"I heard that the Admiralty intends to sell some of the old warships to the Japanese Navy, is this news reliable?" Qin Lang put down his coffee cup with a charming smile on his face, looking at his old friend and boss during the Battle of Manila, the war hero of the United States, Admiral George. Dewey [Note]. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

But the admiral looked away. "What do you think of this place, Qin, will it make a good naval base?"

This place? U.S. Navy's Naval Base Hawaii - Another Name, Pearl Harbor? Qin Lang was amused by this clumsy little trick to divert the subject: Will Pearl Harbor become a good naval base? Of course, the US Navy has already come to a conclusion. In fact, the navy loved the port so much that from the middle of the last century onwards, various attempts and efforts continued uninterrupted, and in the seventies they yielded initial results: during the reign of King Calikawa of Hawaii, the United States was authorized to enter the area to build a "coaling and repair station". In the late eighties, in 1887, the Senate finally approved the Navy's request to lease Pearl Harbor and establish a naval base.

Of course, it was not until 1898, due to the effects of the Spanish-American War, that the Navy formally decided to make Pearl Harbor a naval base suitable for the permanent presence of the fleet -- the Admiralty had no intention of stationing the fleet outside the mainland for a long time -- and the formal construction work did not begin until 1899. Lieutenant Commander F. Merry was appointed plenipotentiary of the Navy and was given the Iroquois tugboat and two coal barges, and in June, after consultation, the sign "Honolulu Naval Base" was finally produced.

As for now, the sign has been changed to "Hawaii Naval Base".

However, this is inconsequential historical knowledge, and its main purpose is probably to show how much the U.S. Navy liked Pearl Harbor and was therefore bound to get its hands on it, although for a while it was not treated well. But now it can also serve as a reply to the admiral.

The unofficial reply, and the formal reply: "Of course, Admiral, this is an ideal naval base, and it will be an important support point for the Navy's Pacific strategy." ”

"That's what most people think." The admiral smiled, "But there is an opinion that this port is far from the mainland, and is vulnerable to blockade or surprise attacks in times of war, so it is not suitable for a long-term fleet station. ”

"I have not heard such unsubstantiated statements." He really hadn't heard of it. As a time traveler from the future, this argument was ridiculous to him. "Lockdown Hawaii? It must be said that the fleet, capable of accomplishing this task, will not be born even in another hundred years. ”

"You obviously forgot about the Royal Navy."

"That's true, the Royal Navy is now capable of completing this task, but now," Qin Lang accentuated his tone, emphasizing the word, now, "there is nothing here that is worth its blockade." When the basic construction of this naval base is completed, the US Navy will no longer be the object of its blockade. ”

The admiral's eyebrows jumped. "You're confident, Qin."

"I know the new battleships that the Navy is building, I know the Navy's strategic objectives in the two oceans, and I know the industrial power of the United States, and in the end, I can calculate when the basic construction of this base will be completed." After a deliberate pause, he nodded, "Yes, Admiral, I'm confident. ”

"You're right, Qin." Dewey laughed, "However, you must be wrong in your estimation of the completion date." ”

"Is there something I don't know?"

"Yes. The Admiralty demanded that the construction of Pearl Harbor be expedited, and that by the time Christmas came, all the facilities, berths, docks, coal bunkers, and ammunition depots sufficient for the permanent stationing of one or two battleship detachments would be built......," Dewey said, taking his coffee, "The news you heard is true, the Navy intends to sell some old warships, but the Japanese Navy is not our only customer. ”

There is another customer, if there is only one customer, it must be the Russian Navy. Qin Lang laughed, it is a matter of course, if Japan wants to go to war with Russia, or if Russia wants to go to war with Japan, the same incident, but it looks at the problem from a different angle - it must purchase a batch of warships in advance to expand its weak naval fleet, and at the same time increase the difficulty of the opponent's fleet expansion.

It is what is meant to happen, and at the same time it is an outcome that Washington and the Admiralty are happy to see. After all, the more fierce the competition among customers, the higher the price of the goods, and the high profits, no arms dealer is willing to refuse - even if the arms dealer is called the president of the United States.

It's not a moral issue, it's just about interests, the only question is, who will be the customer of the United States.

"With which country is the Navy going to trade, Russia or Japan?" Qin Lang asked.

