Chapter 156 Second

Second!

There are too many seconds in the world, but in 1905, there was only one second that could be remembered by the world!

The Second Pacific Fleet of the Russian Empire!

The one once carried out a 18,000-mile expedition, which once symbolized the last glory of the Russian imperial maritime power, but finally came to the end of the Tsushima Strait. The disappearance of this fleet marked the disappearance of a powerful navy, and also meant the birth of a new power.

Because of the war, because of the huge fleet and the hope carried by that fleet, people remember this second, and the corresponding second Pacific Ocean and the horse, together with the horse, have become a special meaning in Russian after May 27.

And this fleet is Russia, which left on October 15, 1904. The historical coincidence is often reflected in this. Whether it is coincidence or accident, on October 15, 1905, a whole year after the departure of Russia's Second Pacific Fleet, a fleet departed from the port of Kiel.

History is so similar. This warship, which has been renewed after two months of repair, has a common name "Second Fleet of the Imperial Guards Navy".

"This will be another tragic voyage!"

"Another Second Fleet has gone to its end!"

"Marshal Dongxiang will end another voyage of the Second Fleet again..."

On October 15, almost the whole world used such words to describe the fleet that was about to go ocean, and the warm sun in Port Stendin sprinkled on the earth, the wind blew gently from the sea, and the mist was like smoke in the early morning, quiet and comfortable.

The Second Fleet of the Royal Chinese Navy, composed of five warships and two armored cruisers, is moored in the harbor. The huge hull seems to be moored in the harbor.

On the dock, there were people everywhere, and the locomotive transporting supplies was spewing thick smoke, like ants squirming sailors constantly carrying baskets of fresh fruits, vegetables and medicines along the gangway. In the past few days, every warship was filled with food, coal and ammunition... Yesterday, when After the last train was loaded with thousands of cutting-edge ten-inch soft steel made by the French Arsenal to the port, the voyage was finally about to begin. The modified "Vichersbach"-class warship has taken on a new look. Even the German officers and soldiers who served on the Wichelsbach-class battleship will The Wieschersbach-class battleship, which is a "Dingyuan"-class battleship, is strange.

The latest high-power radio station produced by Marconi Company, the electric drive rangefinder in the fire control command tower, two 3.5-meter Zeiss optical rangefinders installed at the top of the command tower, Bar? Strode's latest cutting-edge optical sight and altimeter, the outline gun is equipped with a shield, and each fore gun is equipped with a 76-millithick shield, all of which is a modification of the rapid-fire gun.

The modified "Vitchersbach"-class battleship is no longer called Amon at this time, and it can even be said to be "the shell of the former Zhiyuan, the heart of half Zhiyuan". Of course, this is just a saying. Everyone knows that the only battlefield in the future can finally test the warship.

"The warriors selected among hundreds of millions of compatriots rushed to the enemy's array on the battleship. The send-off people and the departing people shook hands silently. There were cold stars on the top of the mast in the middle of the night. We... sailors, go on an expedition today! On an expedition! On an expedition! Until the loyal soul floats all over the ocean, until the empire is majestic..."

In the song of the Imperial Navy, two tugboats were towed Dingyuan out of the berth. The breeze stroked the sea, and there were ripples on the sea. The Imperial Navy officers and soldiers in snow-white military uniforms stood on both sides of the warship, looking at the people who saw off on the port. In addition to the staff of the embassy in Germany, there were some of these seven warships. The German sailors in service looked at the departing warships with "sad" eyes. Most of them knew that perhaps when the New Year's bells rang, the seven warships would disappear from the New Year's World Navy Yearbook.

They may be heavy and cold.

"The flowers will not bloom on the graves of sailors..."

The German sailors standing on the dock lined up, humming the old naval song, looking at the distant warship, which used to be their beloved warship. With a salute, everyone raised their right arm at the same time and saluted the warship.

Goodbye! Vachersbach!

When the German sailors saluted the "Seven Great Distances", in the crowd of the dock, a group of Orientals looked serious and a little sad. These people were the staff of the imperial embassy in Germany, and the military attachéd in Germany salute in the crowd muttered softly when saluting.

"Meet again at the Martyrs' Temple!"

When the warship left the port and slowly speeded up, the bridge was busy. The sailors began a new round of training one after another. They knew that in the next two months of sailing, they must master the driving of the warship and integrate the personal soul with the soul of the warship.

"It's life or death, we have only one choice, that is training!"

Cheng Biguang, standing on the bridge, whispered on his lips. His dark and long-lasting face blown by the sea breeze looked a little serious, but his keen eyes were full of determination.

As a lieutenant general of the Imperial Royal Guards, the commander of the Second Fleet, an old general who has joined the navy for 30 years, has always followed the tradition of the navy. In the eyes of all sailors, he is a respectable officer. He is not greedy for money, not afraid of death, and is strict with those who make mistakes, but there is no lack of tolerance, but for The service and training are quite strict, and the management of subordinates is extremely serious.

