Between the lines of this little-known young draftsman, the tragic end of Fujimoto Kikuo, a ship-building genius of the present generation, was announced.

Fujimoto Kikuo always tried to adopt new shipbuilding technology in order to gain an advantage in the armament competition with foreign warships, even at the expense of the safety of the hull. Unfortunately, this kind of disregard for hull stability and structural strength can easily overwhelm warships. Fujimoto later realized the technical pitfalls of doing so, and he was eager to work with the Military Command Department to solve these problems through new technologies. But the leaders of the Navy were skeptical of such cooperation. After Fujimoto's death, communication on design details between the Ship Administration Headquarters and the Military Command Department was even more prohibited, and it became difficult for the engineers of the Ship Administration Headquarters to exchange information openly with the rest of the Navy. Before Fujimoto's death, under his influence, the Navy made great efforts in the development of new technologies in response to the impending world crisis. This was urgent for Samoto, who was not a wealthy country with abundant resources and therefore had to spend his limited financial resources on a long-term strategy, but efforts to adopt new technologies to close the gap were frustrated by Fujimoto's untimely death and the rise to power of the conservative Hiraga Ryō. For example, in the design of super-battleships, the development of shipbuilding technology actually came to a standstill, and the idea of seizing the strategic initiative by means of technologically superior super-battleships had become impossible after Fujimoto's death, although no one had yet realized it.

When Matsumoto finished writing, he carefully closed the notebook and put it in his bag.

Matsumoto Shou got up and looked around to make sure his things were all packed, and he stood silently in the room for a while, leaving with his bag on his back.

He has already received an order to go to the Wu Navy Shipyard to participate in the construction of the super battleship.

After leaving the ship's headquarters and heading out into the street, a young newsboy was selling newspapers.

"Extra! Extra! The China Navy is about to hold an autumn parade! ”

Listening to the newsboy's shouting, Matsumoto Shou couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and he followed the crowd to the newsboy's side and bought a newspaper.

Matsumoto Shou opened the newspaper and read it, and he saw a large photo on the front page, which showed a huge new battleship, and this battleship looked very similar to the "Republic" class battleships of the Chinese Navy.

"Didn't the people of China dismantle those twelve super crossbowships?" Matsumotoshi's heart was full of questions, and he immediately looked at the caption at the bottom of the photo, only to see that the words "'Spring and Autumn' class battleship of the Shina Navy" were written on it.

Matsumoto Shou carefully looked at the Chinese battleship in the photo, and after careful identification, he finally determined that this was indeed not a "Republican" class battleship or a "Glorious" class battlecruiser, but a new type of battleship built by the Chinese Navy.

Judging by the photos, the tonnage of this battleship should be about the same as that of the "Republic" and "Glorious" classes.

Thinking of the current size of the Chinese Navy, Matsumoto Shouya, like many of them, suddenly became nervous in his heart.

Qingdao, China.

In the early morning of September 20, 1939, the "Huanglong" yacht slowly sailed out of Qingdao Port under the escort of more than 10 large and small ships of the Chinese Navy, carrying Cao Kun, president of the Chinese Federation, a leading group of military and political dignitaries, and foreign dignitaries.

Outside the port, more than 200 Chinese and foreign warships were arranged in more than 10 parallel columns, spreading out on the sea 10 kilometers square inside and outside Jiaozhou Bay.

The Chinese Navy's autumn parade on the sea has officially kicked off.

The ships under review were covered with flags of various colors from the bow to the stern, and the officers and men of the navies of the countries under review were all dressed in the most solemn ceremonial uniforms and stood neatly beside the sideboards; the "Peace" first sailed sideways in front of the lead ships of each column, and three green signal flares flew over the "Yellow Dragon" in an instant, and the pilot ships immediately fired a salute in unison, and after the last salute was released, the "Yellow Dragon" turned around and sailed to the predetermined viewing point.

