Donating Battleships

"Your Excellency, please let me explain." Oscar said hastily.

If Director Ludwig Birkenhagen had sent a telegram to Wilhelm II, wouldn't all his efforts have been in vain?

Director Ludwig Birkenhagen stared coldly at Oscar. If not for Oscar's status, he wouldn't have bothered wasting words and would have simply had this incompetent fellow thrown out of the Kiel Naval Academy.

"Your Excellency, perhaps you believe that spending four years studying at the Kiel Naval Academy greatly enhances a person's abilities. But to me, it's a waste of four years. Am I supposed to stay here for the full term, graduate, and then serve as a mere Second Lieutenant?"

Director Ludwig Birkenhagen trembled with rage at Oscar's words.

"Your Highness, silence. If you have no desire to join the Navy, I won't force you. But do not insult the Navy. It is countless little Second Lieutenant officers graduating from the Kiel Naval Academy who have built the German Navy." Director Ludwig Birkenhagen thundered.

"Forgive me, Your Excellency, I spoke out of turn." Oscar quickly apologized.

"But, Your Excellency, if I may speak frankly. Though the German Navy has been catching up, the gap with the British Navy hasn't narrowed—it's only widened. The British control most of the world's colonies, allowing them to plunder wealth without restraint and pour it into naval construction.

But Germany? Our geography forces us to invest heavily in the Army. That means our naval funding can't compare to the British. If this continues, challenging the British Navy is nothing but a pipe dream."

Director Ludwig Birkenhagen fell silent. As a man who had served in the Navy for decades, he had watched the German Navy grow from nothing, bit by bit. He knew all too well how vast the gap was between the German and British Navies. Though Wilhelm II was ambitious about naval expansion, constrained by national strength and external factors, defeating the British Navy was indeed extraordinarily difficult.

"Our enemy may be strong, but the German Navy will never yield. We will grow stronger, and one day we will defeat the British." Director Ludwig Birkenhagen said stubbornly.

Oscar nodded. The officers and men of the German Navy deserved respect. Through their relentless efforts, the German Navy had, in a short time, become the world's second-largest navy, second only to the British.

But so what? In the end, the German Navy never defeated the British Navy. After Germany's defeat, all those warships were scuttled. From then on, Germany never had a powerful navy again.

"Yes, Your Excellency. I believe that with everyone's efforts, the German Navy will grow stronger. But defeating the British Navy remains extremely difficult. The British have enough financial power to outbuild us two-to-one in capital ships. When that happens, how can we hope to beat them? As naval warships have developed to this level, the role luck can play in battle has grown smaller and smaller." Oscar continued.

In the age of sail, luck played a big role in naval battles. But once capital ships entered the era of ironclad giants, pinning hopes on luck meant certain defeat.

Director Ludwig Birkenhagen nodded involuntarily. Though he didn't want to admit it, he had to concede that Oscar's analysis hit every point.

"Your Highness, are you so pessimistic about the German Navy's future? Do you believe we can't defeat the British?" Director Birkenhagen asked.

"Your Excellency, to be honest, if the Navy continues developing at its current pace, there's no chance of defeating the British. And if the Navy fails to beat the British in a future war, it would be a disaster for Germany. Our coastline would be blockaded, our overseas trade routes cut off by the British, and we'd be surrounded on all sides. If the Army can't quickly defeat the enemy and the war drags into a stalemate, Germany's final fate would be to be slowly strangled to death."

Director Ludwig Birkenhagen and Karl were both stunned. They were shaken by the scene Oscar painted. They had great confidence in Germany, but they had to admit the enemy was strong. And everything Oscar described was entirely possible.

"Your Highness, does Germany have no chance at all?" Karl's voice trembled slightly.

"No, Germany still has a chance. If we can build more capital ships with performance that completely crushes the British, our Navy can defeat them. If the Navy wins, then in a future war, Germany would be invincible." Oscar said.

"But the Empire simply doesn't have enough funds to pour into naval development. Trying to match the British in the number of capital ships is completely unrealistic." Director Birkenhagen shook his head.

"Indeed, in terms of capital ship performance, we're not inferior to the British. But when it comes to numbers, we're far behind. That's why I don't want to waste four years at the Naval Academy."

"Your Highness, what does that have to do with your unwillingness to study at the Naval Academy? Precisely because the gap between the German Navy and our enemy is so vast, we need talents like you to join!"

Unconsciously, Director Birkenhagen's hostility toward Oscar had faded considerably. In his view, since Oscar had such insights, he couldn't possibly be an incompetent fool!

Oscar shook his head. "Your Excellency, the key factor limiting the German Navy's development is nothing more than funding. If I could, through my own efforts, contribute more development funds to the German Navy, that would undoubtedly be far more beneficial."

Director Birkenhagen frowned. Oscar's reasoning seemed too far-fetched, or even fanciful.

"Your Excellency, if I can guarantee that within the next four years, I will donate a battleship to the German Navy, would you then agree to my earlier request?"