191: Chapter 191 Who Dares to Touch My Goods

Zhang Qiang's hand pressed firmly against the throttle lever.

The entire bridge was shaking violently. The massive diesel engine was operating at overload, and harsh metallic grinding sounds came from beneath the deck.

"Thirty knots. They're still accelerating." The radar operator gripped the edge of the console with both hands, staring intently at the screen. "They took a shortcut. They're going to forcibly cut directly across our path."

Old Li was thrown against the bulkhead by the inertia. He climbed up, clutching his shoulder.

"Lao Zhang, we can't dodge even at full rudder!" Old Li shouted. "A bulk carrier of several tens of thousands of tons trying to compete with a military destroyer in maneuverability is just suicide."

Zhang Qiang gritted his teeth. The muscles on his face tightened into hard knots.

"If we can't dodge, then we won't." Zhang Qiang stared fixedly at the pitch-black sea ahead. "Keep going full speed ahead."

On the pitch-black sea surface, two blinding searchlight beams suddenly swept over. The intense light pierced directly through the bulletproof glass of the bridge, making it impossible for anyone to open their eyes.

Two gray steel behemoths tore through the waves, one on the left and one on the right, forming a perfect pincer movement to trap "chenguang no. 1" in the middle.

They were two decommissioned Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, repainted in dark gray with no national markings.

On the forward deck, the massive 127mm main gun barrel was slowly lowering with a cold, mechanical whirring sound.

The pitch-black muzzle was aimed straight at the bridge of chenguang no. 1.

The bridge was deathly silent. Only the life-threatening beeping of the radar alarm could be heard.

The international public channel radio on the console suddenly emitted a harsh burst of static.

"Huaxia freighter ahead. Stop your ship and drop anchor immediately."

Stilted English boomed across the sea through high-power loudspeakers.

"This is the Joint Maritime Patrol Fleet. Stop your ship and drop anchor immediately. Prepare to be boarded for inspection."

Old Li glanced at the gun muzzle and swallowed hard.

Zhang Qiang grabbed the communicator and pressed the all-frequency transmit button.

"This is a legal commercial vessel belonging to Chenguang Holdings of Huaxia." Zhang Qiang responded loudly into the microphone. "We are sailing normally in international waters. We have not received any stop orders from any international maritime authority. Please clear our path immediately."

Two cold laughs came from the radio.

"You are suspected of smuggling prohibited weapon materials." The opposing captain's voice carried an unquestionable arrogance. "Drop anchor immediately. Shut down all power systems. All crew members, gather on the deck with your hands behind your heads."

"Bullshit. We are carrying legal ore." Zhang Qiang cursed angrily.

"Do not test my patience." The other side interrupted Zhang Qiang. "This is your final warning. If you refuse to cooperate after ten seconds, our ship will take measures to forcibly destroy you."

"Ten."

The cold countdown began to echo in the bridge. Zhang Qiang threw down the communicator and turned to grab the satellite phone on the wall.

"Connect to the Jiangcheng General Control Room. Hurry!" Zhang Qiang roared.

...

Jiangcheng. The data control room on the second floor of Chenguang Factory.

The room was filled with the smell of cheap tobacco.

Wu Dong's fingers tapped on the keyboard, creating a blur. A dozen large screens on the wall flickered simultaneously.

In the center of the display, high-definition images transmitted back by the Sky Eye satellite clearly showed the standoff in the Malacca waters.

The two gray destroyers were like two sharp knives, cutting off the path of chenguang no. 1.

Old Zhou stood in front of the large screen, stomping his feet in anxiety. The enamel teacup in his hand swayed, spilling hot water all over the floor.

"Boss, they've been blocked by warships." Old Zhou turned his head to look at Lu Chen, who was sitting on a worn-out sofa. "The opponent's fire-control radar has already locked onto Lao Zhang and his crew. These people really dare to open fire."

Lu Chen leaned back against the sofa, holding that transparent plastic lighter in his hand.

"Click."

The lighter produced a flame. Lu Chen lit the double happiness cigarette dangling from his mouth and took a deep drag.

"What's their background?" Lu Chen exhaled a puff of blue smoke and asked while staring at the screen.

Wu Dong hit the enter key. A few lines of data popped up on a small screen next to him.

"I've found it, Boss." Wu Dong's voice was tight. "They are a comprador private army from the Annam Island nation, working for the black money of overseas plutocrats. Those two ships are second-hand Arleigh Burke-class, but their fire-control systems and missiles are all the latest models."

Old Zhou slapped his thigh.

"They are definitely coming for our chassis materials." Old Zhou said urgently, "Boss, that ship is carrying tens of thousands of tons of life-saving raw ore. The chassis assembly depends entirely on it."

Lu Chen didn't speak. He held the cigarette between his fingers and flicked the ash.

"Lao Zhang won't be able to hold out for a few minutes." Old Zhou walked quickly to the sofa. "Let's call the police. Contact Beijing. Ask the diplomatic department to step in and negotiate. Or have the middle-aged man from the Red Flag Department send troops to provide support."

"It's too late." Wu Dong didn't even lift his head. "It would take at least a day and a night for the East Sea Fleet to get there. Lao Zhang can't even withstand a single 127mm main gun shell. The hull would be torn in two immediately."

On the big screen, the satellite audio was transmitting the opponent's countdown in sync.

"Six."

"Five."

Old Zhou's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

"Boss, we can't wait anymore." Old Zhou's voice was trembling. "How about we have Lao Zhang stop the ship and concede first? Let's save their lives for now. We can figure out the ore later."

