The sudden appearance of the Chinese warship made Commodore Sampson, who was detouring on the left flank, a little dumbfounded, and the combat authorization he obtained had never included a fleet other than the Spanish Navy, let alone the Chinese Navy, which is now comparable to the development benchmark in the naval world, but at this moment the problem arises......

The American fleet with two wings is now spreading out on the sea at a distance of nearly 8,000 meters, and the position of the two sides at this moment is like a triangular pavilion, the position of the American fleet in the two corners of the ground, while the Chinese fleet and several merchant ships are in the direction of the battleship Massachusetts, and at this distance, the daytime flag is the only option, but at such a distance, the effect of this method of communication is worrying!

"Immediately issue an order to the Massachusetts to suspend the interception!" Brigadier General Sampson immediately gave an urgent order.

However, at this moment, on the right flank of the Massachusetts, the captain of the ship, Colonel Poulson, had all focused his attention on the Chinese battleship appearing in front of him and as many as 6 main guns on the battleship...... In terms of the projection ability of the battleship, the battleship Massachusetts is also very good among the new battleships of this era, after all, the 2 twin 13-inch, 35 times the diameter of the main gun, this projection ability can also be regarded as a leverage, and the second main gun 4 8-inch, 35 times the diameter of the twin guns, for the armored ship is also lethal firepower.

"Keep course forward, artillery ready to shell! Keep posting flags and let the Chinese get out of here, otherwise we'll do it ourselves! Colonel Poulson roared as he pointed to the Chinese warship in the distance.

The colonel's orders were transmitted through the guò microphone at various combat positions on the Massachusetts, both veteran and new. They all began to tremble with nervousness. Intercepted unarmed Spanish merchant ships at underground speeds. For a navy with battleships, it was like a garden walk, but now the sudden appearance of a battleship in the distance, and one of the most powerful navies of our time, a battleship from China, immediately made everyone feel the most real pressure.

Moments later, the news from the communications corps made Colonel Poulson furious again—the damned Chinese guys. It is even said that these merchant ships are fulfilling contracts with the Chinese fleet, so they deserve their protection! Fortunately, he soon saw a turnaround......

On the lookout, the American flag soldiers laboriously waved their flags again and again to signal to the Chinese warships in the distance...... Finally, a few minutes later, Colonel Poulson saw in the distance that Chinese warships and a group of merchant ships began to turn towards the coastline, which was very satisfying...... Damn yellow-skinned monkeys, I'm still scared when I see our fleet!

"How long will it take to catch up with the Spanish merchant fleet!" Poulsen yelled sideways at the adjutant next to him, in his opinion, the next task. It's the hunt for these short-legged merchant ships, as for the Chinese. If they dared to move, they would naturally use the 13-inch main guns on their battleships to teach him a lesson.

"Report, Brigadier General Sampson sent a message asking us to suspend the interception!" The communications corps suddenly rushed in and reported loudly.

"Suspend interception?" Poulson frowned loudly and turned his head to look at the corporal who came in, "Jack, I think you are mistaken, can you let the Spaniards slip away in this situation?" Go to the flagship to determine the order! ”

The communications officer apparently did not question the captain's order and immediately hurried out...... The actions of the Chinese fleet at this moment also caused some hesitation in the interpretation of Commodore Sampson, and at 15:21 he made a new decision when the communications officer reported to him the confirmation sent back by the Massachusetts.

"Don't confirm the order for the time being, issue a new order to the right flank fleet and follow the flagship!" He pointed to the Spanish fleet in the distance, "Let's outflank from the right flank and see what the Chinese are doing!" ”

More than 8,000 meters away on the sea, Liu Hetu quietly watched the merchant fleet on the left side follow him and began to turn, but at this moment he also had a trace of anxiety in his heart, according to the plan, the fleet quickly intercepted several merchant ships on the periphery, and informed the Spanish caravan of the situation in Havana, and at the same time passed with the fleet in the name of escort, which took a full 2 hours, so it was so late.

