"£1 billion! You can buy the whole of Africa! Will the wealth accumulated by our ancestors be wiped out in our generation? ”

George V counted on his fingers, and after only four years on his throne, he was so proud that the British Empire would continue to stand on top of the world under his rule, but now the country is in the most perilous period in centuries. The once proud supremacy of the nation at sea is gone, and the British Empire is now more like an island surrounded by dark sharks, surrounded by German warships flying the Black Vulture Cross flag.

"But Your Majesty, we need a fleet of sufficient strength to strike at the German Atlantic Strike Fleet to maintain our precarious sea transports. Otherwise, hundreds of thousands of soldiers from the colonies would not be able to bring in, food and ammunition for the millions of troops on the ground would not be able to be brought in, and we would not even be able to transfer the royal family, the government, and the vast wealth of the country at a critical moment. With this fleet, we can also attack the landing flotilla of the German troops when they attack our homeland, or cut off the support of their landed forces and strangle the Germans on our shores, so that we can qualify for peace talks with the Kaiser! ”

Prime Minister Lloyd suggested on the sidelines, and many cabinet ministers also expressed their approval. After defeat after defeat, the king has no plans to reshuffle his cabinet for the time being, but the situation in Britain does not turn around, and these ministers do not have a good life.

"At the moment our government is running out of liquidity, so we might want to consider the Americans' proposal to use Jamaica for £800 million and Trinidad and Tobago for £200 million." It was the Chancellor of the Exchequer who spoke.

"Those colonies are priceless to our British Empire!" Some ministers objected, arguing that money could be accumulated slowly, but the colonies were not readily available, especially when the competition for colonies was at a fever pitch and land was to be bought with the blood of a large number of soldiers.

"The homeland is almost impossible to keep, what's the use of those colonies?" Lloyd's seemed to be hell-set on that fleet.

George V waved his hand impatiently, and the ministers always had their own opinions, and every time the royal meeting was noisy and shouting like a vegetable market, everyone quieted down.

"If we really exchange those two American colonies for a fleet of 6 dreadnought battleships, 12 armored battleships, 12 cruisers, 21 destroyers, 15 submarines and 40 transports, how much time will it take for this fleet to form our combat strength, and what are the chances of victory against the German Navy?"

Ministers, look at me, I look at you, this question should be more appropriate for the Lord of the Admiralty, but Lord Fisher was still in Plymouth Harbour, so the eyes of the crowd were again focused on the admirals present.

"Your Majesty, according to the experience of our navy, if there are skilled sailors to receive this fleet, it will only take 3 months to form combat effectiveness; If you re-recruit sailors who lack naval experience, it will take more than 12 months! After the officers and sailors are familiar with the performance of the ships, this fleet will not have a problem destroying the German Atlantic raid fleet, plus our newly developed hydrophones and depth charges, it is completely possible to break through the blockade of German submarines, but this fleet does not have the strength to confront the main forces of the German high seas fleet for the time being, especially in the presence of German aircraft carriers. An elderly vice admiral replied on behalf of the Admiralty.

"German aircraft carrier ......" George V's head became more and more dizzy as soon as he heard the word, and the other cabinet ministers present seemed to feel the same way.

"One thing I have to remind you is that, according to the speculation of our Admiralty, several of the Chinese warships captured by the German Navy in the Battle of the North Sea have been repaired and joined the combat sequence of the German Navy, plus some other German warships that have been repaired, the strength of the German Navy is constantly increasing." The lieutenant general's kind reminder made everyone even more frustrated.

"It is said that the 12 armored battleships that the Americans are going to sell to us are from the Great White Fleet that sailed around the world seven years ago, and the US Navy is trying to eliminate them. What's more, based on our own cost of building ships over the years, it would only cost £50 million to build such a fleet! ”

The opposing ministers turned their eyes to the admirals.

It was the vice admiral who spoke on behalf of the Navy, "Indeed, the battleship offers put forward by the Americans are surprisingly high, and the 12 armored battleships in that fleet are all battleships that have participated in the round-the-world voyage of the Great White Fleet, and the ability of a single ship cannot compete with the German dreadnought battleships at all, but the strength of the other 6 dreadnoughts is still good, including the equipment 10 12-inch main guns, the Florida-class with a displacement of 21,000 tons, and the equipment with 12 12-inch main guns. The Wyoming-class battleship with a displacement of 26,000 tons, while other cruisers and destroyers have also been launched in the last 10 years. It is worth mentioning that the US Navy is second only to Germany in terms of total tonnage and strength in the world, and they currently have nearly 30 battleships and a large number of cruisers and destroyers, and their shipbuilding strength cannot be underestimated. ”

"At present, most of our large and medium-sized shipyards have been damaged by air strikes and artillery shelling by the German Navy, and only two of the 10 Elizabeth-class battleships under construction have survived, and even if they are able to be completed and put into service, it will take another year to two years. Now our annual shipbuilding has fallen to a fifth of what it was before the war, and what remains is mainly a few small civilian shipyards. Battleships are almost a priceless thing for us! We had a total of 100,000 tons of warships launched in August, 60,000 tons in September, and only 20,000 tons left in October! If this continues, we will probably spend another 10 years building such a fleet, if the Germans are willing to give us so much time! ”

Everyone was silent that the situation in Britain had really reached a very bad point.

