nycdaug Chapter 139 Navy
Chapter 139 Navy
In recent years, the navy has become a nobody, ignored by everyone. Although everyone in the navy is holding their breath and wants to take revenge on the Japanese as soon as possible.
Although the imperial court purchased several cruisers, the gap between them and the Japanese battleships was widening.
With the limited funds being embezzled by officers in the logistics department, the soldiers were unable to conduct drills properly.
"You are all heroes of the country. You have suffered so much these years! Alas!" Shen Lian sighed.
"We are all defeated generals; the true heroes have long since perished in the sea! We only hope that Your Excellency and the Imperial Court can understand the navy's difficulties and increase investment, so that we can avenge ourselves against the Japanese as soon as possible," a group of naval officers said excitedly.
"Yes! In the past, the imperial court's investment was a bit small, but now that I'm here, everyone won't have to worry about funding issues anymore," Shen Lian nodded and assured him.
"I wonder what the current state of the navy is? What warships do we still have? If we're going to face the Japanese, how many more warships will we need to add?"
Shen Lian knew practically nothing about the current navy, and Old Sa and his men had arrived just in time.
"Reporting to Your Excellency, our Northern and Southern Ocean fleets suffered heavy losses in the First Sino-Japanese War. To date, we have approximately five thousand officers and soldiers and over fifty warships. However, most of our warships are old and small-tonnage vessels."
"Among them, the more advanced ones are the armored cruisers 'Hairong,' 'Haichou,' and 'Haichen,' which were ordered from Germany three years ago."
"And the Haitian and Haiqi fast cruisers we bought from the British Empire two years ago. The rest are torpedo boats and gunboats!" Sa Zhenbing listed them off as if he knew them by heart.
"Hmm! Looks like there are still quite a few ships!" Shen Lian nodded.
"My lord, it seems like quite a lot. But we are all small ships. Compared to Japan, we are far inferior!" Sa Zhenbing said with a wry smile.
"My lord, naval warfare is different from land warfare. Whoever has thicker armor and larger tonnage has the advantage! Japan originally had four battleships, and two years ago, in order to compete with Russia, they purchased two more battleships of 12,000 tons each from Britain."
“We don’t have a single battleship like that, how could we possibly defeat them?” After Sa Zhenbing finished speaking, all the naval officers looked on with despair.
"If that's the case, hasn't the imperial court been purchasing warships in recent years? Why haven't they bought many battleships?" Shen Lian asked, puzzled.
"Not enough money? The imperial court only allocates so much silver each year, which can only buy some smaller warships. For example, the two battleships that Japan recently purchased, it is said that each one cost more than seven million taels."
"Are warships really that expensive now? Sigh, it's all my fault!" Shen Lian slapped his forehead.
When they negotiated privately with the British in Beijing, they asked for far too little money. He didn't know from the information he'd seen there that the Zhenyuan and Dingyuan warships were originally bought for over a million taels of silver.
He thought that six or seven million taels of silver would be enough to buy several warships to contend with Japan. Little did he know how wrong he was; the price of warships had risen so rapidly.
The agreed-upon six million taels couldn't even buy a single warship, damn it!
"Okay, I understand! I'll ask the court for the money again. You all take good care of the troops. Also, keep the Naval Academy running well, and I'll ask the court to increase its investment."
"Thank you, Lord Marquis!" The naval officers all stood up gratefully.
"I will send inspectors to you to take charge of logistics first. Also, staff officers will be stationed on each warship from now on. I hope you can understand." Shen Lian waved his hand.
"We will definitely cooperate!" Sa Zhenbing said on behalf of everyone.
Shen Lian is now at the height of his power and is willing to strongly support their navy. What more could they possibly want?
"Yes! You all need to take this time to think things over and figure out what kind of ships we still need. We'll talk to the British when they arrive!"
"By the way! The name 'Shuishi' is too stingy. From now on, let's call it 'Haijun'! I will submit a memorial to the court requesting a name change."
"And the military uniforms also need to be changed; everything should be aligned with the West!"
After seeing off Sa Zhenbing and his entourage, Shen Lian began to play a game of cat and mouse with the imperial court. To build a powerful navy, Shen Lian estimated that it would take at least thirty to forty million taels of silver.
The current imperial court certainly couldn't afford that much silver, but after Shen Lian's persistent pleading, the court agreed to add another 30 million taels, which would be advanced by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
The imperial court used annual tax revenue as collateral to repay the debt over ten years.
At the same time, Shen Lian also sought donations from various local governors and viceroys. With Li Zhongtang leading the way in supporting him, the other governors and viceroys were quite accommodating and raised ten million taels for him.
With funding secured, Shen Lian informed the British Minister, Sir John S. Satow, instructing him to notify the British Navy to send a capable minister to negotiate.
Upon hearing about the multi-million tael silver order, Sa Daoyi was overjoyed. Any lingering resentment he had towards Shen Lian vanished completely.
It wasn't that Shen Lian didn't want to buy from other countries; it was mainly because at that time, British warships were unparalleled in the world, both in terms of strength and construction speed.
Let's buy some for now and wait until our shipbuilding capabilities improve before considering building new warships.
Since returning from the capital, Shen Lian hasn't had a single day of rest. After being busy for more than half a month, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
That day, he helped Nie Xiaoqian take a walk in the garden. She was now six months pregnant, and her belly was visibly protruding.
"Husband, you should spend more time with Yue'er! I see she's always looking preoccupied," Nie Xiaoqian said softly.
Shen Lian nodded; he naturally understood Yue'er's heartache. She wanted a child!
We were the first to consummate our marriage, and I tried my best! But she just couldn't get pregnant, and there was nothing I could do.
This society is a classic example of a mother's status rising with her son's, and Xiao Yue'er already holds the rank of a third-grade noblewoman. If she were to have another child, her position in the Marquis's mansion would be absolutely secure.
Shen Lian doesn't have much time to manage the lighter and cigarette factories anymore; he's left them to Nie Xiaoqian and Xiao Yue'er. It's kind of giving them something to do.
With the victory in the Battle of the Capital, Shen Lian was granted the title of Marquis. The Shen family's status naturally rose accordingly, and his businesses expanded even faster.
The cigarette factory has reached an agreement with Sichuan and Yunnan provinces to purchase their tobacco leaves at a high price. It is estimated that this will bring tens of millions of taels of silver in revenue to the two provinces each year.
With this business relationship established, officials from both provinces also became closer to Shen Lian.
That night, after their passionate encounter, Shen Lian held the limp Xiao Yue'er in his arms as they rested on the bed.
This little girl was still trying to be tough, and she got a good talking-to again.
"Moon, you have an older brother and a younger brother on your mother's side, right? What do they do for a living?"
At that time, concubines had a very low status, especially someone like Yue'er who was sold into the Shen family. She had been married to Shen Lian for more than half a year, and Shen Lian had never even met her family.