In his opinion, whether a fleet can win, in addition to the latest naval technology and equipment, what is more important is the combat mood. Almost every day, he will instill an idea in his subordinates.

A concept that you can never lose. In the navy, the class of officers and soldiers is strict, and the captain and commander are supreme, but once the warship sails to the sea and the battlefield, the officers and soldiers are the same. They live and die together. Even when the warship sinks, the sailors can escape, but the captain must Choose to coexist with warships.

"I don't ask you to coexist with warships. I just hope you can defend the spirit of the navy!"

Remembering that after receiving a telegram from His Majesty the emperor late last night, at the meeting he held, Cheng Biguang was silent to the captains. Is it right or wrong to do this? The coexistence of the captain and the ship is a tradition of the navy, but for the new Chinese navy Not to mention a captain, even an engineer is extremely valuable.

In Cheng Biguang's thoughts, the warship spewed thick smoke and moved forward smoothly and calmly. The seagull flew with the warship. Ma Pengcheng, standing on the side of the port, looked at the Baltic Sea and the German city gradually leaving with a gloomy mood.

Goodbye! Germany! Goodbye!! !

In the past few months, from China to Germany, everyone has been looking forward to today's departure from the day of departure. They know their responsibilities and their mission.

Holding a letter in his hand is a letter from his mother, which will even regret why he wrote to his mother. If he doesn't write to her, if he doesn't tell her that he is about to go on an expedition, maybe his mother's letter will not be full of uneasiness. Those words full of uneasiness and pain make him cry every time he reads them.

"I will pray for you every night and pray to God to bless you. Remember your mother's prayer that it will save you from the bottom of the sea!"

With the content of his mother's letter in his hand, Ma Pengcheng looked down at the deck from the bridge. The sailors were working under the supervision of the deputy captains and sailors. Whether on the bridge, on the turret, on the deck, or in the cabin, there were sailors everywhere. 712 sailors lived and worked in the ship. At this time, the warship was carrying them. Drive towards the distant motherland.

There, there are everyone's relatives, the parents and relatives of the sailors praying for them, there, there is looking forward to the return of the fleet, again, there, there are enemies waiting for everyone, and the raindrop-like shells fired for the victory or defeat of the war are waiting for them, maybe for For many people, there is still death waiting for them.

Quietly walked down the bridge.

The battleship Jiyuan continued to drive forward with the fleet and raised his head. Ma Pengcheng saw a golden dragon flag flying high at the bow of the battleship Jiyuan. This is the flag awarded by His Majesty to the Royal Guards Navy. It is different from the military flag of the navy, but it carries His Majesty's expectations for the navy.

"We will fight until the last bullet!"

Half-closed eyes staring at the golden dragon flag fluttering on the bow of the ship. Ma Pengcheng repeated this sentence to himself in the bottom of his heart, which was the motto of the Imperial Navy.

"If...if you are intercepted when you return home!"

When he and his classmates who graduated early were recruited into the fleet, the advice of the friend known as "ghost talent" once again sounded in his ears.

"You must remember one thing, die! You have only one way to die, but you must be dying arrogantly! There is the glory of the soldiers of the Imperial Navy!"

"Don't talk about loyalty to your majesty, after death, your majesty, any empire, it's all empty talk, for our honor! For the honor of the Chinese navy! At that time, you must die, but before you die, you must realize our faith! Do you understand?"

"Fight to the last round!"

When he spit out this sentence again, Ma Pengcheng's mood sank. If Su Yueyang said so, then... shook his head, looked at the golden dragon flag under the red background, and looked at the busy sailors. He sighed in his heart.

I hope everyone can be worthy of the navy!

Berlin, Germany, the naval attaché's office of the Embassy of the Empire in Germany.

"Finally, let's go!"

Mie Jiannan, who put down his hand, couldn't help sighing. It seemed that he was afraid that the West Village, who was sitting opposite him, was not clear, so he specially emphasized.

"The Chinese Second Fleet has set off!"

"Yo Xi!"

Nishimura Fan hurriedly shouted hello.

For the past two months, they have been watching the Chinese Second Fleet, and now the departure of this fleet from Germany has finally made them breathe a sigh of relief, which means that they can relax their nerves.

In the past two months, in order to collect information about the Second Fleet as much as possible, the naval officers have come out. After the heavy intelligence collection work, everyone is eager to have a good rest.

As the direct person in charge of the intelligence work of the military attachy office, Shigeru Nishimura has taken on the memorial work of all intelligence. With his work experience in Germany in the past few years, he has devoted his main energy to collecting the most valuable military intelligence. The so-called important information is: the type and number of warships purchased by China, the Chinese carried out those modifications during the shipyard modification, what equipment was added to each ship during the modification period, and so on.

