The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 856: British Empire Rafale Class - As fast as a gust of wind!

The turbid waves of the Yangtze River slapped against the newly built dock on Changxing Island. In the river breeze of early summer in 1872, the outline of the new shipyard of the Jiangnan Arsenal had basically taken shape. Luo Yaoguo walked into the conference room on the smooth marble floor, followed by his two favorite students - Wang Yan, the Minister of the Navy of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and Ma Baocai, the Director of the National Defense Industry Committee.

A brass model of the "Exocet II" fast ironclad ship was placed on a long table in the conference room.

The so-called "Exocet II" is actually the final mass-produced model of the "Exocet" fast ironclad ship - once Prime Minister Luo Yaoguo makes the decision today, the next step will be to start "making dumplings"!

"Your Highness, please have a look." Xu Shou, the Minister of Armaments, who had been waiting in the conference room for a long time, unfolded a yellowed blueprint and pointed his finger at the section of the ship. "This is the improved layout of the power compartment. Two triple-expansion steam engines are installed side by side. Each engine has an output of 4000 horsepower, which is % more efficient than the original double-expansion engine."

When Luo Yaoguo heard about the 4000-horsepower triple-expansion engine, his eyes lit up and he quickly asked, "Is the 4000-horsepower triple-expansion engine reliable?"

"Absolutely reliable!" Xu Shou replied, "The technology of this type of triple expansion machine was obtained by our French friends. The steam engine factory of the Jiangnan Arsenal has already manufactured two machines for trial use with the help of French engineers and British and German technicians. They are currently performing well!"

"Good!" Luo Yaoguo touched his palm excitedly and whispered, "Now that the 4000-horsepower engine is done, we can expect a 10000-horsepower or even higher-horsepower triple-expansion engine."

He remembered that in history, the German Helgoland-class battleships used three 10000-horsepower triple-expansion engines. This class of battleships also fought in the Battle of Jutland and sank British battlecruisers!

Yan Fu, the new director of Jiangnan Shipyard, picked up the pointer and tapped the model deck gently: "The most critical improvement is here. The bulbous bow is enlarged by 40%, and with the newly designed U-shaped stern, theoretically it can reduce wave resistance by 15%." He moved his pointer to the stern, "The curvature of the four-blade propeller has also been readjusted, and the propulsion efficiency has increased by 7%. According to the calculations of the Jiangnan Shipbuilding Institute, after this series of improvements, the theoretical maximum speed is 22 knots, and the range is extended to 4500 nautical miles - enough to cross the Pacific Ocean."

"Can the speed really reach 22 knots?" Luo Yaoguo suddenly interrupted.

"That's the theoretical calculation." Yan Fu wiped his glasses. "During high-pressure ventilation, a short sprint of 23 knots is possible."

Wang Yan interjected, “The British’s fastest 20-ton fast armored ship can only reach knots!”

Luo Yaoguo sneered: "Then let them chase."

He paused, then turned to Chen Jitong, the director of the Jiangnan Shipbuilding Institute, and asked, "Tell me about the firepower layout. Is it the same as before?"

Chen Jitong quickly unfolded another blueprint: "The firepower of the Exocet II is the same as the first ship, with eight 8mm rapid-fire guns and four twin-mounted turrets. However, the new wedge-shaped breechblock can increase the rate of fire to three rounds per minute. If a higher rate of fire is required."

"That's enough." Luo Yaoguo raised his hand to interrupt, pressing his five fingers on the model deck, "Ten ships, launched within three years. Does Jiangnan Factory have this production capacity now?"

Yan Fu's throat rolled. "At present, the production capacity of Jiangnan Factory is sufficient. The Changxing Island branch alone can build five ships at the same time. Steam engines can also be supplied, but the cost of one ship is 55 silver dollars."

When the topic of money was brought up, the atmosphere in the conference room suddenly froze. From outside the window came the shouts of shipyard craftsmen, and the faint sound of hammers hitting steel plates.

Luo Yaoguo turned to Ma Baocai: "Baocai, you will be responsible for negotiating the construction contract with Jiangnan Factory. In addition, the National Defense Industry Commission will supervise the entire process." His fingertips tapped the table lightly, "Remember, each steel plate is the result of twelve hours of hard work by the female workers in the spinning mill, but the factory needs profits, the technicians need to support their families, and the research institute needs funds to upgrade technology. You must weigh the pros and cons and be a good 'Party A'!"

At this moment, Ma Baocai seemed to see the hard-working women workers in the spinning mill, the miners risking their lives to mine coal in the mines, and the farmers working hard in the fields. "I pledge my loyalty." He turned around and clasped his fists, "I promise that every penny will be used wisely!"

Luo Yaoguo nodded and turned to look out the window. A cargo ship flying the Union Jack was slowly passing by on the Yangtze River. "Let's name the first mass-produced 'Flying Fish II' the 'Hong Kong'. This historical legacy must be resolved!"

Cigar smoke rose slowly in the afternoon sun over the oak conference table at the Admiralty in London.

Nathaniel Barnaby, the newly appointed Director of Shipbuilding, pushed a stack of reports that still smelled of ink to the center of the table.

