After completing the ceremony to commemorate the martyrs, Xiao Yonglin was about to start today's sea target training, but a few faint pillars of smoke suddenly appeared on the sea in the distance.

"It looks like a warship." Li Jinlin, the captain of the boat, held the telescope and looked at it, and said, "It may be Japanese." ”

Xiao Yonglin turned his head to look at the neatly arranged columns of smoke, the corners of his eyes moved slightly, he turned his head and stared at the wreath floating on the sea, after seeing the wreath sinking into the waves little by little, he ordered in a deep voice: "Dive quickly!" …”

With his order, the deck team was busy quickly, and soon, everything was ready, all the crew members entered the cabin in turn, rushed to their respective posts, and finally Xiao Yonglin, who entered the boat, quickly covered the hatch cover and came to the command cabin.

The submarine "Exocet 9...", which soon dived to the depth of the periscope, Xiao Yonglin crouched in front of the periscope, carefully observing the sea, and many Japanese warships appeared in front of him one after another.

"Is it a Japanese warship?" Li Jinlin asked.

"Yes. And it's a big guy I've never seen before. Xiao Yonglin looked at the huge monstrous ship on the sea, sneered, and gave up the periscope to the deputy captain.

Li Jinlin took the periscope and put his glasses in front of the camera, and couldn't help but be taken aback.

In front of him was a tall and strange giant battleship.

"Good guy, it's estimated that there are more than 30,000 tons...... Li Jinlin said.

"It's probably a lot more, did you notice, it has six main turrets." Xiao Yonglin snorted coldly, "The firepower is really strong." …”

"I remember that the British seemed to have a monster with a seven-turret like that, but it blew up the Germans at the Battle of Jutland." Li Jinlin's gaze still did not leave the periscope, "The Japanese want to surpass Britain and become the hegemon of the sea." ”

"Give me the booklet......"

Xiao Yonglin pointed to a corner and motioned for one of his subordinates to bring the "Atlas of Ships of All Nations" equipped on the boat.

"Six main turrets, two in the bow, two in the stern, one chimney and one between the two masts." Li Jinlin said very tacitly, according to his description, Xiao Yonglin opened the album to "Japan." The column flipped quickly.

Soon, Xiao Yonglin turned to a page of boat drawings and stopped.

"Fuso, class battleship, 34,700 tons, 205 meters long, 28.65 meters wide, 8.7 meters draft, 24 oil medium mixed boilers. The main engine power is 40,000 horses, the maximum speed is 23 knots, the endurance is 14 knots 8,000 nautical miles, 12 twin 356 mm 45 times caliber main guns, 16 152 mm 50 times caliber secondary guns, 4 76 mm anti-aircraft guns, 305 mm at the thickest point of the side armor belt, 305 mm frontal armor of the turret, 114 mm of armor on the top of the turret, 203 mm of turret armor, 64 mm of deck armor, and 350 mm thickest of the conning tower. ”

"Thirty-four thousand seven hundred tons, this may be the largest warship of the Japanese......" Li Jinlin turned around and came to Xiao Yonglin's side, looked at the data on the atlas, and said a little strangely, "What do they mean by driving this thing to our doorstep?" ”

"They're definitely heading to Lushun." Xiao Yonglin's brows gradually tightened, "Find a place to float up and send a report, and report the news to the base and the Admiralty." …”

"General, our correspondent intercepted an unwired communication, which according to analysis may have been sent by a Chinese ship. …”

On the bridge of the battleship "Fuso...", the captain of the ship, Rear Admiral Tsuneta Shimauchi, reported to the commander of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Shigetaro Yoshimatsu.

"You're saying there's a reconnaissance ship around here?" Shigetaro Yoshimatsu frowned, his gaze quickly swept over the vast sea, "But we didn't find any ships." ”

"I suspect that the submarine in this area is moving." Tsuneta on the island replied, "It is likely that a Shina submarine discovered us. ”

Hearing the words "Shina submarine...", Shigetaro's face immediately became gloomy.

