"Boring! Boring! Boring! ……”

The heavy steam hammer slammed into the steel plate below, and the loud sound that broke out in an instant was like thunder, and if you got closer, you would burst your eardrum on the spot, and your head would be dizzy.

This was the steel plant of the Krupp company, which was responsible for the production center for the supply of artillery and armor to the German Navy. From its establishment to the present decades, it has provided countless excellent products to the world, and Li Hongzhang of the Great Qing Dynasty alone has purchased thousands of heavy artillery pieces from them, and the order price is calculated in tens of millions of taels.

Make money, very profitable! The Krupp company, which is almost the lifeblood of German military equipment, is undoubtedly one of the most profitable companies in the world.

They are most proud of the fact that they have always mastered world-class metallurgical construction technology. Even the products of the British company Armstrong are still not as good and durable as Krupp's cannons.

Then, as the ruler of the Krupp Empire, the third-generation Friedrich has enough pride to calmly face the vast majority of the world's wealthy families and big names. Even Kaiser Wilhelm II had to smile and smile like a friend in front of him.

Today, however, Friedrich is very unconfident. Those who are familiar with him can even see a little panic and nervousness in his expression, especially when they see the terrible quality of the samples under the hammer, and an invisible sense of crisis envelops their hearts.

Finally, the steel plate, which had been hit thousands of times, shattered, and the irritating noise echoed through the empty factory building, fading away. A group of engineers with ear protectors immediately rushed out of the adjacent soundproof operation room, shouting at the filthy workers to replace the next piece of material.

Friedrich covered his mouth and nose with a flawless white handkerchief. With a slight frown, he stepped into the workshop. His leather shoes, which were polished to reflect like mirrors, fell on the ground strewn with a large amount of iron slag and dust. It looks extraordinarily incongruous. It also made his mood more and more unhappy.

However, in the current situation of more important things, a little personal cleanliness can only give way for the time being.

The engineer apparently noticed the displeasure of the third generation of Krupp, rubbed his rough hands a little nervously, and said in a controlled tone: "Sir, we have cleaned the factory as much as possible. But you know, there's overtime ...... every day. ”

Friedrich stopped the useless explanation with a slight wave of his handkerchief, and he was already feeling uncomfortable. If you say something from someone else's mouth, such as "the oil is difficult to clean", "our exhaust fan is not working well, the dust content in the air is too high", etc., it will make him vomit with nausea.

Well, the third generation of the Krupp family is not only clean, but also homosexual. Of course, this matter must not be mentioned, people in this era are not as enlightened as hundreds of years ago, and as a public figure, if such a scandal is exposed, his best solution is suicide.

When the work of replacing the new piece of material was terminated, Friedrich said gloomily: "No need to test it anymore, just report the number and the results of the judgment you have obtained." ”

The gray-haired old engineer felt a little sorry in his heart. You can't continue to engage in destructive practices to figure out the performance of your opponent's products, but the boss's orders cannot be disobeyed. I had to sigh and say: "Up to now, we have tested a total of 115 kinds of unused metal materials from China, 383 times of hard destruction, 1044 groups of chemical products, and about 30 kinds of composition ratios can be inferred, and the others need further testing." ”

Friedrich didn't want to listen to such details, and raised his index finger to interrupt him: "Getting to the point." ”

The old engineer licked his tongue, flipped back the thick report, and said, "Well, what is certain at the moment is that their metal products have unparalleled performance, surpassing any of our best products. Whether it is the steel used to make guns, or the steel plates of ships, or even the armor steel, there is at least 30% performance exceeded. We can't understand how they did it. ”

At this point, the old engineer shook his head in disbelief. In his mind and that of the vast majority of Germans, China's image is estimated to be much different from that of Africans, even though there have been so many years of trade between China and Germany, and the general sense of white superiority and the estrangement that are too far away, make them generally lose the ability to understand.

Of course, there are no books about China in society, and newspapers often publish news from the East, but most of them are negative. And only a few people can read the translated Chinese classics and draw nourishment from them. Most dogmatic Germans don't care.

In their impression of a wild place, there would be such a large number of products with unexpected performance, which was unacceptable to the Germans who felt full of superiority.

Friedrich, on the other hand, was not so uninformed. He personally visited Yang Hao in China, and also had the opportunity to visit the factories under construction in Tianjin, including arsenals, shipyards, steel factories and vehicle factories. The impression left on him was so deep that he often dreamed back at midnight and sweated profusely. Because he often dreams that the huge Krupp industrial empire collapsed overnight!

Therefore, he had no sympathy for the old engineer's doubts, and said lightly: "They have 10,000 tons of hydraulic presses, and it is very likely that there is more than one." Thousands and hundreds of tons of hydraulic presses and hydraulic presses are almost universally stored in their machinery factories. In addition, they have built more than one large-scale steel plant with an annual output of one million tons of high-quality steel. The most surprising thing is that they have a very wide plate mill! ”

The old engineer's mouth opened wide in surprise, like a sea fish that lacked water after coming ashore, and the horror in his eyes made people mistakenly think that he had seen Satan's incarnation appear in front of him.