"Gentlemen, here are the sea trial data for the first Rafale-class ship." He pointed his finger at a group of numbers circled in red pen, "20.5 knots! Four triple-expansion steam engines, with a total output of 15000 horsepower!"

The "Rafale" class is the British 10,000-ton fast ironclad warship. The name "Rafale" was given by the former Liberal Prime Minister Gladstone, meaning it is as fast as a gust of wind - or a gust of wind in the Indian Ocean!

Once this type of ship is mass-produced, it will be assigned to the Royal Navy's Indian Fleet!
The First Lord of the Admiralty, George Ward Hunt, stood up suddenly, tapping his cane on the floor. "Where are the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's Exocet class?"

"The latest intelligence shows that we may exceed 20 knots," Barnaby pushed his glasses, "but the speed difference between the two sides will not be too big."

Finance Minister Sir Stafford Northcote frowned as he flipped through the report: "A single ship costs 65 pounds? Ten ships are 650 million! Last year our fiscal revenue was only..." "Sir Northcote!" Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli suddenly interrupted, "Do you know how much silk the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom exported to the United States last year?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued to talk to himself, "Enough to make three shirts for every British citizen. Trade in the Pacific is their lifeline! And trade between the British Isles and India is our lifeline. If their 'Flying Fish' class blocks the Indian route."

The First Sea Lord duly added: "Eight 8-inch rapid-fire guns can fire 6 rounds per minute. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's 'Flying Fish' class armor is certainly not too thick to stop our picric acid shells."

The door of the conference room was suddenly pushed open. Foreign Minister Earl Derby walked in quickly and slapped a document on the table: "The Asahi Heavenly Kingdom's embassy just sent us intelligence. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has signed a contract to build ten 'Flying Fish IIs', and the keels of five of them will be laid this year!"

"Ten ships." Disraeli stood up slowly and paced around the conference room. "Gentlemen," his voice suddenly became sharp, "After the first Rafale class ship completes the sea trial, it will be immediately transferred to the Indian Fleet." He turned around and glanced at everyone present, "I want to let the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom know that the British Empire's oceans are not something they can touch!"

Barnaby hesitated for a moment and said, "Prime Minister, we need to place an additional order for a few ships."

"Ten ships!" Disraeli waved his fist vigorously. "The British Empire's steel and shipyard production capacity far exceeds that of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. We will not lose the shipbuilding competition!"

After the meeting, the Navy Minister Hunter and the Chief Shipbuilder Barnaby stayed behind. He looked out the window at the setting sun and suddenly asked, "Are we really not going to lose in shipbuilding?"

Barnaby smiled bitterly: "It seems that we will not lose at the moment. Unless..."

"Unless what?"

“Unless the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s industrial strength achieves explosive growth in the next decade.”

"Will such a thing happen?" The Minister of the Navy looked at the Director of Shipbuilding.

"It's hard to say," the shipbuilding director shook his head, "At present, industrial technology is advancing by leaps and bounds!"

On a rainy night in London, inside the Japanese-style room of the Asahi Kingdom Embassy in London, paper lanterns swayed gently in the breeze. Okubo Toshimichi knelt in front of his desk, with English terms densely marked on the naval map spread out in front of him. The paper door rang softly, and two maids with Shimada-style buns quietly entered with tea sets in their hands.

"Sir, this is the new Gyokuro from Nagasaki." The girl in the lavender kimono knelt down and offered the teacup, and the silver bell on her wrist made a subtle sound.

Okubo took the teacup, his eyes still fixed on the ship map: "Mr. Yamamoto, can the British really build 18-inch armor?"

"Definitely!" Yamamoto Gonbei put down his pencil and took a report from another maid. "And here's more! This is the latest carburized steel test report from the Elswick factory. The 320mm main gun, with a shell weight of 450kg, can penetrate 8mm wrought iron armor at a distance of 000 meters."

Okubo stared at the ferocious steel behemoth on the blueprint - a twin-mounted turret at the bow and stern, and a huge chimney in the middle of the hull. His fingers unconsciously made the gesture of counting money.

"What about the speed?" Okubo took a sip of tea.

"15 knots at most." Yamamoto sneered, "Slow, but not fatal."

There were hurried footsteps outside the paper door. The embassy counselor opened the paper door without paying attention to etiquette: "Sir! A confidential letter from the British Prime Minister's Office!"

Okubo unfolded the letter and his pupils suddenly contracted. On the letter was an agreement signed by Disraeli himself: Sasebo Naval Port would be built by a British company and completed within ten years, and 20 British warships would be stationed there.

"Things are going to change," Yamamoto murmured. He suddenly turned to the maid Chiyo and said, "Go get the list from the safe."

Chiyo left in a hurry and came back holding a sandalwood box. Yamamoto took out the documents inside: "A list of key import materials for Japan, rice, coal, steel, saltpeter."

Okubo tapped his fingers lightly on the table. "Tell the country to start stockpiling key strategic materials immediately."

The night rain was getting heavier, beating against the blue tiles of the embassy. Yamamoto was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Okubo-kun, are you worried that the Japanese Parliament will be blocked?"

Okubo Toshimichi nodded gently: "We must always be prepared for the worst. The future war will determine the survival of Japan!"

(End of this chapter)