As for the details of the Battle of Caofeidian, thanks to the unremitting efforts of Japanese intelligence officers, the top brass of the Japanese Navy already knew what had caused the most serious losses to the Japanese Navy since its founding.

The results of the Battle of Caofeidian proved that the small submarine was enough to destroy the battleship of the Sea Overlord, which cost a huge amount of money, and gave the Japanese military and political authorities a great shock; first, the Japanese naval commander proposed that the construction of the Japanese Navy's submarine force should be accelerated, and the large-scale submarine battle that took place in the Atlantic Ocean later made the Japanese military circles realize the tremendous power of submarines, and the Japanese Navy has since been less contemptuous, and more vigilant and concerned about the weak Chinese Navy, which has submarines. ,

"You mean that the China Navy already has submarines capable of sailing to the open sea?" Shigetaro Yoshimatsu asked.

"Yes, General." Tsuneta Toriuchi nodded and replied in the affirmative.

"So quickly, the backward shipbuilding technology of the Echinans, it is unlikely. Yoshimatsu shook his head to himself, as if he was looking for a reason to comfort himself.

"There is no doubt that the industrial technology of the people of China has always been very backward compared to the empire," said Tsuneta Shimauchi, "but it cannot be ruled out that they may go further than we think in some respects." Last time, they received important support from the people of the United States. China is now an important member of the Entente, and it is very likely that the China people will secretly purchase submarines from the United States and Britain through this favorable opportunity......

"What you say makes sense, the rice country is the most dangerous enemy of the empire in the future, and they have always wanted to use the resources and manpower of China to fight against the empire. "Shigetaro Yoshimatsu said.

Thinking that the main battleship, which was named after Japan's country name and nickname "Fuso...", (Japanese battleships were mostly named after ancient feudal states), symbolizing the Japanese Navy's status as the world's third largest navy, might be under the threat of cunning Chinese submarines, Shigetaro Yoshimatsu's heart couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

In 1906, the British battleship "Dreadnought" came out to announce the birth of a new era of naval "dreadnought" era, and at the same time greatly provoked a more fierce shipbuilding competition around the world, and in 1912, Britain completed four new battleships of the "Orion" class in succession. The caliber of the main guns was suddenly increased from 12 inches (305 mm) to 13.5 inches (343 mm), and the five main turrets were placed in a more rational configuration along the center line of the ship, while other features were better than those of previous dreadnoughts. The British press described this powerful new battleship as "a super-dreadnought...", so the focus of the world naval competition was again concentrated on this "super-dreadnought-class" competition.

The relatively conservative Japanese naval authorities also began to reflect on this trend, temporarily abandoning "self-reliance" and "working behind closed doors" and "humbly refocusing their eyes on Europe." The Japanese Navy ordered the world's most powerful battle cruiser at that time, the "King Kong...", which was larger, stronger, faster, and more rationally designed than the British battle cruiser of the same period, the "Lion..."-class. So much so that when the British built the battlecruiser "Tiger...", they in turn referred to the design ideas of the "King Kong..." class.

Japan also learned the first-class shipbuilding technology from the British-made ships, and according to the British-made "King Kong...", Japan itself copied three ships of the same type, and this move raised the level of shipbuilding technology in Japan to a new level. At this time, Japan's own construction of "super dreadnought" battleships naturally became the subsequent goal of the Japanese Navy.

The design of the Japanese "Super Dreadnought" ship began with drunkenness, and the ambitious Japanese Navy still clung to its long-standing tradition and always put its goal in the first place in the world. Its original "super dreadnought" battleship was required to be designed as a displacement that exceeded that of any warship in the world, and its speed was higher than that of the usual battleships of other countries. According to the heated discussion, the main gun design still uses the same twin turret as the "King Kong" class, so as to facilitate training and equip the turret all in the centerline in order to maximize the broadside firepower.

