Berlin Palace, Wilhelm II's office. Imperial Council is being held. German Emperor Wilhelm II, Prime Minister Bernhardt von Bülow, Foreign Minister von Kidron Wachth, Chief of General Staff Moltke the Younger, Minister of War Feng Falkenhayn, Field Marshal Count Tirpitz, the First Sea Lord, Crown Prince Wilhelm, and Oscar all attended this meeting.
It is very normal for someone other than Oscar to participate in Imperial Council. After all, these are important ministers of the empire. Crown Prince Wilhelm is the heir to the imperial throne and is eligible to participate in Imperial Council as the crown prince. However, Oscar is just an ordinary prince. Although Oscar has shown outstanding talents in the fields of business and shipbuilding, this still cannot change his identity as just an ordinary Prince. The reason why Oscar is qualified to attend Imperial Council this time is because the main topic this time was raised by him. Another aspect is probably his keen understanding of the world structure.
Even so, Crown Prince Wilhelm looked at Oscar with eyes filled with hostility. Obviously, Crown Prince Wilhelm believes that this is Oscar's further attack on the reserve, and this has seriously threatened his position. This is absolutely unacceptable to Crown Prince Wilhelm.
"Damn Oskar, this hypocritical and shameless guy, he really wants to compete with me for the throne. He is just an ordinary Prince, and his inheritance rights to the throne are far behind. How dare he!" Crown Prince Wilhelm was very angry and almost wanted to question Oscar on the spot. If it weren't for the wrong occasion and Wilhelm II specifically warning him, I'm afraid he would have gone crazy on the spot.
"Everyone, the reason for convening Imperial Council today must be clear to everyone. That is Prince Oskar specifically. We need to build National Petroleum Reserve in the name of the country and government. Please express your opinions on this!" Wilhelm II said expressionlessly.
"Prince Oskar Your Highness, now Germany consumes very little oil. We can easily obtain oil from Americans. Is it necessary to spend huge sums of money to build National Petroleum Reserve?" Chief of General Staff Moltke the Younger was the first to ask a question.
After all, purchasing oil, then building storage facilities, and building Oil Refinery, etc., all require a large investment. This amount of money is at least over 100 million Mark. When Germany's financial pressure is already very high and military expenditures are still seriously insufficient, there is no need to invest so much money in oil reserves. If you have this spare money, you might as well invest in upgrading military equipment. Only in this way can the combat effectiveness of the Germany* army be further strengthened and the chances of winning future wars increased.
"Your Excellency Chief of Staff, it is very necessary to establish National Petroleum Reserve. Although the oil consumption of Germany is still relatively small at present. However, this number will soon skyrocket. Especially the military's consumption of oil will continue to rise. Because of the performance limitations of oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine Advantages, I have suggested that the navy's future new Capital Ships, as well as a series of future warships, use oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine. This will increase oil consumption. In order to ensure the navy's combat effectiveness, it is also necessary to establish oil reserves." Oscar explained.
"His Royal Highness Prince Oscar is right. The navy's warships will all use oil-fired boilers and steam turbines. This will cause us to consume more oil. There are no oil fields in Germany, and all oil needs to be imported overseas. In peacetime, this may not be a problem. But once, once When the war breaks out, our overseas transportation lines will probably be cut off. Before the navy defeats the British, our oil consumption will need to use the reserved oil. Therefore, it is very necessary for us to win the war in the future," said Marshal Tirpitz.
"Your Excellency, the Navy decided to use oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine on a large scale based on someone's words without careful discussion. Isn't it too arbitrary? What's more, Germany lacks oil, but it does not lack coal. In my opinion, even if fuel oil The boiler really has an advantage in performance. But giving up the Coal-fired Boiler is not advisable. After all, if we use the Coal-fired Boiler, at least we will not worry about being choked by the enemy." Crown Prince Wilhelm jumped out, apparently thinking that the navy's replacement of oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine was too arbitrary. But in fact, it was blamed on Oscar. After realizing the threat Oscar posed to their position, Crown Prince Wilhelm began to use various methods to suppress Oscar.
"No, Crown Prince. The Navy's decision to adopt oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine is not without verification. Although we do not have much experience with oil-fired boilers and Steam Turbine. However, after testing, it has been shown that oil-fired boilers The combination with Steam Turbine is much better than the Coal-fired Boiler and steam engine we used before. This can greatly improve the performance of the Imperial Navy ship." Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz refuted it on the spot.
Crown Prince Wilhelm was stunned for a moment, and his face became very ugly. In his opinion, the Navy clearly expressed its support for Oscar.
"Damn Tirpitz, does he want to break the military's convention of not interfering with the succession of the throne?" Crown Prince Wilhelm was very angry.
"Your Highness, if you build an oil reserve, how much money will you need to invest?" Prime Minister Bernhardt von Bülow asked.
"If we reserve on a scale of two million tons, it will cost about 120 million Mark." Oscar said.
Bernhardt von Chancellor Bülow immediately frowned tightly. This is a lot of money!
"Oskar, don't you know that the financial pressure on the empire is very high now? 120 million Mark is enough to build three Capital Ships! Not everyone has 100 million like you and a huge personal wealth. As a royal family, Prince should repay the country and society." Crown Prince Wilhelm began to deliberately seek trouble. Grand Admiral Count Tirpitz came forward to refute him before, so that he could not bring the fire to Oscar. Now, Crown Prince Wilhelm fired directly at Oscar.
"Crown Prince, I have made a lot of money through legal channels. There seems to be no problem with this, right? Besides, how do you know that I have not repaid the country?" Oscar sneered.