。 "Mr. Ma Jifen, don't you wait for Lord Xu to come back before you leave?" Looking at his former comrades-in-arms, Yang Yonglin asked earnestly. Since the end of the First Sino-Japanese War, these foreigners who served in the Beiyang Army and experienced many naval battles were immediately regarded as treasures by their motherland, and they managed the entire war, and they must have a deeper understanding of naval warfare, and this is undoubtedly the most valuable resource for the navies of various countries, and the actual combat experience is much more reliable than the so-called inferences that have been deduced for half a day on paper. Therefore, the navies of various countries have asked for the recall of their own crews, and Ma Jifen, who was once an officer of the Dingyuan ship, is naturally included. He will return to the United States and become the captain of a cruiser.

"No, Lord Lin, it's already a great honor for me to have you come to see me off. Master Xu has more important things to do, so I won't bother him. Magifen excused himself. In fact, deep down, Ma Jifen knew that the Second Beiyang Marine and Amphibious Division, including Yang Yonglin, was very angry at the United States' support for Japan in the war. Although it is not bad for him, a comrade-in-arms who has fought together, but now judging from the various circumstances obtained, Beiyang's revenge on the United States has begun.

"Do you have anything else to say? My friend? Yang Yonglin asked.

"I just want to ask, what role does Beiyang play in Italy's arms sales to Spain? And what is the nature of your country's contacts with Spain? Majifen hesitated and spoke.

"It's just normal trade, although Mr. Xu has a good relationship with the Italian side, but he can't decide anything, as for the Beiyang side, it is also a normal exchange for the Spaniards to send officers to serve in the Spanish Navy." Yang Yonglin said vaguely.

"But as you know, relations between Spain and my country are becoming increasingly strained. And that would be an unfriendly sign to the United States of America. Magiffen said.

"The British provided money for the Spaniards, the Italians for the Spaniards with skills and warships, and Beiyang only sent a few people over. If this ship is considered hostile, I am afraid that there are too many enemies of the United States. Yang Yonglin said dissatisfiedly. That's right, by the way. Your country's support for Japan has made the Qing Dynasty very angry, and there is a saying that sooner or later it will have to be replaced, and I hope you can convey to the US authorities that the United States should not stretch its hand too far. ”

"Well, let's not talk about that. This is all the will of the state, not something we can decide, just hope that we will not become enemies in the future. Magiffen said with a sigh.

"Possibly. We will meet in the near future in the seas off the West Indies. Yang Yonglin said in his heart. Let's hope we don't see each other on the battlefield. But we will always be friends, and your contribution to the Beiyang Fleet will never be forgotten. The Beiyang Fleet welcomes you at any time. Yang Yonglin still respects this friend who lives and dies together, even if the two sides will clash on the battlefield in the future.

"Yes, Yang, we will always be friends." After speaking, Ma Jifen and Yang Yonglin hugged each other tightly. Many years later, after Magiffen became the U.S. Secretary of the Navy, he often talked about it with his son. This is the first hug between the commander of the Chinese Navy and the U.S. Secretary of the Navy in later generations, and this hug not only represents the end of the cooperation between the two sides, but also represents the countdown to the preparations for the Spanish-American War.

"Colonel Magifin, you are now a colonel of the United States Navy, and I am Lieutenant Commander Ross of the cruiser USS Olympia of the United States Navy, and I am responsible for transporting you home." Rose said with a smile. Half an hour later, I looked at Majifen in front of me. The American captain said with a friendly hand. …,

"Hello, Lieutenant Commander Ross, I would like to visit this newest American cruiser." Ma Jifen politely shook hands with the other party and then said.

"Come with me, as you wish." As he spoke, Ross made a gesture of please, introducing the battleship, which had only been commissioned in February 1892 as he walked. "Construction of the Olympia began in June 1891, it was launched in November '92, and it was officially commissioned in February of this year. The ship has a standard displacement of 5,865 tons, a length of 104 meters, a width of 16 meters, and a draft of 655 meters. The entire ship is covered with dome armor. The horizontal part is 2 inches, the inclined part is 475 inches, and the conning tower is 5 inches. The turrets at the bow and tail are protected by 3 to 4 inches of armor, all of which are new Harvey hardened armor. The maximum output is 13500 horses. The maximum speed is 20 knots. However, in the test, it once ran a high speed of 2168 knots. ”

"The Olympia is most proud of its firepower, with the first twin 8-inch turret guaranteeing a 40-second salvo of guns and 10 5-inch guns on the sideline. There were also 14 6-pounder guns and 6 1-pounder guns, as well as 6 18-inch torpedo tubes, which were enough to suppress the Guiyuan-class battleships in the Beiyang. Ross said proudly. In fact, the reason why the United States sent this new warship to the Far East this time is not only to take one person on an ocean-going voyage, but more importantly, it wants to go to the Philippines and see what the level of the First Fleet in the Far East is.

