Outside the window, the torrential rain poured down, the banana trees were bent over, the glass windows "crackled", and the earthy wind sent the rain into the house, and the stars floated on the body, which was refreshing. In the summer and autumn season of this year, there is an amazing amount of rain, almost every three or five is a torrential rain, if it is not for the underground drainage system just built in Anqing, it will definitely be flooded by the provincial capital.

The sound of wind and rain outside the window couldn't suppress Chai Dongliang's roar in the house.

"Two hundred thousand pounds?" Chai Dongliang slammed the contract on the table with a snap, and roared at Jia Leheng: "A 2,600-ton warship, you dare to ask me for 200,000 pounds?" Why don't you grab it! ”

The Phenom had a displacement of 2,600 tons, a length of 322 feet, 6,000 horsepower, a speed of 24 knots, and was equipped with two six-inch main guns, two three-inch secondary guns, six 47-mm machine guns, and two eighteen-inch torpedo tubes.

200,000 pounds sterling is equivalent to 360,000 US dollars, 1,200,000 taels of silver, and 1,800,000 yuan of silver dollars issued by Guanghua Bank??? The 10,000-ton giant ship that Chai Dongliang gave to the United States was only 1.3 million taels of silver. A 50% discount on this Feihong is the serious price, and 200,000 pounds is undoubtedly a sky-high price!

Jia Leheng was not angry, and said with a smile: "The Qing Dynasty political axe has already paid a deposit of 40,000 pounds, and you only need to pay another 160,000 pounds to get this latest cruiser." ”

Chai Dongliang's head shook like a rattle: "I don't want 160,000 pounds, you can sell it to whomever you want, what does the contract between the Qing Dynasty political axe and you have to do with me?" ”

Cheng Biguang, the captain of the "Haiqi", has been appointed deputy commander of the Yangtze River Fleet, and he is a member of the navy who naturally plans for his own people. Feihong', the humble duty knows that the price is a little expensive, and the financial resources of Anhui Province to support the Yangtze River Fleet are already beyond their strength to buy a new warship is indeed difficult, and the humble request, the officers of the Yangtze River Fleet under me only take seventy percent of the salary and silver, and support the governor to buy back this ship! ”

Chai Dongliang can't wait to kick him to death, who is this guy? There is still a bit of a position no! When I visited the United States, I was confused by the foreign woman at the opera house, right?

I was not happy, but I had to soothe me with a smile, but Cheng Biguang was so heartbroken that he had to force Chai Dongliang to buy this "Feihong". If it weren't for the information provided by the book friend group to learn that Cheng Biguang is a very honest person, Chai Dongliang would definitely think that this guy had taken a kickback from the Yankees!

The advance army for the conquest of Mongolia has just set off, and the more than 2 million yuan raised from all over the country is just enough for the opening fee and three months' military expenditures, and the next plan is to occupy the entire Manchurian and Mongolian ??? After the occupation, it will definitely be necessary to expand the army and build, which will require a large amount of money. Not to mention that Chai Dongliang didn't dare to be interested in this "Feihong" at all, even if he liked it, he couldn't spend his money on things that weren't important enough.

Chai Dongliang finally had to smile bitterly and spread out his hands: "Your Excellency, I am only a provincial military and political chief, and my financial resources are very limited, and I also like this warship, but I really can't do it, so I can only express my deep regret." ”

Jia Leheng smiled and opened the folder he was carrying, and took out a contract written in Chinese and English: "Your Excellency General, if the United States is willing to provide you with a loan, will funds no longer be a problem?" ”

As soon as Chai Dongliang heard about borrowing foreign money, his head was as big as a bucket at that time, and Yuan Shikai's plan to borrow money for the aftermath was to use salt tax and central tax as guarantees, and the interest rate was high.

Jia Leheng said stubbornly: "Please read this contract, how about we discuss this issue again?" ”

Chai Dongliang didn't want to refuse in person, he looked at it patiently, and gradually his tightly knit brows opened, and his face was a little happy, and he saw that Chai Dongliang's mouth couldn't close later, and his face was full of consternation. Jia Leheng observed Chai Dongliang's expression, and a sense of pride secretly rose in his heart??? I had already guessed that Chai Dongliang would not be able to refuse this cooperation plan!

If Chai Dongliang accepts this contract, he will become a hardcore ally of the United States, and the situation of the British dominating the Yangtze River basin will be broken.

This thing, which is translated as "The Berliham Contract" (Berriham is another transliteration of Bethlehem), is a secret contract signed between Zaixun and the American company Bethlehem in 1909, and the content is so grand that it can be described as perverted.

