The Allied sail cruiser was so embarrassed that all the British naval officers and sailors on the pier, including those of other countries, were stupid, and almost no one believed the truth. However, when they saw the British officers and sailors who had escaped the disaster stepping off the battleship, they had to believe that it was true. At this time, the entire military port wharf was silent, no one made a loud noise, no one moved, they just stood silently in place, feeling that the end was coming.

Dozens of horses entered the dock, and when the commander of the detachment, Eisenkembell, jumped off the horse and saw the only warship moored on the dock, his head swelled. Since he received the report and came to the dock, he didn't see it with his own eyes, and he thought that his subordinates were lying about the military situation, but the scene in front of him made him stay on the dock.

The British flagship sank, and all the officers and men on board boarded the cruiser. Seeing that the arrogant sailors under his command in the past have lost their spirits, and today they have all become stupid geese, and it seems that they have not yet woken up, and the glory of the British Imperial Navy has solidified at this moment. Especially after listening to the mechanical report of the vice-captain of the Count of Monte Cristo, and the so-called dignity of Douglas Zuihou, Commander Eisenkenbelle's brain was even more blank.

In the headquarters, the adjutant broke the silence and said: "Your Excellency, General, I didn't expect the Northern Expeditionary Army to use torpedo boats and wolf pack tactics to launch an attack at any cost. According to the statistics of naval warfare, the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army reached a speed of 25 knots, especially the torpedoes developed by the Northern Expeditionary Army, all of which used new gunpowder with more powerful explosions. A single torpedo can shatter a wooden gunboat of about 600 tons, which is simply terrifying. ”

Commander Eisenken Belle's mind gradually cleared up, and he realized how much responsibility he had to bear for the loss of 11 ships at once, especially the sinking of the Count of Monte Cristo. At the beginning of the year, the Count of Monte Cristo and three other new warships were launched to join the British Navy, and Queen Victoria personally presided over the ribbon-cutting ceremony and personally ordered to go to the Far East to participate in the war. What a huge blow to the British Imperial Navy was that this powerful new warship had accomplished its historic mission without doing anything.

"Your Excellency General, what shall we do?" Eisenkenbell finally woke up from a dream and immediately realized the potential threat. "Order all warships to cancel patrol and blockade missions, and all assemble at the port of Hainan Island. All gunboats were ordered to patrol day and night to prevent a sneak attack by the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army. After Commander Eisenkenbell gave the order, he sent the clipper to Manila in a depressed mood to report to the General Headquarters. What awaits him next? I already have a conclusion in my mind.

The south is still lush, but the north is already icy and snowy. The capital was shrouded in cold winds, and the air was as cold as war. At the headquarters of the coalition forces, a reddish stove emitted heat and warmed the room. "Ladies and gentlemen, our great ally, the Russian Empire, has adopted harassment tactics in the Mongolian steppe and slowed down the pace of the Northern Expeditionary Army's offensive, congratulations!"

McMahon was in a good mood, and his expression was relaxed: "The harassment of the Russian cavalry has slowed down the pace of the Northern Expeditionary Army's attack, and at the same time allowed us to continue to strengthen and win time in the hinterland of the Central Plains. Don't look at the fact that the Northern Expeditionary Army occupied the west, and the elongation of the battle line also burdened them, which shows that our strategy of abandoning the west is correct. Gentlemen, as the offensive of the Northern Expeditionary Army is contained, the situation on the battlefield is becoming more and more favorable to us. ”

As soon as McMahon's smug words fell, a staff officer broke in and said in a panic: "Your Excellency Marshal, a letter from the Manila Fleet Command, 100,000 urgent!" McMahon took the letter in surprise, and with the sharp change in his face, everyone couldn't help but get nervous. Seeing that McMahon broke out in a cold sweat and sat down on the chair. After the French marshal took the letter and checked it, he was immediately shocked and said: "The torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army actually sank the entire fleet, how could this be that?" ”

Everyone was almost stupid when they heard this, and then they circulated the letters, and the noise was loud. Everyone had to accept this terrible fact, and their eyes couldn't help but look at McMahon with a decadent face. After a long time, McMahon said, "What is impossible, everything is possible." Now you know how terrible our opponents are. They are targeting our weak underbelly, and the next step of our coastal blockade operation will face a severe examination. Ordered Beckenham, commander of the Nanyang blockade fleet, to demand that the First Squadron quickly withdraw from Hainan Island, revoke the dismissal of Eisenken Belle, commander of the First Squadron, and let him return to the mainland for review. The detachment suffered such heavy losses, and he had an unshirkable responsibility. ”

McMahon continued: "Order the commander of the Southern Fleet, Field Marshal Beckenham, to continue to blockade the South China Sea and form an escort fleet to prevent the Northern Expeditionary Army from attacking our transport ships." Marshal Beckenham was ordered to keep all warships 200 nautical miles away from the coastline from the southern part of the Taiwan Strait to the coastal area of the Beibu Gulf, and severely punished if they violated the order without authorization. In addition, the commander of the Eastern Blockade Fleet, General Ben An, was ordered to use gunboats to tightly seal the Taiwan Strait and prevent the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army from entering. ”

"Your Excellency Marshal, the heavy losses suffered by the detachment are the result of our unclear situation and the enemy's use of a sneak attack. Therefore, I suggest that for the sake of the dignity of the British Empire, the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army should be hunted? "The French marshal thinks it is inappropriate." Stupid, the wolf pack tactics used by the Northern Expeditionary Army, which is very clever. Think about it, the Northern Expeditionary Army exchanged 5 torpedoes for one gunboat and 10 for one cruiser, and we could not afford to lose anything, and this was their purpose, to seek the greatest benefit at the lowest cost. ”

