It is not easy to find a fast-moving warship on the vast sea, especially when the warship has a high speed.
Datang Group's engine technology has always been the best in the world, and even Cyric has never questioned this.
In the first two racing competitions sponsored by Datang Group, the team of Datang Group won the well-deserved first place.
This also reflects from the side that Datang Group has strong technical reserves and amazing sense of innovation in the power system.
The Weigang-class cruiser, also known as the previous Wolf-class cruiser, has a sharp bow that separates the waves like an arrow and speeds across the vast sea.
This battleship was ordered to set off from Linshui Port and carry out the task of going north alone to harass the maritime transportation lines of the Mirage Kingdom. However, it is still difficult to find the Mirage Kingdom's transport ships in the endless sea.
Although the route of the Mirage people has been roughly known, there are also a large number of patrolling Mirage warships near this route, so the warships of the Tang Dynasty must be very careful to avoid alerting the enemy.
You must know that the warships in the navies of various countries are equipped with radio telegraphs, and their communication capabilities are much better than those of the army.
Once these warning posts are triggered, the enemy's navy will soon attack and sink the invading opponent with more bullies and fewer enemies.
If the main fleet had not already moved north and was already quite close to the war zone, the Tang Navy would not even be willing to dispatch warships to prove its presence.
Now that things are going well, Bernard's fleet has begun to head north, and everyone has gained confidence. The calls for war are getting louder and louder, so this operation codenamed Stepping Stone was launched.
This operation is to send a cruiser to use its speed to cut off the transportation line between Mirage Kingdom and Beiyuan City.
The captain of the Tang Army stood on the bridge, looking at the sea in the distance with a telescope. He didn't want to miss a target, nor did he want to fall into a trap.
"Is the position correct?" After cutting to this route, the captain asked the same question for the third time.
The navigator, who was writing on the chart table, confirmed his route again, nodded and replied: "Yes, sir! I think we are already on their route."
"Keep the course!" the captain gave the order, then walked to the navigator and said, "I hope you are right, we did not encounter any enemies here."
"I also hope I didn't make a mistake." The navigator smiled awkwardly. In fact, none of them can guarantee that they will not make a mistake.
It is possible that they are not on their route at all now. It is possible that they are hundreds of kilometers away from that route. The navigation technology of this era is so outrageous.
Therefore, before the enemy was actually discovered, everyone on the bridge was irritable, restless, and a little nervous.
Naval battles without radar and reconnaissance aircraft are so boring and embarrassing: sometimes there is no trace of the enemy for several days or even ten days.
"Should we adjust the route?" the first mate put forward his opinion somewhat uncertainly.
The captain shook his head and explained helplessly: "The more we maneuver, the more difficult it will be to calibrate. After a few more twists and turns, we will have no choice but to return."
"Besides, we really have no way to prove that we are not on their route." He picked up the telescope again and pointed it at the distant sea.
Finally, more than two hours later, a dark plume of smoke appeared on the horizon in front of them.
The lookout sentry on the mast rubbed his sore eyes, then picked up the telescope and looked carefully, and then shouted loudly to his feet: "Target found!"
"Target found!" the soldiers waiting below shouted, and the captain became excited for a moment. He suddenly picked up the telescope and looked in the direction of his men's fingers.
Sure enough, he saw some black smoke gradually spreading on the horizon. Obviously, it was an enemy ship!
"Sound the battle alarm! Load the shells! Move closer! Move closer! Prepare to fight!" The captain excitedly issued a series of orders.
After the order was given, he looked at the navigator and smiled: "Well done, young man!"
"This is what I should do." The navigator stood at attention and saluted, and breathed a sigh of relief at the same time. He was also very nervous just now, not knowing whether he really took the wrong route.
Soon, a piercing battle alarm sounded inside the battleship. Red lights began to flash, and from time to time, personnel ran towards their fighting posts.
Everyone is wearing life jackets and helmets on their heads. The gun positions are already full of people, and the palms of the loaders are already pressed on the spare shells.
"The enemy ship is at 12 o'clock! Heading due west, distance is 35 kilometers!" Looking up from the rangefinder, the petty officer loudly reported the status of the enemy ship.
"Measure the opponent's speed! Notify the port side gun position, we will turn first and engage the enemy on the port side!" The captain looked at the first officer and gave the order.
"The enemy ship is turning!" Soon, the lookout sent back the news. Apparently the enemy ship had also discovered the cruiser of the Tang Dynasty lying on the route.
