"Set the depth of three meters, shoot to the right to the maximum, and connect to the compressed air pipeline."

Under the supervision of the "teacher", the cadets and soldiers loaded three 450mm torpedoes into the launch tubes through slides.

These 450mm torpedoes, built at the turn of the century, were approaching forty years old, and they arrived in Oslo before the Norwegian-Swedish alliance was dissolved. After the separation of Norway and Switzerland, they have been quietly staying in the warehouses of various coastal defense units, and are only regularly moved out for maintenance.

After the loading was completed, everyone carefully checked the launch mechanism, and practiced the aiming-launching-loading process as carefully as before.

The young students seemed quite excited, and they were ready to fight the invading enemy; But the other soldiers were not, and everyone's expressions were solemn.

At 1:47 a.m., the soft moonlight seemed to drape the hills of Kahomen Island with a cold white veil.

In order to get the best view to command, the commander of Fort Oscar, Colonel Paul, personally went out on his own. He came to the highest point of the island, an overgrown hill where the shore guard unit had set up an observation post.

In the bitter cold of more than ten degrees below zero, the exhaled water vapor quickly condensed into frost, and the colonel and several subordinates waited quietly in the observation post that leaked on all sides.

A few minutes later, several dark shadows appeared in the telescope's field of view; After another ten seconds, these dark shadows were revealed by the searchlight.

"Three small boats ahead, then destroyers and cruisers, Your Excellency, do we need warning shots?"

"The aggression that undermined neutrality has been confirmed, and these Germans know exactly what they are doing, do they need to be warned?"

With that, Colonel Paul bowed down and picked up the telephone microphone and ordered: "Target, the cruiser of the invaders, open fire when ready, confirm the order to attack." ”

With his order, the Norwegian artillerymen at the various batteries quickly got busy, adjusting the firing elements for the 150mm howitzer and 280mm howitzer.

After about half a minute, everything was ready.

Rear Admiral Broad, who was standing on the bridge, suddenly saw a flash of fire in the distance, and he realized almost instantly that a crisis was coming.

A few seconds later, before the sound of the cannon could be heard, the first 280mm high-explosive shell hit the port side of the Peak!

"Boom!"

All the sailors felt what the ground was shaking, several people were knocked down on the bridge, and the sound of the explosion left only the buzzing in the ears of many people.

However, even though the large caliber and charge of 280mm are very scary, the high-explosive shell cannot penetrate the 80mm-thick main armor belt of the Pique, and at best it only leaves some traces and marks.

None of the other 280mm shells nor the three 150mm shells hit, and all of them were close and far misses, setting off the icy sea water to give the Peake a bath.

"Fight back, destroy them!"

The gunners were ordered to return fire immediately, but a number of searchlights from the east and west shores and on Kahomen Island interfered with the rangefinder's work.

The officers in charge of commanding the main guns were unable to identify the target at first, but they were unable to complete the effective ranging due to the strong light.

"Comrade Commander, we should speed through here!" Someone exclaimed.

"No, a few hours have passed, there is a possibility of mines ahead, and we cannot risk it." Broad, who was calm, instead ordered to start reversing.

At this time, the destroyer Zwolle, which was located in the left rear of the Pique, was hit by a 150mm high-explosive shell, and the sound of explosions and debris falling into the sea was heard one after another.

The ammunition of the 20mm anti-aircraft gun that exploded crackled like firecrackers, and the flames soared into the sky, which was very terrifying.

It was at this time, in that concealed torpedo pad, that many eager eyes were fixed on Lieutenant Colonel Toller.

He took a deep breath, looked up at his watch, and ordered, "Launch!" ”

"Poof! Burst! Burst! ”

Three torpedoes were pushed out of the launch tube by compressed air one after another, and they fell into the sea from a height of several meters, and a crisp and pleasant plopping sound was heard.

Despite their age, the torpedoes, which were almost grandfathers, worked fine, and as the engines and gyroscopes began to work, three faint tracks appeared on the surface of the fjord.

The Peake's gunners went into battle one after another, but none of them were able to complete the range, and Broad had no choice but to let the ship continue to retreat.

The wounded destroyer Zwolle was brave and kept moving, while turning slightly, thus opening fire on the enemy with all his might.

The Zwolle was also difficult to distance due to the searchlight, but she was not as hateful as the Pique, so only a few pillars of light were shining on her.

The sailors quickly and decisively seized the gap as quickly as possible to complete the ranging work of the east bank battery.

