"Mr. Yan, I haven't seen you for a long time, how are you doing?" Thomas came to Yan Boxun's side with a wine glass and said. This was originally a very normal act of greeting, but at this time, Yan Boxun had some other meanings in his eyes.

"It's not good, I actually lost to this guy Philip Watts, and I lost so inexplicably, if there is really a god, I would love to know what this is for." Yan Boxun said. And this move made Thomas feel very embarrassed and a little curious at the same time. I wondered how the chief designer of the Huaxia Naval Design Bureau got on the bar with Watts? However, due to the purpose of this reception - to bring the relationship between the Chinese Navy and the British Navy closer, and because the two sides have just completed a cooperation, although Yan Boxun has some losses. But Thomas still chose to say hello and walk away.

"General, has there ever been an unhappiness between Mr. Watts and Mr. Yan?" Thomas then approached Jericho and asked. Men are also very gossipy sometimes.

"Not happy? The two sides have only met a few times. Probably not. Jericho was a little confused. Wait, if it's really unpleasant, and it's something that happened recently, there's really such a thing. ”

"I heard General Yang Yonglin say that Mr. Yan would not have attended this reception, and he was going to South America to participate in the bidding for Argentine warships. And now it does not go, then there is only one explanation, the program of the Chinese Republic failed. As a loser, he was naturally a little unhappy, after all, it was a list of at least 2.2 million pounds. Jericho thought for a moment and said with a smile. He is still very familiar with Yan Boxun, a master of shipbuilding. The two sides have been in contact since the First Sino-Japanese War, and when he was in England, Yan Boxun also went to his house as a guest. It's a very good friend.

"It is said that the warships that Huaxia participated in the Argentine bidding this time are of the same model as those ordered by Germany and Turkey. And in order to win this customer, the Huaxia Navy even plans to start construction for Argentina first. I don't know if it's true. Thomas said in a low voice.

"Huh?! Interesting. Let's talk in a different place. A moment later Jericho and Thomas came to a cabin, "Tell me what you heard." Jericho didn't pay attention to anything else because he was busy with the post-drill report, and Thomas heard a lot of rumors.

"The Chinese Navy has already begun to implement their plan to build the next class of dreadnoughts. The entire design work was completed in June of this year. However, they don't seem to have enough money, so they need to sell some of their ships in exchange for funds, and at the same time they can share the cost of research and development. The Germans and Turkey should have already gotten part of the drawings of these battleships. And should be very satisfied with this class of battleships. Otherwise, they would not be able to place an order. These orders should be in operation, but because they are to make up for the battle damage of the two Scharnhorst-class warships, the German side will not pay too much money, and now the Chinese government is relatively short of funds. So they decided to finance the money by selling it to the state first. And then it was built for the Turks and the Germans. Thomas said everything he knew in one breath. Then wait for the decision of your boss.

"The Germans are satisfied? That is to say, the level of this battleship should not be very inferior, at least it should be a little stronger than Mr. Watts's stuff. Thomas said thoughtfully. This is not to say that the level of British designers is lower than that of the Germans, in Britain, a country full of commercial atmosphere, everything has to consider the cost of business, even armaments, the same similar performance on paper, the lower the cost, the more popular it is. So they're going to play a series of paper games. So it will reduce the subdivision compartment. It's not that the British don't understand, it's that the power of money is too great! There are too many shipyards in the UK. So much so that it is not possible to survive by performance. Everyone is lowering the price, so the designer must also reduce the budget in order to maintain the minimum profit!

But Germany is different, there are not many shipyards in Germany that can build capital ships. The British belong to the monks with more porridge and less porridge, while the Germans belong to the monks with less porridge and more porridge! It was too easy to get an order in Germany, even if one shipyard cost a few million marks more than another, the German Admiralty would send the order to these shipyards, of course, the only requirement was that the ships must be kept improving! As a businessman, he may be disgusted by this kind of thinking of the Germans, but as the commander of the fleet, Jericho is very supportive! "Life is priceless!" That's all it takes!

"Battleships differ from rifles and field guns, and sometimes quantity does not compensate for quality. The subtle gap in all aspects will be constantly magnified in actual combat, and it will lead to defeat in the war, which the Russians have verified for us three times! And now some people are still cutting corners! They are the cornerstone of the entire British Empire. Jericho said helplessly. As the future commander of the Grand Fleet, he has always been preparing for a major event to reverse the situation, but it is not yet mature, and it will not be launched until at least 2 years later.

