In the four docks that were connected together, four huge warships lay quietly in the dock, the clear water rushing into the dock along the half-open gates, and the waterline continued to rise along the bottom of the ships.

For the first time, the dark paint style used by the fleet was abandoned, and the light gray paint that had just been developed by the Ministry of Science and Technology and was closer to the color of the sea was chosen.

Under the light of a light bulb, the battleship is like a superstar stepping onto the stage, and the light is recognizable. The high bridge is divided into several levels, which makes the division of command more detailed, and the four box-like angular turrets give people a sense of coldness and majesty unique to steel.

Li Mo stood on the deck, stroking the cold and thick barrel, and the corners of his mouth hooked violently.

Although the Jinghai project has not been preliminarily completed until now due to problems such as naval artillery and power, the suffering and expectation have finally turned into fruitful results in front of us.

Fifty-two times the body tube, four triple 152 mm naval guns, although due to material technology and other reasons, can not reach the power of the United States 47 times the same caliber naval guns in later generations, but because Li Mo put forward the requirement of high elevation angle to increase the firing range at the beginning of the design, so it still made its firing range reach 18,000 meters, which is enough to be proud at this time, you must know that the range of the new 203 mm naval guns improved by the Equipment Department from the Italian naval guns is only 15,000 kilometers.

In addition, the improved armor-piercing shell is enough to penetrate the armor of the same caliber depth at a distance of 8,000 meters, which indicates that whether it is a battleship or a heavy cruiser, as long as it does not encounter the front of the turret and the main armor belt, it will almost be penetrated by one shot!

Looking up, on the towering front and rear bridges, there is a fifteen-meter-long optical rangefinder, and under the rangefinder is the new artillery command center, which is connected to the fire control calculation module protected by thick armor under the command tower by a telephone line running through the bridge.

There, a fire control calculation system composed of five hand-cranked mechanical computers will provide accurate firing elements in less than half a minute based on data such as ocean currents, wind speeds, and distances, and then transmit them to each gun position from the telephone line to carry out accurate shelling.

Although it is still very simple, it represents the disappearance of the era of the fleet relying on ordinary means of observation, most relying on gunner experience and luck to strike at the enemy, and the Pacific Fleet will enter the era of long-range accurate strikes because of their appearance!

Under the two huge chimneys that are slightly inclined backwards, there are 12 second-generation oil-fired boilers with increased power, and four steam turbines that also use the layout of partition cabins, which are also much larger than the design requirements put forward by Li Mo before, and the strong power pack can make this warship with a full load displacement of nearly 10,000 tons reach a record 25 knots, and the maximum range has also reached 12 knots and 10,000 nautical miles at the beginning of the design to 12 knots and 10,000 nautical miles at present.

If there is anything that makes Master Li not too proud, it is that these four ships are light patrols after all, and the caliber of the artillery is destined for him to be able to act for a short time when the opponent is not prepared, and when this war is over, all countries will come up with corresponding means to contend with it, and the new 550 mm large torpedoes that were originally installed have to continue to use the old 433 mm torpedoes for the time being because they are still being tested.

However, with the completion and delivery of the four ships, Honolulu's industrial capacity has been greatly improved, even if Li Mo wants to mount the battleship at this moment, it is not impossible.

The sound of whirring water disrupted Li Mo's thoughts, and tens of thousands of tons of seawater were injected into the dock, and as the sea water increased, the four battleships finally floated slowly on their own buoyancy!

There was a round of applause!

The battleship was crowded with people, except for the staff responsible for the final commissioning before launching, every shipwright who had worked hard for more than two years came, and all the efforts and waits gathered in these four docks, and the first quasi-10,000-ton warship built by the Honolulu shipyard was finally about to be launched!

The boatmen took turns approaching, stroking the cold hull with tears in their eyes, as if they were not looking at lifeless steel, but their favorite children, and many of the workers who supported the warship saw the warship for the first time, and they all went to the deck to see where the parts they made were installed.

It's a proud moment!