The "Huanglong" was originally a 7,000-ton large cruise ship built by the "Huaxing" company, originally named the "Yellow River"; however, when the ship was completed last year, the "Huaxing" sold the ship due to operational difficulties, and was later purchased by Zhang Zuolin and given to China's political axe for travel review and visits, and was renamed the "Huanglong" by President Cao Kun himself.

As for why Zhang Zuolin spent such a large price to buy a ship for the political axe, only a very few people know.

In order to facilitate the review, a stepped viewing platform was temporarily erected on the top platform of the "Yellow Dragon", equipped with awnings and sound equipment, which was enough to accommodate more than 100 guests on board to watch the ship here.

At this moment, on the seat set up in the center of the viewing platform, President Cao Kun is holding a military high-powered telescope, looking at the countless columns of smoke on the sea, and his hands are involuntarily trembling.

At this moment, Cao Kun's heart was surging, and he was completely shocked by such a magnificent scene.

As China's supreme leader, he should be the first president to confront more than 100 modern steel warships.

And Yang Shuoming, who was sitting not far from Cao Kun's side, had a calm look on his face.

As the "Huanglong" sounded three whistles, Admiral Shen Honglie, chief of staff of the Navy, the commander-in-chief of the parade, strode to Cao Kun's seat with a saber in his hand: "Report to the president!" The parade fleet at sea is ready, please order the review to begin! ”

Cao Kun put down the binoculars in his hand, got up and raised his hand to salute back: "Start reviewing!" ”

"The sea split begins!" Shen Honglie gave an order, and the order flag was quickly raised on the mainmast of the "Yellow Dragon", and at the same time, several red and green signal flares flew into the blue sky.

In a short time, the loudspeakers on the viewing platform began to broadcast alternately in Chinese and English, introducing the columns under review. The military attaches of various countries present immediately widened their eyes and raised their binoculars with full concentration.

At the same time, Secretary of the Navy Tang Qianming put out a folder to carefully introduce the new ships to Cao Kun and others.

“…… In front of it is the new 'Moby Dick' class cruiser, which is independently designed by our country, has an advanced surname, can complete the scheduled tasks of breaking diplomatic relations in the ocean, reconnaissance, and monitoring of enemy ports, and has a strong sustained combat capability,...... This type of submarine also has a mine-laying type, which can covertly lay mines near enemy ports thousands of miles away to blockade them, and at the same time has a certain direct attack capability. Larger tonnage, better nautical surnames......"

"It's all designed and built by my country?" Cao Kun seems to attach great importance to the localization of submarines, and although he heard Tang Qianming's introduction, he still asked.

"Yes, it is completely designed and built by our country." Tang Qianming gave an affirmative answer, and Cao Kun nodded and raised the telescope again.

The second column consisted of 20 destroyers of the same type, and when they saw these large destroyers with majestic shapes and powerful firepower, bursts of admiration rose from the VIP seats.

Now, with the exception of the Zoben, no other country has a navy with such a large destroyer. And judging by the smoke coming out of the chimneys of these destroyers, it is clear that advanced new fuel engines are used.

"At present, only China and the Ship have such a large destroyer of more than 5,000 tons, and the endurance and armament of the same type of ships are far inferior to ours. It can be said that China's destroyers have the highest comprehensive surname among the destroyers in active naval service in the world. Tang Qianming said proudly.

As he spoke, the third column had entered the prescribed route, and this time it was a 10,000-ton light cruiser much larger than the destroyers of the second column, with a total of 12 ships.

