Chapter Fourteen: The Father of the Navy

  William did not expect to see Feng Chengqian in the backyard either.

  After exchanging a few pleasantries, William invited Feng Chengqian to visit him as a guest and they discussed some naval matters before parting ways.

  After the emperor's return, the crown prince no longer held the position of regent and therefore had no reason to inquire about state affairs.

  Feng Chengqian arrived at the imperial study just as the meeting with the emperor was getting underway.

  Normally, Frederick III would hold a general assembly attended by all cabinet officials once a month and a small meeting attended by key cabinet members once a week. In special circumstances, Frederick III would convene an ad hoc imperial conference at any time depending on the matter involved.

  This time, Frederick III summoned relevant cabinet officials.

  Apart from Imperial Chancellor Bismarck, there were also the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Industry, the Minister of Interior and several other cabinet members related to the construction of the Baghdad Railway.

  Although Frederick III had reached an understanding with Bismarck to first build the railway to Istanbul and then decide whether to continue further based on Britain's reaction, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Industry and the Minister of Interior all expressed their opposition, believing that the time for building the Baghdad Railway was not yet ripe.

  The debate went on for more than two hours until sunset without reaching a conclusion.

  Frederick III's patience was also exhausted, and he finally decided to let Bismarck negotiate with Britain, and wait for the outcome of the negotiations before making a decision.

  As for the expenses of building railways, they were raised by the Minister of Finance.

  This was just the first topic of the day.

  Next is the discussion of Feng Chengqian's proposal on naval construction.

  "On the issue of funding, I have reached an agreement with the Chancellor. The naval budget for next year will be twice that of this year, accounting for 10% of the imperial army's budget." Frederick III was probably tired of haggling with his ministers and directly presented the conditions to them. "The financial budget needs to be revised, William has expressed willingness to donate half of his annual salary to the navy, as the Emperor, I also need to set an example."

  "Your Majesty..."

  "Next year, the imperial household expenditure will be halved and all the saved money will be used for naval construction."

  The Chancellor was taken aback for a moment and did not know how to refute the Emperor.

  Bismarck was also somewhat surprised, after all, reducing the royal family's expenses would affect all members of the royal family, and there would definitely be people who were dissatisfied, which would make the royal family uneasy.

  "Building a navy is crucial to the empire's long-term foundation. If the imperial family does not set an example, how can we expect our subjects to be convinced?" Frederick III said, looking at Bismarck. "As the emperor of the empire, if I myself cannot set an example, how can I expect others to work for the empire? This matter is decided, please submit a new financial budget report as soon as possible, and hope that each department will appropriately reduce expenses to support the construction of the navy."

  Bismarck did not oppose it, and naturally the Minister of Finance could not come out in opposition.

  Feng Chengqian did not speak up, nor was it convenient for him to do so at this time. Frederick III had already offended many people by strongly supporting the construction of the navy, and if Feng Chengqian were to come forward now, he would only be standing in the wind and waves, becoming the target of other ministers' dissatisfaction.

  After the meeting, Feng Chengqian declined Frederick III's invitation and decided to go home for dinner.

  This meeting gave Feng Chongqi the greatest feeling that, as a war minister specifically responsible for naval construction, he was isolated in the imperial cabinet.

  Although the emperor's support brought him great benefits, it was not always possible to get the emperor's support.

  On his way home, Feng Chengqian kept thinking about this problem, but in this era, who else could he rely on besides the emperor?

  As they approached the Earl's residence, Feng Chengqian seemed to have thought of something and stopped the carriage.

  "Go to the Crown Prince."

  "Count, it's already late at night, now going..."

  "Go ahead, the crown prince won't be sleeping this early."

  Schmidt didn't ask any more questions, after all, where they were going was up to Feng Chengqian.

  After coming of age, Crown Prince Wilhelm moved from the Potsdam Palace to the Kronprinzenpalais in Berlin, but often stayed at the palace for a while.

  Fortunately, the crown prince did not stay overnight at the palace tonight.

  "The Earl is a rare guest."

  "I'm afraid I've kept you waiting, Your Highness. I should have come to pay my respects earlier, but I've been busy with various matters and only managed to do so today."

  "Count, don't be polite, coming at midnight, there must be something important?"

  Feng Chengqian smiled and accepted the cigar handed over by William. Not many people knew that Feng Chengqian liked cigars, so William was being thoughtful.

  "To be honest with Your Highness, I have come today because there is indeed something I would like to ask for your help with."

  "Related to the navy?"

  Feng Chengqian nodded and said, "Your Majesty has already issued an edict, and next year's naval expenditure will be doubled to reach 10% of the army's. Although the prime minister and other ministers have all agreed, I think this matter is still not appropriate. In the imperial cabinet, there are actually not many people who truly support the construction of the navy."

  "The meaning of Earl is..."

  "I don't know, Your Highness, whether there is a suitable candidate?"

  "This..."

