"Submarines?" O'Connor raised an eyebrow. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

"Just as I expected." Qin Lang's tone was as calm as ever, but with a little surprise and sarcasm - in order to cover up his negligence on this issue. "The Japanese actually put this immature weapon into real combat, and it must be said that their courage deserves our praise."

Holland's submarines were not actually combat-capable, as evidenced by the intelligence gathered by the Ministry of the Interior - even if it was an improved version of the Japanese Navy. Yes, they are armed with torpedoes, have the ability to navigate underwater, are able to sneak into the harbor to deliver a fatal blow to a moored battleship, and it seems that they are already qualified for war, but they are too small in size and tonnage, the hull is not tightly sealed, they are prone to flooding, the internal space is narrow, the navigation system is not perfect, there is no oxygen regeneration device, and they use gasoline engines. Accidental sinking, yaw, lack of oxygen to the crew, and oil and gas explosions are all troubles that these submarines can encounter at any time......

Disaster. This is a more appropriate description.

The actual combat operations of the submarine forces of the Japanese Navy fully demonstrated these problems - when the intelligence from the east coast arrived in San Diego, the latest news from the Far East also arrived. Only two of the five submarines that went into battle eventually returned to base, while the remaining three, one exploded in the middle of the voyage, ran aground about twenty miles from Port Arthur, and one completely lost a trace - if nothing else, it would have sunk to the bottom of the sea and could no longer float.

Sixty percent loss rate. The situation was so bad that the Japanese Navy had to keep all information about these new weapons and the combat operations they carried out tightly sealed, otherwise, with the loss of two armored cruisers in the Battle of Guam, Vice Admiral Heihachiro Togo, the commander of the Combined Fleet, would have to resign.

Of course, the Japanese Navy only blocked the news from within Japan, as it did in another war between Japan and Russia, after the mines of the "Yashima" and "Hatsuse" were sunk, but the Japanese did not block the news from the West...... There is no tight lockdown of the message. The little tactics taken by Tokyo were not worth mentioning at all for the pervasive Western journalists and professional spies, which is why Qin Lang and O'Connor were able to see the reports of the loss of those submarines so quickly.

"The Japanese Navy is in a bit of a hurry." O'Connor's comments are unbiased, neutral and unemotional. It's not that he intends to do this, as a white man, with two Chinese partners, and a good relationship with the company's Chinese employees, of course he will not be biased towards the Japanese, but Qin Lang has already been sarcastic, and it is a little ...... to be sarcastic Make a mountain out of a molehill.

It's just a few submarines as small as a few people to maneuver, and in a war where casualties are destined to exceed six figures, the loss of them, or none, will not even make a noticeable change in the statistics, or nothing at all.

He shrugged his shoulders and turned his gaze to the other belligerent of this war. "What about the Russians?"

The corners of Qin Lang's mouth curled slightly. "The Russian army is still the same, according to the orders of Kutparodin and Alekseev, all of them are huddled in the area of Arthur Fortress, Liaoyang Fortified Hell and Harbin, waiting for the Japanese army to attack."

"Idiot."

"That's true. However, the performance of the Russian Navy is quite good. The cruiser detachment in Vladivostok carried out two successful break-up operations, sinking several Japanese cargo ships. Lushun's fleet was also active, and although three battleships were incapacitated, several destroyers showed themselves quite actively, making the blockade of the Japanese not going well. Qin Lang paused for a moment and made a new comment: "I have to say that Vice Admiral Makarov has changed back into himself. ”

It's a little weird, but O'Connor isn't confused: Stepan. Vice Admiral Makarov, one of the best commanders, strategic and tactical experts and oceanographers of the Russian Navy, once suggested that watertight doors and waterproof compartments should be included as standard equipment for warships, and once studied mine tactics in depth, and created the first combat example of using torpedoes to sink an enemy ship; In addition, Makarov studied the hydrology and currents of the Bosphorus, for which he was awarded a prize of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in the 1890s he invented a new type of armor-piercing shell, presided over the construction of Russia's first icebreaker and carried out a series of scientific expeditions to the Arctic, and finally, drafted a twenty-year program for the construction of the Russian Navy......

An excellent general. In the eyes of almost everyone, Makarov's performance was the only reason why St. Petersburg appointed him commander of the First Pacific Fleet - although his performance in the first period disappointed and puzzling many people - but now, it seems, he has returned to normal.

It's just a little late.

"Do you think Vice Admiral Makarov has the ability to command the Russian fleet in Arthur to break through the blockade of the Japanese Navy?" O'Connor asked, and then said, as if to answer himself, "With only a few cruisers and destroyers, I don't think he could possibly do it." ”

Qin Lang shrugged his shoulders and said nothing.

