the form of guard plates, which can be used purely manual loading or magazine feeding.

Qingdao Arsenal can manufacture these two types of naval guns, of course, the steel used still needs to be purchased, so the final decision is to buy 6 twin 155 mm caliber guns, together with turrets, underdeck loading equipment from Germany, and other guns are manufactured by themselves, of course, the underdeck filling equipment of 100 mm caliber guns is also purchased from Germany.

Wesley also believes that the decision to purchase materials and equipment for the traverser is very reasonable, and this is also the most reliable arrangement, after all, this can ensure the final quality, and of course, it is also the most beneficial to Germany. Although most of the materials and equipment have to be purchased from Germany, which will inevitably lead to the extension of the supply cycle, as long as the materials and equipment are planned reasonably and enough time is reserved, they can still be handled well.

At present, there are more than 800 workers in the shipyard, but there are less than 300 shipbuilding technicians, and there are about 300 trainee workers, and the difference between the two is that the former have participated in the early stage of warship repair work and have some experience, while the latter has no experience at all. In addition, during this time, about 30 workers who had actually participated in the construction of warships and other ships were recruited from the Jiangnan Machinery Bureau in Shanghai.

Therefore, the traveler suggested that all the workers in the Qingdao shipyard should be considered according to the standards of trainee workers, and then assessed in the process of construction to determine the actual level of the workers.

In fact, the German side is not of high level of workers in the East China government, and it is also mentally prepared, and the fact that the traverser can say it frankly in this way also makes Wesley feel very satisfied, because it is easier to deal with pragmatic people. He also pledged to do his best to mentor the Chinese workers and help them improve their skills.

The former is due to the fact that the Qingdao shipyard does not yet have enough manpower, because the Qingdao shipyard is not only building these two warships, but also has civilian ships to be built, and the warships in service also have to carry out daily maintenance, and so on; the problem of the latter is that the progress is too slow, and it is estimated that it will not be completed until 1904, and the East China government cannot afford to wait.

The traverser's suggestion is to use the method of delaying the start of construction and rolling construction, that is, after the first stage of the construction of the first warship, the construction of the second warship will begin, so that the construction time of the two warships will not be too long, and the construction stage of the first warship has just been experienced, which can provide sufficient construction experience for the construction of the second warship. In addition, the traverser also hopes that the two warships will be built in different ways, one will be built on the slipway, and the other will be built in the dock, in fact, the slipway and the dock are the same for the construction of warships, and the difference is only in the way of launching, but the traverser is in the stage of accumulating experience, and I hope that both methods will be tried.

Wesley thought that the suggestions and requests made by the traverser were all feasible, and he also hoped that they would be completed as soon as possible and return to China, so he agreed to them.

After the two sides negotiated the details of the construction, it took three days to adjust and revise the construction schedule, construction organization, personnel management, material procurement plan and other matters, and finally decided that the construction period of the two warships was 12 months, the construction of a single warship was 10 months, and the delay between the two warships was 2 months, so as to ensure that the construction would be completed within 1903. First in the slipway, then in the dockyard, and so on.

After the traverser reviewed it, the plan was also approved, so that the preparatory work for the construction of the two warships in Qingdao was completed, and the construction was scheduled to officially start on August 30, 1902.

Since this is the first warship built by the traverser in this era, the symbolism is of great significance, so the East China government also held a very grand groundbreaking ceremony, Xia Bohai, Qin Zheng, Xiao Jianjun and other leaders with military backgrounds all attended, the Minister of the Navy Shang Jinfeng, the fleet commander Wang Hailong, Zhang Wei, *, * and other major officials of the navy also participated, the military band played music on the spot, and hundreds of students from the Hope School were also transferred to serve as honor guards. And the slipway was full of flags and ribbons, as if it was a festival.

Xiao Jianjun made a commencement speech on behalf of the government, saying that the construction of this warship is only a small step, but it is a big step for the East China government to build a blue-water navy, a big step for China to go to the sea, and a big step to build its own powerful navy.

At the end of the speech, a slipway crane lifted a section steel tied with red silk and, under Wesley's direction, placed on a bracket that had been erected on the slipway, which was the first keel laid. The scene suddenly resounded with warm applause and firecrackers, Xia Bohai, Qin Zheng, Xiao Jianjun came to the keel, untied the red silk, and signed their names on the red silk, and then they all stepped forward, including Wesley and all the German workers, also signed on the red silk, and took a group photo together, and the groundbreaking ceremony of the ship was officially over.

Taking advantage of the time for everyone to leave, Wesley said to Riddle, "It seems that you guys are very serious about the construction of this warship." "Because they are actually Germans, the two got along well during this time.

Riddle shook his head and said, "No, it's not this warship that we value, but the meaning behind this warship. ”

Wesley was a simple engineer who didn't know much about military and political affairs, so he was a little puzzled: "This is an ordinary cruiser, what is the special significance?"

Riddle laughed and said, "Think about it, when we build the most powerful fleet of this era, but the first warship built by ourselves is this one, and you played an important role in it, not only signed that piece of red silk cloth, but also took a commemorative photo, so it will go down in history forever, and I believe that when you retire, you will take this experience as the proudest thing in your life." ”

Wesley shook his head again and again, and said, "My friend, I don't deny your ambition to build a strong navy, although I don't understand military affairs, but I think the most powerful fleet in this era is the British Royal Fleet, I don't think that in the foreseeable future, you will be able to build a fleet more powerful than the British Royal Fleet, unless a miracle happens." ”

Riddle shrugged his shoulders and said, "You're right, but we're here to do miracles." And you, my friend, will be blessed to see this miracle happen. ”