The shrill whistling of cannonballs made this sea area like a ghost crying wolf in a sea of unjust souls, and the shell explosion under the flare mapping looked miserable and seeping.

The three Chinese pocket battleships were like unsinkable battleships, even though they were scarred but still not sunk, the turrets of these three battleships were half scrapped, the decks were full of holes, and the majestic fire was rising, but they still did not sink.

"Boom" A cruiser on the side of the British Navy's temporary command ship Goddess of Light was hit by a 365-caliber gun, and the violent explosion instantly broke the cruiser of more than 5,000 tons in two and sank rapidly.

Admiral Matt and Miller were both pale, they couldn't believe the sturdiness of the three pocket battleships of the Chinese side, with the quality of the British Royal Navy, at least hundreds of shells were hit on the three warships, and the warships were almost unrecognizable, but they were still not sunk.

Miller hurriedly said: "Commander, we can't go on like this, what we want is to destroy the number of enemy warships, not to attack fortifications, and our naval guns are not powerful enough." ”

Admiral Matt almost frantically shouted, "I must sink them, I must sink them!" ”

"Commander!" Miller yelled in a hurry, he felt that Admiral Matt had been mad by the Chinese Navy, and attacking the three capital ships of the Chinese side was a sacrifice and did not meet long-term strategic interests. Even if the Chinese Navy loses these three capital ships, the number of Chinese Navy is still there, so with the assistance of the Air Force, the Chinese Navy can still control the sea area within the combat radius of the Chinese Air Force, and if the warships in Da Nang are repaired, it will still be a huge fleet.

"Boom" exploded again, and a shell landed near the command module, and a piece of shrapnel flew in, almost breaking Admiral Matt's neck, and the blood sprayed Miller's head and face.

"Commander!" Miller was filled with grief and indignation, and held Admiral Matt's corpse and yelled a few times, half of his neck had been broken, and Admiral Matt died on the spot. He didn't care much, and shouted on the spot, "Now it's under my command!" All warships abandon attacking the capital ships of the Chinese and concentrate their fire on the old warships of the Chinese! ”

It has to be said that Miller has a long-term strategic vision, under his command, the British Navy's attack target turned to the old Chinese warships in front, and soon the old Chinese warships continued to be hit by bullets and caught fire, and warships on both sides continued to sink.

"Chief of Staff, Prime Minister's Office and Admiralty urgent!"

Miller gritted his teeth and turned around, seeing his old subordinate York screaming anxiously with a bloody face, he couldn't hear what to say, and leaned forward and said, "What? ”

York hurried: "The Prime Minister and the Admiralty demanded that we immediately get out of the battle and retreat. ”

Miller said angrily: "Damn, they should have called the French to fight with us, and not give such a damn order." ”

York shouted: "The Prime Minister personally contacted the French side, and the French side replied that the French fleet had lost contact. The Prime Minister and the War Department have asked the escort fleet to cover the troop transports to break through the mine formations laid by the Chinese, disperse and break through, and demand that we retreat immediately. ”

Miller roared: "No, if we want to gain superiority at sea in the future, we must eliminate the number of Chinese warships." ”

York shouted: "Chief of Staff! The British Empire with the Royal Navy is the real British Empire! It's the Empire that doesn't fall! ”

Miller's heart was like a lightning strike at this moment, if the British fleet was all exhausted, of course, it would have hit the Chinese Navy hard, but the strength of the British Royal Navy would be less than one percent of the original, not to mention becoming the world's first maritime power, it would be difficult to be in the top ten, and the consequences would be unimaginable for Britain.

Miller suddenly came to his senses, he understood that if some of the Chinese warships were not fought today, in the future sea battles, there was no doubt that the coalition forces would lose more warships, but so what? Given time, the British shipbuilding industry could build more and more advanced warships.

"Withdraw!" Having figured it out, Miller didn't hesitate any longer and gave the order to retreat. It was night, and they could easily get away from each other's pursuits. Moreover, he did not think that the Chinese would pursue it in a big way, the Chinese warships had also lost a lot, they needed to rescue their comrades, and the Chinese did not want to lose any more warships.

In fact, as Miller expected, the Chinese navy did not want to fight the British, China's enemies were not just one Britain, but almost the entire white Western world, and China, whose shipbuilding industry was still fragile, could not afford to lose.

Why did Li Haijun choose the Twilight Attack? That is to make it easier for the British and French combined fleets to escape, in other words, the Chinese Navy does not want to fight with them in the first place. The battle has just begun, even if the Chinese Navy inflicts heavy damage on the combined fleet of Britain and France, or rather, or annihilate them, and threaten the world, so what? Without a ship, how can you carry out your mission in the future war? Without warships, do you want islands in Southeast Asia? What about sea supplies?

If we talk about fame, the purpose of the Chinese Navy has been achieved. Perhaps the low-ranking officers think about how many enemies they will annihilate in the war, while the high-ranking generals focus on the purpose of the war, and to achieve the strategic goal is victory and success.

The withdrawal of the British Navy relieved both Li Haijun and Sa Zhenbing, and immediately ordered to count the casualties and rescue the warship.

