"It looks like we need to do something with the offer." Scheer said to Hipper, who was next to him, while looking at the budget. Construction has begun on four Nassau-class battleships, the first class battleships of the German Navy, which are basically the German versions of the Longxing-class battleships of the Chinese Navy, but without the use of new steam turbines. The German top brass was a little distrustful of this British thing, and because of budget issues, the German Navy still used the steam engine as its power. But that's it, and the cost is also a whopping £1.95 million.

"The £1.95 million is not just the cost of building the battleship, but also the cost of replacement parts and sea trials, and if we throw the latter part away, the figure could be very impressive." Sippel thought for a moment and said. (The author looked at the cost of the King-class battleships and saw two quotations, £2.48 million and £2.2 million, with the former stating in the remarks that included the cost of sea trials and ammunition.) ）

"This is indeed a solution, after all, after the battleship is built, His Majesty the Emperor can't watch the battleship and not be able to test it at sea." Scheer nodded in agreement. The problem of funding is that Scheer and others can only do this, which is still within the tolerance level, if you play bigger, I'm afraid it won't end well, after all, the budget is not something that can be changed. As for Saigo Shomichi's behavior of buying a ship before the budget is settled, the rigid Germans really can't do it.

"We need to reduce the number of the second batch of Helgeland battleships, they can be used as a test ship for some new skills, and we will equip the Helgeland battleships with new steam turbines. In addition, the installation of a kerosene boiler and a redesigned propeller layout scheme, such as the replacement of the Nassau-class three-axis pusher with a new four-axis push. There is also the installation of new fire control equipment, turrets, auxiliary guns, and so on. Sippel continued. Although the Nassau-class battleships are a copy of the Longxing class, the Germans still adopted some German designs, such as old steam turbines, and Xu Jie's opinion is a relatively bad three-axis layout and closer propeller distance. Therefore, the maneuverability of the Nassau-class battleships was still inferior to the Longxing-class battleships of the Huaxia Navy, and the Germans did not completely adopt full protection in terms of protection, resulting in the weight of the Nassau-class being too heavy. The cost is also relatively high.

"Well, that's what I think too. The Helgeland class cannot exceed 3 ships at most, and I think it will be enough to build two, as long as the 350MM heavy gun is launched. And after verifying the power system and hull design, we can build the ideal battleship in the German version. Scheer nodded.

"By the way, not long ago, the documents of the Krupp artillery plant mentioned at a greater distance. For example, on a distance of about 15KM. The walk of the 3-gun gun was a little too big. They believed that with the increase in the caliber of the artillery, if the three-link design was continued, the spacing of the guns would be sharply reduced. It will also have a greater impact on long-range shooting. Moreover, the fire control of the 3-seat 3-pack main gun in half salvo will also be more troublesome, after all, one round is 4 rounds, and one round is 5 rounds. Sippel said, holding up a paper.

"THIS IS JUST A PRETEXT, THEY MAY FEEL THAT THE TURRET DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRIPLE 350MM GUN IS A BIT DIFFICULT, AND THEY WANT TO FIND A MORE STABLE PLAN." Scheer said with some dissatisfaction. "But it seems that we will have to compromise this time, and the shipyard has indicated that the width of the slipway will not increase significantly in the short term, if we continue to require a triple turret. With a certain width of the hull, the depth of underwater protection of the artillery part will not be enough. This can be a serious issue for lightning protection. Although we can increase the protection by increasing the thickness of the lightning protection wall, the best defense for torpedoes with extremely explosive power is the depth of underwater protection. Hipper also said with some regret.

"THAT MEANS WE CAN BUILD ABOUT 6 BATTLESHIPS WITH 8 350MM45L MAIN GUNS AND AN IDEAL VERSION OF THE BATTLESHIP WITH A DISPLACEMENT OF 25,000 TONS? I always have a hunch that our warships will become the main force in the early stage of naval warfare in future wars, so we must be cautious. I feel like before the war we can have 15 battleships plus a few fast battleships that we have reached the limit. Scheer was also inclined to compromise with the industrial conglomerate, and it seemed good to lower the requirements in exchange for a more secure solution.

"In that case, the number of our fast battleships may be a little insufficient, we now have two plans to imitate the Longtai-class battleships, these battleships will be equipped with steam turbines, and they are expected to be commissioned in 2 years, according to the current situation, the speed of our two new battleships may only be more than 24 knots. The Secretary of the Admiralty gave us a quota of about 10 warships. In addition to the 2 improved Longxing-class battleships and the 6 ideal battleships you mentioned, we are afraid that we will only have 2 dollars to build new fast battleships. Hipper said with some concern. Through some special channels, Hipper already knew that Scheer was the future commander of the High Seas Fleet, and Hipperer was the future commander of the fast fleet. Naturally, he had to pay more attention to the battleship in his hand. After all, life is at stake!

