Washington placed great importance on combat power deployment. To him, no matter how well warships were built, if they couldn't truly be assembled to fight, it was as if no ships had been built at all. Therefore, he opposed separate construction, believing that even if it meant sacrificing shipbuilding speed, the integrity of the fleet's combat power must be ensured.
Charles listened to Washington's opinion and pondered for a moment, but then he smiled and said,
"Commander, you don't have to worry about this. I've already thought of a way to safely assemble them, and we might even be able to practice with British army cruisers on the way."
"What method?" Jefferson immediately pressed.
"Let's keep it a secret for now, but I estimate I'll have to trouble you to make another trip to the French army base then. You'll naturally know my arrangements," Charles said, deliberately being enigmatic.
Washington, hearing this slightly hinting remark, immediately nodded slightly, clearly understanding Charles' intention.
"We should now strengthen the secrecy and protection of shipbuilding. Although construction is happening simultaneously in three locations, it's difficult to achieve true secrecy, but we should delay as long as possible. We must be extremely careful not to attract too much attention from the British army, lest their Navy, having nothing to do, comes to visit our docks every other day! Previously, they only had cruisers, which could only blockade, but now several large battleships have arrived. Those are terrifying presences that can completely collapse the entire dock. We absolutely must not provoke them into attacking the docks," Charles warned.
He already had a plan in mind; it seemed defensive weapons like naval mines and spar torpedoes also needed to be started immediately.
Everyone understood Charles' reminder. Washington immediately stated that upon his arrival in New York, he would order the army to strengthen coastal defenses to prevent a surprise attack by the British army fleet. He also stated that New York's coastal defense works, having acquired a large number of coastal defense cannons left by British army General Clinton last time, were much safer compared to Boston, which only had a few fortresses. He asked Charles to focus shipbuilding on New York and Philadelphia. Boston would only build according to its material and manpower capabilities.
Charles had no objection to this, feeling that indeed only Philadelphia, which he defended, and New York, which Washington guarded, were relatively safe and reliable. He agreed with Washington's suggestion to build two of the three large battleships in New York and one in Philadelphia, while cruisers would be built in various locations according to their respective capabilities.
After witnessing the true might of the British army's Navy, and with Charles' urging, the Americans finally began to build their own grand Navy ahead of schedule.
In reality, building a fleet is very simple. However, for this fleet to form lasting combat power, that is extremely difficult.
Charles and Washington, they all held very high expectations for this fleet, but it could only be expectations.
"I hear the British army at home is almost ready as well. They've probably already boarded ships and set off for America. They should arrive within a month. The upcoming battles are really difficult to arrange!" Charles relayed the latest military intelligence to the others.
"We can only use the old method: try to avoid frontal combat. We defend where they attack, and we harass where they defend. See if we can maneuver them, divide them into several small groups, and then ambush them one by one, ultimately eliminating the entire British army," Washington adopted General Greene's common method against the British army in the South.
"This is attrition, isn't it!" Charles nodded.
This was also the combat method he had initially proposed, but unfortunately, the Continental Congress did not adopt it. Instead, General Greene in the South also had the good sense to think of this method and decisively implemented it, achieving excellent results, firmly tying down the Hessian army in Virginia.
Only, Charles did not know that British army General Cornwallis had decided to adopt a steady approach, taking a part and firmly holding it, which was very unfavorable to the American army's attrition tactics. However, Washington and the others were currently unaware of this and still decided to adopt the old method for arranging the upcoming battles.
With the decision to establish a Navy settled and the strategy against the reinforced British army determined, Charles and everyone naturally felt there was nothing left to be busy with.
Unbeknownst to them, Christmas of 1777 had already arrived.
Although they had just received news that British army reinforcements had officially arrived in Canada and Charlestown, the people of Philadelphia still decided to celebrate a lively Christmas, commemorating their resistance to the British army's attack and the preservation of Philadelphia that year.
The Continental Congress also highly approved of this, even allocating special funds for subsidies, considering it a morale-boosting effort before the war.
With the arrival of the British army, the previously high morale had somewhat declined. The Continental Congress understood that it was now necessary to hold some celebratory activities to rekindle morale.
Not every Christmas and New Year would be accompanied by cannon fire like the previous year.
Today, the battle-weary Continental army and the newly arrived British army, unfamiliar with the area, both decided to celebrate the holidays first and then take military action, pushing the war into the next year.
After the military meeting in Philadelphia, Charles took Diana Rogers and some other prominent families from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to celebrate Christmas and New Year in the newly completed "White House."
This year, Pittsburgh was not only its first year after being upgraded to a city, but also the year with the greatest changes in production and construction. Just last Christmas, Pittsburgh still resembled a large rural area, though relatively bustling with people coming and going. But by this year, it had absolutely taken on the appearance of an industrial city, with chimneys rising across the city, machinery roaring, and crowds surging, officially becoming a city with a fixed population of tens of thousands.
Because the new residence, the "White House," was completed, Charles decided to host a Christmas reception at the new house, specially inviting some representative wealthy and powerful figures from Pittsburgh to attend the inauguration ceremony of the new residence.
Many wealthy people from the East, worried that the British army's war would once again reach large cities like Philadelphia, flocked to Pittsburgh. Upon receiving an invitation from the de facto ruler of Pittsburgh, a large number of guests immediately surged towards the "White House." Everyone living in Pittsburgh understood Charles' position in this city and knew that this was a good opportunity to curry favor with Charles.
As a result, after one hundred invitations were sent out on the first day, Charles quickly received numerous requests from acquaintances who wished to attend the reception. Even many who had already received invitations came back to ask if they could have a few more to bring friends and family.
