On December 10, 1639, while the Ottoman Empire's Hassan and others were quietly waiting in the hotel to return to the port of Suez, Alvarez from Buenos Aires, an old friend and neighbor of the people on the east coast, approached the military headquarters with Captain Leo. And the news they brought was also striking: the Spaniards wanted to order some naval guns from the East Coast Republic, and perhaps they were going to order some warships.

The military department quickly reported the news to the executive committee, and the members of the executive committee were a little silent after learning the news, which was really too unbelievable. You must know that the Kingdom of Spain is one of the most powerful naval powers in Europe and even in the world, and its shipbuilding skills are also first-class, far from being comparable to Britain and France, and perhaps only the Dutch can compare with it in Europe. But now that they are so desperate that they want to urgently ask the people on the east coast to buy ships, is this the world world crazy, or is it crazy themselves?

After a careful briefing on the situation in Europe sent back from Bordeaux, the members of the Executive Committee finally understood the plight of the Spaniards. Yes, things haven't been good for the Spaniards lately. On land, their army from Roussilon finally made substantial contact after a period of "sit-down warfare" with the French, but the results were not too rosy. The continuous fortress group in the southwestern part of France effectively delayed the Spanish offensive, and the rapid attack of the French cavalry also caused the Spaniards to lose one or the other, and suffered defeats in several encounters, and at the end of the day, they simply retracted to their nests completely. The French were also not very strong in the south, and they were not able to take advantage of the victory to pursue, so the two sides remained the same. It seems that they are all waiting for the change of the situation in the north - there is the battlefield of the main battle between the two sides.

In the north. Spain's elite Flemish legion has penetrated deep into northeastern France. After the first good years of success, the Spaniards were also in trouble. The last few skirmishes have been defeated, and the French are gradually gaining strength. At present, the Spaniards are waiting for supplies and the opportunity to fight, and are preparing for a decisive battle with the French to settle this long-delayed war once and for all.

There was a stalemate on land, and the situation for the Spaniards at sea was not optimistic. Perhaps it was the war with the British that knocked out the spirit of the Spanish Navy, which is now always looking old and slow to react. Before the outbreak of the war with the French. The Spanish navy had not taken advantage of the long naval battle with the Dutch, but had suffered some losses. Now, they have also suffered repeated defeats in battles with the little-known French navy, losing many warships. Seeing the Spaniards showing their decline, their long-standing enemies, the Dutch, rushed to pounce, bared their fangs, and tried to completely destroy the Spaniards' fleet, while the Spaniards could only bite the bullet.

At such a critical moment, the Spaniards, who had been almost pushed into a corner, finally remembered the East Coasters who had given them a dismount a few years earlier. I heard that the people of the east coast have vigorously cultivated shipbuilding talents in recent years, and the number of shipbuilders who have studied under the Flemish people in China has reached one or two thousand. The strength can be described as strong. Moreover, they do not lack qualified shipbuilding timber like in mainland Spain. They can easily import large quantities of sumac wood from Brazil for shipbuilding, without fear of being blockaded by hostile ships.

Moreover, their naval guns have proven themselves perfectly over the years. The officers and men of the Peruvian fleet of the Kingdom of Spain must have remembered vividly the sharp long-barreled cannons on the Fort Vostochny, and it was these heavy guns that made them run away and could only avoid landing in Vostochny Port. The Spanish navy was now at a clear disadvantage in the battles with the French and the Dutch, and if it could be equipped with naval guns from the east coast, it might be able to turn the tide of the situation.

In addition, it is said that the high-speed cruisers with a high length-to-width ratio invented by the people of the east coast were very fast, and they showed great practical value in both the pursuit of pirates in the near sea and the operation in the ocean. It is said that the British East India Company has begun to trial produce this kind of warship of the East Coast people on its own soil, and has shown a high evaluation of the excellent performance of this warship. Then, with the slipways of the major Spanish shipyards already full of warships, it may be a good option to urgently order a few high-speed cruisers from the East Coasters.

After understanding the situation of the Spaniards in Europe now, everyone can finally understand why the Spaniards are in a hurry to come to the door at this moment, and they are now at a critical moment when they are fighting everywhere. At this moment, the members of the Executive Committee had the urge to slaughter the Spaniards.

However, Spain is one of the largest countries in Western Europe, and it is no more closely related to the East Coast than the Ottoman people, who are close to the East Coast. Whether or not the sale of naval guns and warships to the Spaniards will result in shooting themselves in the foot requires careful consideration and consideration by the committee members.

