C652 submarine cable

The big discussion on Japan went from 11: 00 PM to 4: 00 PM. The lunch was settled in a simple manner in the conference room. However, no consensus was reached during the five-hour meeting.

Japan had to intervene, because its strategic position was too important. Although 90% of the top generals of the New Army came from the mainland, they all realized how important the ocean was during an expedition last year.

The Chinese have always been an intelligent people, but sometimes they are influenced by the power of habit and sometimes their brains go out of their heads.

To the ocean, China's elite is merely a state policy that has lasted for thousands of years and is unwilling to change. Or rather, they are disdainful of going out into the world.

But once they walk out, the thick shell of habit that wraps around the Chinese will break with a bang, and the Chinese will be extremely smart. There are many reasons why you don't need to let them see it for themselves, and they will immediately understand the gist of it.

Just how important were the ocean s benefits? Xiao Letian no longer needed to repeat it every day, every officer who had ever been to Europe or the Ryukyu before had already figured it out.

Looking at the endless sea of fleets, at the sea of goods that spanned across the entire planet, at the armies of Europe defending the commercial interests of their countries, at the flow of funds … Everyone in China was shocked.

We have also had this kind of glory before. The interests of the silk road in the Golden Age of Han and Tang Dynasties were greatly enjoyed by the Chinese. The merchant ships of China in the Song and Ming dynasties also roamed the four seas.

Right now, the benefits of the sea were firmly under the control of the westerner. The British Empire's navy was following the famous strategy of becoming a top pair in history.

What is a two-power strategy? That is, Britain's navy is not only going to be number one in the world, but it is also going to exceed the total navy of the second and third powers.

To be able to develop such a marine strategy, one can imagine how much Britain relies on the benefits of the sea.

Xiao Letian would not challenge the British's interests in the sea right now, and he did not have the ability to do so either. However, he could still fight for control of China's coastal waters.

In the end, the Japanese Islands still had to be controlled by him. From the Japanese Islands to the south, Taiwan Island to the north, this was all an area that Xiao Letian could completely control.

The first island chain that once sealed off China is now the first bridgehead to protect it.

Not only that, Xiao Letian also cast his gaze at the Second Island Chain on the Pacific Ocean. Guam, Hawaii, Sulfur Island, the Mariana Islands, and even some of the ports of New Zealand and Australia, these strategic locations have not yet been shown their strategic value, and if they could get their hands on them before the United States does, there would be no enemy strongholds in the Western Pacific.

The ideal was grand, but it was not impossible. The annexation of Hawaii by the United States still had to wait until 1898, more than 30 years ago. The United States, which had just experienced the civil war, did not have any additional naval power to annex it.

The reason why Xiao Letian and the Frenchman wanted to negotiate with him to buy the Dahuangdi s was just an attempt on his strategy. First, he wanted to leave a flying seed outside the second island chain, regardless of whether or not he could hold on to it, of course, Xiao Letian did not expect that he would be able to go all out right now.

Dominating the entire world? This dream was very full, but the reality was very hard. Even when he had yet to manage East Asia well, he had already thought of those unrealistic ideas, which were not Xiao Letian's style.

The truth proved that there were still a lot of smart people in this world. Since Xiao Letian wanted to go to the South Pacific to get the next fly, then France would also be able to put a wedge between them on the first island.

Xiao Letian's stratagem, the Qing Dynasty's decadent scholars, could not understand him, but that did not mean that the French could not understand him.

France was willing to do something that could give Xiao Letian a headache. The hatred between the French Emperor and Xiao Letian had long ago reached a point where it could no longer be reconciled.

During the long meeting, these intelligent brains had gathered together to think hard, analyzing the situation from Japan all the way to East Asia, from Japan's strategic protection of China to the illusion that the First Island Chain was blocked.

This was a brainstorm destined to go down in history, until finally everyone at the scene reached a bit of consensus and two eye differences.

The consensus was simple, that they must interfere with the situation in Japan. Xiao Letian's power must control the situation in Japan, and make Japan into a bridgehead that could be controlled in Asia, and become a strategic buffer in the north of China.

Luo Huo, the representative of the hardcore faction, wanted to immediately send out their troops. Furthermore, after the victory, they would need to stay in Japan for a long period of time, and controlling Japan by force was their goal.

Xiao Hexin and the rest, on the other hand, were representatives of the moderate faction. They did not want to force Japan excessively, but hoped to use their economic and diplomatic powers to influence Japan.

The two points of view clashed intensely in the meeting room, and the argument continued all the way until the sun set. In the end, Xiao Letian still came to a conclusion, and then announced the end of the meeting.

