[Today's second update]

The Admiralty sent the project research and development plan of the Sea Lion-class third-class sail battleship to the General Staff for the record, and then handed it over to Deng Haonan for approval.

Deng Haonan is glad that the service plan of the Xiangying class has been postponed indefinitely, so that the navy will not assemble new warships on a large scale in the short term. Unexpectedly, the Admiralty bypassed the Xiangying class and came up with a project plan for the Sea Lion class.

In view of the tense situation in Southeast Asia, which was on the verge of breaking out, the Admiralty applied for a powerful shipbuilding program in order to gain the upper hand in future naval battles. There are two sets of plans, one is to continue to build the Beiyun-class fourth-class sail battleships in batches to replace the cruisers of the Pacific Fleet. The first is to develop the Sea Lion-class third-class sail battleship, which will be put into service as much as possible.

In short, the Admiralty's excuses are many, and they are so clear-eyed that it is impossible to refuse.

Deng Haonan is now financially constrained for the national tax exemption for three years, and the Ming Empire is pacified, external pressure has plummeted, and there is no need for large-scale military spending, so Deng Haonan is now doing everything possible to reduce military spending every day.

Of course, Deng Haonan wanted to build a strong fleet. It's just that Deng Haonan not only wants to build an invincible armada, but also wants to spend less money, he wants both fish and bear's paws, which is really sad.

In the imperial study, although Deng Haonan is not yet a king, he enjoys the treatment of a king.

After the next dynasty, if Deng Haonan was too lazy to move, he would review the official documents in the imperial study. This trick was also told by Zhang Pu, the purpose of which was to make the civil and military officials get used to Deng Haonan's appearance in the imperial study. In Deng Haonan's own words, he is now giving "vaccinations" to hundreds of civil and military officials, and one day he will be in a yellow robe, and these people will "catch a cold".

"That's too much! Building a fleet entirely of fourth-class battleships would cost five or six million taels of silver! ”

Lin Feng and Chen Yaoming glanced at each other, and they both saw that Deng Haonan was financially constrained at the moment, and Deng Haonan didn't care about the millions of taels of silver before.

"This—"

Chen Yaoming was about to explain, but Lin Feng stopped him and hurriedly said, "This is a bit too exaggerated!" According to the current scale of the Pacific Fleet, it is enough to dominate the Far Eastern Seas, and there is no need to expand it in a short time! ”

"That's it!" Deng Haonan nodded and said: "Although there is still a war in Southeast Asia, the multinational fleet should be more than enough to deal with the Dutch, seeing that we are about to receive the Dingyuan and Zhenyuan two ships, and the craftsmen sent to Britain and France to study are also about to return to China, and when they come back, we should get on the first-class battleships, and it is a waste of money to build these fourth-class battleships!" ”

Chen Yaoming smiled bitterly, and still counted on Lin Feng to help speak, but now it seems that he can't count on it. Seeing what Deng Haonan meant, he didn't plan to give the navy additional funds, so he retreated to the next best.

"The prince is wise! It is indeed anachronistic to rebuild a fourth-class battleship! Chen Yaoming thought for a moment and said, "However, the progress of the Xiangying-class third-class battleships is somewhat slow, and the Admiralty believes that even if the Beiyun-class is not built on a large scale, it should also find a replacement for the Xiangying-class, or call it a transitional ship type. And the Sealion-class third-class sail battleships can fill the gap. ”

Lin Feng hurriedly said: "The Sea Lion class is demonstrating the design, and it will be launched in a year before the sea trial, even if it is successful, it will be a few years before it is fully put into service!" ”

Lin Feng deliberately said that time was very important, and Deng Haonan heard it. Since the Sea Lion-class lead ship will not be tested at sea until a year later, there will be enough time, so there is no hurry, and simply gag the mouths of the Admiralty officials.

"In this case, then approve the development plan of the Sea Lion-class third-class sail battleship, as for whether it can be installed on a large scale, it depends on the table of the Sea Lion-class sea trial!"

"More princes!"

Chen Yaoming hurriedly responded, for fear that Deng Haonan would regret it, otherwise maybe Deng Haonan would change his mind after a while, and even the development test of the Sea Lion-class battleship would be cut.

After finalizing the development project of the Sea Lion-class battleship, Chen Yaoming came up with another plan.

Deng Haonan took it and saw that it was a treasure ship reconstruction project.

"This--it will cost a lot of silver!"

Chen Yaoming smiled bitterly and replied, "Although this costs a lot of silver, its economic and military value is extremely high, and it contributes to the majesty of the empire. ”

"How?"

