In the morning light, the mighty French defense fleet sailed freely in the sea of fog, like a demon peeping into the abyss.

The reef of Lerobel Bay was so wide that only the lookout of the ships could track them at first, and it wasn't until an hour later that the crew of the Badger and Wasp were able to confirm the enemy from the deck.

The drums of war are rising......

"At a distance of five kilometers, in the direction of northeast and northeast, the fifth channel found the enemy track two, the bow image comparison, the Brig-type frigate Creed, the Brig-type frigate Echo. The relative speed of the enemy ship is 1.6 knots, and it is expected to receive the enemy within two hours! ”

Collingwood shook off his trench coat with a thud, his hand on the hilt of his sword, his chest straight.

"The whole ship is divided into two shifts, each post is one hour, and meals, confessions, and rests are allowed."

"Demarcate the sea area for the exit of the No. 5 channel, spanning one kilometer, with the hull swinging horizontally, occupying the T head."

"All gun doors on the starboard side are ready, the main deck gun emplacements are ready, and muskets are distributed!"

"In this battle, our opponents are only them! Brig's nine-pounder bow guns are hardly a threat to us, and the channel is not wide enough for two ships to run sideways, let alone for battleships to be sideways! ”

"As long as we lock the passage, we have an absolute advantage!"

"Now, reiterate the code of sailors of Great Britain, and hope that you will pay attention to the enemy in front of you, trust your comrades, and be not afraid of sacrifice!"

"God bless England! HMS Wasp, forward! ”

Advance!

The battleship roared to the sound of Collingwood's impassioned proclamation, the sailors ran selflessly, and the roars of the officers resounded in the sky.

The Wasp approached the reef in a steady manner, and the assault boat lowered with capable sailors and rowed straight towards the Sea of Fog.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the reef, Nelson spotted the dark shadow of the Jupiter on the deck for the first time.

Also an excellent young officer, his command style was very different from that of his friend Collingwood, sharper and more direct, aggressive and precise at the same time.

"Our opponent is the French's newest fifth-class ship, 46 guns, with an eighteen-pound main gun and, more importantly, two eighteen-pound bow guns."

"The eighteen-pounder medium-range gun, with a range of 800 meters at 4 degrees and 1400 meters at 8 degrees, is loaded with solid shells, and any kind of direct attack will easily shatter the hull of the Badger and cause us heavy damage."

"It is not allowed to protrude from the channel, and it is not allowed to stand still at the head of the T. Our safe space is in the blind spot of 30 degrees on both sides of the bow, and we are in a position to be guarded, and we use the side to decide the final victory. ”

"There are no reinforcements in this battle! Great Britain demands that every sailor be faithful to his duty, write your last words, and be ready to die in battle. Now please clarify the order of succession of each post, four posts are on rotation, and each post has a time of 30 minutes. ”

"Run, gentlemen. Your Majesty is looking forward to the news of our victory, Sir is looking forward to the news of our victory, and I, looking forward to the news of victory! ”

"Let God bless us."

"Yes, sir!"

……

There are no declarations, no admonitions, but like their own friendly ships, the Golden Deer can also be seen everywhere.

Merchant sailors have always been more motivated than their warship counterparts, thanks to higher wages, better security, and fewer whips.

The sailors cherished the opportunity to serve in the regular chamber of commerce, and this cherishment gave them a higher level of patience.

The Drake Chamber of Commerce is stronger than 90% of the large chambers of commerce in terms of security and pensions, so their sailors are more willing to work overtime unconditionally, even if they do not have the psychological construction of the first, it is not easy to accumulate dissatisfaction.

Of course, a decline in efficiency is inevitable.

Lorraine did not interfere too much with this inevitable weariness, and after announcing the order to continue the battle, he threw himself into the captain's quarters, until Ensign Fran boarded the ship with Nelson's order and the necessary information.

"The fourth-class cruiser Andean, built in 1750 and commissioned in 1753, was originally designed as a French 60-class battleship, which was modernized and converted to 56 in 1765, with a slight decrease in gun doors and a significant increase in firepower."

"The ship adopts a fully enclosed gun bay design, with two layers of gun bays. The lower deck is equipped with 24 24-pounder guns, the upper deck is equipped with 18 twelve-pounder guns, 8 9-pounder guns, and 2 18-pounder medium guns are set up in the bow of the ship with a firing arc of 120 degrees, and 4 18-pounder short guns are set up in the stern with a firing arc of 180 degrees. ”

Lorraine sneered and threw away the information in his hand, crossed Erlang's legs, and took a sip of the coffee that was about to cool.

"The paper data of the ruling level is quite in line with the characteristics of the refitted ships of that era."

"But I also have a data here, 52 meters long, 9 meters wide, fully loaded with 350 sailors, the maximum speed of 8.5, the lowest speed of 0.5, stability and wave resistance are in the middle to low."

"As a fourth-class ship of the previous generation, the Andean is more like a child with a sledgehammer, and my Golden Deer is not without a chance to win, and I am happy to accept this job."

