In the middle of the night on May 3, 1913, the German submarine U39 infiltrated the military port of Kronstadt and fired four heavy submarine-launched torpedoes at the Russian warships at anchor. The ammunition depot of the battleship Pavel I was detonated and was blown to pieces on the spot; Its sister ship, the St. Andrew, was also damaged by a 500-mm heavy torpedo and began to plunge into the water irretrievably. By the time Kolev, who had lip prints on his face, rushed to the dock panting, the upper deck of the St. Andrea had touched the water; Looking at the raging fire on the bridge and the frightened Russian sailors jumping into the sea, the fat man fainted directly in front of his eyes.

That night, the Russian Baltic Fleet, which was already much inferior to Germany, suffered another heavy setback: one quasi-dreadnought was completely removed from the combat sequence of the Russian Navy; The other sank to the bottom of the harbor, and it is unknown how long it will take to salvage and repair it and rebuild its combat effectiveness. Before the completion of the Sevastopol-class battleship was commissioned, St. Petersburg could only rely on the battlecruiser Rurik and one dreadnought to defend its safety. In the face of the German Baltic fleet, which consisted of only 8 former dreadnoughts, the current Russian fleet has lost the confidence to fight against it!

The only thing the Russians were thankful for was the relatively small number of sailors killed. Since the Kronstadt military port did not seriously prepare for war under Kolev's rule, a large number of officers and men who were supposed to serve on the ship went to the shore to drink flower wine and collect soap when the U39 infiltrated; The original two warships, each with 933 rated crews, died less than 300 officers and men after sinking. Of course, this was also used by the terrified Kolev as the last straw; After some alterations. The glorious image of a wise commander who was calm when disaster struck and saved the lives of more than 1,500 people by struggling to direct evacuation operations came to life. After sending a large amount of filial piety to St. Petersburg. Kolev not only saved his life. Even the black gauze hat was not thrown away; Two days later, he was transferred to another place to become the Emperor of the Soil.

Under the clear moonlight, the U39 submarine had slipped out of Kronstadt along the channel buoys and began to return home with the cheerful work of two MAN diesel engines rated at 850 horsepower. The 32 officers and men who had surrendered from Dönitz were all overjoyed and expressed their inner excitement and ecstasy in various ways. The great feat of sinking two battleships in one fell swoop was enough for the name of the U39 to spread throughout Europe and even the world; By the time the sun rises, Europe's major newspapers will be publishing their epic and perfect raid for the night. Upon their return to Kiel Naval Port, the commander of the fleet, Prince Heinrich, and even Field Marshal Tirpitz, the father of the Ocean Fleet, may personally come to the docks to honour them – the greatest honor that every German naval officer and sailor will receive in their lifetime!

At this time. Dönitz, who was in the Gulf of Finland rejoicing at his victory, was unaware of what had happened to his fellow submariners in England, thousands of miles away.

Due to the strict wartime lighting control in British military ports, accompanied by a large number of patrol boats and searchlights patrolling back and forth around the harbor and the shipping lanes, the submarine force sent by the German Navy to attack Scarpa and Rosyth did little success, but only sent an old cruiser to the bottom of the sea by mistake. After receiving reports of the discovery of a large number of periscopes outside the harbor, Jericho broke out in a cold sweat and spent his first thrilling night as commander of the Grand Fleet in extreme tension and anxiety. As the morning dawned and the sun began to shine, Jericho breathed a sigh of relief when he repeatedly confirmed that his 25 battleships were unscathed under heavy protection. only to find that his body had a little prostration-like weakness.

Although the German submarine forces were not able to reach the main force of the British Grand Fleet after the start of the war, Tirpitz was still confident about the future occupation. Not to mention that the current German High Seas Fleet has fully achieved the strength of the lineup required to pursue a risky fleet strategy. A frontal battle would have frightened Britain, which relied heavily on naval strength; His 140 submarines of all types, which had been invincible in the early days of World War I, were enough to plunge British maritime shipping into a state of extreme contraction on the verge of paralysis. In addition, the German Navy also deployed two Scharnhorst-class quasi-battle cruisers in the Far East, and its strength to defeat the last British Minotaur will definitely force the British Grand Fleet to divide its forces to search for annihilation. In the Mediterranean, a battleship helmed by German sailors is also moving at full speed, and if it succeeds in reaching the Dardanelles, it will have a historic impact on the current situation in Europe.

