"Honk the horn to salute, and play the light signal 'all the way safe'." Looking at the bulk carrier slowly setting sail not far away, Spee stood on the ear bridge of Scharnhorst and saluted solemnly.

The island's morning calm is shattered by the shrill whistle of frightened seagulls flying from the shore and circling in flocks over the small harbor.

On the sea, 11 ships flying the flag of the German Empire honked their whistles, dressed in cleaned military uniforms, and the German naval officers and sailors who had cleaned themselves up neatly lined up on the ships, watching the 8,760-ton bulk carrier Grita slowly leave.

The Greta blew its whistle, the flickering light signal sounded the final blessing "Wuyun Changlong", and the crew stood on the side of the ship and waved goodbye. Then, the flag of the German Empire on the ship was slowly lowered, and the flag of Chile fluttered in the sea breeze.

The Far East Fleet encountered the Greta while passing through the Aktien Atoll, and since this was not a patrol area for the Australian Navy, and the British fleet would not be present here, the fleet that did not fly reconnaissance planes was really surprised when it encountered a merchant ship flying the Chilean flag, and this was not a commercial shipping route for civilian ships.

Moreover, the Chilean merchant ship did not adjust its course at the first time to avoid the fleet, nor did it send a clear telegram to identify itself to the Germans, but lowered the Chilean flag, hung the imperial flag, and took the initiative to come over.

Just as Spee hesitated to fire a cannon to warn the unidentified merchant ship to stop for inspection, the merchant ship, which was close enough to communicate visually, used a light signal to indicate that it was a German ship.

It was only after Mr. Morris, the captain of the merchant ship opposite, took the initiative to board the Scharnhorst in a lifeboat that Spee figured out the ins and outs.

The Greta is a bulk carrier built at a German shipyard in Manila that has been running the route from the Philippines to Chile since it was built.

When the Greta departed from Manila, Britain had not yet declared war on the Empire, but when she arrived in Valparaiso, Captain Morris heard the news that the Anglo-German navy had fought in the Helgoland Bay.

Although Captain Morris was not worried about the neutrality of the Chilean government at this time due to the friendly relations between Chile and Germany at this time, the British fleet was in Port Stanley on Falkland Island, and it was difficult to guarantee that the attitude of the Chilean government would not change due to British pressure. So instead of staying in Chile, it is better to return to the Philippines.

However, with the Australians following the British into the war, the South Pacific routes were certainly no longer safe. So Captain Maurice approached the German Chamber of Commerce office in the port of Valparaiso for help.

The German Chamber of Commerce in Chile showed great enthusiasm for Captain Morris's plea for help.

Not only did the port authority in Valparaiso turn a blind eye to the change of the Greta to the Chilean flag, but also loaded a batch of goods as quickly as possible for the Greta to be transported back to the Philippines.

What happened next proved Captain Maurice's foresight, and just as the Geta was loading its cargo, a British fleet arrived in Valparaiso.

Captain Maurice, who did not dare to linger, hurried out of Valparaiso early the next morning. In order to avoid possible interception and inspection by Australian Navy vessels, the Greta carefully sailed all the way to a distance from the shipping lane, and then met Spee's Far East Fleet near the Atoll of Aktien.

Captain Morris, who was frightened along the way, did not dare to use the radio to identify himself, because if an Australian warship received a radio message from a codebook using the German Marine Liaison Handbook (Handelsverkehrsbuch, HVB), which was used for liaison between the German Navy and merchant ships, it would be even more inappropriate to detect the presence of a German ship nearby even if it did not know what the message was.

That's why the previous scene was staged, and Spee, who couldn't laugh or cry, was embarrassed to tell Captain Morris that he almost ordered the cannon to fire.

However, although cautious and somewhat timid, Captain Morris offered to return with the fleet after learning that the Far East Fleet was going to Easter Island to rest and recuperate, and handed over some of the cargo that could be used to the fleet.

Although the cargo on board the Greta is mainly strategic materials such as copper ingots and saltpeter, there are also about 1,000 tons of various daily necessities.

This batch of daily necessities is of great significance to the entire fleet, for example, the fleet has been at sea for so long after knowing that the soap is in the cargo list of the Greta, and the soap on the ship is about to run out, and the sailors who have to save it have to happily take out the remaining bit of soap and taste it for themselves and their clothes.

Items such as coffee, canned food, cigarettes, and beer have greatly boosted the morale of officers and soldiers.

This also filled all the officers and men of the Far Eastern Fleet with gratitude and admiration for the captain and his crew.

For Spee, however, the most valuable thing Captain Morris brought with him was not the 1,000 tons of household items, but information about the movements of the British fleet.

Although as commander of the Imperial Navy's Far East Fleet, Spee had studied imaginary enemies in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, but he was not ignorant of British maritime power in the South Atlantic.

2 armored cruisers, 1 light cruiser, 1 auxiliary cruiser, presumably the 4th cruiser detachment of the British.

What are they doing in Chile?

It's not that I'm worried about what kind of threat such a fleet can pose to me.

At this time, almost all the main combat ships of the Far East Fleet of the entire empire gathered next to Easter Island.

Although Lieutenant Colonel Müller, who decided to take the Indian Ocean route to Walvis Bay in order to help the main fleet attract the attention of the British, took the Augsburg.

