Boom, boom! Boom!

In the earth-shattering explosion, a ragged cavalryman was swept off his horse by the air wave, and the cavalryman who struggled to get up carried a yellow letter box behind his back, staggered and stepped on the corpse of his comrade to climb onto the fort, and looked around, the entire sea off the mouth of Dagu was full of foreign warships, and the roaring cannon and the deafening explosion made the cavalry stunned.

The cavalry then shouted: "Lord Zhao, the chief soldier of the left wing, is Lord Zhao Tianfu here?" ”

A bloodied garrison dragged the cavalry and said, "Lower your body, don't you want to die?" The hairy man landed on the beach. ”

The cavalry said anxiously: "I have a holy purpose body, please ask Lord Zhao to take the order?" ”

The garrison smiled dismally and said, "Are there any reinforcements?" ”

The cavalry was stunned and said: "I am from the cavalry battalion, yesterday the whole battalion opened to escort the emperor to Chengde, boy, my family is in the city of Sijiu, I don't want to escape so I threw myself under the command of the prince of Seng Greenqin, I heard that the marines of the Nanyang Navy Division Lin Admiral Lin have landed from Weihai, Shandong for a few days, and they rushed to King Qin at night. ”

The garrison let out a long breath, poked his head to look at the British and French troops who were struggling to move forward in the mud on the dense beach, and sighed: "Lord Zhao, Lord Hao, the chief soldier of the right wing, Lord Zhang, the chief soldier of Zhili, and Lord Hastu, the chief soldier of Zhili, have all been martyred, you better go down early!" Bring a message to the prince of Monk Greenqin, at the latest this afternoon, the mouth of Dagu will not be able to be guarded, let the old man prepare early. ”

The cavalry hesitated for a moment to put down the holy decree, turned around and left, the blood-covered garrison opened the holy decree, looked at the sentence that all the soldiers and generals were promoted to the second level and wanted to cry without tears, and muttered for a long time: "Your emperor, your old man is good, hiding far away, who do you let us be courtiers to protect for whom?" ”

After a while, the garrison sorted out the remnants, brandished the steel knife with a curled blade, and shouted: "Brothers, I said that I Fei Mouping will take you well, and now I will kill foreign hair!" ”

Immediately, more than a dozen soldiers rushed out with the garrison, and crackling foreign guns suddenly sounded under the fort, but more soldiers threw away their weapons, pulled their jackets, turned around and fled...... The monk Greenqin in the Baliqiao camp sat back on the chair weakly, Su Shun, Jingshou and others actually persuaded the emperor to move to the Chengde summer resort without telling the Manchu Dynasty's civil and military affairs, and the last Bingqi of the Dagukou fort that had been fought for seven days also fell.

Standing in front of the marching map for a long time, the monk Lingqin suddenly asked his staff: "Where are the foreign spear team and artillery team of Lord Lin Haijiang, the commander of the Nanyang Naval Division?" If our army attacks the day after tomorrow, will they be able to arrive? ”

After studying it, several staff members said helplessly: "I'm afraid it's difficult to arrive, why don't we wait for Lord Lin's foreign gun team and artillery team to arrive and think about it in the long run?" ”

Monk Greenqin sighed with emotion: "How can foreign hairs make us happy? I'm worried that they will launch an attack on our battalion in the next two days, our army is stationed at Bali Bridge, and behind it is also the important place of the Beijing Division, so we can only advance and not retreat! ”

The staff was speechless for a while, and after a while, Seng Lingqin slapped a few loud voices and said: "Transfer the left wing horse team and the infantry battalion into the defense of the Baliqiao camp, there is no way to retreat, our army should fight a decisive battle with Yangmaozi here, send reconnaissance cavalry to contact the marine team of the Nanyang Naval Division, and hope that they will attack behind the enemy for the sake of me and their Lord Lin in the same hall as a minister, and after the battle, they should remember the first merit of Nanyang." ”

When Seng Lingqin's fast horse scouts were looking for the marines of the Nanyang Naval Division, the marines led by Zhang Zheng were moving slowly and painfully on the muddy road, and the marines were all concentrated next to the artillery, and the field artillery that fell into the mud pits from time to time made the officers and soldiers tired, and the howling of mules and horses, the more anxious the march, the slower the marching speed.

In desperation, Zhang Zheng made a difficult decision, the artillery team marched backwards with heavy baggage, and the main force advanced lightly.

