Nelson chased his fleet all the way across the Delaware Bay before slowing down.

Then the results of the normal battle were calculated, and the enemy was wounded a total of seven cruisers and three cruisers were directly sunk.

Based on the cruiser fleet-level encounter, this result can be considered very good.

But now Nelson's mood is not better.

Nelson left the command envoy and came to the deck of the battleship where he was, looked at the slowly sinking warship in the distance with a telescope, looked at the lifeboat floating on the sea, and muttered in a low and slow tone:

"Those who were supposed to be our own ships, those who were supposed to be our sailors, we were once companions who fought together, we weren't supposed to fight......"

Wellesley listened to Nelson's whispered mutter, as if to try to convince him:

"It's not our fault, it's Napoleon and Adams who would have been left to fight if it weren't for Adams' coup d'état, the United States would have built ......"

Nelson's subconscious rhetorical question:

But why did Adams stage the coup? After he staged a coup d'état, he became a duke, and even if he didn't carry out a coup d'état, he would have a good chance of becoming a ...... of His Excellency the Duke."

Wellesley smiled wryly and said:

"Because politicians are stupid."

British Foreign Secretary Grenville also came out of the cabin, heard the conversation between the two, straightened his bow tie and said:

"Because the American Legislature did not consider the interests of the non-majority Northerners, Southerners thought they could bring Northerners to their knees by force and power, and Northerners were not prepared to submit.

"America should not be a country in the first place, it should be divided into at least two parts, the north and the south, or even three parts."

After saying these two sentences, Grenville looked at Nelson:

"Your Excellency Nelson, please send me directly to New York now, we have just won a big battle, which shows that the northerners can't blockade the south, now is a good time to negotiate."

Nelson had a plan in mind:

"Then we'll split up."

Nelson commanded the fleet to be reorganized into two parts, one to send Wellesley and the generals to Richmond, and the other to Grenville to New York.

Both sides rescued the soldiers who escaped from the sunken ship, after all, most of them were their former companions.

And from the mouths of these soldiers, Nelson and Wellesley got some not-so-good news.

The capital ships of the Northern Fleet did not go south at all, and remained stationed near New York Harbor, so when the cruisers of the Northern Fleet fled, they did not enter the Chesapeake Bay, but ran directly north.

At the same time, the lands to the north and west of Richmond had been completely lost, and Richmond itself was under siege.

At the same time, Napoleon personally led the team, bypassing Richmond and attacking Petersburg, south of Richmond.

Petersburg was the southern gateway to Richmond, and once Petersburg was lost, Richmond was completely dumpling-wrapped.

By that time, the whole of Virginia was gone.

Fortunately, Nelson's naval battle directly broke the naval blockade in the north, giving Richmond and Petersburg the opportunity to communicate with the outside world by sea.

After receiving these news, Nelson did not go to the rescue of the drowning people slowly, and left some life-saving equipment for them to find a way to go ashore by themselves, anyway, the battlefield was not far from the coast.

Immediately returning home with all his might, Wellesley and the Army officers were sent into the Chesapeake Bay.

After arriving in Norfolk, let the main fleet take turns cruising at the entrance to the bay, taking turns trimming.

Wellesley and the Army officers changed boats and sailed up the James River to Richmond and Petersburg.

As a result, before they reached the forked river leading to the two cities, they encountered a rout ship drifting downstream.

I asked the rout to inquire about the situation, but I only got some messy news, and I only knew that the battle was lost ahead.

Soon after, they met a Virginia militia colonel, William Henry Harrison, son of the old Virginia governor Benjamin Harrison.

It was only through Harrison that he received relatively accurate information confirming that Petersburg had fallen and that Napoleon had led his troops into the city.

After the loss of Petersburg, it was difficult to hold on to Richmond, which was really besieged, and after Richmond was gone, the whole of Virginia was almost gone.

Virginia was the first colony in British North America, and Richmond was the de facto nucleus of the American South.

Once Richmond is lost, once Virginia is lost, it will be a huge blow to the morale of the entire southern United States.

At the same time, the other side also conveyed even worse news that Kentucky and Tennessee in the west had all surrendered.

In other words, all the land west of the Appalachian Mountains has been lost.

Three of the eight southern states are gone.

The remaining five states, North Carolina, South Carolina, Zorgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, are all impact plains, and they are all undefendable terrain.

And these areas are rich in rainfall, and all five states have quite wide rivers, all of which flow from the inside out.

Now that Napoleon's forces occupy the upper reaches, they can penetrate all five states in turn as long as they let their troops go downstream.

