In the vast South China Sea, the sea is undulating, and seabirds skim the undulating sea from time to time, and suddenly, a bell-like cannon sound breaks the silence of the South China Sea like tearing through the sky and the sea.

“…… 20. Twenty-one ......"

With the sound of the main gun, Yang Shuzhuang, who was holding a stopwatch, kept reading the cannon shè timer, and in the command tower of the Jinghai battlecruiser, everyone held a telescope with bated breath and observed the reef ahead.

It takes more than 30 seconds for the 343mm cannonball to fly 14.5 kilometers, and the cannon is discharged, and the rest is waiting and luck, when the captain Tang Tingguang and Yang Shuzhuang and others in the command tower are waiting for the water column to splash, in the three turrets in the front and rear of the Jingyuan battlecruiser, the artillerymen wearing asbestos fireproof suits and smoke masks are moving after the first round of Qi shè.

"Bell"

With a metal crisp sound, the one-meter-high steel canister rose into the turret, and the gunner standing behind the huge tail of the gun immediately pushed open the cover of the cannonball, using the metal steel canister to protect the cannonball and send shèyào, which was the first of its kind in the Chinese Navy, and it was also the difference between the Jingyuan and the Zhiyuan.

"Reloading"

At the same time as the command was issued, the gun commander pressed the button of the bullet pusher, and the hydraulic bullet pusher rod immediately pushed the bullet into the chamber, and the whole process was completed in just a dozen seconds, after the steel cylinder was lowered, two sailors pushed the gun bolt with a diameter of up to one meter, and closed the chamber, while the gun commander wearing headphones waited for further instructions from the fire detection center.

In the eight-fold Zeiss telescope, when the huge water column rises, although it is far from the target reef, there is nothing unusual in Tang Tingguang's or Yangshuzhuang's expressions, this is the first round of shè, and the next four rounds of shè will be corrected based on this.

In the next five minutes, huge water columns rose around the reef from time to time, which was a normal naval tactic, and every time the nine water columns were raised, Tang Tingguang in the command tower was neither disappointed nor happy, and the whole person looked very flat.

Suddenly, after the third round of Qi shè, three huge explosions flashed in the telescope one after another, and the seemingly calm command tower boiled in the deafening cannon sound.

"Sir, it's hit"

Commanding three bullets at a time, and shouting excitedly, Yang Shuzhuang looked back at the captain. only saw the captain's brows furrowed.

"It's too slow"

"Four rounds of Qi shè, 12 missed bullets and hit seven"

In the sound of the gunner's report, Tang Tingguang turned around and left the command tower, walked outside the command tower, and looked at those sailors, everyone had a smile on their faces, this is already a good result, especially for these novices. But he was still dissatisfied.

"What does it mean that the main gun should be at a speed of 43 seconds per shot, and it takes us one minute and seven seconds to reload each time?"

Looking back at the poplar village that came out, looking at the reef that was still filled with gunsmoke, Tang Tingguang opened his mouth and asked rhetorically.

Faced with the chief's question, Yang Shuzhuang fell silent.

"It means that our firepower superiority is completely overshadowed by the cost of manpower, and the effectiveness of 9mén guns is only equivalent to 4.5mén, and one Jingyuan should have been equivalent to three former Zhiyuan ships, but now?"

Faced with the dissatisfaction of the chief, Yang Shuzhuang squeaked for a long time before he spoke.

"Sir, they're novices after all"

"Newbie? If I don't remember, didn't they train on the Zhiyuan for a few days? And I've trained in a similar turret, so tell them, I'm not satisfied, very dissatisfied If you let them go to the battlefield now, then because of them, Jingyuan will become a live target."

"The captain is upset"

Leaving the fire control center, Zhang Haoran, who walked to the side of the gunwales to smoke, smiled bitterly, and then said to his old classmate Ji Lingyun.

"How can he be satisfied, if he doesn't meet the standards, we won't even be able to go to the battlefield"

When speaking, Ji Lingyun's face was full of helplessness.

"It's been less than a month since we took over the ship, but the captain thinks that we can be like Zhiyuan, although we are all selected from the fleet, but ......"

