The wind in April, blowing on the body still makes people feel cold, busy for a winter Port Arthur still seems to have no signs of stopping, standing on the tall lampposts throughout the port area, rows of high-power light bulbs make the night harbor transparent and bright, tens of thousands of workers, shouting slogans, pushing the cart back and forth busy and unusual.

Ito Hirobumi looked up at the dazzling light bulb, his head was slightly dizzy, electric lights were not a rare thing in various countries, but it was the first time he had seen such a scene in the Far East.

Although he had already heard that Li Mo was repairing Port Arthur, he didn't know until the ship entered the harbor that this was a restoration, and it was a thorough reconstruction.

Six deep-water docks stretched out of the harbor, each of which, according to his eye, could accommodate two large battleships.

The size of the whole harbor was twice as large as in the previous Beiyang period, the waterway was wider, the docks were increased, and the warehouses and chimneys on the shore were also greatly increased.

This best ice-free port in the Far East used to be so close to the Empire, but standing in the harbor at this moment, it still felt very far away for him. It's sad to see it but not reach it.

As the best diplomat in Saimoto, he knew very well what it would mean to him once the construction of this seaport was completed, and more importantly, the vigor of this seaport was more terrifying than the twilight in the blockaded Tokyo Bay.

One year! Li Mo must not be given another year!

He came here today because the base camp had decided that Li Mo could not be allowed to humiliate the Great Empire again, so he had to declare war on the other party at the same time as the other party.

Originally, all this could have been done by telegraphing the ambassador in Yanjing. However, 10 days ago, the Pacific Fleet once again announced that it would prohibit any foreign ships from approaching the island, and for this reason they also decisively sank several foreign freighters that tried to get close, which made the ships that were already afraid to approach because of the imminent outbreak of war even more afraid to enter the island.

At the same time, they also cut off all submarine telephone lines to the outside world, and it can be said that the island of Shomoto has become an isolated island at this time, and even the situation in North Korea is unknown.

But the last telegram from abroad made everyone in the base camp sit on pins and needles, and Honolulu and Spain declared war? For this, the American fleet also left in a hurry!

Why did Li Mo go to war with Spain? Will this change bring about new changes in the Far East? Will it slow down the pace of the Pacific Army's declaration of war on Yue? Will the returning fleet led by Gonbei Yamamoto be able to return on time?

Everything was like a fog, and the base camp, which was no longer able to grasp the external situation, decided to send him to Lushun and brought a declaration of war to prepare.

Picked up by several new cars, Ito and his entourage soon arrived at Honolulu's temporary government office in Lushun, and when the door opened, he glanced at his pocket watch.

The look of surprise and the lack of hospitality did not surprise Ito, and after sitting in the conference room for two hours, he finally waited for the first and last senior Honolulu official he had ever seen.

"Your Excellency Ito, you are very welcome to Lushun, but it is a great pity that I have to convey to you the order of the Duke." Tang Shaoyi held his head high, looked at the famous diplomat in front of him, and handed over the declaration of war.

Hirobumi Ito, who had already been prepared, was not surprised, and did not reach out to receive the declaration of war, but handed over the same document.

"Hirobumi Ito, on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor Daimoto, officially declares war on your country."

Tang Shaoyi smiled and exchanged a declaration of war with Ito Hirobumi, who had a stern expression, before he smiled: "Your Excellency Ito, from this moment on, you will be the most unpopular person in Honolulu, for your safety, I hope you can leave as soon as possible." ”

"Thanks for the reminder, but I also want to remind you that you will also not be included among the least popular people in the Great Empire!" After Ito finished speaking, he was ready to go out. Seeing that he was about to walk out of the conference room, Tang Shaoyi suddenly laughed: "Your Excellency Ito, there is something I think you should know. ”

"Three days ago, our fleet had already accepted the surrender of the Governor of Luzon in the Philippines, and at present, Luzon has been occupied by us!"

The news made Ito Hirobumi's emaciated body shake violently and almost fall. And the entourage behind him widened their eyes in disbelief, they were all elites of Yuben, and they all knew what it meant for Luzon to be occupied!

Ito Hirobumi stretched out his hand to hold the door frame, closed his eyes and gasped hard, the occupation of Luzon means that the returned fleet will be intercepted layer by layer, and it also means that the entire line of foreign shipping will be interrupted, and it has truly become an island!

Malacca!

Homecoming fleet!

Before Ito fainted, only these two thoughts remained in his mind.

An hour later, the Torinomaru, which had just sent Ito Hirobumi off and had been allowed to enter and exit, slowly left Port Arthur four hours after its arrival and disappeared into the deep darkness of the night.

However, after receiving the news that Luzon was occupied by the Pacific Army, Ito Hirobumi was not the only one who was excited, and Yamamoto Gonbei, who led the fleet of the Saimoto return to Japan, almost fell headlong from the deck of the flagship Mikasa, which had just docked.

