1905: Beer Hall Speaker

Page 144

Zhao Yan did not shy away from the issue and readily acknowledged the identities of his soldiers. He had no shortage of courage; if someone died fighting for him in a foreign land, and in the end you didn't even acknowledge their identity, Zhao Yan couldn't do that.

Jordan was initially pleased to hear Zhao Yan acknowledge the soldiers' identities, but when Zhao Yan revealed that these soldiers were on vacation and had died, demanding compensation from them, he was furious.

"Sir, please stop making excuses!" Jordan presented his evidence again: "We found some explosive fragments near the entrance to the temple's underground vault, and they all had Chinese characters on them!"

Zhao Yan still refused to admit it: "This is normal. Our country has also exported some explosives to other countries. This doesn't prove anything."

Jordan continued, "What about the Type 02 rifles? We found dozens of Type 02 rifles in the capital of Kerala, and even the wreckage of three Type 02 squad automatic weapons, which are unique to your country!"

Zhao Yan still refused to admit it: "The Type 02 rifle looks very similar to your country's Infield rifle. I guess your country has mistaken it for something else. As for the squad automatic weapon, perhaps our army is stealing and selling weapons. I will order a thorough investigation into this."

Jordan underestimated Zhao Yan's shamelessness. Even now, he still refuses to admit his mistakes, so don't blame him for pulling out his trump card.

"Sir, since you insist on your sophistry, then our country has no choice but to hang the twenty-three unidentified armed men we captured as pirates in the port!"

Jordan then spoke his final words: the British had captured twenty-three armed personnel of the National Defence Force at a coastal port in Kerala. They were all people who had gotten lost and delayed, and had not been able to catch up with the merchant fleet.

With thousands of people operating in a foreign country, and the last-minute changes to the plan extending the operation time and workload, it's quite normal for things to go wrong and for some people to be arrested.

The loss of dozens of people was entirely within the soldiers' tolerance, but the fact that the British captured them alive was truly distressing.

Upon hearing this news, Zhao Yan's entire demeanor changed instantly, his sharp gaze sweeping over Juldin: "How are they now?"

"What did you do to my soldiers?!"

"answer me!"

Jordan was terrified. When Zhao Yan heard that his soldiers had been captured, he changed completely and even began to exude a murderous aura.

Zhao Yan was an "emperor" who came from a military background, a fact that Zhu Erdian had almost forgotten. Once the other party started to get serious, Zhu Erdian actually felt that he was not able to keep up.

He had met His Majesty the King, but his own Majesty did not possess Zhao Yan's fierce and ruthless killing intent; his aura was simply incomparable.

“Calm down, Führer!” Jordan quickly replied, “They are protected by the Geneva Convention. We did not torture them. They only answered with their unit number and identity.”

“We absolutely did not mistreat them. The British Empire is also a signatory to the Geneva Conventions, and we abide by the treaty.”

After listening, Zhao Yan was relieved and nodded, saying, "Very good. The Republic will never abandon any soldier who fought for it. We need all fallen soldiers and prisoners of war to return to China intact."

"This matter is open to discussion!"

"But it's definitely not about the £100 million you're claiming; we will never acknowledge or accept that figure."

Jordan was surprised that Zhao Yan valued his soldiers so much. It was completely unexpected. In the British Empire, there were only twenty-odd soldiers, which would have been unnecessary.

"Your country must return all the looted treasure. We have already obtained the relevant data from the survivors!"

“If you return what was stolen, our country can pretend this never happened.”

"This outcome is the most dignified ending for both of us."

Jordan laid out a condition, one that would leave Zhao Yan with nothing. He deliberately omitted the data from the Indian investigation, letting Zhao Yan speak for himself.

Zhao Yan nodded: "Okay, our country is willing to return a total of four tons of gold, one ton of gems, and other treasures!"

Upon hearing this number, Jordan's face darkened immediately: "Sir, your offer is completely insincere. We have already investigated how much you stole from the temple."

That temple was not some abandoned temple, but one of the largest temples in the surrounding area, and it was close to the royal city. It had thousands of monks and countless believers.

It's impossible for the task force to completely eliminate all survivors; there will always be some.

Among the surviving monks were those who knew the specifics of the treasure, and in addition to the monks, many nobles in the capital of Kerala were also aware of it.

Hundreds of tons of gold are buried under the temple. This isn't a gold mine, but a treasure housed in a vault. It's impossible for no one to know about it. The reason for keeping it a secret is to prevent the British from finding out. If the Indians knew about it and leaked the information, they wouldn't get a single penny of the treasure; it would all belong to the British.

So they kept it a secret, and in many cases they even hid themselves.

