Chapter 62

When Lianxianke was talking about the power system, Nikolai could still勉强 understand what he meant, but as the old man spewed out a series of technical terms like a machine gun, Nikolai was completely lost, not understanding a thing. After a while, the Russian Tsar could no longer bear it. He waved his hand with a displeased look and said, "Alright, Mr. Lianxianke, don't tell me about the details anymore. I only want to know, what is the difference between the Germans' ship and the armored cruisers of the other powers that were built at the same time?"

Lianxianke was taken aback, then realized that Nikolai was not a professional warship designer, and his previous explanation had been like talking to a cow. He coughed, organized his thoughts, and replied, "Your Majesty, the Germans' design almost maximizes the use of tonnage. Not only ours, but even the warships designed and built by Britain and France cannot compare! Our 'Russia' armored cruiser, which began construction last year, has a design displacement of 13,675 tons, a speed of 20 knots, and is equipped with 4 203mm main guns, 16 152mm secondary guns, and only a narrow 203mm armor belt along the waterline. The two 'Powerful' class armored cruisers that the British began building last year have a design displacement of 14,200 tons and are only equipped with 2 234mm main guns and 12 152mm secondary guns, which is even worse than our 'Russia.' However, the German design, with a displacement 3,000 tons less than the 'Russia,' achieves 8 210mm main guns, 8 150mm secondary guns, a speed of 20 knots, and a large 150mm armor belt along the waterline. This is simply unbelievable!" (Actually, the 'Powerful' class had a faster speed of 22 knots, but since they were not yet completed, the Russians did not know the detailed data. However, even so, the tonnage utilization of the British 'Powerful' class was quite limited.)

Seeing that Nikolai still looked puzzled, Lianxianke paused and then explained, "Let me put it this way: the three key elements of a warship are firepower, armor, and speed. If we compare warships of the same tonnage, the Germans' main guns are twice as many as ours, the area of the side armor is 1.5 times larger, and the speed is the same. The tonnage utilization of their design far surpasses the warships we have built! From the new ships completed by Britain and France in recent years, even under the same tonnage, their warships cannot match the performance of the German design. Although they are better than us, in terms of firepower, protection, and speed, they will inevitably fall far behind the Germans."

Nikolai finally managed to understand the meaning Lianxianke was trying to convey. He slowly nodded, without speaking, but was deeply shocked and his mind was in turmoil. The German Navy, which had always been relatively unknown, had secretly designed such a superior warship. Not only did its performance surpass Russian warships, but it even outperformed the traditional maritime hegemon, Britain! Although Nikolai wanted to question the feasibility of the design, he was a layman in warship design and might not even be as knowledgeable as the young man in front of him. Moreover, the young man had already given a clear response to Lianxianke's doubts. In international arms sales, it was impossible for anyone to make up lies, especially the Germans, who were known for their rigor and conservatism.

Should we buy ships from the Germans in bulk?

A cool night breeze blew past, and Nikolai's hair and beard fluttered. Seeing the clear and bright eyes, he actually avoided the gaze of his nephew. Nikolai's face was solemn, and he and Lianxianke exchanged a glance, seeing in each other's eyes a deep desire and hesitation.

According to the original plan of the Russian Navy, the Pacific Fleet was indeed their main focus for development. However, based on the Russo-French Alliance, Russia had planned to fully introduce French shipbuilding technology and had not considered any interaction with Germany. Who would have thought that the Germans would design such a superior warship, surpassing even Britain and France, leaving Nikolai II in a difficult position.

If they insisted on introducing French shipbuilding technology, the relationship between Russia and France would improve, but the performance of the warships built would be far inferior to those of the Germans. Using such ships to fight against the Japanese Navy, which was fully equipped with British-style warships, the outcome was uncertain. If they bought warships from the Germans, the performance would be excellent, but how would they explain it to the French? Since the signing of the Russo-French Alliance, France had faithfully fulfilled its obligations under the treaty. To this day, France had invested a large amount of capital in Russia, and the development of the Russian economy relied on this money. If Russia turned to Germany, it would anger the French and affect the hard-won stability of the domestic economy. The sale of warships always came with international relations!

