Russia's indifferent reaction to the concubine and Tiyì was really somewhat beyond Qingying's expectations.

In Qing Ying's view, even if Russia would not immediately ceased war with Germany, it should have given careful consideration to Germany's proposal and secretly negotiated with it. After all, in the two previous battles of East Prussia, the Russian army, while occupying a clear superiority in troops, was almost completely wiped out by the German army's first brigade and division at a very small cost, which in itself can very well explain the huge problem in the Russian army. You must know that the Russian army responsible for attacking German East Prussia is definitely not a ragtag army composed of reservists, they are the main active force of the Russian Army in peacetime. And in order to inflict the heaviest blow on the Germans, both armies also had heavy artillery firepower that was unimaginable to other Russian troops; The 152mm howitzer and the 122mm cannon are all coveted by countless Russian commanders!

In addition, the current war situation in Russia is far less than that of the same period in history. Because the Russo-Japanese War lasted for nearly two years, and the Great War in Europe came 15 months earlier, the overall strength of the Russian Army was significantly lower than that of August 1914, which was the same period in history. After barely holding back two armies to attack East Prussia, Russia had less than three armies left in the Austro-Hungarian frontal battlefield, and the Russians deployed four armies here in history!

At the same time as the strength of the Russian army weakened, the strength of the Austro-Hungarian army increased. Since the war was not caused by the Austro-Hungarian punitive war against Serbia, the Austro-Hungarian Second Army, which had historically been used to attack Serbia, was able to move to the Eastern Front to defend against the Russians. Under the trade-off. Russia and Austria-Hungary formed a see-saw confrontation in Galicia. And in another plane. Russia, however, annihilated 350,000 Austrians in the Battle of Lemberg. and directly interrupted the officer system that Austria-Hungary had worked hard to build up for decades, and made the Austro-Hungarian army completely become a supporting role on the Eastern Front that could only bully Italy, Serbia and other countries!

In this case, Qingying originally thought that the Russians would recognize the form and retreat in the face of difficulties; What he didn't expect, however, was that the Russians did not react to the truce. In this case, Qingying no longer has to keep anything from his Russian relatives. He went to the palace to meet Emperor Wilhelm and proposed to drag the Turks into the Central Powers, thus completely isolating Russia from the edge of the "island of the world".

Facing Qingying's Tiyì. William, however, expressed his doubts. For no other reason, although Germany had been vigorously wooing the Ottoman Empire, building railways, issuing low-interest loans, and selling arms and warships to them at low prices, a month and a half after the outbreak of the war, the little ykewers were still hesitant to tie a knot in the rope tied to the Germans. According to William's plan, he was to put pressure on the Ottoman Empire after the capture of Paris to force the Turks to submit, but Qingying, who was afraid that the battle of Paris would turn into a protracted tug-of-war, could not wait so long. He whispered a few words to William, and was met with the latter's shocked look as if he had seen a ghost.

"We have given too many benefits to the Turks. So much so that these pagans have almost forgotten what it means to be strong and weak; Now, it's time for them to experience my German toughness. Qingying said.

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A round of morning sun rises from the eastern sky. The blue sea is illuminated with a layer of sparkling brilliance.

In the wide harbor, several large suspension machines were supplying the warships moored in the harbor: finely crushed coal slid into the cabins, and dark heavy oil poured into the bottom of the ship. An Islamic-style halal building rises behind the pier, a stark contrast to the port's modern steel machinery. And on the masts of these warships, fluttering is a scorching and eye-catching star and moon flag on a red background; Had it not been for the chimneys and steel that exposed the current context, the Allahu Akbars would have returned to the heyday of 500 years ago, when this flag reigned in the Mediterranean.

"General Ekoman, fifteen minutes to go, the Sultan Selim's refueling will be complete." A staff officer climbed the ramp in three steps and two steps, and shouted loudly in his voice. On the tall flybridge, a slender middle-aged young general was standing proudly; He wears a small red Turkish bowler hat, and his military uniform and boots are the same pure black as the Ottoman admirals, but the Germanic silhouette of his face clearly reveals his nationality.

Two months ago, Eckerman, who was commanding the former Dreadnought fleet in the Baltic Sea, suddenly received an order to report immediately to Wilhelmshaven for a special mission. When he arrived at Wilhelmshaven, he was stunned to see a major ship that was between the Dörringer and Caesar classes in appearance, and did not match his own warships. Just as Ekoman wondered when the Navy had built a new capital ship of the first class, orders from the Admiralty suddenly followed: this was the battleship "Sultan Selim" ordered by the Ottoman Empire in Germany, and his mission was to take this newly completed battleship to Istanbul for delivery!

