"Submarines? Plane? Jiang Zhiqing's understanding of the navy is only a glimpse of the fleet, so it is naturally difficult to imagine the wonderful use of these two things.

"Exactly! Although these two things are still naïve, they are bound to completely change the way the Navy fights in the near future. Of course, in order to understand the miraculous function of these two things, one must first know their past and present lives. After Sun Yuanqi appointed Jiang Zhiqing as the chief of the navy, he spent a lot of effort to conduct investigation and research, "Let's talk about submarines first. Submarines appeared very early, and it is said that as early as the European Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci, a painter, inventor, medical scientist, astronomer, architectural engineer and military engineer, conceived the idea of underwater ships. This can be considered the original idea of the submarine. Generations have followed in Leonardo da Vinci's footsteps and made great strides, and the adventurous Americans have played a major role in this.

"The first military submarine in history appeared during the American war, and was designed by David of Yale University? Bushnell. In 1776, he designed an unsuccessful attempt to attack the HMS Eagle of the Royal Navy, but it was the first attempt by a submarine to attack a warship. The first submarine in history to successfully sink an enemy ship occurred during the American Civil War, when the submarine USS Hanley of the Southern Camp successfully sank the USS Hausatonik of the Northern Confederacy. Although the submarine itself sank due to the whirlpool created by the explosion, it provided a new method of naval warfare for future generations.

"After one or two hundred years of development, especially the technological progress of the past two decades, submarines have become increasingly mature and have quickly become one of the important combat forces of the navy. At present, the world's major naval countries have more than 260 submarines of various types. But in East Asia. Submarines are still a rarity, firstly, because the submarines of European and American countries cannot reach the Far East at all due to their limited capabilities; The second is to be a naval power in East Asia. Japan only began to independently design and plan to build submarines in the 33rd year of Guangxu (1907), and it is still in the initial stage, which is really difficult to see.

"Our country has also been brilliant in submarine research. As early as the sixth year of Guangxu in the former Qing Dynasty (1860), the Tianjin Machinery Bureau designed and built an underwater engine ship, intending to lurk underwater and transport mines to be placed under enemy ships. This aircraft ship is China's first submarine, but the authorities have not paid enough attention to it. No more from this. As a result, not only no one in the country has studied submarines, but even very few people know about submarines. ”

Jiang Zhiqing was a little depressed: "According to what Mr. said, our submarine is purely a splash of water. Can't count on it for a while? ”

Sun Yuanqi said: "You can't say that. Although the development of the submarine is quite impressive, due to power reasons, it cannot drive fast and cannot go far, and it has very few torpedoes. It is also not possible to dive underwater for a long time. Therefore, it can generally only undertake coastal and coastal defense tasks. And the most important task of our Navy now is coastal and coastal defense, which is one of our strengths.

"The main characteristic of submarines is concealment, not the superiority of their performance. Our country does not have submarines now, and they have not been equipped before, and the major powers have no defense against us, and concealment can reach the extreme. This is the second advantage of us.

"Moreover, 30 years ago, China was able to design and manufacture the prototype of submarines, and now the domestic scientific and technological level is completely incomprehensible compared with that time. The scientific research staff is also quite large-scale and very specialized. In addition, there are other countries that can learn from their experience, but can't they be made? In my opinion, the bottleneck in the development of submarines now is not the level of manufacture, but the design concept. As long as we can work together, we may not be able to come from behind. This is our third strength. "Even if we don't succeed in development, can't we get the design drawings of other countries through other channels and paint the scoop according to the gourd?"

Jiang Zhiqing hurriedly said: "Mr. is taught!" ”

Sun Yuanqi continued: "As for the aircraft, now the aircraft developed by Jingshi University has been shuttling back and forth between major cities across the country, and it should be no stranger to Kai-shek, but have you ever thought about applying it to naval warfare?" For example, planes take off from airfields on land and bomb invading ships at sea; Or build a huge ship big enough to accommodate the take-off and landing of aircraft, and then engage in a fierce battle with enemy ships at sea. Of course, China may not be able to build such huge ships now.

"You just mentioned the dreadnought-class battleship race that is in full swing among the world's major powers, and the dreadnought is indeed a weapon of naval warfare and has epoch-making significance, but we must also be soberly aware of its shortcomings. Since the concept of the dreadnought was first proposed a decade ago, the main focus was on attack and defense between ships and between ships and shore defenses, with little consideration for threats from below the surface, and no one at all in the air. Noting these now, this is where our advantage lies in the future. ”

Jiang Zhiqing was thoughtful.

Sun Yuanqi finally concluded: "Naval warfare is not limited to the plane of sea and land, but is an all-round three-dimensional war of the sky, sea surface, land, and seabed, so sooner or later submarine units and aviation units will join the big family of the navy." The air force is our advantage, and now Shaanxi has the first brigade of the Northwest Air Force, Gansu has the second brigade of the Northwest Air Force, Shanxi has the first brigade of the North China Air Force, and Sichuan has the first and second brigades of the Southwest Air Force. Why don't you use your brains and be the first in the world to establish naval aviation?