Although the team that designed it is still foreigners led by McKinson, it is all Chinese, some of whom stayed in the United States in their early years, some of whom came from Europe, and some of whom were even mud legs of the Qing Dynasty a few years ago.

Its cannon is not the largest, its armor is not the thickest, and there are many parts on its body from abroad, but these still cannot erase their credit, and today they have provided four new blood for the protection of the Pacific Fleet that they fought so hard for!

Li Mo walked down to work overtime, came to the high viewing platform, stared at the body of the first ship Jinghai, took a deep breath before turning around, the audience was already crowded with black pressure crowd, at this moment he felt extremely proud, eight years of accumulation, two years of waiting, next to him finally built the first 10,000-ton warship of the Chinese!

"I know."

One of Li Mo's arms was still bandaged, but a low, slow voice lingered in the dock with the loudspeaker.

"At this moment, everyone is waiting, preparing for the loudest cheer!"

"Before, I had prepared the fireworks and firecrackers, and like you, I had waited for this moment countless times in my dreams, hoping to send them to join the fleet!"

"But reality tells me that I can't do that, because our enemies are hiding in the shadows and waiting, their eyes wide, waiting for us to pull the curtain open, waiting for our warships to be exposed in the heat, waiting to find the weaknesses of our warships."

Li Mo breathed hard, his chest rose and fell sharply: "But they miscalculated, I won't give them this chance, our fleet won't give them a chance!" ”

Leaning sideways, he pointed at the warship with his intact right hand: "Maybe one day, I will regret that I didn't let them leave with colorful flags today, and I will regret that I didn't shout for today's launch!" But I will never regret it, because I know that when they are! When these big guys, who have worked hard for everyone for two years, suddenly appear in front of the enemy under the control of our soldiers, and give a head-on blow to those who are unprepared, the whole world will witness the miracle you have created! ”

Lang Lang echoed wandering in the closed dock, and with his words, many people clenched their fists, yes, he has created a miracle, a miracle that can be recorded in the history of the Chinese!

"I promise everyone, next time! When we build a new ship, I will make up for everyone's regrets! Li Mo's tone rose sharply: "Now, let's send them off, and when they make a contribution, I will hold a celebration party for everyone here!" ”

Li Mo put his legs together, his body was as tall as a javelin, he turned his body solemnly, looked at the new ship, his right hand slowly put together, and raised it diagonally to the height of his eyebrows.

Beside him, Chen Ping and others also cooperated, and the soldiers who came to accept the warship also responded, saluted the new ship, and slowly everyone straightened up, raised their right hands, and saw off the four beloved warships with military salutes.

Although many people's posture is not standard and their movements are not neat, everyone tries to keep their waists straight like pine facing the cold wind.

The canvas hanging from the four massive arched doors slowly fell, and for the first time in two years the doors of the four closed docks were opened, and even a cloud of dust was raised as the curtain fell.

It was already late at night outside, and the whole of Honolulu had entered the dream except for the shipyard, but everyone in the dock knew that in the darkness in the distance, the soldiers had already laid a net, blocking all the roads and commanding heights where the dock could be viewed, and all the street lights were also extinguished at the same time, and the entire Honolulu except the shipyard was plunged into darkness.

The steel slid over the sleepers at the bottom of the dock, making a dull squeak, and as the dock was filled with water, it formed a plane with the sea outside, and the four Jinghai ships, with the help of tugboats, began to sail towards the sea little by little.

The steel cable straightened little by little, and the huge hull began to be dragged out of the dock little by little, during which the continuous sound of the hull and the equipment around the dock creaking and rubbing made McKinson and the others clench their fists, and their foreheads and backs were covered with beads of sweat.

In order to maximize concealment and secrecy, the Honolulu shipyard innovatively adopted the full dock construction mode, and completed all the outfitting work before the dock was launched, instead of outfitting the equipment after launching as in Europe.

That is to say, these four 10,000-ton light cruisers already have a certain combat capability at this time, although the key parts of the hull have been reinforced and reinforced, but when the two tugboats are towed out of the dock, friction and impact are inevitable, this impact and friction seem to be slight, but no one dares to guarantee that it will not cause damage to the hull and equipment, and the four ships are all completely new design, tall and heavy superstructure, whether there will be a roll of the warship, no one dares to guarantee.

