Rebirth of the Qing Empire

From then on, Judy followed Kang Fan and was inseparable.

In fact, from the moment Kang Fan boldly grabbed Judy's hand, Kang Fan, a unique Chinese man, stole the heart of this noble American woman. But Kang Fan did not expect that he had

A reckless act will lead to such serious consequences. Speaking of which, Kang Fan is the deadliest "pirate"!

Therefore, after arriving in the UK, Judy tried her best to spy on all valuable intelligence for Kang Fan, and relied on her extensive social connections to provide Kang Fan with much-needed help in London.

Under such favorable conditions, Kang Fan's robbery plan went smoothly: relying on the assistance of magical hand-thrown gas bombs, Kang Fan worked closely with intelligence personnel to rob without bloodshed.

The Japanese Embassy in London, UK. However, because the Japanese were more vigilant this time and made careful arrangements beforehand, two indemnities had been secretly transferred out of the embassy in advance, so they only grabbed the last amount that had not been transferred in time: about

Over 5 million pounds.

But what is gratifying is that all the personnel who participated in this operation escaped safely, which can be described as a complete success.

The freighter "Helen" unloaded the goods exported to the UK at the London pier and loaded a batch of chemical raw materials ordered by Ningwu Prefecture before setting off back home. In the joy of success, both Kang Fan and Captain Li ignored a major incident

The occurrence of the incident had a negative impact on their actions.

Impact - In April 1898, the United States took military action against Spain on the pretext that the explosion and sinking of the USS Maine warship in Havana Harbor, Cuba, was caused by the Spanish military. Spain immediately declared war on the United States. Now it is late May 1898.

The two sides are fighting fiercely.

By the time Kang Fan thought of this, the freighter "Helen" had already sailed into Spanish waters and was preparing to cross the Strait of Gibraltar and enter the Mediterranean Sea.

After hearing what Kang Fan said, Captain Li slapped his forehead and ordered the first mate to immediately turn the ship around, sail out of the Spanish waters at high speed, and speed south along the west coast of Africa, trying to escape using the "Helen" freighter's high speed of more than 20 knots.

Areas controlled by the Spanish Navy.

But it was too late. Two Spanish warships pursued them at high speed and fired warning shots. The shells landed not far in front of the freighter "Helen", causing a huge water column. If they continued to escape, the next shells would not be

It flew towards the sea but towards the cargo ship "Helen". Once it was hit by a cannonball, there would definitely be casualties on the "Helen", which was what Captain Li least wanted to see.

During the hesitation, a shell passed over the top of the cab with a piercing scream, and both Kang Fan and Captain Li fell to the ground involuntarily.

"Raise the flag, surrender!" Captain Li shouted at the top of his voice to the observation tower.

The first mate firmly disagreed and shouted at Captain Li with his eyes wide open: "We must not surrender, Captain! The Spanish will destroy the Helen! We must escape, they can't catch up with us!"

Captain Li became anxious, stepped forward and pushed the first mate away, "Who will be responsible if there are casualties?"

The first mate shouted: "I can! I can be responsible! I firmly believe that the 'Helen' will be able to get rid of the Spaniards!" After speaking, he rushed to the microphone and shouted, "Engine room, full truck, full truck, full truck

!”

The furnace of the "Helen" was blazing, the main shaft was spinning, and the speed suddenly reached an astonishing 25 knots!

Captain Li couldn't resist the first mate, so he ordered in front of the microphone: "Attention all ship, attention all ship: I am Captain Li, please find cover and prepare for damage control."

"Tony, something will happen sooner or later when driving like this." Captain Li put his hand on the first mate's shoulder and said in a serious tone.

The first mate looked forward with a determined expression, "Don't worry, Captain, I'm sure."

The cannonballs kept coming and landed around the ship, and water columns shot up one after another. Missed! Missed again! Still missed! The Spanish shooting skills are really unflattering.

Kang Fan nervously observed the relative distance to the Spanish warship, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the distance was getting wider and wider. In less than an hour, the Spanish warship disappeared from the sea without a trace! But the Spaniards could still be seen unwilling to give in.

The muzzle flash of the failed and blind firing, but the shells flew to nowhere.

The "Helen" slowed down and maintained a cruise speed of 12 knots. Because it was fully loaded with cargo, the main engine was overloaded during the escape process and was hit by two small-caliber shells. Although no casualties were caused, it was successfully thrown away.

The Spanish warship was intercepted, but the "Helen" could no longer maintain normal movement and became slower and slower. After two hours, it was finally overwhelmed and the main engine stopped.

The chief mate led the crew into the engine room for emergency repairs. The nearest land here is the Madeira Islands under the jurisdiction of the Portuguese government. No matter what, the "Helen" must be driven to this archipelago, otherwise it would not be possible in the vast Atlantic Ocean.

A boat full of people would be in danger.

Although Judy has much more sailing experience than Kang Fan, she is even more anxious than Kang Fan at this time. Kang Fan still looks calm and composed, as if this distress has nothing to do with him.

, sitting on the bench on the deck, legs crossed, basking in the warm sun on the Atlantic Ocean in early summer, wiping his beloved Type 92 pistol.

