Speaking of his impression of summer in England, Chen Tian feels that there is only one word that is most appropriate, and that is sunshine!

It's true that summer temperatures in England may not be very high, but the sun can be abundant, especially in a holiday destination like the Isle of Wight.

Sitting in the Osborne House, Queen Victoria's summer residence, enjoying the beautiful summer scenery, blowing the cool sea breeze, and having a glass of cold cream, it is really refreshing!

"My dear majesty, isn't it much cooler here than in Berlin?" The mustachioed Ruprecht, now King Robert I of Britain, wore a loose silk robe and lay down on his rattan couch.

Chentian, who was also dressed but had a mane, closed his eyes comfortably, "Oh, how nice it would be to spend the whole summer here!" Summer in Berlin is not only hot, but also boring! No wonder Berlin's aristocrats and wealthy people run to the North Sea as soon as summer arrives! ”

"Hah, it's hot enough in Berlin in the summer! By the way, does Your Majesty remember this time of the old year? ”

Ruprecht also closed his eyes slightly, as if reminiscing about that surging time.

"Of course I do! The situation began to become tense in July of that year, when we had to wear full military uniforms every day to prepare for the war. After the start of the war, you have to dress neatly and go to the front line in the sun! Think of the scorching sun, the sweat-soaked and then dried back, oh, what a journey! ”

Chen Tian, who was still with his eyes closed, sighed softly, although it was such an evocative career as the horses were born, but it was gone forever with the passage of time.

"Yes, after the mobilization began, we all had to go to the assembly point to board the train in full gear, and when the train started, there was still some wind, and once it stopped, there was a strong smell of sweat in the air! Soon after, we arrived in Lorraine. Day after day we built fortifications and waited for the French to attack, and when the French began to attack the ground, we slowly retreated according to the plan. Later, my staff and I found the situation unbearable, so I called the General Headquarters and asked them to allow our troops to counterattack, but Moltke the Younger, the then chief of the General Staff, refused to agree at first, and I argued with him on the phone for three days, and he finally agreed to allow me to launch a limited counterattack against the French! Hmph, when the war starts, where can I care about what is limited and infinite. We ended up beating the French back! ”

Ruprecht always relishes the battle on the French border, and indeed, that battle dealt a heavy blow to the French ** team and made him famous.

Chen Tian continued: "Little Moltke...... Oh, if you don't say that I'm about to forget about this person! Remember the pre-war meeting of the local high command? Every time I had to argue with him, it was almost a constant routine! He insisted that the eastern front for which I was in charge was not stable enough, and that two or three corps of troops should be allocated from the western front to support me, and I told him that as long as I was prepared and did not take it lightly, the Russians would not want to take a single step forward on my territory! After the end of the East Prussian campaign. I asked to lead the army into Poland. In order to contain the Russian army from the flank and create an opportunity for the Austro-Hungarian army to counterattack, Moltke Jr. disagreed, saying that the Eastern Front does not seek a big victory, but seeks no loss! I really don't understand how he is so different from his uncle! ”

"At that time, I heard the news of a great victory on the Eastern Front. We are both excited and surprised, we never expected that your legion would defeat several times the number of Russian troops with 200,000 troops, and stabilize the situation on the Eastern Front in one fell swoop! I think Nicholas II must have hated you at that time! Ruprecht quipped.

"Well, that's what I thought too!" With that, Tatsuten and Ruprecht burst out laughing together.

The first to stop was Ruprecht, who suddenly said with some loss: "Hey, I wonder when we will have the opportunity to fight together again?" ”

Chen Tian turned his head to look at him, and then said with great certainty: "If the situation requires one day, we will still stand together and fight the enemy!" ”

Ruprecht nodded, and after a while asked again, "Is Your Majesty going to inspect the Scottish Mercenary Company in a few days?" ”

"Then does Your Majesty intend to come with me?" Chen Tian asked him with a smile.