"It's a pity to give up Hainan Island!" The French marshal was a little unwilling. McMahon said: "The Qiongzhou Strait is so narrow, the next Northern Expeditionary Army will definitely launch a large-scale attack, I want to ask how to deal with it?" Gentlemen, the Count of Monte Cristo, the most advanced all-steel battleship produced by our British Empire, did not take part in a single naval battle, but was sunk by a torpedo boat. This shows that the torpedoes of the Northern Expeditionary Army have reached a very terrifying level. As a result, our wooden sail warships are no match for them. Gentlemen, the great display of the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army shows that our opponents know us too well, but we know nothing about the Canton Junta. Therefore, the next step must be to increase the intelligence liliang. ”

McMahon continued: "There is nothing to abandon the blockade of the South China Sea and coastal waters, but the Taiwan Strait and even the East China Sea are the core of our blockade. In addition, Japan was urged to make every effort to build small gunboats. When everyone heard McMahon's move, they all breathed a sigh of relief. McMahon then personally drafted a telegram to ask Empress Bixia for his guilt, after all, the fleet had suffered heavy losses, and he himself had an unshirkable responsibility.

Li Hongzhang's official residence, "My lord, I just got the news that 11 warships of the British South Ocean Fleet were sunk by torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army," a subordinate came in to report. "Is the situation accurate?" Li Hongzhang stood up when he heard this. "It was from the coalition command, and it can't be wrong. Among them, the flagship Count of Monte Cristo is the most advanced steel warship in the British Empire, with a displacement of more than 2,000 tons. The ship, the flagship, sank on the way back due to serious injuries. The subordinate affirmed. My lord, I didn't expect the rebels' torpedo boats to be so evil. ”

"My lord, the rebels can produce such terrible torpedo boats, and the foreigners are probably in big trouble." "My lord, if the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army sail to the Yellow Sea, how will we deal with them?" The staff clamored. Li Hongzhang said: "The rebels hunted torpedo boats in large numbers for the purpose of breaking the coastal blockade. The tactics of the rebels are very practical, and once the offshore blockade is broken, the rebels will be strengthened, and the prospects will not be good. ”

In fact, Li Hongzhang is worried about sea transportation, and foreigner ships can be escorted by warships, but what about his own ships? As for the battleships of the Beiyang Fleet, which cannot be put on the table, it is not enough for the other side to stuff their teeth. The rebel torpedo boat even sank the Count of Monte Cristo, how powerful it was. Li Hongzhang saw the majestic majesty of the Count of Monte Cristo in the photo, and he was envious and jealous at that time. Thinking of McMahon's arrogant and boastful style in front of him, Li Hongzhang felt a little relieved in his heart.

"My lord, I heard that the rebel torpedo boats suffered heavy losses and were sunk nearly 30 torpedo boats, what a price!" The subordinates were a little gloating. "What do you know, the torpedo boats of the Northern Expeditionary Army can show their might, the key is that they have reborn the sailors, the soldiers are deadly, and the tactics are clever. In addition, it shows that the rebels' shipbuilding jishu has advanced by leaps and bounds, compared to us is far behind, Deng Zixuan once again impressed me. You may not realize that this is a blow to the weakness of foreigners. I guess the offshore blockade of the foreigners has been aborted. ”

"What my lord means is that the foreigners can't afford to lose, and the rebels don't care about the cost!" A staff member will understand. "Not only can't afford to lose, but foreigners are afraid that they will be frightened. The rebels in this battle should be said to have a brilliant record, which is especially important to improve morale and naval combat experience. On the contrary, foreigners want to talk about tiger color change. Where will the Northern Expeditionary Army strike next? I'm afraid it's an amazing move. Li Hongzhang shook his head with a sigh, whether it was envy or jealousy, maybe both, but for some reason, there was no fear in his heart.

At the Guangzhou headquarters, Deng Zixuan said solemnly: "The bloody battle between Lingding and foreign people, and the foreigners suffered heavy losses. According to the reconnaissance vessels, there are no patrol warships of the coalition forces in the waters of the Wanshan Islands, which shows that our first phase of the coastal attack has achieved its goal. In the second stage, we will launch a large-scale attack on the Haikou military port on Hainan Island. The coalition warships have suffered and will definitely strengthen their vigilance. In that case, we have also changed our tactics to attack coalition transports. ”

"Commander-in-chief, after more than 20 days of recovery, the 1st Torpedo Boat Group has been fully replenished, and some officers and men transferred from the 1st Torpedo Boat Group have joined the 2nd Torpedo Boat Group. As soon as Pei Gejin's words fell, Liu Buzhan, deputy commander of the navy, walked in quickly. "The commander-in-chief, chief of staff, has just received a report that the reconnaissance ship has discovered that all the warships of the Haikou Military Port coalition have suddenly disappeared, and the situation is unknown."

"When did you find out?" "Yesterday dusk!" Deng Zixuan's brain was running quickly and said: "Cunning British, it seems that our second phase of combat is simple. I am sure that the British fled, and immediately ordered the Leizhou Peninsula Guard to immediately cross the Qiongzhou Strait and regain Hainan Island. "Commander-in-chief, it's better to be careful, there are British defensive troops on Hainan Island." Pei Gejin said worriedly.

Deng Zixuan said with a smile: "The coalition fleet has withdrawn, do you think there are still coalition soldiers on Hainan Island?" Hainan Island is ventilated on all sides, and it can land and fight at any point, because it should be said to be an undefended island. If it leaves the cover of the fleet, Hainan Island will not be able to gain a foothold at all. I think it's enough to send 3,000 people to land. Sure enough, as Deng Zixuan judged, the warships of the coalition forces on Hainan Island, including the defensive forces, all withdrew from Hainan Island after receiving the order.