Chen Yaoming replied: "After half a year's argument by the Admiralty, the treasure ship has a very strong transportation capacity because it is very large. Once completed, it will have a displacement of more than 20,000 tons and carry up to 10,000 tons of cargo, so that a large ship can top a trading caravan. It will be of great benefit to the Empire's overseas trade. ”

Deng Haonan nodded, knowing that the ability to transport goods after the completion of the treasure ship would be very considerable, but at this moment he was thinking about the construction cost of the treasure ship.

"It is also of great strategic and tactical value militarily!" Chen Yaoming continued: "At present, the largest ship of the Imperial Navy transporting materials is only 2,000 tons, and it has to spend money to borrow technology from Westerners. A war would require the mobilization of hundreds of transport ships, which would not only be huge in scale and costly, but would also be a serious danger in the future when projecting troops around the world, and if the enemy attacked our supplies, he would suffer heavy casualties. Also, once we have a treasure ship, these problems will be solved, and at the same time, the treasure ship can be used to transport troops, and a treasure ship can deliver tens of thousands of people. ”

At this time, Lin Feng added: "Last month, the navy just transported Ma Guangyuan's 20,000 horses to Seattle Fortress in the Americas, which took nearly a year and cost a lot!" If you have a treasure ship as a carrier, you can send it over at one time, which not only saves time, but also saves money, which is very cost-effective! ”

For the words of the two of them, Deng Haonan was convinced. As a person in the future, he knew that the bigger the ship, the more time and money would be saved, so the transport ships of later generations would be hundreds of thousands of tons or millions of tons at every turn.

Of course, Deng Haonan knew that Chen Yaoming and Lin Feng's words had moisture, and it was estimated that the treasure ship could not hold 10,000 people, but it was about the same as 5,000 people. Because in Deng Haonan's impression, this treasure ship is almost equivalent to a small aircraft carrier in later generations, which can carry about 5,000 people. However, it depends on how to pretend it. If you put people as goods, you can fit 10,000 people, and 20,000 people can also be loaded.

However, those are not Deng Haonan's concerns. The only thing is that the cost of this treasure ship really makes Deng Haonan feel distressed.

According to the treasure ship construction plan submitted by Chen Yaoming, the cost of a treasure ship (including workers' wages) is as high as two million taels, which makes Deng Haonan very headache.

"Lord Wang!" Chen Yaoming stepped forward and said, "Don't you want to attack the Americas? Now Ma Guangyuan and they are already in Seattle, just waiting for your order. It's just that army operations are different from navy. Navy warships are generally equipped with six months' supplies, but the army base is different, and the supply of weapons, food, ammunition, forage, military salaries, etc. cannot be interrupted, which requires a large transport ship like the treasure ship! ”

Deng Haonan closed his eyes and thought, Lin Feng and Chen Yaoming had to wait, and after a long time, Deng Haonan opened his eyes and said, "Since this is the case, then it is accurate!" It's just that the treasure ship drawings must be kept secret, and no news must be leaked, especially foreigners, who can't let them know! ”

"Understood!"

Chen Yaoming suddenly smiled, and hurriedly responded.

"I don't know how many treasure ships the prince will build?"

"How many?"

Deng Haonan paused for a moment, and said in his heart: How many more ships? Now he doesn't want to build one!

"Let's build one first, and if it works, it's not too late to build more!"

Chen Yaoming also knew that he couldn't eat hot tofu in a hurry, so he said: "Then the prince should give the treasure ship a name!" ”

Deng Haonan thought for a while and said, "Since it's a transport ship, it's better to call it Nuwa-class!"

The name given by Deng Haonan for the Nuwa-class transport carrier is like a holy decree that cannot be changed.

The Nuwa-class transport carrier was designed and built according to the detailed records of treasure ships in the Yongle Canon. The first ship, the Nuwa, is scheduled to be built at the Longjiang Shipyard.

The design displacement of the Nuwa is 18,000 tons ~ 21,800 tons, the square coefficient is 0,41 ~ 0.43, the load is 8,000 tons ~ 9,800 tons, the length of the transport ship is 44 zhang 4 feet (151.5 meters long), the width is 18 zhang (61.5 meters wide), and the draft is 8.5 meters. The ship is equipped with nine masts, 12 sails, and oriental hard sails. There are seven decks, including four lower decks, which are used to carry goods, and the deck of the ship is three floors, and the building is a building. The cruising speed is six knots, the endurance is two years, and the initial estimated cost is two million taels.

