195: Chapter 105 Cruiser Showdown

November 20, 1907, cloudy. The clouds over the sea hung very low, moving almost against the mast tops. Occasionally, streaks of rain swept across the deck diagonally, leaving dark water stains on the metal surfaces. The waves were not large, but there was a persistent low-frequency swell rolling in the depths. The Warship Zhuifeng maintained a slight tilt of about five degrees in the cross-waves, then slowly leveled out, repeating the cycle in a rhythm as monotonous as some fixed timer.

The Warship Zhuifeng and zhuilang were cruising at low speed about forty nautical miles northwest of the United Fleet, maintaining a longitudinal interval of five nautical miles to support each other when necessary while avoiding simultaneous exposure during sudden enemy aerial reconnaissance. Chen Haisheng stood on the bridge; the sea breeze blew in from the open porthole, carrying fine rain mist that condensed into tiny droplets on the edges of his epaulets. He did not wipe them away, only gazing at the grayish-white sea ahead, his gaze as steady as if he were looking at an old map he had read many times, the ink in one corner so familiar it could not be more so.

On the Radar screen, two light spots were moving southwest. Speed was about twenty knots, heading consistent with the main force of the United Fleet, looking like sentries responsible for peripheral patrol. Their echo characteristics matched the "Saratoga-class" armored Cruiser—that was the fast Cruiser built in batches by Meijian Country around 1902, with a displacement of thirteen thousand tons, main armament of four 254mm caliber guns, a speed of twenty-two knots, and a maximum armor belt thickness of 150mm. On paper, it could barely be considered a qualified second-rate capital Warship Zhuifeng, but compared to the Longxun Type II, it was not in the same league in terms of firepower, protection, or speed.

"Target confirmed, two Meijian Country Cruisers, approaching our direction. Distance about thirty-five nautical miles, speed twenty-one knots, no escort vessels discovered. Their course has a deviation of about eight degrees relative to the main force of the United Fleet, as if they are independently executing peripheral patrol or search missions." The Radar Operator's voice was steady and precise. "According to the formation track calculation, they may rejoin the main force in two hours. If we launch an attack before they rejoin, there will be an engagement window of about forty minutes."

Chen Haisheng raised his head from the chart table, his gaze lingering on the position marks of the two light spots for a few seconds, as if measuring whether that forty-minute window was enough to complete a full engagement cycle. The distance of thirty-five nautical miles was on the edge of the effective range on the 380mm main gun range table, but conducting long-range range-finding in this visibility would waste too much time and ammunition. He preferred to compress it to twelve to fifteen nautical miles before firing to ensure the first volley could cause effective damage.

"Decelerate to sixteen knots, turn left five degrees. Do not let them notice prematurely." He put down his binoculars, his voice low. "All gun positions load armor-piercing shells, enter standby status, wait for my command. Engine room maintain steam pressure, prepare for full-power acceleration at any time."

The speed of the two Longxun Type IIs gradually decreased, and the frequency of the hull's undulation in the swell slowed accordingly. The slight deflection of the course made them look as if they were adjusting their route to avoid the severe sea conditions ahead. On the Radar screen, their echoes became more blurred, gradually approaching the characteristics of a ten-thousand-ton merchant Warship Zhuifeng—the electronic camouflage module installed on the Warship Zhuifeng was working, confusing the enemy Warship Zhuifeng's Radar identification by emitting electromagnetic signals of specific frequencies. The effective time of this camouflage was limited, but enough to prevent them from being identified as combat vessels before approaching close enough.

Twenty minutes later, the distance between the two sides shortened to fourteen nautical miles. The rain mist thinned a bit during that time, and the outlines of the two Cruisers began to emerge from the sea fog—first the mast tops, then the upper edges of the funnels, followed by the bow contours and the obtuse edges of the turrets. They still maintained a straight speed, without making any turning or accelerating evasive maneuvers, clearly not yet aware of the true identity of the two "freighters" ahead.

Chen Haisheng put down the binoculars in his hand, and when his voice sounded on the bridge, it was like a steady stone falling into a calm water surface: "Full speed, hard-to-port, seize the T-crossing position. Main guns fire at will, prioritize attacking the left-wing target. Notify the zhuilang to outflank from the right wing and cut off their retreat."

