When the discussion on the tonnage and size cap of capital ships finally came to an end at the naval treaty negotiation meeting of the Tessie countries, the representatives of most of the countries breathed a sigh of relief.

The capital ship is the most critical, and the rest are auxiliary ships such as cruisers and destroyers, which should be easy to make do.

But this does not include the United Kingdom and France......

There is no recognized aircraft carrier as a ship.

The Tessie countries still treated the cruisers with aircraft on board as if they were cruisers.

Although in the negotiations on the capital ship, already, in accordance with the proposal of the British, it was allowed to build cruisers with the share of the tonnage of the capital ship.

But the share of the total tonnage of the cruiser itself, as well as the tonnage limit of a single ship, still had to be completed in the negotiations on the cruiser.

Nelson demanded that the larger the aircraft-carrying cruisers, the better, so Britain pursued no restrictions on the tonnage and size of the cruisers.

So Grenville, acting at Nelson's suggestion, spoke first after the start of the discussion session on the cruiser:

"We all know that cruisers are the most complex ships in the Navy.

"On a large scale, first of all, traditional armored cruisers, and then aircraft-carrying cruisers, which have recently been studied by various countries.

"Their tonnage starts at least 10,000 tons, and may exceed 20,000 or even 30,000 tons.

"On a small scale, there are various colonial and escort cruisers, the tonnage may be only two or three thousand tons.

"So, we in the United Kingdom, we believe that there is no point in limiting the tonnage of cruisers per ship."

When the Frenchman Talleyrand heard the advice of the British, he subconsciously wanted to stand up directly against it.

But thinking of his identity as the host now, he pressed it for a moment.

Let's take a look at the reactions of the representatives of other countries.

Most of the deputies frowned, probably not immediately reacting to what the purpose of the British was so high.

But there are a few that seem to have come to the fore.

If there is no limit to the tonnage of a single cruiser, wouldn't it be possible to use the tonnage share of cruisers to build capital ships.

Named cruisers, they were actually designed and built according to the standards of battleships.

Lucia's representative immediately glanced at the British, and a deep doubt rose in his heart.

Shouldn't that be what we're asking for?

Didn't the British even want a 320,000-ton high-speed capital ship?

Whatever the English had in mind, however, the suggestion must have been advantageous for Lucia.

So the Lucians directly expressed their approval.

Then Hardenberg of Prussia immediately glanced at the Lucian again.

Hardenberg also understood the problem with this suggestion, and was equally suspicious of the purpose of the British.

Prussia pursued a relative balance of power in the Tessian navies, and did not want any other country to be too prominent.

So Hardenberg directly objected, and directly made it clear:

"This will lead to the construction of capital ships in the name of cruisers by some countries, which is tantamount to returning to the discussion of the tonnage of capital ships.

"And the tonnage limit for capital ships has been confirmed, and all countries have accepted it.

"It's impossible to deliberately leave such a loophole now!

"Prussia is resolutely against it!"

The representative of Austria, Metternich, followed:

"We in Austria are equally opposed."

Seeing that the situation was about the same, Talleyrand also opened his mouth to say that the French were also against it, and gave a suggestion of restrictions:

"Armored cruisers have been included in the tonnage of capital ships, so the maximum tonnage of a single cruiser should not exceed the regular standard for armored cruisers.

"So the tonnage of a single cruiser should not exceed 10,000 tons, and the caliber of artillery should not exceed 160 millimeters."

Prussia and Austria, as well as France, were directly opposed, and very strong reasons were given.

Other countries didn't have much shipbuilding plans in the first place, so Lucy followed suit and expressed his opposition.

It was impossible to pass a proposal supported only by the British and Lucians.

Grenville also expected this to happen, and had thought that the request would pass easily.

But I felt a loss if I didn't give it a try, so I mentioned it.

Immediately after being rejected by the coalition, Grenville proposed a backup plan:

"Then take the type and tonnage of aircraft-carrying cruisers out of the regular cruisers and discuss them separately.

"Because we believe that an aircraft-carrying cruiser should be at least the tonnage of an armored cruiser."

This time, the representatives of most of the countries immediately fell into deep thought.

Warships carrying aircraft can also be regarded as a popular project in the Navy at present.

It's just that there is no unified standard yet, and the navies of various countries are doing their own and groping for it.