With a sigh, Ji Lingyun cast his eyes on the sea, although it was now early autumn, the sea breeze in the South China Sea was still obviously a little hot. Under the afterglow of the setting sun, the battlecruiser "Jingyuan" was like a huge whale, advancing on the sea.

Zhang Haoran looked at the glow that was darkening in the west, and suddenly had a sense of uncertainty about fate. It was a strange feeling, and it seemed to him that the dark sea in front of him seemed to give the illusion of an unpredictable fate.

"Why don't you go to dinner, don't you have an appetite?"

The voice behind him startled Zhang Haoran, and when he turned around, he saw Yue Pengyuan, the deputy captain of the machine wheel team, walking over with two lunch boxes. ,

"Even if you are reprimanded, you have to eat, and when you are full, you have the strength and jīng qi is not"

Yue Pengyuan smiled and put the lunch box on Zhang Haoran and Ji Lingyun's hands, and then patted them on the shoulder.

"But, seriously, from the moment I was selected for the marine engineering class, I knew that my fate had long been taken into account"

A puzzling sentence spat out of his mouth, and seeing that Zhang Haoran seemed a little puzzled, he continued.

"It's a real fight, I'm ......"

Pointing down the deck, the engine room is at the bottom, and there is a layer of dome there, and the entire engine room is completely separated by watertight cabins, and even the cabins are not connected to each other, and must be reached by a gangway to the upper cabin.

"So, once the fight starts, if I don't even have a chance to live, this is a fate that has been predestined a long time ago"

Yue Pengyuan's words made Zhang Haoran and Ji Lingyun silent for a while, among the twelve detachments of the Jingyuan, the most dangerous one is the engine team and the other is the damage management team, once the battleship suffers heavy damage, they don't have much chance of escaping.

"Yuanzhuo ......"

Without waiting for Zhang Haoran to speak, Yue Pengyuan burst out laughing.

"However, we should also be grateful for this war that could break out at any time."

"Thanks for this war?"

Both of them glanced at Yue Pengyuan a little puzzled, this Yue Pengyuan was too ......

"Yes, if there is no war, there will be no major expansion of the navy now, without the expansion of the navy, how can we go to Jingyuan, and, if that's the case, I'm afraid the two of you are at most a lieutenant officer now, what about me, maybe worse than you, but it should also be a lieutenant officer, right?"

Leaning on the railing, Yue Pengyuan then lit a cigarette.

"So we need to be thankful for this war, and,"

Take a deep puff of smoke, exhale it again, and look at the protective cruiser "Hairong" in the distance, this old cruiser will be completely eliminated sooner or later.

"War needs heroes, and in the same way, heroes will be created, maybe there are no heroes in the navy, we have always been a whole, and now, we have all been pushed to this crossroads by fate, why not let us work hard for Jingyuan? Maybe one day, the whole of China will remember Jingyuan, and even when anyone mentions this battleship, they will talk about it with admiration. ”

Listening to Yue Pengyuan's words, Zhang Haoran first thought deeply for a while, and then suddenly laughed.

"When did you change your mind to philosophy?"

"Studying philosophy?"

Yue Pengyuan suddenly burst out laughing.

"But, to be honest, I wish I could study philosophy, but,"

The smile disappeared from his face, and looking at the sea in the curtain, Yue Pengyuan's expression looked serious and helpless.

"I have to study politics and war so that our descendants can study mathematics and philosophy on top of democracy; Our descendants must study mathematics, philosophy, geography, naturalism, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture so that they can learn painting, poetry, music, architecture, sculpture, embroidery and porcelain above the sciences...... Therefore, whether it is you or me, our generation does not have the responsibility to study philosophy, and what China needs now is politicians and military strategists, but it does not need philosophers, too many ideological ......"

Raising his right hand to the sun xùe and drawing a circle with his middle finger, Yue Pengyuan added.

"Will make our mind húnluàn, a country of thought húnluàn without winning wars, winning dignity, so,"

"Therefore, we only need a belief, loyal to the monarch to serve the country, willing to brains to the ground"

The three of them spit out a sentence at the same time, and finally all three of them fell silent, standing quietly on the side of the gunwale, no one spoke again, and the expressions of the three of them were extremely solemn.

