After more than three hours of work, the whole meeting was almost over.

Although Liang Shiyi made a not very good start in the front, some other ministers, including Huang Hao, brought a lot of good news. For example, there is also the Ministry of Education's 'six-year compulsory education' plan, the Ministry of Public Security's report on law and order, and some progress reports from the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Communications. Even Song Jiaoren's Ministry of Integrity gave a report card, detailing how many military and political officials were arrested by the Ministry of Integrity last year―――――― although when Song Jiaoren made a report, the expressions of everyone present were a little strange.

There is no way, who called the 'National Socialist Party' dominance in China during this period, and as a result, most of the people who were arrested by Song Jiaoren for corruption and perverted the law were members of the National Socialist Party. There are so many faceless guys in their own party, no wonder Yan Shao's expressions are so complicated.

But this is also something that can't be helped, in the duel between Yan Shao and Yuan Shikai, although Yan Shao became the winner. But the Beiyang government at that time was only the largest force in China, and in short, it represented the largest warlord in China.

Yan Shao's defeat of Yuan Shikai only meant that he replaced Yuan Shikai as the largest warlord in China, and if he wanted to achieve substantial unification of the country, he had to clean up the other warlords in the country.

Military operations are fine, but they are time-consuming and require a lot of investment. So Yan Shao used a more convenient method. First, he carried out political reforms, turning the former 'governors' who were in charge of military and political affairs into provincial governors and division commanders. Then all these local powerful factions and their subordinates were brought into the National Socialist Party.

At this time, the Kuomintang had been banned by Yan Shao, and although there were still Kuomintang people active in the country, they were basically no different from the 'underground party'. And so it goes. Naturally, the Kuomintang Socialist Party (KMT) became the largest political party in China, and after absorbing some well-known figures from other parties, it even reached the point of one-party dominance.

However, although this has strengthened the dominance of the National Socialist Party, it is inevitable that there will be a mixture of good and bad. There are many excellent people in the party, and there are also many poor people. In addition, there are many such people in the local area, which often ruins the reputation of the National Socialist Party, which is also the relationship between Yan Shao and Song Jiaoren, a woodpecker.

One comes. Song Jiaoren is a decent person, and there is no need to worry about what means he will get, and then come, as the leader of the Kuomintang today. Yan Shao didn't have to worry that he would bend the law for personal gain.

And Song Jiaoren did not live up to Yan Shao's expectations. Although Song Jiaoren has never given up the idea of a 'republic', he seems to be very interested in arresting corrupt officials and corrupt officials, and he has caught a lot of moths in the past year, and his members of the Chinese Socialist Party naturally account for the vast majority, but there are also some people from the Kuomintang and other parties or people without party affiliation.

Yan Shao was also very satisfied with Song Jiaoren's work, but just like everyone else. Regarding the arrest of so many Kuomintang Socialists, Yan Shao was inevitably a little embarrassed.

So in Song Jiaoren reported how many moths were caught last year. And after sending some of them to prison, it wasn't until Yan Shao took the lead in applauding that the others applauded―――――― Li Liang and the others were okay, they all came out of Anhui with Yan Shao in the early years. Of course, this is not to say that their political consciousness is relatively high, but in order to avoid the situation of having to be 'impartial and selfless' and 'righteous and destroy relatives' in the future, Yan Shao gave Li Liang a very high treatment, coupled with today's high position, Li Liang and they have no need to bend the law for personal gain.

Because with the salary offered by the national government and a little 'support' from Yan Shao, they are already worry-free, and there is no need to risk being a 'moth'.

On the contrary, it was Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang on their side, although there were many outstanding talents in the old Beiyang in history, and even most of the talents in China at that time could be said to be in Beiyang. But Beiyang is also uneven, even those so-called talents, after being corrupted, have the ability, but what about the character?

The so-called Beiyang itself does not have any political parties, it can only be regarded as an interest group, and in the past, it surrounded Yuan Shikai because of the relationship of interests. After the defeat of Beiyang, these people joined the Kuomintang Socialist Party. However, in the National Socialist Party, although Yan Shao gave these people a very high salary, there were still some people who had accumulated habits that were difficult to change, and finally fell into the hands of Song Jiaoren, many of whom were even Duan Qirui's subordinates. At this time, it was strange to see Song Jiaoren, who had personally sent them to prison, talking about how many people had been arrested in the past year.

However, they also knew that Song Jiaoren was not more than ordinary people, and when he was in the Kuomintang, his prestige in the party was already higher than that of Sun Yat-sen. Now, after Yan Shao allowed him to return to the mainland, with the prestige of him and Huang Xing, he has gathered some people in China who are unwilling to join the Kuomintang, making the Kuomintang once again the second largest party after the Kuomintang.

In addition, Yan Shao was also among them, and even handed over such a very sensitive department as the Ministry of Integrity to Song Jiaoren, it was difficult for ordinary people to move him.

