"If the Imperial Navy were to be severely damaged or even destroyed by the Royal Navy in a decisive battle, Germany, with the Army as its backbone, would not be dealt a blow that would shake the national foundation. And if we can fight with the British Navy, or even inflict heavy damage, it will be a heavy blow that Britain, a country that is strictly dependent on the sea, cannot withstand! Even if the shipbuilding industry is as strong as Britain, it is impossible to rebuild a fleet with dreadnoughts as it did in the Napoleonic era in a short time; And having lost the fleet, they will not be able to guarantee the safety of sea transport lines. In the quiet room, Qingying's calm, slightly magnetic voice sounded.

Tirpitz sighed, "Exactly. He only saw that the construction of the High Seas Fleet did not allow the British to remain neutral, and he doubted the validity of the theory of the 'Fleet of Risk', but he did not know that it was the inaction of the Imperial Navy that made the word 'Risk' meaningless, and that the warmongers in London dared to continue the war! If we had taken the initiative and had fought a bloody battle with the British, the whole situation would have been a different story. Unfortunately, however, His Majesty, the Prime Minister, and other military and political officials did not advocate throwing the fleet into a decisive battle, and I alone was powerless to change it. ”

Qingying knew it in her heart. Unlike the British system, Tirpitz, the secretary of state for the navy, was neither a figure sent by the government to exercise absolute management of the navy, like the Admiralty Churchill, nor was he able to directly coordinate the navy's operational plans like the British First Sea Lord. Tirpitz's main job was to fight in Congress against members of Congress who opposed appropriations; As for the development of the battle plan, it has nothing to do with him. He was merely an influential advisor to naval operations planning.

"Your Highness. You are the one who understands my theory of the fleet of risk in its entirety. It is completely possible to persuade His Majesty to cancel the unwise national policy of avoiding war and protecting ships. Tirpitz seemed to have found a breakthrough in the solution, and the look in his eyes became expectant and eager, "If Britain can withdraw from the war because of this, it will undoubtedly be the best ending!" ”

Facing Tirpitz's face full of anticipation, Qingying shook his head slightly and said, "Your Excellency, please forgive me for not being able to accept your request now. In fact, three months from now to the future. Neither was the best time for the High Seas Fleet to have a final showdown with the Royal Navy. ”

Tirpitz was stunned and said, "Your Highness, what is the reason for this?" ”

"From a national strategic point of view, the Imperial Navy should indeed strike immediately and try to turn the tide of war by inflicting heavy damage on the British Navy. But from a tactical point of view, now is not the best time for a decisive battle for the fleet. ”

Qingying paused slightly, and then said: "The naval battle of Helgoland Bay, which broke out half a month ago, has taught us a valuable lesson. The gun mount of the armored cruiser named after Prince Heinrich was penetrated by the British battle cruiser, which nearly caused the ammunition depot to detonate; In order to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents, all warships in the High Seas Fleet, with the exception of submarines and torpedo boats, are currently making overall changes to blast doors and bomb lifting systems. Therefore. We must wait until all these transformations are completed before we have the confidence to continue to fight at sea. "For that. Qingying's heart was actually full of remorse. He made extensive and far-reaching efforts to improve the strength of the German Navy, but in the end he actually forgot about this most important improvement.

In fact, the anti-sinking design of German battleships in World War I was not leaky from the beginning. In the Battle of Dogal Sandbank in early 1915, the "Seydlitz" battle patrol was almost detonated due to the destruction of the turret, but only survived by the sacrifice of a sailor. Based on this experience, the German fleet returned to the sea with a comprehensive improvement of the bomb lifting system and blast door design, which created the unsinkable prestige of the German war patrol in the Battle of Jutland. If it weren't for the lessons learned by the Germans from the Seydelitz, it is estimated that none of the Hipper's reconnaissance detachments would have returned alive based on the damage caused by the almost complete destruction of the turrets of the German battle cruisers in the Battle of Jutland!

Fortunately, in the Battle of Helgoland Bay, the German Navy discovered this crucial flaw. This made Qingying regret and frustration, but also a little lucky. However, the German High Seas Fleet will also lose its ability to attack in a short time because of this change. Although it was not a big project, it would take a lot of time to rebuild due to the large number of ships in the German Navy.