After a long pause, he let out a long moan, "Oh God! This is simply incredible, the Chinese, there are advanced metallurgical machinery! ”

For the first time, Friedrich felt that it was a big mistake not to let the company's engineers go to China in batches in advance to open their eyes. Accustomed to sitting in Europe and watching the sky, they live in the good feeling of Lao Tzu being the first in the world all day long, and completely forget that this world is actually very big, and it is by no means only Europeans who can create the pinnacle of industrial civilization.

Back in 1893. Bethlehem Steel of the United States took the lead in building the first 10,000-ton hydraulic press. The three-roll Raute rolling mill has been used in the United States for many years. Krupp has extremely advanced metallurgical technology. But it doesn't mean that they are already the first in the world at present, this kind of arrogance is very bad.

But to tell the truth, it's quite surprising to find so many advanced and strange things in China. Friedrich could not imagine any country in the world being stupid enough to sell the most advanced industrial equipment, especially to the potentially huge rival of the Chinese.

In addition, even if the deal is made. It must be preached all over the world, because that share is too big!

"Forget it, don't think about those bad things."

Friedrich shook his head and motioned for the old engineer to continue in return.

"We have tested the steel plate of the warship from China, which should be formed in a thick plate mill at one time, and then cut and perforated directly according to our requirements, and its strength is far beyond our existing ship plate. In addition, we found out that it seems that this is also only the plate they use on ordinary civilian ships, and we did not get samples for the better. ”

Friedrich was helpless again. It's not just scary, it's showing off! The steel plate used to build civilian ships is actually better than the steel plate of the best warships in the West. This means that their metallurgical technology and production capacity are beyond imagination.

"Also. The composition of the armor steel they provide should be chromium-manganese steel and nickel-chromium steel, but the case hardening process is very good, and some indicators exceed our KC steel. However, we suspect that their production costs will be much lower than ours. ”

"That's what worries me the most."

Friedrich was very level-headed, and from the point of view of a qualified businessman, he keenly judged the most threatening points.

From the standpoint of a hostile country, China should never sell the raw materials and equipment used to build warships to the outside world, because that would be tantamount to asking for trouble.

But they did so, and they supplied it almost unlimitedly, even if the world's top powers placed orders, and the total number of them might not even be able to supply even Britain and Germany, but they still ate it all. And at the first time, all countries got the samples they needed, what does this mean? Don't be afraid!

Friedrich greatly admired Yang Hao's means of doing business, and his one-sided victories in successive wars proved the undoubted superiority of his weapons and equipment. Then he took the opportunity to say that he could sell it with great fanfare, and he was eager to figure out how the countries that had failed in their own countries should buy it. Compared with Bothering Bala to engage in intelligence, it is obviously more direct and cost-effective to pay for it, and it is more comprehensive to understand.

There is no doubt that all countries have got what they wanted. But it is precisely because I got all the ideal products that I got them, but it made all countries very entangled. Because the ship equipment materials provided by China are better than those produced by their own countries, the supply is more timely, and the price is at least one-fifth cheaper!

An advanced battleship, with an average of two million pounds of fraud, except for the weapons system, is at least one-fifth of the remaining one hundred and fifty million, that is the price difference of nearly three hundred thousand pounds!

For the major naval powers, it is expected to build dozens of battleships, so it may save tens of millions of pounds of money when added up...... This number is so tempting! No political party, no Führer, could refuse a bill that would save so much money, otherwise he would be mercilessly attacked.

But for the arms suppliers of various countries, this is simply a disaster! It is impossible for them to surpass each other in terms of technology in the short term, so they can only find a gap in price. But the problem is, everyone is one-fifth cheaper, if you want to be cheaper more, how can you win the order? Once the price is reduced, how will everyone's profits be generated? If there is no profit, the enterprise will go bankrupt!

This kind of thing cannot be solved by the influence of a single government. In the face of tens of millions of pounds of wealth, it is difficult for anyone to maintain their inner calm.

Companies such as Krupp and Armstrong have a variety of products, and although there is no competition, the fact that Riot's main cannon does not have competition does not mean that there is no pressure. For example, now, Kaiser Wilhelm II even ignored his good relations with Friedrich, and sternly ordered that he must do his best to produce the main guns of battleships with superior performance. German battleships, no worse than anyone's artillery!

Krupp is confident that its fist product, the 280mm cannon, will be invincible in the world, and even the power is not weaker than the 305mm cannon generally advocated by various countries, but it is not safe enough at all. The navy has always complained that the caliber is smaller than others. To make matters worse, there is very little time left for him.

Friedrich had to think hard. How to solve the problem of substitution of Chinese products as much as possible. Before the start of construction of the second batch of battleships. He's trying to close the gap in technology and price. Otherwise, the Krupp Empire will inevitably miss the golden period of development for more than ten years. At that time, only Krupp, who made cannons and firearms, will be reduced to second-rate in the industry.