At the same time, in the city of Guangzhou, Ye Mingchen and Bai Gui looked at the twelve Qin Wang Divine Decrees in front of them, and they were completely numb, what field fortifications were being built outside the city by the ten battalions of the Guangzhou Department of the Nanyang Naval Division, and no one knew the whereabouts of Admiral Lin Haijiang, but Wang Faren informed Ye Mingchen that Admiral Lin had purchased four ironclad ships with his family property and had gone to sea to meet the Yangyi fleet.

Ye Mingchen can be said to have a cold sweat, he saw it with his own eyes on the day the British and French fleets left the port, the ships were full of oceans and sails covered the sky! If Nanyang Admiral Lin Haijiang is defeated, it is estimated that this Guangzhou city will not be able to hold on for long.

What to do? Ye Mingchen glanced at Bai Gui helplessly, Bai Gui took a deep breath and said, "You can't fight, you can't go, what can you do?" ”

Ye Mingchen said softly: "I am waiting for the feudal territory to be the official side, and the current situation is also helpless, I can only protect the safety of the people, what can I do if my name is like a floating cloud?" ”

Bai Gui smiled dismally and said, "Hold up and die? ”

Ye Mingchen pushed the twelve holy decrees in front of him with his hand and said, "The emperor has already gone to Chengde and given us this will of no war and no peace?" We, as courtiers, are already going to die! In the former dynasty, the Son of Heaven still knew that he guarded the door for the country and rested with the country. ”

Bai Gui's face immediately changed when he heard this: "Lord Ye is very talking! What a word! ”

In the Chengde Summer Resort, Xianfeng sat on the dragon chair in the Hall of Longevity, looked at Su Shun with a calm expression and hesitated for a moment and said, "Shouldn't I leave the capital?" The soldiers of the Monk Greenqin County King and the Nanyang Water Division are fighting with Kou. ”

Su Shun was slightly stunned, he knew that this unambitious lord might have a little uneasy conscience, so Su Shun said: "The Son of Heaven is a body of ten thousand gold, how can he be involved in the danger of gun fighting, Monk Lingqin, Lin Haijiang and the general soldiers of Dagukou are all loyal ministers of the imperial court, please rest assured." ”

As soon as Su Shun's words fell, suddenly a small eunuch outside hurriedly knelt down outside the door curtain with a secret box and said, "One hundred thousand urgent!" Dagukou battle report! ”

Xianfeng was taken aback, and hurriedly said, "Present it to me, show it to me!" ”

Fu De, the chief manager of the Yangxin Palace, hurriedly took out the key to open the secret box, and put the scroll in front of Xianfeng, Xianfeng was shocked after reading it: "Zhao Tianfu, the chief soldier of the left wing, and Hao Chengguo, the chief soldier of the right wing, Zhang Xiu, the superintendent, and Hastu, the chief soldier of Zhili, were all martyred, and Lin Haijiang, the commander of the Nanyang Naval Division, led the rest of the warships to the sea to intercept the Yangyi reinforcements, and Monk Greenqin led his troops to fight with the foreigners at Bali Bridge to protect the Beijing division. ”

"What to do? What should I do? I'm sorry for my ancestors! I have no shame in the world! I want to return to the capital and raise the soldiers of the capital! In the face of Xianfeng's wail, Jing Shou, who had been speechless, said: "Your Majesty, at this moment, you should not move to all changes!" ”

"What?" Xianfeng looked at Jing Shou puzzled?

Jing Shou said frankly: "The minister used the heart of a villain to spend the belly of Lord Lin Haijiang, although Lin Haijiang's move was loyal to the country, but he had no intention of the overall situation, whether the monk Gelinqin could defeat the foreigners who invaded Beijing in Dagukou and invaded the capital is still uncertain, so the imperial court should not express its position, but should summon the British, French, Russian, and American ministers to Chengde, and the Russian ministers have long been willing to mediate. ”

"Bastard bastard!" The bloody Su Shun flew up and kicked Jing Shou to the ground, and an old punch beat Jing Shou to the ground, and Jing Shou, who was colorful on his face, wailed and shouted at the minister, this is for the sake of the country!

Xianfeng ordered someone to pull away the sloppy obedience in front of the emperor, but it didn't mean to punish at all!

Xianfeng frowned and thought for a while and said: "If you win, you will be rewarded generously, and if you lose, you will put the responsibility on Lin Haijiang and Monk Greenqin?" ”

Su Shun fell to his knees with a thud and cried: "The emperor can't! Jing Shou is the words of the country, if there is a next time, my Huanghuang Qing Dynasty will no longer have no generals to fight, and there will be no soldiers against the enemy! ”

Xianfeng waved his hand tiredly and said, "I know, you all go down!" ”

Vice Admiral Garndin sat on the bridge of the flagship of the Walnut wearing a gold-rimmed ribbon, and Vice Admiral Garndin was a special case among the Royal Admirals of the British Empire, and he was the only one in the entire Royal Navy who dared to sit on the bridge.

