In June 1834, Kang's shipbuilding capacity was greatly improved.

One of the symbols is the launch of Kang's first ironclad ship with a displacement of 2,000 tons, which benefits from the accumulation of shipbuilding experience in the early stage.

However, this is an armed cargo ship and will be equipped with a small amount of necessary artillery weapons.

It has a somewhat bizarre shape, with a curved dome on the top deck, and with no sails or rigging except for two huge chimneys, it is simply a closed iron coffin. The shipyard workers called it "the big iron bucket for the floating water".

However, in order to maintain high speed, it was equipped with four more powerful triple-expansion steam engines, and the hull was more slender. This was so that it could keep up with the speed of the Shark-class warships that were escorting.

The cost is that it costs more than three times as much as the Shark-class ironclad ship, up to 2 million, and the cost of the latter has dropped to 600,000.

In general, it is still an experimental new cargo ship, Kang's shipbuilding is still in a stage of technological exploration, and the designers have to find a balance among various contradictions. For example, high-speed navigation requires a slender hull, while maneuverability requires a relatively short and fat hull.

Sean, who had returned to Poitou, finally caught up with its launch, naming the ship "Rocky Mountain" and having high hopes for it.

The Empire needed a cargo ship that could withstand the attacks of the Oschers, and this need was even more pronounced when the Shark-class ironclad battleships had already proven themselves to have extremely high defensive capabilities.

One example is that the price of silk in the north has risen fivefold in more than a year, and it is almost as expensive as gold. This market was previously dominated by imported goods from the Xia Kingdom, whose relatively cheap silk goods could not hold their heads up against local goods. Trade with the Xia Kingdom was now cut off, but transportation was a bottleneck for silk fabrics from the south to be transported overland to the Holy City.

Not to mention, various shipbuilding companies in the north have joined the ranks of building ironclad ships, which is the demand of the situation and reality, and they have to change their concepts, abandon the construction of traditional wooden sailing ships, and instead build ironclad ships.

Previously, although they installed iron armor on wooden sailing ships, they called them armored boats, but once this kind of armored ship was surrounded by the fish demon, the fish demon destroyed the sails and lost power, and became a lamb to be slaughtered.

However, it is not difficult for them to build steam ironclad ships, but they lack key marine equipment, such as marine steam engines and supporting parts, which they cannot break through in a short period of time, and they are in great need of Kang's shipbuilding in the south.

The Torres family, who had a large influence in northern industry and commerce, played a significant role as an intermediary in this, leading Sean to agree to sell these key components to northern rivals.

It is not only to open up the situation and make huge profits by the way, but also for the needs of the war, in the current severe situation at sea, it is impossible for Sean to eat alone, and the empire does not allow Kang's to build ships step by step.

And to transport these heavy and large parts to the north, you have to rely on cargo ships.

Although at least 3 of the 10 Shark-class ironclads delivered to the Navy in the past year and a half were destroyed in the war with the Fish Demon, and another 2 were sunk for various reasons, there are still 5 ships galloping in the sea, compared to their record, this loss is negligible, and the Navy has given high praise to the Shark class.

Field Marshal Mock wrote to Sean more than once, hoping that Sean's shipyard would be able to build larger warships, as the Navy desperately needed a warship with greater self-sustaining capabilities in the oceans, such as fighting at sea for a month with its own coal.

In this case, the birth of the Glory is an extremely important event, even more so than the construction of Shark-class battleships.

Sean was busy with his feet on the ground, and the launch of the Glory gave him a long sigh of relief, but when he heard that a guest had arrived in the rose garden, he was shocked.

Elizabeth was circling around a golden statue, and she was not honest with her hands, touching everywhere, such as the nose and ears of the golden statue.

The butler, Denzel Cleveland, stood cautiously to the side, the corners of his mouth crooked:

"Your Royal Highness, please be careful, this statue is heavy, and we can't afford to hurt you. ”

"How much is this guy worth?" asked Elizabeth looking back, biting the word "guy" hard.

"This is invaluable to the Connery family. The Count has written it into his family history, it is a glory belonging to the Count, a symbol of the Count's genius and wisdom, worthy of the pride of his future heirs and future generations, and therefore priceless. The butler said proudly, "Of course, if you want to count the weight of gold, it is worth at least 100,000 louis." ”

"Oh, that's a lot of money. Elizabeth said very seriously, she converted the price of the bread that Rose bought for her on the road, and said, "10 shillings for 1 loaf of bread, 1,000 shillings is equivalent to 1 gold louis, so it can buy 10 million loaves of bread!"

When the housekeeper was stunned, Elizabeth continued: "I eat three loaves of bread a day, and I can eat more than 3.33 million days, which is almost enough to feed me for 10,000 years. Oh my God, it can feed 10,000 poor people for 1 year!"

