While Colonel Charlie was talking, a loud bang suddenly sounded from the "Mastin" driving in front of it in the background, and then an orange-red light appeared from the tail of the "Mastin", followed by billowing black smoke.

Obviously, Colonel Charlie's unbridled words angered the God he believed in, and of course, it may be that the gods of Huaxia can't see it: let you be a big head, don't pretend to be forced, pretend to be struck by lightning!

Time goes back to ten minutes ago.

At two o'clock in the morning on October 18, Ye Hao used the biometal robot Li Tie to throw a fishing net on the propeller of the "Benford" and crippled the "Benford", and then ordered Li Tie to catch up with another warship of the American Navy formation, the "Mastin", and then Li Tie has been attached to the bottom of the "Mastin", and only now has he thrown out the killer weapon - mines.

Ye Hao originally planned to wait for the American Navy formation to enter the Okinawa base before detonating the mine, but when he wandered around the Internet with the help of artificial intelligence Andy, he accidentally found a CNN report. Ye Hao didn't expect the U.S. government to be so high-profile that it would send reporters to the warship on a mission, and his previous two shots were not mentioned in the CNN report. After a little thought, Ye Hao understood the intention of the American government to try to cover up the truth.

If there was an accident, the American government tried to blind the eyes of the world, and it also engaged in such a high-profile live broadcast to promote the so-called "freedom of navigation" and "Chinese threat theory", so Ye Hao was not polite. Since the American government is so shameless, then Ye Hao will let them lose a big face in front of everyone, and see how the American government ends.

Therefore, Ye Hao waited until CNN's live broadcast room and the "Benford" completed the signal connection, he took out the mines that had been prepared long ago from the system space, used magnetism to stick to the tail of the "Mastin", and then quickly separated from the "Mastin" with Li Tie.

Two minutes later, Ye Hao, who had already reached a safe distance, saw the huge fireworks as he wished.

The "Mastin" was severely damaged by the explosion of mines, and a gap about five meters wide appeared on the right side of the tail, and the propeller on the right side had been blown away, and the propeller on the left side was also affected and could not work normally. The "Mastin" reduced its speed at a speed visible to the naked eye and finally stopped, as if it were a dead fish floating on the sea level.

Ye Hao is not worried about the investigation of the American government afterwards, this place is located on the high seas, it is no longer within the scope of the continental shelf, the water depth is large, and it is not easy to salvage, and the mine has been shattered, even if there are fragments, it lacks the value of investigation.

………………………………………………………………

Colonel Charlie was stunned to see the "Mastin" floating on the surface of the sea like a dead fish, and it completely lost its ability to continue sailing due to its lack of power. The damage crews of the "Mastin" were engaged in firefighting operations, but in the eyes of Colonel Charlie, the "Mastin" had lost the possibility of continuing its service, and its best fate was to be sold to a small country decades later, and it was possible to continue its ocean-cruising duties.

Colonel Charlie no longer has the righteous temperament that he just talked about in front of the camera lens, he understands that his career has come to an end, and his best ending is to retire, as for whether he will go to prison, he can only resign himself to fate.

Colonel Charlie had just issued an order for the first level of alert, and the entire formation was in a state ready to attack, but he was doomed to disappointment, because the radars of the two warships did not detect hostile targets, and there were only two warships of the American Navy formation within 30 nautical miles. As for the seabed and in the air, the search radars with full firepower have not gained anything either.

Colonel Charlie, with a dark face, listened to the report of the communications staff officer, and he must stick to his post and carry out the duties entrusted to him by the American Navy, and as for the court-martial, that is a matter of the future.

"Colonel, the propeller on the right side of the 'Mastin' has been blown off, the left propeller is so damaged that it cannot work properly, and the 'Mastin' has lost the ability to continue sailing. After the communications staff officer finished speaking, he stood aside.

"Are there any casualties?"

"So far, six soldiers and one officer have died, and another 23 people, including four officers, have been injured. ”

"How's the search for the enemy?"

"No hostile targets were detected. ”

"What about a suspected hostile target?" Colonel Charlie was already on the verge of an outburst.

