industrial lord

Chapter 663 New Ship Coming
"Commendation
All members of the shipbuilding committee of the Principality of Wessen and all personnel involved in the construction of the Cornflower-class general-purpose ship:
Recently, in response to the maritime strategic needs of the Principality of Wessen and to ensure that the construction of the Cornflower-class general-purpose ships is delivered on schedule, all construction personnel have overcome multiple challenges such as tight time, heavy tasks, and high technical difficulty with an unprecedented sense of honor and mission, and have carried forward the fighting spirit of "not fearing difficulties and fighting continuously". They have worked continuously for 165 days and nights, and successfully completed the construction of the Cornflower-class general-purpose ships "Flying Tulip" and "Flying Cornflower" 15 days ahead of schedule. They have built unprecedented advanced ships and created the shortest construction period record for ships of the same tonnage, demonstrating the outstanding strength and fighting spirit of the shipbuilding industry of the Principality of Wessen!

The successful delivery of the Cornflower-class general-purpose ships not only provided key equipment support for the rapid development of the Principality of Wessen, but also trained the team, mastered the world's most advanced shipbuilding technology, and wrote a new chapter in the history of world navigation.

In order to commend the advanced and promote the spirit of struggle, it is decided to give the following units and individuals certificates of honor and bonuses:
(slightly)"

The commendation written by Frederick himself was sent from Le Havre to Weissemburg by telegram, and then appeared on Frederick's desk through local newspapers.

The sea breeze from the north was getting colder and colder. Frederick stopped going out and stayed at home every day. Sometimes he invited a theater troupe or a band to perform, sometimes he invited guests to drink tea, and sometimes he just looked at the sea in silence.

That day he sat on the balcony, looking out at the surging sea, and remained silent for a long time.

Maria walked up behind him, put her hands on his shoulders, and asked softly, "Do you miss them?"

There were things that Frederick knew, and Frederick knew that Maria knew, but that could never be acknowledged.

So Frederick said, "I'm wondering when the ship will arrive."

Maria followed his words and said, "Many people want to see what the ship looks like. It's worth your commendation."

Frederick said, "Invite some people who don't know much about ships, maybe ten people, to come aboard and take a look."

"Don't invite in advance, and don't let anyone know. Just go when the salon mentions it."

Maria thought for a moment and said, "Then I will hold a literary salon and invite those writers on board."

She understood from the previous conversation that Frederick did not want anyone to know more details about the new ship at the moment, so he only allowed outsiders to board the ship and take a look around to satisfy some people's curiosity.

“Isn’t this a bit contradictory?” Maria still didn’t understand. “You’ve made such a big fuss about the new ship, but you’ve kept it so secret.”

Frederick shook his head and said, "There is no contradiction between promoting happy water and keeping the secret recipe of happy water secret."

"The situation at sea is turbulent at the moment, so I'm throwing a stone in the water to see what I can hit."

"By the way, in a while, around the New Year, when a new book in the best-selling series is released, try to include the new warships of the Kingdom of Angland in it."

"The military has relevant data, magnified by about one-fold, and it seems that we know this happened, but a lot of it is based on wild imagination."

Maria asked worriedly, "Aren't you afraid of being exposed as a spy?"

She was not familiar with spies, but there was a plot in the novel where the identity of the spy was inferred through leaked intelligence, so she was a little worried.

Frederick shook his head and said, "It's okay. The Kingdom of Gaul also knows about it."

"Let's give them a spur, maybe they have a boat hidden."

Maria said: "I guess there will be a great era of shipbuilding next, with new ships replacing old ones."

"How big do you think ships will be in the future?"

Frederick said: "If it is all made of steel, hundreds of thousands of tons will not be a problem."

Maria was good at math, but she still counted on her fingers and sighed, "That's equivalent to a thousand modern ships. It's like a city on the sea!"

"Alas, I wonder if I will ever see such a big ship in my lifetime." Frederick said: "We won't be able to see it, but maybe Mother Psyche will be able to see it."

Maria thought it made sense.

Speaking of Psyche, Maria whispered, "Why is it that Teacher Psyche can live so long? Don't you find it strange?"

She had been thinking about this question since she was a child, but she had never dared to ask it. Only now that she was far away from the city of Weissenburg did she dare to ask Frederick.

Frederick also whispered, "It's better not to pursue some things too much. She is not a human being. Just know it in your heart and don't say anything."

Maria twisted his ear in annoyance. If Psyche used some kind of magic to prolong her life, then she would believe it. But how could she be so inhuman, unless...

"Could she be an angel of the God of Light?" Maria thought of a possibility.

Frederick said seriously: "Maybe she is the niece of the God of Light."

Maria knocked his head again in annoyance. It would be troublesome if such blasphemous remarks against the God of Light got out and were used to make a fuss.

Frederick stopped talking about Psyche and said, "The Ministry of Culture will increase its publicity on navigation. The story of the former Guild Alliance can be the focus. We should discuss the content with the Dawn Chamber of Commerce."

Frederick had previously instructed to create a number of works about the ocean, and now he has stepped up his efforts. Maria couldn't help but ask, "Are you going to speed up your development towards the sea?"

The acceleration she mentioned is at the national policy level. It is not as simple as speeding up the construction of a few ships, but rather investing funds that will make other countries tremble.

Frederick nodded and said, "Yes, I have been studying the maritime policies and intelligence of the Kingdom of Anglia these days, and I can feel that they are beginning to exert their strength."

"I'm a little worried. Their next target will also be the Southern Continent."

Because of the United Fruit Company's development of the southern coast of the Inland Sea, many people began to look through old papers and re-examine the southern continent.

Frederick had a feeling that Psyche suddenly asked him to go there as a reminder of this matter in another way.

The size of the Principality of Wessen is still too small, and the surrounding areas have not been resolved, so it does not have the spare capacity for large-scale overseas expansion.

Maria said seriously: "Then you have to bring back more gold, seduce more queens and let them bid...ah!"

Frederick grabbed her from behind and tickled her for two minutes.

"Cough cough..."

A servant came to interrupt and brought a telegram, which Frederick asked Maria to read.

"It's from Lilu," Maria said. "Currently, the two ships are on a trial voyage between Amstel and Hamma. Everything is going well. They are expected to arrive in Le Havre for resupply in ten days."

Frederick thought for a moment and said, “Call back, food can be prepared here, but beer cannot be bought here, otherwise the crew will riot!”

Maria nodded seriously. Garlic beer or something like that was horrible!

(End of this chapter)