The Empire will continue to win

Chapter 108 No way, they're attacking friendly nations too?

Togo Heihachiro looked up at the Union Jack flying at the top of the mast, then at the army deer gathered on the deck.

Hesitated for a moment.

He shook his head again and said, "No, I disagree. To be on the safe side, the Kowshing must change course and take the eastern route."

A while ago~

Dozens of transport ships were sunk by cruisers of the Pan-Han Federal Empire, suffering heavy losses. Therefore, Navy Minister Yamamoto Gonnohyōe ordered that henceforth, all troop transport ships must use the eastern route.

During this season, the waters outside Vladivostok's outer harbor are completely frozen, preventing the cruisers of the Pan-Han Federal Empire from heading south.

The eastern front is absolutely safe.

To date, there has never been a single attack on the East Sanghai region. Until early summer arrives, as long as the navy holds the Tsushima Strait, the East Sanghai is the Empire's inland sea.

According to regulations, the Kao Sheng bullet train should not have taken the western route.

However, considering that the ship was carrying 10 army cannons and 1000 rounds of ammunition, which was a mixed cargo and personnel shipment, and that the fleet was very powerful, it was included in the fleet.

"No, no, no, Lord Togo, since you graduated from the British Merchant Marine School, you should know the strength of the British Navy."

Captain Smith was arrogant because he was also a graduate of the school, and even Togo's senior.

The two sides argued for five minutes.

Togo Heihachiro glared at him: "The Kowshing and the Navy have a signed employment contract. If you don't agree, then please turn back to Kobe. But according to the contract terms, the Navy will not pay you a single penny."

"Okay, I'll listen to you."

When the contract terms were brought up, Smith immediately backed down, saying that if he didn't get the freight due to his breach of the contract, going to court would be a lot of trouble.

This also reflects the spirit of contract.

It must be said that Togo really learned something at the British Merchant Marine School.

20 minute later.

The protected cruiser Naniwa drove away, trailing black smoke.

Between the blue sky and the sea, only the lonely Kowshing remains.

The crew was busy making repairs in the cabin, and the soldiers were admiring the ocean in small groups, but Smith was furious in the captain's cabin.

"Fuck!!"

How dare this monkey, Togo, point fingers at a dignified British captain?

Do you know?

He learned his ship handling skills at the British Merchant Marine School, and the Naniwa he commanded was built at Armstrong Shipyard in Britain, along with Takachiho.

And their Etajima Naval Academy, haha, even a brick, a ruler, and a textbook were imported from our great Kingdom of Britain.

06 was the sixth year of Emperor Shenzong's reign.

10 refers to October.

12 is the factory code.

33 is the workshop code.

584 is the production team code.

The 9 at the end of the decimal point is the code of the quality inspection team before the shell was put into storage.

Shen Moqing also sent someone with a handwritten letter.

To all fellow students of the School of Oceanography:

Seeing the poor quality of the munitions in the past, which were unsuitable for large-scale warfare, I was deeply worried. So I personally took charge of the factory, supervised production, and ensured that the munitions were of high quality.

When you go out to sea to hunt, you should give priority to using shells produced after October.

The factory is operating at full capacity.

There is no possibility of boosting production capacity in the short term.

Ammunition is limited, so I hope you will use it wisely and win many battles.

Signed: Shen Moqing, who hopes to join hands with you all to command the ship and fight a decisive battle on the summit of the Yellow Sea.

The sea breeze was blowing.

Everyone was deeply moved.

"He may not be an excellent naval officer, but he is certainly an excellent military engineer." Liu Buchan made this assessment in front of everyone.

He had a great deal of prejudice against Shen Moqing.

"No, he is a competent naval staff officer, and I admire his strategic judgment and way of doing things," Hannagan, who was also present, said with high praise.

Because no one understood the Imperial Fleet's weakness better than Hannagan, the Director of Naval Ordnance.

The Northern Fleet possessed 11 battleships, 28 cruisers, and over 100 smaller auxiliary vessels. The numbers on paper were impressive.

But actually?

The seaworthiness rate of warships is as low as 4%, the pass rate of random inspections of shells is as low as 6%, the explosive power of shells is reduced by at least 3%, and wheel well malfunctions occur frequently on various ships, while excellent repair engineers are in short supply.

Ultimately, this is because the great Pan-Han Federal Empire has not fought a naval war for over 30 years.

Looking into the distance, Hannagan sighed, "Liu, the navy is simply not prepared for a full-scale war. We need to overhaul our warships, we need to relearn how to navigate the seas, and we need to familiarize ourselves with fleet operations. I think Shen must have seen all of this."

Liu Buchan: "Everything will be alright."