Temples are much safer than British banks. Even the British Empire would be mindful of religious matters and wouldn't dare to cause trouble in temples.

The underground vault of the temple served as a safe haven for the surrounding nobles and high-caste Indians. No one could have predicted that someone in China, thousands of miles away, would know so much about this vault.

Zhao Yan: "Mr. Ambassador, your country must have done this many times before, but I ask you, when has the British Empire ever returned the lost item to its owner?"

"Even if it were to be returned, we would only return it to the Indians. There is no doubt that China has never stolen a penny of British property."

"As for colonial property, if you can plunder it, why can't we?"

"It seems your country has also stolen quite a lot from our country, hasn't it? If you are willing to return everything, then I am also willing to return all the gold intact."

Jordan retorted, "These are clearly two different things; you're just making excuses!"

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Zhao Yan looked at the other person, raised his chin, and said contemptuously, "Mr. Ambassador, you are speaking to the Head of State of the Republic of China!"

"Even if what I say is a lie, 400 million Chinese people will carry it out while I'm asleep."

"The final condition is that the twenty-three captured personnel, plus the sixteen corpses, each receive one ton of gold, for a total of thirty-nine tons!"

"Hand over the people and their remains to us, then take the thirty-nine tons of gold, and that will be the end of this matter."

Jordan, steeling himself, said, "Your Excellency, you are playing with fire. The British Empire will not tolerate this."

Zhao Yan: "Stop arguing, answer me! Yes or no!"

Jordan asked, "What if we choose to refuse?"

Zhao Yan: "A small state like Kerala has so much gold and gemstones. Our country is very interested in the question of how much gold India actually has."

"The gold that your country cannot obtain, we have plenty of ways to get our hands on. If you refuse, I will send troops to conduct a comprehensive survey of India's gold reserves!"

Zhao Yan's final attitude was exceptionally firm: he wanted the people, and he would not let go of the gold either. If they agreed, then it would be fine for everyone; if they did not agree, then he would use the gold as military funds to fight in India and bring back the people and their remains.

Jordan wasn't afraid of anyone else making a strong statement, but Zhao Yan did. Even the British Prime Minister and the King would be apprehensive if they heard that, let alone an ambassador like him.

Several years ago, Zhao Yan dared to lead the fledgling republic to take on the three great powers of Britain, Japan, and Russia. After personally leading the campaign, all the opponents were defeated. Who would dare not be wary of such ability?

Now that the Republic has been recuperating and developing for several years, its national strength is much greater than before. If Zhao Yan wanted to, he could easily wage a protracted war against the British in India and the South Asian subcontinent.

Whether the British can win is uncertain, but what is certain is that India, this shining pearl, will definitely be shattered, and the military expenditure will far exceed the treasures looted by the Chinese.

Only a fool would be out of his mind to engage in a major war with the Chinese in India at this critical juncture of the arms race.

Jordan did not agree on the spot because he did not have the authority; he had to report to the mainland and obtain the final decision before he could reply to Zhao Yan.

Before leaving, he only said one sentence: "Your country will eventually pay the price for this!"

Hearing the other party make such harsh remarks, Zhao Yan didn't take it to heart at all. When an opponent makes such harsh remarks, it usually means they have chosen to compromise. As for the deterioration of Sino-British relations, Zhao Yan didn't care about that either.

With so many British colonies right on China's doorstep, it was destined that relations between the two countries could never be good. You're practically hanging hams out to dry in front of my house, how could I possibly resist taking them? Who the hell would believe that?

The two countries are destined to be unable to be friends. Japan, that tiny little country, once it grew its teeth, the first thing it did was to fight the Europeans and seize their colonies. How could China be even worse than Japan?

If China wants to restore its former glory, these colonies on its doorstep must be eliminated.

The Chinese themselves are aware of this, and the British are even more aware of it.

Chapter 239 The Arms Race of Small Steps

In early May, after traveling more than 2,000 nautical miles, the fleet safely arrived at the port of Guangzhou.

On May 25, a British cruiser also arrived in Hong Kong under the guise of a visit, secretly handing over all the remains and prisoners of war at the port, but in the end the British did not get the thirty-six tons of gold.

They only received the equivalent of 36 tons of gold in Republic of China national bonds, roughly 40 million yuan worth of national bonds. Originally, Zhao Yan only wanted to give them Han Yuan banknotes, but thinking that was still a bit too much, he changed it to national bonds, with some interest paid.

The British were so angry they were practically grinding their teeth to powder, and they turned around and launched a fierce retaliation.

The British then announced the approval of an 18 million pound low-interest loan to Japan, while also declaring the continuation of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance and accepting the Japanese government's request to build two Kongo-class battlecruisers for Japan.

