"Mexha, Tulip, Jewel, Leyard, Bauhinia, Opal. All reported heavy blows."

Inside the command tower of the Vostok.

Commander of the British Indian Ocean Fleet, John Brown. Beads of sweat the size of soybeans were left on Jervis's forehead, and several bubbles were already forming on his lips.

Now that the report is coming from the battlefield, he can't help but be in a hurry.

It's too bad.

The situation from the cruiser detachment shocked all the senior officers in the command room.

There are now seven ravage-class cruisers, and one Giant-class battleship has reported heavy damage.

Not to mention seven cruisers.

The damage to that giant-class battleship alone was enough for John. Jervis's scalp was numb.

Because it was not even the enemy's battleship that caused a 12,000-ton ironclad battleship to suffer heavy damage.

Rather, it was caused by a couple of cruisers with a dozen frigates.

And the results of the heavy damage caused by the eight cutting-edge ironclad ships.

However, two Chinese Hong-class cruisers were damaged, and two Wei-class frigates were severely damaged.

Oh.

The British Navy achieved the first sinking of a Wei-class frigate since the start of the war - an armor-piercing projectile pierced the armor of a Wei-class frigate, hit the ammunition depot and blew up, causing a Wei-class frigate to disintegrate and sink.

Wounded four enemy ships and sank one.

Inflicted heavy damage on eight of your own ships.

It doesn't seem like a big loss.

But

Considering that the other side sank only a small ship of 1,500 tons.

There weren't too many people on board.

On their side, there was a giant-class battleship that suffered heavy damage, and at the same time, the Chinese used poison gas bombs, killing and injuring a large number of people on board.

If casualties are counted.

Then the loss on your side will be even greater!

And, until now.

On the other side, with four cruisers and sixteen frigates, such a result was achieved.

"Full speed ahead! Burn the wind!! ”

John. Jervis gritted his teeth and issued the order.

"Catch up, catch up with their main fleet!"

"Admiral, we can't maintain the formation in this way!"

Will. Smith reminded.

"Formation? Fuck the damn formation!! ”

John. Jervis jumped to his feet and roared.

"Damn the cross, damn the impact, damn it"

"We're all stupid!"

"We're all so self-righteous! Artillery! Bomb! This is the king of this era! It's ridiculous that we're counting on ramming to sink each other's ironclads! ”

"All the efforts we've made over the past few years have been a joke! The tactics we conceive are simply not adapted to the wars of this era!! ”

Will. Smith's hands and feet were cold when he heard this, and his face was horrified: "Then what should we do?" ”

Several years of preparation.

Suddenly it turns out to be a joke.

The dark clouds of defeat have hung over their heads.

"No matter how much!"

John. Jervis took a deep breath.

"Now we can only count on the decisive battle of the main fleet! Catch up and spank the Chinese! ”

John, Jervis said loudly.

We still have an advantage.

He thought to himself.

We have bigger ships, larger caliber artillery

"Governor! The main fleet of British ships is accelerating!! ”

Zhu Yimian hung a splint on his chest with a splint tied to his arm.

The third son of the Ming Emperor is also injured now.

Earlier, the Zhenmu was also hit by shells from enemy ships.

At one point, a shell exploded next to his conning tower.

Fortunately, the armor of the conning tower is too strong, otherwise, none of the officers in the conning tower would have survived.

However, the huge impact also injured a group of officers.

Zhu Yimian fell in the command cabin and broke his arm.

It can scare Zhang Bao enough - if the king of Jin is killed in this battle.

Mother.

Affect the career.

"In addition to the capital ship, the two giant-class ships have rushed up!"

Chen Huacheng said with a frown.

"Let the cruiser detachment turn south! Lure at least one Giant-class away! ”

Zhang Bao took a deep breath.

"It's not a big deal for the giants."

Right now.

Another report came from the observation post.

The British did not pursue the cruiser, but the two formations began to approach, ready to flank their main forces on the left and on the right!

"No Pursuit"

Chen Huacheng took a deep breath.

"That being the case. Then the only way to do it is to swing the horses and horses for a decisive battle, and the cruiser fleet will also return to strengthen its firepower! ”

"Exactly!!"

Zhang Bao's hands were trembling slightly.

It's time to gamble on the fortunes of the country.

At this moment.

John. Jervis finally regained a bit of confidence.

Because the next tactical moves and reactions of the Chinese Navy are within his expectations.

Their battleship formations and cruiser / frigate formations formed a double column.

This is John. What Jervis expected.

In these years, the British Navy probably knows what tactics the Ming Navy will adopt to deal with the British Navy's horizontal formation.

The double column outflanked the horizontal team, in fact, it is not difficult to guess.

As long as you accurately judge the opponent's roundabout column and the head-on pairing, it will be fine.

"Will, which team do you think they're going to use to outflank?"

John. Jervis asked Will beside him.

"Of course, their cruiser/frigate formations, these ships are fast ships, which can reach up to 17 knots at the fastest, and are armed with a large number of rapid-fire guns, and it will be troublesome if they rush to our left flank."

"Send three Warrior-class ships and three Ravage-class ships to deal with them, adopt sideways tactics, and command them under the command of Major General Walker! After breaking the enemy formation, immediately turn around and come back to reorganize the horizontal formation! ”

"We're going to be like cavalry! Push your opponent with an impact! ”

There is no longer any back-up between the two sides.

The two huge fleets had reached the point where they were close to each other.

The time has come to decide the fortunes of the East and the West.

Every soldier who participated in this naval battle.

Whether Chinese, or British.

They are all well aware.

This is a head-to-head showdown between the two most powerful maritime forces in the ocean at the moment.

The British warships, which have dominated the sea for more than 100 years, have overcome all obstacles, and the tall bow is heading straight for the opponents of the Ming Navy.

"Only when this war is won can the British Empire have its future."

John. Jervis thought.

His deputy, Will, was right.

Victory in a battle is likely to be due to tactics, weather, or even luck.

But the attribution of maritime supremacy.

In the final analysis, it is a head-on confrontation of national strength.

In terms of national strength

Is the British Empire comparable to the Ming Empire?

John. Jervis didn't dare to dwell on it.

But.

He knows better.

The British Empire wanted to maintain its maritime supremacy.

Dependent.

It is the victory of the war.

Only by constantly winning can we reverse the so-called gap in national strength.

'War is to make your enemies fearful'

John. Jervis thought.

"My position as the marshal of the Navy may begin with this battle!"

The third son of the Ming Emperor, Zhu Yimi, the king of Jin, suddenly had such a sentence in his heart. (End of chapter)