However, after the merging of logistics ships from Port Moresby on Christmas Island, the addition of two light cruisers, one Dresden-class and one of the most cutting-edge Karlsruhe-class, further enhanced the combat effectiveness of the Far East Fleet under Spee.

The arrival of one Kiel-class oil and water supply ship, two fleet oil tankers, and two fleet coal carriers of the logistics fleet has solved the worries of the Far East Fleet.

After a 3-day break on Christmas Island, the ammunition and fuel consumed by the fleet in previous operations were replenished, and when the fleet departed from Christmas Island, the entire fleet was in excellent condition.

And the 2 armored cruisers on the British side are just 1 old Drake-class, 1 Monmers-class that was frightened by the Empire's Elizabeth-class heavy cruisers to stop the follow-up construction plan, 1 City-class light cruiser that was beaten by the Second Reconnaissance Fleet in the Helgoland Bay, plus 1 auxiliary cruiser that is not much combat power at all, in the face of the current Far East Fleet, it is estimated that the performance is not as good as the original French Far East Fleet in the Gulf of Thailand.

But the appearance in Chile of this fleet, which is responsible for patrolling the western Atlantic route between the mouth of the St. Lawrence in North America and the mouth of the La Plata in South America, is a very bad sign for Spee!

This was because the Fourth Cruiser Squadron, though not very strong, was of great importance, and the shipping lanes it protected were crucial to the safe delivery of grain and meat from the Americas to Britain.

In the case that the Imperial African Fleet in Walvis Bay would definitely not be in peace, at the risk of being attacked on the shipping lanes and running out of food on the mainland, the Fourth Cruiser Squadron appeared in Chile, and Spee's first reaction was that the whereabouts of the Far Eastern Fleet were discovered?

The Fourth Cruiser Squadron was only one of the British fleets that I knew by coincidence that were gathering towards the southeast Pacific, and in fact a large number of British fleets were gathering towards us at a place that I did not know.

At that time, Spee was frightened by his own thoughts, and he was covered in a cold sweat.

But when I think about it, it's impossible.

After inflicting heavy damage on the French Far East Fleet, the fleet sailed south in a posture of entering the Java Sea through the Karimata Strait.

In the short distance from the Gulf of Thailand to the vicinity of the Anambas Islands, the southernmost tip of the South China Sea, the fleet captured 14 British and French merchant ships, and after looting the ship's supplies, forced them to open the sea valve and sink themselves, sinking a total of 56,208 tons.

After that, the Augsburg was separated from the main fleet on the island of Laute, and only one fleet oil tanker and one passenger and cargo ship filled with various supplies from the previous "robbery of the rich and helping the poor" as separate gifts followed it. This passenger and cargo ship was also a merchant ship that had been captured earlier, and was left behind because of its high speed.

According to the plan, the Augsburg would continue south into the Java Sea and then enter the Indian Ocean through the Sunda Strait, and the Augsburg would release the captured British and French sailors as it passed through the port in order to confuse the British into believing that the entire Far East Fleet was about to enter the Indian Ocean.

The main force of Spee's fleet returned to Philippine waters in a low-key north, crossed the Sulu Sea-Sulawesi Sea into the Pacific Ocean, and then joined up with the logistics ships on Christmas Island, and the journey was very smooth. Moreover, the fleet has been silent on the radio during the voyage, and there is no reason why it will be discovered by the British.

Moreover, the British also had a cruiser detachment in the southwest Atlantic, and if they were to intercept themselves, it would be impossible to let only such a group of old, weak, sick and disabled people as the Fourth Cruiser Squadron come to their deaths.

No, it can't be so sure.

Now 12 days had passed since the Greta left Valparaiso, and it would take about five days to reach the coast of Chile, and the Fourth Cruiser Squadron would not necessarily be the only British fleet operating in the vicinity of the area.

But no, if the British really already knew their whereabouts, then it would be the right choice to assemble a fleet in Port Stanley and intercept themselves at the exit of the Strait of Magellan.

Has the fleet's whereabouts been revealed? Why exactly did the British fleet appear in Chile? What exactly will happen in the way of the fleet?

These three questions have always plagued Spee, but also the entire Far Eastern Fleet.

During the fleet's three days on Easter Island, while the sailors happily received gifts from the Greta and enjoyed the fleet's last leisure time before entering the Atlantic, the captains of the Far East Fleet kept thinking, analyzing, and arguing about these three issues in the conference room.

However, there is no answer.

The only conclusion is that no matter what lies ahead, the Far Eastern Fleet will have to pass through the Strait of Magellan into the South Atlantic.

Watching the German merchant ship flying the Chilean flag slowly sail away, Spee's heart once again swelled with the sadness of separation.

The last time such sentiment arose was when Augsburg separated from the fleet in the Anambas Islands, and Lieutenant Commander Müller embarked on a voyage to the Indian Ocean with his small fleet, which was destined to be pursued by the British.

This time, Captain Morris sailed with his merchant ship to the Philippines, which had been blockaded by the Empire's islands in the Pacific Ocean, which had probably been seized by the Japanese.

And he is about to take the Empire's Far East Fleet on an uncertain journey to the Atlantic.

Turning away from the ear bridge, he walked into the bridge, and stood in the center of the front of the bridge, and Spee shouted his order: "Inform the whole fleet!" Weigh! ”