I want to ruin the country

Chapter 499 No retreat

The Queen took up the report and read it for a long time.

"George, do you think there will be any problems with a keel like this?"

George said,

"Your Majesty, we'll probably be fine with small waves, but if we encounter the big waves that wiped out the entire fleet a while ago, it will definitely not work!"

The Queen suddenly remembered James's entire fleet that disappeared in the Indian Ocean a while ago, and she became inexplicably anxious.

"George, are you saying that the last missing fleet was related to the hull failure?"

George said,

"It's just speculation. No one can be sure without any evidence!"

The queen's face was gloomy and the room was dead silent. After a while, the queen stopped worrying.

"George, go find Armstrong and tell him that it was his material that had the problem, so we can only pay him 15% as liquidated damages!"

George was so happy, but he pretended to be sad and said,

"Your Majesty, their shipyard will go bankrupt!"

Queen's Road,

"If he doesn't agree, we'll see him in court!"

George was delighted and said immediately,

"Your Majesty, I'm not sure if they'll agree if I go and do their job!"

When George came back and told Armstrong about it, Armstrong was overjoyed.

"George, your plan worked. Not only did we not have to pay any penalty for breach of contract, we were even able to receive over 600 pounds in compensation. You're incredible!"

George said proudly,

"No, no, no, it's not over 600 pounds. You can get a lot more from the Qing people. You're rich, haha!"

Armstrong laughed.

"No, no, no, it's not me who got rich, it's us who got rich! Haha!"

Li Hongzhang came to report to Prince Gong,

"Your Highness, we have received news that the Minister of the Navy, George, has reported to the Queen that there is a problem with the keel of this warship.

The Queen has already stated that she cannot accept this warship, and she will also have to pay the shipyard over 600 pounds in liquidated damages!"

Prince Gong said,

"So they deceived the Queen?"

"Yes! Otherwise, will the Queen agree to pay them liquidated damages?

It was originally 30%, but the Queen only agreed to 15%, which is half!"

Prince Gong rolled his eyes and said,

"Let's find a way to make Armstrong give up the money!"

Li Hongzhang nodded,

“It takes some planning!”

Prince Gong chuckled and said,

"Hey, you said the British all know that there's something wrong with the keel of this warship. Is there anyone else who would dare to buy it besides us?"

Li Hongzhang's eyes lit up.

"Of course not. Besides, Armstrong wouldn't dare tell anyone about his deception of the Queen!"

Prince Gong said,

"So he has no way out?"

Li Hongzhang nodded,

"There is no way out!"

Prince Gong slapped his thigh.

"Let's make a fuss about this!"

A few days later, George came to see the Queen again.

"Your Majesty, Armstrong is almost crying. This warship cost four thousand pounds to build, and he made no profit at all.

Now he can only get more than 600 pounds, and he has to dismantle the warship. I am afraid that the wages are not enough!"

The Queen rolled her eyes and said,

"Why dismantle it? Can't you sell it to someone else?"

George said,

"Who can afford such a large warship? Besides, if word gets out that there's something wrong with the keel material, even if I give it away for free, I'm not sure anyone would want it!"

"No one wants it?"

Suddenly, the queen's eyes lit up.

"Those Qing people are not here to buy warships, sell them to them!"

When George heard this, his nose started to snot. He suppressed his excitement and said,

"Your Majesty, this warship was about to be delivered, and it's suddenly sold to someone else. It's hard to explain!"

The Queen said,

"What do those Qing people know? If you can't even fool them, I doubt your ability as the Minister of the Navy!"

"Your Majesty, what does this have to do with my ability? This is a completely impossible task!"

The Queen said,

"If you don't tell me about the materials, how can the Qing people know?

This warship has no flaws at all, why can't it be sold?

I think they should pay a hefty expedited fee!"

George made a face deliberately bitter.

"Your Majesty, you don't think the Emperor of Daqing would send a few fools, do you?"

The Queen said,

“I asked their prince the other day, but he knew nothing about finance, taxation, or industry.

A young and impish emperor sent an even more impish prince. Are you sure they are not here to enjoy the scenery?

If they are not fools, are there any fools in this world?"

George thought to himself, you became queen when you were only eighteen years old.

"Well, Your Majesty, I'll let them try!"

After returning, George said to Armstrong happily,

"Dear William, there is no problem with the Queen. You can go talk to the Qing people!"

Armstrong smiled happily.

"George, your shares are no longer a problem!"

Armstrong came to see Prince Gong with a bitter face.

"Your Excellency, if this warship cannot be delivered to the Royal Navy on time, our shipyard will face a huge penalty!"

Prince Gong said,

"You make your own decision on this matter. We Chinese have a saying that goes, 'You can't have your cake and eat it too.' I can't think of you being the only one to take advantage of it!"

Armstrong Road,

"But if I can't make up for the losses from those three warships, what's the point?"

Prince Gong smiled and said,

"Dear Mr. Armstrong, if it's not three, it could be ten or twenty, or even more!"

Li Hongzhang said,

"It all depends on whether you can satisfy our emperor the first time!"

Armstrong Road,

"Then Your Excellency has accepted the price of 950,000 taels of silver!"

Prince Gong shook his head.

"No, no, no, the most we can offer is 500,000 taels!"

Armstrong was struck by lightning. He was stunned for a long time and asked,

"What, five hundred thousand taels, how is that possible?"