Fengxian Jiangshan

When Yan Xishan heard it, Zhang Tinglan was forcing him to express his opinion. Lao Xi frowned. There are also many forces in Shanxi who are close to the Democratic Party. It became such an important cooperation, how could he be willing to give up.

"Lan Shuai has an order, and Bai Chuan will naturally not object. As long as Lan Shuai has an official document, Bai Chuan will be willing to be a pawn."

After the two talked, Zhang Tinglan asked someone to arrange for the first batch of arms to be provided to Shanxi. At the same time, Wang Yongjiang also received Yan Xishan. The two talked for a long time, and finally signed a currency swap agreement.

This is exactly what Zhang Tinglan and Wang Yongjiang had discussed a long time ago, to use currency swaps to expand Fengjun's economic influence.Among the northern provinces, Hebei and Shandong are the most economically developed. However, these areas are the base camps of Beiyang, and the Fengjun cannot intervene for the time being.

In addition, Shanxi has the most stable society and the most stable economy. Therefore, Yan Xishan has become the first choice for currency swaps. The first batch of swaps between the two parties is 500 million. In the future, we will continue to expand the swaps depending on the economic exchange situation. scale.

Although Yan Xishan is extremely shrewd, he has no ability to refuse Fengjun's various methods of coaxing and controlling him.After all, these agreements are beneficial to both parties. Even if he does not agree, others will rush to sign.

When Yan Xishan was inspecting Fengtian, a piece of good news suddenly came back. Wu Yulin and Xia Han dragged three warships back from Europe. These three warships were scuttled by Germany during Operation Rainbow. The army and the British reached an agreement, and the British agreed to provide several scuttled warships for the demolition of the army.

Now that these warships have finally returned, Zhang Tinglan is also very excited. Among the three armies, the development of the navy is the most difficult, and it is also the area where the Fengjun and the Japanese have the greatest gap. After hearing the news, Zhang Tinglan went to Huludao in person. Let's see what treasure we got back.

Chapter 6 and Three Greater Ambitions

When Zhang Tinglan arrived at the Huludao Shipyard, there happened to be a huge monster slowly sailing into the port under the traction of a tugboat.It was dusk at this time, and the huge black shadow of the battleship was like a huge mountain on the sea, majestic and majestic. Compared with it, the surrounding boats were like toys, small and pitiful.

This huge warship is the German battleship Baden, the second of the Bavarian-class battleships, which started construction in 1913 and was completed in 1915.But unfortunately, this behemoth with a full load and displacement of more than 3 tons was still being tested at sea when the Battle of Jutland broke out, and it was not able to participate in this battle.

After the Battle of Jutland, Baden became the flagship of the German High Seas Fleet.After Germany's defeat, the warship was seized by the British in Scapa Flow.In Operation Rainbow in 1919, German naval officers and soldiers scuttled all warships seized by the British, and Baden was no exception.

However, just as the warship was about to sink, the British rushed back, and the warship was dragged to shallow water and ran aground. This was the only warship that ran aground among all self-sinking warships.

The British even had to scrap a large number of their own warships. This huge ship, which represented the pinnacle of the German shipbuilding industry, could only stay quietly by the sea.Originally, the British planned to use this warship as a target ship. At this time, the Fengjun was eyeing this warship. The United Kingdom had promised to provide Fengjun with several German warships that sunk, and the Baden was the largest of them.

Under the traction of the tugboat, the warship crossed the English Channel, circled the Cape of Good Hope, crossed the Indian Ocean, crossed the Strait of Malacca, and then went all the way north.After a long sea voyage, we finally arrived at Huludao Port.

When the Baden entered the port, a large number of people had already gathered on the port. Shen Honglie brought all the captains of the navy and the main technical personnel of the shipyard to gather in the port, looking forward to it.

Huludao Port does not have the ability to berth such a large warship.Shen Honglie personally organized personnel and temporarily built a berth for the Baden. Finally, when night fell, the huge warship came to a peaceful stop.

Xia Han and Wu Yulin, who were in charge of bringing the giant ship back, had already arrived at the port and reported the situation to Zhang Tinglan very excitedly.

"Marshal, we brought the Baden back!"

Zhang Tinglan said with a smile: "Everyone has worked hard, tell me about the situation of this battleship."

Wu Yulin smiled and said: "Commander, Baden is the last battleship completed by Germany during the war. It represents the pinnacle of German shipbuilding technology, with a standard displacement of more than 8000 tons and a full load displacement of more than 3 tons." tons, and the maximum speed can reach 22 knots. When the warship sank, it did not sink into the water, but ran aground. Therefore, the equipment on board was basically well preserved and there was no damage.”

When Zhang Tinglan heard this, he immediately became interested.Hastily asked: "There is no damage, does it mean that after repairing, you can go into battle?"