Soon, the 128mm naval guns let out a roar, and one shell after another smashed into the old antique shore defense guns.

The Zwolle fired about three rounds of untidy fire, and because of the haste and confusion, fifteen rounds in a row failed to hit the target.

However, only one shell hit the key mission - a direct hit on the battery command post, in which more than half of the captain, commander and below ten people were killed or wounded.

But the Zwolle's good fortune came to an end, as three 450mm torpedoes from the Kahomen Island shore torpedo launch pad approached her.

The fierce battle in the night was so tense that no one noticed the faint track on the sea.

Two torpedoes passed in front of the destroyer towards the east coast, but the third hit the bow of the Zwolle.

"Knock !!"

The warhead loaded with 250-pound TNT was successfully detonated, and the entire ship's officers and men felt a huge impact, and almost all the sailors in the front section were knocked to the ground.

The left side of the Zwolle's bow was torn open with a huge opening, the steel plates twisted and deformed, and the sea rushed in.

Thankfully, the 450mm light torpedo is relatively less powerful, and if it were replaced by a standard 533mm torpedo, she would probably be "decapitated".

The badly damaged Zwolle waved the "Out of the Battle" banner and telegraph, and the crew of the damage crew did their best to control the scene with knee-high water.

The bone-chilling ice water at almost zero degrees Celsius made them almost lose the sensation of their legs in just a few minutes.

However, the captain of the ship, Major Augusta, suddenly changed his mind.

He believes that the current situation is likely to stalemate for too long, and that it is necessary to do everything in its power to break the stalemate as quickly as possible - it seems like a good idea to have the land forces on board the ship land quickly.

Augusta lowered his head, calmly analyzed and deduced his idea, and then resolutely ordered: "Left rudder, adjust the course to 345, and go at full speed!" Tell Major Frieze to get his men on deck and ready! ”

The first mate was surprised: "But that's the impact course!" ”

"Grab the beach! These Norwegians can't be allowed to block the fleet! ”

Despite the severe damage to the bow, the destroyer's power system was unharmed.

Her two steam turbines burst out with 70,000 horsepower, sending the ship faster and faster toward Kahomen Island.

【Kahomen Island & Oscar Castle】

On the island, the Norwegian officers and soldiers on the batteries and torpedo emplacements were stunned, they could not believe their eyes.

The Zwolle swooped straight out of the night like a fearless knight!

In the face of the firepower, she successfully rushed to the east coast beach of Kahomen Island after receiving 2 150mm shells and 13 57mm shells.

The 1st and 2nd companies of the 2nd Battalion of the 76th Mountain Regiment were on board, and when the battleship ran aground, it made a metallic deformation creak, and before it could be stopped, the sailors threw the rope net down.

Led by the battalion commander, Major Frieze, the army soldiers swarmed up, climbed over the railing, and descended to the shore with rope nets.

The Zwolle used the only remaining working naval gun in the front to fire at the Norwegian bunker not far away, and the bunker, which had just been in power for more than ten seconds, was blown to a dumb fire.

The sparse minefields initially cost the German soldiers, but they quickly used explosives to open up a path.

Under the cover of machine gun and mortar fire, the infantrymen armed with MP38 submachine guns and Kar98k rifles easily broke through the outer defensive line.

Viewed from top to bottom, Oskarsburg is horseshoe-shaped, but its stone walls are not much of a hindrance today.

"Smoke, deploy!"

"Let's go! Walk! Walk! ”

The Germans fired smoke bombs in front to cover their own side, and then launched a very strong frontal assault, supplemented by a detour on the left and right flanks.

The continuous rain of 80mm mortar shells blew up the Norwegian soldiers, and the dense fire weighed them down.

An infantry squad on the right climbed the city wall with great cleverness - by stacking arhats.

Several of the Norwegian soldiers, who were caught off guard, were killed on the spot before they could raise their guns.

The machine gunners took the lead and put the MG34 on the other side of the city wall.

Looking down, he saw a group of Norwegian soldiers who were hurrying inside.

"Wow, blah, bh-"

In the short and powerful gunshot, a 7.92mm heavy bullet flew out at high speed, setting off a bloody storm in the queue!

About ten Norwegian soldiers collapsed to the ground in a matter of seconds like wheat had been cut, and their screams were completely muffled by loud gunfire.

A wooden-handled grenade swirled and landed on the ground, wisps of green smoke rising from the end of the handle.

"Poof!"

Two Norwegian soldiers hiding behind the truck were blown to pieces and the glass of the truck was shattered.