Although Eckman was puzzled by the cause and effect of this order from the Admiralty, he immediately accepted the order out of professionalism and set out with the full number of 1,050 officers and men on board. As the situation in Europe had become extremely tense with the conflict between Germany and France in Morocco, the Admiralty ordered Eckman to speed up as quickly as possible so that he could reach his destination before the situation deteriorated completely. And it was only at this time that Eckman finally got a real understanding of the battleship he commanded.

As a German battleship built in 1910 on the basis of the Caesar-class, the Sultanselim can be called one of the best capital ships at present. Four twin 350 mm (13.8 in) L42 guns were piggyback on the ship's central axis, while the 12 single-mounted 150 mm guns were placed on the two sides of the long bow - the standard firepower configuration of the German Kaiser-class and De Fringel-class. Although the ship's firepower on paper is not the world's top level, the first-line battleships of Britain and the United States are equipped with 10 343 mm or even 10 356 mm heavy guns, and the length of the barrel has reached 45 times the caliber; However, with the hard cap armor-piercing shell that he inherited from Austria-Hungary (the hard cap shell that Germany was proud of the Entente countries in World War I was learned from Austria-Hungary), its actual power is absolutely above that of Britain, and it can be completely compared with the United States!

In terms of protection, the Sultan Selim, with a standard displacement of 22,800 tons, has undoubtedly fully inherited the armored defense of the Caesar-class with a tonnage 10% smaller than it. The 5.2-meter-high 320-millimeter main armor belt covered 62% of the waterline, a feat far beyond the reach of any other country except Germany. The protection of the main turret, gun mount, main level, conning tower, propeller shaft, etc., is also perfect, which can firmly defend against the frontal direct attack of the most powerful weapon in the Mediterranean, the French 340 mm L45 naval gun, at the conventional combat distance. In addition, the ship has a longitudinal partition with an anti-torpedo wall 5 meters deep and 50 mm thick; Combined with the subdivision of watertight compartments of German-made ships, its underwater mine protection capabilities are far superior to those of its unsightly Allied counterparts.

In terms of power, because the Ottoman Empire itself is not short of oil, the design heavy oil consumption rate of the ship's boiler exceeds 75%, which can undoubtedly make its power system output soar significantly. As Eckman directed the warship to Istanbul, he felt its speed. With a full load displacement of 25,200 tons, the Sultan Selim, with the largest rated load, ran a surprising figure of 23 knots; And the German Caesar-class, which is all powered by coal, has a heavy-duty speed of only between 20.8 and 21 knots! Although the ship's low freeboard is similar to that of the German capital ships, it is not a flaw at all in the calm waters of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

Under Ekoman's command, the powerful Sultan Selim sailed day and night through Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea on 27 April. At this time, Germany and France were already in a state of tension, and the entry of this main battleship, which was fully controlled by German sailors, into the Mediterranean Sea undoubtedly made the hearts of the French Navy hang. Because if they attacked the French troop carriers in the Mediterranean, France would inevitably face a great disaster. Admiral de la Perel, the commander of the fleet in the port of Toulon (this man was actually the commander of the French fleet), made a quick decision and personally led four of the latest Lone-class super dreadnoughts south to look for the enemy.

The tub in the western Mediterranean was not large, and in the early morning of 29 April, the main French fleet intercepted Eckerman's ships. However, at this time, Germany and France had not yet declared war, and the Sultan Selim was flying the Ottoman star and moon flag, and the French had no reason to open fire. Admiral de la Perel had no choice but to order the fleet to tail behind and drive it away from the western Mediterranean, where French transports were heavily active. None of the Allies believed that the Germans had really come to deliver goods to the Turks, believing that it was just a front for the Germans to attack the French troop transports passing and going in the Mediterranean.

Faced with this, Eckman was glad that his ship was quickly able to use its speed advantage to shake off the French, cross Sicily, and sail east at full speed. On May 1, the Sultan Selim entered the Aegean Sea. At this time, the British and French understood the true intentions of the Germans, but they were already beyond the reach of the whip. (To be continued......)

PS: Yesterday's subscription fell to the bottom, and the author's heart was broken (╯_╰)