Only then did Baulde understand what kind of weapon Zhao Bei really wanted. Although this is a big deal, and he is also very interested in it, he is not very familiar with the export policy of naval equipment, so he does not agree to it.

"This, Mr. President, you must understand that as the latest naval secret weapon, submarines have always been military equipment restricted by military powers, and Germany is no exception, so if you want to buy submarines, you may have to seek the consent of the German government, this kind of arms 'trade' cannot be carried out 'privately', even the Krupp arms group does not have this kind of power, perhaps this 'trade' needs to consult Mr. German Minister in China. Of course, if the submarine 'trade' can be carried out, I also hope that Mr. President can entrust me with full authority to handle this 'trade', and the credibility of Lihe & Co. is worthy of Mr. President's trust. ”

Seeing that Bald was a little hesitant, Zhao Bei just smiled faintly and said, "I also understand what you mean, submarines are indeed cutting-edge weapons." The German government may not be willing to agree to the sale, so I have also made a similar proposal to Mr. Stade, the US minister to China, for a similar arms 'trade', and Mr. Stade is very interested, and he has promised to ask for instructions from China; according to Mr. Stade's telegram yesterday, the US Bethlehem Steel Company and the US Electric Ship Company have already expressed strong interest in this 'trade', and if the US government does not object to this 'trade', perhaps, the first batch of submarines of the Chinese Navy will be made in the United States. ”

Zhao Bei is telling the truth, and now the "Golden Yuan Doctrine" is rampant in the US government. Since taking office, Knox has repeatedly expressed his support for the sale of new weapons by US arms companies to China, and has promised that the US government will give the green light to these companies' arms exports, so when Stade's telegram for instructions was sent back to China, Mr. Secretary of State was the first to express his approval, this is not only a matter of making money, but also a matter of the balance of military power in the Far East, and now that the Japanese navy is too strong, the United States needs to increase the weight of the Far East to balance the Japanese naval power, although China's naval power is insignificant. However, as long as it can 'lick' the hearts of the Japanese, the US government does not mind being generous on the issue of naval equipment, and submarines, as a new type of naval weapon, may be able to divert the attention of the Japanese Navy to the Chinese side.

But it is risky to bet all on the side of the United States, because the United States has more interests in Europe. If Japan exerted pressure on the United States through Britain, the United States would not necessarily change its position, so Zhao Bei decided to ask Germany for submarines at the same time.

But the problem is that, compared with the United States, the German government is more cautious in the policy of submarine sales, Zhao Bei once asked the German minister to China Rex to buy submarines from Germany, but the German government's attitude towards this is ambiguous and unclear, which makes Zhao Bei a little worried, so he will take the opportunity to meet with Bauld to the German Krupp company. He believed that the influence of the Krupp Arms Group in German political circles was enough to influence the decision-making of German politics, after all, the power of capital is strong, and the 'jade' hope of capital is also powerful, and no entrepreneur is willing to give up profits to others.

"Excuse me, Mr. President, how many submarines does your Navy intend to equip?" Bauld asked cautiously.

"Six. This is just the first order. Zhao Bei said.

Bauld felt that his heart was about to jump out of his 'chest', six submarines, what an astonishing number, you know, even the current German Navy, there are only more than ten submarines, this Chinese president and Mr. actually want to order six submarines in one go, this is indeed a big deal, worthy of the hearts of all arms dealers.

"Please rest assured, Mr. President, that I will immediately send a telegram to Lihe & Co. informing them of this and urging them to convey Mr. President's goodwill towards German companies to the senior management of Krupp as soon as possible. In addition, the last time I attended a banquet hosted by the German Business Association in Tianjin, I had the privilege of having a 'personal' conversation with Mr. Hannagan, who told me that Mr. President intends to set up a shipyard in Wuhan, and if Mr. President does not change his mind, I would like to undertake this for Mr. President, of course, if the shipyard is located in Wuhan, then it will be impossible to build large warships. However, the construction of a shipyard requires a lot of money, and it also requires specialized personnel, and I hope that Mr. President will also understand this. ”

Bauld patted his chest and swore that he didn't forget to make some benefits for himself in the end, but he was also curious, and he didn't know that Mr. President had set up so many industries and bought so many weapons. Where did you get that much money?

"China's current financial difficulties, I am clear about this, but as the head of a country, I can't retreat from the difficulties, I must face the difficulties, without this kind of momentum, how can this country be rejuvenated? It is a great pleasure for you, Mr. Balder, to have this 'exchange' with you, and I believe that our friendship has been formally established, and even if this submarine 'exchange' does not go smoothly, it will not affect our friendship. This is my special business card, you can keep it, if there is something, you can take this business card directly to the presidential palace, someone will receive you, if I have time, I can also see you in person. ”

Zhao Bei instructed Qin Sihu to take out his special business card, 'hand' it over to Balder, and after a few words of encouragement, he sent the German arms broker away.

"Zhenhua, are you really going to buy a submarine?"

Wait for the German arms brokers to leave the carriage. Cai Ye hurriedly stepped forward and asked.