This is something he absolutely cannot tolerate.

"Looks like I have to go to China."

Friedrich secretly made up his mind that he had to try to do something risky for the sake of the family's rise and fall.

The same annoyances were between the British and French warship design and construction suppliers. are spreading and erupting. In particular, the British, who regard themselves as the world's number one, are the most difficult to accept, and the major private shipbuilding-related enterprises have even joined forces to resist the empire's admission of defeat to the Chinese and prevent Britain from purchasing Chinese products on a large scale.

The British government is actually not willing to do this kind of face-saving thing, as long as they think about having to spend money to buy Chinese things, they feel extremely aggrieved. The British Empire, which has always robbed the weak countries of what they valued, when will it be fair trade? Especially this kind of order that is pinched and blackmailed, and every pound of money is spent. There is a sense of humiliation that has been smashed into the kneecap.

There was a lot of arguing in the parliament, and the nobles who stood and spoke without back pain clamored to make the Chinese pay. To be punished in the eyes. But they couldn't come up with another useful idea of how to do it.

The treacherous Admiralty came up with a question they could not answer: "If the British do not buy those things, the Germans will." We have to suspect that China has more deals with them privately, and you should know what the consequences will be once the Germans master that terrible warship technology and build it in a short time. ”

The threat is just around the corner of the table.

Yang Hao is playing Yangmou, Britain, France, Germany and Russia compete with each other, and no one can be defeated by an overwhelming advantage. The German threat was especially close at hand, and not a single British could sit idly by.

The quarrel continues, but business has quietly begun. Compradors are not only unique to China, as long as there are huge profits to be made, and some people do not care about betraying national interests.

Compared with Europe, which has been instigated, the United States, which is far outside the center of the world, seems to be breezy. The Americans, who are bent on the economy, are particularly sensitive to making money, but they are not very interested in getting involved in the complex military struggle in the Far East.

In this naval and land battle, the losses of the United States were very small, and the reason why it joined the ranks of purchasing Chinese shipbuilding equipment and materials was that it did not want to be excluded. In addition, it is also the keen discovery of US diplomats that if we fail to establish good relations with China as soon as possible, it is very likely that in the near future, the United States will be the first to face the threat from China.

In the United States in 1896, conservatism was still prevalent, but the economic crisis caused by the over-accomplished industrial accumulation made the top brass realize that new colonial markets had to be opened. The temptation to China was smashed back by Yang Hao, and they had to retreat to seek equal trade relations. But there was no intention of giving up on the struggle for the declining Spanish colonies.

After the end of the two naval wars, it was clear to the Western world that China's strong rise was almost unstoppable, and that Japan and the colonies in Southeast Asia would face great challenges in the first place. Once China breaks out of the encirclement, it will directly threaten Hawaii to the east, which will become a springboard for a direct threat to the West Coast of the United States.

The Americans have committed countless sins against the Chinese over the years, can they not fear reprisals? The answer is yes. To prevent that terrible outcome, Grove. President Cleveland personally intervened, and the Naval Shipbuilding Committee negotiated and began to join the boom in the construction of new battleships.

However, most U.S. lawmakers are more sensitive to spending money than a crisis-minded president and a navy keen to expand its power. They were very critical of the various warship designs proposed by the Navy, and especially emphasized that the tonnage of warships should not exceed the displacement of 16,000 tons.

U.S. Navy shipbuilding expert Washington. Rear Admiral Capus was extremely angry at this, and if the advanced battleships he knew of were to achieve the predetermined performance, they would have to be equipped with multiple full main guns, which would have exceeded the figure of 16,000 tons, and possibly 20,000 tons.

The industrial level of the United States allows them to build steel for ships, but they lack supporting equipment, and the technology of building the main guns is quite poor, and large-caliber guns are basically inadequate. So far, only their eight-inch 203mm guns, which can be used to build battleships, are obviously too small in caliber.

Under various constraints, the design of the American warship was also full of twists and turns, and the final plan was a middle design with two four-inch 12-inch main guns and eight eight-inch secondary guns. With a standard displacement of 15,000 tons, it has finally passed the threshold of the parliamentary pass.

In this way, in fact, the great powers and countries have not reached the immediate start of construction of all main gun warships, and the hybrid design scheme of taking a step back, without exception, has fallen into the big hole that the main gun and the secondary gun cannot guarantee the salvo effect.

However, the battleships with all the main guns are in full swing of design, and all kinds of equipment equipped for those future steel monsters are reflected in the new ships. Advanced power systems, a fully enclosed main turret with a higher rate of fire, a towering armored bridge, a mainmast with optical sighting and ranging, and the construction of an in-board communication and radio communication system, a series of naval equipment is rapidly unfolding.

Yang Hao, who was far away in China, was so happy that he grinned to the back molars in the face of the rolling gold and silver that flocked from all over the world. (To be continued......)