It can be said that this treasure ship looks as tall as a building, with a wide bottom, like an aircraft carrier, and can accommodate thousands of people without any problem.

Deng Haonan approved the construction of a Nuwa-class transport carrier, but before it was built, there were still many problems.

No, Chen Yaoming said again: "Lord Wang, the Admiralty hopes to complete the construction of the Nuwa-class transport carrier as much as possible!" ”

"Okay!" Deng Haonan nodded and replied approvingly: "Since it has been approved, the funds will be able to be transferred soon, and this king also wants to see the completion of the treasure ship earlier!" ”

Chen Yaoming smiled brightly and said, "There is still a small problem!" ”

Deng Haonan motioned for him to continue, Chen Yaoming paused, and then said: "It's just that this treasure ship is too huge, and there is no problem at all in terms of construction technology. It's just a little tricky with the material! ”

Deng Haonan asked suspiciously, "What?" What materials are missing? ”

"Lack of fine hardwood!" Chen Yaoming replied: "The treasure ship is very large, larger than Keju Field. According to the riveting method of steel nails and the wood tenon joint technology of the treasure ship, the craftsmen can completely build the treasure ship. It's just that the treasure ship needs extremely hard and coarse wood to strengthen the strength of the treasure ship, so that it can sail to sea, otherwise it will not be able to withstand the lapping of the waves! ”

Deng Haonan sighed and asked, "Lack of high-quality wood?" ”

Chen Yaoming nodded yes.

"Then let's go harvesting!" Deng Haonan said angrily: "The primeval forest is not there? Are you still afraid of a shortage of wood? ”

Chen Yaoming smiled bitterly, and Lin Feng said on the side: "The Admiralty hopes to start construction as soon as possible, but it will take time to harvest these woods, and it will take years to dry these woods!" ”

"Didn't you stock up on a lot of fine wood before?"

That's right, Deng Haonan has been preparing to build his own battleships since he ordered first-class battleships from Britain and France, so the high-quality timber for building battleships began to be stockpiled at the same time, so that when the workers who returned from Britain and France returned, they could immediately start building their own capital ships.

Lin Feng replied: "The battleship is limited by the tonnage, and the wood required is much thinner than the treasure ship's requirements, so the wood we reserve is not good, and the wood used in the treasure book must be very thick and hard, and it must be hardwood for hundreds of years!" ”

Deng Haonan nodded, suddenly laughed, and said, "So that's the case?" Then forget it! Wait three years to build a treasure ship! ”

Deng Haonan was secretly happy in his heart, now he doesn't have to worry about spending money, as long as he gets through this period of no money, there will be money to build a treasure boat in three years.

It's just that Chen Yaoming still doesn't give up, and Lin Feng seems to have something to say.

"What's wrong? Could it be that you have a good solution? ”

The two glanced at each other, and Chen Yaoming said, "There is a way!" ”

“……”

Deng Haonan rolled his eyes, coughed lightly, picked up the tea bowl and tasted the tea, and said, "Then let's hear it!" ”

Chen Yaoming hesitated for a moment, so he said: "That's the case, the wood needed for the treasure ship is ready-made, so I have come to ask the prince for approval!" ”

"Ready-made?"

Deng Haonan looked at Chen Yaoming and Lin Feng, and always felt that the two of them had something to hide.

"Since there are ready-made ones, let's use them well!"

Chen Yaoming was a little embarrassed, and glanced at Lin Feng, who was helpless, so he stepped forward and said, "That's the case!" The wood needed by the Admiralty is indeed ready-made, but considering the impact, if you want to take it, I am afraid that it will cause criticism and have a bad impact on the reputation of the prince! ”

Deng Haonan looked at the two of them in amazement and asked, "What's going on?" ”

Lin Feng saw Deng Haonan asking questions, so he had to answer truthfully.

"The wood in the palace and the imperial tomb is good wood for thousands of years, and the worst is hundreds of years old, so we mean-"

With a plop, Deng Haonan squirted out a mouthful of tea.

"Lord Wang!"

"Are you alright?"

It's no wonder it's okay!

Deng Haonan rolled his eyes angrily and stared at the two of them fiercely, the two did not dare to look at each other, and hurriedly lowered their heads and remained silent.

"You-"

Deng Haonan pointed at the two of them, and he didn't know what to say for a long time.

Meow a mi, to be able to come up with this bad idea, what a talent!

"Someone!"

