If you want to say why Xu Jie spares no effort to support the German Navy, in fact, the most fundamental reason is that if China wants to have a stable development environment and have the opportunity to expand to Southeast Asia or even beyond, it must let the powers have no time to look eastward, and if the powers want to contain each other, the First World War is undoubtedly a very good opportunity, theoretically speaking, if you look at the historical situation, no matter how Germany and Austria and Turkey operate, the United States, Britain, France, Russia and Italy can eventually shoot Germany and Austria and Turkey to death. Therefore, in this case, how to make Germany inflict a heavier blow on the United States and Britain, so that Britain and the United States will not be able to penetrate into the Far East after the war, has become Xu Jie's goal. Therefore, Xu Jie must help Germany, and at the same time help Britain appropriately, the longer this war is fought, the greater the losses on both sides, and the more beneficial it will be to China in the future!

To this end, Xu Jie even designed a strategy for the Germans, and when Tirpitz and Schell visited for the second time, Xu Jie decided to put this treaty together. Wilhelm II's thirst for sea power had alarmed the British...... And if, according to the development of history, next year there will be a conflict between the Kaiser and the British Imperialists over the South African question, which will inevitably lead to the deterioration of Anglo-German relations, and coupled with the influence of the "Navy Act", the two sides will gradually come to the ......... of hostility.

And when Xu Jie met Tirpitz and others for the second time, Tirpitz's first sentence surprised Xu Jie very much: "We don't want to have a direct conflict with Britain, we just hope that Britain can respect Germany's demands for sea power, since Britain allows France to have a strong fleet, then Germany should also have a fleet that is not weaker than France." ”

"It's a good idea. But it was impossible for the British to allow Germany to have such a powerful fleet relative to France. Xu Jie was stunned for a moment, but then said with a smile.

"Why?!" Tirpitz and Scheer were taken aback by Xu Jie's answer.

"France's sea power was based on the maintenance of its colonies. That is to say, a considerable part of the fleet of the French Navy is not suitable for the main decisive battle, but only for patrolling the colonies, and I think if you have the opportunity to look at the cruisers of the French, you can understand this. Xu Jie explained with a smile.

"This reason is not sufficient, Germany also has colonies in Africa, in the Pacific." Tirpitz shook his head and said.

"Germany is not as dependent on colonies as France. The French have a tradition of money lending. The colonies played an important role in France's financial system, and if France and Britain were hostile, they would face the dilemma of being separated from the mainland. Germany is different. Germany was basically self-sufficient in coal and iron, and its economy was dominated by local industry, and the naval blockade by the British had little impact on Germany. I'm right. Xu Jie said proudly..........

"And more importantly. It was impossible for the French fleet to beat the British fleet. The French fleet was divided into two large fleets, one Atlantic and the other in the Mediterranean, and the connection between the two was divided by the fortress in the Strait of Gibraltar, and from Mr. Mahan's point of view, the French navy could not concentrate on fighting and was on the outer line of war, while Britain could mobilize both the home fleet and the Mediterranean fleet to fight together, and I will not say much about the rest. Xu Jie said in a quisitive tone.

"I see, because if the German fleet is strong. Then it can only act on the North Sea, and a concentrated, world-second German fleet will pose a great threat to the British mainland, so the British will not agree to Germany having such a fleet, and if the German naval armament is expanded to a certain extent. Then Britain and Germany must be at odds with each other. And the naval blockade has a general effect on Germany, so if the British want to limit the German navy, they will definitely deploy heavy troops in the North Sea, or even a near-shore blockade! Scheer on the side reacted and said in shock. …。

"The British didn't have to use a near-shore blockade at all, as long as Britain could keep the security of their homeland and keep the German navy firmly locked in the North Sea. This approach saves time and effort. Xu Jie shook his head and said..........

"So, you only have two options. One is to abandon the navy, and the other is to be ready only to challenge the British Royal Navy in the North Sea. Take your pick. Xu Jie said calmly.

"So if we want to break this situation, is there a way?" Tirpitz asked.

