The sun is coming to an end, the sunset is converging, and thick black clouds are gradually enveloping the four sides of the sky, enveloping the port of Oltbay. The cold wind howled and blew the St. George's flag fluttering on the mast; The majestic and continuous peaks and ridges of the ship island, the thick and majestic pitch-black artillery group...... Vaguely, it was still the invincible figure of the world's navy back then.

A man with a general's badge on his shoulder, looking at the harbor from the window of a building, was Jericho. Compared to before the decisive battle in the North Sea, he looked much haggard and thin, and his sideburns and hair were completely gray; At first glance, the slightly sunken cheeks and slightly tired face made him no longer look like he was in the prime of life at 54 years old, but like a dying old man like Fisher.

More than two months earlier, shortly after Churchill had been investigated and tried, Jellicoe had been dismissed from his post as commander of the Grand Fleet for the fiasco of the North Sea Campaign, and was immediately taken to court-martial, along with Betty. In the face of the wave after wave of angry accusations from judges and juries composed of the people, the invective and ridicule from the packed auditorium, and the obstruction of countless family members of the fallen officers and soldiers holding up the portraits along the road, Jericho could not have the slightest foothold in this hysterical environment where emotion drowned out reason!

Although shortly thereafter, the tone of public opinion changed abruptly: almost all British media, including the Times, began to reprint the Admiralty's summary of the combat report, and comprehensively bombarded the design flaws of the battleship, criticizing all the designers of the previous tens of millions of pounds project from Woltz onwards; However, the sinking of the 300,000-ton capital warship and the unprecedented defeat of 13,000 officers and men spilling blood on the sea still made it difficult for the British people to open up this heavy knot that caused them great pain. As a result, the trial, which Fisher called "the most stupid tragedy," was more than a month in the making. The final verdict was made in the midst of silence and sporadic protests: Jellico's command at the Battle of the North Sea was not clearly wrong. Not primarily responsible for the defeat in the naval battle. Therefore, he was acquitted and released on the spot. He also remembered that he had made a decisive decision to retreat at the critical moment and had made meritorious contributions in protecting the ship, and ordered him to continue to serve in his original post and to lead the combat readiness training of the Grand Fleet and the command of the enemy.

However, after such an outcome, Jericho's reputation among the officers and men of the Grand Fleet also fell greatly. While the senior officers who knew the facts were overjoyed by the return of this calm and wise commander, the rank and file sailors did not: Jericho, in their opinion, was the general of the defeated army. There was little more to do than to send them to the guns of the Germans and blow them to pieces. After all, the number of Royal Navy officers and sailors killed in the Battle of the North Sea was more than twice as many as the number of Russian officers and men killed in the Battle of Tsushima! Since his re-appointment, Jericho has been busy cleaning up people's hearts and minds, and using various ways to restore the fighting spirit of the officers and soldiers; In the past few months, he was physically and mentally exhausted, but he seemed to have aged directly for seven or eight years.

"George V, Ajax, Centurion, Ireland, Trafalgar, Bafleur, Monarch, Thor; Giant, Neptune, St. Vincent, Collingwood, Bellerophon, Reckless, Nile, Dreadnought. These 4 battlefleets, a total of 10 super-dreadnoughts and 6 dreadnoughts, are the entire family of our current Grand Fleet. Jericho counted the shadows of the ships in the harbor in front of the window. He whispered to himself full of bitterness. It was in his hands that the British Navy was completely knocked out of the first throne in the world, which had occupied hundreds of years. And in the face of the aggressive German fleet, they even had to give up the base in Scapa Bay in a hurry and fled here to survive!

"This is the situation with the fleet now. John, you don't have to be too pessimistic. We also have three-quarters of the number of dreadnoughts of the main force of the High Seas Fleet, which are even comparable to each other in terms of shell projection, and the overall situation is no worse than when the Germans went to war this year. A voice rang out behind Jericho, pulling back his unbridled thoughts. Jericho turned around and saw a tall, middle-aged man walking behind him; On the neat and tidy general's uniform, a silver star is as scorching as a cold plum in the snow.