"In addition to this, we also need some time to conduct mechanical commissioning and personnel run-in training on the newly built capital ships. The 6th and 7th ships of the Kaisar class, the Saar and the Eisenach, and the 2nd ship of the De Fleetlinger class, the Lützov, are all brand-new ships that were only announced to be completed at the beginning of this year, and are currently undergoing assault training in the Baltic Sea. If a general attack were launched against the British at this time, these three elite capital ships, armed with eight 350 mm guns, would not be able to participate in the battle. Looking at Tirpitz's slightly discolored face, Qingying continued, "Your Excellency Marshal, as you know, although we had a certain advantage in the early days of the dreadnought race, since 1908, as the Imperial Army's preparations for war intensified, the British have gradually surpassed us in the number of capital ships. At present, even if you count 4 Bismarck-class ships? In the decisive battle, we were also 21 to 25 in the number of battleships, and 6 to 9 in the battle cruisers. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary for us to wait until they have formed combat strength before launching a sortie. ”

Tirpitz was silent, already quite convinced of Qingying's words.

According to intelligence sources, the construction of the Queen Elizabeth-class battleships that began construction in Britain in 1911 was the fastest in October 1912. Judging from Tirpitz's experience over the years, even if the efficiency of the British shipyards is high, this kind of mass-produced ship will not be completed until 1914, and the formation of combat effectiveness will have to wait at least until this period next year. In other words, even if the current German Navy waited a few more months, it would be almost impossible for the British to bring their latest class of warships into active service. All they could get was to initially build up the battleship "Ireland" that they had taken from the Turks. It's a good deal from every point of view.

"The most important thing is that the fleet we have deployed overseas has not yet played the expected containment role. The Far Eastern Fleet, commanded by Admiral Spee, had no warships that were their opponents, except for the first-class capital ships. We can fully expect that the British will devote their precious capital ships to the pursuit of them. In addition, the war in the Mediterranean has not yet broken out, and it is also an excellent battlefield to contain the strength of the British navy. ”

A smile appeared on the corner of Qingying's mouth, and he said, "After a few months, the Imperial warships have completed the fire protection improvements, and the three super dreadnoughts have joined the combat sequence of the High Seas Fleet; As soon as the war between the Far East and the Mediterranean began, I would tell my father to let the High Seas Fleet sail directly to the mouth of the Thames in England, and force the British to fight a decisive battle with our Germany. Judging by the armor-piercing performance of the British Navy in the Battle of Helgoland Bay, our chances of victory are at least 60%. If we can inflict heavy damage on the British home fleet in one fell swoop, Mr. Gray will automatically fly over from London and negotiate with our Germany. ”

Tirpitz's lips furled, and his face was full of astonishment. Ever since Qing Ying returned to Berlin at the front, he had not paid attention to naval affairs; Tirpitz thought he was so immersed in victory on land that he had forgotten all about naval strategy. But what he didn't expect was that the young man in front of him had already planned all the steps in his heart, and the reason why he chose to forbear at the moment was to wait for the total outbreak after accumulation!

Summer insects whisper, bells tick, and the bright moon glows softly. The night breeze blows, the branches shake and dance, and the air is filled with the fragrance of earthy grass. Looking at Qingying's smiling handsome face, Tirpitz felt a trance in his heart, as if he had returned to that summer night twenty years ago: a child as delicate as porcelain sat in front of him, explaining his innocent thoughts to him in a disgusting and angry language. And it was the childish child's unintentional actions that made him realize the true meaning of ship design in an instant, and in the years that followed, he worked side by side with him to forge this Poseidon's halberd that would make any country tremble! Hasn't he always been leading the development strategy of the German Navy?

"As long as the Imperial fleet reaches the gates of the Thames, the British Grand Fleet will no longer be able to continue its lurking at Scarpa Bay, but will surely engage in a final showdown with us, whether it is to prevent us from making a landing operation, or to defend the glory of Britain for more than three centuries at the demands of the indignant populace." Tirpitz exhaled, turned his gaze to the young man in front of him, and said, "Your Highness, is this the case?" ”

Qingying said hesitantly: "Not bad." If the British could really be indifferent to the raising of the Iron Cross at the mouth of the Thames, we would land directly on Fair Island, less than 130 kilometers northeast of Scapaflo, and place our artillery directly on their doorstep! In this world, after all, it is the government that decides the war, and soldiers are often forced to make choices they are not willing to make, and the British are no exception. And all we have to do now is to electrify General Spee in the Pacific and let the boys of the empire take active action in the Far East. (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you for the cold wind blowing away, zccharles for the monthly ticket support, and yinyu1990, zhouyu1976 for the reward~~~