KEO.PLUS

April 1,1901, while Arthur’s military reform plan was in full swing, a fleet also arrived at Sydney Harbour in full force, with the flag of the German Empire flying on every warship and transport ship.

What this fleet was escorting was the first batch of aid from the German Empire, which included a massive amount of equipment, information, funds, and talent worth 50 million pounds.

It has to be admitted that Germany attached great importance to the aid and acted quickly. While there was no news of aid from the United Kingdom, Germany had already prepared the first batch of aid and sent a fleet to escort it to Sydney.

To emphasize the importance of this aid, Arthur and Prime Minister Evan both appeared at the harbor, welcoming the person in charge of escorting the aid materials from Germany, Crown Prince William.

“His Royal Highness Arthur, long time no see!” As soon as he got off the ship, Crown Prince William came up with a smile and greeted Arthur, who was walking towards him with a smile as well.

“Long time no see, Your Highness. I didn’t expect it to be you who brought the supplies this time, I thought it might be a German general or minister,” said Arthur with a smile.

“It was indeed the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to transport the aid, but my father sent me to be in charge of this shipment to show his commitment to Australia,” Crown Prince William explained with a smile.

“This is Prime Minister Evan, Your Highness. Since you’ve come to Australia, why don’t you enjoy yourself for a couple of days? Although Australia s prosperity is far from that of Berlin, there is still plenty of beautiful scenery,” Arthur did not worry about why William II sent Crown Prince William and laughed as he spoke to him.

“Your Highness.” After Arthur introduced him, Prime Minister Evan saluted Crown Prince William.

“Hmm.” Crown Prince William nodded slightly, then glanced at the ship as it began to unload supplies and said with a smile, “His Royal Highness Arthur, Prime Minister Evan, this is the first batch of aid from Germania to Australia, totaling 1 billion marks, 140 industry experts, Gew98 Rifle Production Line, artillery production line and blueprint materials of the Brunswick-class battleship. These experts will formulate detailed and reliable industrial development plans for Australia based on the specific situation. As for the distribution of military production lines and blueprint materials, that’s up to you. But I have to say, Your Royal Highness Arthur, the blueprint materials for the Brunswick-class battleship are of great importance to Germania, and we hope that Australia will maintain strict confidentiality for at least twenty years.”

Unlike other support materials, the blueprint materials for the Brunswick-class battleship were guarded by more than a hundred elite German soldiers and could be destroyed on their own in special situations. This is the importance of a warship blueprint. It clearly describes the entire layout of the warship, listing the weakest parts in a complete and detailed form in both images and text.

If it falls into the hands of a hostile country, it would mean handing over one’s own lifeline to the enemy, and the balance of the war would shift instantly.

“Of course, Your Highness. Australia has no reason and would not leak this warship blueprint. The friendship between Australia and Germania is far more important than the blueprint of this battleship,” Arthur said with a smile, indeed, what he said was not wrong. Before World War I broke out, the German Empire was undoubtedly the world’s second major power, with the world’s first army and second navy.

Maintaining the friendship between Australia and the German Empire is far more important than a single warship blueprint, especially one that will be obsolete in a few years.

There are still many things in the German Empire that have not been discovered by Arthur. Before that, Arthur would not take the initiative to damage the friendship with the German Empire.

“Hahaha, I believe you, of course! Not just me, but my father also trusts Australia very much. It’s just that the importance of this blueprint is indeed very high, and my father asked me to remind Your Royal Highness once more,” Prince William laughed, putting an end to the topic.

In addition to the 100-plus industry experts and 1 billion marks in funds, it would not be easy to take an inventory of the other aid materials, which might even take several hours.

Arthur and the others naturally wouldn’t stand here foolishly waiting. So, at Arthur’s invitation, Crown Prince William went to Arthur’s winery.

Nine months had passed since the completion of Duke Arthur’s Winery. In this time, the grape seeds and mature grape trees were planted and thriving, and the first batch of grapes had already been harvested and fermented.

As a beverage highly sought after by the Western aristocracy, owning a wine estate is also one way for Western nobles to showcase their status.

Crown Prince William, as the next ruler of the German Empire, naturally had his own private winery.

However, the Western nobility’s wine estates were not as extravagant as Arthur’s, who had used a large area of land for cultivation.

Generally, a noble’s small private winery would occupy about ten hectares, which was quite large. Larger aristocratic wineries were only a few dozen to a hundred hectares.

Arthur’s winery, on the other hand, encompassed a staggering 300 hectares, which equates to about three square kilometers of land.

It’s worth noting that in later times, there were two countries with land areas less than three square kilometers. Aside from Vatican City, a special religious center, the Southern European city-state of Monaco had a land area of only two square kilometers, with about 0.5 square kilometers being reclaimed land. Such a vast wine estate was even comparable in size to some small towns in Europe.

William’s curiosity and surprise were naturally piqued by such a massive area of land.

However, after considering the immense territory of Australia combined with its sparse population, William suddenly felt a bit relieved.

“Arthur, when will your first batch of red wine be produced? The climate here seems very suitable for the growth of grapes, perhaps it will produce a fine red wine,” Crown Prince William said with a smile.

When it comes to famous European red wines, one cannot ignore France, a well-known major red wine producer.

French red wines even dominated most of the European aristocracy’s wine market, making them one of the most sought-after red wines among European nobles.

While the German Empire also had many wineries, the red wines produced there were of both lower quality and quantity than France. They only competed within the domestic market.

“The first batch of red wine has already been produced, Your Highness. You’ve come at just the right time, as the first batch of red wine has only recently been completed and is perfect for a taste,” Arthur said with a smile.

Entertaining guests with one’s own private winery’s red wine has always been a tradition of the Western aristocracy. Although Arthur’s winery had only been built for less than a year without breaking into the red wine market, Arthur had already tasted their freshly made red wine. The wine had a rich aroma of grapes, with a hint of fruitiness and sweetness, making it exceptional.

Although it couldn’t compare to the long-established Western red wine brands in terms of production and reputation, Arthur believed that in terms of taste, his winery’s wine was not inferior to too many European varieties.

In fact, even in later times, Australia would be one of the world’s top five red wine producers.

Although Australian wine would slightly lag in quality compared to Western countries like Spain, Italy, and France, it would definitely be one of the better red wine producers..