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Two hours after the outbreak of the naval battle, the Italian Navy had already lost two capital ships. Reach. The battleships Vinci and Count Cavour were sunk one after another, leaving the Italian Navy with only four battleships, all of which were still under siege by the Chinese Navy. And the price paid by the Chinese Navy for this was only the damage of two battleships, and it still did not affect the minor damage to continue the battle.

While the capital ships of both sides were fighting fiercely, the battle between the cruisers and destroyers was also very fierce. Six 'Jianghe-class' heavy cruisers of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy, led by the battlecruiser 'Wang Ben', launched a fierce attack on the old armored cruisers of the Italian Navy. Before the advent of the battleship era, armored cruisers were used as the main force in naval warfare, and the navies of various countries believed that the firepower of the side of the armored cruiser was the key to defeating the enemy. However, in the later period, the British Navy began to build 'pre-dreadnought' battleships on a large scale, but the number of secondary guns of such battleships was also quite large. After knowing that the 'Zhonghua-class' battleships of the Chinese Navy were born, the large-caliber secondary guns were abolished and the large-caliber main guns were uniformly used as the main weapons of the battleships.

The armored cruisers of the Italian Navy are all old armored cruisers that have been in service for more than ten years, and they have no power to fight back under the blows of the new heavy cruisers of the Chinese Navy. The shape of the naval battle is completely one-sided. Whether it was a battle between capital ships or a battle between cruisers, the Italian Navy did not take advantage of the slightest advantage, and there was a possibility that it would lose.

"General! The Chinese are too powerful. We are no match for them. Let's retreat! "'Andrea. Commodore Mario, the captain of the battleship Doria', plucked up his courage. Proposed their own building yì. Anyone with a discerning eye knows that with the remaining four battleships of the Italian Navy, there is no chance of victory, and if the battle continues, I am afraid that there will be a danger of total annihilation.

"Retreat? Can we still withdraw now? The Chinese will not let us go! Admiral Bohini said helplessly. Now he understands that this naval battle is just a mistake. He originally thought that he could lead the Italian navy to achieve glory and dominate the Mediterranean. But I didn't think of it. What awaits him is the tragic end of the total annihilation.

"General, we still have a chance. The current area of engagement is only about 180 kilometers from the Taranto naval base. If we retreat at a speed of 20 knots, it will only take us 5 hours to return to Taranto Naval Base, and as long as we can hold on to it, we will be able to confront the Chinese Navy with shore fortifications! "'Andrea. The captain of the battleship Doria' built a yì road.

Admiral Bocini hesitated, knowing that this was the Italian Navy's last chance, although such a chance was very slim. Perhaps on the way back, the capital ships of the Italian Navy will be sunk completely. But if you're lucky. Perhaps able to hold out until the return to Taranto Naval Base. It's better than continuing to fight and watching the capital ships sink one after the other.

"Order the fleet to turn. Return to Taranto Naval Base! Accelerate to 20 knots! After a little hesitation, Admiral Bohini made his choice. After all, if you continue to fight, there will be no hope at all, and if you retreat at high speed, there is still a glimmer of hope.

Under the orders of Admiral Bohini, the remaining 4 battleships of the Italian Navy began to accelerate their turn. The slowest 'Dante. The top speed of the battleship Aligh Ichheri was above 21 knots, and sailing at a speed of 20 knots would cause great damage to the boilers and steam turbines, but it should still be no problem to hold on for 5 hours.

The anomaly of the Italian Navy attracted the attention of the Chinese Navy. The battle lines of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy also began to turn and accelerated, ensuring that the offensive against the Italian Navy could continue.

"Commander, it seems that the Italians are scared and want to flee, or are they speeding up! What do we do now? Vice Admiral Wu Zhiyuan, chief of staff of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy, asked. After the acceleration of the Italian Navy, the hit rate of the Chinese Navy's artillery shelling again decreased. Even the battleships of the Chinese Navy, after accelerating to 20 knots, the battleship will be very bumpy. It is very difficult to hit the target in such conditions!

"These Italians of Dog Day actually want to run away at this time!" Lieutenant General Li Haitao scolded secretly, isn't this seeing that the cooked duck is about to fly? If the Italians continued to fight, he could guarantee that the Indian Ocean Fleet would annihilate the main forces of the Italian Navy at a very small cost. But now that the Italians have retreated, this has added a lot of variables to this naval battle.