――――――――――――――――――――

Song Jiaoren reported there how many people he had arrested last year, which embarrassed many people, but overall, last year's progress was indeed huge, and even the most demanding people would probably be satisfied with the results achieved last year.

The domestic industrial base is already very weak, coupled with the stimulation of the 'Seventh Five-Year Plan' and the '300 million yuan loan plan' of Yushi Bank, the result is that in the past year, some domestic basic industrial projects have developed by leaps and bounds.

For example, the production of foreign ash, which is the basis of the foundation, has increased by 175% compared to 1911, and is still increasing.

In addition, some other sectors have also seen very encouraging gains. Even the smallest one saw a 50% increase. The steel industry, which symbolizes the strength of a country, has a production capacity of 2.8 million tons, even surpassing France, which is definitely among the great powers in this era.

Of course. This is mainly due to the fact that France's crude steel production has fallen sharply, so that China can overtake France by a small margin. But in any case, transcendence is transcendence after all, although Yan Shao actually wants to surpass those so-called powers per capita.

"Still. Let's take it step by step, anyway, according to today's form, there may not be no possibility of success. Yan Shao showed a smile on his face, and said silently in his heart.

This smile made people feel a little inexplicable, but after thinking about it, none of Li Liang and the others dared to ask.

After defeating the Japanese, the periphery of today's China is much stronger than that of later China. Later China was bordered by Russia and Korea to the north. With India and Vietnam to the south, and Japan and the United States from the sea, the country is almost surrounded by people.

Although at that time. China and Russia are already quasi-allies, but anyone knows the virtues of the Russians, and it is better to expect them to be a reliable ally than to switch to vegetarianism.

And now? Russia is still in the north, though. But now they are being beaten by the Germans on the Eastern Front and fleeing. It is simply impossible to take into account the situation in the Far East. Even if Tsarist Russia did not collapse after the end of the European War, as it did in history, just look at their losses on the Eastern Front, even if the war ended, they would not be able to touch the Far East in a short time.

In other words, the threat from the north can basically be removed.

As for the south, India was a colony of the British, while Vietnam was a colony of the French (French Indochina). These two countries are now busy with the war with the Germans, let alone threatening China. I'm afraid that I have to worry about whether Yan Shao will take advantage of this opportunity to attack India and Vietnam.

In addition, Japan, which has been crippled, and the United States, which is far less powerful than later generations.

The current security environment in China is arguably the best in nearly a century.

Coupled with the booming industry in the country, if it weren't for the financial problems, this year would be really good. "But it's not a problem with the Ministry of Finance, who told me to be so spent."

Thinking of this, Yan Shao showed a wry smile again.

The railways and highways are all money, and the government invests not a small amount of money in transportation every year. There is also education, since it is compulsory education, not to mention it for the time being, I am afraid that the investment will not be less in the first few years, which is another part of the expenditure, and the army...

At present, the army has more than 600,000 people in 33 infantry divisions, and the salary of ordinary soldiers alone will need at least more than 75 million in a year.

What's more, the infantry division, which originally had 18,510 people, is now about to be reorganized into a 1914 infantry division of 22,560 people, and the number of land forces with more than 600,000 people is afraid to rise to more than 700,000. As a result, the issue of military salaries has become stricter, and if you count officers, 100 million a year is basically no problem, and this does not take into account the measures to increase military salaries in the future.

In addition, daily meals, wear and tear of weapons and equipment, maintenance, procurement, plus a series of other problems. It is also a large amount of expenditure, in the calculation of the navy side of the ―――――― army is very expensive, yes, the navy side is not a fuel-efficient lamp, a dreadnought needs more than 20 million, at the moment it is not the strength to build a dreadnought, but the number of other ships is also very fatal, a year down the army and navy all the expenditure is afraid to have more than 200 million...

It is no wonder that the National Assembly and some departments within the government have opinions that there is no need to build so many troops at the moment, and that it is completely possible to reduce the size of the army and reduce military spending.

The question is...

"Even if all of them are reorganized, there will be more than 700,000, and even if you count the navy, it will only be 800,000, isn't this a lot of numbers..."

In later generations, no matter how small the number of troops was, China would have more than 2 million troops, and the current territory of China will be much larger than that of later generations. And it is precisely the most suitable time to expand the territory, the 800,000 troops are more than a million worse than later generations, and the mobility is even more different, such a small number of troops is only enough to defend the territory, and there is still a big gap compared with Yan Shao's ideal number...

"Luckily, there are still a few years to spare, and if you prepare properly, you may not be out of the question." Thinking of this, Yan Shao stood up from his seat, and then glanced at the world map hanging behind him. "But this time, you have to be well prepared, and if you do do do it, I'm afraid the bank will have to prepare a larger loan program. Otherwise, the government alone may not be able to afford such a large expenditure..."

