Chief of Staff of the Combined Fleet, Frederick? William? At 5 p.m. on June 22, Sir Richards left the main force of the British Navy aboard the light cruiser "Sapphire", led several light cruisers and destroyers, and evacuated ahead of schedule. This allowed him to escape the catastrophe, not like Algernon, the commander of the Combined Fleet? McLennan? Sir Lyons was taken prisoner as well.

At half past five in the afternoon, Frederick? William? Sir Richards sent the results of the naval battle to India, and the Viceroy of India forwarded the telegram to London. The wireless telegraph on the light cruiser was too small and had to be forwarded. When London received the results of the naval battle, it was exactly ten o'clock in the morning.

At 10 a.m. London time, British Prime Minister Marquess Salisbury is in office. It's just that today, he obviously doesn't have too much focus on routine official duties. According to the information sent back by the Admiralty, the decisive battle between the combined fleet of Britain, France, and Russia and the Chinese Navy will soon take place, either today or tomorrow. This naval battle is related to Britain's layout in the world, and if it fails, the consequences will be very severe. The third consul of the Marquis of Salisbury may also end prematurely once again. After that, he may not have the opportunity to form a cabinet again.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, Lord of the Admiralty Walter? Lord Kerr asks to see you! At this time, his secretary Tim walked in.

"Lord of the Admiralty? Did the naval battle have a result? Let him come to me! The Marquess of Salisbury shook his spirits.

Subsequently, the British Admiralty Walter? Lord Kerr walked into the office of the Marquis of Salisbury with a gloomy face. See Walter? Lord Kerr's face and the Marquis of Salisbury's heart sank at once. He knows. I'm afraid there's bad news from the Navy. If you don't know if this expedition will fail! But that shouldn't be the case! This time, the combined fleet, the British and Russian battleships, a total of twenty-nine, and a total of hundreds of other warships, such a powerful force, no country in the world can compete with it.

"Walter? Lord Kerr, what happened? Is there news coming back from the expeditionary fleet? The Marquess of Salisbury asked. No matter what the outcome is. He had to face it. Perhaps, the result was not as bad as he thought it would be.

"Your Excellency, the decisive battle between the United Fleet and the Chinese Navy began at 10 o'clock last night, and the Chinese Navy ambushed the Combined Fleet. By now, the naval battle has ended, and the combined fleet has been annihilated! "Lord of the Admirals Walter? Lord Kerr's voice trembled a little.

"What? Annihilated? How is this possible? The British Prime Minister, the Marquess of Salisbury, stood up from behind his desk with a look of disbelief. Such a powerful combined fleet was actually wiped out. What does this mean. He knew it perfectly. His political life began at this moment. It's over.

The secretary, Diem, happened to come in with coffee, and when he heard the news, the coffee fell to the ground. A snow-white Persian handmade carpet is sprinkled with coffee. It's just that no one pays attention to this anymore.

"What the hell is going on? How could such a powerful combined fleet fail? Didn't the Admiralty promise me that it would be able to defeat the Chinese Navy? How could such a result occur? The Marquis of Salisbury roared madly, as if he had been deceived.

"Your Excellency, the Chinese Navy has used new weapons in this war. They used submarines as weapons, firing heavy torpedoes at our warships under water. Under the attack of submarines, we lost 7 battleships and suffered heavy damage to two. Subsequently, while the fleet was in disarray, eight new battleships of the Chinese Navy joined the attack on the combined fleet. The new class of 'Qin-class' battleships of the Chinese Navy is even more powerful, and most of our warships were sunk in naval battles. After that, the commander of the Combined Fleet, Algernon? McLennan? Sir Lyons ordered a retreat. However, in the end, he was captured! "Lord of the Admirals Walter? Lord Kerr said bitterly, the Combined Fleet was annihilated, and he, as the Minister of the Navy, was also the first person responsible, and I am afraid that he will not be able to keep his position in this field. At the beginning, when the Far East Fleet was annihilated by the Chinese Navy, the former Admiral Frederick? William? Sir Richards stepped down. However, he then became the chief of staff of the Combined Fleet, ready to be disgraced. However, I didn't expect it to fail. And this one, as the Minister of the Navy, he will definitely not be able to escape.