"I think I can sell them a couple of high-speed cruisers. It was sold to the Turks for 82,000 ships, and it is estimated that the Spaniards could not sell it at this price, but 60,000 or 70,000 always asked. Even if it's 60,000, one earns 20,000, and four is 80,000. Finance Commissioner Tang Yuan said in a deep voice, "Comrades, the government is currently in debt of more than 400,000 yuan, so there is no reason to give up such a lucrative arms business, right?" ”

"Why did you sell sixty or seventy thousand ships? According to me, it will be sold at the price of the Turks, 82,000 ships, whether he likes to buy it or not! Wang Qinian, a member of the Navy, sat on the side and shouted, "Now we only have four slipways, and we have to build six warships for the Turks, and we can't build one of them ourselves. ”

According to the news from Xu Xin's side, since the beginning of this year, the Spanish Navy has fought with France and the Netherlands many times, and has suffered a lot of losses. Now they had to maintain the security of the shipping route from the mainland to the Flanders region, and also maintain the smooth flow between the New World and the mainland, and also guard against Moorish pirates and ensure the security of the homeland, and no amount of warships was enough. And, with the great shipbuilding skills of the Spaniards, I think that we would sell them clippers for most of the time, and they would soon be able to make their own. Therefore, it is we who suffer from the low price. Foreign Affairs Commissioner Gao Mo also rarely supported the views of the lower military.

"I naturally raise my hands in favor of selling 80,000 yuan, but the question is whether the Spaniards are willing to pay this money?" Tang Yuan said helplessly: "The Spanish government's finances have always been tight, and now it is in the midst of a war, and a huge amount of money is spent, can she still have the money to buy warships from us?" Here I would like to remind you that, given the government's current financial resources, it is not good that you will promise the Spaniards to default on the purchase of ships. You must know that the Portuguese will transport more than 2,000 immigrants from the Ming Dynasty next year, and if they don't have the money to pay the bills, they will sit on wax. ”

"With just a few warships, I don't think it's a big deal." Jiao Tang, the internal affairs councilor, who had been listening to it for a long time, said, "According to the information we have, although the financial situation of the Spaniards is a little difficult, at least their military expenses are still paid on time. In other words, they still have a certain amount of fundraising ability at the moment. A few cruisers, as long as the price we ask is not too dark, the Spanish mainland raises some cash, and the New World colonies find a way to loot some, and they will soon be scraped together. You must know that they fight wars, and the daily expenses are tens of thousands, and they can still afford this money. ”

"So, what about the naval guns they asked for?" Tang Yuan continued, "They asked if we were ready to shoot 32-pound and 24-pound naval guns, and we were willing to pay a huge amount of money for it. ”

"Impossible!" Wang Qinian immediately said categorically, "It is very important to earn money, but you also have to have a life to spend it." Army guns don't matter yet, large-caliber naval guns must not be sold. I think the 18-pounder gun is the limit, and even I don't think the 18-pounder gun should be sold, let them forge it themselves! ”

Hearing that the military people rejected his proposal so resolutely, Tang Yuan's face was also a little unbearable. Shao Shude glanced at him, came out and said, "I'll see if it's okay like this." At present, the ratio of the naval guns we use is relatively high, and the range and power are good. So, can we cast some naval guns specifically for export, so that the barrels don't have to be as long as they are for our own use. Just make sure they can hit a little farther and charge a little more than the brass cannons in Europe, so that we can fool the Spaniards and keep our superiority in naval firepower unshaken. ”

"I think that's going to work!" Wang Qinian finally nodded, "I don't have any opinions on the rest, you go and negotiate with the Spaniards in detail." Also, we build so many warships for others, and we can't leave our own behind. At present, the two major fleets of the Navy have only three battleships, three cruisers, two frigates, and two armed transport ships, and their strength is pitifully weak. I have made so much money building ships for others, and I don't want more, just build a cruiser for my navy, and complete it by the end of next year, how about it? ”

"Let's do it." Seeing that other people had no opinions, Ma Ganzu, chairman of the executive committee, made a final decision: "Lao Gao, you will go to negotiate with the Spaniards in the afternoon." I don't need to say more about the specifics, you've talked about it several times, in short, it's a little bit, to squeeze more money out of the Spaniards. ”

Gao Mo nodded, indicating that he would take care of it. (To be continued......)