"Ladies and gentlemen, are we going to send volunteers to fight in the Persian kingdom, as the Ottoman Turks did? If we do that, will it lead to a conflict with the Chinese Empire, or even a war? Wilhelm I asked. These are all issues that Germany needs to consider, after all, once the war breaks out, it will not be of any benefit to Germany, and what Germany needs to do now is to avoid war with the Chinese Empire as much as possible.

"Your Majesty, if we refuse to send volunteers to fight in the Persian Kingdom, the Ottoman Turks will surely think that we have betrayed them. This will undoubtedly cause a rift in the originally good relations between our two countries, and it will be very unfavorable for the future empire to win over the Ottoman Turkish Empire and unite against the Chinese Empire! "Said the Chief of the General Staff of the German Army, Count Moltke. According to the war games of the German General Staff, it will be very difficult to defeat the Chinese Empire in a future war by relying solely on the strength of Germany. With the help of the Ottoman Empire, their chances of victory would have increased considerably. Therefore, the Germans wanted to be able to attach importance to the Ottoman Turkish Empire as an ally.

"But what should we do if the Chinese Empire intervenes? In the Middle East, our forces are too weak, we have no foothold at all, we can't confront the Chinese Empire at all, and even if we send more troops over, it's just to send them to their death! "Otto. Feng. Chancellor Bismarck put forward the opposite opinion.

William I's brows were tightly wrinkled, and he was also a little embarrassed, not knowing how to choose.

"Father, we can't give up the Persian kingdom, like that. Our previous investment was all in vain. We will no longer get oil from the province of Khuzistan. "Frederick. Crown Prince William was very unwilling. The search for oil in the Kingdom of Persia was proposed by him. I think I'm going to find oil, if I give up at this juncture. That's infuriating.

"The problem of oil, we can also solve it through the guò national oil reserve system. If we go to war with the Chinese Empire because of the problems of the Persian Kingdom, it will be more than worth the loss. I also propose that the empire must be cautious on this issue! "Foreign Secretary Albrech. Feng. Earl Ron also said. He is strongly opposed to tearing his face with the Chinese Empire at this stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I already know what you mean. But now what do we choose? If the Ottoman Empire is not agreed, it will cause a rift in the relationship between the Empire and the Ottoman Turkish Empire, which will affect future wars. However, if volunteers were sent to the Persian kingdom. This in turn is likely to anger the Chinese Empire, leading to conflict and even war between the two countries. William I looked a little helpless.

"Your Majesty, I have a solution, maybe I can deal with the current problem!" Said the Minister of the Navy, Prince Felix.

"Oh? What's the solution? Say it! William I immediately said that it would be best if the current problem could be solved.

"Your Majesty, we can promise the Ottoman Turkish Empire to send volunteers to the Kingdom of Persia. But. The volunteers need to go to the Persian kingdom by sea! Prince Felix said with a smile.

"By sea? Ha ha! That's a good idea! William I was stunned for a moment, but then he understood.

"That's right, if the volunteers we sent were intercepted by the Chinese and had to return. The Ottoman Turks would have no way to blame the Empire. "Otto. Feng. Chancellor Bismarck also said with a smile.

"In addition, this is also an opportunity for the Imperial Navy to conduct ocean-going training, and we can take this opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the hydrology of the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and even the Persian Gulf. It will be of great benefit to the Imperial Navy and the Chinese Navy in the future! Prince Felix said. The German Navy is still a toddler. In front of the Chinese Empire, it is like a baby. Moreover. The navy can not only be built with warships, but also needs the training of naval officers and men. Although, the progress of science and technology and the use of a series of advanced machinery and equipment have made it far less time for the navy to form combat effectiveness than it took hundreds of years as in the era of sails. However, it also requires a long period of training. The size of the German Navy was very, very fast, and although there were no capital ships yet, the German Navy was second only to the Chinese Empire in numbers. However, there was still a big gap between the officers and men of the German Navy and the Imperial Chinese Navy. This was the right opportunity to conduct an ocean-going training session for the German Navy.

"Okay, let's do it!" William I nodded. Immediately, he continued: "Prime Minister, regarding the matter of the national oil reserve system, the cabinet must be established as much as possible. Oil in Khuzystan province is not available, we can only buy it from the Chinese first! ”

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Otto. Feng. Prime Minister Bismarck nodded. He knew that Kaiser Wilhelm I was very reluctant to give up the oil in the province of Khuzistan. But there's no way around it, for the sake of the big picture, you have to do it.