So for this reason, they also specially designed a new tugboat, and hired the oldest sea wolf to pilot, in order to control the slowest entry speed and ensure the stability of the dock.

Everyone's hearts hung in their throats, and as the steel cables straightened little by little, as the bows of the four ships slowly poked out of the dock, people's palms were already full of beads of sweat.

Thankfully, the old sea wolves, who were at the helm of the eight tugboats, lived up to everyone's wishes, and as the sterns of the four ships poked out of the dock at the same time, everyone used them all to the dockside.

Soon, the four ships crossed the hull, and the tugboat also untied the steel cable, and little by little pushed the battleship that had not started its own power to the dock, and at this moment everyone hoped to board the ship as soon as possible to check the damage.

Probably found out the unusual anxiety of the engineers, the air froze all at once, no one left, no one made a noise, everyone was waiting for the results, and when the four warships were docked, the engineers boarded the ship first, and the soldiers who received it also rushed to the suspension ladder, these sailors who followed the construction of the warship for almost half a year are undoubtedly the best helpers of the engineers.

As time passed little by little, an anxious atmosphere gradually arose in the dock, and when everyone's patience was about to be exhausted, the captain of the lead ship, Le Fei, with Jiang Dao, the captain of the Swordfish who sank in the last naval battle to save his comrades, ordered Ning Xiaochuan, the captain of the Flying Fish, who took the initiative to attack and rescue Beiyang Zhenyuan, and Yan Feng, the captain of the Mermaid who performed well, and walked in front of Li Mo at the same time.

"Report, the Jinghai (Dinghai, Pinghai, Ninghai) ships are ready and ready to set off at any time." The four young captains raised their right arms in unison and saluted, their heads held high and their voices pulled at the top of their voices, as if no one else could hear them.

Hearing such a loud voice, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and the loudest and warmest applause finally broke out in the dock.

"Go and prepare." Chen Ping looked at his watch and swept over the four people with a smile: "Set off in two hours!" ”

As the morning sun rose over the horizon, radiating a thousand golden rays of light, four Jinghai-class light cruisers, two destroyers and two oil and water supply vessels, and two fleets loaded with test equipment and large freighters, set sail for the final months of testing in Guam, from where they set sail for battle.

A month later, the Ryukyu shipyard's refitted four Russian-made heavy cruisers, named Vladivostok-class, will also travel to Guam to fight them there.

Watching the battleship disappear little by little at the end of the waterway, the boatmen who had followed the night gradually dispersed, but everyone knew that this night would be forever engraved in their hearts.

As far as Chen Ping's generals of the Pacific Army are concerned, the smooth launch of the Jinghai-class indicates that the technical preparations of the Pacific Army have been basically completed, and the rest depends on whether the several operations launched at the same time are coordinated! ――

"Jack, you damn it, where's my coffee!"

Rycker was wearing a nightgown, standing on the balcony with worried eyes and yelling downstairs, he has been too upset lately, not to mention the situation in the Far East where Li Mo was stabbed and disputes have arisen again, just the task of calling him from China to find out what is being built in the four docks of the Honolulu ship has kept him awake at night.

That damn Li Mo, who defeated the Russians and gained the three northeastern provinces without stopping, didn't he just scratch a little skin? As for sending warships to block people's doorsteps? Frightened, Ben didn't even dare to return to China with four capital ships, couldn't he stop for a while!

On April 30, it has become a time when everyone is counting silently with their fingers, saying that he has been forced to a dead end because of this failed assassination operation.

Yesterday, another telegram came from China, asking him to make efforts to persuade Li Mo to temporarily open the Uraga waterway and let the four capital ships that are being corrected at the San Diego base in the United States return home.

You must know that if you come forward, it will be equivalent to tearing your face with Li Mo and publicly supporting Yueben!