And the level of attention varies from country to country.

The British, under the strong impetus of Nelson, were most concerned about the research and design of this new warship.

They were followed by the French and Spaniards.

As for Lucia and Prussia, they are almost at the bottom of the list......

They basically did not bother with aircraft-carrying cruisers, nor did they specifically reserve tonnage for treaties.

So this discussion is mainly about the French and the British.

Seeing that the representatives of other countries did not speak, Talleyrand spoke directly to himself:

"Our point of view is exactly the opposite, aircraft-carrying cruisers are still auxiliary ships and still fall under the category of cruisers.

"If the tonnage of this kind of ship is too large, it is of no practical meaning at all.

"So we don't think it's necessary to separate it and it should be treated directly as a regular cruiser."

Grenville, of course, also said-for-tat:

"The construction and use of aircraft-carrying cruisers are still being studied by countries around the world.

"What you think is your own standard, and your standard may not be correct.

"Limiting aircraft-carrying cruisers to 10,000 tons, directly according to your so-called standards, is tantamount to destroying other possibilities for aircraft-carrying cruisers in the future.

"We, as politicians, should not make such decisions for the Navy and the associated engineering personnel!

"There should be no direct limit on the tonnage of a single ship of an aircraft-carrying cruiser, at least it should not be limited to 30,000 tons!"

When Grenville shouted out 30,000 tons, the representatives at the scene were obviously surprised.

It is enough for the capital ship to exceed 30,000 tons, and a so-called aircraft-carrying cruiser to exceed 30,000 tons?

What are the British paying attention to?

The representatives of several countries rejoiced in their hearts, thanks to the negotiation of the naval treaty, which blew up part of the special plans of the navies of various countries.

First Lucia's 400,000-ton high-speed capital ship program, and now there are 30,000-ton aircraft-carrying cruisers from the British.

At the same time, the parties to the dispute are a bit on the top.

Because when the British and the French quarreled, both sides had a certain gas potential bonus.

Without hesitation, Talleyrand slammed back again:

"Our standards are the ones that have been tested and verified, and our standards can lead you astray!"

When Grenville wanted to continue to reply, Spanish Prime Minister Manuel interjected:

"Only Britain, France, and we are more concerned about aircraft carriers, there is no need to directly argue openly at such meetings.

"It is better to adjourn the meeting for the time being, and our three countries will first resolve their differences in the design route of the aircraft-carrying cruiser, and then continue the meeting."

Grenville was visibly stunned when he heard these words, and suddenly realized that he seemed to have overlooked something.

Talleyrand's reaction was the same, feeling that his quarrel with the British seemed to be going in the wrong direction.

The two didn't immediately figure out what they felt was wrong and what was wrong.

But in this case, a pause is nothing less than the right choice.

So Talleyrand directly announced the temporary adjournment of the meeting.

The delegates left the venue with a few doubts and their own thoughts.

Talleyrand immediately went to Charles, briefly explained the course of today's meeting, and then immediately expressed his concerns:

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"Your Highness, I am now worried about whether our judgment about aircraft carriers is correct."

After listening to the reaction of the British, Charles also asked thoughtfully and rhetorically:

"You mean that the British insisted on relaxing the tonnage standard for aircraft carriers to more than 30,000 tons?

"Is it because Britain may have done some kind of verification that the tonnage of aircraft carriers should be 30,000 tons in order to function?

"Do you think the British have more experience than my dear friend...... Is it more accurate than Daming's experience? ”

Talleyrand immediately explained:

"Your Highness, the experience of the British is perhaps no more accurate than that of the Great Ming.

"But the problem is that we also don't get the accurate experience about aircraft carriers given by the Ming Dynasty.

"We just guessed that Da Ming did not attach extreme importance to aircraft carriers based on the information leaked by Mr. Niu Jian.

"Mr. Niu Jian and His Royal Highness Prince Dashi have not told us what tonnage the aircraft carrier should achieve is the most suitable.

"Thinking about it the other way around now, although Daming may not be extremely important, it should still be 'very' important.

"Although some information was revealed to us, nothing was disclosed, which is still higher than a high-speed battleship.

"The experience of the British may not be as accurate as that of the Ming Dynasty, but the British are not completely inaccurate.