"Keep the speed!" The captain raised his telescope and continued to order while observing the enemy ship.
"Keep the speed!" the officer in charge of the speed shouted, and the atmosphere on the bridge became completely tense.
"Left rudder 15 degrees!" In order to seize the position, the captain quickly gave the order to turn the rudder again.
The helmsman turned the steering wheel in front of him. After completing the operation, he repeated: "Left rudder 15 degrees!"
"The enemy ships are turning! They are turning left!" The soldiers at the lookout continued to observe the enemy's situation and loudly reported what they had just seen.
"You're running really fast! Return to the rudder, right rudder 5 degrees!" The captain stared at the black smoke emitting from the enemy ship in the distance and rested his order.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! The opponent wants to use the same steering to get away, but it is obvious that the Tang warship has a clear advantage in speed.
The speed of Mirage's transport ship is probably less than 10 knots, which is much lower than that of the Weigang-class cruiser. Moreover, the two sides are heading towards each other, so the distance is very close.
"The distance is 15 kilometers!" The officer next to the rangefinder loudly reported the distance between the two sides.
"I didn't see any artillery on the enemy ship, it should be a transport ship!" More exciting news came from the observation post.
"Continue to observe, can you match the ship model in the intelligence?" The captain looked to the other side, looking at his men who were looking through the enemy ship model outline comparison manual.
The man raised his head, shook his head and said, "I haven't seen any obvious features, so I can't confirm the model number yet."
"10 kilometers away!" Because the rudder has not been adjusted, the sharp bow of the cruiser has been pointed at the distant target again at this time.
"Fire a cannon to scare the other party, maybe the other party will surrender." The captain decisively found something to do for the gunners who were waiting for him.
"Boom!" A few seconds later, a cannonball rushed towards the target. However, due to the distance, the place where the cannonball hit the water was far from the enemy ship's location.
"The enemy has completed the turn!" the soldiers in the lookout post shouted loudly.
"Return to the rudder! Head to the enemy! Continue the pursuit!" The captain stared at the enemy transport ship that was getting bigger and bigger in his eyes, with an excited look on his face.
This kind of enemy ship that won't fight back even if killed is simply too easy to fight. It's really not fun to attack such a ship.
"The enemy ship is 8 kilometers away!" Time passed by, and finally, the officer next to the rangefinder reported the actual distance between the two sides again.
"Keep firing! All the artillery on the bow of the ship will fire as long as there is an attack window! No need to hesitate! There is no need to wait for orders anymore." Captain.
"Boom! Boom!" The three cannons on the bow of the ship all started roaring, and one shell after another flew towards the target in the distance.
"Missed!" the observer shouted, almost dumbfounded. He fired six shots in a row, but not a single near-miss was found, let alone good news such as cross-fire.
The captain picked up the telescope and comforted him: "Don't worry! Take your time! They can't run away!"
Before he finished speaking, another shell flew out from the bow turret. This time it did not disappoint everyone. It accurately landed on the tail of the enemy ship in the distance that kept running away.
"Boom!" With a loud noise, a ball of flames rose from the rear of the enemy ship, followed by black smoke.
"Beautiful!" Even the captain cheered excitedly, which shows how much luck there was in this shot. To be honest, it was not surprising to everyone that after three more rounds of salvo fire, it could hit the target.
This time, I was extremely lucky. I only fired seven shots and hit the enemy ship at a distance of about 6 kilometers. The atmosphere in the entire battleship became lively at once.
"The enemy ship's speed is decreasing!" Good news came from the observation post.
"The enemy ship is 5 kilometers away!" The officer next to the rangefinder raised his head again.
"The enemy ship seems to have hoisted a white flag!" The first mate held the telescope and saw a huge white flag through the drifting black smoke.
"Huh?" The captain was stunned for a moment, and then he also observed carefully.
Indeed, the enemy ship hoisted a white flag.
"Stop the bombardment! Move over! Take a look at the situation!" The captain frowned, not knowing what tricks the enemy ship was playing.
The distance between the two sides continued to shrink, and soon the Tang Army's cruiser was lying next to the Mirage transport ship, which had reduced its speed.
Only then did the captain of the Tang Army realize that it turned out to be a mirage troop transport ship. In order to increase efficiency, the troop transport ship that could only carry one battalion was actually packed with two battalions and more than 1,000 people.
They surrendered because they knew they could not escape. If they continued to be bombarded, these more than 1,000 army infantrymen would sink with the ship and go to the bottom of the sea to feed the fish.