"This question. I wonder if you can add some of the battleships to your fleet if necessary? We don't have as much money as the British Imperial Navy, so we have to be flexible with our fleet, and we'll try to increase the speed of our fast fleet as much as possible, but the number of warships is always a problem that can't be changed, and I'm thinking now about whether we can solve this problem with a flexible formation. In the face of his old partner's concern, Scheer is still very serious.

"If the battleships are to be incorporated into my fleet, I want them to be at least 24 knots, and we can outrun the British battlecruisers, but at least outrun the British battleships!" Hipper said with some excitement. The thought of having a British battleship several times his size behind his ass chasing him all the way made Hipper's scalp tingle. In his opinion, if he really accidentally collided with the British Grand Fleet, every bit of speed would not work at all, of course, the current Hipper did not know that there was a problem with the shells of the British!

Verse 24? If we want to meet this requirement, we may need to equip the battleship with oil-fired boilers, and at the same time improve the ship type, in order to achieve this requirement in the case of a small increase in weight and a small increase in cost, theoretically I can leave your fleet with two warships with a speed of about 24 knots, and then add two additional special fast battleships to you, that is to say, the new team composition in my current plan is 2+4+2+2 mode, an improved version of 2 Longxing-class battleships, 4 STANDARD BATTLESHIPS WITH 8 350MM GUNS, 2 BATTLESHIPS WITH 350MM GUNS THAT CAN REACH SPEEDS OF UP TO 24 KNOTS, AND 2 PURE BLOODED FAST BATTLESHIPS WITH SPEEDS OF OVER 25.5 KNOTS! Scheer thought about it and came up with an improved version of the plan.

"We don't have to worry about the technical difficulty, after all, there is still a long time, and the first 2 Longxingkai and 4 ideal battleships are enough to fill the orders for several years. I think we'll be able to solve this problem in 4 years. In other words, after this round of ship-building planning, you will have 4 to 6 fast warships in your hands. This number should already be enough, right? Scheer went on to explain.

"6 ships is the bottom line, my fleet must guarantee superiority over the British Navy's avant-garde fleet, we are the eyes and ears of the high seas fleet, fighting in the North Sea, we need to take a huge risk to get close to the opponent, after all, there is too little good weather in the North Sea. So I wonder what the performance of those two pure-blooded fast battleships will be? Hipper asked with great concern.

"It may disappoint you, but these two pure-blooded fast battleships have improved the power system compared to the Longtai class, and have made minor changes to the hull structure and protection, and their guns are still 12-inch 45L. So it's okay for you to think of them as first-class warships. If this is the case, the speed of your fast fleet is conservatively estimated to be more than 24 knots, and you can't get rid of the British fast fleet, but there should be no problem in getting rid of the main fleet, and as for equipping the fast battleships with larger caliber main guns, it depends on how much budget the respected Lord Admiralty can get for us. Scheer said.

"It seems that my fleet is destined to be a hodgepodge, but if we can build bigger and more expensive ships, I wonder if you will still put the battleships with 15-inch guns in the first place? And not immediately put on a fast battleship armed with 14-inch naval guns? Hipper asked.

"Well, you're right, I've always thought that the role of fast battleships is to reconnoiter and counter the opposing team's fast fleet, and if you want to deal a heartbreaking blow to the British Empire, you must also use battleships, so I hope you can understand." Scheer said sincerely.

"We have a ship-building plan, but what about our allies? What are the Italians and Austrians and the Turks doing? Although the engagement between the German High Seas Fleet and the British Empire in the North Sea will determine the outcome of the naval part of the war, it also plays a key role in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean directions, and if the Italian Navy and the Austro-Hungarian Navy can suppress the French Navy at the beginning, the British Grand Fleet will have to divide its forces, and then our situation will be much better. As for the Indian Ocean, if the Turks behaved well, it would be an absolute disaster for the British Empire to obtain troops and supplies from India and Oceania. Hipper gave his opinion.

"In addition, in the event of a war, the Far Eastern Fleet of Count Spee will definitely be besieged by the British, and the colonies in the Far East will certainly not be able to hold on, and if they can, I hope that they will enter the ports of the Turks and then command all the forces at sea." The most reluctant Scheer added.

Yesterday's subscription went straight to the dive, less than a third of the week's highest subscription——! The author's heart is cold——! Today, Friday, I don't know if there is a recommendation for Lu Dao next week——! Seeking Comfort~~ (To be continued......)