The construction cycle of a 10,000-ton armored cruiser is 18-24 months, so it can be completely waited until the preliminary test results of the integrated fire control system come out and be installed and used on the warship. Moreover, the time travelers also hope to use the integrated fire control system as soon as possible. After all, this is the trend of the development of warship technology. The earlier you use it, the one step ahead in the accumulation of experience and technology.

Another cooperative development project, the steam turbine developed in cooperation with Blom Fors Shipyard, is not that optimistic. It is still in the sample manufacturing stage. After all, the technology of the steam turbine is complex and Germany lacks relevant experience. Although it has theoretical experience as a time traveler, it cannot produce results in a short period of time. The project engineers at Blom Fors Shipyard estimated that it will take at least 3 years to produce samples for testing on board. For real practical application, it is expected to take 5-7 years, and the entire project will take about 10 years to complete.

At first glance, this time was very long, but for a new technology, which is a new technology with a change nature, the 10-year development cycle was quite short. Charles Algeron Parsons, the inventor of the steam turbine, began to develop steam turbines as early as 1877, and it was not officially installed on warships in 1897. It was not until 1905 that the British Navy decided that all warships built in the future would use steam turbines as power. Two years later, the USS Desperate battleship, which installed steam turbines, was launched, which completely replaced the reciprocating steam engines and became the main power of the ship. Therefore, the crossers and Germany can only wait patiently.

After the allocation of the two warships was decided, the most important price negotiations were negotiated, but the final negotiations ended in just one day. The two sides did not bargain too much. Finally, the price of the 7,000-ton armored cruiser was set at 3.88 million taels of silver, about 640,000 pounds, and will be delivered in May 1904; the price of the 10,000-ton armored cruiser was set at 5.08 million taels of silver, about 830,000 pounds, and will be delivered in December 1904. The two warships totaled 1.47 million pounds, which is indeed a very favorable price, which is only slightly higher than the purchase price of the German Navy. Moreover, the previous design contract between the East China government and the German Navy was 160,000 pounds, so the actual number of these two armored cruisers was only 1.31 million pounds.

The reason why we can talk about the price is that both sides have plans to cooperate with each other; on the other hand, the design contract of the German Navy obtained by the time traveler, which is four 12,000-ton armored cruisers and five 15,000-ton battleships. This is a considerable shipbuilding project. Although both shipyards are one of the most important shipyards in Germany, they will definitely get a share of this project.

But Germany's shipyards are not just these two. Although it cannot be said that there are too many monks and less porridge, if you do nothing, you can only get one from them. However, this is definitely not enough for the two shipyards. Two are the bottom line, and of course it is best to have more and better. Although the decision to allocate shipbuilding is the German Navy, as the designer of warships, overseas Chinese must also have a considerable say, so naturally, they must handle the relationship with overseas Chinese well.

After the new shipbuilding contract was signed, both parties were very satisfied. At this time, the maintenance and commissioning of the two warships was also completed, and the last sea trial will be conducted.

Since the two warships had actually completed at this time, the displacement was checked in the shipyard before this sea trial. The displacement of the ship can be divided into five levels: no load, standard, normal, full load, maximum. Usually warships focus on the two standards: standard displacement and full load displacement. Generally speaking, warship displacement refers to the standard displacement, including hull, machinery, armed, full personnel, ammunition, supply, fresh water, etc. but does not include fuel, lubricant, and spare boiler water; and the full load displacement is the standard displacement, and fuel, lubricant, spare boiler water is added to ensure that the warship can reach a sufficient level of full speed or endurance.

After testing, the standard displacement of the Qingzhou ship was 6322 tons and the full load displacement was 6954 tons; the standard displacement of the Yizhou ship was 6341 tons and the full load displacement was 6978 tons. Although these two warships are the same model, there are slight differences within the normal range.

In the last sea trial, the shipyard also tried its best to meet the requirements put forward by the crossing, and agreed that this trial voyage would be spent overnight at sea. However, the sea conditions required by the crossing can only be seen in the sky. Although the weather is expected to change when going out to sea, the weather forecast accuracy at this time is not high, and the changes in the weather at sea are much greater than those on land. The previous trial voyages were chosen for the 3 and 4 sea conditions, and they are basically in the nearshore areas. Once the weather changes, you can return to the port immediately.

The sea conditions on the first day were level 4. The two warships sailed about 60 kilometers away from the coast and re-examined the project of the last test again, because the sea test was replaced by the personnel who received the ship to control the warship and reworked all the test projects, which would help the personnel who received the ship to familiarize themselves with the performance and operation of the warship as soon as possible. Moreover, this test sail also achieved an ultra-high speed of 26.3 knots, and also conducted three consecutive trial sailings to accelerate to 25 knots. This was the interrupted acceleration function of the test warship. At the same time, all ship-based weapons were tested.