Lycker cursed, but if he didn't do it, he couldn't do it, the country had already made a decision, it was necessary to ensure that all the warships were delivered back to China before 30 April, and let them have a big fight with the Pacific Fleet, so as to weaken the Pacific Army, which had grown to a very dangerous level, and continue to let Britain implement the long-standing continental balance policy!

In order to weaken the Pacific Army, this time Britain almost went all out, and even almost took two of the latest and strongest battleships for free, which are rare even in China!

But the fact that this move and the decision to support the book have been met with full opposition from the House of Lords suggests that Prime Minister Salisbury is facing a huge challenge from the conservative forces as he attempts to change the empire's decades-long policy of isolation on the mainland.

Lyckel had no say in whether to change the Empire's decades-long policy of continental isolationism, and he could only watch the game between Parliament and the Prime Minister, but from the bottom of his heart, he was a staunch reformer, because with the rise of countries such as Honolulu and the United States, if the British Empire did not actively participate in continental affairs, there would be more similar things in the Far East!

As a diplomat at the center of this vortex of change, he could appreciate the vagaries of the situation better than the nobles in the domestic parliament, just as no one would have imagined that Honolulu would suddenly rise to a powerful young master four years ago, and no one would have imagined that the competition between the Qing Kingdom and the Sakami would insert a third party.

The latest intelligence, the Americans are building new battleships again, although their technology is not yet up to the British, but their strong economic strength is frightening, they covet the Caribbean and even the whole of South America Everyone understands that the situation that was previously unable to participate in this feast because of lack of strength is slowly changing, with the launch of new warships, the ambitions of the Americans have begun to increase, and recently some people in their country have even begun to clamore, to occupy the turbulent Cuba.

In line with this clamour, the U.S. Congress has passed the Army Expansion Act!

And Honolulu, which is in charge of himself?!

Well, everyone must admit that this place is a mess of porridge, Honolulu, Yueben, Russia and the Qing Kingdom are almost the favorite table of mahjong for the Chinese!

As soon as he thought of this, Laker had a dry mouth, if it was extremely difficult to persuade Li Mo to open up the Uraga waterway, then it would have become the biggest concern to find out what type of warships were being built at the Honolulu shipyard!

What kind of medicine did these damn yellow-skinned monkeys take? What kind of warship, is it worth adopting such strict blockade regulations? The British Empire's construction of new battleships is not so strict!

Looking in the direction of the shipyard, Lecker frowned, he had spent countless times over the years, thought of many ways, but never received a positive answer, and also put in two British businessmen and several other informants for this purpose!

Now Lykel only knew that it was a kind of cruiser built inside, but he didn't know whether it was a first-class cruiser or a second-class cruiser similar to the previous 4,000-ton experimental ship type that was almost nowhere to be seen! Even the information on the size of the tonnage is a mess, the smallest says 3,000 tons, and the largest says 30,000 tons!

30,000 tons! Will it sink immediately when it hits the surface of the sea? You know, the British Empire can't afford to build such a huge warship now, right?

Lecker licked his tongue and was about to shout twice more to urge his clumsy attendant when he saw the balcony door suddenly slam open, and Jack was already standing in front of him with a panicked face.

"Damn Jack, don't you know what etiquette is!" Lykel wrapped his dressing gown tightly and gritted his teeth.

"For God's sake, Lord Rykel, go and see, the shipyard ......." Jack danced and panted. But before he finished speaking, Lecker, who was thinking about how to find out the news of the shipyard again, had already grabbed him: "What's wrong with the shipyard?" ”

"They have lifted the dockyard closure, but ......." Jack exclaimed excitedly, "There's nothing in there!" ”

"What!" Lecker's eyes widened, closed for two years, the machine roared for two years, and it turned out nothing? How is this possible?!

Half an hour later, when Lecker rushed to the dock on the other side of the shipyard with a in his eyes, the whole person froze, and sure enough, as Jack said, the four huge docks had been removed from the curtain, and they were ...... inside, empty!

It's a pity that he didn't know that not far behind him, several seemingly ordinary dock workers were looking at his back, with a sinister smile on their faces!

(To be continued)