Thinking of this, Yan Shao put his palm on the map. Almost half of Asia was covered in it, and looking at Yan Shao's appearance, the other people in the conference room felt a little inexplicable, and they didn't know why Yan Shao suddenly made such a move.

――――――――――――――――――――

On a hill not far from the town of Longkou, several blond-haired foreigners were using binoculars to observe the situation inside the port.

"Look, another ship has been made," said one of the younger foreigners, patting his companion's arm as he looked inside the bay through his binoculars.

"I see—" again with the telescope. Another foreigner spoke. "Let's find out, which one is this..."

It seemed that these two men were the leaders of the group, after receiving his orders. Soon someone began to investigate, and the photos were taken out as quickly as possible for comparison.

"This is the case......... It seems to be a Hanoi-class quasi-dreadnought of the Japanese ...

Although there seemed to be these two words in his words, after looking at the situation in the bay with the same telescope, the man spoke in an almost categorical tone.

"Quasi-dreadnoughts?" Hear the word. The foreigner who was the first to open his mouth was a little strange. "What do you mean by a quasi-dreadnought?"

I don't seem to know much about my boss. The man quickly explained. "It's close to a dreadnought, but it's somewhat different. This is the case of the Japanese 'Kawachi-class', according to the information we have received, although the Japanese 'Kawachi-class' battleships also use the main guns of the same caliber, but they are actually equipped with two 305mm guns with different barrel lengths of 45 times the caliber MKX and 50 times the caliber MKXI (the building yì that increases the length of the barrels of the front and rear guns to increase the firing range is said to have been proposed by Heihachiro Togo), which is similar to the battleship Dreadnought. The concept of all-heavy artillery is contrary, and because the length of the barrel of the gun is inconsistent, it will inevitably have an impact on correction and concentrated firepower during combat. There is no unified command, so it is not exactly a dreadnought. It can only be called a quasi-dreadnought. ”

At this, the man smiled again. "Having said that, in fact, the combat effectiveness of this warship is not much different from that of some early dreadnoughts, so even if it is used as a dreadnought, it is no problem. And the problem of double diameter disagreeing, as long as the barrel of the gun is changed, it may be solved..."

"So—" The man nodded. It's really strange that a good dreadnought has to be like this, but ............... Since the combat effectiveness is good, let's remember it first..."

The man nodded, in understanding.

After the instructions, the man again focused his gaze on Longkou Bay, looking at the "Hanoi", the lead ship of the "Hanoi-class" battleship that had just been brought out of the water.

Of course, there are also some ships docked around the dock that were also made out not long ago, such as the "King Kong" battlecruiser, the lead ship of the "King Kong" class battle cruiser built by the British himself.

Looking at the warships built by their own country, being fished out of the bottom of the bay like scrap metal, the faces of the people on the top of the mountain were a little ugly, but they still dutifully recorded the qiē they witnessed...

As mentioned above, these are British. The purpose of their trip is also very simple, that is, to record the salvage process of the Chinese in Longkou Bay.

Although the British are currently fighting the Germans in Europe, as the world's only global superpower, Britain is naturally very concerned about what happens in the Far East. Especially the scrap iron at the bottom of Longkou Bay, although even if Yan Shao really repaired these scrap iron, it could not be compared to the huge fleet concentrated by the British in the Atlantic. But the British were still very concerned about the balance in the Far East, and they were also very concerned about China's military capabilities.

It is particularly important not to forget that Germany also has a high seas fleet, and the British have always regarded the German high seas fleet as a thorn in the side, and the British will never let go of the opportunity to annihilate the high seas fleet if they have the opportunity.

The problem is that the strength of the High Seas Fleet is also not to be underestimated, and if they really put it together, the British are sure that they will win. But whether the final result was a complete victory or a disastrous victory, the British himself could not say, as Churchill said, although Britain had an advantage over Germany, but only a few torpedoes, mines, or minor mechanical failures were needed to bury these advantages, otherwise Britain would not have to seize the battleships purchased by Turkey in Britain, and eventually lead Turkey to join the Allied camp.

If the decisive battle with the High Seas Fleet ends up being a complete victory for Britain, it will be the best, but if it wins badly, Britain will have to consider whether its remaining strength can still suppress China or even the United States on the other side of the ocean...

Therefore, in accordance with the instructions of the London side, Zhu Erdian sent a lot of people to record the salvage operation in Longkou Bay, after all, these sunken ships are equipment that can directly improve the strength of the Chinese navy.

What's more, there is such a thing as the "King Kong", as the builder of the "King Kong", the British are very clear about the combat capability of this warship. Otherwise, the British would not have hoped that Japan would have taken the 'Kongo' class battle cruisers over the concession.

And now, this warship, along with other warships, has actually fallen into the hands of the Chinese, and if it was in the past, perhaps the British would not have been worried. But now they were at war with the Germans in Europe, and this could not but worry the British... (To be continued......)