Xia Han showed a look of embarrassment on his face, and said with a wry smile: "Old sir, it was almost intact before we dragged it back, but it will not be the case when we drag it back. The Baden is equipped with a 380mm main gun. The British dismantled all of them, and ten of the sixteen 150mm secondary guns were also dismantled. Finally, the British blew up the power system of the battleship, and only prepared to give us an empty shell."

Zhang Tinglan heard Xia Han's introduction.A thought suddenly flashed in my mind, and there was a feeling like a world away, no matter when the Chinese go to the ocean.It's all so difficult, and the great powers will obstruct it at all times, and it has never changed.

"An empty shell is an empty shell. Didn't we get the drawings from the Germans? All technicians should use this empty shell to explore and figure out key technologies. No matter how difficult it is, we can't stop us from going to the ocean. determination!"

At this time, Shen Honglie and others also gathered together. Listening to Xia Han's introduction, they all showed anger on their faces. Isn't it just a broken German ship? Why are the British so stingy? They dismantled their weapons and blew them up. Without the power system, everything is done absolutely, just to prevent you Chinese from owning large warships.

The purpose of doing so is also obvious. They just want to dominate the ocean and take benefits from the Chinese forever.These navy generals clenched their fists tightly.The more humiliated you are, the more you have to work hard, the more difficult it is, the more you have to go down this road.

It was a time when everyone felt a little lost and resentful.Xia Han suddenly smiled and said: "Old sir, although the British are extremely cunning, we still have loopholes to take advantage of! I bribed the British officials. When I blew up the boilers, I kept two boilers and a steam turbine , In addition, I got the blueprint of naval gun production from the Germans, as long as we are willing and find the help of the Germans, there is still a chance to restore this giant ship at sea."

Hearing Xia Han's words, everyone felt like there was no way out, and there was another village.Zhang Tinglan patted Xia Han on the shoulder in relief: "Good job, sooner or later we will make the British pay for today's carelessness!"

The Baden has a total of eleven Thornycroft coal-fired boilers and three steam turbines. The British originally didn't want to leave it to the Fengjun.Xia Han bribed the officials in charge of blowing up the ship. During the blasting, he deliberately released water and saved two boilers and one steam turbine. This is a blessing among misfortunes.

Wu Yulin also said to the group: "Commander, although we currently don't have the ability to build warships to use boilers, after we have this finished product, it will be much easier to imitate. Moreover, the biggest problem in repairing the power system of warships is the transmission system, which needs to be processed. Huge parts, fortunately we already have a large forging machine, this difficulty can be solved, and it is not impossible to get some technology from the Germans to repair the Baden."

Wu Yulin introduced it confidently. Zhang Tinglan also led the crowd to the front of this huge ship. Looking at the mottled rust and scars on it, she felt a tingling pain.

"Director Wu, the power system needs to be reinstalled. Do we need to cut open the warship and then install the boiler? Will this affect the performance of the warship?"

"The commander-in-chief is indeed an expert. Although we are expected to repair the Baden, the service period of this battleship will definitely be greatly reduced, and it may even not reach the designed maximum speed."

"Director Wu, have you ever heard the saying that what can't be broken can't be built? In fact, this time for the Baden, it might be a rebirth from Nirvana!"

"Master, why do you say such a thing?"

Zhang Tinglan said with a smile: "I am not optimistic about battleships. Technology is always improving. The use of cannons as the main combat weapon has continued since the age of sail. But now that aircraft are popular and are advancing rapidly, aircraft carriers are bound to become An important weapon, and even a new sea supremacy."

Not many people present agree with Zhang Tinglan's thesis. All major powers are focusing on the development of battleships. The tonnage is getting bigger and the main guns are getting stronger.No one could believe that such a powerful weapon would be replaced by Zhang Tinglan.

Especially next to everyone, there is a huge battleship moored, although the main gun has been removed.But from the battleship, everyone can also feel the majesty of the strong sea overlord, how can such a powerful weapon be replaced!If it weren't for the awe of Zhang Tinglan.Some people even have to come out to refute directly.

Everyone, including Shen Honglie, had doubts, but Zhang Tinglan had long been used to this kind of doubt. After all, many things that seemed to be taken for granted in later generations were not foreseeable by many people before they happened. This is the so-called limitation of the times. Few people can jump out of the shackles of time and space like the time traveler, to point the country.

"The navy is a high-tech arm. Therefore, we must pay attention to the advancement of technology. Artillery is the main weapon, in terms of range and power. It has reached a limit, and there is not much room for improvement. But the aircraft is different. This is a new The range of these weapons has already reached hundreds of kilometers, and the possibility of further improvement will be greater in the future. Moreover, the bombs dropped by aircraft are no less powerful than the main guns of battleships, and their accuracy is higher. With aircraft as the main An aircraft carrier with an attack method can launch an attack on a battleship at a very long distance, and the heavy armor of the battleship will be nothing more than a tortoise shell, and it will have no other purpose except to be beaten."