Today is a very happy day for Lieutenant General Gnanding, to be able to go to other countries, in itself is a rich thing, as James . William's iron team, Vice Admiral Garnanding, naturally knew that this opportunity was not easy to come by, and the huge fleet of twenty-six third-class battleships and two hundred and fifty-nine transports gave him full confidence.

The fleet staff officer on the side, Givet, said with a smile on his face: "Your Excellency, Commander, we are about to enter the Strait of Malacca in a few hours!" ”

Lieutenant General Gnanding nodded with satisfaction and said, "I will no longer stop in Singapore and Hong Kong, and go directly to the mouth of Dagu in the Qing Kingdom." ”

At this moment, a rapid alarm bell sounded on the lookout, and Lieutenant General Garndin could spot the black plume of smoke in the distance even without a telescope? Could it be an ironclad? A hint of foreboding rose from Lieutenant General Gnanding's mind.

However, Vice Admiral Gnanding was not a rookie who was new to battle, and he immediately ordered the combat ships to move closer to the flagship, preparing to intercept and destroy the enemy ships, and the transport ships broke away from the fleet and sailed at full speed in the direction of Singapore.

Twenty third-class battleships slowly assembled next to Vice Admiral Gnanding's flagship, and this assembly process was undoubtedly extremely dangerous for sail battleships, with tedious sail lowering, rudder turning, changing auxiliary sails, and so on.

The remaining five ships escorted the huge convoy of transport ships towards the direction of Singapore, when Vice Admiral Gnanding finally completed the diamond-shaped formation, and there was another alarm signal from the direction of the convoy escort fleet, and four pillars of smoke also appeared in front of them, obviously the formation could not be adjusted, should the transport ships be mixed into the rear of the formation or defeat the enemy in front of them first? Lieutenant General Garnanding was also a little hesitant for a while.

Lin Haijiang, who was standing on the bridge of the flagship Zhiyuan, lowered his binoculars, and at this distance he could already see the towering sails of the British ship by visual sight.

Undoubtedly, the sail battleship is indeed much more beautiful than the armored protection cruiser of Lin Haijiang, as a sharp weapon to dominate the sea, the sail battleship has been galloping in the ocean for hundreds of years, creating countless miracles.

However, the previous scenery and beauty have become yesterday's yellow flowers, Lin Haijiang said aloud to the communications officer: "The flag informs all ships, go all out to annihilate the enemy at sea, success or failure is in one move, carry forward the spirit of the Imperial Navy Academy, and strive for the greatest honor!" ”

Lin Haijiang paused for a moment and continued: "The Zhiyuan ship is the flagship, and the Feng Guohua Zhenyuan ship, the Qin Shui Ge Pingyuan ship, the Guan Chaoji Yuan ship, and the Ma Taojing Yuan ship follow closely behind the battle team, and follow the flagship to quickly intersperse and disrupt the enemy formation, creating opportunities for the second strike formation. ”

Ma Jiang stood behind Lin Haijiang, with a look of admiration and admiration on his face, Lin Haijiang turned around and said: "Captain Ma, I will hand over your specific command and implementation below, and this governor will press the formation for you." ”

The clerk on the side said loudly as if no one was around: "At 13:17:51 in the afternoon of April 18, 1857, the main force of the Imperial Chinese Navy intercepted the Royal Navy fleet of the British Empire in the sea area south of the Strait of Malacca 40 nautical miles. ”

Lin Haijiang took a deep breath and said, "Then let's start!" ”

Ma Jiang touched his sword of the Old Port Military Academy, and said with some excitement: "The left rudder is full, and each ship follows the flagship to launch correction bombs, raise the main sail and half side sail, and the main engine drives the whole car!" The formation approached the enemy ship formation at an angle of thirty degrees. ”

The adjutant on the side immediately repeated loudly: "Full rudder left, each ship follows the flagship to launch correction bombs, raise the main sail and half side sail, and the main engine drives the whole car!" The formation approached the enemy ship formation at an angle of thirty degrees. ”

Lawrence, who had Du Haipeng's ship as his flagship, and Zhou Yu, the chief of staff of the fleet, who was on Xu Muchen's Weiyuan ship, communicated with each other in flags, and they ordered Yang Tianhua's Dingyuan ship and Tang Zhiqiang's Fuyuan ship to follow closely behind, quickly intersperse them with battle speed, set aside the enemy warships, directly shell the enemy's transport ships, disrupt the enemy's formation battle formation, and drive the transport ships to their main fleet formation.