Seeing the comer appear, a smile appeared on Jericho's emaciated face: "Ivan, after more than two months, you should also take the fast fleet to command as freely as your own arm, right?" ”

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "I have memorized the detailed conditions of all the members of the fast fleet. Compared to the slow dreadnoughts I commanded, they were indeed more than one level more maneuverable. Now I understand a little bit of David's idea why he led his troops straight into the German battle patrol when he first spotted the enemy. Because this fleet was originally a dragon spear that crossed the oceans and marched wildly. If it weren't for the problems of our battleships themselves, we wouldn't have lost both firefights. ”

Jericho seemed to be extremely familiar with the person in front of him, and when he heard these words, he actually rolled his eyes at the other party, and said lightly: "If even you Evan?" Thomas has become Betty's confidant, so I really chose you to be the commander of this fast fleet for nothing. The reason why I sent you to withdraw this force before was to let you keep the ship stable and not lose any more capital ships. After the Tiger, our next level of battle patrol prestige will not be completed until the following year, and if there are any further losses, the independent Fast Fleet will have to be abolished and all ships will be included in the Grand Fleet. ”

Seeing that although Jericho's face was haggard, there was no trace of decadence and sadness in his expression, the middle-aged man Thomas couldn't help but smile slightly, and a warm current flowed through his heart.

As early as 1893, Thomas met Jellicoe while serving in the Mediterranean Fleet. After 20 years, a deep friendship has been established between the two, and both parties have a deep understanding and unparalleled trust in each other. As Jericho's friend, Thomas not only has a similar personality, but also has the same command style: it is precisely because Thomas is completely different from Betty's seriousness and caution that Jellicoe in another plane will allow him to take in the five Queen Elizabeth-class battleships that are hot in the entire Grand Fleet in a way that almost jumps two times in a row. Jellico's choice was proved to be correct, and if Betty had brought all of these ships under his command, he would most likely have been completely lured by Hipper, who was only half his number, in the Battle of Jutland, and thus fell into the encirclement of the German High Seas Fleet, which had poured out.

In this position, the British fleet's crushing defeat at the Battle of the North Sea made it much earlier for Jericho to reuse his old friend. Although Betty was also released at the Last Trial, the order he gave in the decisive battle of the fleet to make a decisive assault on the German war patrol in order to seek a chance of victory in the close proximity between the two sides was interpreted by the British people, who had gone to the other extreme because of the disillusionment of the perfect god of war in their hearts, as irrational recklessness as a red-eyed gambler. For this reason, Betty could only temporarily leave the military and public eye, just as he deeply admired his former superior, Churchill. In this case, Thomas sat down in the position of commander of the Fast Fleet since Betty's resignation, and survived until the service of the Tiger Cruiser and the return of his old friend Jericho.

"In this operation, although it is still the main force of the Grand Fleet that determines the situation, its success or failure depends entirely on your fast fleet." Jericho put away the rare relaxed look on his face, and replaced it with the usual coldness and majesty, "You must get through a real battle to attract the main force of the German High Seas Fleet, which is still hidden in the fog of the battlefield, to you, and make them believe that my Grand Fleet is behind you." Only in this way will my main fleet be able to calmly attack and deal a fatal blow to the German detachment that lacks vigilance! In the meantime, you'll have to catch the Germans' attention while avoiding becoming bait and being swallowed by the other shark! ”

Thomas looked solemn and said, "I have already made detailed plans for the path and timetable of this sortie. The 3 main battle cruisers in the fast fleet, I will definitely bring back after the battle. With the addition of the Tiger, the Germans would have thought that the main forces of our fleet were pouring out of the nest and were in my immediate vicinity. ”

"The main force of the fleet must be used intensively, and it is the core of the "Battle Regulations" compiled by me after I became the commander of the Grand Fleet. However, this is only a means of action when we have superior forces, and its true essence is to obtain sufficient superior forces in a fateful confrontation! Jericho looked out the window at the blue sky, and whispered to himself and Thomas beside him, "Now that our forces are at a disadvantage, how can we still hold on to the regulations?" Under certain circumstances, a moderate division of troops is an effective way for us to gain absolute numerical superiority again on the core battlefield! ”

Thomas's eyes flashed, and his heart was already full of awe-inspiring reverence.

"The Germans are just too greedy. After having a seaplane as an eye and ear, I still feel that I do not have enough coverage of the Atlantic route of my Britannia; They chose to split the reconnaissance fleet, and the deepest of them went south to the Merenson route, is it true that my Royal Navy is no longer combatable? If I don't cut off these fingers that stretched out to the sea to Qi Gen, how can I have a little comfort for those officers and soldiers who died heroically in the Battle of the North Sea? Speaking of this, the tired look on Jericho's face disappeared, and was replaced by a sharp edge that was almost ready to break through the air, "The German detachment has only 2 battle cruisers, while our main fleet has 16 battleships!" No matter how well they are protected, what can they do? This 8 to 1 numerical advantage, I am not Britannica is winning! (To be continued......)

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