This is clearly aimed at China. Last month, Japan's two domestically built Kawachi-class battleships, namely the Kawachi and Settsu, were launched and commissioned.

The final burst of energy unleashed by Japan, which was driven by its militaristic ambitions, was astonishing. The Japanese Navy disposed of all the former dreadnoughts that occupied its organizational structure and precious funds, and even sold the captured Russian capital ships to Chile. The Ottoman Empire also sold off a lot of second-hand old ships of the Japanese Navy at bargain prices. After all, they only needed to deal with the Russian Black Sea Fleet and did not need expensive dreadnoughts.

By phasing out and selling off old and obsolete ships, and by exploiting South Korea and domestic resources, the Japanese Navy not only built and launched two Hanoi-class dreadnoughts, but also launched four armored cruisers and several destroyers.

Furthermore, the construction of the Fusō-class ships was launched this year, forcibly starting the construction of two Fusō-class main warships. Just when they were worried about not having enough money, the British took the initiative to offer them low-interest loans.

With the strong support of the British Empire, the Japanese Navy also announced the ambitious Eight-Eight Fleet plan, determined to build a combined fleet with eight dreadnoughts as the main force and eight cruisers as the auxiliary force.

The country will build two Hanoi-class and two Fusō-class battleships domestically, import two Kongo-class battleships from the UK, and then build two more domestically. Half of its cruisers will also be purchased from the UK.

The Japanese placed great importance on the speed of imported capital ships and cruisers, demanding that they be as fast as possible, specifically targeting the fast warships that the Republic was launching one after another.

Even if the Japanese sold everything they owned, they could not have built such a large fleet on their own, but the British were willing to spend money to support them.

Europe has entered the height of the arms race, but the Far East remains stagnant. The Japanese want to engage in arms races but lack the funds, while the Chinese have the money but are unwilling to participate.

The Japanese understand that a war between China and Japan is inevitable. China has made no attempt to conceal its naked hostility towards Japan. After Japan completely loses the Chinese market, it will be impossible for Japan to recover and rebuild. It can only gamble its national destiny by going all in.

Domestically, the Japanese government began to ease relations with the Red rebel forces, while internationally it continuously sold off its sovereignty in exchange for aid and loans from Europe and the United States. In just a few years, it reverted to being a semi-colonial country as it had been before the First Sino-Japanese War.

China, on the other hand, remained aloof, focusing on developing its own industry and economy, and consolidating its foundation before making any moves.

The British clearly saw through China's strategy of "keeping a low profile and biding its time." They wanted to weaken Europe so they could profit from the chaos. Everyone could see through this idea.

The British no longer wanted to sit idly by and watch China develop so peacefully. This country was too large; if it continued to develop steadily for decades, no one would be able to defeat it in the future.

At that time, the British Empire was still the absolute world hegemon, a wealthy and powerful nation. Digging a few more shovelfuls of gold in South Africa could yield a lot of money.

Moreover, inspired by the Chinese looting, the British Empire also began to take action against Indian temples and nobles, breaking the tacit agreement and starting to exploit them.

You don't know until you try, and what you find is astonishing. Their gains far surpass those of the Indian Army's hasty looting, easily making a fortune. The price, however, is that India's ruling order has begun to crumble imperceptibly.

After making a fortune, the British began to provide substantial aid to Japan and took the initiative to drag China into the vortex of the arms race.

In this world, apart from the Americans, who are somewhat untouchable, all other countries can be dragged into the fray in no time, especially in East Asia, a powder keg. If one country engages in an arms race, the other country simply cannot escape.

Upon receiving the news, Zhao Yan could only sigh helplessly. He had foreseen this day when the military made a mess of things. There are gains and losses in everything. There is no such thing as a windfall. Every gift from fate comes with a price.

Upon hearing of the astonishing actions taken by the other side, the Republic's Navy immediately contacted Zhao Yan, Wang Chongshan, and Sa Zhenbing, who arrived together. This time, even the Army was forced to support the Navy.

If Japan were to actually build the Eight-Eight Fleet, the entire army would have to be converted into a coastal defense force, and they wouldn't be able to do anything else. They would be deployed all the way from the Korean coastline to the port of Chengfang in Guangxi, with 700,000 troops, including even the garrison troops.

In the past, the Republic could not take the old-fashioned, pre-dreadnought fleets of the Japanese Navy seriously, but now that they have been replaced by high-speed, dreadnought fleets, who would dare to be complacent?

The most disgusting thing about the arms race is that others don't even need to build them and drive them to your doorstep; they just need to put forward a plan, and the potential threat pops up, forcing you to follow suit.

