What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 214 Chaos
Although the Hanover was a battleship, it was a huge waste of tonnage and extremely difficult to maintain, Tang Wen never thought of giving it up.

It's a waste to use a battleship that weighs nearly 100,000 tons for the Christmas Express. It would be better to just leave it in the bay as a decoration.

Of course, we should inform them when we get this thing back, but it's better to give Lao Zhang a surprise (or rather, a shock) beforehand.

After confirming that Tang Wen was not joking, Lao Zhang quickly obtained the basic data from Hanover and studied it slowly, while Tang Wen finally managed to get away with it.

After logging into the BBS and scanning the website's backend, I saw that the number of posts was exploding.

This is all because the information is mixed and unreliable, and the order is roughly as follows:

"Times: Japanese destroyer and bald cruiser fight and both perish."

The Sun: Following the downing of a friendly military aircraft in May, another friendly warship has been sunk!

Mainichi Shimbun: A spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs apologized for the accidental shooting and stated that there are no intentions to start a war.

Bloomberg: Several regions have declared a state of emergency; government officials are actively investigating.

"Le Parisien: HMS Colbert sank while providing cover for British warships; all 600 crew members perished."

ABC: Japan has apologized again for the accidental shooting incident and has maintained hotline communication, demanding that the Maritime Self-Defense Force cease all training activities and return to port.

A series of reports came in, and the public understood that the Japanese destroyer had indeed "accidentally" shot down a cruiser, and that it had also shot down an aircraft a few months earlier, so it had a history of such incidents.

As for the news that the HMS Colbert has been decommissioned, as well as information about the Combined Fleet and artillery battles, although it has been reported, not only the general public, but even many officials are not clear about the intricacies. They only grasped the "key points" and hurriedly responded.

In the postmodern era, the cost of a missile destroyer/cruiser is not cheap. Their status is comparable to that of an aircraft carrier or battleship in the past, and losing one is extremely painful.

Experts and officials were speaking out everywhere, and all sorts of news were flying around, quickly drowning out the Times' initial report.

Those who are insightful about details are either engrossed in searching for the truth or lack a voice, making it impossible for them to convey rational signals.

Soon, Gallic warriors will shout for revenge, yelling that blood must be paid for blood. It is said that they have already contacted the widows of the crew members of the sunken ship and will soon organize a march.

A moment later, a sailor claiming to have participated in the battle revealed that the enemy came from decades ago, and the sunken ship was the Colbert from forty years ago. The Combined Fleet had traveled through time and space to come here.

Nearby pirate groups have also approached the media, claiming that the area is now filled with warships and aircraft, and that the talk of a Japanese war against France is misleading, with the real purpose being to provide cover for an attack on the rich and peaceful Somalia.

A little while later, the civilian organization that had chartered the Château de Colbert denied the rumors, saying that the cruiser had not sunk and was still safely docked in the port of Bordeaux, and that it was all a conspiracy by the British.

All sorts of random information flooded in. In the era before Douyin (TikTok) filmed strange events on the spot, people could only rely on guesswork and the words of public figures to judge what had happened.

When Tang Wen logged onto the BBS, the most popular opinion was that another world war was about to break out.

Even Tang Wen couldn't sit still anymore, and finally understood why Lao Zhang had broken down.

Not to mention netizens, even many intelligence agencies are in a state of panic!
It was the middle of the night when the incident occurred. The leaders got up in the middle of the night and gave an emergency order, sending all planes and warships around the Gulf of Aden to the scene. They then made a lot of phone calls to find out what was going on, while their agents were busy gathering information everywhere.

The Suez Canal is the world's most important waterway, almost single-handedly connecting Europe and the world. Given the sensitive location of the incident, it's hard not to suspect a possible conspiracy targeting the canal.

If the canal becomes blocked, countless merchant ships will be delayed, affecting the stock prices of many companies and even causing shortages of supplies in large areas.

The mention of the canal caused a stir not only in Europe, where the fighting had taken place, but throughout the world, with planes, ships, and submarines being urgently mobilized.

The completely bewildered Japanese leader also bore immense pressure. The head of state, unable to listen to reports from below, made the same mistake as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and issued a second apology.

Only after that did the detailed battle report analysis from the British arrive. The Self-Defense Forces counted all the warships and found that none were missing, and none had approached the Gulf of Aden.

The Colbert? Wasn't that decommissioned five years ago and now selling tickets on the beach? When this information was presented to the higher-ups, looking aggrieved, the leader, after repeated apologies, was dumbfounded:
The USS Colbert survived its retirement and its own warships were all counted and none were missing, so what did it just apologize for?
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs then began to refute the rumors, but it was powerless in the face of the overwhelming public opinion that had already taken hold.

Even the media started to look down on him, saying, "You've apologized twice already, how can you still go back on your word?"
At 11 p.m., Tang Wen kept refreshing the BBS and even logged into several foreign websites, watching in disbelief as things unfolded in an unexpected direction.

His original intention was to create a mysterious event, so that everyone would be busy deciphering it, instead of the current situation where conspiracy theories are rampant and all sorts of basic errors are made.

According to current news reports, the mixed fleet involved in the battle was urgently evacuated to the nearest base, and no one paid any attention to the wreckage at sea.

As for the battlefield footage he believed should be released immediately, not a single image has been leaked.

The world is indeed a huge makeshift operation.

The culprit confidently shut down the computer and went to sleep.

……

"It's a very outdated technology. I mean, the modern navy has long since abandoned this formula."

The naval gunnery expert who flew in from London stood on the top of the tugboat and could just reach the spot on the bow of the HMS Southampton where it had been hit.

All four ships involved in the battle were hit by shells under the fierce attack, but the effect was almost the same as stray bullets, and no real damage was caused.

After being transported to the nearest port, experts attempted to analyze the ammunition.

The naval gunner was a retired old man who was specially invited. His skill level may not be the most outstanding, but he has a wealth of experience. In his prime, he had been exposed to ammunition from World War II. He believed that the formulas of various countries had a unique character and could be easily identified.

"I am 80% certain that this is a 100mm shell from the old IJN, which was widely used in later periods, and it may even be an old stock."

Next to the expert was the joint investigation team that had arrived. After hearing the assessment, they expressed their approval and then showed a photo of the Akizuki destroyer firing.

"It's the autumn moon!"

The white-haired expert recognized it at a glance; the film camera photo was very clear and in color, and the four iconic turrets were easy to spot.

"So, this is very likely indeed a special incident."

The French investigator, also not young, muttered something, his eyes unreadable.

He also had another identity: the second captain of the HMS Colbert, having served as a sailor on the Colbert since 58.

Although the incident happened suddenly, there was a lot of video footage left behind. He recognized it as Colbert at a glance, and it was from the first time they met.

The firing frequency, rotation speed, and electronic equipment layout of the turrets are almost identical.

Only one ship of the Colbert was ever built, and it was in the port of Bordeaux. So where did this one come from?

"I think we need to salvage the wreckage."

The investigators nearby agreed with the idea, but someone asked:
"What about that submarine? Should we investigate it too? I suspect it's trying to pass through the Suez Canal; maybe we can even block it."

"I think it's a coincidence."

Fernando shook his head and said:
"The appearance of a submarine is perfectly normal, and its commander must have already returned to port and wouldn't walk into a trap."

"Right now, all I want to know is where that Colbert came from."

(End of this chapter)