"Okay, stop talking nonsense, let's work hard, maybe the war will start tomorrow"

"Tomorrow"

Putting down the telegram in his hand, Tang Tingguang's expression changed slightly, this telegram was a top-secret telegram sent directly by the Admiralty, asking the battleship to prepare for combat.

"According to intelligence analysis, war may break out at any time, and the Jingyuan ship is hereby ordered to enter combat readiness from the moment it receives the electricity,...... If you encounter an enemy ship intercepting and attacking, please honor the Imperial Royal Guards Navy, and be sure to fight until the last bullet is not a military ......"

Picking up the telegram from the chart table, Yang Shuzhuang glanced at it, his face changed, and he looked at the silent captain, his mouth trembling slightly, and he could hardly believe his eyes.

"Chief, sir, for, why"

Yang Shuzhuang, who was puzzled, didn't want to believe that this was true at all, why didn't the Admiralty order Jingyuan to return to the foundation immediately, why was this happening? ,

"Why?"

With a wry smile, Tang Tingguang stood up, and even deliberately smoothed his military uniform with his hands, and after the bitter smile disappeared, only the solemnity of facing the decision as a soldier remained.

"I don't know but,"

With a solemn tone, Tang Tingguang picked up the ruler and seemed to be calculating something.

"The Chinese Navy must not retreat without a fight again, so ......"

He didn't speak, he knew he didn't have any other choice now.

"Deliver the order, inform the Hairong to enter the preparation for battle"

When this order was given, Tang Tingguang's eyes glanced at the photo of the old "Dingyuan" hanging on the wall, and then looked at Yang Shuzhuang and said in an unusually heavy mouth.

"I, I still owe the Chinese Navy a life owe ten years, it's time to pay it back"

"Sir"

Giving a military salute to the chief, Yang Shuzhuang gritted his teeth.

"If you can die with your superiors, it is the glory of your office"

Waving his hand, Tang Tingguang didn't say anything, at this time, he needed to be quiet.

Tomorrow

Throwing down the ruler in his hand fiercely, there was a trace of ruthlessness on the face of the tall and strong man, tomorrow, tomorrow will definitely be in the fourth encounter area, find Jingyuan, no matter what, you will sink Jingyuan

Staring at the mark on the chart representing the battlecruiser Jingyuan, the last confirmed location was that the Japanese merchant ship had found its traces in Dongsha, that it was his cannon that had burst out of his way, and that the fourth encounter zone was his inference from the possible voyage of Jingyuan.

"Sinking Jingyuan"

Rigao Zhuang Cheng said to himself again in his heart, in his opinion, whether he can sink Jingyuan is directly related to his honor, thinking of this, his left hand, the pencil held in the palm of his hand was broken into two.

On the eve of the Russo-Japanese War last year, as the commander of the standing fleet at the time, he thought that the commander of the combined fleet must be himself, but in the end, the navy veteran Yamamoto Gonbei changed his commander and appointed Heihachiro Togo, the commander of the Maizuru Town Guard, who was already preparing to retire, as the commander of the combined fleet.

Although Gonbei Yamamoto finally explained that he didn't use himself not because he doubted his own ability, but because he was afraid of his own ability. A war with Tsarist Russia was a much bigger gamble than the Sino-Japanese War. Therefore, the whole country of Japan must work with concerted efforts from top to bottom, unify the political and military forces, unify the land and navy, and unify the upper and lower levels, and never allow any mistakes. And he is a guy who is not afraid of heaven and earth, so he has no guarantee that he will be absolutely consistent with the Ministry of the Navy and the Military Command Department at a critical moment, so Yamamoto finally chose Heihachiro Togo.

Dongxiang

Saying this name, Hidaka Zhuangcheng's god Sè became extremely ugly, maybe in front of outsiders, he would be able to praise Togo as "Japan's Nelson", but behind the scenes, because Togo took away his honor, every time Hidaka Zhuangcheng thought of this name, all he felt was hostility and bitter hatred, Togo stole the glory that should have belonged to him like a thief, and then proudly appeared in front of everyone with the face of "the greatest admiral since Nelson".

