Christmas is here again, and the Berlin government is looking at the achievements of the third post-war year. Germany's top brass has good reason to be excited: many of the predicaments that Germany faced before the war have now been reversed. Ukraine has achieved a bumper grain yield for two consecutive years, and a large number of agricultural products have begun to enter the German market in a steady stream; Meat and poultry, canned food, vegetables, wheat and other agricultural and sideline products fill the shops of various stores, and it is no longer difficult to see hard, bitter and inferior black bread on the tables of ordinary Germans. At the same time, a variety of daily consumer goods that rely on light industry have also entered the field of vision of the German people, and the daily necessities industry, which was originally quite sluggish due to the priority of heavy industry, has finally shown its vitality and led the German economy to take off at a high speed.

In 1917, Germany's national income reached 79.6 billion marks, approaching the 80 billion mark mark, compared to 54 billion marks in 1912, before the outbreak of the war. In addition to the acquisition of overseas markets and the release of light industry restrictions, which greatly encouraged the German people's enthusiasm for production, Deutsche Bank's steadily increasing gold reserves are also a source of backing to ensure that the German economy can grow at an average annual rate of more than 10%. By the end of 1917, Germany's gold reserves had exceeded the 1,100-ton mark, making it the world's third-largest gold reserve after the United States and Britain. With the support of gold, the Bundesbank was able to issue more marks, and these increases in money were closely aligned with the increase in social wealth, further conforming to the trend of productivity development. The propaganda of the bourgeois liberals and the Social Democrats began to change direction, and the voices praising the Hohenzollern monarchy became mainstream; The German people, who have won national glory and at the same time really benefited from the development of the Reich, are even more dreamy of their current life. All that remains in the heart is joy and obedience.

In a gratifying situation. Qingying still maintained a vigilant awareness. With the continuous growth of the German economy. Financial industries such as stocks and credit have also developed significantly compared with the pre-war period; Although this kind of game of pouring money back and forth can realize the efficient use of funds and promote the growth rate of social wealth to a higher level, it is also very likely to be played under the influence of multiple factors such as blind conformity and black-box operation, and thus cause a chain avalanche of the real economy. For the latter, Qingying, as a traverser, is undoubtedly very clear: the financial crisis triggered by the collapse of the Wall Street stock market in 1929 has radiated from North America, where the lighthouse country is located, to the world. With the exception of the Soviet Union, which suffered from external blockade and was itself under a planned economic system, all countries in the world have been more or less affected by the unprecedented impact on the real economy caused by the virtual financial collapse.

In light of this. It is imperative that Germany regulate the financial sector. In Qingying's plan, the government will set up a group of top economists to monitor the stock market in Frankfurt, Germany's financial center, and strictly control the country's capital credit. At the same time, the German government will also issue a series of decrees to strengthen the double-edged sword of virtual finance, while reining in the emerging field of credit consumption. Although this will not fundamentally solve the speculative phenomenon that exists in the capitalist market, it will be able to avoid risks and reduce the losses caused to the real economy by avoiding risks to the greatest extent.

On the other hand, Qingying's move is also to prepare for a rainy day for a possible economic crisis in the future. Although the European landscape in this plane has changed dramatically from history. The United States has also weakened much in its national power compared to the same period in history, but the latter is still the undisputed leader of the capitalist world. Its economic and industrial aggregates are still far from being comparable to those of today's Germany. If the U.S. government continues to indulge its financial institutions as it has historically been, a financial crisis caused by speculation is almost inevitable. Germany, on the other hand, needs to minimize its losses in this upheaval, and use this as an opportunity to significantly reduce the current gap between Germany and the United States in terms of national strength.

At the same time, Germany is in a good situation on the sea. After more than three years of peace-building, port facilities in Morocco, Guyana, and German East Africa (Tanzania) were gradually built, and in addition to bases in Hanoi and Manila, which already had considerable infrastructure, German merchant ships sailing on the ocean finally enjoyed the convenience of supplying everywhere. What they were even more proud of was that German warships began to appear more and more cruising in various shipping lanes. The six Hanover-class heavy cruisers, which had begun construction in early 1915, were completed in less than three years at the urging of the Admiralty; These warships, which were specially built for overseas dispatch, were immediately divided between the West African Fleet, the Indian Ocean Fleet, and the Far East Fleet, and appeared in front of sailors and observers from various countries in a new manner. Under their deterrence, there was a marked improvement in the treatment of German sailors, expatriates and other personnel abroad; And Germany is no longer the image of the entrenched land beast in the eyes of all forces, but has truly become a member of the Ocean Club.