The world's largest "Super Dreadnought-class" battleship can be said to bring together the highest technology of the Japanese Navy, and the Japanese military's expectations of it can be seen from the name "Fuso...", which is known in Japan. However, although Japan's shipbuilding industry and design capabilities had made considerable progress at that time, it was still very difficult to design and produce the world's highest level of "super dreadnought..." ships. In the past, it was still in the stage of imitation, but now it is about to start building the world's largest and strongest warships in one fell swoop, and this kind of "great leap forward in building ships" without regard for reality has also been ruthlessly punished by reality.

Due to the excessive pursuit of "firepower world first." "More than half of the entire warship is occupied by the turret, once the salvo is fired to the side with maximum firepower, the cannon smoke and air waves generated by the shooting will be densely covered by the entire warship, and these gun smoke and air waves will naturally bring damage to the superstructure, in addition, there are other troubles, because the rear firing command post is also sandwiched in the middle of the No. 4 and No. 5 main turrets, and the cannon smoke and air waves generated by the shelling will have a fatal impact on the observation of the firing command post. In addition, judging from the ship's main gun armament, the No. 1 and No. 2 turrets, and the No. 5 and No. 6 turrets are respectively equipped with a "knapsack type..." layout, while the No. 3 and No. 4 turrets are installed in an independent state in the seed department, and it is difficult to form a powerful gun group in terms of firing command. ,

In order to build the largest battleship in the world at the time, major factories in Japan were expanded, and the "Fuso" was opened at the Kure Naval Factory in 1912. At that time, the construction of a 30,000-ton warship in the dockyard was the world's first attempt. More than two years later, in March 1914, the hull was almost completed. The Fuso was finally put into active service in November 1915, when Britain and Germany engaged in an encounter between capital ships on the Dogger Sandbank, and the following year the Battle of Jutland was unprecedented, and the results of the Battle of Jutland brought various lessons to the world's navies, and it can be said that it brought an earth-shaking impact to the design and construction of warships in the future. The construction of the second ship of the "Fuso..."-class "Yamashiro...", which began on November 20, 1913 at the Yokosuka Naval Yard and was launched on November 3, 1915, had the opportunity to learn from the experience and strengthen the structure, but the main gun steel and other materials ordered from the United Kingdom could not be supplied due to the shortage of the British war, and although Japan's domestic production capacity kept up with the progress accordingly, the completion of the "Yamashiro..." was still two years later than the "Fuso...". It was not until March 31, 1917 that he joined the battle columns.

Although "Fuso. The class battleships themselves still have shortcomings or flaws of one kind or another in terms of design, but the "face project" is still the "face project" after all.... "Whether it is Shigetaro Yoshimatsu, commander of the Combined Fleet, or Tsuneta Shimauchi, captain of the "Fuso," and even some high-level people in the Japanese government, are very aware of the weaknesses and shortcomings of this class of super-dreadnought battleships, which have been highly anticipated by the Japanese people but have unsatisfactory results. This is why, at the repeated strong demands of the British, whose main naval force had been devastated in the Battle of Jutland, Japan only agreed to send "Katori...", "Kashima", "Ibuki...", and other "former dreadnought" battleships and the early battlecruiser "Kurama" to appear.

"Order all ships to be on alert! Watch out for enemy submarines! Shigetaro Yoshimatsu ordered loudly.

"Did they find us? …”

At this time, in the submarine "Exocet 9...", Li Jinlin, who was lying in front of the periscope, looked at the light ships of the Japanese fleet changing formations, and asked with some surprise.

"The wireless telegraph just now made them hear." Xiao Yonglin smiled slightly, "It seems that they are still very afraid of submarines." ”

"I scared us last time." Li Jinlin said with a smile, "What's more, there are also the glorious achievements of German counterparts, so it's no wonder that they are not afraid." …”

"Let's go, let's get out of here. Xiao Yonglin ordered.