Ross will never forget this day, on October 7, 1895, when the Olympia sailed into the Arthur Naval Base of the Beiyang Fleet, the Beiyang Rapid Fleet's three large and three small six armored cruisers, as well as Dingzhen and captured Japanese warships, docked next to the Olympia. Although the number of fleets is small, the strength of the PISA-class and the ability of the Guiyuan-class have left a deep impact on Ross, and the most memorable thing for Ross is the well-trained Beiyang Fleet and the breath left after experiencing the battle between blood and fire. The momentum of daring to win in the face of hardships and dangers is by no means something that a navy that has never fought a war can have.

And then Ross was able to visit the flagship of the second fast formation of the Beiyang Fleet, Guiyuan, although the Qing and the United States had a very unpleasant quarrel during the First Sino-Japanese War, but there were still due courtesies, not to mention with the return of Magifen. Some superficial things in the Beiyang Fleet will be known to the Americans. Although the Guiyuan is not big, the novel design and the extremely practical configuration still amaze this beauty from across the ocean. The entire structure of the Guiyuan-class warship is compact, although it reduces the sea trial and stability. However, the entire ship remains a stable platform, and by adjusting the layout and weight divisions, the already heavy weapons can be affected by the sea conditions as much as possible.

From this visit, Lieutenant Colonel Ross sensed for the first time that the Spaniards might not be as easy to deal with as he thought, and today, when he met with Magiffin, he couldn't wait to hear what the officer who had served in the Northern Fleet had to say.

"In terms of fire, the Olympia is about the same as the Guiyuan, and it may be slightly disadvantaged, after all, the Beiyang turret gun has a faster rate of fire, and although the opponent only has 8 medium-caliber guns, the caliber is larger, and the firepower of the Olympia may be stronger than the predecessor of the Guiyuan class." Magifen said.

"Then in terms of other performance, does it mean that the Olympia is inferior to the Beiyang Guiyuan class?" The disadvantage of the armored ship against the armored ship in speed is even more obvious at a glance, and Ross naturally knows the answer to the question.

"This is a design problem, the dome armor can provide better protection for the core module, but for the navy equipped with high-explosive shells and rapid-fire guns, even if the core module is not destroyed, the battleship will still sink due to the loss of gun positions and excessive water ingress." Majifen thought for a moment and said.

"But it doesn't matter, the American shipyards are producing bigger and more advanced warships, and we won't lose to the Spaniards. Mr. Colonel, come and sit in my cabin, the big guys of the Navy have asked me to hand you something. Ross changed the subject.

"We need your experience to provide valuable input for the development of the Navy. We also need good, combat-hardened officers to command America's fleet. This is an Indiana-class battleship, which was started in 1891, and probably by the time you go back, the first 10,000-ton battleship will be in service. In the captain's room of the Olympia, Lieutenant Commander Ross handed over a copy of the materials to Magifin. …,

"The most striking thing about this battleship is its firepower, 4 13-inch 35L guns, 8 8-inch 35L guns, all of which are mounted in twin turrets and arranged in a hexagonal shape. In addition to this, there were 4 6-inch guns and 20 6-pounder guns and 6 18-inch torpedo tubes. And its armor protection is also very good. Of course, the speed is a little lower. After saying this, Rosie looked at Majifen, who had a serious expression.

"If I'm not mistaken, Indiana's 13-inch guns were made of maroon gunpowder. The actual power may not be as good as the 12-inch naval guns of Britain, France and other countries. In terms of projection, this battleship is indeed very powerful on paper, but considering that the rate of fire of the 13-inch guns is too slow, and the power of the 8-inch guns may be insufficient when dealing with the opponent's patrol, the combat effectiveness is actually average. As for the armor? It can only be said that there are many problems in the design, among which the main belt has excessive defense, but the height is insufficient, which is the most serious. As for speed, I can only say that this speed is really unacceptable. Ma Jifen said helplessly.

"It's okay, Mr. Colonel, we have another high-speed battleship, we have a high-speed battleship that is even more powerful than the Olympia. You're looking at this, this is the USS Brooklyn armored cruiser that only started construction in '93. With a displacement of 9,215 tons, although the outer armor is a little thinner, only 3-inch Harvey armor, but the coverage area is large enough. More importantly, there is a layer of strong dome armor behind the main armor belt, with 6-inch armor on the slope and 3-inch armor on the horizontal part, so that the core cabin is enough to resist the attack of the 12-inch main gun. There were 8 8-inch 35L guns, 12 5-inch 40L guns, 12 6-pounder guns. And more importantly, the speed reached 20 knots, and the trial speed reached more than 21 knots. With that, Rose looked at Magiffen with expectant eyes, waiting for his response.

"I need time, I need to systematically understand the composition of the U.S. Navy and the situation of ships, can you give me some time to study and analyze the information?" Magifen said.

"Of course, we have time, Admiral Simpson and Colonel Mahan hope to see your report at the Annapolis Naval Academy." Rose said with a smile.

"I am very honored to accept this job." Magiffen nodded with satisfaction.

Thanks to the book friend NG1937 and the mountain light for the reward, as well as the book friend Lee for the monthly ticket support. It's good for everyone to give more clicks and recommendations~~. (To be continued)