Makarov had done everything he could - after the attack, he quickly replaced all incompetent captains, set up defensive mine barriers outside the harbor, expanded the repair shop, seized the time to repair three battleships, strengthened the coastal artillery, took measures to prevent the Japanese Army from landing off the coast of Arthur, organized the fleet for navigation and maneuver training, commanded the fleet to thwart several night attacks by the Japanese Combined Fleet, and ordered the Vladivostok detachment to attack the Japanese sea lines of communication - He did well, as well as St. Petersburg expected, the morale and combat effectiveness of the Russian Navy in Arthur were multiplying, but it still did not have the ability to break through the blockade.

Without battleships, relying only on a few cruisers and destroyers, any combat operation without the support of coastal batteries was self-defeating. The answer is obvious, Qin Lang knows, O'Connor knows, the Japanese know, and Makarov naturally knows.

"But we can always do something, even if we have to stay here and wait for all three battleships to be repaired." The vice admiral looked at the charts on the table and said to the officers around him, "The fleet should be active, not just laying mines or countering the attack of the Japanese fleet, which is not good for morale." And I believe that the fleet already has enough courage to take the initiative to attack the Japanese. ”

"General, are you going to take the initiative?"

"Yes, gentlemen, take the initiative, find the soft underbelly of the Japanese, seize it, hit it hard." The plan is simple, but it seems a bit out of touch.

"Our fleet cannot leave Arthur." An officer grunted.

"A destroyer acting alone can slip to a relatively distant point from Arthur, or even to a place very close to the Japanese fleet." Another officer said.

Objections were immediately raised. "With the exception of a few mines laid in places unknown to the Japanese, there was not much real threat from a destroyer acting alone. You don't think your boat can sink a Japanese warship with a few torpedoes it carries, do you? ”

"Maybe I can. Since the Japanese could sneak into Port Arthur and fire torpedoes at our warships, we could do the same against them. ”

"It's risky to do that."

"Lieutenant Colonel, if we still want to win, taking risks is essential." Makarov spoke, "Of course we should have a detailed and workable plan. Taking risks is not the same as being reckless. ”

"And what's your plan, General?"

"First of all, waiting." Makarov's words caused a slight commotion in the middle of the crowd - no one understood why he had to wait since he had asked to take the initiative - he raised his head, glanced at the group of bewildered officers, and explained: "You know, I ordered von . . . Rear Admiral Essen attacked Japan's lines of communication at sea, and he had already led the fleet in two dismantling operations. ”

"Yes, General." Someone replied.

The officers were well aware of the combat activity of the Vladivostok detachment, the first of which was on the third day of the attack on Arthur. Rear Admiral Essen's fleet of three cruisers intercepted and sank a Japanese cargo ship and a British merchant ship laden with flour in the Karumsu Strait, and the second time, two months later, the detachment broke into the port of Wonsan, blasting two Japanese cargo ships and one passenger and cargo ship anchored there to pieces.

But this doesn't make much practical sense. The actions of the detachment did not yet make the Japanese feel a serious threat - they did not send warships to the north to intercept Feng as expected. Rear Admiral Essen.

So how did its break-up activities help Lushun's fleet?

The officers were still confused, but Makarov's voice rang out again.

"A few days ago, I gave a letter to Von. Rear Admiral Essen issued a new order to intercept Japanese cargo ships in waters closer to Japan and, if the opportunity was right, to shell several coastal towns. In this way, no matter how reluctant the Japanese Navy may be, domestic pressure will force it to send warships to search for the Vladivostok detachment. But according to our intelligence, the two armored cruisers owned by the Japanese have been completely wiped out by Rear Admiral Wizofert, so if they want to sweep away von once and for all. Essen's three armored cruisers would have to devote much more force than it to......"

"And then we can take the initiative?"

"Yes, gentlemen." Makarov raised his voice, "At that time, we can take the initiative." ”

The excited officers began to whisper. Although no one knew how much strength the Japanese would send to the north to deal with the Vladivostok detachment, and it was not known whether the several cruisers and destroyers of their fleet would be able to defeat the Japanese warships that remained to continue the blockade of the port, they did see an opportunity anyway.

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PS: There is something going on at home, which has not been completely resolved, but I don't need to care about it anymore

PS PS: Beware of scammers, especially remind the elderly at home to pay attention

PS of PS: The rest of the month will be updated every day (to be continued, if you want to know what will happen next, please log in to the www.qidian.com, more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!) (To be continued.) )