The sun never sets in America

Chapter 390 Sacrifice and Victory

"When the war comes to an end, it is often the bravest who survive!!"

An interview with Gan Changsheng published in a post-war newspaper.

When the Poseidon sank on the sea fifteen kilometers away from Cuba, the entire Caribbean fleet was not far away from real defeat.

On the battlefield, the roar was the loudest sound besides the "didi telegraph sound". The sound was so loud that even inside the ship, messages were conveyed by shouting.

From this, you can imagine how far this naval battle, which has lasted for an hour and a half, has reached now.

It can be seen from the sky that if at the beginning, the sky was still bright when the sun had just set, then now, if it were not for the searchlight, it would be impossible to see where the other party was.

When searchlights appeared in the hazy black screen accompanied by artillery fire, the real climax of this naval battle had just begun.

"Raise the muzzle fifteen degrees——"

"Target front deck——"

It sounds feasible, but Huo Anting understands that this is simply a "dream", thinking everything too well.

"Captain, we can't hesitate any longer. If this continues, everyone will be doomed!!"

"Notify the maintenance personnel, continue the maintenance, turn the power unit to the maximum, and the naval gun is fully loaded——"

"Moreover, our army is now the closest to victory. How can we delay the opportunity to fight and ruin military and national affairs because of our waiting?"

If the Han navy is a cunning hunter, then its counterpart, the US navy, is a typical jaguar.

Listening to the persuasion of the people around him, Huo Anting closed his eyes slightly, opened them slowly after a while, and said in a vicissitudes of tone:

Another person shouted, and there was a hint of open-mindedness and heroism unique to Han soldiers in the shout, which made people's hearts boil.

When the Shihuang's artillery fire accurately covered the Boston, the Qin Zhaoxiang King, which was entangled with the New York, was experiencing the most dangerous moment since the day.

If the sea water switches back and forth between calm and chaos, then the US ship opposite is truly "miserable".

Bombardment in the dark especially tests the abilities of gunners and commanders. In the Han Navy, which is known for its strictness, the courses on night warfare have been learned as early as the naval academy. After entering the navy, night naval warfare is still the mainstream. exercise topics.

Huo Anting had just finished speaking, and the whole place was silent for a while. Finally, a major in charge of power slammed his general's hat on the ground and cursed: "No matter what, you will die. I died on the way to charge. No injustice, worth it!!”

"The warship is leaking. If it were dawn, there would still be a chance to repair it, but now it's impossible. It's too dark and repairs can't be made."

Under the night, searchlights are scurrying everywhere, and artillery shells are constantly flying "randomly" in the sky. As for who will become the lucky spectator, you have to see whether the direction of aim is accurate.

If the Americans on the opposite side were so easy to fool, they wouldn't have been fighting from day to day, and they should have been eliminated long ago.

Just as the King Qin Zhaoxiang was making final preparations, the secondary fleet a few kilometers away had reached its final moments.

"I did it too. I have been in the army for ten years. I also swore an oath under the military flag in the past. If I want to die today, I will die. No need to say more-"

"Quickly, fight back quickly!!"

During the day, these American battleships could still fight back and forth with Han warships, but after entering the night, the US Navy's inability to fight at night was continuously amplified, and the loophole was eventually seized by the mixed fleet.

On the King Qinzhuangxiang, orders continued to appear about adjusting the angle of the gun muzzle and where to shoot the opposite US ship.

Huo Anting shook his head, and then said:
"This battle is of great significance to our navy. We must not ruin the navy's plans or national affairs because of us!!"

"It's dark at this time, but the Americans on the other side don't know. Even if we leave the battlefield for a while, no one will know-"

The speaker was a young artillery major. As a talented officer under the age of thirty, his heroic spirit put many hesitant naval officers to shame. Inspired by this spirit, he joined the ranks of "calm" .

Two minutes later, the battleship Qin Zhuangxiang, which was adjusting slowly in the dark, finally fired its first bombardment in the dark.

"Gentlemen, I'm afraid Huo is going to take a boat with you to swim in the underworld -"

"Keep reloading!!"

Normally he looks powerful and flexible in fighting, but when he encounters a tough opponent, his small physique is completely exposed.

Looking at the people in front of him, Huo Anting's eyes were wet, and he finally said in an affirmative tone: "You are willing to die to serve the country, Huo, why bother with this life? The Americans thought we were finished, but little did they know that a common man's blood would be splashed a hundred steps in anger. Although our ship is damaged, the gap can still be temporarily filled. Fight to the end and show those foreigners what a soldier is and what a real man is!!"

"Captain Huo, there is a leak on the right side of our ship, and water has been poured into it. I request to temporarily withdraw from the battle!!"

"captain---"

Gan Changsheng's expression was much more serious than before, but judging from the relief in his eyebrows, he was much more relaxed than before.

Listening to Huo Anting's words, many people already understood what he was going to do, but there were still some who were unwilling to refute:

Boom boom! !
Before the commander of the Chicago had finished speaking, a new round of shelling struck.