Sink Jingyuan, sink Jingyuan

Staring at that blurry photo, Hidaka Zhuangzhi understood that the only way to redeem the glory was to sink Yasuyuan, and then with the help of sinking Yasuyuan, he forced Yamamoto Gonbei to appoint himself as the commander of the Combined Fleet, and then, he could lead the Combined Fleet and completely defeat the Chinese fleet, maybe by then he would not be able to enjoy the world reputation like Togo, but then victory would speak for itself, at least in Japan, he would be a naval admiral not inferior to Heihachiro Togo, not in the eyes of many people" The incompetent, the Hidaka, who was replaced before the war."

"I will definitely sink Jingyuan"

"Sir, intercepted a telegram, it's Hiyamamaru's, they found Jingyuan"

"Remove all combustibles"

In the cabin of the Jingyuan, with the orders of the boatswain, the sailors kept running in the cabin, hanging chuáng and chuáng mats, and all the combustibles were directly enclosed in the small cabin, and the sailors with notes in their hands were running between the cabins, and with the paper they posted, the wartime terms "corpse room" and "emergency medical room" were posted on the cabin.

When the sailors in the cabin were preparing for the war that might come at any time, it was the new moon, there was no light of stars and moon in the sea and sky, and the dim deck was a busy scene, and the deck nozzles sprayed seawater on the deck continuously, although the oak deck could not be completely soaked by the seawater, but soaking in water for an extra minute could also reduce the possibility of burning. ,

"Qian Mu, hurry up, get another sandbag......"

In Tang Jiannan's shouting, a bulletproof sandbag weighing hundreds of kilograms was tied to the railing of the bridge of the command tower, and several layers of bulletproof sandbags were also added to the armored skirt under the turret.

"Rinse through, be sure to let the sandbag soak in water"

Yang Sanlin, who commanded the damage management team, shouted that bundling bulletproof sandbags could block shrapnel, but it could not necessarily stop the ignition effect of Japanese artillery shells that used to blow up the yào, and water immersion could play a certain role.

"Does it work?"

Cheng Keran looked at Yang Sanlin, who was commanding his subordinates, and asked rhetorically.

"Even if it falls on the sea, it will burn, and it will burn even more naturally if it falls on the deck, what can it be for."

"It always works a little, at least it can make them burn a little less"

Yang Sanlin said with a smile, this will make him look relaxed, but in fact, the drum has already beaten in his heart, maybe, this is the last early morning in his life.

Finally, after nearly two hours of busy work, after both Jingyuan and Hairong had completed their preparations for war, the men appeared on the deck with boxes of food, and during the preparation period, everyone no longer had the opportunity to eat in the restaurant.

"Eat, the big guy hurry up and eat enough to have the strength to fight"

With a coax, the tired and panting sailors went to the food box like a crazy rush, grabbed the food directly with the lunch box, and then devoured it as if eating, and through the moonlight, it could be seen that their expressions looked a little dignified and even a little uneasy, but they forced themselves to eat.

"Hey, Brother Wang, the sun should come out in two hours."

Lin Qiang, who was forced to swallow a few mouthfuls of rice, couldn't eat it anymore, just holding the lunch box and looking at the night sky, but Xin had already returned to his hometown more than a thousand miles away, thinking about his father.

"What, I can't eat anymore?"

Wang Pu, who continued to fight with rice and big ròu, responded with a word.

"Eat quickly, eat more, I don't know when the next meal will be, let's eat desperately now, and when the time comes, we will fight desperately"

As soon as the words fell, Wang Pu took another bite of rice.

"Die, not only do we have to pull the back, but we also have to be a fucking full ghost"

In a word, the dozens of sailors surrounding behind the turret skirt all stopped, which they have always been unwilling to think about and want to deliberately avoid, and now? But finally someone started, everyone's expressions darkened, and they realized that they had said the wrong thing, and Wang Pu casually put down the lunch box in his hand.

"Cry, cry if you want to, wait until everyone is done crying, then wipe away your tears, like, like a sailor, let's die together"