"Commander-in-chief, apart from the dense array of gun barrels, I can't understand any of the other equipment at all." Lei Hu couldn't help sighing as he got off the new armored cruiser.
The latest two 5,900-ton armored cruisers were a combination of all the high-end technology of the Chinese Navy. The only thing they hadn't used was the carburized surface hardening nickel-chromium alloy steel armor. In theory, this 160mm armor was equivalent to 320mm steel-wrought iron composite armor, or 415mm wrought iron armor. At the current stage, they had the technology, but it would still take two or three years of extensive experimentation to control the process. The latest armored cruisers could only temporarily be equipped with homogeneous nickel-chromium alloy steel armor.
Materials science was already in the microscopic domain, and Lei Hu didn't understand it at all. The hull used dome armor, watertight cabins, and other structural technologies, which Lei Hu also didn't understand. What Lei Hu could roughly understand was the four 42-caliber twin 200-caliber guns in a symmetrical arrangement, and the six 120-caliber guns on both sides of the ship.
Vézé didn't care about Lei Hu's sigh. He said, "In a few years, we'll have warships of 10,000 or even 20,000 tons. At that time, the navy will be able to compete with the navies of any country in the world. Right now, the navy is only a coastal navy. Without the support of a large number of ports, this navy can't exert its own combat power. "
This wasn't what Lei Hu wanted to say. He asked, "Commander-in-chief, although our navy isn't good for the time being, the size and number of our cavalry have increased a lot. The railway is also about to be built to Xinjiang. Should we talk to the Russians about the problems in Central Asia? "
Vézé shook his head. "Not for the time being. How many years has it been since the Chinese army appeared in Central Asia? If we want to take over Central Asia, we can't just have the railway. If we want to win the recognition of the locals, we have to appear there for a few years first. In addition, Shi Dakai hasn't been eliminated yet, so we don't have to rush to officially plant our flag in Central Asia. The key right now is to deal with the British. To deal with the Russians, we just have to wait. They will give us the opportunity. "
At the mention of "wait," Lei Hu didn't want to say anything else for the time being. The Liberation Army had never been waiting foolishly. The country was making all kinds of preparations in full swing. Even so, when the opportunity fell from the sky, the Central Military Commission always found that they were not fully prepared, and many battles were fought head-on. Had it not been for Vézé's "inexplicable" investments and preparations, the war would have ended in failure.
Before the war with the British, most of the Central Military Commission did not expect that even though the upper structure of the British warships had been turned into a sea of fire by China's naval cannons, the British ironclads were still as stable as Mount Tai. The reason for the Chinese Navy's victory was a major breakthrough in naval warfare and a major advancement in armor technology. Apart from these two, the Chinese Navy did not have the strength to crush the British Navy. If the war could be delayed for a few years, the British Navy would probably be sent to the bottom of the sea by the Chinese Navy.
Since Vézé had asked everyone to wait, the Military Commission would be busy with its own affairs. They didn't have to wait too long. There was still no news from the Russians. The Ottoman Empire's ambassador received a telegram from the Ottoman Empire and came to China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After listening to the ambassador's message, Li Xin summarized the rather complicated speech. "Your country means to buy arms on credit?"
After a little hesitation, the ambassador of the Osman Empire agreed with Li Xin. Because the country had always been in deficit, the Osman Empire could not come up with real money to buy arms.
Li Xin was not angry or ridiculed. He said frankly, "I'll go back and ask the central government."
Two days later, Li Xin gave the ambassador of the Osman Empire a reply. "China is willing to rent land in Sudan. The Osman Empire will use the rent to pay for the weapons."
"Rent land in Sudan?" The ambassador of the Osman Empire was stunned. Sudan was still nominally a province of the Osman Empire in North Africa. The province was sparsely populated, and its strategic position was not as important as Egypt's, let alone rich in products. China's lease of land in Sudan seemed like a major conspiracy. "May I ask which land China wants to rent, how large is the area, and what do you want this land for?"
Li Xin took out a map and circled the vicinity of the Nile River in Sudan. "We're going to plant alfalfa here."
The ambassador of the Osman Empire was confused by Li Xin's proposal. The land in this area was a little far from Khartoum. In terms of strategic position, it was probably not bad. In terms of fertility, it was below average. There was probably nothing special except for the wasteland.
"May I ask what your country wants to do with this land?" The ambassador of the Osman Empire asked.
Li Xin said very seriously, "I just said that I want to rent this land to plant alfalfa."
"Do you know how big this land is?" The ambassador of the Osman Empire continued to ask.
Of course, Li Xin knew. He just casually drew a map and estimated that it was more than 2 million acres of land along the river. "As long as the land is suitable, we will rent as much as we can."
China's recent misdeeds of buying a lot of land in Europe made the ambassador of the Osman Empire wary. He probed, "We have no intention of selling the land."
Li Xin certainly knew that China's international image was not good recently, but the central government's request was to rent land, so he could only try his best to persuade the Osman Empire. "We have no intention of invading the Osman Empire. We really want to rent the land in Sudan to plant alfalfa. We are really paying rent. "
Looking at Li Xin's sincere face, the ambassador of the Osman Empire really wanted to ask Li Xin if Li Xin also had this kind of face when he represented China to discuss land deals with Russia, France, and the Netherlands. But this question really could not be asked. The ambassador of the Osman Empire said, "Let's talk about the issue of the arms trade."
