"The British Navy, under pressure from anxious naval officers and politicians, decided to build 10 more torpedo boats. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 infoBut the British Admiralty believes that in the treatment of torpedo boats, it is not possible to simply increase their number; At the same time, we need to seriously seek countermeasures. ”

"When a large warship is anchored, a large lightning net should be installed around the ship as a protective measure; However, if a large warship is to set sail, the lightning protection net needs to be removed. The basic problem was that the ship's guns were fired too slowly, and the torpedo boat targets were too small to be easily detected at night or in poor visibility. This required another type of ship that could chase the torpedo boat at the same speed or faster than the torpedo boat and sink it with artillery. This gave rise to a new idea, namely, the design and construction of large warships equipped with guns and torpedoes - 'torpedo boat capture ships', or 'minehunters' or 'destroyers' for short. ”

“…… If there is one thing that can sum up the characteristics of a minehunter, it is that it is a spectacular, indispensable and high-speed warship. From the very beginning, minehunters were built to perform a single mission; In the years that followed, however, it would become a multi-purpose warship. It escorts formations of ships at sea, carries out torpedo attacks, captures and attacks on torpedo boats, sends troops to land and shells shore positions. ……”

Port of Gibraltar, Spain.

On a dark day, a thick yellow fog hung heavily over the streets of Gibraltar, and like night, people were lit with lights, gas flashed in the shop windows, and a horse-drawn cab drove slowly down the street, in which a little girl sat with her father.

She sat curled up on her feet, leaning on her young father Chen Wei, held in her father's arms, staring at the passing pedestrians outside the car window with a pair of big eyes, with a strange look with a bit of youthful worry.

Her Spanish name is Clara, and in addition, she also has a Qianguo name, called "Chen Yulian".

She was too young to expect such a look on her little face. Even to a twelve or thirteen-year-old child, such a look looks old-fashioned, not to mention that Clara is only four years old! However, in fact, she was always dreaming and thinking about strange things, and she didn't know when she didn't think about the adults and the world they belonged to. She felt as if she had lived a long, long time.

In this novel carriage, driving through the streets, it is as dark during the day as it is at night. Confused by this, she leaned closer to her father.

"Daddy," she said mysteriously, her voice so low as to be a whisper, "Daddy." ”

"What's the matter, baby?" Chen Wei replied, looking down at her face and hugging her tighter. "What is Clara thinking?"

"Is this the place?" Clara whispered, snuggling tighter, "Yes, Daddy?" ”

"Yes, Clara, this is it, we're finally here."

Her young, handsome, wealthy, affectionate father seemed to be the only relative in the world. They often play together and have a deep affection for each other. She knew that he was rich because she had heard people say that, and they thought she wasn't listening, and she had heard them say that she would be rich when she grew up. She didn't know what it meant to be rich—until she and her mother moved into a beautiful bungalow with a veranda, and were accustomed to seeing the many servants saluting her, calling her "Mademoiselle," and doing everything according to her temperament. She had toys and pets, and an Indian nanny who adored her, and she gradually understood that the rich had these things. That's all she knows, though.

In the course of her short life, there was only one thing that bothered her, and that was that her father could not always be by her side. Although she was fascinated by the stories of her father's voyages and the countries she had never visited, she was troubled by the fact that he could not stay with her.

"Can't you leave us, Daddy?" She always asked, "Can't you go to school too?" I'll do your homework for you. ”

"No, you know, I can't stay at home for long, little Clara," he replied, "and you're going to live in a nice house, where there are a lot of little girls, and you're going to play together, and I'm going to send you a lot of books, and you're going to grow up so fast, and you'll be big and smart in a year, and you'll be back to take care of your father." ”

She liked to think that one day she would be able to take care of her father's housekeeping, drive out with him, sit at his table at dinner, talk to him, read his books—it would be her favorite thing in the world, and if she had to leave home and go to "that place" to get her wish, she would be determined to go. She doesn't really care if she has other girls as company, as long as she has a lot of books, she can enjoy herself. She loved books more than anything else, and in fact she was always making up beautiful stories, telling them to herself, and sometimes to her father, who loved them as much as she did.