This arithmetic is a perfect score.

The butler said: "Your Royal Highness, the value of this golden statue to the family is not calculated in this way, and the count's merits for the benefit of all mankind cannot be measured in money. Of course, Your Highness calculates this way, showing that you are a good and benevolent person, always thinking of the poor and hungry. ”

"No, Rose told me, it's an inequality. This is an example of how it could feed many poor people, but it is left here and there to ashes. ”

Elizabeth said dissatisfied.

"I wipe it with my own hands several times a day!" said the butler helplessly.

As if to divert Elizabeth's attention, the butler asked:

"May I ask Your Highness, didn't Miss Rose come with you to the rose garden?"

Elizabeth had come to the rose garden with a letter written by Rose, but even so, the butler was still suspicious of Elizabeth's identity, and he couldn't understand how a princess could have come to the far south so quietly.

If he hadn't recognized Rose's handwriting, he wouldn't have let Elizabeth in at all.

"She said she was still in trouble, and she guess she was deceiving people again!" Elizabeth said.

She really didn't know why Rose didn't want to accompany her, and besides, she was a very grudgeful person, and she hadn't forgotten Rose's "hurt" to her.

The butler heard a noise from the front yard, and then he saw Sean enter the living room in a rage.

"Your Highness, a rare guest!" Sean's tone was rather unkind. But the butler breathed a sigh of relief, but he saw that it was probably more tricky than encountering an imposter.

Elizabeth was a little embarrassed: "Earl, judging from your face and tone, you don't welcome my arrival?"

"If you are coming on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor, whether in public or private fashion, I will of course warmly welcome you. But all I saw was a wretched creature who couldn't return. Sean said mercilessly.

"I was just careless and getting farther and farther away from home. Elizabeth blushed and defended, "In Gesar, I boarded a passenger ship on the canal to avoid the villains. After arriving in Longjiang, I thought that since I had walked so far, it was better to continue walking......"

Elizabeth's voice grew quieter.

In fact, she regretted it a long time ago, the royal family didn't know what was going on now, and she could imagine the emperor's roar, the queen's cry, and the emperor's brother's worries.

The palace used to be a luxurious prison for her active nature, and when it was time to get away from it, she missed it very much.

"Butler, don't spread the word about Her Royal Highness the princess here, everyone who knows is shut up, and it is forbidden to go out without my consent. The personal safety of the princess is a top priority. Sean confessed to his butler.

"Rest assured, my lord, the people in the rose garden will be tight-lipped as they should. The butler assured.

Sean didn't see Rose, and was slightly disappointed.

Although he did not welcome Elizabeth in this way, he still had to do it, such as tidying up the best guest rooms, replacing all that could be replaced with new ones, and letting all the maids in the rose garden revolve around her.

Elizabeth was so pleased with this that she took a pleasant shower and finally had a good night's sleep in the soft bed. In the past 20 days, she has also been exhausted.

Taking advantage of this time, Sean hurriedly wrote a long letter to Philip Soren and sent Arthur Young to deliver the letter himself. Poor Arthur had to go on the journey again.

Anyway, put the responsibility off first, anyway, this pot Sean doesn't carry it, he doesn't want the emperor to think that he abducted the princess.

Elizabeth slept long enough that she didn't wake up until almost noon the next day.

In fact, he woke up hungry.

Lunch in the rose garden was a sumptuous affair with a variety of delicacies that were an eye-opener for Her Royal Highness. While trying to maintain the etiquette of the meal, she ate a hearty meal.

"Your Highness, would you like another glass of freshly squeezed juice?" the butler was doubly attentive.

"What kind of juice is this?" said Elizabeth, wiping the oil from the corners of her mouth with a white napkin.

"Pineapple juice, if you want something else, there are also watermelon juice, melon juice, strawberry juice, corn juice, but you'll have to wait a little longer. The butler said.

"I want strawberry juice. Elizabeth said, facing Sean's disapproving eyes, and said, "Strawberries are rare in the north!"

"That's right, Your Highness. Its cultivation has strict temperature requirements, and it is less planted in the north, and this fruit is not easy to preserve, so it is not seen too much in the north. ”

The housekeeper was very understanding.

"Mr. Cleveland, you're a good housekeeper, and you've hired a good cook. You eat more than the palace!" said Elizabeth, "There is no better cook in the Holy City!"

The housekeeper smiled: "Actually, it's because we have a good master!"

Elizabeth didn't fail to understand what the butler really meant, she glanced at Sean and said:

"Earl, you are indeed a good nobleman. ”

"Thanks for the compliment!" said Sean, "Your Highness, where has Rose gone?"

"Is she your lover?" said Elizabeth, curious.