Wellesley listened to the introduction and asked rhetorically with a face full of disbelief:

"How can it be so fast? How can it be so fast? It's only been a little over a month since the coup d'état in New York! ”

Harrison said with some trepidation:

"According to the last message from the west, all of them were cyclists except for a few cars.

"A few can travel 70 or 80 kilometers a day, and maybe even more than 100 kilometers.

"We in America, except for the Appalachian Mountains in the middle, are on both sides of the Great Plains.

"Although there are many rivers, the inland rivers are relatively shallow.

"We all know that the Ohio River is a mile wide and a foot deep, and you can cross it with a little equipment.

"Their bike troops, a week at most, can run through Tennessee and Kentucky.

"And the French have apparently been prepared for a long time, have long been ready to raid us.

"And we weren't prepared, and when the attack started, we didn't build a defensive line at all.

"And Tennessee and Kentucky, there may have been French people in charge."

Wellesley was visibly stunned:

"All cyclists? Equivalent to mounted infantry? ”

Harrison said right away:

"Yes, in the French part of Canada to the north, there are a lot of bicycle factories and a large number of bicycles.

"This time they organized at least 100,000 bicycle troops, and the local militia was surrounded without reacting!"

Wellesley understood the situation in the west a little, and then continued to ask:

"So what's going on in Petersburg? How did you lose it? ”

Harrison shuddered when he heard this:

"They were also cavalry infantry raids, and the constant attacks prevented us from building enough fortifications.

"Then gradually concentrated a large number of artillery and curved smoothbore guns, and continued to bombard cities and barracks.

"The troops and the citizens simply couldn't hold out, so some people surrendered.

"The soldiers who were unwilling to surrender, we ran downstream.

"We should go to Norfolk and the Isle of Wight, where we will build a defensive line right now......"

Wellesley pondered for a few seconds, shook his head with a solemn expression, and said:

"Can't be returned! America has reached its most dangerous time!

"We have to guard the entrances and exits of Norfolk Harbor and Chesapeake Bay.

"You routs are retreating downstream, and the cavalry infantry from the north must be in pursuit.

"The slower the water goes downstream, the slower your speed becomes.

"If you all retreat to Norfolk in one go, the other side will follow all the way to Norfolk.

"When you get to Norfolk, you don't have time to organize your defenses.

"Someone must gather the rout in the middle of the way, delay the enemy's attack, and buy time for Norfolk to organize a defensive line."

Harrison was stunned for a moment, then quickly understood what Wellesley meant, and understood the logic.

After a brief hesitation, Harrison struggled to stand up straight:

"I'd love to stay here! Excellency! ”

Wells nodded forcefully and said solemnly:

"I now appoint Colonel William Henry Harrison as Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia Militia, in the capacity of Arthur Wellesley, Commander of the United Kingdom and the United States Army.

"To take charge and command all the troops that have retreated from northern and western Virginia.

"Permit you to use any means, by any means, to defend against the attacks of the rebels of Canada and North America, and to buy time to organize a defensive line in the Norfolk, Isle of Wight, and Newport News areas."

Wellesley left behind a group of officers and followed Harrison to gather the rout on the James River and organize the sluggish troops.

Wellesley himself turned around with most of the officers and returned to Norfolk as fast as he could.

At the same time, on the way, radio equipment was used to inform the ports below, and immediately entered a combat state, and immediately began to strengthen the defensive line.

Throughout the way back, Wellesley was constantly sending telegrams, giving orders, and assigning tasks.

At the same time, he also found time to make a draft, and when the fleet returned to Norfolk, Wellesley would send a telegram to the mainland as soon as he came ashore.

Explain the latest situation in the United States to Prime Minister William Pitt and ask the other party to ask for help from Daming immediately.

"The troops that we and the French are organizing can't catch up with the battlefield in North Yinzhou.

"Napoleon was able to conquer the American South in two months, or even one.

"If we want to keep the United States, we must rely on the power of the Ming Dynasty now.

"Now in the entire Northern Yinzhou Continent, the only thing we can rely on and reach the battlefield immediately is the troops of the Ming Dynasty.

"According to previous news, Daming has been increasing troops to Texas, Florida and other places.

"It is conservatively estimated that there are at least 100,000 main forces in the two places, all of which are elites who have participated in world wars.

"They're right around the battlefield and can enter the battlefield right away, as long as we pay a sufficient price.

"Between losing the whole of the United States, and losing part of it, I propose to choose the latter."

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