"Very well, Daddy," she said softly, "now that we're here, I think we'll have to resign ourselves to our fate." ”

He kissed her and laughed at her for talking so old-fashioned. To be honest, he wasn't resigned to fate at all, but he knew he had to keep it a secret. His peculiar little Clara had always been his good companion, and how lonely he would feel when he returned to England alone, and walked into that bungalow, knowing that he could not expect to see the little man who greeted him in a white dress. Thinking of this, he held his daughter tightly in his arms, and then the carriage drove into a large courtyard with a large house in the middle of nowhere, and this was their destination.

It was a large, dark brick house, identical to the houses in the wings, but it had a gleaming bronze plaque on its front door with black letters engraved on it: Lady Sintia Senior Girls' Training Home.

"Here we are, Clara." Chen Wei said, trying to make his voice as happy as he could, and then picked her up the car, climbed the steps, and rang the doorbell.

The house was the same as Ms. Cintia herself. It was imposing and well-furnished, but there was nothing in it that was not strange, let's just say the armchairs, which seemed to have a hard bone hidden in them, and everything in the hall was hard and shiny, and even the red border of the round clock of the grandfather clock in the corner looked as if it had been strictly varnished. The living room where they were led into was carpeted with a checkered pattern, chairs were square, and a heavy marble clock rested on a bulky marble mantelpiece.

Clara sat down on one of the many stiff mahogany chairs, glancing around with her usual agile gaze.

"I don't like it here, Dad," she said, "but, I dare say, the soldiers—even the brave ones—don't really like to go to war." ”

Chen Weiwei laughed. He was young, funny, and never bored of Clara's bizarre.

"Oh, little Clara," he said, "what if no one tells me these serious things?" There's no one as serious as you. ”

"But why do serious things make you laugh like that?" Clara wants to find out.

"Because you're so funny when you speak," he replied, laughing even harder. Suddenly, he took her into his arms and kissed her so hard that his laughter was lost and tears seemed to welling up in his eyes.

At this moment, Ms. Cintia stepped into the room. Clara felt that she was very much like her house: tall, dark, imposing, and strange. She had eyes as wide as a fish, cold and unfocused, and a smile that was cute but indifferent. As soon as she saw Clara and Chen Wei, she grinned widely, and her face was full of smiles. She had heard many gratifying things about the young officer, which she had heard from the person who recommended her, the lady. In those cases, she learns that he is a broad father who is willing to spend a lot of money on his little daughter.

"It is a great honour to take care of such a beautiful child, sir," she said, taking Clara's hand and stroking it, "Madame Dolores has told me that she is very intelligent, and that if a child is clever and clever, she will be a treasure in a garden like ours. ”

Clara is slender and graceful, tall for her age, and has a warm and charming small face. Her dark hair, curled only at the ends, and her black eyes were slightly blue, which was good, but they were amazingly big eyes, and her eyelashes were black and long, and although she didn't like the color of her eyes, many others did.

Clara stood close to her father, listening to him talk to Lady Cintia. She had been brought to this institute because Mrs. Doloreth's two young daughters had been educated here, and Captain Chen Wei valued her experience. Clara will become a so-called "gifted student" and enjoy even more special treatment than the usual gifted student. She will have a beautiful bedroom and living room of her own, a pony with a carriage, and a maid to replace the nanny at home.

"I'm not worried about her education at all," Chen Wei patted lightly. Rika said with a smile, "The difficult thing is not to let her learn too fast and too much." She always sits and buries her little nose in the stacks of books. She wasn't reading, Ms. Cintia, but gobbling it up, like a little wolf and not like a little girl. She was always hungry for new books to devour, and she wanted books for adults - esoteric, tome, thick - written in French, German, and in English - histories, biographies, poetry collections, books of all kinds. If she reads too much, drag her away. Let her ride her pony to the streets, or go out and buy a new doll. She should play with dolls more. ”

"Daddy," said Clara, "you know, if I went out on the street every few days to buy a new doll, I would have so many that I couldn't love it." The doll should become a close friend. Erica is about to become my close friend. ”

Chen Wei and Ms. Sintia looked at each other.

"Who's Erica?" Ms. Cintia asked.

"Tell her, Clara." Chen Wei said with a smile.

When Clara replied, the look in her dark blue eyes was solemn and gentle.