Ruprecht replied with a smile: "I want to go." I don't really want to go! ”

Chen Tian moved his gaze back to the front, "It's so hot, you must have choked on the sun when you go!" But I don't think the weather is a reason for us to be lazy, so let's go and see your new fleet, Your Majesty! ”

Ruprecht smiled again, "Heh, my new fleet is not your Majesty yet?" ”

"Our fleet, to be exact!" Chen Tian said very seriously.

A week later. Glasgow, Scotland.

After nearly two years of restorative construction, renovation and expansion, the original nearly 20 shipyards on the banks of the River Clyde have become the shipbuilding base of the Scottish Mercenary Company, and the busy scene of each shipbuilding area gives a shadow of the Scottish shipbuilding industry in the pre-war heyday. In the dry docks, large and small ships are under intense construction, and hundreds of workers are toiling at their posts under the scorching sun.

When they visited Minato, Tatsuten and Ruprecht were dressed in casual clothes and large sunhats, and although they were followed by a large number of entourage, almost no one would realize how important they were.

"That's it, slipway, and that's where our Voyager was refitted!" The man who spoke was on crutches and looked unassuming, but he was actually the general manager of the mercenary company and a close personal friend of the Kaiser and the British king, Lord Hubert.

Looking in the direction Hubert pointed, Tatsu saw the oversized slipway, where there was no longer a shadow of the "traveler", but a new ship that had not yet been formed with a keel and a new silhouette that had not yet been formed.

"Well, I've seen that 'ship' during the exercise, and it's really good!" Chentian was naturally talking about the heavy aircraft carrier that was later renamed the "Kemal", although the armor of the Queen Elizabeth-class battleship was not necessarily better than that of the German battleship, but it was more than enough for the hull of an aircraft carrier.

"Lord, what is being built there now? Warship? Ruprecht asked Hubert by pointing to slipway No. 1.

"Your Majesty, there is a transport ship under construction there, but it is very different from ordinary transport ships!" Hubert briefly explained that although this is the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Britain, this shipbuilding base is under the direct control of the German High Command and the Admiralty, so the content of the construction does not need to be reported to the British government, and it is not surprising that Ruprecht, as the king of Britain, would ask such a question.

Tatsu knew that Hubert would not have spoken out without his approval. So he personally answered Ruprecht's question, "To be exact, it was a super-large landing ship specially designed to load military supplies!" The biggest difference between it and ordinary transport ships is that it will be closer to a warship in appearance, important parts are protected by thick armor, such as the armor and mine protection compartment at the waterline position can resist the attack of ordinary torpedoes, and the speed is much faster than that of ordinary transport ships, and one or two squads of seaplanes can be carried on the deck. ”

"What a great guy!" Ruprecht praised on the spot.

Chen Tian said: "The cost is also higher than that of ordinary transport ships, and the budget cost is 1.5 million European marks." I'm right, sir! ”

Hubert followed closely behind the two monarchs who walked side by side, "Yes, two Majereigns!" 1,500,000 Euromarks, that is, 12,000,000 Reichsmarks! ”

"Whew......"

Ruprecht whistled his surprise to find that in the last two years both the Kaiser and the German government had been much more generous in terms of funds, and it seemed that the great victory of the war had indeed benefited the Reich enormously, and that over time this gain was more and more reflected in government funds and finances. Although 1.5 million Euromarks is only a quarter of the British Queen Elizabeth-class battleship, this so-called super-large landing ship is not a battleship after all. You must know that the powerful power, armor, and armament of the dreadnought battleship were all exchanged for a large amount of money. The funds needed to build a transport ship of the same tonnage are about half that of this landing ship.

As he walked, Hubert explained to His Majesty: "There are currently 52 slipways here, of which slipways 1, 2, 3, 7, and 11 can be used for the construction of large ships including battleships in the interior, and one of the remaining slipways is suitable for the construction of medium-sized warships and large civilian ships. The remaining 32 slipways can only be built for light ships and small and medium-sized freighters! ”

"Looks like they're all building ships, aren't they?" Ruprecht squinted into the distance, and almost everywhere he could see the blue sparkle that came from welding.

Hubert said yes.

"That's a lot of shipbuilding!" Ruprecht said again.

