Chapter 75

"Father, what you are worried about is merely that the cost of an armored cruiser, after being enlarged, approaches that of a battleship, yet it does not possess the decisive combat power of a battleship. However, I think this problem is not difficult to solve!" Qing Ying organized his thoughts and tried to explain the complex issue in the simplest terms, "Since an armored cruiser with a displacement of 10,000 tons cannot play the role of an arbiter in naval battles, why don't we just increase its tonnage?"

William widened his eyes, his face full of shock, and said, "Did I hear that right? You want to increase the tonnage? Eitel, do you know that the cost of a 10,000-ton armored cruiser has already exceeded 17 million marks? If we increase the tonnage further, the cost will be on par with that of a battleship! What kind of logic is this?"

"Father, the reason why armored cruisers cannot join the battle line is that their firepower is too weak compared to battleships, and their armor cannot withstand the bombardment of battleship-caliber guns. Since the factors limiting the armored cruiser's participation in decisive battles are firepower and protection, we only need to equip the armored cruiser with battleship-caliber guns and armor. This way, the armored cruiser can complete the task of clearing the enemy reconnaissance fleet and then join the fleet battle. For the German Navy, which lacks capital ships, this is undoubtedly an excellent choice!" Qing Ying explained. In fact, this theory was proposed by the very William II in 1904, but Qing Ying was now presenting this concept, which had been refined over the years, to William nearly a decade earlier.

After listening to Qing Ying's argument, William was suddenly startled, as if a bolt of lightning had pierced through the darkness, revealing a dazzling light. Before this, he and Tirpitz had also reviewed a design with a displacement of 13,000 tons, but from the emperor down to the ship design apprentices, all they did were minor adjustments. Either they added two more 240mm main guns or an additional 2 inches of waterline armor, but no one thought of increasing the main gun caliber to the same 283mm as battleships. In people's minds, armored cruisers were always considered a lower tier of cruisers compared to battleships, and a 240mm caliber was already considered large enough. If they were to equip them with 283mm guns like battleships, would they still be called armored cruisers?

"Ah!" With a cry of regret and frustration, William clenched his right hand into a fist and struck his head hard, the loud thud making Qing Ying shudder. Seeing the pale red bump gradually forming on William's forehead, Qing Ying swallowed hard and whispered, "Father, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," William said through gritted teeth, enduring the intense pain from his head and fingers. He picked up the water cup on the table and drank it in one gulp, then took a long, deep breath, and his expression finally relaxed somewhat. However, his eyes still blazed with anger, whether it was directed at his own foolishness or at Qing Ying. Seeing this, Qing Ying inwardly groaned. William was an extremely proud and easily angered person, and when he felt humiliated, he would have a strong urge to lash out and regain his dignity. Qing Ying knew this feeling well. In his previous life, whenever his math teacher used some obscure formula to easily solve a problem that had puzzled him, he would feel his intelligence being toyed with, his anger rising, and he would want to tear the test paper to shreds. If he felt this way as an ordinary Chinese citizen, how much more so would the golden-spoon-fed William II?

After a long, anxious moment, William's angry and embarrassed gaze finally subsided, and he returned to his usual calm demeanor. Seeing this, Qing Ying let out a long sigh of relief, only to realize that his forehead was already beaded with sweat. It seemed that the next time he advised William, he would have to use a more tactful approach. If this arrogant and easily angered ruler really got angry, the consequences would be more than he could bear at the moment.

Looking at his second son, William felt a mix of emotions. Qing Ying's words had undoubtedly opened a radiant door for him in the dark and confusing path. The problem of the high cost of armored cruisers and their inability to join the battle line could be solved by further increasing their tonnage while maintaining their speed, thus enhancing their firepower and protection to a level sufficient for fleet battles. As for the resulting increase in tonnage, William quickly thought of a solution.

The ship would have the speed of an armored cruiser and the firepower and protection of a battleship, which seemed like an unattainable dream. However, if it were left to the designers, there was much that could be done. To join the battle line, the ship only needed to have the same caliber guns and armor thickness as a battleship, not necessarily the same firepower density and defensive height. Currently, German battleships had six 11-inch main guns, but to control the tonnage, the armored cruiser could have the middle main gun turret removed, leaving only four 11-inch main guns. With a firing rate of two rounds per minute, these guns could handle both battleships and cruisers with ease. For protection, since battleships had a surplus of tonnage, their main armor height was increased to 5.5 meters. The armored cruiser, to save tonnage, could reduce the height of the main armor, sacrificing some non-essential areas of protection against battleship-caliber guns. Through these two methods, the tonnage of the armored cruiser that could join the fleet battle could be kept within an acceptable range.

Although the exact tonnage and detailed data of the ship were unknown, the main points were clear. William took a sip of the coffee on the table, and a bitter taste rushed from his throat to his heart. He had studied the navy for over a decade, reading extensively and teaching himself, but in the field he was most proud of, he had been completely outdone by a young man who had only been involved in the navy for two years! If the theory of "appropriate enlargement of battleship tonnage" he proposed years ago had a significant element of luck, then today's insights demonstrated a keen naval acumen and extraordinary thinking. The idea that protected cruisers were outdated was something he and Tirpitz, with 30 years of military experience, had never considered. Moreover, William was almost certain that the naval decision-makers of the major powers like Britain, France, America, and Russia, who were still building large numbers of protected cruisers, had not realized this either! The concept of large-scale and decisive armored cruisers was unheard of, and who would have thought that an armored cruiser used for reconnaissance could also join the battle line?

If these ideas were broken down, they seemed simple and easy to grasp, but to accurately identify the most critical factor among so many distractions required a deep understanding of the navy, which William II, with his considerable expertise, knew all too well. After 30 years in the military, Tirpitz had spent nearly five years refining the conclusion of strengthening armor and anti-sinking capabilities from a myriad of naval theories. Most naval officers were still lost in theoretical disputes between various schools of thought, lacking a fundamental standpoint.

Reflecting on it, this child always seemed to bring him surprises. At the age of seven or eight, his second son had already shown a remarkable appearance far surpassing his other brothers. His facial features were almost a perfect combination of the best traits of William and Empress Augusta, arranged in the most exquisite proportions. Without a careful look, one could not find any trace of the ordinary appearance of the William and Augusta couple on Eitel's excellent face. The precision of his genetic combination was as if God had personally arranged every gene sequence! Although William, due to his early emotional setbacks, had a certain aversion to such handsome young men, he still harbored a deep appreciation for Eitel. Having Eitel as a son not only gave William a significant bargaining chip in family alliances but also allowed him to showcase the superior bloodline of the royal family to the common people, proving that the Hohenzollern family's imperial power was divinely granted and solidifying their loyalty to the empire. With limited information, the common people could only form a subjective judgment of the imperial rulers based on the portraits printed in newspapers. In this context, Eitel was undoubtedly a golden sign of royal legitimacy!

Two years ago, this child had miraculously survived a near-death experience without any lasting effects. Since then, he had, through direct and indirect means, brought about significant leaps in naval design and concepts. From the appropriate enlargement of warships, the feasibility of lead ducks, to today's outdated protected cruisers and fleet battle-type armored cruisers, each of these ideas had immeasurable potential to enhance the strength of the imperial navy. Even his recent meeting with a forbidden political rival had brought back a startling analysis of the situation!

Even though William was not a devout Catholic, when all these factors were combined, he could not help but feel a sense of awe. Looking at his second son's stunningly handsome face, a thought suddenly flashed through William's mind: Was the recall of his eldest son, Crown Prince August, by the Archangel Michael a method used by the Almighty to make him designate his second son as the heir?