  "Although Your Majesty appointed me as the Minister of War, I am only in charge of naval affairs. The current Ministry of War is like a door that can't be closed. As the saying goes, 'one hand cannot clap'. Even if Your Majesty trusts me and Your Highness supports me, managing such a large organization alone is still a bit beyond my power."

  Crown Prince William nodded thoughtfully and began to ponder.

  "I heard that the boss went to England last year?"

  "Last year? The celebration of my grandmother's fiftieth anniversary on the throne, that was no laughing matter, did the Earl think to mock me with this?"

  "Your Highness is overthinking this, isn't it just that Your Highness went ahead and should have had naval officers and soldiers following along?"

  "This..." William thought for a moment and said, "Now that the Earl mentions it, I do recall someone who might be more suitable."

  Feng Chengqian smiled and intentionally reminded William of his status as crown prince.

  "Has the Earl ever heard of Colonel Tirpitz?"

  Feng Chengqian's eyebrows jumped a few times. How could he have never heard of the father of the German Second Empire's High Seas Fleet?

  "Last year, it was he who accompanied me to England. We talked a lot about naval matters on the way, and this man had great foresight and a very deep understanding of the role and status of the navy. It's just that in the past few years, he has not been reused, and has been unknown in the navy, I'm afraid the earl hasn't heard of him."

  "He has been serving in the torpedo squadron for almost ten years now?"

  William was taken aback, and it wasn't until then that he realized Feng Chengqian knew Tirpitz.

  "When Demong was the Minister of the Navy, he didn't pay much attention to the torpedo squadron, so it's not surprising that an officer like Tirpitz wasn't reused." Feng Chengqian smiled and said, "Does Your Highness think this person is reliable?"

  "The meaning of Earl is..."

  "Your Highness's recommended talent, I will reuse myself, it's just..."

  "That's definitely no problem, Earl can rest assured."

  Feng Chengqian nodded and said: "Then, please introduce me to His Highness."

  "That's settled," said William with a smile. "Strike while the iron is hot, before the Earl takes office as Minister of War. Tirpitz has just been promoted to Colonel and appointed Captain of a cruiser, returning to Berlin a few days ago, preparing to set sail for the Baltic Sea tomorrow noon."

  "That's good too, I'd like to meet this colonel as well."

  "Then, I would be honored if you could come earlier, Earl."

  Feng Chengqian smiled and nodded, saying: "It's getting late, Your Highness should rest early, I'll take my leave."

  On his way back to the Earl's residence from the Imperial Palace, Feng Chengqian's mood had brightened considerably.

  Before that, he had forgotten the famous "Father of the Imperial Navy". It wasn't until he went to find Crown Prince Wilhelm that it suddenly came back to him.

  If we can get Tirpitz's help, it will be a great advantage.

  Is this present Tirpitz the same man who was detested by several British First Lords of the Admiralty?

  In the familiar history of Feng Chengqian, it would not be until more than a decade later that Tirpitz would be reused by the German Emperor and serve as the Minister of the Navy of the Second German Empire, leading the construction work of the High Seas Fleet.

  Tirpitz was not yet forty years old and only a captain of a cruiser. More importantly, the First Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War had not yet broken out, and Tirpitz did not go to the Far East to witness these two wars. Did he have a deep enough understanding of the navy?

  Feng Chengqian was a bit skeptical, but after thinking about it, he also felt that there was no need to worry.

  If history had not changed too much, Wilhelm would have made friends with Tirpitz when he was still the crown prince and reused Tirpitz after his accession. In other words, before 1888, Tirpitz already had a sufficiently profound understanding of the navy.

  Even if Tirpitz had not yet realized the importance of the navy, von Caprivi could have enlightened him.

  But tonight was not peaceful.

  Back at the Earl's residence, Feng Chengqian met Karl who had come to visit again.

  It goes without saying that financial capitalists are extremely well-informed, and yet only a few hours have passed since the imperial cabinet government has not released any news related to the construction of railways.

  Karl came to thank Feng Chengqian and naturally hoped to get more support.

  Because of the emperor's instructions, Feng Chengqian did not decline the benefits sent to his door and unceremoniously accepted the "labor fee" of one million imperial marks provided by Karl. For this reason, Feng Chengqian even opened a special account book, recording all the benefits he received.

  See off Karl, it's already dawn.

  Unlike people of this era, as a soldier from the Doomsday War, Feng Chengqian not only received special training but also underwent special physical conditioning. Under normal circumstances, he only needed to rest for four hours a day. If necessary, he could go without sleep for several days in a row.

  Before dawn broke, Feng Chengqian got up and started a new day's work.

  At this point, his life in this era has finally gotten on track, and he can at least do what he wants to do.

  April 24, 1888 will definitely go down in history because on this day, Feng Chengqian will meet the father of the Imperial Navy. However, after Feng Chengqian came to this era, is Tirpitz still the father of the Imperial Navy? In all the historical books of this world, Tirpitz is only a meritorious minister of the Imperial Navy, and the creator of the German Second Empire Navy is none other than Feng Chengqian!