"If the confrontation between aircraft and ships is a technical confrontation, then the relationship between submarines and ships is purely to win the big with the small and the strong with the weak, just like the assassination of the king's bureaucracy and the assassination of Han by Nie Zheng. If you think about it, a British dreadnought costs about 1.8 million pounds, the French Lone class costs 2.5 million pounds, and the Russian Gangut class costs as much as 2.8 million pounds; And a state-of-the-art submarine, whether it is a German U-boat, an American K-class submarine, or a British E-class submarine, will cost no more than 100,000 pounds. Such a wave blow is obviously worth a thousand dollars. This is also the fundamental reason why we want to develop submarines! ”

Jiang Zhiqing bowed down and replied: "Whether the navy develops aircraft or submarines, it needs strong support from Mr. ”

Sun Yuan smiled and said: "Sun asked you to be the chief of the navy, so naturally there is no reason to leave it alone. It just so happened that the aftermath borrowed a lot of cash this time, and instead of letting Yuan Xiangcheng use it to expand the army, it is better to allocate some money to your navy. I expect you to set up an equipment research institute to research, design, and manufacture all kinds of naval weapons and equipment, including submarines; The establishment of two flight groups and two submarine detachments can immediately begin to recruit personnel and carry out some preliminary training. It is estimated that $1.5 million is enough for your expenses this year. ”

"Thank you, sir!" Jiang Zhiqing had an expression of wanting to say nothing after thanking him, "But-"

Sun Yuanqi said strangely: "If Kai-shek has something to say, why bother to spit it out?" Is it because there is not enough money? ”

Jiang Zhiqing said: "There is still half a year, 1.5 million yuan should be enough!" The students were just a little worried. It has only been a year and a half since the founding of the Republic of China, and two or three prime ministers have already been replaced. Although Mr. is upright and virtuous, and is admired by everyone, but the young people are unpredictable, in case Mr. follows in the footsteps of Tang Shaochuan and Zhao Zhi'an, wouldn't this arrangement be a wedding dress for others? It will be difficult for the submarine to produce results for a while, and the personnel of the research institute will be dismissed or relocated when the time comes, and these do not matter, the key is the aircraft of the two brigades.

"As we all know, now the airplane is a magic weapon for our western provinces, and it is also a unique weapon to deter the surrounding provinces from daring to act rashly. What if he took the opportunity to swallow those two flying groups? Nominally speaking, those planes were purchased at the expense of the state, and we in the western region have no right to dispose of them. Moreover, none of our western provinces are close to the sea, so if we choose to set up a research institute on the eastern coast, I am afraid that we will have to consider the issue of secrecy, right? ”

The western provinces are all inland, and only Sichuan and Hubei provinces can be connected to the sea through the Yangtze River waterway, which is indeed a major weakness of the Sun family's power. But how can the study of naval equipment, especially submarine ships, leave the ocean? Isn't that a closed-door process?

Sun Yuanqi pondered for a moment before getting up and drawing on the map in the study: "For the sake of secrecy and to save my life, the news of the establishment of a flight group and a submarine detachment by the Navy will not be disclosed to the public for the time being. The flying brigade can select and transfer reliable personnel from our western units to conduct adaptive training at Kukunaoer (present-day Qinghai Lake) in Qinghai. The Naval Equipment Research Institute and the submarine detachment can also set up branches here, of course, the main part should probably also be selected by the sea, after all, a dragon cannot be raised in a small pond! ”

As he spoke, his finger moved to the area of Haizhou Bay in northern Jiangsu: "Now most of China's natural harbors have been leased and ceded by the foreign powers, and there are very few that can be used by our navy, and Haizhou Port is one of them. A few days ago, when Sun Yat-sen was planning the national railway, he said that Haizhou's deep-water route to the sea can be called relatively good, and this is the only point in the 250-mile coast along the northern border of the Yangtze River, which can accommodate the navigation of giant ships approaching the shore for several miles. Moreover, it is located between Dalian, Tanggu, Qingdao and Shanghai, Ningbo and Guangzhou, with convenient transportation. If you can negotiate with the Jiangsu provincial government, it is best to choose this place. ”

Sun Yat-sen chose Haizhou Port mainly because it is the closest to Qingdao, the most similar marine and hydrological conditions, and the opportunity to survey the surrounding terrain. Once the war starts next year, this is undoubtedly the best place to eat.

Jiang Zhiqing shook his head: "I'm afraid it's difficult!" Haizhou is located in the northern part of the Huai salt production area, and the two Huai salt taxes are the bulk of the local wealth, and have always been regarded as forbidden, how can the Jiangsu provincial government allow Mr. to get involved? ”

Sun Yuan raised his finger and continued to slide down: "If the Jiangsu provincial government does not agree, then we have to negotiate with the Zhejiang provincial government to borrow a port." Zhejiang Governor Zhu Jieren (Zhu Rui) has a bad relationship with Tang Yuweng, and there should be no problem in borrowing a port to use it, and maybe even security matters can be solved together. ”