Admiral Li Haitao's mind was thinking about it, trying to come up with a way to deal with the current situation. In any case, the remaining capital ships of the Italian Navy cannot be allowed to escape, otherwise, the four powerful battleships will pose a great threat to the interests of the Chinese Navy in the Mediterranean. After all, the defense area of the Indian Ocean Fleet is too large, and when the main forces of the Chinese Navy are concentrated in the Eastern Pacific, the entire Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea will have to rely on the Indian Ocean Fleet for defense.

"Order the battleships 'Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty', the battleships 'Qin Shi Huang' and the battleships 'Prince Fusu' to speed up to 22 knots, prepare to seize the T-prefix, hit the fire and intercept the Italians. The other battleships maintained a speed of 20 knots and launched an attack on the capital ships of the Italian Navy! "Admiral Li Haitao ordered. The Han-class battleships had a speed of up to 26 knots, and the Qin-class battleships also had a speed of up to 24 knots. It is not difficult to speed up the interception of the Italian Navy. The remaining two 'Zhonghua-class' battleships and the three battleships that captured the British and French navies also had a maximum speed of less than 22 knots. Being able to maintain a speed of 20 knots to launch an attack on the Italian Navy is already very rare.

Under the order of Admiral Li Haitao, the 8 battleships of the Indian Ocean Fleet were divided into two parts, and the "Emperor Ming of Han", "Qin Shi Huang" and "Taizi Fusu" began to accelerate, preparing to overtake the battle line of the Italian Navy, and then turned, cutting diagonally from the battle line of the Italian Navy. At this time, it was possible to hit the battle line of the Italian Navy with the fire of three battleships. The other five battleships, maintaining the same speed as the Italian Navy, launched an attack on the Italian Navy. It's just that at a speed of up to 20 knots, if you want to hit the target, you can only rely on God's blessing.

The operational intentions of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy were not concealed from the Italian Navy. However, 20 knots is already their limit, and if they continue to accelerate, it is very likely to cause damage to the boiler or steam turbine. When the time comes, I won't be able to leave if I want to.

At 1:36 p.m., the Chinese Navy's 'Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty', 'Qin Shi Huang' and 'Prince Fusu' overtook the Italian Navy's battle line and passed the Italian Navy's left front. Although the Italian Navy also began to turn, it was not able to dodge when it was not as fast as the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy.

The three battleships of the Chinese Navy, with a total of 27 main guns, were all aimed at the 'Andrea. Doria' battleship.

"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! "As the orange-red flames shone in the muzzle, shells whistled and smashed into 'Andrea. The battleship Doria's, although the battleship was too turbulent, which greatly affected the accuracy of shooting, but the dense firepower made up for it.

Columns of cupola water in 'Andrea. The perimeter of the battleship Doria exploded, making a splash that soaked almost the entire battleship. This huge battleship, like a small ship on the sea under a storm, is in danger of capsizing at any time.

The battle line of the Italian Navy kept turning, trying to escape the fire of the Chinese fleet, but the Chinese fleet clung to the Italian fleet and made it impossible for them to escape.

"Boom!" At 1:58 p.m., there was a loud bang in the 'Andrea. The stern of the battleship Doria' sounded. A 305-mm shell hit the stern of the battleship, and the shell lightly penetrated the deck of the battleship and exploded inside. The violent explosion caused the two propeller shafts to be blown up, which made 'Andrea. The speed of the battleship Doria suddenly dropped. 'Andrea. The battleship Doria was propelled with four axles, and two propeller shafts were damaged, which caused the ship to lose half of its speed. And at this time, this means that the battleship has no hope of escaping.

When Admiral Bohini learned that 'Andrea. When the battleship Doria was damaged, his face suddenly turned pale. Once the speed slows down, it will definitely be besieged by the Chinese navy. When the time comes'Andrea. The battleship Doria' had absolutely no chance of escaping.

"General, please transfer to Cailliaud. 'Duelio' battleship continues to command the battle, and I will command 'Andrea. Doria's battleship continues to fight! "'Andrea. Commodore Mario, the captain of the Doria, said firmly.

Admiral Bohini did not postpone and took a transport boat up the'Cayo. The battleship Duilio' and raised the flagship flag. It's just that the three battleships of the Chinese Navy spared 'Andrea. Doria', set the target on 'Cayo. Duilio' up to 'Cailliaud. After the Duilio' was also heavily damaged, he moved on to the next target. Under such a blow, not a single of the lead ships of the Italian Navy was able to escape. Italy's dream of becoming a strong country was completely shattered because of this war! (To be continued......)