Rumble!

At 13:57:55 in the afternoon of April 18, 1857, with the first cannon of the Battle of Malacca being discharged, the first large-scale naval battle between a fully armored protected cruiser and a sail warship in human history kicked off.

"Lower the side of the auxiliary sail, half-drop the mainsail 20 degrees and a half, drive the whole car, adjust the course 4 degrees, 5 degrees, 6 degrees, 7 degrees, prepare for engagement, aim at each gun position, extend aiming!" Ma Jiang stretched out his voice and gave orders quickly and clearly.

Lin Haijiang was very satisfied with Ma Jiang's performance, conciseness, speed, clarity, and accuracy were the prerequisites for the captain of the navy to give orders, and not panicking, not chaotic in distress, and loyalty, wisdom and courage were to look at the on-the-spot performance.

Vice Admiral Garndin could no longer stabilize the Diaoyu Tai at this moment, and the ironclad ship flying the unfamiliar flag had already fired a positioning artillery bomb, and it was actually approaching the blind spot on its own side?

"Drop the mainsail, slowly turn the rudder to the right, raise the fourth, fifth, sixth, and ninth side sails, and the side sails will face the wind! Open the cannon door and prepare for fire! Lieutenant General Garndin gave a quick order.

He was shocked by the training of the other party, and he still knew something about the ironclad, the darling that had been paid more and more attention after the Crimean War. William was not an old man of the pedantic Admiralty who refused to build an armored cruiser for the sake of beauty, and he was not the short-sighted man of Congress who only had money in his eyes.

Lieutenant General Garnanding could hardly have imagined that he would encounter such a well-trained opponent in the far east? Could they be James? Did Lord William remind himself to pay more attention to the forces of the Old Port? How can a power have a sea force that rivals the Imperial detachment? Does all this seem incredible?

His own ships were at an absolute disadvantage in terms of speed, but they had an advantage in the number of ships and the number of guns, and Vice Admiral Garnading knew very well that if there was a mistake in command, even if the enemy was routed, he would suffer heavy losses.

Therefore, Vice Admiral Garnading ordered the ship formation to abandon the T-prefix, which should be a circle of battle lines, and the A and B teams connected with each other to meet the enemy ships with broadside fire.

Lin Haijiang secretly admired the formation change of the British fleet, and it was indeed an empire that relied on sea plunder, but the five ironclad ships commanded by Ma Jiang used the advantage of being faster than the opponent's turn, and a few tactical maneuvers kept Vice Admiral Gnanding's side busy.

"Engage! The front main gun is aimed at the British ship Youde, the rear main gun is aimed at the British ship Yuejihua, the secondary gun is fired diagonally under the waterline of the battle line, and each gun position is fired! Ma Jiang gave the order almost in a shouting manner, and the adjutant and the second officer were nervously repeating the order.

Boom, boom, boom!

At a distance of 2,000 yards, the accuracy of the 260-mm twin heavy guns and 100-mm secondary guns manufactured by Krupp Brothers is quite high, and the huge power of the prefabricated explosive projectiles with fuses also exceeded everyone's expectations.

The entire bridge of the Youde, which had only been hit once, disappeared, and was replaced by a raging fire, the main and auxiliary masts were broken, and the sailors on the ship jumped ship to escape, and the loss of control of the Youde crashed into the stern of the Earl of Al Kin without slowing down, and the tail of the Count of Halkin broke into the water, and the speed of the ship was suddenly reduced.

Lieutenant General Gernandin was completely stunned by the sheer power and range of the enemy's artillery fire? What kind of cannon is this?

Lin Haijiang was very helpless, because of the urgency of time, only the Zhiyuan and other five returned warships replaced the latest improved Krupp naval guns, and the original Zhenyuan and Dingyuan ships could not install the double-mounted Krupp cannons because of the displacement relationship.

Of course, the ships were inserted into the battle column at an angle of thirty degrees, but the naval battle itself was extremely variable and maneuverable, because the sea current itself was constantly changing, and the battle line of the British ships under the command of Vice Admiral Garnading also resounded with deafening cannon sounds.

Smoke of gunpowder suddenly rose on the sea, and the British home fleet was equipped with the most advanced Armstrong front-loading guns in the Admiralty's opinion, ranging from six to 24 pounds.

(To be continued)