"Commander, the commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Li Dingxin, is gone."

This news surprised both Li Haijun and Sa Zhenbing, and they hurriedly took a traffic boat to the "Fujian", which also suffered heavy losses, because the British Navy concentrated its firepower on these three pocket battleships in the early days, and the Fujian was hit by at least more than 100 shells, the radio signal tower had been destroyed, the bridge had been blown up by a small half, and the turret on the deck had lost most of it, and there were stumps, broken arms and blood everywhere

In the command cabin, which was obviously deformed, the military doctor was urgently rescuing, and Li Dingxin had several shrapnel wounds on his body, and the blood stains had already dyed the white navy uniform black and red, and the whole person was blackened by gunsmoke.

When Li Haijun and Sa Zhenbing saw this scene, they were all gloomy.

"Commander, Lao Sa, you are here." The corner of the elderly Li Dingxin's mouth showed a smile, which made his face blackened by gunpowder look a little hideous, "I can't do it anymore." ”

Li Haijun hurriedly said: "Old Li, cheer up, we have won, you will definitely be fine." ”

Li Dingxin wanted to laugh, but the sharp pain of the wound made his face twitch, and he said with difficulty: "Commander, don't be comforted, I know it myself." In fact, after the First Sino-Japanese War, I thought I was a dead man for a long time, but those of us who endured humiliation and lived secretly couldn't let go, couldn't let go of the Chinese Navy, and were not reconciled. I am a dignified China, and the sea is thousands of miles away, how can there be no sea defense? ”

"For many years, we have been expecting and disappointed again and again, and in order to maintain ships and sail training, we have even used warships as cargo ships to earn funds. Being blamed and insulted, but who can know the bitterness in our hearts. It was not until the appearance of the commander-in-chief that our Chinese navy finally regained the dawn, and under the commander-in-chief's strategy and command, we defeated the old enemy Yueben Navy and washed away the shame of the First Sino-Japanese War. And the world's largest maritime power, the British Empire, has been invincible in the world for hundreds of years in the Indian Ocean against the Indian Ocean, and won the battle, what more could you ask for? It is a supreme glory for me Li Dingxin to be able to sacrifice my life for the country on the battlefield and die a well-deserved death, and a soldier to die on the battlefield. ”

Li Dingxin's deep voice made everyone sad and moved, especially the old navy who experienced the dark age of the Chinese Navy, and it was even more sympathetic.

Sa Zhenbing burst into tears, choked up, and said, "Lao Li, don't say it, you'll be fine." ”

Li Dingxin showed an ugly smile, and he could only understand the comfort of his old friend. His eyes swept over the officers who had experienced the baptism of war in the command cabin, although their faces were blackened by gunpowder smoke, and their expressions could not be seen clearly, and their white naval uniforms were also covered with blood and dirt, but they could feel his gaze, and everyone straightened their waists, and in his eyes, they were so firm and high-willed, from them, he seemed to be able to see the future of the Chinese Navy.

"It's a pity, I can only give my life for the motherland once."

On the occasion of his death, Li Dingxin let out such a final sigh. Despite the glorious victory, the war had just begun, and how he hoped that he would continue to fight for his country as a navy and make a name for himself. However, there is only one life for man, and he is no exception, he can only dedicate his life once to the motherland.

On November 9, 1924, Admiral Li Dingxin, the first commander of the Pacific Fleet of the Chinese Navy, died of his wounds after winning the naval battle in the Indian Ocean. At this time, the East Asian War, which had only just begun a month after the Second World War, was advancing vigorously in the East Asian theater. Li Dingxin is China's highest-ranking general to be killed in the war so far, at the age of 64.

The Battle of the Indian Ocean was of great significance to the Chinese Navy, as the main force of the Chinese Navy shocked the whole world by defeating the combined British and French fleets on the battlefield of a frontal naval battle, and defeating the strong with the weak. At this point, there is no country in the world, no one dares to underestimate the strength of the Chinese Navy, and who dares to deny its strength if it can defeat the fleet of the world's first naval power?

The naval battle in the Indian Ocean completely smashed the plan of the British and French and other Western coalition forces to directly reinforce India's eastern front by sea, and its troop transport fleet suffered a fatal blow, although the troop carriers and supply ships scattered and fled, they were still captured by the Chinese navy, and captured a large amount of materials, including a large number of heavy artillery, anti-aircraft weapons, guns and ammunition, and the British and French army officers and men alone were captured as much as more than 170,000 people, and the rest of the troop carriers and warships that fled all relied on the ports of Sri Lanka and the nearby Indian continent respectively, and the Indian Ocean sea control no longer belonged to the West, the remaining officers and soldiers of Britain and France lacked ammunition supplies, and they were unable to reinforce the front line for a while.

In this battle, the British and French forces lost more than 50 large and small warships, more than half of them, and the capital ships were completely lost. The Chinese side lost 17 warships on the spot, and after returning, nine old warships lost their repair value and were decommissioned, and most of the remaining warships also needed to be overhauled, which was also painful (to be continued). )