Hubert nodded his head, but then told him in a tactful tone, "In fact, even if these dockyards are at full capacity, the shipbuilding capacity is only a few tenths of what Britain did before the war!" ”

"Pre-war ...... It was the time when Britain was at its strongest! Is it true that a country will flourish and decline? Ruprecht said thoughtfully, and the breath exhaled from his nostrils became a little heavy.

At this time, Chen Tian stretched out his right hand and patted his cousin and King of Britain on the shoulder. "This is the inevitability of history, and no country can maintain its strength for a thousand years!"

Ruprecht nodded, and the group drove further downstream along the River Clyde. After about half an hour, the line of sight in front of me suddenly widened a lot, and after flashing the last building that could block the view, a ship berthing area of about 20 hectares downstream of the shipbuilding area near the mouth of the sea was presented to everyone.

"Your Majesty, these are just built warships, and they are expected to be officially formed in two months!"

Before Hubert could finish his introduction, Ruprecht took a few steps forward impatiently. Because he saw the flag of his Kingdom of Britain fluttering on the top of the masts of the twenty or so warships next to the dock - a flag with a blue background, a red cross and a white slash, which was the flag of Great Britain after James VI unified England and Scotland in 1606, that is, the Red Cross of St. George of England on a white background and the White Cross of St. Andrew's Blue on a Scotland basis, which differed from the previous Union Jack in that there was no red slash (St. Patrick's flag) representing Ireland.

When Ruprecht was still surprised, Chen Tian walked up to him, looked straight ahead, and said, "Your Majesty, that's our fleet!" ”

"Our fleet!" Ruprecht repeated this softly, he had only known of such a fleet nominally belonging to the Kingdom of Britain, and that it currently had 5 light cruisers, 9 destroyers, and 6 minesweepers, but this was the first time he had seen it with his own eyes, and it had given him a rather strong shock at first sight.

Twenty British flags with red crosses and white slashes on a blue background fluttered high in the wind, and although the momentum of these ships could not be compared to the former British Grand Fleet, they made the British king deeply feel their presence, their power, and their loyalty.

At sunset, Chentian and Ruprecht stood side by side, and the shadows behind them seemed long, long.

"Do they all have names?" It took a moment for Ruprecht to think of this important question.

"BN-1, BN-2 all the way to BN-20!" Chen Tian turned his head and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, they are all waiting for you to name them!" ”

Ruprecht turned his face to Chentian, and there was a slight fluctuation in his calm eyes.

Chen Tian made a gesture of please, and the group immediately walked to the dock.

The entire wharf is surrounded by high barbed wire, and the only passage is tightly guarded by a large group of heavily armed soldiers, and the berth area and the wharf are not very large, but watchtowers, searchlights, and barracks are all available, and the area within the barbed wire fence can be seen everywhere with sailors wearing white military uniforms and brimmed military hats.

At this time, Ruprecht really realized what Chen Tian meant by "going out and walking more". Fearing that the underground resistance would be bad for him, he spent a long time in the palace in London, rarely going to all parts of England, and only once in 1916.

Since Chen Tian and his party were all dressed in civilian clothes, the guards on duty did not allow them to enter at first, and it was not until the commander here came out to meet Hubert that the gate of the port area slowly opened.

A little later, the radio in the port area sounded, and the commander announced in German the order for everyone to immediately assemble next to the warship. For a while, the officers and sailors who had been in groups of three and two ran towards the dock, and more than 2,000 soldiers were soon lined up on the dock next to their respective warships.

"Two Majestices, these are volunteers recruited from Austria, Croatia, Slavonia, etc., all of whom have served in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Now that the Austro-Hungarian Empire no longer exists, and all of these regions are part of the German Empire, we don't have to worry about their loyalty. Hubert whispered from the side.

Looking at the well-trained officers and men and the brand-new ships, both Chentian and Ruprecht were quite satisfied. It will not be long before this fleet will enter the North Sea and the Atlantic region to patrol in order to reduce the burden on the German Navy. If necessary, they will also go to North American waters to fight the fleets of the British government-in-exile, and the St. James and St. George Cross flags will also meet on the battlefield.

At this moment, Ruprecht and Chentian are also looking forward to it.