"Everything is normal in the nearby seas, and no suspicious targets have been found in the air or under the sea...... "The communications staff officer said after a moment's pause.

"Fuck!" this matter is too evil, if the enemy search finds nothing, then the black cauldron of this accident will definitely be on his back. Although his black cauldron is set on his back, but the black cauldron also has a large and small size, if he can't find a hostile target, then this black cauldron will definitely crush Colonel Charlie.

Colonel Charlie wandered around the command module several times like a sleepy beast, and finally collapsed in his seat, knowing that he was finished. With a long sigh, Colonel Charlie barely stood up, with a decadent look on his face, as if he had suddenly aged dozens of years, and a heavy twilight filled his body.

"Colonel, please cheer up!" The deputy captain standing on the side said, "You must bring the formation back to the Okinawa base, hundreds of soldiers and officers of the 'Benford' and 'Mastin' are waiting for your orders!" The deputy captain had to remind Colonel Charlie that he and Colonel Charlie were now grasshoppers on a rope, Colonel Charlie had fallen into the abyss, and the deputy captain himself was standing on the edge of the cliff. However, he is only a vice captain, and his responsibilities are limited, and it is impossible to continue to serve, but it is still possible to enjoy his old age in peace.

After being reminded of the attachment, Colonel Charlie quickly understood the urgency of the matter, and he barely bothered to brace himself and frowned in thought.

At this time, the communications staff officer hurriedly came with a piece of paper in his hand: "Colonel, this is the meteorological information that has just come from the fleet command. ”

Colonel Charlie had a bad premonition: "Just say it!"

"Typhoon No. 17 'Feiyan' in the western Pacific region this year will pass through the formation in three hours, with a wind force of 14 in the center!" said the communications staff officer tremblingly.

"Shit!, why didn't you say it sooner?" said Colonel Charlie, almost mad.

"After passing through the waters north of Taiwan, the wind and speed of the center of the 'Feiyan' have strengthened, and it arrived here more than an hour earlier than expected, and we could have avoided it, but ......" The communications staff officer stopped talking and turned his head to look at the 'Mastin' not far away.

Colonel Charlie "chuckled" in his heart: "Not good!" Thinking of the urgency, Colonel Charlie didn't care about anything else, and immediately ordered: "Order Lieutenant Commander Brown to immediately organize all the crew of the 'Mastin' to be transferred to the 'Benford' immediately, and only the personnel will be allowed to board the ship, and all other equipment and materials will be abandoned." Tell Lieutenant Colonel Brown that they only have half an hour!"

"Yes, Colonel!" the staff officer turned and left.

"Colonel, do you need to leave a minimum number of personnel, the 'Mastin' may still be saved. The vice-captain suggested.

"No, we must leave immediately, and as for the 'Mastin', leave it to God to decide. "Colonel Charlie knew that he was completely finished this time, and that he could only carry the black cauldron by himself, but he had to take the rest of the formation and the "Benford" out of the typhoon area, and as for the incapacitated "Mastin", as he said, he could only resign himself to fate. Once he thought about it, Colonel Charlie quickly made a decision, after all, the matter of going to the military court must wait for him to return to the base to have a chance, and once he can't go back, it will be nonsense.

The execution capabilities of the American Navy should not be underestimated, and in less than half an hour, all the personnel of the "Mastin" were transferred to the "Benford", including the dead and wounded, were properly accommodated.

Colonel Charlie did not dare to delay and ordered the "Benford" to leave the sea area at full speed.

At 11 a.m. on October 19, 2018, Yenching time, the USS Benford left the minefield of the USS Mastin, carrying all the more than 500 crew members of the mission formation and sailing to the US naval base in Okinawa. At this time, it was less than two hours before the "Mastin" hit the mine. The "Mastin" was left in the sea area where the incident occurred, and what awaited the "Mastin" was the approaching typhoon "Feiyan", and the fate of the "Mastin" was already sealed after it was placed in the sea area where the incident occurred.