"This is a 'Nakshatra' class light cruiser, with a standard displacement of 9,700 tons, a full load displacement of 11,800 tons, a total length of 186 meters, a width of 18.9 meters, a draft of 6.4 meters, four 'Wilcox' oil-fired boilers for power, four 'GE' steam turbines, a power of 125,000 shaft horsepower, 4 axles and 4 slurry propulsion, a speed of 34.5 knots, and a cruising range of 14 knots and 11,500 nautical miles. The main armor belt was 110 to 130 mm thick, the armored compartment was 50 mm thick, the deck armor was 50 to 80 mm thick, the turret frontal armor was 150 mm thick, the gun mount armor was 130 mm thick, and the conning tower armor was 90 to 150 mm thick. ”

"In terms of armament, the ship is equipped with 15 MK4 152 mm L50 naval guns, 5 triple turrets, 12 MK15 127 mm L51 naval guns, 6 twin turrets, 2 quintuple 750 mm torpedo launchers, 20 mines, equipped with our unique 'Tiger Shark' heavy oxygen torpedo. After modernization in 1938, 6 40-mm 'Bofors' twin anti-aircraft guns, 10 20-mm 'Erikon' twin anti-aircraft guns, 2 seaplanes, and 1 catapult were added. The electronic equipment includes the 'Test 1' type sea search radar, the 'Test 1A' type air search radar, and the 'Probe 1' type passive sonar. A total of twenty-eight ships of this class were built, named after the twenty-eight constellations, and this time they did not come all, and there were twelve in total. ”

Tang Qianming continued his explanation, and Cao Kun's eyes widened in surprise when he heard that these large warships in front of him turned out to be "light cruisers".

"Our ships are getting bigger and bigger, and even light cruisers have reached such tonnage."

"Yes! This is more than 10,000 tons, can it still be called a light cruiser? Gu Weijun also asked in surprise.

"This is the trend of the times, our Huaxia has lagged behind in history for many years, and this time we can't say anything behind." Premier Zeng Qi said with a smile on the side.

Just as he was laughing, the figures of twelve giant ships appeared in front of the spectators.

Yang Shuoming saw the appearance of these twelve giant ships, and the corners of his eyes involuntarily swept over the people around him, and he noticed that many admirals had emotional expressions on their faces, and he couldn't help but smile slightly.

What appeared in front of the people were six battleships of the "Republic" class and six battlecruisers of the "Glorious" class.

In the memory of many Chinese, in order to "forge swords into plowshares" and develop the economy peacefully, these giant ships that had made great achievements in the First World War and the Second War of Resistance were decommissioned and demolished. And now that they have reappeared in front of people with a neat and new look, how can they not be excited?

"Didn't you say that they were all demolished? I was still uncomfortable for a while, why is this ......?"

Seeing these giant ships again, Cao Kun was a little surprised, but like everyone, his excitement was beyond words.

"Dismantling is dismantling," Tang Qianming said in an ominous voice, "At that time, after the main guns were removed, the hull was sealed first, and after the treaty expired, our navy needed to replenish new battleships, and someone mentioned the hulls of these old ships, so they were opened and modernized, like the main guns on the current ship, all of which were replaced with 406 mm 50 times the diameter, and the 'Glorious' class was modified according to the standards of fast battleships." ”

"I see." After listening to Tang Qianming's somewhat vague explanation, Cao Kun understood what was going on, so he nodded with a smile and stopped asking.

“look！ nebattleship！ Someone in the VIP seat suddenly shouted, and everyone's eyes invariably focused on the next column that was still turning behind the battleship column.

As the fumes and mist cleared, the two-ship-long column turned and entered the channel, where the clear figure of the lead ship was first exposed to the expensive lenses of countless high-end telescopes.

In front of the conning tower, there are two triple turrets full of suffocating heaviness arranged in a stepped shape, with a thick barrel and a huge muzzle, perfectly combined with the wide hull and tower-like front superstructure, the aesthetics of the big ship cannon are displayed barely, intuitively and texturedly, without a trace of decoration, without a hint of doubt, as if carrying a magic force, choking the neck of the audience, making them unable to breathe, unable to think, and ascending into heaven or hell of visual stimulation of pure sense.

Two large chimneys occupy a prominent position in the ship's bulk, behind which are two large booms, followed by the rear mainmast with a small lookout platform on top - just a single steel barrel, and then a second secondary gun commander and another large triple main gun turret.