And he fully considered how to get this information. He doesn't rely on external forces, but on his own strength. In his opinion, this information is all related to the fate of the country, and it must be absolutely accurate. Therefore, seeing with your own eyes, listening with your own ears, and calm judgment with your own eyes is the most reliable method and the way you should take - this is the conclusion of collecting information from Nishimura.

Fortunately, Xicun is a naval officer stationed in Germany. In the past, he had more or less contact with the business community of the German shipyard, so he traveled with the business community of the shipyard, collecting any information related to Chinese warships everywhere. In Nishimura's view, the most important information he collected is probably the Chinese from France. Information about the armor-piercing shell of the soft steel cap purchased by Schneid Crusoe.

In order to get information about this new type of armor-piercing shell, Nishimura has repeatedly gone to the headquarters of the factory in Lyon, France, and spent tens of thousands of yuan to buy factory technicians to obtain a series of technical information such as shells weighing 252 kilograms, light steel caps, and TNT explosives. For this reason, China even specially called Jia Awarded the excellent work of West Village.

"It's a pity that the British refused our request!"

When Takahashi Sheng said these words, his face was full of regret.

"If the British refuse the Second Fleet to pass through the Suez Canal like the Russians, maybe we can win more easily. In that case, maybe we can even go back to defeat the Second Fleet after defeating the First Fleet!"

With the signing of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance Treaty, Britain became a Japanese ally. As a Japanese ally, in the last war, in order to help the Japanese win the war, Britain took great pains. On the one hand, it helped the Japanese buy warships in Europe and prevented Russia from buying warships. On the other hand, it was in Russia. After leaving the Second Pacific Fleet, it was first banned from passing through the Suez Canal, and then Russian ships were prohibited from entering British or British colonial ports. Even in other ports, under the guidance of British political axes, British merchants also snapped up coal to weaken the strength of the Russian fleet as much as possible.

This time, the British did not do their best as in the last war. Although they refused to sell warships to China, they agreed to sell light cruisers and refused to use British or British colonial ports. At the same time, they agreed to pass through the Suez Canal.

"Cunning Brits!"

Mishi Jiannan then scolded.

"Those British still try to maintain a Far East balance. These European and American white animals are not credible at all. In their eyes, there are only interests. Even if they give us help now, it is because of the limitations of the treaty. If there is no treaty, they can't help us at all. Of course, they are also happy to see us. It's better to kill with the Chinese. After the war against the horse, the imperial navy shocked the whole world. Perhaps the British hope that the Chinese can sink one or two of our warships before the defeat. The British Royal Navy will lose several warships, which will not hurt their vitality, but if the Imperial Navy loses one or two warships, I'm afraid it will be won. I'm so angry!"

"But we can't live without their help now!"

With a cigarette on, Nishimura said.

"At least now the British have given us some help. It is undeniable that the help of the British makes it easier for us to win the naval battle. Once we win the naval battle and defeat China's maritime forces, we can win the war without even using the army. China's economy is really Relying too much on export trade, cars! Cars are the pillar of China's finance. Without cars and the export of raw silk and raw materials, the Chinese people don't have enough money to fight this war!"

Car! When it comes to cars, the three people in the room frowned at the same time, with envy and greed on their faces. Even in Germany, you can see Tianma Automobile, a cheap Tianma car produced in China, which is constantly entering the European and American markets to exchange huge amounts of foreign exchange for Chinese people.

"If I win this battle, if I were a senior minister, I would definitely not ask for any compensation!"

Spit a smoke circle, it is difficult to suppress envy in Xicun's traditional language.

"I will ask the Chinese people to dismantle all the car factories, as well as the drawings of cars, 100,000 cars a year. If they are exported, they can create hundreds of millions of yuan of foreign exchange. With this foreign exchange as a support, they could have quickly industrialization. Westerners use real money to buy cars, and we use paper money to pay the country. Domestic enterprises, in exchange for gold and silver, can order more machines and introduce more technologies from foreign countries. Now cars are supporting the Chinese industry, but what about the Japanese capital? But I can only rely on raw silk!"

"What's the use of just getting a car factory? We took away the car factory. As long as we have money, the Chinese will build a bigger car factory. They have technology. The factory is just a factory. The most important thing is technology!"

Takahashi immediately retorted that if it hadn't been for the war, he might have bought a Tianma car.

"Then grab their technicians to Japan!"

As soon as Kennan Mizhi's words fell, Takahashi Katsu and Nishimura looked at him like a monster.

"You don't know that Tianma Automobile was designed by the emperor of China!"

"Then let's fight to Nanjing and capture the emperor of China!"

Arrogant words echoed in the room. In the eyes of these three people, it seems that Japan has won the war at this time!

(to be continued)