And during this period of time, although he continued to receive news from the reconnaissance airship before, he naturally carefully considered the strategy adopted by the American fleet, and let the Americans fire the first shot, which is particularly important for himself to participate in mediation, but this is obviously not an easy thing, and the 13th Fleet is completely alone, although the long range and high combat efficiency given by the battle patrol design have greatly enhanced the intervention force of the 13th Fleet, but he is not invincible, and he is careful to sail the ship of 10,000 years!

Sevela revealed some details to himself before his departure that led him to make this bold decision, and the American fleet was indeed theoretically correct based on the trapping tactics it had unfolded against itself, but it was used in the wrong place...... It's the Spaniard's doorstep.

"Tell the Americans to retreat immediately and voluntarily, or else they will bear the consequences, and if they pursue them within range, it will be regarded as an act of war by us!" Liu Hetu pointed to the squad under the USS Massachusetts, which was outflanking from his right rear, and unceremoniously issued an order.

The repeated light signals and flags on the Sky Wolf's battle patrol quickly attracted the attention of the Americans, although this warning could be said to be very arrogant and rude, and even unreasonable, after all, neither side declared war, and one side chased into the range of the other's shells, which obviously could not be considered a declaration of war.

However, the giant cannon on the starboard side pointed diagonally on the Sirius, this is not a joke, and the commander of the battleship Massachusetts, Colonel Poulson, also immediately realized the possibility of misfire, although the Chinese were very rude, and he also had a very urgent desire to leave the other party, but this was completely different from a war against the Spanish ships, and he was not willing to lose his good career and future for this.

"Turn the rudder 10 degrees to the right and keep a safe distance of more than 8,000 meters!" Poulson immediately made adjustments, the fleet slightly deflected towards the coastline, the Florida Strait is a natural deep-water channel, there is no need to worry about bad problems such as grounding, as an officer stationed in the port of Key West for a long time, he knows very well how to intercept the opponent here, and now what he wants to do is simpler than interception, just to drive the Chinese out of the strait.

In the Florida Strait, there was an extremely interesting scene, two Chinese warships slowly sailed along the coastline to the south-east, and the Spanish merchant ships that had followed the Chinese warships had already seen that the situation was not good, and they all fled quickly along the coastline in the direction of Matanzas.

At 4:11 p.m., after the two sides maintained this very strange tailgating posture for more than 40 minutes, even the fool could see that Chinese had come to mess around at all, and did not intend to really fight...... Brigadier Admiral Sampson, apparently aware of this, came up to the surveying officer, looked at the position of the fleet at the moment, and looked at the sun that was gradually setting in the west, and made a decision at once.

"Order the detachment to stop following the Chinese fleet, and we will return to the port of Key West immediately!" Today's operation has achieved the necessary success, and after reconnaissance it has been determined that the Spanish fleet is not in the port of Havana, so his combat objectives have been adjusted...... More importantly, the Chinese must immediately report to the White House the behavior of making trouble here, and he does not believe that the Chinese are passing here.

After the order was given, the battleship Iowa immediately began to slow down and prepare to turn, but at this moment, Sampson caught a glimpse of a huge black plume of smoke suddenly rising from the sea, which made him feel that something was wrong, and when he rushed to the lookout window, the officers in the entire bridge command room were shocked by the sudden situation in front of him!

In the distance, the squadron under the battleship Massachusetts had apparently received an order from the flagship, but just as the five battleships began to turn north in order, the 2,400-ton cruiser Brooklyn, which was in third place in the queue, suddenly suffered a fatal blow!

A black column of smoke rose into the sky, and the more than 2,000-ton hull of the cruiser Brooklyn was lifted from the water at once, and then the flames of the skyrocketing rose from the black smoke at once...... At this time, the rumbling explosion resounded throughout the coastline...... (To be continued......)