"Let's not forget that two of our most powerful allies, Russia and France, one has sided with the Germans, and the other is preparing to surrender to the Germans. Germany will soon be concentrating all its forces on us! Either we will do everything to strengthen our country's military strength, or we will accept the Germans' terms and dismantle large and medium-sized shipyards, warships, and freighters, and all of them will be ordered from Germany in the future. At that time, the price will also be decided by the Germans, and maybe their offer will be more ruthless than the Americans at that time! We don't have cash, we still have to keep gold to reorganize our national strength, I think it's better to exchange colonies and Americans for warships and other strategic supplies! ”

The Chancellor of the Exchequer looked like he would not give up on selling his ancestral estate, but after he finished his explanation, it seemed that more and more ministers who opposed the purchase of American warships began to waver.

"Oh well! Now on the premise of exchanging colonies for American warships, let's discuss the details of the implementation of this matter! George V propped his head in his right hand, and his head seemed to be so heavy that it could no longer be lifted.

"Since the Churchill is in Washington, we can give him carte blanche to negotiate with the Americans and fight for as many interests as possible for our country, and since he is from the Navy, he is going to inspect the situation of those American warships. Once the terms of the deal between the two sides are negotiated, Churchill should also actively lobby US lawmakers to get the US Congress to approve the deal as soon as possible! ”

At this time, the ministers finally regarded Churchill as an important figure, and when the British fleet failed, they were very active in impeaching Churchill, then Secretary of the Admiralty.

"I think Jamaica alone is worth a billion pounds, that's a lot of mineral-rich land!" The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry seems to have studied the value of the colonies.

"If we have to exchange warships between Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, I think the United States should also give us a batch of military supplies, and our army still lacks 400,000 rifles, 2,000 machine guns, 1,000 cannons, 100 million rounds of ammunition, 1 million shells and a lot of steel, and the Americans would better provide us with 1,000 planes and car engines, and help us bring in a lot of fuel." Secretary of War Kitchener, who had not spoken, finally saw the right time to join in and wanted a piece of the pie.

"We can also use the scientific and technological and industrial power of the United States and work with them to create weapons that can effectively deal with German aircraft and armored vehicles, and those ships will be equipped with weapons against German submarines before they are sold to us!"

The crowd was arguing and discussing, and George V seemed to be in the familiar market again. It wasn't until late in the evening that they came up with a list of purchases on which Churchill would use that to negotiate with the Americans.

George V felt dizzy, at this time the British Empire was like a pig lying on the board, and the United States was a butcher sharpening knives on the side, this butcher explained the benefits of being killed to the pig like a priest before killing the pig, and the pig couldn't wait to be killed, the world is so strange.

Finally survived until the end of the meeting, but Fisher's urgent telegram was in the hands of the king, and he rubbed his temples in pain, if the British and French fleets were in a mess in the British harbors, the Germans would surely snicker in their sleep, but if the French fleet was not prevented from leaving, those French warships would sooner or later come back and rain shells on British soil. George V considered it carefully, after all, this matter happened at this juncture of the armistice negotiations between Germany and France, and any order could lead to serious consequences.

When George V's telegram reached Plymouth Harbour, Fisher was watching the fireworks display in the harbor in a daze. It is now impossible to say who fired the first shot, but in any case, after the explosion of that French destroyer, the battle was fought between a British battleship carrying commandos and the French battleship they were trying to occupy. At first, there was the sound of rifles falling, and machine guns and machine guns soon joined the battle, when the tense strings in the hearts of the sailors of the two countries were suddenly broken, and then the many warships crowded in the harbor began to fight.

At a distance of 100 meters or even tens of meters, the main guns and torpedoes of the two warships have no room to play, and the secondary guns and machine guns of large and small calibers have become the protagonists of the battle, and one or a string of red bright spots are staggered between the battleships, these shells and bullets are not a fatal threat to large warships, but the continuous flashing fires on each battleship still make Fisher worried. The warships of both countries had lost their ranks and battle positions, and under the dazzling gunfire and searchlights, the battleships kept touching, and the metal hitting and grinding made the harsh and heart-wrenching sound of knives and forks scraping. With the warships of both sides mixed together, the cannons in the British fort in the harbor could only be in a hurry. The pillars of countless searchlights swept back and forth over and over again, the soldiers who had fallen into the water swam desperately to a safer place, and the water surface of the harbor boiled under the agitation of various things.

Fisher glanced at the king's telegram and reluctantly held it in his hand.

The telegram read: The problem of the French fleet should be resolved peacefully until the French government declares its surrender. If the French ship is the first to fire, it will return fire with all its might!

"Messenger, send a message to the king that the French fleet has forced its way out of port, not only ramming over several of our patrol boats, but also taking the lead in firing at our warships, and our fleet has returned fire in self-defence! Please let the Chinese government announce this news to the public as soon as possible! Although this reason is far-fetched, but the matter has come to this point, Fisher has no choice but to sue a wicked person first.

"Yes!"

"Also, order our battleships to retreat and shoot at the French with fortress guns and torpedoes!" Fisher closed his eyes and listened quietly to the symphony in the harbor. From tomorrow onwards, Britain will be alone, and the so-called Entente will cease to exist.

High in the air near Plymouth Harbour, two German airships silently watched the noisy harbor as spectators. At present, the altitude of the planes is not yet up to the altitude at which they are located, so the crew of the German airship will be able to continue this leisurely for a long time.

When the news of the fierce clash between the British and French fleets reached Falkenhain and Tatsuten, they were at a grand dinner hosted by the 3rd Army. Present at the banquet that night were not only high-ranking generals who came to participate in the German-French negotiations, but also many meritorious officers and men of the 3rd Group Army.

"Tomorrow the face of the French negotiator must be funny!" Chen Tian raised the wine glass in his hand, "We should make a toast to the friendship between Britain and France!" ”

"Yes, for the unbreakable friendship between England and France, cheers!" The German generals raised their glasses with smiles on their faces.

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