Japan's Eight-Eight Fleet was clearly not a defensive fleet. Given its internal and external troubles, how could it be defensive in such a way, risking the nation's fate, selling off its assets, and mortgaging its last shred of future?

It's obvious that once it's built, it's intended to reenact the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, to defeat China again, and to reclaim the nation's destiny.

It's even said that once the 88 fleets are assembled, war must begin immediately, because they simply cannot afford to maintain them and must fight right away.

Zhao Yan understood everything and saw through the other side's scheme, but he could only grit his teeth and fall into the trap. These were all open schemes, and there was no other way but to confront them head-on. Conspiracies could be exposed, but open schemes could only be resisted.

Sa Zhenbing, representing the Navy, proposed the tit-for-tat "Eight-Eight Plan," which also demanded the construction of eight capital ships and eight cruisers. The capital ships were to be built to the most advanced British Elizabeth-class construction standards, and the cruisers were to be armored cruisers with full protection, unlike the "Confucius" class which was designed to look like a bikini.

The British were still laying the keel and building their Elizabeth-class battleships when the navy was already trying to catch up. Zhao Yan didn't know how to scold the navy.

Those are veterans who have been in the navy for hundreds of years. You're just a newbie who's only been involved with modern naval affairs for a few decades. You've barely learned to walk and suffered a terrible fall in the First Sino-Japanese War. Now you want to compete with them in a 100-meter dash? Dream on!

First of all, China doesn't have that kind of advanced technology. Even the Germans didn't have the technology for a 15-inch naval gun! Do you expect the British to sell it to you?

Another issue is the terrifying cost. The British themselves paid around £2.4 million to build them, which translates to 30 million Han Yuan per ship at the exchange rate. Eight ships would cost 240 million Han Yuan. The Republic could afford this amount, but it would severely impact the domestic economy.

The cost of building a capital ship is very high, but the expenses for training, personnel, bases, and port logistics are even more staggering.

Not to mention the eight cruisers, all of which are armored cruisers, costing not much less than capital ships, and are also money-guzzling behemoths.

The entire package, including the shipbuilding costs alone, would amount to 400 million yuan. There would also be a series of subsequent expenditures until the ship achieves combat capability, which would require at least 600 million yuan to invest.

Zhao Yan said that no matter what, he would never approve such an outrageous plan. He directly rejected the Navy's Plan 88 and proposed a compromise: the arms race must be participated in, but not in such a mindless way.

Being led by your opponent is never a good thing. Even in an arms race, you have to have your own ideas and find alternative ways to catch up with your opponent.

Zhao Yan proposed a "small steps, quick progress" strategy, setting the tone for the arms race. He also approved an additional 40 million Han Yuan in special shipbuilding funds for the year to launch the country's main warship construction program.

Next year's funding will be allocated depending on the situation. Every year, the decision must be made based on the fiscal situation of that year, and military spending must be within a reasonable range. The arms race must be followed, but it must not affect the development of the domestic economy and industry.

An extra tens of millions of yuan in expenses each year is manageable, but hundreds of millions is absolutely unacceptable.

Zhao Yan would not risk exhausting the nation's resources for such a minor incident with the Japanese; it was simply not worth it.

If you really plunge headlong into it, the West might upgrade the Japanese 88 Fleet to the 88th Fleet. At that time, you'll still have to keep following, and they might use a pretext to drag you down.

Zhao Yan was no stranger to Star Wars tricks. As a former conman, he never listened to what people said, only watched what they did.

I'll just follow your lead, as long as I don't fall too far behind and we stay in the same tier, then I can't lose.

Zhao Yan still didn't believe that the Japanese, in their current state, could possibly manage to build the Eight-Eight Fleet. In the original timeline, they hadn't even fully resolved the issue by the Washington Naval Conference. How could they possibly manage it now, amidst these internal and external troubles?

The only concern is the ruthlessness inherent in the Japanese; they often accomplish what others consider impossible by sheer determination.

For this reason, Zhao Yan approved additional military funding to accelerate the development of the navy, but this acceleration should be appropriate, and the accelerator should not be pressed down and then unable to be lifted.

The nation's main focus must remain on internal development; this is the unwavering number one strategy. Investing one dollar in national development will yield ten dollars in the future, while investing one dollar in an arms race will be a complete waste. Unless a world war breaks out tomorrow, Zhao Yan will remain steadfast in pursuing development.

Once the nation's strength increases, the Republic can completely crush Japan just like the United States did during World War II. We'll let you gain the advantage in the early stages, and then we'll play the late game.

"Regarding the naval development plan, in principle, we should maintain the tonnage of the Japanese Navy at around 50% to 60%. In peacetime, we must not allow military spending to hold economic development hostage!"