"She's a doll, and I haven't gotten her yet." She said, "She's a doll, and my dad is going to buy it for me." We're going to go out to find her together. I've named her Erica. When Dad is gone, she's going to be my friend. I'm going to talk to her about Daddy. ”

The smirk on Ms. Cintya's face did become more flattering. "What a unique child!" She said, "What a cute little one! ”

"Yes," Chen Wei said, pulling Clara closer to him, "She's a cute little guy." Take good care of her for me, Lady Cintia. Her mother is sick and can't come over today, and when she gets better, she will come to bother you, I hope you don't mind. ”

The two of them went to a lot of big stores together and bought a lot of things. They did buy much more than Clara actually needed, but Chen Wei was a reckless, innocent young man, and he let her have whatever his daughter praised, and he had to let her have whatever he praised, so they purchased a lot of clothes, which were too luxurious for a four-year-old child. Among them were velvet garments, adorned with precious furs, laced and embroidered garments, hats adorned with large sheets of soft ostrich feathers, mink coats and hand tubes, boxes and boxes of small gloves, handkerchiefs, and stockings, so much that the polite young ladies behind the counter whispered to each other: this peculiar little girl with big serious eyes must have been at least a foreign princess—perhaps the youngest daughter of a princely lord of India.

They finally found Erica, after running to many toy stores and looking at countless dolls. "I want her to look like she's not a doll," Clara said, "and I want her to look like she's listening to me talk to her." "The fault of dolls, Daddy," she said, tilting her head in contemplation, "is that they never seem to listen. So the father and daughter looked at the dolls, big and small, black-eyed, blue-eyed, brown-haired, braid golden, clothed and unclothed.

"You know," said Clara, as father and daughter looked at an undressed doll, "and if I find her, and she's not wearing a dress, we can take her to a tailor and make her dress fit for figure." It will fit better if you try it on the spot. ”

After many disappointments, the father and daughter decided to browse the shop windows as they walked, letting the carriage follow. They walked past two or three shops and didn't even go inside. As they approached a small store, Clara jumped up and grabbed her father's arm.

"Hey, Daddy!" She shouted, "Erica is there!" ”

Her face glowed red, and there was an expression in her inky blue eyes, as if she had just recognized a close and beloved friend.

"She's really waiting for us!" She said, "Let's go in and see her." ”

"Ahh Captain Chen Wei said, "I think someone should introduce us. “

"You'll have to introduce me, and I'll introduce you," Clara said. "But I recognized her as soon as I saw her – so, presumably, she knew me too."

Maybe Erica had known Clara for a long time. When Clara took her into her arms, Erica did have a spiritual look in her eyes. She was a big doll, but not too big to carry; She has naturally curly blond-brown hair that droops like a drapery, her eyes are deep-set, clear, grayish-blue, and the soft, thick eyelashes are real, not painted.

"Of course," said Clara, putting her on her lap and surveying her face, "of course, Daddy, this is Erica." “

I bought Erica in this way, and actually took her to a children's clothing store, measured and bought a large number of clothes, which were as luxurious as Clara's. She also had lace-encrusted dresses, velvet and muslin renchins

Dresses, hats and coats, as well as beautiful underwear with lace, gloves, handkerchiefs, furs, etc.

"I like that she always looks like a child with a good mother," Clara said, "and I'm her mom, even though I want her to be my companion." ”

Chen Wei should have really felt very happy about this purchase, but a wisp of sad thoughts kept tugging at his heartstrings. This shows that he is about to break up with his beloved peculiar little friend.

He walked out of bed at midnight and stood looking down at a sleeping Clara, who had Erica in her arms. Her black hair covered her pillows and mingled with Erica's blonde brown hair, and both were dressed in ruffled dressing gowns, their long, curled eyelashes resting on their cheeks. Erica looks like a real child, and Chen Wei is very happy to have her. He sighed deeply and touched his chin with a sad expression.

"Alas, my darling!" He said to himself, "I'm sure you won't know how much your father will miss you." ”

In fact, he didn't have such a plan originally, but this time his mother Sara's "suggestion" he couldn't disobey.

The mother's reason is very simple, Yesenia is frail and sickly, and she can't take good care of her daughter, Chen Wei has been away for a long time, and she doesn't have much time in Gibraltar all year round, and Yesenia is a gypsy with limited culture, so it is better to send little Clara to a girls' training home, which can reduce the pressure on Jesenia and also make little Clara receive a good education.

At this point, Chen Wei could not fight against his mother Sara, and he had to agree with his mother's decision.

On the second day, he took her to Lady Sintia and left her behind. Because the next morning he was leaving. He explained to Ms. Cynthia that his two lawyers, Mr. Dolores and Mr. Fuente, were in charge of his affairs in Gibraltar and that they could be consulted if needed. (To be continued.) )