"It's not something the Navy can decide, you know." Dewey shrugged, "The official attitude is very clear, who will have the higher price tag, and who will get those battleships." But those Jews were lobbying the president and Congress to put a little pressure on the Admiralty to sell warships to the Japanese. ”

He put down his glass and continued, "This is the trouble you have caused us. That hellish loan plan, Qin, I bet you planned it. ”

"It does concern me." Qin Lang didn't deny it—he didn't deny it completely, and of course, he then moved the topic to something else, "I understand those Jews, since they lent money to the Japanese government, of course they don't want the Japanese to lose the war. It's just that we all know that Japan's military power is not worth mentioning at all compared to Russia's military power. The Combined Fleet is only slightly more powerful than the Russian Pacific Fleet......"

A little? Of course, there is some exaggeration to say this: after two reinforces in 1895 and 1896, the Russian Pacific Fleet had one battleship, seven first-class cruisers, and three second-class cruisers, while the Japanese Combined Fleet had four battleships and two armored cruisers, which, together with other warships, could have wiped out the adversary or blockaded the harbor -- but the Pacific Fleet was only a part of the Russian maritime forces, and the Combined Fleet was the entire striking force of the Japanese Navy. As long as the Russians continued to strengthen their military strength in the Far East, the situation of the Japanese gradually became more difficult.

"Of course," Qin Lang admitted, in his heart, "it's my fault." ”

There is no doubt that this was his "mistake". Due to the serious economic problems caused by the suppression and blockade of the United Textile Technology Company, the Combined Fleet had lost at least six capital warships: two battleships, "Hatsushima" and "Mikasa", four armored cruisers, "Yakumo", "Azuma", "Iwate", and the famous battleship "Izumo", which later became the flagship of the Third Fleet, was repeatedly attacked by the Navy and Air Force of the Republic of China and sunk at least six times. Whenever he thought of this question, Qin Lang would be deeply saddened: "Mikasa" and "Izumo", the two legends of the Combined Fleet[Note 2], were completely destroyed by him like this...... To be precise, strangled, cannot leave its name in history.

However, if you think about it, since the world has changed so much because of his plans, it is impossible for two legendary battleships to leave a name in history even if they are born, so it probably doesn't matter if they are killed - at least the loss of one "Izumo" doesn't matter.

After all, Mikasa became famous for another reason.

Of course, "it doesn't matter" is just his own opinion, and the Japanese Navy certainly does not think so: it needs these warships, and the need is very urgent, with less than a year left. In such a little time, it is impossible for even the most efficient shipyard to complete the construction of a single battleship, let alone six battleships needed by the United Fleet.

At least six - you know, even in the original history, the "six. The Japanese navy of the "Sixth Fleet" was still buying warships everywhere before the outbreak of war with Russia, from the mainland to Britain, then to Europe, and finally to South America.

So, to put it simply, the Japanese needed warships from the US Navy.

“…… And there is another advantage to letting the Japanese buy the old warships of the navy," Qin Lang continued, "They use our loans to buy our warships, which is convenient for trading and saves time......"

"And it's basically the same as the consortium didn't give the loan to the Japanese." Dewey went on to say, "The Navy pays for the warships, and the consortium reaps the profits and land, and it's a very good business." ”

"The Navy has also received new warships." Qin Lang shrugged, "Although it's not exactly the money paid by the consortium. ”

Dewey did not refute his remarks, because they were completely unnecessary—there was no substantive conflict between the two of them. "The Navy is not against selling warships to the Japanese, but the Navy wants to sell them for a good price. We cannot take a stand now. ”

"We're certainly not going to make it right now." Qin Lang said, "In fact, what we have to do is like a project bidding. First of all, the company that won the bid is determined internally, and then a little bit of the inside story is leaked to it, and then a bidding meeting is held, and finally, no matter how other companies toss, the last one to get the project is always that. ”

"This is the range you are familiar with." Dewey said calmly -- of course, he had always known about these things and was very common in the United States, so there was no need to be surprised. "Just the actions of those Jews......"

"It's much easier to understand if you look at the actions of those Jews as tactical smoke." Qin Lang finally said, "However, be patient, the results will not be easy before the deadline arrives. ”

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Note: Dewey was promoted to admiral in 1899

Note 2: The Mikasa became famous because she blew herself up and sank in the harbor, starting the glorious tradition of the main warship of the Combined Fleet blowing up and sinking

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