Hannagan: "Hopefully the enemy will give us enough time to train. There is no better battlefield environment for training officers and soldiers than these small-scale patrols."

Waaah~

Within sight, a long train slowly pulled into the dock.

"The coal has arrived."

Baskets of high-quality coal were loaded onto the deck by dock cranes, and then a small deck crane transported the coal to a coal bunker that could hold 500 tons.

The deck is bustling with activity.

Liu Buchan disembarked from the warship, jumped into the carriage, randomly picked up a piece of smokeless coal to examine it, and then took out his sword to split the coal open to check its internal quality.

Nothing.

During this period, he saw shells that wouldn't explode, hollow torpedoes, nearsighted lookouts, twisted propellers, gun mounts that wouldn't turn, half-blocked water pipes and boilers, and pressure gauges whose pointers never moved.

Eye-opener!

"Don't worry, this is the best coal in the world."

Upon hearing the news, Zhang Yi, the supervisor of the Kailuan Mining Bureau who personally escorted the coal carts, rushed over and patted his chest to guarantee it. Standing next to him was a foreign engineer in a suit and tie.

"Supervisor Zhang, is there any coal gangue in there?"

"You're joking." Zhang Yi laughed heartily. "Hoover, why don't you introduce our Five-Channel Coal?"

"Yes."

Hoover, a Citizens engineer hired by the Kailuan Mining Bureau for a hefty sum. Yes, that infamous president.

At this time, he was still quite shy.

"The Wucao coal is almost the best coal in the world. It has many advantages, such as a concentrated high-temperature core area, complete combustion, and less smoke and ash. I guarantee that the cruiser Jiyuan can reach a high speed of 22 knots."

Previously, Kailuan Coal Mine supplied a low-quality coal with a very low calorific value, which produced billowing black smoke when burned. As soon as the warships left Weihaiwei, black smoke could be seen from the Golden Hill Fortress in Lushun.

Liu Buchan was skeptical.

22 sections, lightning fast!

Clutching the lump of coal in his hand, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty, he pondered, "I don't believe it."

Zhang Yi grew anxious: "Captain Liu, let's be frank. What are you doubting? Our Kailuan Coal Mine is a company directly under the Royal Navy."

"The coal you supplied us before was terrible, mixed with a lot of coal dust and gangue, which made it impossible for our warships to reach high speeds."

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"Oh dear~ you yourself said that was in the past. There wasn't any war back then, so why burn such good coal? The same coal was sold to your navy for only half the export price, and the payment period was far too long. Captain Liu, put yourself in their shoes, is there any profit in this kind of business?"

Liu Buchan still hesitated and was unwilling to sign for it.

Zhang Yi was truly anxious and actually blurted out some outrageous truths on the spot: "Captain Liu, listen carefully. No one understands politics better than our Royal Enterprise. I know in my heart when it's okay to be corrupt and when it's necessary to be honest."

Zhang Yi then shouted, "But let me make this clear from the start: this is wartime. I, the supervisor, will not discuss personal gains or losses, but will dedicate myself to serving the country. However, after the war, we will still be supplying coal."

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, speechless at the stark reality of the situation. Zhang Yi's bluntness, in a way, revealed him to be a truly ruthless individual.

Patriotic, but not much.

There are bottom lines, but they are not high.

But protect the emperor~

At the scene, Navy Technical Director Hannagan looked up at the sky, while Liu Buchan looked utterly dejected.

An hour later.

The armored command compartment of the Jiyuan.

Captain Liu Buchan: "Ready to set sail!"

The adjutant standing beside him took a deep breath, focused his energy, and shouted into the brass microphone, "Attention all crew, prepare to set sail!" The entire ship immediately erupted into chaos.

The whistle was sounded.

The 5000-ton armored cruiser Jiyuan took the lead and slowly sailed out of the naval port, followed closely by the 3000-ton ram cruiser or torpedo cruiser Chaoyong.

Although the ship's name remains the same, its tonnage is larger than in the original timeline.

In this timeline, the Pan-Han Federation Empire possesses considerable heavy industrial strength, with the vast majority of its warships being domestically produced. Moreover, the navy of a major power tends to emphasize the size of its ships.

Bigger is better, more is more beautiful.

The bigger the warship, the better; the more cannons, the better.

Today the wind is gentle, the waves are small, and the sun is shining brightly.

The two-ship formation cuts through the waves.

Despite its imposing appearance, the Northern Fleet actually has few warships capable of carrying out long-range missions. The engine room of the Chaoyong is robust, so the capable ships are given more work.

This marks the 7th time the company has carried out guerrilla missions at sea, with a maximum duty rate.

Seagulls circled around the stern of the ship.