Berryham Steel pledged to provide loans to the Chinese Navy for the construction of shipyards and coastal defense facilities, as well as to undertake construction tasks; The total amount of the loan is $30 million, of which $10 million will be paid first, and the remaining $20 million will be used for the construction of a shipyard and a military port; 5% per annum, with a term of 35 years; Handling fee of 8 cents; as security for all facilities constructed; Americans can only be hired to build dockyards and use American materials.

$30 million, even at the peak of taxes at the end of the Qing Dynasty, was equivalent to a quarter of the country's tax revenue??? And this is only the first installment of the loan, if the previous contract is executed smoothly, there will be a larger loan later!

"No need for a guarantee? Don't need to pay back the money in the first ten years? In addition to eight battleships, twenty armored cruisers, and a hundred submarines? A hundred? Chai Dongliang rubbed his eyes to make sure he was not mistaken!

The actual content of the Bethlehem contract was basically a complete set of industrial systems imported from the United States, starting with the expansion and construction of the most basic metallurgy, chemical industry, machinery, shipbuilding, and artillery building, to the transfer of the entire industrial system and technology needed to help China build a navy that could compete with Britain in the Far East.

To put it bluntly, it is to copy another ally with a completely industrial system in the Far East, according to American standards!

"President Taft's gold-dollar diplomacy is really worthy of its name??? Yankees are really rich in their grandmothers! Chai Dongliang smacked his tongue secretly.

The Bethlehem Treaty was nominally a commercial contract, but it had a strong political purpose, to draw China against the British alliance and at the same time to contain Russia??? This is a secret contract between countries under the guise of a commercial contract!

When this plan is completed, China will crush its fierce rivals in terms of industrial and naval strength, and China will leap from a traditional agricultural country to a new industrial power!

The important surname of this contract can almost be compared with another time and space, when the new China was founded, the Soviet Union aided China 157 large-scale industrial projects, the difference is that the aid was exchanged for the flesh and blood of Chinese men after the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, in which the Chinese paid hundreds of thousands of casualties, and this was thrown out by the Americans on their own initiative for the interests of the Pacific Ocean.

$30 million in loans, a full set of industrial systems??? The temptation is almost irresistible!

The interest rate is not high, which is absolutely beneficial to China, and all the materials required for the construction are purchased from the United States, which is also very beneficial to the Bethlehem Company, and it has achieved the purpose of gold dollar diplomacy for President Taft's capital export, which can be regarded as a plan that is happy for all three parties.

Jiale Hengken took out this "Bethlehem Contract", and it was definitely not as simple as forcing himself to buy the "Feihong" cruiser!

After Chai Dongliang finished reading it, he smiled and handed it to Jia Leheng: "This is the contract between Bethlehem Company and Qing Zheng Axe, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with me, right?" ”

Jia Leheng's eyes almost fell out, and he said in a daze: "You mean to refuse?" ”

Chai Dongliang said with a smile: "Mr. Minister can understand it like this. ”

Cheng Biguang took the contract and looked at it a few times, and exclaimed: "Governor, this deal is worth it!" ”

With the exception of Zai Xun and Sa Zhenbing, who was then Admiral of the Great Qing Shui Division, almost no one in China knew of the existence of the Bethlehem Contract, and Cheng Biguang, although he was an admiral, was the first time he had seen such a grand plan. Oh my God, eight dreadnought-class battleships, twenty armored cruisers, ten auxiliary ships??? A hundred submarines!

Cheng Biguang was the pipe band of the Guangdong Naval Division's Guangbing clipper during the First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle, and seeing that the war was imminent, he took the initiative to ask Ying to help the Beiyang Naval Division fight. After the defeat of the First Sino-Japanese War, because Cheng Biguang was not from Beiyang, it was decided that he would send a surrender document to Ito Youheng, the commander of the Navy.

The moment he held the letter of surrender became an indelible shame for Cheng Biguang's life, and this kind of shame can only be washed away by burying the United Fleet at the bottom of the sea. And at this moment, this opportunity seems to be in front of him, Cheng Biguang is a little excited and difficult to hold himself!

Commanding such a large fleet is an incomparably happy thing for any admiral of the navy??? Chai Dongliang actually wants to refuse?

Cheng Biguang almost wanted to shoot the case and turn his face with this brainless boss!