Deng Haonan shouted, and Lin Feng and Chen Yaoming suddenly raised their hearts to their throats.

"Your Excellency!"

A eunuch and a palace maid came in, Deng Haonan pointed to the imperial book case and asked them to clean up.

Lin Feng and Chen Yaoming immediately breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Deng Haonan was going to ask someone to blast them out!

After a while, the eunuch and the palace maid packed up the imperial book case, and Deng Haonan motioned for them to retreat.

Doing it again, Lin Feng and Chen Yaoming immediately stood in front of the imperial book case, like two children who had done something wrong.

Deng Haonan laughed, pointed at the two of them and scolded with a smile: "You two are really talented, you can figure it out!" ”

Lin Feng hurriedly smiled evilly: "Isn't this all forced for Chen Yaoming?" ”

“……”

Chen Yaoming suddenly rolled his eyes in anger and secretly scolded Lin Feng for betraying him.

"Lord, I—"

Deng Haonan waved his hand, interrupted Chen Yaoming's words, and said, "It's nothing? Isn't it just the demolition of the palace or the demolition of the imperial tomb? For the sake of national defense construction, what if it is demolished? ”

"It's just that in this way, it will inevitably be criticized, this demolition of the wood of the palace and the imperial mausoleum will definitely cause dissatisfaction among the people of the world, especially the royal family!"

Deng Haonan smiled, rolled his eyes, and said, "Use your brain in everything!" It is necessary to do the demolition of the imperial palace and the imperial tomb so that everyone admires it! ”

Chen Yaoming's face was overjoyed, and he hurriedly said: "The prince is wise! Compared to the already existing way! ”

"Of course!"

Deng Haonan was proud, and after satisfying the appetite of the two of them, he said: "We can't say that we are going to demolish the palace and the imperial tomb, we should call it the new emperor to the throne and rebuild the palace, in order to commemorate the emperors, rebuild the imperial tomb!" ”

The two of them were stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized, and said in unison: "The prince is clever in this method!" ”

Deng Haonan nodded and said, "However, the play must be performed to the fullest, so you must first go and harvest the high-quality timber back, and then you can replace the timber of the imperial palace and the imperial mausoleum." ”

"Wechen understands!"

The matter was settled, and the two of them had nothing else to do, so they retired in unison.

In the morning of the next day, Deng Haonan announced in the main hall that he would rebuild the palace for the new emperor to ascend the throne, and at the same time, in order to remember the previous emperors, he was ready to rebuild the imperial tomb.

The civil and military officials exchanged their heads one after another, not knowing what Deng Haonan meant. However, most people are now on Deng Haonan's side, and they are completely obedient to Deng Haonan's words. So they expressed their support, and at the same time praised Deng Haonan's move to win the favor of Jun and the people. However, there are also some people who do not buy Deng Haonan's account, although they did not directly oppose it, but in their hearts they are secretly scolding Deng Haonan and selling his reputation and buying the hearts of the people.

Qian Qianyi, the first assistant to the cabinet, did not agree with Deng Haonan's move, of course, he started from the state finances. He thinks that this will cost a lot of money, and now that Deng Haonan is financially constrained, he should save some money.

I have to say that this Qian Qianyi is still good. Deng Haonan admired him very much, but in order to help the Admiralty obtain high-quality shipbuilding timber, he had to play a trick.

It's just that the matter of demolishing the palace and the imperial mausoleum for the sake of timber was turned into an advantage by Deng Haonan's operation, which not only made the members of the Ming royal family happy and grateful, but also let the people of the world see what Deng Haonan did for the country and the king.

Unknowingly, Deng Haonan's move actually bought the hearts of the people, which made his reputation rise to another level.

With Deng Haonan's approval, the Admiralty began to build the Nuwa-class transport carrier, first sending a large number of loggers to the primeval forest to harvest 100 years or 1,000 years of fine timber, and then transport it to the Imperial Palace and Imperial Mausoleum in Beijing.

At the same time, Deng Haonan sent people to dismantle the fine timber in the imperial palace and the imperial mausoleum and replace it with the wood that had just been harvested.

Of course, most of the replacement was made of the pillars inside and outside the main hall, and the rebuilding was just a façade, and the craftsmen just added an extra layer of paint to the palace.

The dismantled timber was transported to Nanzhili and handed over to the Longjiang Shipyard for the construction of treasure ships, which was done seamlessly, not only saving several years of air-drying cycle, but also gaining fame, Deng Haonan gained fame and fortune, and was extraordinarily happy. V