Carlo returned to Rome with joy, but when he returned to the palace, his mood immediately changed.
"You said the two ministers are waiting for me?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, they have been waiting outside for a while."
Waiting for Carlo was none other than the two ministers of the navy and army, the minister of the navy, Admiral Anthony Gorek, and the minister of war, Admiral Saraguet.
"I didn't expect them to respond so quickly."
Carlo didn't need to think about it to know what these two people were here for. Wasn't it just to accept the red shirts? There were such a big reaction from just over a thousand people, which made Carlo know how difficult this matter was.
Sure enough, when the two ministers arrived, they were talking about the issue of the Red Shirts.
"Your Majesty, I heard that you are recruiting thousands of people in Palermo to form the Third Guards Regiment?"
When asked by Army Secretary General Saraguet, Carlo did not deny it at all. "That's what happened."
"Your Majesty, the establishment of a new Guards regiment-level establishment will put pressure on military expenditures. I hope Your Majesty will consider this matter carefully."
Since Carlo did not deny it, General Saraguet, as the spokesperson of the army, naturally did not want to see the sudden appearance of the Third Guards Regiment and directly used military expenses to talk about it. As expected of the military, his words were straightforward enough.
"Is there still a shortage of military expenses for one regiment?"
Facing Admiral Saraguet's attack, Carlo asked rhetorically.
Unexpectedly, when I asked, I immediately attracted the Minister of War to express his bitterness.
"Your Majesty, the army is really short of money at the moment. Every penny of military expenditure has been allocated for a purpose. Suddenly a regiment-level establishment will cost at least millions of lire. At present, it is impossible for the government to solve this cost for the military.
, our military alone is simply not capable of solving this problem."
After listening to what General Saraget said so eloquently, Carlo didn't believe at all that the military couldn't even squeeze out more than one million lire in expenses.
"If this is the case, then I will ask the government to solve the funding problem."
Faced with the rhetoric given by General Saraguet, Carlo planned to ask the government to solve the problem, believing that Prime Minister Depretis would spend more than one million for himself.
Seeing that the funding method did not work, General Saraget was already mentally prepared, so he continued. "Your Majesty, now that the cost issue has been solved, there is no big problem. But the newly established Third Guards Regiment
, the chief officer lacks sufficient military capabilities, I think we can send personnel from the military to help him form an army as soon as possible."
That's right, seeing that the funds could not support the establishment of the Third Guards Regiment, the military planned to use a trick of adding sand.
As long as the main officers of the Third Guards Regiment are replaced by military personnel, there will be enough means to transform it into a force of the military.
How could Carlo, who was well versed in history, not understand General Saraguet's intentions? He was not willing to see the military's attempt to mix in sand. If he agreed, why would he go through all the trouble?
The reason why I got this army from Garibaldi was because he saw that it was not affected by military habits, so that I could be favored by him.
So Admiral Saraguet's idea was immediately politely rejected by Carlo.
"No need for that, I believe in the ability of the future military commander of the third regiment."
Seeing that one after another of his plans were rejected by His Majesty, Admiral Saragat winked at Admiral Gorek at the side, trying to get him to speak for himself.
General Gorek, who was harassed by the Minister of War's eyes, felt a little helpless. He didn't want to come at all in the first place. What did the red shirts have to do with the navy? These people didn't know how to get on the ship to operate the cannon. It's just that General Saraget was born.
To pull oneself alive, to pull oneself here forcefully.
But after all, he felt sorry for the situation, so Admiral Anthony Gorek still gave an idea.
"Your Majesty, I don't know much about the Third Guards Regiment, but I know that the navy has very high requirements for personnel. Many soldiers need to be carefully selected, otherwise training will be more effective with half the effort."
Although General Gorek did not say it clearly, how could General Saragat, the Minister of War, not understand its intention and immediately took over the words. "Your Majesty, General Gorek is right, the Guards are responsible for protecting
Your Majesty and Rome have important responsibilities, and the officers and soldiers must be carefully selected, so please allow the military to send people to strictly inspect them, and do not let the reputation of the Guards be ruined by those who are just cheating."