Li Xin continued with a serious expression, "The issue of the arms trade is very simple. China does not agree to sell on credit. The Osman Empire will either use cash or chromium ore to exchange for it. As for the issue of renting land, China must negotiate with your country. "
The ambassador was very annoyed by Li Xin. He said, "Is China really so short of alfalfa?"
Li Xin nodded a little exaggeratedly. "Yes, we have too many livestock to raise, and we lack a lot of alfalfa. China's climate is not particularly suitable for growing alfalfa, and our land also needs to grow food. The contradiction of more people and less land is China's biggest problem now. "
The matter was discussed for two days. On July 10th, the ambassador sent a telegram to the Osman Empire. On August 1st, the Osman Empire's reply arrived in Nanjing. To the Osman Empire's ambassador's surprise, the Osman Empire's government actually agreed to China's request to rent land. The Prime Minister of the Empire waved his pen and circled 400 square kilometers of wasteland along the Nile River to China. The Chinese warships immediately escorted the fleet. The merchant ships in the fleet carried goods for the Osman Empire, as well as the China Reclamation Team members and the first batch of equipment and supplies. The supply ships carried coal and other nautical materials. China and Britain were still in the armistice phase, and the Chinese Navy did not expect to carry out supplies at British-controlled ports.
"Commander-in-chief, isn't this too risky?" The military commission really did not expect Vézé to be so anxious and find such an outrageous reason. Planting alfalfa in Sudan? Was there a more ridiculous proposal than this?
"When it comes to the hydrology of the Indian Ocean, our data is indeed not comprehensive enough, so the fleet can go slower," Vézé said, pretending to be ignorant.
This time, even Lei Hu could not stand Vézé's joke. He said unhappily, "Commander-in-chief, who do you think will believe in the alfalfa?"
After listening, Vézé asked the comrades in the military commission, "Who believes in the purpose of planting alfalfa?"
Everyone looked at each other, no one wanted to say they believed in it. Only one person raised his hand early, and that was Wang Mingshan, the vice-chairman of the military commission who was in charge of military affairs. Wang Mingshan finished his work in the four northern provinces and returned to the military commission this year.
"Mingshan … Comrade, why do you believe in it?" Lei Hu did not think that Wang Mingshan was a bootlicker, and Wang Mingshan was not a person who joked without integrity. Lei Hu's attitude was also very serious when he asked questions.
Wang Mingshan calmly replied, "We really need a lot of alfalfa in the country. I have seen the report. The alfalfa planted in Sudan can be harvested at least 10 times a year. I plant alfalfa in the north, and it can only be harvested three times a year. If the weather is slightly bad, it can only be harvested twice. 400 square kilometers in Sudan is equivalent to 2,000 square kilometers of our output. Why don't I believe it? "
After listening to this righteous answer, everyone looked at Wang Mingshan with a displeased expression. Wang Mingshan also looked at everyone with a displeased expression, and then continued, "I have also promoted the farming industry in the north for the past few years. Livestock can survive by eating corn stalks and grass, but they do not grow fast and strong. I have also treated some comrades because of this mistake. Although I later apologized and restored the reputation of my comrades, without good alfalfa, there is no good livestock. Commander-in-chief now wants to solve the problem from the root. You say I don't believe Commander-in-Chief, but who should I believe? "
The military commission knew that Wang Mingshan had a serious and proper work attitude. Wang Mingshan downplayed it, but in fact, he had a big fight with the Animal Husbandry Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture, and the lawsuit had gone all the way to Vézé. At that time, almost everyone, including the Animal Husbandry Bureau who had a conflict with Wang Mingshan, thought that Wang Mingshan would not lose. In the end, the research team appointed by Vézé finally thought that Wang Mingshan's policy at that time and the handling of the people in charge of animal husbandry in the four northern provinces were wrong. In the end, Wang Mingshan had to admit his mistake and apologize. This lawsuit had also caused quite a stir within the organization.
Now that Wang Mingshan said this, the members of the military commission had to believe that Wang Mingshan was telling the truth. Thus, everyone's gaze turned to Vézé. Chief of the General Staff Ruan Xihao said, "Commander-in-chief, I'm afraid that this matter will lead to an all-out conflict, right?"
The more they talked, the clearer things became. Since the alfalfa's significance couldn't be ignored, the members of the military commission once again confirmed the problem that everyone was truly worried about. China's hand was directly extended to the distant Red Sea. With India in between, it would be strange if the British didn't react.
Vézé clearly agreed with everyone's current attitude. He said, "In the past, there were people who didn't allow China to drill for oil in Southeast Asia. They didn't allow us to plant palm trees in Southeast Asia. What happened to them now? "
After he said this, the military commission could more or less guess Vézé's attitude.
Vézé continued to say, "If China doesn't use normal commercial means to obtain alfalfa, and if China doesn't allow the people of China to eat more meat, we won't let them off! Those who forget war will be in danger, and those who love war will die. If war is only used to display our strength, if war is only used to make people fear us, it will be harmful. The more we fight, the weaker our country will become. Only when war truly protects China's interests and protects the basic necessities of the people of China, will the people support this kind of war, and will this kind of war make China stronger. I will never retreat or hide from this kind of war. "
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