"What would have to happen to make you anxious?" Judy asked him with a frown.

Kang Fan smiled and said: "I don't know how to sail and I don't know how to repair a ship. What's the use of being anxious?"

Judy thought about it for a while, then sat down next to Kang Fan and straightened her skirt up and down. Her smooth, white, and graceful long legs swayed in front of Kang Fan's eyes from time to time. Kang Fan noticed this of hers

He unknowingly stopped what he was doing and stared at Judy's legs. Judy raised her legs thoughtfully, and the sunlight penetrated the bottom of her skirt, illuminating everything clearly. Kang Fan immediately

The whole body is stiff.

"Kang Fan, if I must die, let me die in your arms." Mei Xiang's words suddenly rang in his ears, and Kang Fan's soul came back. He looked away and began to wipe the gun in his hand again. His mood

Gradually, he calmed down. But an inexplicable irritability came one after another, and he threw away the gun cleaning cloth in his hand in annoyance.

"Do you miss Mei Xiang?" Judy asked him sourly.

Kang Fan said nothing, raised his gun, and squinted his eyes at the sea.

"Meixiang is better than me?" Judy asked again, her voice trembling.

Kang Fan relented and took Judy into his arms. "You are all fine, but I am not." He said dullly.

Judy quietly felt Kang Fan's embrace, and heard Kang Fan's clear and powerful heartbeat in her ears.

The "Helen" was seriously damaged, and it was no longer possible for the crew to restart the main engine in a short time through simple repairs. It could only float motionless on the sea like a dead fish. As time went by, the two men who were previously chasing

A Spanish warship persevered and caught up again. The "Helen" was destined to be doomed.

After hearing the news, Captain Li ran up to the deck and looked at the black muzzles of the Spanish warship, his face turned ashen.

The Spanish warship sent a signal: Our ship is ordered to sink your ship and evacuate all personnel within 20 minutes.

Captain Lee instructed the "Helen" to return the semaphore: Follow your orders.

Everyone acted quickly and loaded the compensation and some supplies necessary for survival at sea onto two lifeboats. Everyone rowed with all their strength to try to get as far away from the "Helen" as possible in the shortest time.

When the time came, the rumble of cannons sounded, and the beautiful "Helen" trembled in the gunfire, ignited a raging fire, and the hull slowly tilted, and it seemed that it was hopeless.

Kang Fan covered his face in pain: Goods worth tens of thousands of pounds have been reimbursed!

Everyone also had painful expressions, especially Captain Li and the first mate, who were so worried that they forgot how to cry.

The bombardment lasted for more than ten minutes, but the "Helen" with its exquisite structural design still floated tenaciously on the sea, as if to demonstrate against the Spanish's force. Soon, the Spanish gave up the attack and fled north in a hurry. Everyone was wondering

At that moment, a crew member pointed to the distant sea and shouted excitedly.

"Look, American warship! We are saved!"

The tall masts and thick black smoke trails of four American warships appeared on the sea sky one after another, and the Stars and Stripes fluttered in the wind.

Amid the cheers of the crowd, three U.S. warships chased the Spanish warships, and the remaining one drove straight over to provide rescue. The U.S. Atlantic Squadron had been tracking the two Spanish warships for a long time and had not been able to catch them.

These Spaniards. These two Spanish warships have cleverly avoided the powerful U.S. Navy since the beginning of the Spanish-American War, and launched guerrilla warfare at sea, specifically attacking U.S. merchant ships sailing on the world's oceans. They achieved many results, but they never intentionally killed them.

As a crew member, your professional ethics is commendable.

At Captain Lee's request, the American sailors helped everyone extinguish the fire on the "Helen" and towed it with a cable to the nearby Madeira Islands in Portugal.

Madeira Island, the main island of Madeira Islands, is an important hub for maritime transportation between Europe, Africa, America and Asia. It has excellent ports and complete ship repair facilities. The island is densely forested, crisscrossed by rivers, and has a mild and humid climate.

It is also a good place for leisure and vacation.

Although the freighter "Helen" was seriously damaged, the main structure of the hull was not damaged and can still be repaired, but the repair time will be longer. A lot of the cargo carried on the ship was lost in the fire, but it is better than burning it all.

This made Kang Fan feel a lot more comfortable.

This time, Kang Fan truly realized the superiority of a country having a strong navy. In the ocean that connects the world, with the rapid development of global maritime trade, the navy plays a unique and pivotal role in protecting the security of its own maritime trade. However, it is necessary to

Want to build a team that can operate globally

A navy that can carry out its mission within the country requires strong resource support and a consistent national policy, which cannot be achieved overnight. Therefore, although Kang Fan is extremely eager to have such a navy, it is absolutely impossible to realize this wish at the moment.

Yes, we can only wait impatiently for the time to mature.

Let me digress: For me, who is the first to publish an article online, today is a memorable day. Because, today, the number of hits on "Rebirth of the Qing Empire" exceeded 10,000! I am very happy and satisfied.

!During this period, I have met many comrades, received support from many friends, and been promoted by online editors. Thank you very much!