Several destroyers tossed around on the surface of the sea for a long time, and did not find any oil or debris under the water, and it was estimated that the enemy's submarine had fled, and then returned to the formation.

The British submarines were not inferior to the German-Austrian submarines in terms of performance, but because they had few opportunities to fight, their combat experience was not as rich as that of the German submarine forces, and of course they did not achieve the results that attracted the attention of the world like their German counterparts.

Because of this uproar, the whole fleet became nervous. Reckimating that the escaped enemy submarine was likely to expose its position and course, Sorochin ordered the fleet to turn southwest and increase its speed to 17 knots.

After a night of sailing, before dawn the entire fleet had reached the sea of about 120 nautical miles south of Iceland, and the German-Austrian fleet began to turn again and sail in the direction of the Azores.

At the same time, the British Rapid Fleet, which had resupplied at Portsmouth, also entered the waters southwest of Ireland. In the dark pre-dawn sea, the raging waves slammed into the bow one after another, and finally crashed into droplets of water. The British fast fleet, consisting of five "Queen Elizabeth" class battleships and the battlecruisers "Tiger", "Lion", "Australia" and "New Zealand", was cleaving the waves and sailing rapidly to the southwest at a high speed of 20 knots.

Admiral Betty woke up early, and in the richly decorated and brightly lit conference room of the flagship "Queen Elizabeth", the principal officers of the fleet sat around a long conference table covered with huge charts, discussing the current position and course of the German-Austrian fleet. At this time, the night lights were still being controlled, and the portholes in the conference room were covered with thick blackout curtains.

"Yesterday evening the submarine forces sent back a telegram that the position of the German battle cruiser fleet was about 160 nautical miles east of Iceland, heading due south. It was clear that the Admiralty had been correct in its judgment and that the Germans intended to go south into the harbor of the Bay of Biscay in France. Commodore Chatfield, Chief of Staff of the Fleet, briefed the commanders of the various fleets present at the meeting, "The Admiralty orders us to do our best to stop the German fleet. As the main force of the German High Seas Fleet also began to move, our Grand Fleet had to hold the North Sea line, and only the 8th Battleflotilla, consisting of five Revenge-class battleships, under the command of Admiral Chalmers, was now about 120 nautical miles northwest of Ireland. ”

After General Chatfield gave a brief briefing on the situation, Admiral Betty stood up with a stern expression: "Ladies and gentlemen, I have adopted this unusual method to invite you here because the situation has become very severe and urgent. It was because our adversary, the battle cruiser fleet of the German Navy, wanted to enter the ports off the coast of France. According to accurate information, all of their battle cruisers had entered the North Atlantic and were heading for the Bay of Biscay. If the large German surface ships were allowed to enter the French coast, it would pose a great threat to our maritime lifelines, and they could at any time enter the North Atlantic at will and launch an attack on our convoys. At present, there has been a marked shift in the strategy of the German Navy, from the decisive battles of the fleets in the past to more inclined to sea-breaking operations, in a vain attempt to achieve the goal of strangling us by cutting off our sea transportation.

We must admit that the excellent protection design of the German naval department and the exquisite manufacturing process of the shipbuilding industry, relatively speaking, the German battle cruisers were better resistant to strikes than us. About an hour earlier, the Fast Fleet had just received a telegram from the Admiralty that our submarine forces had spotted the German fleet, which was sailing south in the sea between Iceland and the Faroe Islands, near the Icelandic side. By the time mark, they should have entered the North Atlantic by now. If the Germans used all these battlecruisers for naval engagements, it would be a great disaster for the British Empire. So the Admiralty ordered us, to find them, and to do everything in our power to prevent the German fleet from entering the Bay of Biscay, and to inflict heavy damage on the German fleet even if we sacrificed ourselves! Admiral Betty was now a little emaciated, but his sonorous words showed the usual bravery of the Royal Navy. Even if you fight one-on-one with your opponent, with the shipbuilding capabilities of the British Empire, you will still have the upper hand in the big maritime strategy, and you will eventually win the war at sea.

His words immediately changed the atmosphere of the entire cabin, and Admiral Betty expressed his determination to fight to the death, and boosted the morale of the fleet commanders.

"The Germans seem to be strong, but they are more like a bunch of pirates, who only fight the ideas of the merchant fleet. Since the start of the war, the Royal Fleet, although ostensibly not superior, has trapped them in a cage in the North Sea. This time is the same, the Germans simply did not dare to engage in a dignified naval decisive battle with us, and the result of this battle will be the same, and we will teach the Germans a profound lesson, telling them that a naval power cannot be built by just a few warships, it takes a hundred years of accumulation. ”

The new commander of the Fast Battlefleet Fischer. Sir Bonnie duly expressed his confidence that in his opinion, a fleet of five formidable battleships of the "Queen Elizabeth" class could not be afraid of any opponent in this world. Although the German battlecruiser fleet was greatly strengthened, the combat effectiveness of the battlecruisers could not be compared with the battleships in any way.

"Well, but I would like to warn you that the command of Sorochin, the commander of the German battlecruisers, is even more strange and unconscionable than our old adversary, Hipper. Since he had been leading the weak Turkish fleet against the Russians, who were stronger than him, he was more adept at guerrilla tactics, but he was not very experienced in commanding large fleets. I think it's going to be a little bit better for us when we play against each other. Ladies and gentlemen, we have laid a wide net in this sea area, and the navy has concentrated about 50 cruisers and nearly 200 destroyers in search of the German fleet, and I think that we will get the news soon after daybreak. Once we find an enemy, we'll go all out! The future of the empire, in this battle, I hope you will fight bravely to kill the enemy regardless of a single qiē! ”

Because of his perennial battles with the German Navy, Betty also has a lot of research on the tactics of his German counterparts and the German Navy, and although his analysis is not very accurate, it is indeed a weakness of the German Navy. The Germans were not very good at head-on naval duels. As the saying goes: raise a soldier for a thousand days, and use it for a while.

Now the time has come for them to serve the Empire.

"I wish us victory!" Admiral Betty opened a bottle of gin with his own hands, poured it for his generals, and then raised his glass as if wishing.

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