Jia Leheng regained his composure, shrugged his shoulders and said, "My dear general, your subordinates can see that this contract is extremely beneficial to your country, I believe that with your wisdom, you will not be unable to understand it, right?" And you're not the only one to work with Bethlehem??? For example, President Yuan Shikai in the north or Mr. Sun Wen who is temporarily dormant! ”

Chai Dongliang put the two fingers of his left hand together, tapped the contract on the table with his knuckles, and sneered: "Mr. Minister, if you are willing to cooperate with Yuan Shikai and Mr. Sun, I'm afraid this contract has already begun to be executed, right?" Is it still necessary for you to come to me? ”

One sentence hit the sore spot of Minister Jia Leheng, Yuan Shikai is pro-British, and the relationship with himself is not bad, Minister Lin Quanzhu has always called Yuan Shikai a brother, and if he gives the "Bethlehem Contract" to Yuan Shikai, Tokyo and London will fall out in less than three days, and the United States has not yet resisted the power of the British Empire in the Far East. Otherwise, the Treaty of Bethlehem would not have been a secret treaty, and would have to be disguised as a commercial contract. Sun Wen and other revolutionary parties were surrounded by spies who said that he himself, Miyazaki Zhuangtian, Hirayama Zhou, and Kita Yihui, and groups of people who said that they were surrounded by Sun Wen, Huang Xing, and Song Jiaoren. He was clearly not the right person to enforce the secret covenant. In addition to Yuan Shikai and Sun Wen, another powerful figure, Li Yuanhong, was trapped in Yanjing, which was like house arrest.

Jia Leheng sadly found that in the huge China, apart from Chai Dongliang, he really couldn't find a more suitable partner??? Holding a pig's head, I couldn't find the temple gate!

If this contract is implemented, it will trigger a large-scale arms race, or even a full-scale war, between China and China??? Whether it is an arms race or an all-out war, it will break the situation in the Far East and constrain the development of the capital, which is extremely beneficial to the United States??? The Americans have taken so much money, but China cannot take such a big risk, and I personally have no right to decide the fate of China's 40,000 people, let alone let China fall into the flames of war! ”

Cheng Biguang's face changed suddenly, and he understood why Chai Dongliang was so resolute, if he was stimulated by the cooperation between China and the United States to go crazy, how could he compete with the Yangtze River Fleet's current strength against the United Fleet? A protracted war will certainly restrict the development of the country, but it will also completely destroy China, which is in turmoil.

The United States, which advocates isolationism, will not send troops to protect the Chinese!

Jia Leheng was shocked that the general on the other side, who looked very young, had seen through the strategic intentions of the United States in an instant??? It's a tough guy to deal with!

"My dear general, China is a big country, and it must have a navy that is sufficient to match its status as a great power in order to protect China's maritime interests."

Chai Dongliang smiled indifferently: "I don't have so many maritime interests to protect, and the fish in the river are just greedy for a bite of bait, so they have become a delicious meal on someone else's plate." ”

Before the words fell, Chai Dongliang suddenly shivered, and he suddenly woke up to the fact that the "Bethlehem Contract" stipulated that the warships built by China, including the guns on them, must be produced according to American standards??? At present, the standard of passage used by the international navy to build warships is British, and the standard of artillery is taken as the international standard of the British Amsterdam company.

The first-class industrial countries set standards, the second-rate industrial powers promote brands, and the third-rate ones engage in manufacturing.

Chai Dongliang finally understood that the most important goal of the Americans to win over China to form a Pacific Alliance to restrain the British alliance is not the most important goal, but its biggest purpose is to promote its industrial standards all over the world, so that the future world can formulate industrial standards according to American standards.

The Americans have spent a lot of dollars to support China's industrial development, not because they intend to learn from Lei Feng, but because they want to copy an industrial country that uses American standards as the manufacturing standard to achieve the goal of popularizing American standards.

Having international standards is equivalent to controlling the world's manufacturing industry, when the emerging industrial power is about to catch up, countries with international standards can achieve the purpose of curbing competitors by revising the standards, so that the other party's efforts are like a boxer punching hard but hitting the cotton bale, empty power but nowhere to use. It's like a race, when you finally pass the match and are about to cross the finish line, but the referee tells you that you are running in the wrong direction, and you can't catch up with the opponent anyway.

In another time and space, the United States in the 21st century is like this, most of its manufacturing industry has been transferred abroad, but this does not prevent it from being the world's first power, and China, which has almost exhausted its resources, is firmly locked at the lowest end of the industrial chain??? The United States is such an ambitious country!

The rise of the United States is really not a fluke!

(To be continued)