The engine room of the Warship Zhuifeng responded immediately after the order was given. The low tremor emitted by the whole Warship Zhuifeng during acceleration passed through the deck to everyone's soles, as if something had been ignited in the depths of the steel. The heavy oil in the boilers burned violently, and the steam pressure climbed to the peak of output power within tens of seconds. The spray split by the bow splashed up from both sides, the speed soared from sixteen knots to over thirty knots. The entire zhuilang was like a giant beast suddenly rising from a dream, turning its bow with an agility that hardly seemed to belong to such a behemoth. The side turrets rotated synchronously during the turn, and the barrels steadily locked onto the target.

The two Meijian Country Cruisers only noticed the abnormality thirty seconds after the Warship Zhuifeng increased speed. The lookouts discovered that the two "freighters" suddenly accelerated and turned simultaneously. The Warship Zhuifeng hull outlines exposed a long deck line and a huge turret base during the turn, and the thick smoke sprayed from the funnels was stretched into a thick, straight line during acceleration—that was the wake characteristic only present when large combat vessels were sailing at full speed. When the alarm sounded on the bridge, the first volley from the Warship Zhuifeng had already left the chamber.

Six 380mm shells tore through the gloomy sky, dragging six arcs that fell almost simultaneously in the rain mist. The first two kicked up huge water columns about forty meters off the port side of the target Cruiser, and the icy seawater splashed on the deck, knocking several running sailors to the ground; the third shell hit the base of the forward turret of the Warship Zhuifeng, penetrated the 200mm armor, and detonated the ammunition hoist underneath. The shockwave of the explosion lifted the entire No. 1 turret along with its base into the air, and the gun barrel smashed onto the deck while rotating in the fall. Immediately after, the fourth hit the top of the engine room, penetrated the horizontal armor, and directly detonated a main steam pipe in the boiler room. The sound of that half-meter-diameter steel pipe breaking under high temperature and pressure could be heard from hundreds of meters away. A huge irregular gap was torn open in the middle of the entire Cruiser's hull, fire gushed from the rift, and those figures who were still running on the deck were swallowed by thick smoke and debris within seconds, never to be seen again. That Warship Zhuifeng began to tilt severely less than five minutes after being hit, the bow slowly tilted up, the propellers idled in the air for two turns, and then the whole Warship Zhuifeng slid under the sea surface at an almost vertical angle, leaving behind a churning white foam and several pieces of burning debris.

The other Cruiser made a completely different reaction at the same moment. Its captain ordered full speed turn the moment the alarm sounded, attempting to retreat toward the main force of the United Fleet under the cover of smoke screens. Smoke bombs exploded at the stern, and gray-white smoke spread rapidly, forming a shielding zone about several hundred meters wide. Its engines were fully open, and its speed climbed slowly from twenty-one knots to twenty-three knots—but it was an old Warship Zhuifeng designed for twenty-two knots. In front of the pursuit speed of the Longxun Type II, which exceeded thirty-five knots, that smoke screen could only block the line of sight, but could not change the desperate gap in relative speed.

When the zhuilang arrived from the right flank, that Cruiser was still about eighteen nautical miles away from the main force of the United Fleet. The zhuilang's main guns completed the last range-finding and fired a volley the moment the stern of the Cruiser appeared at the edge of the smoke screen. Six shells fell simultaneously, three of which hit its stern area, one destroyed the No. 1 secondary turret on the rear deck, another tore a hole in the external armor of the steering gear room, and the third directly penetrated the hull structure above the propeller shaft. The Cruiser, having lost directional control, drew a crooked arc on the sea, like a seabird with broken wings, its speed plummeted, and it finally spun helplessly on the sea. Chen Haisheng did not order to continue shelling, but switched to using main guns for close-range deterrent shooting after the Cruiser lost power. The shells landed on the sea less than a hundred meters in front of it, kicking up water columns higher than the masts. A few minutes later, a white signal flag rose on the mast of that Cruiser.

