Chapter 312 After Returning Home
The pressure is high, and the hair on the head is getting thinner and thinner.
After being angry in the dock inside the shipyard, the director started shaking again when he returned to the office.
The corridor outside the office was blocked by rows of merchants waiting to see him.
These are representatives of private shipyards.
The Northern Principality has never banned private shipyards from entering this track, and the sea trade boom has also brought enough orders, and most of them are doing very well.
However, when the ironclad ship was launched, the sailing wooden boats in the past were swept into the garbage ditch, and the shipbuilding technology, which was originally limited, was widened all of a sudden.
The official did not follow the martial ethics and let these private shipyards stop directly.
And before they could increase their investment to catch up, commercial ironclad ships were launched again.
The speed was so fast that most people could not react.
Nowadays, private shipyards can only buy some marine steam engines from steam engine factories and then modify them on wooden sailboats.
This cheap modification method can be recognized by the market.
However, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this market will completely disappear within ten years.
When the old batch of wooden sailing ships were eliminated, not many people chose sailing ships with low load and slow speed.
Self-research is one way, and direct introduction of technology is another way.
Therefore, the threshold of military shipyards was trampled.
Fortunately, Derek acquiesced to this technology transfer, otherwise the shipyards would not dare to pick and choose in preparing technology transfer.
Andre guessed correctly that a large number of ironclad ships would soon fall into the water, and the future maritime trade would usher in earth-shaking changes.
In fact, when he was returning home on a passenger ship, it had already caused a sensation.
The black ironclad ship sailed into the port of the Griffin Kingdom, and even the largest berth could not stop.
In the end, because of its black paint, the passenger ship, called the Black Pearl by the Griffin Kingdom, could only stay near the coast and transport a large number of passengers and goods to shore through small boats.
This huge merchant ship even caused a certain panic.
The Griffin Kingdom Navy Fleet came out in full force, but even the largest three-masted sailing warship, with sails, was flush with the deck of the Pearl.
A bunch of navy main battleships looked like toys that were a few sizes smaller.
After Andre landed, he quickly rushed to the capital.
The navy fleet patrolled day and night and did not dare to neglect it.
The Golden Griffin!!
As the main battleship of the Griffin Kingdom Navy, it has just been launched for less than a year, and its technology comes from the three-masted sailing ship technology of the Northern Principality.
A bunch of senior noble officers of the navy are on it, observing the Pearl at close range.
But the more they look, the uglier their faces become.
"Count, do you want to rob this ship?"
Some people were greedy. Such an ironclad ship is worth a lot of money if it is dismantled and sold as scrap metal, not to mention the technical value it represents.
But immediately someone shouted angrily: "Are you out of your mind?
The merchant ships of the Northern Principality all use ironclad ships. Do you think that warships will be worse than merchant ships?"
There is no burden for everyone to rob the weak.
But when facing the strong, they have to follow the rules.
Because there is no risk of bullying the weak.
But if you offend a strong person, you will be sunk into the sea.
The Griffin Kingdom has been able to maintain its pride, partly because of its unique geographical location.
Unless the Northern Principality overthrows the Holy Cross Kingdom, it can only attack through the land channel between the straits.
In terms of the navy, the Griffin Kingdom is the leading boss among the three southern countries.
Even though the three-masted sailing warships of the Northern Principality have developed rapidly in recent years, the Griffin Kingdom has accumulated technology and has completed imitations, and they still have a certain degree of confidence in the navy.
Therefore, the Griffin Kingdom has always been the most arrogant, because their army can maintain the security of their homeland.
But the ironclad ship in front of them means that the kingdom's navy is lagging behind in all aspects, and they have to consider what to do if the Northern Principality attacks?
After a suffocating silence, Count Joseph of the Navy sighed: "I have heard that the Northern Principality's ocean-going fleet has ironclad ships, but it's a pity that the king... Alas, wait for the order from the capital."
The current situation is no longer something that their single force can solve.
How to make a decision requires the highest level of the kingdom to decide.
As a passenger ship with a special mission, the Pearl launched several more cannons.
The structure of the passenger ship is destined not to be the best warship, but the huge size can also install some medium-caliber cannons.
Compared with the three-masted sailing warship, the Pearl's cannon caliber is larger.
The bored Pearl directly played the fish bombing game with a cannon with a caliber of more than 120 mm.
The sudden bombardment scared the surrounding Griffin Kingdom Navy, but after seeing it clearly, they had no way to deal with it.
As for Andre who went ashore, he sat in a carriage and missed the train in the Northern Principality.
The official road that used to be good is now even more disgusting.
When the curtains were lifted, no black smoke could be seen, only backwardness.
When we arrived in the capital, we could not see the hurried footsteps, and everyone's rhythm seemed to be a beat slower.
In contrast, the entire Griffin Kingdom exuded a decadent smell, like an old man with half a foot in the coffin.
Arriving at the palace, Andre was summoned by the king.
He brought a few books with him and walked into the palace step by step.
"Count Andre, thank you for your hard work."
The king greeted him first, and then asked what he wanted: "Have you figured out the steam engine?"
"Your Majesty, the steam engine is real, and in my opinion, the future changes may be irreversible..."
Andre immediately told his own experience and brought his own guesses.
"These books are the latest academic achievements of the University of the Northern Principality. I suggest sending students to study, learn new knowledge in all aspects, and make certain reforms, otherwise the kingdom will be in danger."
"Scare talk!" Before Andre finished speaking, someone jumped out: "The kingdom has hundreds of years of heritage, how can a northern principality surpass it in a short time? Andre, what are you thinking?"
Without waiting for the argument to expand, the king raised his hand: "Okay, Count Andre will not lie to me.
Andre, I appoint you as the Royal Steam Factory Affairs Officer, responsible for the production of the new factory.
I want to see the effect of the steam machinery first, and then talk about the rest later."
As the leader of a country, of course it is impossible to make a simple decision to reform.
Andre had expected it, and he was happy to accept this task.
"Your Majesty, I apply to open a factory in the coastal area, which can save a lot of transportation costs."
"Okay."
The king agreed very straightforwardly, and his support was extraordinary.
Count Andre withdrew and set off again to visit the coastal ports. He wanted to make achievements and then lead the kingdom to catch up.