"Germany alone naturally does not work, Germany and France have become a feud, which is irreconcilable, and the alliance of the Three Emperors has failed, and recently Germany and Austria-Hungary have become very close, and Austria-Hungary wants to get the Balkans, which has an irreconcilable contradiction with Russia. So Russia will also be an enemy of Germany, plus one Great Britain, well, now tell me, how can Germany and Austria be able to withstand the three great powers? Xu Jie asked with a smile. The current United States has not really made a strong ...... Russia is still a huge steamroller in the eyes of Westerners, and its near-wireless population and vast land area make Russia look at Western Europe like a real polar bear.

"The Battle of Sedan has proven the strength of the French Army." Tirpitz said with a mocking disdain.

"Let's leave aside whether the French Army is really as vulnerable as someone has claimed. In terms of layout, Russia and Austria fought on two fronts. I wonder how Germany and Austria will lay out in the face of the millions of Russian troops covering from the east? Coupled with the fact that Great Britain is strong at sea, it also has an efficient medium-sized army, and the manpower provided by the huge colonies, tell me, how many German can there be, even if all the people are soldiers? Xu Jie's words are actually underestimating the combat power of the German Army, in general, the German Army basically fought a draw with Britain and France in World War I, of course, if in terms of national strength, Germany can not consume the ......... of the two colonial powers.

"And where is Germany's hope?" Tirpitz's tone was filled with a sense of frustration. At this time, he realized why Bismarck, the iron-blooded prime minister, did not agree to the army's plan to let France cede land, and Alsace and Lorraine would become an unsolvable knot between France and Germany.

"Uniting all the forces that can be united, there is another great power on the European continent, and he is called Italy. On the Eurasian continent, there is another demobilized and vast country, which is called Turkey. Xu Jie smiled and said.

"What? Looking down on Italy? Italy's industry was no worse than that of Austria-Hungary, and Italy's greatest advantage over Austria-Hungary and Germany was that the mountainous terrain of northern Italy was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it was very difficult for either France or Austria-Hungary to break through from there, because of this. The Italians could strengthen the Navy. That's why there is now the Italian Navy, which is now the third most powerful in the world. Shouldn't such a powerful force be fought for? ”。 Xu Jie looked at Tirpitz's face with a slightly contemptuous expression and said with a smile.

"As for Turkey? Although it is not on the table from the perspective of industry or overall strength. But it is at the crossroads of three continents, Asia, Africa and Europe, India. The crown jewel of the Queen of England is connected to mainland England via Turkey. And if Austria-Hungary and Turkey can join forces, Russia will be completely isolated. Even if Italy joins the German-Austrian side. The entire eastern Mediterranean will be yours, and even the capture of the Suez Canal is not impossible, and in order to cope with this situation, the British must discharge their navy in support of France. Xu Jie's analysis is very good, and Tirpitz can't help but be moved by ......... good reason.

"Germany can do without Italian industry, it can do without the Italian army, but it must need the Italian navy, because only if the British Royal Navy is weakened, the British will consider withdrawing from the war, even if the German army is stronger. There is also no ability to cross the English Channel, which is defended by a strong navy, is it? ”。 Xu Jie finished all his reasons in one breath. …。

"The Italians, that is, the navy, are on the table." Scheer pouted. It must be said that the Italian Navy is indeed strong, at least in relation to the current German Navy.

"General Xu's insight is very unique, uniting all forces that can be united. It's a good idea. So would General Xu be willing to discuss the issue of naval armament? Tirpitz had roughly understood what Xu Jie meant. And now, after the strategic problem is resolved, then it is time to talk about the armament aspect.

"Britain is already designing 10,000-ton cruisers with a speed of 22 or even 23 knots. Does your country still insist on 20 knots as the standard speed of a battleship? I remember that you suggested that the German Navy build a large number of fast warships. Tirpitz said.

"High-speed battleships and high-speed battleships are not the same concept, and the so-called high-speed means that the speed is slightly higher than the opponent's capital ship, not that the speed exceeds all enemy ships. The price of extreme speed is very high, and I think I understand this personally. The first problem of the decisive battle fleet is firepower...... Then there is protection, as long as the speed can be slightly higher, and the range and trial performance are based on adequacy. Xu Jie patiently explained..........