"What about the losses of the Chinese? What about the losses of the Chinese? After the annihilation of the combined fleet, the losses of the Chinese are probably not small! The Marquess of Salisbury asked. If both sides lose, then he may still have a chance.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, according to Frederick

?William? Sir Richards sent back a telegram saying that the losses of the Chinese Navy were negligible, and that the performance of the Chinese Navy's warships, whether they were battleships or heavy cruisers, or light cruisers and destroyers, far surpassed ours. Therefore, in this battle, the superiority in numbers did not play any role at all. No matter how many warships there are, they will only be slaughtered by the Chinese! "Walter? Lord Kerr's face was gloomy. Not long ago, the British Navy was still the first in the world, and now, I am afraid that this position will have to be ceded to others. Although the British Navy still has more than a dozen battleships, these old battleships are simply vulnerable to the Chinese Navy.

"What to do? What now? The Marquis of Salisbury sat in his seat dejectedly, not knowing what to do with the current crisis. After the total annihilation of the Combined Fleet, Britain had no choice but to deal with China. In this war, China has already gained the upper hand. Britain, which has become a loser, will shrink rapidly. Most crucially, the Marquess of Salisbury will step down.

In the afternoon, the Marquess of Salisbury convened a cabinet to discuss countermeasures, but he was unable to face the present crisis. After the declaration of war between China and Britain, although Britain recalled its ambassador to China, some newspaper reporters remained in China. The lavish celebration in Beijing, China, on the evening of June 22, naturally let these journalists know what happened. Those reporters sent back messages to newspapers in China. So, on the afternoon of June 22, London time, the news of the defeat of the Combined Fleet and the annihilation of the entire army has spread everywhere.

The Times, among other influential British newspapers, added additional issues to report on the defeat of the Combined Fleet. At this time, starting with London, countless crowds in major cities in Britain took to the streets to protest the incompetence of the government and demand the throne of the Marquess of Salisbury.

That evening, Queen Victoria of England summoned the Marquess of Salisbury. The next morning, the Marquess of Salisbury led the cabinet officials to submit his resignation to Parliament. And the new cabinet was created on the same day. It was still the Conservative Party that came to power, even though the Marquess of Salisbury suffered a big defeat during his tenure, but the Conservative Party was strong in Britain. Balfour succeeded the Marquess of Salisbury as the fiftieth Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Of course, what he inherited was a mess. The first difficult problem facing the new cabinet is how to deal with the current war. For Britain, there is no hope of victory, and the next step is to consider how to end this war with dignity!

Britain's new cabinet, except for Arthur? In addition to Balfour as Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer Charles? Thomson? Richie, Lord Lansdowne, Foreign Secretary (5th Lord Lansdowne), Lord of the Admiralty, John? Sir Fisher, Field Marshal Neville? Powers? Sir Chamberlain.

Arthur? After Prime Minister Balfour took office, he immediately convened the cabinet ministers to discuss how to deal with the current situation.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Combined Fleet has been annihilated, and Britain is already in a very dangerous situation. In this war, there is no possibility of victory. So, what should we do next? "Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour asked.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, if the Navy cannot recover its decline, then we will not be able to defeat China. In my opinion, it's time to end the war! Lord Lansdowne, the Foreign Secretary, said briefly.

Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour nodded and looked at the Admiralty Chancellor, John? Sir Fisher.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, from Frederick? William? Judging from the telegram sent back by Sir Richards, the strength of the Chinese navy is very strong, and now there are only a dozen old battleships left in the Royal Navy of the British Empire. Even if all these battleships were sent to China, it would not make any difference. Before the new battleships entered service, we were no match for the Chinese! "Lord of the Admirals John? Sir Fisher said.

"Your Excellency, Burma and the Straits Settlements have fallen, and the Empire has no place in the Far East and the South Seas. I also propose to stop the war with the Chinese. If the Chinese take the opportunity to attack India, the empire will have no way to stop it! "Field Marshal Neville? Powers? Sir Chamberlain also said.

"India must not afford to lose! So, get ready to contact the Chinese and make peace with them! However, the Burma and Straits Settlements occupied by the Chinese will probably not be able to get them back! "Arthur? Prime Minister Balfour said. The Chinese have eaten all the fat in their mouths and obviously will not spit it out. In order to prevent China from attacking India, the pearl in the crown of the Queen of the British Empire, they can only temporarily abandon the Far East! (To be continued.) )

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