Nikolai slowly sat back in his chair, his face solemn, and remained silent for a long time. This feeling of being caught between a rock and a hard place, where one cannot have both fish and bear's paw, had been a common occurrence since he became emperor. Each time, it left him exhausted and troubled as he tried to balance the situation. After much thought, Nikolai II still could not make a decision and turned to Lianxianke, asking, "Rear Admiral, what do you think?"

When it came to his area of expertise, Lianxianke's mind immediately became active. He thought for a moment and said in Russian, "Your Majesty, the performance of the German-designed warship is almost eerily strong. Although the Germans are unlikely to lie to us, there is still a possibility of calculation errors. We can only determine if they can achieve the performance data on paper once the German warship is completed!" Nikolai frowned and said, "Do you mean we should mainly observe for now?"

Lianxianke replied, "The German design is based on the improvements of the battleship they began building last year. For safety, we should be cautious and wait until their battleship completes sea trials and draws conclusions before directly introducing German shipbuilding technology. We can first order one ship from the Germans to see how it goes. If the German ship that began construction last year has problems, we can immediately terminate the contract and demand compensation from Germany. If the performance data of the German ship is indeed flawless, then replacing some of the planned French warships with German ones, in my opinion, is also feasible, after all, the temptation of doubling the main gun firepower is too great!"

After listening, Nikolai pondered for a moment and then nodded slowly. Although this was a compromise suggestion, it contained Lianxianke's understanding of warships. Buying one ship would make it easier to talk to both the Germans and the French, and this one ship would not be a bad deal! He thought for a moment and asked, "Rear Admiral, how much of our naval budget is left this year?"

Lianxianke answered without hesitation, "Your Majesty, this year's naval shipbuilding budget has been filled by three protected cruisers, leaving no additional funds. Among them, we plan to start construction on two 6,800-ton Pallada-class protected cruisers in December and order one 3,860-ton Svetlana-class protected cruiser from the Le Havre shipyard in France. If we cancel the orders for these three cruisers, we can free up 11.6 million rubles."

Nikolai shook his head and firmly said, "We cannot cancel the order for the cruiser from France; it must be retained. This is not just a naval issue but also a political one. We absolutely cannot abandon the French order to buy German warships." Lianxianke paused and then said, "Then let's cancel the budget for the two Pallada-class protected cruisers. This will save 9.7 million rubles, enough to buy the large armored cruiser from the Germans. The combat power of that large armored cruiser is at least twice that of the two Pallada-class cruisers. However, this will be a hardship for the workers at the Galleerny Island shipyard."

"This is not a problem. Since the orders haven't been placed yet, canceling the budget for these two cruisers is not a big deal. There is not much surplus in Count Witte's budget right now, so let's do it this way." Nikolai II waved his hand and then turned to Qing Ying, saying, "Little Eitel, for the sake of Cousin Wilhelm, I will agree to buy one of these armored cruisers. In a few days, I will notify you, and you can have your shipyard bring the formal contract to the Naval Ministry."

Qing Ying's face turned serious, and he respectfully agreed. Although he only sold one ship, he understood Nikolai's concerns. The performance data of this design had already exceeded the cognitive boundaries of Russian designers, and the existence of the Russo-French Alliance also prevented Russia from freely purchasing warships from Germany. However, Qing Ying was not worried. In a few years, when the new German warships were completed, and the Russians saw the superiority of the German warships, they would surely continue to order more. Once Russia had a few excellent large armored cruisers in the Far East, the seas around Japan would never be peaceful again!

"By the way, there is one more thing," Qing Ying stood up and said softly, "I hope your country can keep the performance of this warship confidential, especially the speed. Apart from you and Mr. Lianxianke, it would be best if no one else knows that its speed exceeds 18 knots."

Nikolai chuckled, "Little Eitel, you are afraid that the British will learn the specific performance of this ship and harm Germany, right?" Without waiting for Qing Ying to explain, he reached out and patted Qing Ying's head, smiling, "The Russian Empire also does not want the British to know the specific performance of our warships. You can rest assured."

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