Volume 1 Wuchang Vortex Chapter 68: The Great Deal Before the War
Sitting in front of the somewhat shabby conference table, Traun, who was wearing a tuxedo and a moustache, didn't even glance at the red wine and fruits on the table that Zhang Wenjing had found from somewhere. He took out a pen and paper, then took out the recorded confidential telegram from his bag. After talking to the translator and military attaché beside him for a few words, he suddenly waved his hand, and the four German sailors who had received the order to protect him immediately began to drive away the soldiers of the guard company.
Rigorous and arrogant.
Typical German!
"It's okay, go guard outside. No one is allowed to enter within five meters of the meeting room." Yang Qiu waved his hand to let Lei Meng and the soldiers who were unwilling to leave go out first, leaving only Zhang Wenjing in the room.
Unlike the active party members, although Zhang Wenjing had studied in Japan for a short time, it was his first time to sit down face to face with the European ambassador to China, and he was inevitably a little nervous. On the contrary, Yang Qiu still maintained the mentality of the later generations, clasping his hands on the table and smiling as he watched Traun prepare. After the German sailors closed the door, Traun looked at the bag he had placed at hand: "Commander, before starting the meeting tonight, I want to ask one thing."
Because the matter was of great importance, even though Yang Qiu could understand German, the German translator still solemnly repeated it in Chinese. Traun then continued, "Today my soldiers came back and told me that your troops used a large number of our Maxim machine guns and field artillery in the daytime battle. Where did you buy them from?"
From the moment he started using the equipment, Yang Qiu knew that Shen Shukai's incident could not be hidden from Germany, so he said simply, "Shanghai."
Traun was very satisfied with Yang Qiu's frankness. In fact, this was also a prerequisite for continuing, because the Consul General in Shanghai had already told him what the transaction had brought to Germany. The information on the new main guns of the mortal enemy France and the unexpected submarine ventilation pipes made the Supreme Command call to inquire about the details of the trader. It was said that His Majesty William even praised him a few words. So if it hadn't been for the first time in Shanghai, he would never have believed in this young man who had mysteriously risen overnight.
"Actually...I should thank Germany for its help."
"No."
Yang Qiu was about to flatter him, but the strict Traun immediately interrupted him: "That was just business, it does not represent our country's position."
Unexpectedly, the other party reacted so quickly. Yang Qiu had to give up the idea of dragging others into the water and said, "Then let's continue the business. I wonder if your country is satisfied with the previous information?"
"Unexpected." Traun didn't say anything, and returned to the point after just this simple sentence: "I want to take a look at the information first."
Yang Qiu took out a stack of blueprints from his bag and pushed them in front of the military attaché. The latter immediately picked up the confidential telegram and magnifying glass, and used the details on the telegram to distinguish the authenticity. Except for the sound of pages turning every few minutes, the conference room fell into silence. Not to mention Zhang Wenjing, even Traun was waiting for the identification results. The careful Yang Qiu could even see a watermark on his shirt collar. After finally reading the blueprints carefully, the military attaché whispered a few words to Traun. Although he couldn't hear clearly, the flash of surprise in his yellow eyes made Yang Qiu breathe a sigh of relief.
"Commander, please forgive me for being blunt, but if that's all..." Traun pushed the blueprint in front of Yang Qiu: "I can give you a Maxim machine gun as a gift."
"Thank you, Your Excellency. Do you believe that this is all?" Yang Qiu laughed and took back the blueprint: "This place will soon become a war zone. I don't feel comfortable leaving so many things here."
Although Zhang Wenjing didn't understand what the important thing in the riddle was that could cause the German consul to come in person and be so cautious, he also heard that Yang Qiu was telling the other party that it would be impossible to obtain these things by other means.
Traun was not surprised by this cautiousness. After all, the other party did not provide all the information until the very end of the previous transaction in Shanghai. So he immediately asked, "Commander, how much does it cost to buy all the information?"
How much? This question really stumped Yang Qiu.