Facing General Saraguet's continuous search for opportunities, Carlo was a little bit dumbfounded, but he also needed to think carefully when facing the two generals. After all, it was not a wise move for Carlo to refute the military's opinions one after another.
He wanted to improve the combat effectiveness of the army, but did not want to have a stalemate in the relationship with the military. Although he could still refuse, judging from General Saraget's attitude, he would definitely continue to propose, which would not be good.
So Carlo thought for a while and then said, "Then let's follow your opinion."
Before Admiral Saragat showed a satisfied expression, he gave up the thought he shouldn't have had.
"However, this time when the Third Guards Regiment is formed, the number of people should not be too small. A maximum of two hundred people will be eliminated. I will have someone accompany your people to inspect it."
It was obvious that Carlo would not give General Saraguet a chance to make excuses.
And seeing Carlo criticize his idea, General Saraget was not angry. This matter cannot be rushed. After His Majesty loses interest in the Red Shirt Army, he will have many ways to deal with the remnants of these Red Shirt Army.
Seeing that the matter was barely settled, Admiral Gorek breathed a sigh of relief and was about to leave with Admiral Saragat, when he heard His Majesty's words to persuade him to stay.
"Admiral Gorek, I asked you to stay because I have some matters regarding warships that I need to consult."
Facing Admiral Golek's confused expression, Carlo spoke out and told him why he wanted to keep him.
Upon hearing that Carlo wanted to ask about warships, Admiral Gorek, who had been dealing with warships for most of his life, immediately became confident. "Your Majesty, please ask."
"I wonder what your Excellency, the Admiral, thinks of warships like armored cruisers?"
Faced with Carlo's question about armored cruisers, Admiral Golek could immediately tell what he was saying. "Your Majesty, although our country does not have the equipment for armored cruisers, we still know a little bit about it. Generally speaking, armored cruisers are very important to the strength of the navy.
For a weak country, it is a last resort choice. Because cruisers are not naturally suitable for battle lines, strengthening their armor is used as an emergency measure."
Carlo was greatly disappointed by Admiral Golek's words. It was obvious that Admiral Golek had mentioned the shortcomings of the armored cruiser, but not its advantages. Of course, only a few naval admirals in the world have seen the main point, that is, it cannot be defeated.
I am faster, and those who are faster than me cannot defeat me. Obviously, the characteristics of armored cruisers are very suitable for breaking up engagements and blocking the enemy's maritime transportation lines. At the same time, they can also contain the enemy's large naval forces.
Since the old admiral didn't understand, Carlo didn't mind explaining it. "I think armored cruisers have more than these functions..."
So a certain keyboard warrior of later generations gave the old admiral some knowledge about the role of armored cruisers, and the old admiral's eyes lit up. I didn't expect that His Majesty knew so much about the navy. It seems that the navy will be blessed in the future. This is really unexpected.
joy.
But the surprises didn't stop there. While Admiral Gorek was still thinking about it, when he asked the navy to build one next year, Carlo, as the king, gave him a surprise.
"Faced with France's rudeness in the Tunisian crisis, as the King of Italy, I feel very sad. I plan to help the navy build two armored cruisers at the royal family's expense."
"Really, Your Majesty?"
Faced with such an unexpected surprise, the old admiral couldn't sit still. Although Italy ranked fourth in the world's navy, who would think that it had too many ships? Besides, Italy needed to face the pressure from France and Austria, not to mention Austria.
Well, the French navy occupies the second largest position in the world, which puts a lot of pressure on the navy.
Admiral Gorek wished to have this kind of unexpected surprise every year. His heart could bear it, so in order to prevent himself from hearing wrongly, he asked one more time to confirm.
"That's right, two armored cruisers."
As he spoke, Carlo stretched out two fingers and made a gesture in front of Admiral Gorek's eyes.