Everyone present listened carefully to Zhang Tinglan's words. Although they were unwilling to accept the view that battleships were outdated, they really couldn't find any reason to refute Zhang Tinglan.

Battleships pay attention to three elements, firepower, speed, and protection. Any outstanding battleship seeks a balance between these three.But for an aircraft carrier, an aircraft can attack hundreds of kilometers away. No matter how powerful a battleship's main gun is, it cannot reach this distance.And no matter how perverted the defense is, if you keep on being beaten, you will be broken through sooner or later.

Thinking of this, Shen Honglie and the others felt a chill on the back of their necks. It turned out that the invincible overlord they had always envied was so vulnerable.This sense of subversion is even more amazing than seeing the Baden.

"The commander-in-chief is right, but if he wants to attack battleships with planes, there are still many difficulties to be solved. The most important thing is that the performance of the planes needs to be greatly improved, and the pilots also need to master the ability to attack targets on the water."

"Chengzhang, what do you think of the development speed of aircraft?"

When Shen Honglie heard this question, he also hurriedly said: "It has been less than 20 years since the appearance of the aircraft. During this period of time, the aircraft has undergone earth-shaking changes, which can only be described as rapid progress. I guess In another ten years, fighter jets with a range of more than [-] kilometers will appear, and the ammunition capacity will be greatly increased. It is absolutely possible to use aircraft to attack battleships."

Speaking of this time, Shen Honglie also had to admit that Zhang Tinglan's judgment was reasonable. War matters cannot be decided on the basis of emotion. As Zhang Tinglan said, one must keep an eye on the advancement of technology, so as to be keenly aware of changes in the battlefield.

"Marshal, do you mean to directly skip the development stage of battleships and go to build aircraft carriers?" Wu Yulin asked tentatively.

Zhang Tinglan nodded: "We have a weak foundation and can't waste our energy. The cost of a battleship is enough to support twenty divisions. We can't afford it, so we have to skip this stage of burning money and directly build an aircraft carrier."

"Commander, since the aircraft carrier is the future of the navy, we must keep this a secret. The great powers are still building battleships. Let them go further and further down the wrong path. Although they have a strong foundation, they are going in the wrong direction , the gap with us will quickly narrow, and there is hope for catching up!" Shen Honglie suggested.

"That's right, we must develop our aircraft carrier before the great powers disparate the importance of the aircraft carrier." Zhang Tinglan pointed at the Baden with a smile: "We must work hard on this battleship, I dare say Fengjun We got this warship back, but countries such as Britain and Japan will pay attention to how we use this warship and whether we want to repair the warship."

"The old officer is right." Xia Han said hastily: "On the way, the Japanese sent a lot of ships to follow. Maybe they also realized that the Baden was too badly damaged, so they didn't stop it. But with The Japanese are narrow-minded, once we have a huge warship, they will definitely stop it."

"We might as well make a plan to change it into an aircraft carrier. The upper deck of the warship and the power system inside will all be redesigned. Therefore, we will dismantle the warship openly, pretending to completely scrap the warship, and dispel the warship. Doubts about our restoration of warships."

When Xia Han heard Zhang Tinglan's idea, his mind turned rapidly. Zhang Tinglan was playing the trick of repairing the plank road and secretly hiding the warehouse. He suddenly remembered something, so he said with a smile: "Old sir, I think it's a fake trick. It’s okay to do it, in fact, the Germans still have four more advanced warships, if they can get them, the Baden can be turned into a pile of scrap iron.”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Tinglan hurriedly asked: "Xia Han, please explain carefully, what other warships are worth our hands on?"

"Old sir, the Germans built the Mackensen-class battlecruiser, with a full load and displacement of 28 tons, and a speed of [-] knots. There are a total of four ships of this class, and none of them have been completed. They are still lying on the German berth. If we dismantle the Baden and make the British mistakenly think that we just want scrap steel, then we can take the opportunity to tow these warships back. At that time, whether it is to continue to complete the construction or convert it into an aircraft carrier, it will be better than Baden. It's better to log in."

When Zhang Tinglan heard this, his eyes lit up immediately. The aircraft carrier does not need too strong defense capabilities. Because it needs to help the aircraft take off, the speed requirement is still very high. The Mackensen-class battlecruiser is faster than the Baden 6 knots can provide more lift to the aircraft, which has a serious impact on combat effectiveness.

"Xia Han, the idea you mentioned is too good. We will formulate a perfect plan right away, and we must deceive the eyes of the British!"

Chapter six hundred and four