"This is our navy's latest 'Spring and Autumn' class battleship, which is still in sea trials, and has not yet been officially put into service before it is rushed to participate in the president's ship parade." Tang Qianming said.

"A very mighty battleship." Cao Kun nodded and raised the telescope again.

"'Spring and Autumn' class battleship, launched: 1938. Standard displacement: 52,121 tons. Full load displacement: 54,774 tons. Dimensions: total length 245.9 meters, maximum width 34.5 meters, waterline length 241.5 meters, draft 10 meters. Armament: 406 mm main gun, three triple turrets, two front and one rear knapsack, 10 127 mm guns, twin turrets, 10 40 mm high-level dual-purpose guns, twin turrets, mounted on a ground trap rapid-fire gun mount. Anti-aircraft guns were mounted on deck mounts, on both sides of the middle of the hull, with fully raised knapsack guns. 20-mm guns in a single-mounted gun mount. Tang Qianming then explained to Cao Kun, "The main armor is 400 mm thick, the main armor belt covers 90% of the normal length, the bow and tail are unarmed, the torpedo protective wall is 160 mm thick, the turret armor is 500 mm thick, the deck armor is 160 mm thick, and the command tower armor is 600 mm thick." ”

"The power system uses an oil-fired boiler with 4 axles and 4 slurry, a power of 135,787 shaft horsepower, a maximum speed of 30 knots, and a range of 15,000 nautical miles at 18 knots."

Accompanied by the passionate jumping majestic syllables, the battleship "Spring and Autumn" approached the "Yellow Dragon" yacht with a mountain-like majestic momentum, and surprise and admiration suddenly became the main theme on the viewing platform.

"In this way, there is no problem for us to build giant ships of more than 50,000 tons on our own?" Cao Kun asked.

"Yes." Tang Qianming nodded, "This ship is independently designed and built by my country, and all parts and equipment are produced in China." ”

"Can anything bigger be built?" Zeng Qi asked.

"Technically, there are no problems." Tang Qianming glanced at Yang Shuoming intentionally or unintentionally, and replied with a smile.

"Does that mean it's the money?" Zeng Qi understood what Tang Qianming meant, and said with a smile.

"Now that the war in Europe is resuming, no matter how much our country wants to avoid it, it is likely to face a flank attack from the two countries in the end, which is all too clear." Tang Qianming said, "The Soviet Union is China's great enemy on land, and it is said that it is China's great enemy at sea. At present, it is an indisputable fact that the overall strength of our navy's battlefleet is weaker than that of the previous one. ”

Listening to Tang Qianming's words, Cao Kun was stunned for a moment, and quickly exchanged glances with Wu Peifu and Zeng Qi beside him.

"Only two 'Chunqiu'-class battleships have been built, which is a little less." Cao Kun said.

"Only one of the 'Spring and Autumn' class was built." Tang Qianming corrected, "The one in the back is another level, the 'Warring States' class battleship. ”

'Oh?' Sengoku class? Cao Kun hurriedly raised the telescope again and looked at it, "I didn't pay attention to it just now, it's different, this one seems to be a lot bigger than the 'Spring and Autumn' class!" ”

"What the president said is that the normal displacement of the 'Sengoku' class is 68,200 tons, and the full load displacement is 71,230 tons." Tang Qianming said, "The ship has a total length of 264.4 meters, a maximum width of 40 meters, a draft of 10 meters, a maximum speed of 30 knots, and the main guns are the same as the 'Spring and Autumn' class, which are also nine 406 mm main guns." Tang Qianming introduced, "The Spring and Autumn Class is the compensation obtained by China for the dismantling of the 'Glorious' class at the first London Naval Conference. The 'Sengoku' class is an upgraded tonnage obtained at the second London Naval Conference, when Italy refused to renew its contract. ”

"I see." Cao Kun put down the telescope with some excitement, "We can build a 70,000-ton giant ship in China, which is really gratifying."

(To be continued)