Chapter 352 Don’t want to grow up
The princes are not stupid and will not be incited by Vladimir’s few words.
But this possibility does exist, so Vladimir's words are like a prophecy, leaving a shadow in everyone's heart.
After the imperial meeting, Nicholas felt heavy and simply asked for a car to go to Gatchina Palace.
After Yasan's death, all restrictions were lifted at Gatchina Palace, the band was reorganized, the banquet hall was decorated, and Maria finally felt the happiness of the Empress Dowager.
Knowing a son is like a mother, it is natural that Nicholas's worries cannot be hidden from Maria.
“Oh, it’s just dog bite dog——”
Maria doesn’t like Vladimir, let alone George.
Nicola's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Varodia is right. As the Tsar, you cannot completely trust anyone. They are all your pawns, and only you are the player."
Maria revealed the secret.
"Your grandfather is too philanthropic. This is his fault, but it is your luck. With George here, at least your uncles dare not go too far; George also needs your help to ensure that he is there The interests of the Far East.”
No one in the royal family is simple.
“What should I do?”
Nikolai had never experienced such a complicated situation.
"You are the Tsar, you don't need to take any side."
Maria is unprecedentedly wise, perhaps this is the reason why a fool will gain something after all his considerations.
“If you ask George for the craftsmanship and formula of a new type of armor, will George give it to you?”
Maria also doesn’t know how good the relationship between George and Nikolai is.
“I knew it all along——”
Nikolai's words left Maria in a trance, and so did the father and mother.
“George has told me a long time ago that I have shares in all Amur companies, including American automobile plants—”
“Does Amur company have shares in Volodya? ”
“It doesn’t seem to be——”
“That’s the root of the problem”
Maria looked at Nicholas with pity in her eyes, which was the price of becoming a Tsar.
When Nicholas left Gatchina Palace, he felt extremely sad. If this is growth, Nicholas would rather never grow up.
George is different from Nicholas, he is fulfilling his promise to Asia and ruling the east for the empire.
In mid-July, the "Amur" was officially put into service and became the flagship of the Amur River Fleet.
The "Amur" has a displacement of 5,500 tons. Its armament system is two twin-mounted 203mm main guns, six twin-mounted 120mm rapid-fire guns, and four torpedo launch tubes.
Due to the redesign of the hull, the "Amur" has a top speed of up to 28 knots, making it the fastest cruiser in the world.
Peter took the initiative to find George and submit an expansion plan for the Amur River Fleet.
The Amur River Fleet has one mission, which is to maintain the waterway between Vladivostok and Aceh.
The distance between Vladivostok and Aceh is nearly 6,000 kilometers. The light cruiser needs to refuel before arriving. Therefore, Peter requested to equip a heavy cruiser with a longer range. He also requested a supply port in the Qing Empire to facilitate the warships to refuel during the cruise. Add water.
In peacetime, the warships of the Russian Empire could enter the ports of the Qing Empire to add coal and water.
Although the Qing Empire and Russia signed a "Treaty of Mutual Assistance against Enemies", this treaty was limited to defense. If it was an attack, the Qing Empire could remain neutral.
If the Qing Empire remained neutral, the ships of the Russian Empire would not be able to enter the ports of the Qing Empire for supplies during wartime.
"Jeju can be used as a relay port——"
George was already prepared.
But Jeju is not enough. Jeju is more than 4,000 kilometers away from Aceh.
The maximum range of the "Amur" is only 4,000 kilometers, which is definitely not possible. If combat is considered, at least one relay port is needed.
“With Luzon as the dividing line, you will be responsible for the north of Luzon, and the Aceh fleet will be responsible for the south of Luzon.”
As for the heavy patrol——
“Heavy patrol The cruiser is too expensive, just bear with it—" Even if George built it himself and could keep the cost to a minimum, he still felt distressed.
The heavy cruiser of the Siberian Fleet costs about 3.5 million rubles.
Don’t be too little, Daosheng Bank’s principal is only 6 million rubles, which is not enough to build two heavy cruisers.
Integrating the needs of the Amur River Fleet, Peter proposed that at least 6 heavy cruisers and 12 light cruisers should be equipped to complete the escort mission.
After reading this, George felt itchy with hatred.
The Siberian fleet does not have such luxury.
The three major fleets of the Russian Empire combined have 6 heavy cruisers and 12 light cruisers.
You are used to it, why don’t you want a battleship!
What George didn't know was that Peter had two plans.
The first copy is the one reported to George now.
The second long-term plan includes battleships.
Peter has been with George for so long that he knows more about George than he knows about himself.
If Peter submitted the second plan now, George would not consider it at all.
So equipment also requires strategy.
"Your Highness, the Japanese are going to equip the Majestic class battleships. How can we do it with only light cruisers?"
Peter argued with reason.
"The Japanese' Majestic class hasn't been launched yet. Let's wait until they are launched."
As long as George can delay it, it will be a day.
No way, there are too many places to spend money this year, and George has to save money.
The key point is that George still needs to catch the Japanese fish. He will not take out the dreadnoughts until all four Japanese "Dignity" class ships are launched.
"Your Highness, at least give me time to train sailors——"
Peter had a good reason.
Warships can be built at any time.
Navy officers and soldiers need to be cultivated slowly.
Especially the gunners, they are all fed with cannonballs and cannot be achieved overnight.
“Let’s practice slowly on the ‘Amur’ first. We will not break out into a war until Japan’s 66th Fleet is formed.”
George had nothing to hide from Peter.
“Why not strike first?”
Peter was extremely excited.
Vladivostok’s train guns have all been sold to the Siberian Fleet. George has to wait for 340, so Vladivostok’s current coastal defense firepower is unprecedentedly empty.
If a war breaks out between the Russian Empire and Japan, then the Amur River Fleet will have to keep the enemy at bay.
The light cruiser alone could not even penetrate the armor of the "Fuji".
So Peter tends to take the initiative.
"Go first, it won't be your turn."
George will not let the river fleet take the lead.
If a war breaks out between the Russian Empire and Japan, the first echelon sent by George will definitely be submarines, then the air force, and finally the fleet.
Therefore, the Amur River Fleet is a bluff and does not undertake combat missions.
Peter was disappointed.
George still gave Peter a lot of face. The heavy patrol was indeed a bit early, and the light patrol had nothing to say, so enough.
Of course, this also takes time. Now, the biggest problem of the Vladivostok Shipyard and the St. Petersburg Shipyard is also the lack of docks.
(End of this chapter)