Later that day, the academy officially conveyed the instructions of the Admiralty, and then announced the personnel arrangements: the cadets who are about to graduate are assigned to the front line of the fleet and the staff department, and the cadets who have been studying in the academy for one to two years go to the headquarters and reserve units of various naval bases, and Natsuki, a group of freshmen who have entered the academy for less than a year, are basically arranged to go to the naval fortress, and the strong defensive fortress will protect their lives like thick armor, The prestige of heavy artillery will give them a full glimpse of the terrifying power of modern warfare. Pen % fun % Pavilion www.biquge.info

As a typical representative of the privileged class, Natsuki is one of the very few students who can choose their own whereabouts, but he does not have this power alone. A few weeks earlier, he had sent a letter to Tirpitz's aide, Admiral Müller, the chief of the Navy's cabinet, asking for several midship-officer positions in his personal name from his old friend, who was in charge of naval personnel. Kaganak was eager to work with the Navy's staff members, Eckerle and Dinger had always wanted to go to the fleet's flagship, and several other close associates had their own inclinations. As for himself, Natsuki hoped to accept a strong challenge from the sea supremacy as the commander of the high-speed torpedo boat test group, and in order to avoid the worries of the navy's top brass, he promised that he would not personally fly the boat under any circumstances, and applied for the official position of deputy commander of the test group for Christian.

Judging from the personnel arrangements announced by the hospital, Xia Shu's requirements have all been met. In this tense and solemn atmosphere, although the friends could not express their excitement with a smile, the bright color in their eyes was enough to show their mood at this time, and with their intelligent minds, it was not difficult to guess that this was due to Natsuki's help, and the meaning of gratitude was beyond words. Farewell for now, by Feng. Kaganak looked up, and one by one they walked over to shake Natsuki's hand and give each other goodbyes.

Although he was only temporarily assigned to various units of the Navy as a midshipman officer, once the war broke out, casualties could not be avoided at all, and the sorrow of parting was suddenly filled with the elegant and quiet campus, with tearful faces and sincere hugs abounding.

The times make heroes - Natsuki left the same vigorous handwriting on every booklet sent to him.

In one day, the Kiel Naval Academy was like the depths of winter, and the teaching buildings, library, training ground, and swimming pool became empty.

In front of the window of the dean's office, General Birkenhagen stood with his hands behind his back, endless vicissitudes.

As the war alarm sounded, the Navy's high-speed torpedo boat test group stationed at the Kiel military port also received an order to prepare for war. Since its formation, the task of this unit has been mainly to explore and explore the techniques and tactics of high-speed torpedo boats, and it is not in the battle sequence of the German Navy, but it has left a deep impression on the country and the navy with wonderful and outstanding training exercises again and again: it is an incomparably sharp offshore sword, which can deal an extremely fatal blow to a powerful enemy with strange and cunning tactics, and the long-term training and running-in have also given this team a good tacit understanding. The secret trump card of victory!

When he learned of this intention of the Navy Staff, Natsuki did not use his connections to veto it. As the saying goes, there are eggs under the nest, and once the German Navy collapses under the preventive strike of the British, the existence of the high-speed torpedo boat test group loses its meaning. Rather than giving someone a handle, it's better to have the determination to give it a go from the beginning.

Since the day it was founded, the German Navy's high-speed torpedo boat test group has been deeply marked with the "prince brand", and equipment, technology, personnel, command, training, and exercises have all been carried out under the direct intervention of Natsuki. At the beginning of its establishment, this brigade had only six "Thunderbolt" speedboats, and the total number of officers, crew members, and maintenance technicians was less than 50, and now it is a complete organization with 24 "Thunderbolts," 12 "Thunder," and two auxiliary boats, as well as command, communications, and logistics organs.

At Natsuki's insistence, none of the officers who joined the test group were under the age of 35, and the sailors were generally under the age of 25. The energetic, curious, and fearless nature of the young people is a good fit for this new naval force. After a long period of training, running-in, study, and training, all officers and men have been able to master and flexibly use a variety of tactics. In the naval combat training held in the autumn, they once again won the praise of the Kaiser and the top of the navy for their outstanding performance, which almost affected Tirpitz's great naval plan - logically, the outstanding performance of the high-speed torpedo boat was contrary to Tirpitz's theory of the decisive battle of the Grand Fleet, but thanks to Natsuki's skillful guidance, the emperor's personal interest did not overly invest in the high-speed torpedo boat project, and the navy's investment in this field has always been kept within a relatively reasonable limit, As a result, there was no unfavorable situation in which the new theories of the French Navy seriously affected the shipbuilding plan.