"It's only the second month, and the French are only giving assistance to the Mu residence. There's still a long period of time before the marriage between the soldiers and their weapons and equipment. The French also pay great attention to the formation of new recruits, so three months of formation training is inevitable …"

After that is the training of equipment and people, and this will require another two to three months. In addition, we have to prepare the supplies within the country, which means that the conflict will last until August or September. In the autumn of this year, we still have plenty of time.

"So, let's not mess around first and work hard to accumulate all of our assets. In the end, everything depends on our strength … "Go, remember to start tomorrow. Every day is a war preparation day, train my troops well!"

"Yes sir!" The entire meeting room stood up and saluted the Prime Minister.

Xiao Letian walked out of the smoky meeting room, and a few servants ran in to clean up. Just the ashtray had emptied ten large urns, and all the windows had been opened to blow cold air in.

"If these guys don't study, they'll learn to be bad. All of them will be addicted to cigarettes. I'm sure I'll have to force them to quit later …"

Just as he was complaining, an old and frail figure walked over. It was Xiao Letian's father-in-law, Fan Lian, who ran over excitedly.

"Oh my god!" "Great news, the first submarine cables from the United States have arrived at the port. The engineers said that we would be able to lay the first cable in three days of rest …"

"Really? "Aiya, father, this is the first piece of good news that I've heard in the past few days. Quickly bring Mr Nobile along to take a look …"

When Xiao Letian and the rest arrived at the Naha Harbor, the three pitch black scissor boat were tied up with rolls of black electric cables that were as thick as copper coins.

The submarine cables of this era were much simpler than those of the future generations. In the future generations, not only would there be a portion of the fiber optics within the submarine cables, but there would also be copper pipes, lead weights, and a thick protective layer on the outside to prevent damage to the sea sharks.

The true diameter of the modern underwater cables had to reach a thickness of thirty to forty centimeters, so the cost to complete them was naturally higher than Xiao Letian could imagine.

But the most primitive cable is not so complicated, in fact, the insulating layer wrapped copper wire, can guarantee telegraph transmission is satisfied with the use.

The Atlantic Cable Company was founded in 1856. In 1857, the company began to be responsible for the laying of the cable. Although the laying was successful, the cable was manufactured substandard, and the insulating layer was corroded.

In 1856, a second submarine cable was broken when it sank into the middle of the Atlantic and fell into a 360 meter abyss. In 1866, the Atlantic Cable Company built a third cable, and was finally successful, under the aegis of the famous electrician Thomson.

Thomson, the scientist, was given the title of Lord Kelowan for his meritorious efforts to open the Atlantic Ocean submarine cable.

Since he already had a mature technology, Xiao Letian would directly use it. It's just that in order to increase security, Xiao Letian specifically requested for a thick layer of lead wire to be added into the rubber protective layer of the cable. Although this increases the cost by 15%, it actually increases the reliability of the cable by 25%.

Under the light of the lanterns, Xiao Letian spread out a strange map. "Mr. Nobile, take a look, this is the map of the sea that leads to the Nine Regions Island from the Ryukyu Islands.

"Bulbus Glazed Island, Hetao, Defiant Island, Amami Oshima … This chain of islands proves that underwater is a continuous mountain range that leads directly to Japan. As there are a large number of islands in this region of the sea that can be used for transit, the laying of the cables must have gone smoothly … "

"Even if you include the Ryukyu's cable to Tanggu and Shanghai, they wouldn't be as responsible as you'd expect them to be, because China's coastline is a continental shelf and there isn't a direct cliff. Most of the cables can also be hidden in the deep silt of the seabed, making it much safer than the rough Atlantic Ocean …"

To be able to show off his knowledge in front of a scientific giant like Nuo Beier, he had a great sense of accomplishment. In any case, Nuo Beier did not know much about cable technology, much less oceanography.

Upon hearing Xiao Letian's reliable jargon, their eyes all lit up. "Oh God, the pastors of the church are right, Mr. Prime Minister is really the first person in Asia to wake up. Your vast knowledge has already impressed us all …"

He had no choice but to accept it. To be able to start underwater hydrological exploration two years ago, what kind of foresight was this! If it wasn't for the fact that he had absolute confidence in the new technology, he wouldn't have made such a decision.

"Yes, the Prime Minister said that it was correct. Our batch of cables is enough to cover the entire island from Ryukyu to Deer Island. As there are a lot of islands we can rely on, we believe that within three to four months, you will be able to send your first telegram to Japan."