"It's a pity, it would be nice if the British Empire's Grand Fleet could replace those things that cut corners with these ships." Thomas shook his head and said. However, he knew that this was impossible, for the simple reason that the pride of the British Empire made him not buy warships from other countries to arm his fleet! At most, it's just a matter of buying some ingredients!

"No, you're wrong, it's not impossible! We have a chance, a good chance! Suddenly, Jericho sat up from the couch and said excitedly. I have found a way to save the Grand Fleet of the British Empire and weaken our enemies. ”

"Help me apologize to General Yang, just say that I have a personal matter, and tell Mr. Yan Boxun that if nothing else, he will have a very large order in the near future." Jericho walked out of the room and walked outside.

It is definitely not an accident that Jericho was able to finally take the throne of the commander of the Grand Fleet, super high naval combat literacy is one aspect, and at the same time, the necessary political ability is also a must, at least there must be a few hardcore allies to help him! Admittedly, he can't change the decision of the Admiralty yet, but it's still possible to do something behind his back. This time, he set his sights on Australia, New Zealand, and the new Undersecretary for Colonial Affairs, Winston Churchill.

In history, there were three warships in the Grand Fleet of the British Empire named after the three Dominions of Britain at that time, they were the New Zealand and Australia in the Indefatigable class battlecruisers, and the Malaya in the Queen Elizabeth class battleships.

In this plane, under the inertia of the wheel of history, Australia and New Zealand have undergone some changes, that is, these two countries are still willing to hand over their capital ships to the British Empire in the event of a war. But in peacetime, these two battleships should be owned by Australia and New Zealand! The British Empire will not buy Chinese warships, but it didn't say that the Dominions of the British Empire can't buy warships from other countries, right? Anyway, as long as the last two warships can flow into their own command, Jericho can't control who pays for it! And because in peacetime it is for its own use, these two countries should be concerned about the quality of warships, right?

And in this case, if Churchill, the high-ranking official in charge of the day-to-day affairs of the colony, can push it at the right time, Jericho believes that there is no room for operation! And although Fisher began to push ahead with a new ship-building plan, there were still opponents in the navy, with the exception of Jericho and Thomas, and even Betty doubting that the new ship could carry larger guns and faster speeds at the same tonnage. After all, he is the commander of the future fleet, and he is also responsible for his crew and his own life!

On the one hand, he needs to use his own resources to do this, and on the other hand, he needs to conduct a survey of the new ships of the Huaxia Navy to decide whether to carry out this matter at the risk of offending the Minister of the Navy. But the good thing is that there's always a chance, isn't it? Jericho didn't want to give up.

A few days later, several telegrams signed by Jericho were delivered to the desks of several bigwigs at the same time, and one of them was in front of Churchill. Churchill played many roles in his life, he was a statesman, he also spent time in the army, but not in the navy, and he was not the Lord of the Navy at this time. He was surprised when Jericho, a powerful admiral, wrote him a selfish letter, but he read it from beginning to end, driven by curiosity.

"Dear Mr. Vice-Minister, here you are writing to you by a loyal British Royal Navy officer, who will command a vast fleet in the not-too-distant future to engage a murderous enemy! We will be at war with the Germans, the Italians, and the Turks in the North Sea, in the Mediterranean, and in the Indian Ocean! Every warrior needs a sharp sword to cut through his thorns. But now, alas, the craftsmen who made the longsword for us have been captured by the glittering pound. They forget their duties in pursuit of profit, so I need your help, a very simple help, hinting that the officials of Australia and New Zealand will come to China for an inspection, and I will do the rest, and you will be rewarded handsomely....... ”

"A great reward? Well, the reward is very good, and if Jericho's plan is successful, then Fisher has no choice but to step down, and what about me? You can take advantage of the east wind of this matter to replace it. I can tell which is more important, the Undersecretary for Colonial Affairs and the Chief Admiralty. As for the risks? For myself, there is almost nothing, because there will be no textual things left, and I will only use hints. It looks like a great book," said Churchill.

Thanks to the book friend zhouyu1976 for the tip~~~~. It's been two days in a row that the subscription has been below average——! Sideways support for subscription~~~. (To be continued......)