The artillery data of the six main battleships and battlecruisers of the United Kingdom, the power of armor-piercing shells, the distribution of armor protection, the layout of compartments, the power configuration and other information are simply priceless to Germany, which is fighting with Britain to build ships, because getting these is equivalent to pinching the weakness of the British Royal Navy! Although it is still hard to say whether it can win, it is definitely possible to conduct targeted combat drills and deployments. Not to mention the 380mm super naval gun that once caused a headache for both Britain and Germany, and was not finally conquered until the end of 1913. With it, Germany can completely build a super battleship carrying a 380mm naval gun earlier than Britain.
And he knew in his heart that this might be the last time that the records in the data machine would be sold on such a large scale in exchange for profit. After all, the later ones would be the Hood-class data whose plans were not yet available, or the data after World War I and World War II. The Germans were not good people. They killed people like crazy during the Gengzi Year. If they sold it now and there were problems in the future, it would be very troublesome.
So after thinking about it, he simply patted Bao Shizi on the shoulder and said, "Your Excellency, the value of these things is actually inestimable to you and me, but I think your navy will definitely know. In my opinion, it can not only help your navy strike future enemies more accurately and reduce its own casualties, but also develop faster than the enemy. I might as well tell you frankly that Britain has been secretly developing this kind of cannon. They deliberately advertised that the caliber was reduced by one inch. If my friend hadn't taken these away when he escaped, slowing down the development speed, it might have appeared in the North Sea next year! So... I think it's worth at least two battleships!"
"No, we will never let the Far East sell any heavy battleships." Traun said suddenly.
He knew very well that even if Yang Qiu left behind some information, it would take China ten years to produce these things with its current industrial capacity. Not to mention that China was now on the brink of civil war and there was no way to concentrate all national resources. Once the country really fell into civil strife, it might not be able to produce them for twenty years!
But it would be a different matter . Politically, it would also give people suspicion and speculation that Germany fully supports Yang Qiu.
Germany needed technology, but would never want to see a super fleet appear in the Far East. The British had already made Germany deeply dissatisfied with being a watchdog . If they sold two more battleships to this young man, it would be even more chaotic here, and Germany's interests would not be guaranteed. So they simply refused: "If you insist on this condition, I think... our country is willing to use other methods to achieve our goals."
These words were almost threatening, and Zhang Wenjing felt a little nervous. Now that the war was imminent, if Germany deviated a little from the Beiyang or used warships to bombard Hankou and Hanyang, the right-wing army that had not yet been fully formed might really face extinction, so he quickly looked at Yang Qiu.
But Yang Qiu looked relaxed, as if he had not heard Traun's threat, and said with a smile: "Your Excellency, even if you give me two battleships, do you think I can support them and find enough sailors? Besides, this is the Yangtze River, and a battleship is less valuable than a torpedo boat in such narrow waters."
"So what you mean is..."
“Cost!”
Traun, who had just breathed a sigh of relief and hadn't even sat down in his chair yet, almost jumped up again when he heard the cost of building two battleships. Even if calculated based on the cheapest first-generation dreadnought, it would be 400 pounds, or 80 million marks!
Zhang Wenjing, who was sitting next to him, was also shocked by the price. Although he didn't know how much a battleship cost, the total price of Beiyang's Zhenyuan and Dingyuan was only a little over 6 million marks. Twenty years later, the ships were getting bigger and bigger, and the guns were more powerful. How many would it cost for two ships?
This is impossible!
"5 million marks, this is our bottom price." After a moment of shock, Traun sat down calmly.
Zhang Wenjing was so anxious when he heard the offer. Although 5 million marks is not much, it can do a lot! Yang Qiu was not in a hurry. Not to mention that he had mastered all the weaknesses of the known British main battleships and battlecruisers, which was equivalent to holding the heart of the British Navy, this was worth the price. The 380mm naval gun that could be built directly according to the drawings without any modification could save Germany tens of millions in research and development costs! So when he saw the other party looking straight at him, he also took out a list that had been prepared long ago: "How about this, subtract 1 million, but your country must provide me with these things."
Traun took the list without changing his expression and frowned immediately after reading it carefully. This was a list for the purchase of industrial machinery and equipment, all of which were complete sets of rifles, bullets and cannon production lines. In addition, there were 3 500-ton/2 1,000-ton hydraulic presses, and nearly a thousand other industrial machine tools of various types, plus a set of synthetic ammonia manufacturing equipment, and finally four 150-kilowatt hydraulic AC generators. The total value was about 700,000 pounds, which was equivalent to about 7 million silver, almost equivalent to the value of two current Hanyang Gun Factories.