The Germans were so fast that Kaiser Wilhelm I made up his mind, and the German General Staff and Admiralty immediately went into action. The German Army, an infantry division, arrived at the Wilhelmshaven naval base the next day, boarding dozens of transport ships that had already hit the site. A full 12,000 people and their equipment were loaded in half a day. At the same time, the warships of the German Navy were already waiting for these transports in the open sea. Although the German Navy does not yet have capital ships, in a year or so, they have built up a fleet of small warships. Although they were both destroyers and light cruisers, they could train much-needed officers and men for the German Navy, and by the time the German Navy's battleships were commissioned, their naval strength could snowball.

In charge of directing the operation was the commander of the German Navy, Vice Admiral Philip, who was originally a rear admiral but had a keen interest in the navy. At a time when the German Navy was developing on a large scale, he offered to transfer to the Navy. So, he became the commander of the German Navy. After more than a year of hard work, the German navy grew a lot under his hands, and Kaiser Wilhelm I promoted him from rear admiral to vice admiral.

This time, Lieutenant General Philip attaches great importance to this operation. Although the task of the German navy was only to escort ships, they had to cross the North Sea and the English Channel, which were controlled by the Chinese and Belgian navies, bypass the Iberian Peninsula controlled by the Spanish navy, enter the Mediterranean Sea from Gibraltar, and pass through the Guò Suez Canal, enter the Red Sea, and then enter the Arabian Sea, a total voyage of more than 11,000 kilometers, which was a long-distance voyage that the German Navy had never carried out. For the newly formed German Navy, it was undoubtedly a salt-baked test.

The current destroyers and light cruisers of the German Navy were developed on the original British warships. Thereinto. The light cruiser, named the 'Hamburg-class' light cruiser, had a displacement of 2,800 tons, was armed with two twin 155-mm main guns and several 105-mm secondary guns, and had a maximum speed of 20 knots. The tonnage of the Hamburg-class light cruisers is slightly smaller than that of the previous Trotto-class light cruisers of the Chinese Navy, and the firepower and speed are almost the same. Of course, in terms of protection, it is even worse. It is noteworthy that in the bow of the 'Hamburg-class' light cruisers, torpedo tubes were also installed. However, judging from the caliber, it should be a small torpedo, and its range, speed and power are still unknown.

In addition to the 'Hamburg-class' light cruisers, the German Navy was armed with a type of destroyer, which was designated the 'Kiel-class' destroyers. The 'Kiel-class' destroyers were actually an improvement on the British Navy's original 'Southampton-class' light cruisers, with a displacement of 1,500 tons, but because they were equipped with new boilers and steam engines, the speed of the battleship was increased to 22 knots while the tonnage remained the same. The same firepower was a 155 mm gun in the bow and one in the stern. There were four more torpedo tubes in the bow.

The Hamburg-class light cruisers and the Kiel-class destroyers were small warships mass-produced by the German Navy, and 12 of each of these two types of warships were built to safeguard Germany's maritime interests, and the main function was to train enough officers and men for the German Navy. After all, battleships are easy to build, but not so easy with well-trained officers and men.

It's just that the performance of the 'hamburg-class' light cruisers and 'Kiel-class' destroyers is too backward compared to the light cruisers and destroyers of the Imperial Navy. The main light cruisers of the Imperial Navy were the 'Nakshatra-class' light cruisers and the 'Earth-shattering' destroyers, which had been in service before the Great War. Now, the 'Nakshatra-class modification' light cruiser and the 'Geosha-class modification' destroyer are also in service. The performance of these two warships is much better than that of the 'Nakshatra-class' light cruisers and the 'Earth-shattering' destroyers. Among them, 14 light cruisers of the 'Nakshatra-class modification' were built, and 18 destroyers of the 'Geosha-class modification' were built, and after these warships were put into service, the number of warships in the Imperial Navy increased a lot, at least in terms of strength, it was not too embarrassing.

Although the number of capital ships of the Imperial Navy is still small, the Imperial Navy's 'Yangtze River-class' heavy cruisers will be commissioned one after another within this year. The commissioning of the eight 'heavy cruisers' will further strengthen the Imperial Navy. Although the 'Yangtze River-class' heavy cruisers could not compete with battleships, with their high speed and strong firepower, they were undoubtedly a terrifying killer for light cruisers and destroyers. (To be continued......)

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