That night, both warships spent the night at sea, and according to the normal night duty requirements, the guards were left behind. But at around 4 a.m., the climate at sea changed. First of all, it started to rain. Soon, the wind was strong on the sea surface and the waves continued to rise. The ups and downs of the warship were obviously much bigger. During several ups and downs, the decks of the warships were almost close to the sea surface.

At 4:40 a.m., the weather became very harsh, and the wind and rain became heavier, and the waves even rushed to the deck of the warship. Zhang Wei judged that the sea conditions must be above level 5, or even reached level 6, and if this continues, it is very likely to break through level 6 and reach level 7. At this time, Kewell suggested to Zhang Wei that it is best to drive to the coast at this time, because the closer the coast is to the coast, the smaller the wind and waves will be. If it really doesn't work, you can rush to the beach and strand it, and then transfer the tow boat to pull it after dawn. Moreover, all the operators are replaced by the staff of the shipyard. After all, they have considerable experience in dealing with this harsh environment.

Zhang Wei also accepted Kewell's suggestion, so he ordered the captains of both warships to get up and prepare for rescue and operate. After the order was passed, the Qingzhou ship had just turned the bow of the ship, and a large wave hit the bow of the ship, and a large amount of sea water slapped heavily on the deck of the bow. At this moment, the bow of the ship fell, so it suddenly sank and was buried in the sea.

A burst of exclamation suddenly came out in the command room, and some people shouted: The warship is about to sink. But at this moment, the bow of the ship suddenly raised up again and broke free from the sea water. The sea water rushed down from the upward warship deck, and many of them rushed to the porthole of the command center. However, when the warship was designed, three gaps were left on the side of the ship on both sides. At that time, many people were puzzled, but in fact they were used for drainage. Therefore, before the warship fell again, all the sea water on the deck was left.

However, the warships fell together and many people in the command center fell to the ground. Zhang Wei frowned. In fact, he had experienced such a weather environment no less than 10 times. Just now, it was just a normal ship bow. If he was carrying his own Sanya ship, of course he was not worried at all. However, Zhang Wei was not sure whether this warship could withstand it. After all, he did not have much experience in operating warships in this era.

Zhang Wei also knew that he must not panic at this time, so he immediately shouted: "Don't panic for all personnel. The people in the command center find seats, fasten their seat belts, and notify the helmsman to stabilize the rudder. The personnel in the cabin should change into life jackets, find a place to grab and support them, and do not allow them to go to the deck." He turned to Cowell and said: "You should have more experience in dealing with such weather than us, so you can command it."

Cowell nodded, immediately took over the captain's position and said: "Left 15 degrees rudder, slow down by 3 knots."

At this time, another big wave came over, and the bow of the ship was buried in the sea again, but it quickly jumped out of the water. However, with the experience of the last time, the crew members were calmed down and no one screamed again.

As soon as the wave ended, Cowell immediately ordered: "Return to the rudder by 10 degrees, and the speed remains unchanged."

Seeing that the warship was under control, Zhang Wei was a little relieved, so he could take care of the situation of the Yizhou from the porthole. He saw that the Yizhou was also undulating in the wind and waves, so he hurriedly said: "Contact the Yizhou and ask about their situation."

Although it will affect the radio transmission signals during the storm, the time travelers bring the top communication equipment in the old time and space, so although the sound is intermittent, it can still be heard clearly. The reply from the Yizhou number is in good condition.

Zhang Wei was a little relieved when he heard this, but Sher and Kewell's eyes flashed with a strange color. Unexpectedly, overseas Chinese actually had tools for long-distance calls. Sher even understood what this tool meant to the navy. It seems that overseas Chinese really have treasures to discover.

Of course, it is not the time to ask these questions. Cowell said: "General Zhang, don't worry, the trial sailing command of that warship is also an experienced old crew member. Such weather will not hurt him. But please inform them and follow us and don't get lost."

Then he ordered: "Open all the lighting in the ship, turn left 20 degrees, and accelerate."

So in the wind and waves, two warships passed through the sudden wind and waves, like two big fish passing through the sea. Although they were up and down, they passed through layers of big waves and always insisted on the direction of their progress.

As time passed, before we knew it, the wind gradually slowed down, the rain stopped, the waves eased significantly, and a gray cloud appeared on the edge of the eastern sky.
Chapter completed!