This steel monster, which was originally ordered by the Pacific Fleet and was hailed by the British press as the most powerful battleship ever built by the British press, with a displacement of 16,000 tons, two twin 305-mm primary guns and four twin 203-mm secondary guns, did not give him any confidence at all.

Turning around, there was a huge fleet enough to make anyone tremble, six battleships, four large armored cruisers, four second-class protection cruisers, and twelve torpedo ships. In addition to these, there are four capital ships and two second-class protection cruisers in China, and as long as they can successfully return to China, the navy will surpass the Pacific Fleet overnight and become the world's fourth navy!

But the question is, what if you can lead the fleet back intact?

He had no idea that the situation in the South Seas, which had been intact before departure, would change abruptly in less than a month, and Luzon would become occupied by the Pacific Army, which would make it very dangerous to cross the Strait of Malacca.

Standing in front of the chart, Gonbei Yamamoto felt dizzy as he looked at the narrow, end-strewn Strait of Malacca, which was filled with reefs and trails and squeezed into a narrow waterway.

Compared to the dead Togo Heihachiro and other admirals, he was best at organization and layout, and he was not very good at charging into battle, but after the destruction of the combined fleet and the tragedy of Etajima led to the total destruction of the naval elite, he also had to take up this heavy responsibility.

Now there are two ways in front of him, one is to set off immediately after refueling coal, use the thick armor of the battleship to open the way, and force the passage through the waterway that may have been blocked, as long as the battleship can withstand the enemy's artillery fire, then the subsequent torpedo ships and secondary protection cruisers can rely on the speed advantage to break up the opponent's formation.

But in doing so, the most valuable battleship could be in danger of being sunk, and if the huge battleship was blocked in the waterway, it would be a disaster for the entire fleet!

The road is an immediate detour, along the sea off Sumatra, from the Indian Ocean into the island-dense southwest Pacific, and then along Guinea into the Coral Sea, passing through the Marshall Islands to the north, borrowing the islands scattered throughout the voyage, the fleet can completely escape the enemy's tracking, and even if there is tracking, the opponent will be delayed due to communication problems.

The benefits of this path are obvious, but the problem is that the fleet is not able to maneuver over such long distances, especially with twelve torpedo ships with a maximum of just over 400 tons, and the endurance is simply not up to the requirements.

In addition to these difficulties, there was also a temptation that made him the most tricky, and it was also his heartbeat, and even he couldn't refuse, that is, Li Mo himself was in Luzon!

If it is possible to quickly pass through the Strait of Malacca and lead the fleet straight to Manila, then!

The more Yamamoto thought about it, the more dry his mouth became, but when he turned his head to see the tired sailors crowded the deck, he let out a long sigh.

Due to the heavy losses of the navy's personnel and the fact that two battleships were suddenly acquired at the last moment, the sailors trained in the past two years could not meet the needs of such a large fleet, and in the end he and the base camp had to make a decision to have the sailors sent from China to receive the battleships, and the sailors on the remaining cruisers and torpedo ships were now recruited from the native shipwrights and expatriates living in various European countries.

These sailors, who have just undergone two months of training and have only learned to fly complex warships, which the British instructors said can only conduct low-intensity naval battles, have barely managed to drive warships here, and the continuous sea exercises and training have already exhausted them, and if they are forced to assault the Strait of Malacca at this time, I am afraid that they will immediately be beaten by the old and spicy Pacific Fleet!

Do you want to take the risk?

Just as Gonbei Yamamoto hesitated, a piece of news finally got the upper hand in his mind about the idea of keeping the ship back home.

On May 1, the first day after Honolulu and Ben declared war again, six capital ships of the Pacific Fleet appeared at the end of the Strait of Malacca, blocked the entire waterway in the name of encircling and suppressing pirates, and announced that any ships passing through here must be inspected!

For a time, the strait was crowded with freighters passing slowly from south to north, and Britain and France realized that it was not in the interests of the two countries to intervene in the battlefield war at this time after Luzon was suddenly forcibly occupied, so in this case, not to mention the rapid passage of battleships, even small torpedo ships may be difficult to drill through!

On 3 May, after coaling and refurbishment, Gonbei Yamamoto negotiated with the British to temporarily lease three large coal carriers, and then quietly left Port Blair at night and disappeared into the vast sea.

In the early morning of the next day, the Pacific Fleet's light special reconnaissance ship Tingfeng discovered the fleet overseas in Banda Aceh, Sumatra, which also meant that the fleet officially took over the task of tracking the fleet from the Ministry of Intelligence.

Three minutes later, the first telegram was sent, which gave a detailed description of the type and quantity of the fleet, and a few other words on the telegram, which relieved the chief of the general staff.

"This fleet, enter the Indian Ocean!"

(To be continued)