Among these people were locals from Pittsburgh, people from eastern metropolises like Philadelphia and New York, people from the Ohio and Great Lakes regions, and even foreigners from the Louisiana colonial territory.
Pittsburgh is now not only an industrial hub, but also a commercial hub. It is also America's largest financial trading center. Many wealthy individuals gather here, so when Charles announced a reception, they naturally quickly got the information and wanted to sign up to attend.
Charles had no choice, knowing that these people were all potential business partners who might be useful at some point. He had to send out an additional two hundred invitations, changing the originally planned indoor reception to an outdoor one.
Christmas Eve, 1777. Charles' new residence, the "White House," in Pittsburgh.
The lights were brilliant, wine flowed warmly, and glasses clinked.
Laughter and chatter filled the air, the scene was lively and intoxicating.
The guests all praised the interior decor and convenient facilities of Charles' "White House." As for the exterior design, they automatically ignored it. The White House in winter truly did not look impressive, and it also inherently felt like a country estate, not conforming to the popular castle concept of the time.
After the guests reluctantly had a few drinks outside in the biting cold, they quickly rushed into the heated White House. No matter how the servants tried to entice them outside, they refused to leave. Groups of familiar people gathered together, chatting and laughing loudly; it was indeed more comfortable indoors.
Charles' various novel designs for the White House received the praise he desired from the guests.
Whether it was the underfloor heating that replaced open fireplaces, or the latest flush toilets, running water, and so on, all attracted a crowd of onlookers. Even the small outdoor swimming pool, which had already frozen over, had a few guests wanting to ice skate on it.
"Alas! The outdoor reception I prepared seems to be a complete failure, but now that it's turned into an indoor gathering, it's still not bad!" Charles hid in his study, looking through the glass at the frolicking crowd outside.
In the past, watching TV and movies, he often saw Americans holding receptions and balls outdoors in the dead of winter, and they still looked very lively. But when he organized it himself, why didn't it work? Even guests in high-end furs weren't willing to drink in the square, let alone the noblewomen in low-cut dresses.
The gas-powered colored lights Charles had specially arranged were basically unused. The empty, brightly lit area, apart from earning a round of applause when guests first arrived, was now completely unappreciated.
Beside Charles was the elegantly dressed countess Diana Rogers. Hearing Charles' lament, she couldn't help but let out a burst of crisp laughter.
"In such cold weather, I can't believe you thought of hosting an outdoor reception. Who told you to send out so many invitations? Now over three hundred people are crammed into one house. It's a good thing the living room was designed to be quite large back then, otherwise, the people downstairs would be packed like sardines!"
"Alas! Who told them to be so eager to ask me for invitations? I thought that since they were so enthusiastic, the sub-zero air outside shouldn't dampen their spirits," Charles gently turned around, his gaze ardently fixed on Diana beside him.
The young girl's growth and development were so fast; in just a year and a half, her figure and charm were already like a ripe strawberry, ready to burst with juice at the slightest touch. Charles, who often had intimate contact with Diana and occasionally kissed her little mouth, naturally had the most personal experience of Diana's physical changes. For the past six months, every time Charles saw Diana, his eyes held a barely contained fiery passion. However, under the influence of his strong affection, he had no immediate plans for further development with Diana.
Bean was very familiar with Charles' gaze. Whenever Charles looked at her like that, if they were alone, a passionate kiss was sure to follow. But today, the guests downstairs were almost all present, and Diana didn't want Charles to kiss her delicate lips until they were swollen, so she quickly reminded him:
"It's almost time. We should hurry down to greet the guests, otherwise Jonathan will probably come up to rush us!"
As she spoke, she quietly took a few steps back, evading Charles' outstretched hands that were reaching to support her arm.
"Haha! girl!" Charles helplessly raised his hands, knowing that Diana had seen through his intentions.
Considering that the old butler Jonathan might indeed come upstairs to urge him to greet the guests earlier, he simply hooked his left arm and bowed, inviting her,
"Alright! Beautiful lady, may I invite you to attend the White House inauguration reception with me?"
"It would be my honor!" Diana replied with a curtsy.
Then, with a sweet smile, she stepped forward and linked arms with Charles, accompanying him to the evening reception.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Please be quiet!" The old butler, wearing a wig, announced loudly from the second-floor lounge platform: "Now, please welcome the master of the White House, our Conqueror of the Iroquois, Defender of Philadelphia, and Chairman of the Continental Congress Military and Ordnance Committee, Your Excellency Godfrey! And also our young and beautiful countess Diana Rogers."
After this lengthy introduction, he stepped aside.
The guests in the living room below immediately gave a warm round of applause, welcoming Charles and his party.
From the second-floor landing, a young couple, arm in arm, slowly descended. The man was handsome, the woman beautiful, their attire splendid and elegant. They were the hosts of the banquet, Charles and Diana.
"To your health! Great Defender of Philadelphia!"
"Merry Christmas! Councilor Godfrey!"
"Merry Christmas…"
To show their welcome to Charles, people kept shouting blessings to Charles and Diana.
In such an occasion, Diana, as the countess, truly showed her grace. A slight smile always played on her face, and sometimes she would nod slightly in a certain direction, as gentle as if she were greeting all the guests.
Charles was not one for such formalities, so he simply maintained a poker face, showing little emotion. This made him appear somewhat authoritative, naturally making the guests feel that the host's status was extraordinary.
A reception, perhaps, is not merely for fostering relationships; sometimes it is also a symbol of the consolidation of status and power.
No matter how capable Charles was, if he wanted to gain everyone's recognition, he still had to hold such a reception to announce it to all.