Arriving at the test brigade with Christian as a midshipman officer, Natsuki immediately felt the tense atmosphere of the battle: the crew was equipped with fur hats and life jackets one by one, and waited in the watch room near the pier, ready to board the boat at any time; The "Thunderbolt" and "Thunder" speedboats, which were divided into three squadrons, were lined up on both sides of the trestle, and the waterproof seals had been removed from the torpedo launch nozzles, and the logistics personnel were inspecting and maintaining them one by one; The door of the communications room was open, and several officers were crammed inside, all waiting for the instructions from the telephone, one by one, with solemn faces......

It was learned that the two princes would come as midshipmen to test Hans, the actual commander of the brigade. Captain Ozemann waited respectfully at the door, and standing with him was the quartermaster of the brigade, Heinz. Captain Glasser. Both young officers were handpicked by Natsuki from a long list of applications — Ozemann was a top-notch torpedo tactician, and Glasser was a brilliant playmaker.

The situation was special, so Xia Shu omitted greetings and directly inquired about the preparations of the test team. The reply received from the two captains was basically satisfactory: Except for the two "Thunderbolts" with technical problems, the rest of the speedboats could strike at any time, and a solid two-way connection had been established with the 7th Mineship Group -- in the sea assault tactics drawn up by Natsuki, the small high-speed torpedo boats should be fully covered and coordinated by the large torpedo boats, and this idea was also well implemented in daily training and exercises, and the 7th Thunderbolt Group stationed in Kiel was their "old partner." The brigade had 12 large torpedo boats of the 1892 and 1898 classes, led by experienced Navy Major Erich. Gorler commanded.

Probationary officers, as the name suggests, are officers who do not yet have the formal qualifications to perform their duties and need to learn and train in practice. Although Natsuki was wearing a midshipman uniform without a military rank, he obviously didn't have to play a bystander role in his own territory. In the operations conference room, he learned in detail about the combat readiness instructions issued by the Navy General Staff: The task of the test group is to coordinate with the 7th Thunderbolt Group to undertake the patrol task from Kiel Bay to the Fermer Strait. Since the endurance of the "Thunderbolt" and "Thunder" was not suitable for patrolling the open sea, Major Goreer offered to have his large torpedo boat take charge of patrolling and guarding, and once the enemy situation was discovered, the test group would immediately set sail, and the two sides would combine at the mouth of Kiel Bay to organize operations according to the specific situation.

Against this backdrop, Captain Ozeman made the decision to put the entire crew on standby, and the logistics staff also carried out a comprehensive and meticulous technical overhaul of each high-speed torpedo boat to ensure that they were ready for combat at the first opportunity.

The formidable British fleet had not yet arrived, and there was not even news that they had been dispatched, and although Ozeman's arrangement was reasonable, it was also easy for the officers and men to prematurely drain their energy and energy in a state of high tension. If Natsuki was to make the decision, he would leave one squadron of pilots on standby in the duty room, and two squadrons sleeping in dormitories and clothes, rotating every four hours, so that the pilots could maximize their energy retention and be able to attack in an orderly manner if necessary.

As Natsuki, he can take command of the test team at any time and correct Ozeman's standby orders, but with a little political acumen, he will realize that this kind of change of strategy is not conducive to maintaining the stability of the team, and may also affect the accuracy of the execution of the strategy. Determined to maintain Ozeman's authority as commander with a calm view of the big picture, Xia Chu revisited the early plan to meet the enemy, confirmed that Ozeman's battle plan was feasible, and then went to the watch room where the crew was on standby, and soothed their nervousness with optimism and humor.

Just then, a dark blue painted Opel car arrived at the station, and its appearance made the crew mistakenly believe that the battle was about to begin, and almost everyone tensed their faces, and the truth made Natsuki cry and laugh - it was Philip, the military discipline inspector of the Navy Office, who got out of the car. Sochards, who was nominally there to supervise the conduct of the troops, was on a real mission to ensure that the two young princes would not venture aboard the ship under any circumstances. Moreover, this major inspector is not an ordinary person, he has Prussian royal blood, Natsuki has to call him cousin in terms of seniority, he is about thirty years old, and has the demeanor and steady and arrogant bearing of most princes and nobles.

(End of chapter)