"Yes, buy a couple of submarines first, train sailors and officers. Don't underestimate this kind of submarine, although it may not be able to confront warships head-on, but it is still good to engage in breaking 'friendship' at sea, and it is elusive and ethereal, and this kind of weapon is the weapon we need most, and as for the '99th Fleet' plan proposed by the Admiralty, it is simply a fool's dream, nine battleships. Nine armored cruisers, all of which have to be purchased from foreign countries, where did we get so much military spending? Don't blindly follow the great powers, and don't just stare at the Japanese Combined Fleet, we must win by surprise, China is a land power, the navy has always been a weak point, under the current financial situation, the priority direction of the development of the navy should be the air force, submarines, torpedo boats, as for large warships, at present it is not what the Chinese navy needs most. ”

In his opinion, as long as the financial problem is not solved, the principle of "land dominance and sea subordination" in China's national defense strategy will not change, and the navy has always been China's soft underbelly, but it is not China's foundation, and as long as the army can guarantee its combat effectiveness, China will be able to win a chance to breathe.

"Who are you going to send to preside over that shipyard in Wuhan?" Cai Ye asked again.

"The Admiralty recommended Wei Han, but this person is still in Guangdong, and Sa Zhenbing is also more suitable, but he has other errands, so the person who is now in charge of the shipyard is Liu Guanxiong."

"Liu Guanxiong? Is this person reliable? He is Yuan Shikai's confidant. ”

"Liu Guanxiong is Yuan Shikai's cronie, that's right, but now that Yuan Shikai has passed away, Beiyang is basically falling apart, what reason does Liu Guanxiong have to go against me? Now I am the president of the Republic of China, and letting Liu Guanxiong preside over the shipyard is a trust in him, and for him himself, although this errand is not as good as being the chief of the navy, it is better than sitting on a cold bench. Besides, sending Liu Guanxiong to preside over the shipyard is just an expedient measure, and in the future, Mr. Wei Han will be asked to preside over the affairs of the shipyard, after all, he is a professional talent, and he was in the Fuzhou Shipbuilding Bureau back then. He was in charge of the construction of several warships. This shipyard does not expect to build any large warships, as long as it can manufacture torpedo boats and destroyers, and in the future, it will accumulate experience and talents, and it may not be impossible to build submarines; the key is time, and we are running out of time, so we must race against time and not allow Japan to take advantage of it. ”

Zhao Bei's words are a bit unfathomable, and Cai Yi can't understand the deep meaning of this, but he does agree with Zhao Bei's views on the current development strategy of the Chinese Navy, torpedo boats and destroyers are the equipment that the Chinese Navy needs most, and as for the plan of the "99th Fleet" of the Admiralty, it is indeed the result of Tang Xiangming's gang of people with low eyes, but I am afraid that it will be compared with the "88th Fleet" plan of the Japanese Combined Fleet.

After finishing the discussion on military issues, Zhao Bei left the carriage with his attaché, walked onto the platform, shook hands with the gentlemen and celebrities who came to greet him, and gave a short speech at the railway station.

Wang Zhanyuan, the original owner of the Governor's Mansion, planned to move out and live in another place, but was retained by Zhao Bei, a president, an overseer, in the wing room to talk about current affairs, Wang Zhanyuan a martial artist, a rough person, he basically knows nothing about current affairs, but that Yuan Shuxun is worthy of being an old fritter in the officialdom, and President Zhao had a very happy conversation, this talk talked about noon, and when it was time to open the meal, a few people ordered to set a table of wine and food under the eaves outside the 'door' of this wing, not called the song 'girl', did not call the servant, a few people just poured themselves to drink, but very leisurely.

After the meal, several people were still talking about the current affairs of Shandong in the wing, but before they could talk a few words, a confidential official of the presidential palace rushed to the wingroom with a copy of the telegram, handed over the copy of the telegram to Zhao Bei, and whispered a few words, looking a little strange.

Zhao Bei read the telegram, quietly handed the telegram to Yuan Shuxun, and said: "None of the outsiders here, you can also take a look, see what the 'chaos' in the political arena has become today?" What the country needs most at the moment is not a European-American style of government, but order! ”

Yuan Shuxun took the telegram, glanced at it a few times, his face changed, and he glanced at Wang Zhanyuan, who was stunned on the side.

"Li Songqing is assassinated!" Yuan Shuxun sighed.

"Song Qing" is Li Yuanhong's expression, that is to say, the assassin is Li Yuanhong, the current president of the Senate of the National Assembly.

Wang Zhanyuan was also very surprised, looked at Zhao Bei, but saw that the president of the Republic of China had stood up, was pacing in the house with his hands behind his back, and then walked to the 'door' and stopped, looking at the fallen leaves in the courtyard.

Although Li Yuanhong is just a puppet politician supported by Zhao Bei and has no real power, this person is now pressing the Congress for Zhao Bei as the speaker of the Senate of the Congress, it can be said that Li Yuanhong is Zhao Bei's right and left hand, and it is also a target erected by Zhao Bei in the Congress, used to attract the firepower of parliamentarians, and now, Li Yuanhong was suddenly assassinated, which made Zhao Bei a little worried.

"Who wants to kill Li Yuanhong?"

Looking at the dead leaves all over the ground, Zhao Bei fell into deep thought.

Behind Zhao Bei, Yuan Shuxun and Wang Zhanyuan were also puzzled, and the press claimed that Li Yuanhong had always been easy-going, and he usually persuaded people with reason in the Congress, and never used power to oppress people, who hated him to the core?

Perhaps, this country really needs a strong person to lead, and only such a strong person can bring order to the country.

The President was right when he said that restoring order in the country is the top priority at the moment.