The darkness of the night receded, and the dawn of light reigned again over the land of Central Europe. At this time, the focus of the warring sides was no longer on the sea, but on the Western European front of Germany and France, which had the most rapid mobilization, the largest number of troops, and the strongest smell of gunpowder.

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On the night of 2 May, Germany had completed a large number of mobilization and mobilization with the help of an extremely precise mobilization plan and the country's railway trunk lines extending in all directions. Countless steam locomotives roared and hissed, sending wagons full of soldiers, baggage, ammunition and other materials to the front line in an orderly manner. Germany, which gradually stretched out its claws, immediately submitted to Belgium the most obtinory drafted by Moltke Jr. and revised and polished by Prime Minister Holwig.

The ultimatum claimed that Germany had received "reliable information" that the French were intending to advance along the line from Giwe to Namur, so that France's intention to invade Germany through the Belgian border could not be questioned. Since the Belgian army could not be expected to stop the advance of the French army, it was necessary for Germany to pre-empt the "need for self-defense" in order to prevent the potential threat to Germany from this French action. If Belgium could maintain "neutral neutrality in good faith," Germany would guarantee to withdraw from Belgian territory as soon as the fighting against France was over, and to compensate Germany for all the losses it had caused. However, if the Belgians objected to Germany's entry into Belgian territory for "self-defence", Germany would be regarded as an enemy country, and relations with it would henceforth be left to "the guns and cannons." The ultimatum demanded that Belgium must give a clear answer within 12 hours.

In the General Staff in Berlin, Wilhelm and Moltke Jr. were eagerly hoping that the Belgians would judge the situation and choose to open their borders to Germany. Although the resistance of the Belgian army itself was not remarkable, the three large armies on the northern flank of the German army were able to easily trample the resistance of the Belgian army into dust; However, if the Belgians blew up all the bridges and roads in their country during the resistance, it would have greatly affected the supply logistics of the German army. In addition, Germany's international image would be devastated. Germany was portrayed by the world as a brutal and ferocious Teutonic bandit, and this underlying idea was directly reflected in the actions of these non-belligerents.

Unlike the two, Qingying, who is familiar with history, knows that the Belgian government will never succumb to the German threat. The reasons are simple, both in terms of the attitudes of its decision-makers and in the historical and human aspects that are peculiar to Belgium.

In 1909, the old Belgian King Leopold II died of illness, and the young Crown Prince Albert took over the supremacy of the constitutional kingdom. This vigorous young monarch was very different from his uncle, who was known for his modesty and kindness, and the old Austrian Emperor Franz commented that he was "a complete villain"; Youthful and vigorous, he got rid of the greed, cowardice, and compromise of the old king, and was as desperate as a newborn calf to create a new situation. Thus, in the face of the worst ultimatum of German bullying, the young Albert could not accept this naked cruel jungle fact, and decided to resist to the death for the sake of empty self-esteem and superficial honor that had no real benefit at all. Of course, since the Belgian resistance greatly delayed the German offensive, and the Allies were ultimately victorious in history, Albert naturally enjoyed the supreme glory of being praised by the English-speaking world as having "physical strength and intelligence comparable to that of the great men of his time".

In terms of history and humanities, the Belgians will not choose not to resist and submit to the iron heel of Germany. Belgium is located at the crossroads of Britain, France and Germany, three of Europe's top powers, and has been invaded countless times in history, only to declare independence in 1839 due to the balance of the game between the great powers; The short-term and hard-won statehood made the Belgians extremely determined to defend their independence. Moreover, if Belgium yielded to German demands, it would be tantamount to surrendering all the initiative to the Berlin government; At that time, Belgium, whose territory is occupied, will no longer have any confidence in front of Germany, and there will be a big question mark over whether Germany will fulfill its obligations and withdraw its troops after the war!

Therefore, with a strong sense of independence and distrust of the Berlin government, Belgium will inevitably become the first obstacle to the advance of the German right wing on the way to Paris, under the leadership of the new king Albert. Although Qingying was emotionally sympathetic to Belgium's situation, he could only support the German Army in raising the butcher's knife against the innocent man.

Just a few hours after Germany issued its ultimatum to Belgium, 24 heavy Kirov airships arrived at Koblenz Air Base. They are shaped like cigars, beige throughout, and the bow is sprayed with a hideous and terrifying blood-basin shark mouth, and a pair of extremely expressive "shark eyes" are full of fierce light. After that, this livery would become an eternal nightmare in the hearts of every Allied officer. (To be continued......)