"We worked together for more than a decade in the world wars, and our navies worked together for almost a decade.

"I am reluctant to accept it, and I will not admit it in public, that the British are indeed better at the Navy than we are.

"Britain is, after all, an island nation, and the importance of the navy far exceeds that of the army.

"General Nelson of England is also widely regarded as the most gifted admiral in the world today.

"The British's plans for the development of naval ships will certainly refer to the advice of General Nelson.

"Relaxing the tonnage of aircraft carriers to more than 30,000 tons should be General Nelson's direct suggestion.

"To build a cruiser to more than 30,000 tons is an absolutely outrageous request.

"It should be very difficult for other bureaucrats and officers, as well as naval engineers, to push it to the naval treaty."

Charles's expression became more solemn.

Everything Talleyrand said was true, and it was true.

I really didn't get the news of Daming directly, and I don't know what the tonnage of Daming's own aircraft carrier is.

There was silence for a while, and Talleyrand spoke again to propose:

"Your Highness, why don't you ask His Royal Highness Prince Dashi directly?

"With your relationship with His Royal Highness Prince Daishi, you should be able to get some special guidance, right?

"This is an important intelligence ...... related to the future development of the Navy"

After hearing this, Charles subconsciously wanted to write a telegram, but gave up before his hand could fall.

Ask the details of Daming's aircraft carrier directly, and your best friend will definitely feel uncomfortable whether you say it or not.

The correctness of a decision is obviously more important than the special relationship with Daming and the friendship of close friends.

Wrong decisions about the construction of aircraft carriers are, at best, a waste of resources and money.

But once the relationship with Daming and his best friend is damaged, leaving a pimple and a place of mind in the other party's heart, it may never be irreparable and eliminated.

It's not just a matter of personal friendship.

This special relationship between France and Daming can provide France with the convenience and guarantee that it can definitely not be compared with the relatively correct aircraft carrier built in advance.

Eventually, Charles decisively abandoned the idea.

Then he turned to ask Talelang:

"What does General Verneuve think? What about our aircraft carrier program, and what is said about Nelson? ”

Talleyrand recalls previous meetings:

"Admiral Werneuve has said that Nelson can be trusted unconditionally in naval matters......

"General Vernav himself, about the advice of our aircraft carriers, is that there should be no obstacles on the deck.

In terms of tonnage, he said that the deck should be as long as possible, and the corresponding tonnage should be larger.

"Werneuf believed that an aircraft carrier should be a large, high-freeboard cruiser with a slender hull.

"Specifically, at least 20,000 tons, which happens to be in line with the requirements of the British......"

After hearing this, Charles was silent for a while:

"According to the advice of the Spaniards, let's talk to the British and Spaniards alone, we may have to revise the plan and objectives of the negotiations on the aircraft carrier......"

On the other hand, British Prime Minister Grenville and Talleyrand reacted in the same way.

But the direction is completely reversed.

When Grenville returned to his lodgings, he immediately sent a telegram to Nelson:

"The French believe that the tonnage of aircraft-carrying cruisers should not exceed that of conventional cruisers, and there is no point in excessively large tonnage.

"The point is that the French are very decisive in their rhetoric, as if they have been specifically reminded.

"Considering the special relationship between His Royal Highness Charles of France and His Royal Highness Prince Dashi, we cannot rule out the possibility that the experience of the Ming side in the study of aircraft-carrying cruisers has been exchanged with France.

"I ask Admiral Nelson to discuss and simulate with the Admirals and engineers as soon as possible.

"Is there a problem with reassessing our goals regarding the tonnage and size of aircraft-carrying cruisers.

"Seriously consider the usage and value of the 10,000-ton to download the cruiser."

George Canning, the British representative who came with Grenville, read Grenville's telegram:

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister is concerned that the French, through His Highness Charles, have gained experience in the study of the aircraft-carrying cruisers of the Ming Dynasty.

"Aren't we also able to confirm through Her Highness Charlotte......"

Grenville was visibly stunned when he heard this:

"Her Royal Highness Charlotte...... Still in the United States......

"Before our direct cooperation with Daming unfolded.

"Before the joint venture between His Royal Highness and His Royal Highness Prince Dashi opened a large area in the United Kingdom.

"I don't think I'll ever go back to London.

"Now...... I guess it won't help us either. ”