Historically, taking the battleships of World War I as an example, in order to pursue high speed, the British battle cruisers were much worse than the battleships of the same period in terms of protection and firepower, and the tonnage was much more, such as the British battleship Iron Duke, the main installation of the waterline belt was 300mm (although very low), and the upper load was 9 inches. Armed with 10 13.5-inch guns. The displacement is 22,000 tons. The speed is 21 knots, while the British battle cruiser Lion has a main armor belt of 9 inches (enough extension height), is equipped with 8 13.5-inch guns, and the speed is 27 knots, but the displacement reaches more than 26,000 tons. Not only is the Lion's firepower and protection inferior to that of the Iron Duke, but its weight has risen by about 4,000 tons for the sake of speed.

"Especially in the North Sea. In such a bathtub in the Mediterranean, because there is no need to break diplomatic relations, and at the same time there is not much room for guerrilla warfare, once the two sides meet, it will be a bloody battle, if one side wants to run, as long as its own protection is in place enough, and the escort ships are in place, then there is no problem at all in running back. Later, Xu Jie analyzed the war situation from the perspective of the possible war between the two sides.

In the Battle of Jutland in history, after the German High Seas Fleet met with the British Royal Navy, Sippel commanded the battle cruiser to launch a death sprint, and after cutting through the blockade, the entire High Seas Fleet basically returned to the port of Kiel under the cover of auxiliary warships, and even those old former dreadnoughts almost all went back, which fully proves that as long as the covering fleet is in place, relying on the deterrence of torpedoes and the cover of smoke, the success rate of the Grand Fleet's retreat is quite high, so there is no need to pursue high-speed ......... excessively.

"Auxiliary ships? I noticed that now Master Xu suddenly became interested in these boats. This time, almost all of the projects with the Italians were small boats. Tirpitz said with a smile.

"I have to say that your country's intelligence agencies are really efficient." Xu Jie praised it, but he had a lot of complaints about Italy's secrecy work in his heart. "At the beginning, I didn't engage in the auxiliary fleet, not to say that it was not important, but compared to confronting Japan, the efficient main fleet is more practical, but for a fleet that really wants to dominate the ocean, the auxiliary fleet is also quite important." Xu Jie paused and continued.

"In addition, if it can, I hope that Germany will put some thought into breaking diplomatic relations, such as using camouflaged light warships and submarines to sneak out and strike at the other side's sea lines of communication."

"Submarines? It seems that the current submarine is just a toy that can be dived. However, as General Xu said, with the advancement of technology, if submarines can solve the problems of range and weapons, then it is indeed a good way for submarines to break diplomatic relations. Tirpitz said after a moment of deep thought. …。

"In addition, I need to emphasize that if Germany really wants to win over the Turkish Empire, it would be quite good to help it build a full-fledged naval base in the Persian Gulf, which has a narrow entrance. If it can be combined with the mine array, it will provide a very safe port for the fleet, and if the Turkish fleet or the German fleet in Turkey can fight out of the Persian Gulf, it will have a fatal impact on the Indian Ocean shipping route of a certain country. However, a certain country in the vast Indian Ocean does not have a naval base close to the Persian Gulf. I don't think I need to say much about the strategic significance of this. Xu Jie said meaningfully..........

"Pretty good idea...... But how to co-opt the Turkish Empire? Tirpitz asked habitually.

"That's a matter for your government and the diplomatic service. That's the end of my help. Xu Jie said with a smile.

"I would like to ask, isn't your country now going to deal with Russia together with Britain? Then why help Germany to find a way to confront the British? Tirpitz said coldly.

The reason for this is simple. Britain was only using the North Sea to fight Russia, and in the eyes of the British, the best outcome was for both the Qing Dynasty and Russia to lose, and then Britain would sit back and control the Far East on its own. And with the fall of Russia, or even before Russia falls, Britain may support Japan or the Netherlands and continue to hinder our expansion in the Far East, and Germany is not the only country in the world that wants to change the old system of distribution of interests. You understand what I'm saying? Xu Jie said.

"To paraphrase an idiom in your country, that is, long-distance friendship and close attack? Precisely because Germany could not project its influence in the Far East. So we are friends, and for Britain, which is entrenched in the Far East, this is always a potential threat to your country? Can I understand it that way? Tirpitz thought for a moment and suddenly realized..........

"That's right, you can understand it that way." Xu Jie smiled and nodded.

Thank you for the lightness of Shuyou Mountain and the reward of Kongchen~~~. The pattern of the First World War on this plane is freshly baked~~~.! ~！ ……，。