The lookouts climbed the mast, wrapped in thick bearskin coats, wearing dog-skin hats, and with binoculars hanging around their necks; before radar existed, they were the eyes of the warship.

As far as the eye could see, the seawater was all yellow.

The Yellow Sea, as the name suggests.

The seawater has a dirty, yellowish-brown color because too many rivers flow into the Yellow Sea nearby, carrying large amounts of silt into it.

"Report: Current speed is 15 knots."

"Speed ​​up." Liu Buchan didn't even look up, staring at the nautical chart, pondering the route arrangement for this trip.

"Engine room, full speed!" the adjutant shouted into the brass megaphone, the deafening sound carrying through the winding pipes into the engine room.

So the chief engineer repeated the order into the microphone.

Navy personnel have loud voices.

The army is bold.

Inside the engine room, shovelfuls of high-quality coal were thrown into the boiler, the flames turned white, and the fire roared. Soon, the steam pressure gauge readings rose rapidly.

Clang clang clang~

The massive triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine, like the heart of a behemoth, emitted a teeth-grinding roar, driving the propeller to spin wildly.

The 5000-ton steel behemoth cleaved through the waves, showing signs of speeding away.

"Report, Section 18."

"Report, Section 22."

Inside the command center, all the officers cheered in unison.

Zhang Yi was not lying.

The coal from the fifth deck is indeed very good. Not only is it high in energy, but the smoke from the chimney located in the middle of the dry deck is very light in color, appearing grayish-white.

This means that the warship's stealth capabilities and maneuverability have been greatly improved.

After half an hour.

The lookout frantically rang the bell: "10 o'clock, one column of smoke."

Inside the command center, everyone's spirits lifted, and they all raised their binoculars. Sure enough, a lone column of smoke appeared on the horizon, billowing black smoke.

Today is calm and auspicious.

Liu Buchan was overjoyed: "Turn left, 10 degrees."

20 minute later.

The merchant ship, Gaosheng, was in complete chaos. Captain Smith looked through his binoculars at the warships charging towards him, and then glanced at the dragon flag on the mast, feeling as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

"Captain, how is it?"

"Quickly, get all the Dongsang soldiers off the deck."

The translator roared, gestured, and pushed and kicked until the deck was finally cleared. He then covered the cannons on the deck with oil paper, pretending it was a merchant ship.

But how could that be?

The Yellow Sea is a war zone, and merchant ships from all countries avoid it. Even if they have to sail in, they will try to stay along the coastline. So how could they appear in the middle of the sea?

After the initial tension subsided, Smith calmed down: "At worst, we can just turn back."

The crew members echoed in agreement.

"That's right, Britain is a neutral country."

"The newspapers say that the Pan-Han Federal Empire is the most civilized country in the world, and they won't do anything to us."

"Frankly speaking, if Dong Sang hadn't paid so much, I wouldn't have worked for these monkeys."

Humans always love to deceive themselves.

5 minute later.

The second mate lowered his binoculars, his face ashen: "Captain, they've signaled with flags, demanding we stop for inspection."

"No, no, no. Tell them that the Kowshing is a British merchant ship, protected by both Queen Victoria and international law. We are on our way to Tianjin for normal trade."

"Raise the flags! Raise all the Union Jacks!"

Maritime communication relies entirely on flag signals.

Liu Buchan glanced at the Union Jack flying at the top of the mast of the Gaosheng: "155mm broadside secondary guns, first warning shot."

Boom~

The shells landed about half a mile ahead of the Kowshing's course, splashing up conspicuous columns of water. Through the binoculars, many East Sang soldiers appeared on the deck.

As soon as the cannon fired, the Dong Sang soldiers poured out of the ship's hold.

Liu Buchan lowered his binoculars: "Signal with flags. The Gaosheng must accompany our ship. If it does not comply, it will be sunk."

2 minute later.

"Report: The Kowshing once again demonstrates that it is a British merchant ship."

Neutral countries? What are they anyway?

AIA? What a joke!

The Pan-Han Federal Empire has always considered itself a superior nation, possessing a high degree of cultural confidence and a deep-seated contempt for other countries. Liu Buchan didn't even hesitate before decisively ordering: "Second warning shot."

This time, the shells landed even closer, and the spray even splashed water onto Sergeant Hirata Jiro's uniform.

Onii-san~

He called out in his heart to his older brother, Hirata Ichiro, from the Etajima Naval Academy.

The Jiyuan warship.

"Report, the Kowshing requests to return to its point of origin, Kobe."

"No! The Kao Shing must immediately change course and sail to Weihaiwei as a prisoner of our ship, or it will be sunk." Liu Buchan was arrogant and daring. "Order: Target the Kao Shing."

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