"However, the additional risk should not be gratuitous." Lorraine laughed, "So in addition to the order, the Admiral should have a gift for me, Second Lieutenant, am I right?" ”

Second Lieutenant Fran twitched the corners of his mouth, blushing, and reluctantly pulled out the hidden paperwork.

"This is the Admiral's promise, and he asked me to hand it over to you myself, but the First Mate thinks that it is the duty of every Englishman to fight, and if you do not ask for it, let you know that this promise is an insult to the patriots. So ......"

"Long live the humiliation." Lorraine glanced at it and laughed.

A few minutes later, the adjustment of the Golden Deer was suspended, and all 280 sailors and seafarers gathered on deck to await Lorraine's final oath.

Lorraine first issued a battle pass.

"Order, Captain Judea is required to finish off the enemy in front of him within twenty-five minutes, and the original prisoners demand that it be abolished, and that all means of attacking the enemy be allowed to be decided on the spot."

The herald shouted: "Yes! Captain! ”

Lorraine waved away the order, leaned forward against the guardrail, and let go of his hand, shaking off Nelson's pledge.

He said lazily: "I have just given up a bagh-type slave ship at my fingertips, the market value of five thousand pounds, which is a great fortune. ”

"Does anyone know why?"

Silent.

Limited by their position and status, it was difficult for sailors to get a glimpse of the whole war, and it was difficult for them to express their proper opinions on such occasions.

Not to mention that Lorraine's expression and tone made it clear that he didn't expect an answer, as an employee of the Drake Chamber of Commerce, who would disobey the boss's mind during the big war?

Are you afraid that you won't receive your pension?

People waited in silence, each with their own minds. Sure enough, seeing that no one was talking, Lorraine's expression became noticeably happy.

"The feast begins." He said in a slightly nervous laugh, "At dawn, the French defense fleet officially broke into the island and reef zone, and it is impossible for us to completely block them in a trap, and the decisive battle in the bay is imperative, and the time is expected to be two hours later." ”

"The Admiral has entrusted us with the glorious task of sinking the opponent's flagship, which means that if we don't want the island and reef defense line to be completely defeated, we still have about thirty minutes left to adjust the center of gravity of the Golden Deer, and as for the remaining debris, we can only risk sorting it out during the voyage."

"It's going to be a desperate battle, and in recognition of our contributions, Mr. Admiral has prepared a handsome reward for us."

"Jupiter!" Lorraine stiffened his waist and slapped his palm on the guardrail, "As a Galen ship of the same class as the Golden Deer, the market value of the Jupiter is twenty-five thousand pounds, and she will become the common wealth of the Chamber of Commerce and you!" ”

The cheers filled the sky.

Through the ship's sailors, they had long heard of what Lorraine had done in Hebasil.

Strictly abide by the boundary between obligations and non-obligations, and do not encroach on the reasonable rights and interests of sailors, although the calculation method is still biased towards the benefits of the Chamber of Commerce, but it is the gain brought by the Chamber of Commerce by virtue of word of mouth and channels, and it is easy for many sailors to distinguish the joints.

What the sailors didn't expect was that after a few years, Lorraine actually brought up the common profit in this mercenary war.

Accepting state employment in accordance with the Chamber's policy can clearly be included in the sailors' obligations, and the Chambers of Commerce have a complete pension treaty, and even if Lorraine does not propose a win-win plan, the sailors cannot raise any objections.

But he brought it up anyway.

The sailors suddenly realized that the duel between the Golden Deer and the enemy's flagship in the wide sea must have exceeded the original battle plan, so Lorraine regarded it as an additional risk, and even regarded the military reward as an additional benefit.

The boss is so fair, what more could the employees ask for?

The sailors cheered and jumped with joy, and their fiery eyes looked up to Lorraine in anticipation of a further distribution plan.

Lorraine paused slightly.

"The ship's money will be divided into three, of which 20 percent will be delivered to the war dead, and the remaining eighty percent will be divided into two equal shares, with the ship's crew taking one share and the chamber of commerce owning the other."

"That is to say, every crew member who survives to win will receive an additional reward of £35 and 14 shillings."

"Hooray!"

Listening to the cheers of the sailors, Lorraine threw another bombshell.

"In addition to this, the Chamber of Commerce will release another hundred long-term contracts to reward crew members who have played an important role in this battle."

"Hooray!"

"A guaranteed annual salary of sixty pounds, a family contract, a child's education subsidy, better security and treatment, all these belong only to the warriors who live to the end!"

"Hooray!"

"Look, the feast is just around the corner, and danger comes opportunity! I will command you to victory, and all you have to do is do your best to carry out my orders and seize this victory! ”

"Drake, brave sailors, what are you to say now?"

Lorraine's question pushed the atmosphere on the ship to the highest level, and the sailors raised their brightly colored turbans and waved them towards the sky.

"The Golden Deer! Advance! ”