Due to the small size of the Hanover class, it exceeded the treaty limit by 10% of the tonnage, which was well concealed. The German Navy concealed the speed of 32.2~32.4 knots measured by each ship during the trial to 30 knots, which confirmed its claim of 10,160 metric tons from the side. Experts from the US and British navies looked at these German-built first-generation second-class capital ships with suspicion, and their hearts were full of puzzlement and hesitation: Judging by their appearance, the German heavy cruisers had no reason to exceed the tonnage standard at all, and even the Pensacola-class and Kent-class 10,000-ton treaty heavy cruisers, which were about to be launched, had ships that were 10 to 20 meters longer than each other.

But to say that the Germans did not exceed the norm is equally hard for British and American designers to believe. After they equipped their own battleships with 8 to 10 203-mm guns, the tonnage allocation in power and defense was already stretched, while the German battleships had 12 main guns of the same caliber! In terms of armor, the British, who had been opponents of the Germans for so many years, did not believe that the other side would choose to run naked for the sake of heavy firepower. Even if its speed is only 30 knots, this performance is too amazing under the framework of 10,000 tons!

"Although the specific information of the German heavy cruiser is not yet known, it is certain that we are again inferior to the other side in the field of cruisers. The Pensacola class, with its low-freeboard design, could only be armed with 10 main guns, while the high-freeboard German heavy cruisers had 12 guns; In addition, the design speed of 30.5 knots (reduced depending on the age) and the narrow main armor belt that only covers the power compartment make it difficult to have an advantage over the opponent's heavy cruisers. The Navy of the United States is already lagging behind each other in the size of capital ships, and in the field of cruisers of the second class, we should never again be significantly surpassed by the Germans. Roosevelt Jr. wrote in his diary after learning about the German ship.

Roosevelt Jr., who was concerned about the Navy, immediately approached the General Ship Design Committee and asked it to respond effectively to the German heavy cruises. However, what made him angry was the faces of the designers who looked like mournful women and kept shaking their heads in negation. Designers have said that the seafaring performance of the Pensacola class is not satisfactory, and the freeboard should be improved on this basis; Therefore, on a 10,000-ton frame, they could only build a maximum of 9 203 mm guns for light armor and heavy patrols, and it was impossible to cram a triple main turret into it anyway. In order to avoid the accountability of the deputy secretary of the Admiralty, the American designers began to give full play to their brains and criticize the German heavy patrol: saying that unless the battleship was made of paper turrets, it would definitely be an unprecedented big crispy.

"Maybe we have a way to improve the situation." Seeing Roosevelt Jr.'s increasingly gloomy gaze, Chief Engineer Tykes stubbornly said, "According to the report sent back by our military attache in Rome, the Italians are ready to equip the two Caracciolo-class aircraft carriers they have modified with 10-inch guns, and if we also start the same type of battleship, then it will be enough to form an advantage over the German heavy cruisers." Even if the number of guns carried by the aircraft carrier is limited by the treaty, its single-shot damage can fully compensate for the lack of quantity. ”

Hearing this plan, Roosevelt's gloomy face finally melted a little. Compared to looking at the quality superiority of the Germans and being helpless, this method can be regarded as one of the coping strategies; As for whether it is applicable or not, it is not for him, as a government official, to judge, but for those high-ranking career officers. In subsequent internal negotiations, senior U.S. Navy commanders said it would be a good option to equip the aircraft carrier with the cannons specified in the treaty. At present, although they have two Lexington-class battlecruisers with first-class performance, their reconnaissance strength is still weak in the face of Japan's four Kongo-class ships. And if the aircraft carrier can be equipped with 10-inch naval guns and operate with the Lexington class, then there will be more room to choose in the event of war.

The Americans, who had made the decision, immediately completed the design of the aircraft carrier, which they named the "Yorktown" class. In contrast to the Italians' entirely gunboat design, the Americans were a little more avant-garde: they had a full-length flight deck with the main gun and bridge on the right side of the battleship, just like the historic Lexington-class aircraft carriers. However, in order to equip eight 254-mm guns with a standard platoon of 27,000 tons and have protection against heavy patrol shells, the Americans significantly reduced the size of the battleship to save structural weight. The overall length of the ship is only 220 meters, and the height of the hangar has been reduced with the reduction of the freeboard; In the subsequent naval and air wars, this will become the most critical flaw of this type of aircraft carrier. (To be continued......)

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