Having been in China for many years, he vaguely guessed that Yang Qiu would reorganize the arsenal after he suddenly took over Hankou and Hanyang and appointed himself commander-in-chief. There were too many ambitious people in this country, so he also anticipated that he would purchase new machinery and equipment after he could gain a foothold here. He also considered contacting him after the war to take over this big deal, but he did not expect that the war would be about to start. Instead of proposing a large amount of arms, he turned to purchasing machine tools and equipment. Isn't he worried about failure at all?
As if sensing Traun's thoughts, Yang Qiu slapped his forehead and said, "The war is about to start, and it's time for our right-wing army to replenish its munitions, so I need another 20,000 rifles, 100 Maxim machine guns, 5 million rounds of ammunition, and 36 75mm field guns. I can pay for all of these in cash, but they must be delivered within ten days."
"I'm sorry, Commander, we don't have that much arms, and selling arms to the warring parties is also a violation of international law."
"Really?" Yang Qiu glanced at Traun knowingly and said without any bargaining: "I must get the rifle and bullets, otherwise I would rather burn these things. I can't use them anyway! So I can give you some time to discuss it. How about we continue in three days?"
Some things tonight really surprised Traun, especially the appearance of something in the Far East that made the German Navy, no! The German Emperor salivate, was really too surprising, so he really needed to communicate with Shanghai and the country, but after putting away the pen, he suddenly asked: "Commander, we understand that you want to purchase new machines for the arsenal, but why did you choose this time?"
"Your Excellency, I have a suggestion." Yang Qiu did not answer, but took out a check for 300,000 and said with a smile: "I will pay 300,000 first, and then your country will collect all the goods on the list within one month. As long as the model is the latest, I can accept second-hand machines that are 80% new. In this way, including the travel time, it will take at most 2 months to arrive in Shanghai. At that time, no matter whether there is still a war here or who owns Hubei, as long as I am still alive, the transaction will be completed immediately. Even if I die in the war, the money will be used as your country's shipping fee. How do you think?"
"Aren't you afraid that I will take the money but not deliver the goods?" It was the first time Traun had heard of this way of transaction.
"I am just like you, a trustworthy person!" Yang Qiu shook his hat, but he was already feeling bitter. Although it was just some data, there were thousands of drawings of the 15-inch naval gun alone, as well as armor and compartment data. Although he had planned to draw a lot for this deal, there were even more left! Now he didn't even have time to sleep... (Bug, in fact, the drawings of these materials combined would take several trucks to transport, but please forgive me for the sake of the pig's feet.)
Traun left quickly, but did not take the 300,000 check, but promised that if an agreement was reached, the transaction could be completed quickly according to Yang Qiu's method. This surprised Zhang Wenjing and he asked, "Commander, why are you so anxious? Our current situation..."
"I know what you mean. All these things bought by Beiyang who cannot win this war are in vain, right? I tell you, although we are deeply trapped in Yangxia, the war that is about to begin will drag us to exhaustion, like a big whirlpool and a big quagmire! Our bodies cannot extricate ourselves, but our vision must go beyond the war! And... I firmly believe! I will not fail... and I must not fail!"
These words are indeed what Yang Qiu wants to say. What he lacks most at the moment is time! According to history, the Yangxia War and the North-South Peace Talks will basically end in two months. Even if there is a slight delay, it is impossible to stop this big situation. Therefore, the central government will definitely be born. No matter how much everyone sneers, it is a nominal central government after all, especially the post-war loans of Yuan Shikai when he came to power will rapidly expand the Beiyang several times! Therefore, it is necessary to seize enough territory as soon as possible before he comes to power and the Southeast Jinpu Line has involved too much of his energy, so that he can be invincible before all forces come back to their senses! Otherwise, if he is in a hurry to start advancing north, he will not let Song Ziqing take Chongqing and Guang'an.
After listening to the half-truthful explanation, Zhang Wenjing understood that Yang Qiu was going to rise quickly with the fastest and most violent means, just like his current military deployment, speed is of the essence! But... Zhang Wenjing secretly glanced at him, how far is his heart? Does he want to sit in that position? If not, when the new country is born, where will the current right-wing army go?