Lu Chen slowly sat up straight and crushed the nearly burnt-out cigarette butt into the glass ashtray in front of him.

"What's the point of looking for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?" Lu Chen looked at Old Zhou, his tone so calm it was chilling.

Old Zhou was stunned.

"Spending money to support outsiders, and when something happens, you still have to beg them to do things. What kind of rule is that?" Lu Chen watched the two arrogant destroyers on the screen with cold eyes.

"Boss... then what should we do?" Wu Dong's palms were full of sweat. "We can't just watch Lao Zhang and the others get blown up."

Lu Chen reached out and fished an all-black military-grade communicator from the gap in the worn leather sofa.

This was the highest-level physically encrypted channel radio that he had specifically had modified a few days ago after taking over control of the three nuclear submarines from Anderson.

"Our ship. We protect it ourselves." Lu Chen held the communicator in his hand.

He pressed the red talk button on the side. The signal passed through a dedicated satellite and instantly cut into the cold seawater hundreds of meters deep.

"Can you hear me?" Lu Chen said calmly into the communicator.

A faint static noise came from the communicator.

Two seconds later, a dry voice with a thick foreign accent came through.

"viper one receiving... Boss. Please instruct."

Wu Dong and Old Zhou simultaneously gasped, staring fixedly at the black device in Lu Chen's hand.

"Locate the coordinates of the Malacca international waters entrance." Lu Chen tapped his fingers on the glass surface of the coffee table. "There are two broken ships blocking the delivery route of our Chenguang Factory."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the communicator.

"Boss. We are currently deep-diving and on standby in the target waters. Less than ten nautical miles from your freighter." The white captain's voice revealed suppressed madness.

Ever since they were forcibly seized by Lu Chen in the East Sea and forced to paint "Property of Chenguang Factory" on the hulls, this group of former Freemasons elites had been holding back a fire with nowhere to vent.

"Very good." Lu Chen leaned back into the sofa. "Turn on the fire-control radar."

"Understood. Please indicate the intensity of the strike."

Lu Chen watched the destroyers on the screen counting down to "three." A cold arc appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Those three dogs on the seabed have been stifled down there for too long. Let them surface to eat some meat." Lu Chen's voice was not loud, but it revealed bone-chilling ruthlessness. "Tell those two little shrimps up there. This is the territory of our Chenguang Factory. Who dares touch my cargo?"

Lu Chen paused.

"Send them to their graves directly."

...

Malacca international waters.

Inside the bridge of chenguang no. 1.

"Three."

"Two."

The opposing captain's countdown was about to end.

Old Li closed his eyes, clutching his head tightly with both hands.

Zhang Qiang widened his eyes, watching the two thick gun barrels aimed at him from a hundred meters away. The fire inside the muzzles had already begun to flicker.

Just at the moment the opponent shouted "One," the originally pitch-black and calm sea surface suddenly underwent a bizarre change.

In the combat command room of the comprador destroyer, the radar operator let out a high-pitched, distorted scream.

"Sir. There is a high-frequency sonar signal from the seabed. It's extremely powerful."

The captain frowned and pushed the radar operator aside to look at the screen.

On the screen, which originally only had one red dot for chenguang no. 1, three ridiculously huge signal sources suddenly burst out from the deep sea area.

"What is this?" The captain's face changed drastically.

"Unidentified underwater submarines. They are massive. They are surfacing at an incredible speed." The radar operator smashed his hands on the keyboard, his voice filled with a crying tone. "They have activated their active sonar and fire-control lock. We have been locked onto."

"All three have locked onto us simultaneously."

The captain grabbed the microphone, his face full of terror.

"Evade! Release chaff immediately! Full left rudder!"

It was too late.

On the sea surface to the right of chenguang no. 1, the water began to churn violently as if it were boiling. A massive white column of water shot into the sky. Waves dozens of meters high pushed outwards crazily in all directions.

A pure black, massive, streamlined metal hull forcibly cleaved through the seawater, bringing a suffocating sense of oppression as it broke through the surface from hundreds of meters deep on the seabed. viper one strategic nuclear submarine.

Its size, far larger than the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, stood like an ancient behemoth between the comprador destroyer and chenguang no. 1.

Immediately after, on the left sea surface and the rear sea surface, viper-2 and viper no. 3 appeared.

The three deep-sea heavy weapons, representing the pinnacle of human industrial crystallization, formed an inverted triangle formation, trapping the two comprador destroyers tightly in the center.

The pure black, top-tier titanium alloy hulls emitted a cold, deadly light under the searchlights.

And on the side of the massive conning tower, five square Chinese characters, violently painted in red, stung everyone's eyes: Property of Chenguang Factory.

The comprador destroyer was deathly silent. All the sailors stared blankly at these three monsters that had crawled out from the seabed. They even forgot to hold their weapons.

The hatch of viper one's conning tower was kicked open.

The white captain stood on high, holding a high-power megaphone. He stared down at the two trembling destroyers below, his face full of the pleasure of revenge.

"This is the private defense nuclear submarine fleet under Chenguang Holdings of Huaxia." The white captain pressed the megaphone switch. His voice resounded through the entire night sky. "Our boss said."

He reached out and pointed at the comprador destroyers, his eyes fierce.

"Whoever dares to touch his cargo, send them directly to their graves."

As soon as the white captain finished speaking, on the decks of the three Viper-class nuclear submarines, a whole row of heavy anti-ship missile launch silo covers—amidst harsh mechanical whirring sounds—all popped open.