The battle on the sea lasted less than fifty minutes from start to finish. Two Meijian Country Cruisers, one sunk, one captured, the Tang Country fleet suffered no losses. The main guns of the Warship Zhuifeng consumed less than fifty rounds of ammunition during the entire battle, and the torpedo tubes didn't even have their safety catches opened. When the marines boarded the surrendered Cruiser, the prisoners stood on the deck with their hands raised above their heads, seawater dripping along the edges of their uniforms. Among them was a middle-aged officer with the insignia of a Meijian Country Navy Major on his epaulets. He turned his head briefly to look at Chen Haisheng when he was led across the gangway. The two looked at each other across more than ten meters of sea for about two seconds, then the officer lowered his head and was escorted into the bottom cabin.

Chen Haisheng withdrew his gaze and turned to his adjutant: "Send a telegram to Jinling: one enemy Cruiser sunk, one captured, no personnel losses on our side. Captured one copy of the enemy flagship's recent tactical plan, which has been sealed and is awaiting transport. Also, the number of prisoners has been counted, totaling one hundred and thirteen, including twenty-two wounded, which have been arranged to be handled by the Warship Zhuifeng's doctor."

The telegram arrived in Jinling that evening. Li Ling was inspecting the test firing of a new type of coastal defense gun at the Production Base. The sound of gunfire continued in the night, scaring the waterbirds on the sea to fly into the darker distance. When he received the telegram, the last gunshot in the distance was fading away. He finished reading the telegram, folded the paper, and put it in his pocket, saying nothing to anyone around him. But when he walked back to the observation deck, his steps were a little lighter than when he came, as if a node that had been pressing down all along had been loosened a little. He looked at the outline of the target Warship Zhuifeng returning from the distant sea; it was just a blurred shadow in the twilight, its edges slowly dissolving into the night.

"Major General Kelly should have already noticed that the two Cruisers have completely lost contact. He may adjust the peripheral alert configuration in the next few hours, shrinking the remaining Cruisers to the core of the main fleet. This means his reconnaissance range will be smaller, and the freedom of activity for Submarine and aircraft in a larger range will increase. From a tactical perspective, although the loss of the two Cruisers has narrowed his peripheral vision, the main force is still there, and the real test has not yet arrived. He may accelerate his sailing speed, attempting to establish coastal pressure points near the Tang Country coast, using the Dreadnought's main guns to suppress the host's coastal defense fortifications from a long distance. In addition, the system judges that he is very likely to release decoys next, using some vessels to feign an attack in one direction to test the response speed and firepower coverage of the host's defense system. This is the standard response method usually adopted by experienced commanders after losing peripheral reconnaissance forces." Li Ling walked back to the map, drew a cross at the position where the two Cruisers lost contact, and then extended a small segment along the track of the United Fleet—if Kelly accelerated, they might approach the edge of the coastal defense battery's range within the next three days.

He straightened up, his gaze lingering on the end of the newly drawn line segment. On the map, the track line of the United Fleet was moving slowly, like some kind of line that was tightening. And the new positions of the Warship Zhuifeng and zhuilang were already marked behind its flank, like two unsheathed knives, moving slowly along the blind spot of the prey's line of sight.

Night had completely fallen. The lights of Jinling City formed a warm arc of light in the distance, but on the sea further away, the lights of the United Fleet were spreading out in the night, like a floating city quietly approaching. Deep inside that city, Major General Kelly was standing in front of the porthole of the flagship, listening to the adjutant's report on the adjustment plan for the peripheral alert Warship Zhuifengs, his fountain pen unconsciously drawing a few lines on the edge of the document. He put down the pen, cast his gaze again at the pitch-black sea outside the window, and then said to the adjutant: "Notify all Warship Zhuifengs to expand the anti-Submarine alert range by another five nautical miles and rotate the patrol route every three hours. In addition, maintain radio silence, and all communications will be transmitted via light signals."

After the order was given, the bridge returned to silence. The sound of waves came through the hull, carrying the dull low moan that only the deep sea has. The sea outside the window had not changed, still the same piece of ink, the same piece of silence. But deep in that silence, something was slowly surging, like a pulse awakening in the deep seabed, once, twice, passing through layers of seawater, through the gaps in steel and deck, through all the sounds trying to cover it, approaching the surface little by little.

When Kelly withdrew his gaze, on the map behind him, the blank sea area between the United Fleet and the Tang Country Warship Zhuifengs was getting smaller and smaller.