Christmas

Oscar spent a great deal of time perfecting the blueprints for the battleship he had designed, only completing them fully on Christmas Eve. What emerged on the paper was a majestic and imposing battleship, one with a style entirely distinct from existing vessels.

Before the British Navy's HMS Dreadnought entered service, battleships of various nations typically displaced just over ten thousand tons and featured two tiers of main guns: a primary large-caliber battery and a secondary smaller-caliber battery. The smaller guns' faster rate of fire compensated for the larger guns' lack of firepower.

However, starting with HMS Dreadnought, battleships entered the all-big-gun era. Secondary main guns were eliminated, and only a single caliber of primary armament was used, further enhancing the battleship's striking power.

The battleship Oscar designed was likewise an all-big-gun vessel. Its general appearance resembled the German Navy's future Nassau-class battleships. The difference lay in the number and arrangement of the main guns. The German Navy's Nassau-class had six twin 280mm turrets: one each fore and aft, with the remaining four mounted on the sides. This allowed the Nassau-class to concentrate four turrets when firing broadside.

Oscar's battleship, however, replaced those six twin 280mm turrets with three triple 305mm turrets. After all, Oscar, familiar with future trends, knew that triple turrets were the way forward. The major battleships of World War II, such as the Japanese Navy's Yamato-class and the American Navy's Iowa-class, all used this configuration.

Moreover, triple turrets saved space and reduced hull length, greatly improving the ship's armor protection.

For these reasons, Oscar's battleship differed from the Nassau-class not only in main armament but also boasted enhanced defenses.

In terms of propulsion, Oscar did not use coal-fired boilers but instead opted for oil-fired ones. The steam engines were also changed from triple-expansion reciprocating engines to steam turbines. This allowed the ship to achieve greater speed.

"I hope Wilhelm II will like this battleship. If so, the German Navy can directly crush the British once we enter the dreadnought era. If war breaks out, the German Navy's chances of victory will be much greater," Oscar murmured, gazing at the battleship on the blueprints.

Since he now had money and had to fulfill his promise to donate a battleship to the German Navy, Oscar naturally wanted to provide a powerful vessel—not the junk-like pre-dreadnoughts of which over twenty had already been built.

Additionally, Oscar hoped to gain Wilhelm II's favor. After all, Wilhelm II was an emperor who loved the navy. If he valued Oscar, it would grant Oscar greater power and a stronger voice in imperial and state affairs. Perhaps he could even use this to change Germany's fate.

If possible, Oscar certainly did not want to see the German Empire fall. While the empire was strong, he was a prince with all its privileges. But if the empire collapsed, he, as a prince, would likely have to flee overseas. Even if he had money, what good would it do? He would just become a fat target in others' eyes.

As for the succession to the throne, Oscar had never considered it. He knew that as long as Crown Prince Wilhelm lived, he had no chance. Even if the Crown Prince died, he still had three older brothers ahead of him.

Time passed bit by bit, and the German Welfare Lottery Company's development was on track. By now, Double Color Ball had become the favorite lottery among German players. Especially the occasional lucky winner of the jackpot inspired others to throw their money into the lottery one after another. But those who won the jackpot were, after all, a tiny minority. Most people just kept investing, winning only small prizes at best.

This steadily fattened Oscar's wallet. With the imperial family's backing, no one dared to target them. Oscar and Karl planned to expand into foreign markets starting next year. With less than a decade until war broke out, if they could use lottery sales to plunder wealth from other countries, it would indirectly strengthen Germany. If the opportunity arose, Oscar naturally hoped to channel that wealth into military expansion, pushing Germany's armed forces to new heights.

Christmas was a very important holiday for Westerners, and for the German Imperial Family, it was a time for reunion. To strengthen ties with the empire's various factions, German Emperor Wilhelm II would hold a banquet at the Potsdam palace on Christmas Eve. The royal families of the German Empire's kingdoms, grand duchies, and duchies, high-ranking government officials, senior military commanders, social elites, and foreign envoys to Germany were all invited.

Originally, Oscar thought he would miss this banquet. But unexpectedly, he learned from Karl some time ago that Wilhelm II had agreed to let him return to the palace. For Oscar, this was an unexpected delight.

"Your Highness, I'm ready. When do we depart?" Karl asked excitedly.

Although he had attended the palace banquet in previous years, his status and position were different now. Before, he was just a palace attendant. Now, he was the general manager of the German Welfare Lottery Company, with a personal fortune of five million Marks.

"Mm, I'm ready. Let's go." Oscar nodded, picked up a briefcase, and headed out. Inside the briefcase were gifts Oscar had prepared for his parents and siblings. Now that he was wealthy, he couldn't be too stingy during the holidays.

After going downstairs, the two got into a pre-arranged Mercedes-Benz automobile and headed for Potsdam.

Although Mercedes-Benz cars had been on the market for many years, in Oscar's eyes, the current cars—both in appearance and interior—were far too crude, with no comparison to later models.

"The lottery company is constantly raking in money. Leaving so much cash in the bank is a complete waste. Maybe I should consider my next investment direction. The automotive field seems promising," Oscar thought to himself.

If he could design cars with the sleek looks of later models, they would surely sell like hotcakes. Of that, Oscar had no doubt.