"Don't you plan to do a vote and kill Japan's largest ship?" Li Jinlin said with a half-truthful smile.

"It's a long time coming, so I'm not in a hurry at this time. Xiao Yonglin took the telescope and looked at the battleship Fusang...", which was advancing like the stars beating the moon, and sneered.

Li Jinlin issued a series of orders, and with the operation of the Chinese submariners, the "Exocet 9" submarine turned its head flexibly underwater and sailed in the opposite direction of the Japanese fleet.

The rays of sunlight shining through the blue sea shone on the body of the submarine that was sneaking, reflecting the swift figure of the submarine, and in the depths of the seabed, the wreckage of a sunken ship was clearly visible.

Nantes, northwest of France.

Groups of German soldiers, with their submachine guns and rifles in their hands, moved forward with heavy steps, and at their feet were the corpses of the war dead, most of them wearing British uniforms and pan helmets, but the faces of most of them were Oriental, and only a small fraction of the corpses could be seen to be white.

A German soldier noticed what appeared to be a red object flashing on the corpse of an officer, and he stopped, came to the corpse, and gently picked up the red object to look at it.

It was a beautiful Chinese knot with a round square hole in it.

As soon as the German soldier put the Chinese knot in his pocket, a German ** officer shouted from behind him, and he immediately followed the man quickly and staggered forward.

Hearing the German language echoing in the air in the distance, Yuan Keding, who was hiding in the farmhouse, almost raised his throat in his heart.

He clutched the golden Browning pistol in his hand (a gift from Lord Kitchener, the British Secretary of State for Defense) and "looked carefully out of the broken window, and when he saw several more German soldiers appearing, he immediately retracted his head again."

Listening to the footsteps of the Germans gradually moving away, Yuan Keding's hanging heart was temporarily relaxed. His body slowly slipped off the wall, and the golden pistol in his hand fell to the ground. ,

Recalling the days and nights of coming to Europe, and the terrible encounter he experienced the day before, Yuan Keding covered his face with his hands and cried with a whimper.

Now he has become an out-and-out commander of the light pole.

After Paris was captured by the Germans, the morale of the Entente ** team was greatly depressed for a time and collapsed. The British and French armies were defeated in the face of the fierce German attack. Although the newly arrived Chinese and American armies fought bravely, due to the bloated and unwitting command system of the Entente, coupled with the unique arrogance of the British and French and their prejudice against the Orientals, although the Chinese and American armies won certain victories, they could not play a role in turning the tide of the overall situation. Due to the blind retreat of the British and French troops, the Chinese and American armies, which were relatively strong in combat, became the focus of the German attack.

After the fall of Paris, the squadron withstood the attack of the German army under the command of Chen Eun and temporarily stabilized its position, but the news of the "riots" in southern China came to have a rather adverse impact on the officers and soldiers of the Chinese expeditionary force far from home, and Yuan Shikai, who was not clear about the war situation in Europe, ordered Chen Eun to return to China to command the counterinsurgency in order to deal with the revolutionaries supported by Japan, and Wang Shizhen commanded the Chinese expeditionary force to fight.

This decision exacerbated the disadvantage of the Chinese expeditionary force.

Shortly after Chen Eun left, Wang Shizhen died of illness in the army due to his advanced age. Yuan Keding, who was nominally the supreme commander of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, panicked for a while, because he knew nothing about commanding the army to fight (he had originally come to gild and go through the motions), in addition to ordering "the whole army to defend the position...", he could only send a telegram to the emperor's father, "Resign and return to China..." "Ask Daddy" to select other talents and come to France to unify the army. Of course, Yuan Shikai understood that his son was not a material to lead troops at all, so he agreed to Yuan Keding's resignation, and Feng Guozhang, the general of Jiangsu, succeeded him in commanding the Chinese Expeditionary Force.

But what Yuan Keding didn't expect was that Feng Guozhang never left after receiving the order. (To be continued.)