The M24 grenade with a charge of 170g can be described as powerful, but its killing method is mainly based on shock waves, producing very few fragments, and the actual killing radius is only a few meters, which is an offensive grenade.

Almost in the midst of a whirlwind, the officers and men of the 76th Mountain Infantry Regiment easily broke up the resistance on Kahomen Island.

In the strait, the Rothenburg Light Cruiser and the Peake coordinated to smash tons of steel and explosives on two batteries on the east coast.

The fierce fighting continued until 7:05 a.m., when the exchange of fire finally stopped.

It was still dark, and there were still two hours before sunrise.

The stranded Zwolle could only be temporarily abandoned for a short time, and the mission had to continue.

Fortunately, the road to Oslo has been opened, and the losses of your side are even lower than expected, and they are more efficient.

The Air Force had planned to provide support after dawn, but now it seems that it is not needed at all.

It's actually past nine o'clock in the "dawn" in Oslo, and the morning sun finally rises in the east.

Forneb Airport is located 10 km west of Oslo and is home to the Norwegian Army Air Corps.

At the moment, there are eleven gladiator fighters on standby - the engines are warmed up every hour to ensure that they are ready for action.

The Gladiator fighter was the last type of biplane designed and manufactured by the British, and the conservative British even purchased this biplane in bulk the year before last, that is, in the 37th year of Zhichang, and exported more than 200 of them.

Although it can be called the pinnacle of biplanes, it is destined to be backward in this era.

To defend Forneb Airport, the Norwegian Army deployed three Vickers heavy machine guns in a semi-permanent fortification to the southeast, with an infantry platoon stationed inside.

A searchlight platoon was deployed on the west side of the airfield, and they were also armed with one heavy machine gun and two light machine guns for self-defense; There was also a barracks to the north, where the remaining two platoons and company headquarters of the infantry company were located.

If you don't count the pilots and ground crew, the defense of Forneb Airport is only responsible for this total of more than 120 people, which can be said to be quite weak.

At this moment, someone suddenly heard a faint roar in the distant sky, much like the movement of an airplane engine.

The sky is dark blue now, and the darkness that envelops the world has not yet completely dissipated.

A sergeant in the searchlight platoon held up his binoculars and saw the shadows of dozens of planes faintly visible among the clouds.

He thought he was dazzled, and after blinking and looking closely, he finally determined that it was not an illusion, but a real formation of Ju-52 transport planes.

Transport planes instead of bombers?

Because of the time difference, when the war broke out in the far north, the Daming Jingshi in the East Eighth District was only when the sun was sinking in the west.

The Ming Legation in Norway sent back the latest telegram as soon as possible.

As time passed, in the morning of Berlin time, Ernst's speech was broadcast by radio and quickly spread throughout Europe.

After only two quarters of an hour, the specific content of the speech was translated into Chinese by the translators on call and presented to the emperor.

Zhu Lingjing, who is accustomed to going to bed early and getting up early, deliberately did not go to bed early today, but waited patiently - she was sure before that the German society would definitely make a specific statement after the outbreak of the war.

「…… Comrades, citizens, from six hours ago to now, our fighters have thrown themselves into the battle in Scandinavia, are fighting against the diehards of the Kingdom of Norway......

「…… The British and French capitalists tried to encircle Germany in many ways, grain, oil, technology, ore, and they tried to make us fragile and confused, but they were wrong......

「…… Norway and Sweden are neutral countries, but Britain and France forcibly break neutrality in order to achieve their tricks, which is a contempt for order, and this is a vicious act of imperialism to bully the weak......

「…… We must be fully aware of our own strength and our bottom line, and if we remain silent and do not stop the [Anglo-French] trickery, then it will be the whole [German] people who will pay the price......

Oh! That's a good speech line!

Zhou Changfeng, who was next to him, turned his head to look at the translation on the imperial case, and couldn't help but say, "The fire is finally burning." ”

Zhu Lingjing smiled indifferently and said leisurely: "Add another gust of wind." ”

Here's how the two days are scheduled:

First of all, I have to extract two wisdom teeth, which is really annoying, and the wisdom teeth come out and cause the gums to become inflamed and swollen and painful, that feeling... Tea doesn't think about food.

Then, in the past few days, the chapter focuses on the European war, because it is necessary to prepare for the subsequent war in Asia, and I have been reviewing the literature and seriously considering it recently.

Finally, it is necessary to carefully clarify the specific size and number of the Ming Navy.

(End of chapter)