God Three Group Chat: Three Kingdoms

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"As long as the shipyard can operate normally, we will be able to take over the Strait of Malacca sooner or later, and show that arrogant old man what it means for the new generation to surpass the old!" Sun Ce said softly, his tone serious, his equally enthusiastic eyes seeming to see into the future and witness its future.

“It’s definitely feasible!” Meng Kangbu glanced at the steel smelter not far away, watching the molten iron flowing out of the steel plant and observing the direction of its flow. His curiosity was undiminished.

As for Sun Ce's suggestion, or rather, his casual remarks, Meng Kangbu supported the idea and agreed with the theory.

As long as they have advantages in both quantity and quality, even when facing the incredibly powerful Cecislian, Moncomb asked himself honestly and didn't feel there was anything he couldn't fight.

By fighting a few more times, understanding the opponent's war rhythm, and avoiding being dragged into their war rhythm as much as possible, you can gradually make up for the impact of defeats and then use the strategy of attrition to defeat the opponent.

As for defeating the opponent head-on, he had absolutely no hope. Even Moncomb only had such thoughts in his mind, but he couldn't find the opportunity to realize them.

Now, this opportunity may very well appear before him, allowing him to use the Han Empire's fleet to complete his revenge.

"As long as ore smelting can continue, it will not only be able to build new naval warships, but also expand military equipment, strengthen military weapons and other benefits, which is really exciting..." Sun Ce, who was explaining normally, was interrupted not long after he continued speaking, which made Sun Ce realize that this matter was not ordinary.

“That old bastard Cecislian is probably also actively preparing for war, ready to carry us away directly. If possible, he will definitely be ruthless. What he can’t have will be destroyed. It’s one of his beliefs. If a normal person did that, they would have been killed long ago. It’s a pity…” Meng Kangbu naturally understood what Sun Ce was saying and also gave a slight reminder about the situation.

"Do you want a direct decisive battle? We certainly can't let the other side have their way. Continuing to drag things out will be advantageous to our army." Sun Ce considered the current situation of both sides and still felt that delaying the battle would be more effective.

The more steel behemoths one has, the greater the chance of winning.

As for the steel consumed, it is understandable to pay a heavy price as long as we can defeat our opponents.

Even though the price is painful to see, it is a pain that must be endured.

Moncomb considered Cecissian's personality and habits and felt that continuing to drag things out would not bring any greater advantage.

However, under the current circumstances, Moncombu really couldn't say anything.

Although he is currently one of the generals of the Han Empire, his status is somewhat special, and to a large extent he is affiliated with the Northern Navy, which is under Gan Ning, and is not under the same command system as the Southern Navy.

Whether Sun Ce and others are willing to accept his suggestions is ultimately beyond his control.

Putting aside his own thoughts and opinions, Moncomb frowned as he looked at the steel placed in the dock.

The cost of building each of these steel behemoths was an unbearable burden for the Kushan Empire, but was it an easy task for the Han Empire?

It's obviously impossible.

Especially since this kind of item isn't a luxury item and doesn't have a premium price tag, but rather genuine practicality, its actual value is predetermined. Is investing such a huge amount of money really just to exchange for another possibility?

It's really hard to understand.

...

Regarding the situation of the Southern Navy and the corresponding policy changes, there may be different opinions elsewhere, but in Chang'an, there are basically no conflicts of opinion.

Everyone's thoughts and opinions were basically the same. The entire Chang'an government's pursuit of ore and steel production was largely influenced by Chen Xi's ideas.

For Chen Xi, the mindset of an empire's executor should not be limited to the current situation, but should be based on a long-term perspective, which will also lay a better foundation for the future.

Can a mere 100,000 tons of steel a year really satisfy an empire with nearly 60 million people? Especially an empire skilled at cultivating the land.

At least 60% of the available labor force, with each person carrying a hoe, a hammer, and a sickle, could completely utilize all the steel production, and there would still be a very large shortfall.

Not to mention the large amount of weapons, armor, and so on. These weapons, including farm tools such as hammers, sickles, and hoes, are not things that can be used once and for all, but rather relatively durable consumables.

Even if we don't talk about replacing them every year, but even if we replace them every two or three years, the consumption would be unbearable for any country in this day and age, not even the Han Empire at this time.

Given the current consumption of the Han Empire, 100,000 tons a year is merely a drop in the ocean, while 1 million tons a year would be barely enough to sustain it. If it could truly reach 10 million tons a year, then surpassing the limits of this era and entering a broader horizon would not be difficult at all.

"So after solving the technical difficulties, the simplest problem now is to solve the problem of transporting raw materials. We must take control of the Strait of Malacca and ensure the safety of shipping routes..." Chen Xi looked at the sea map in front of him, his eyes fixed on the Strait of Malacca, and described the importance of this place.

With the help of his internal energy avatars and the efforts of various engineering colleges, Liu Tong, who had a chat group, achieved a division of labor in steel smelting and made a leap in output by using water power.

Through the rational layout of the area, the combined efforts of each group, the scouring force of the water conservancy, and even the torsional coordination of various gear groups, the technical level and production capacity of the steel smelting process have been greatly improved.

However, the most fatal flaw in raising it to this level is that the supply of raw materials has become a major problem.

The poor minerals in the Central Plains region not only require higher processing techniques, but also take longer to process and produce less. In contrast, the minerals that can be brought in after the Strait of Malacca is opened are not only of higher quality, but also more abundant.

The difficulty of open-pit mining is naturally less than that of cave mining.

It can be said that as long as he takes control of the Strait of Malacca, Chen Xi would dare to expand the navy's transport fleet dozens of times, directly increasing steel production to the million-ton level.

In this era, that would truly be a number of enemies crushed by steel. (End of Chapter)