The "Benford", which carried a crew of more than 500 people, ran wildly all the way, relying on the only remaining propeller, and ran at a speed of nearly 15 knots for nearly three hours, and finally left the range of Typhoon "Feiyan", and met the rescue ship sent by the Okinawa base in the United States at 21 o'clock in the evening of the same day, and then returned to the Okinawa base with the help of the rescue ship.

At 9:30 a.m. on October 20, 2018, the "Benford" arrived in Okinawa. The commander of the formation, Colonel Charlie, was immediately taken away by the gendarmes who had been waiting for a long time, along with Lieutenant Colonel Brown, the captain of the "Mastin," and dozens of other officers and soldiers.

Their ultimate fate was not known until a decade later, in which Colonel Charlie was sentenced to 10 years for "dereliction of duty" and Lieutenant Colonel Brown for "dereliction of duty".

The documentary "The Tragedy of "Free Navigation" interviewed everyone during the filming, including CNN reporter Haiman, except for Colonel Charlie. As witnesses of the incident, the officers and soldiers of those formations had already anticipated their fate, so they could accept it calmly after receiving the verdict. When the secrecy period expired, the interview request of the crew of the documentary "The Tragedy of "Freedom of Navigation" was not denied.

Compared with the calm of Colonel Charlie and others, the Pacific Fleet Command of the Beautiful Navy and the American government have long been anxious.

This "freedom of navigation" was a special mission for the Pacific Fleet under the orders of the U.S. Department of Defense. Looking at this from the standpoint of the American government, they just want to show the presence of the American government in the western Pacific region, and at the same time cheer up their little brother to deal with the rising threat of China.

But neither the U.S. Department of Defense nor the Pacific Fleet Command could have imagined that a deterrent operation that demonstrated the U.S. strategic presence in the Western Pacific would turn into a tragedy that could not be ended.

After receiving the "Benford's" report on the collision incident, the Pacific Fleet Command did not pay much attention to it at first, but regarded it as an accident, and the ocean was a big ocean, so what was so strange about a somewhat unknown creature? Even if the "Benford" reported that the bow of the ship was damaged, the officer on duty at the headquarters only archived the report sent back by the "Benford" and then ordered the formation to continue the voyage.

It was not until a few hours later that the fleet command again received reports that the left propeller of the "Benford" was entangled in fishing nets and lost its propulsion, and that the "Benford" could only sail at low speeds. The first reaction of the communications officer at the Pacific Fleet command was that the officer on night duty on the "Benford" must be too bored and joking with him, and maybe the crew of the "Benford" was already betting that they would believe it. So he subconsciously looked at the calendar and made sure that today was not April Fool's Day. Subsequently, the communications officer, who received the news, angrily scolded the crew of the "Benford". However, the "Benford" declared no jokes. After the communications officer of the Pacific Fleet command threatened to take the duty crew of the "Benford" to court-martial, the crew of the "Benford" still insisted that what he said was the truth, and only after repeated confirmation did the communications officer inform the commander of the "Benford" to the commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Swift.

Admiral Swift, who rushed to the headquarters, was given detailed information about the formation's journey and the damage to the "Benford", and after some consideration, Admiral Swift acquiesced to Colonel Charlie's decision to dispose of it, and at the same time ordered the formation to cross the Taiwan Strait and go directly to the U.S. naval base in Okinawa.

The following day, the two-ship formation led by Colonel Charlie did not encounter any more accidents, and the Pacific Fleet command was also calm.

However, when Admiral Swift, who went home to rest after work, saw the thunder of the "Mastin" on the screen through live CNN TV during dinner, he was stunned, and he didn't even pay attention to the cigar cigarette in his mouth falling on the table and burning the tablecloth with a big hole, until his hand unconsciously touched the cigarette butt of the cigar cigarette and was burned.

Admiral Swift could no longer enjoy his wife's elaborate dinner, so he grabbed his coat and hurried to the headquarters.

On the way, Admiral Swift received several phone calls in a row, including the United States' Commander Kopp, Mr. Kopp scolded Admiral Swift on the phone, and Admiral Swift was furious after hearing about Kopp, and could only endure it helplessly.

When Admiral Swift, who was holding back his anger, came to the headquarters, he got the news that the "Mastin" was incapacitated, and the crew had dozens of casualties.