"hurry up---"

There seemed to be "stars" in Huo Anting's eyes, and his whole person was full of "mighty spirit" just like the heroes who sacrificed their lives for righteousness that he admired when he was a child.

It is also for this reason that the artillery fire just launched can accurately hit the Chicago, which has just fired the shells and is about to continue loading, when the line of sight is so poor.

"This time, I will bite off a piece of meat even if I die!!"

The dense shells are like the sea breeze that may appear at any time, causing the sea surface illuminated by the night to boil and calm again and again.

"Boom!"

After all, the dark night is the real home ground of the Han Navy.

"I also obey, death is nothing, life is nothing, I would rather die standing than live on my knees!!"

Although the core of naval battles is the exchange of bombardments between "giant ships and cannons", there are also huge differences. The biggest difference is the navy's attitude towards emergencies.

"Turn, turn!!"

"Speed ​​up, speed up-"

On the King of Zhou Wu, Luo Wenping, who was the commander of the entire mixed fleet, had a ferocious expression and looked like he was doing something very terrible.

The telegrams from King Zhou Wu have not stopped since the beginning of the war. If Shihuang is the core of the battleship, then King Wu of Zhou is the core of these secondary ships.

After King Zhou Wu delivered the last battle message, the remaining eight warships performed what is called "tacit understanding" in the dark night.

[Ten ships in total, two cruisers sunk]

If the moderate bombardment in the dark night means that the Han Navy belongs to the first echelon in the world, then when the straight battle line unfolds, the Royal Navy may be the only one in the world who can match it.

It is even possible that the Royal Navy may not be able to meet such standards, after all, it is too dark.

When the eight warships led by King Zhou Wu and flying the dragon flag under the night looked at the American ships opposite with the most "simple" smiles.

The Americans on the opposite side are falling into panic. They don't know what is happening. Why are these "devils" still able to form a battle line so late.

You must know that even if it is daytime, it is not a very simple thing to form it so quickly.

But in such a dim environment, those Han people really accomplished a miracle, a miracle in the history of the navy.

But it is a pity that miracles do not belong to the United States! !

Boom boom! ! !

If we say that the cannonballs fired randomly under the cover of night or looking for opportunities to be fired are hunting arrows. It belongs to the kind that if you have it, you have it, and if you don’t have it, you don’t have it.

The shells fired from the battle line were like meteors, dense and "dazzling", but this dazzling was simply a nightmare for the Americans on the opposite side! !

A complete nightmare! ! !

.............................................

Boom boom boom! ! !
The artillery fire formed by the battle line continued to wash away the "souls" of the seven American ships on the opposite side.

Whenever a U.S. ship is preparing to counterattack alone, or has already counterattacked, it is often the time when it is concentrated and targeted with firepower.

So much so that in the later period, there was even "escape". If it weren't for the stuck position, they might have run away long ago.

However, these actions still caused serious psychological damage to the American ship on the opposite side. "Boom!!!"

When several shells fired from King Zhou Wu hit the front deck of one of the cruisers, several nearby Han warships followed closely and concentrated their firepower on the cruiser, which had already exposed its position.

The opponent who was hit for a while was completely unable to fight back.

"Fake!!"

"Oumai..."

These two sentences in English are common mantras spoken by the American ships on the opposite side. Now with the battle situation completely out of balance, they have completely lost their emotional management.

"boom!!"

Several shells exploded on the bridge, killing many observers, and then several more shells completely destroyed the opponent's searchlight.

Without the searchlight, this cruiser has basically become blind.

Subsequently, with the special care of several Han warships, the cruiser named "Hank Soldier" sank to the bottom of the sea.

"The overall situation has been decided!!"

This is what Luo Wenping said on the King of Zhou Wu when the cruiser sank.

His words are by no means groundless. In fact, from the beginning of the war to the present, the US Navy has actually been "exhausted". Entering the night battle, it was frequently suppressed by the Han army.

Even now, it has become a one-sided siege. The only thing that can be considered balanced at present is probably the two battleships that are still fighting happily.

As for the cruiser Hank Soldier just now, in Luo Wenping's view, it was the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Continue to increase the pressure and see how long they can survive!!"

When he said this, Luo Wenping was full of confidence.

For him, the end of this war also meant his personal success and recognition of his status in history.

Apart from anything else, Luo Wenping's name definitely has his name in the military history and Han history.

Even a hundred years from now, someone will still remember his name.

This has been the biggest dream of warriors since ancient times: "To expand the territory, to defeat powerful enemies thousands of miles away, to have immortal merits for generations to come!!"

Human beings are such a complex body of contradictions. No matter how pure-hearted a person is, he still has things he cares about.

For civil and military officials, what is more important than "leaving a name in history"! !
On the secondary battlefield, the situation suddenly changed, and the war was coming to an end.

.........

"Isn't the ship on the opposite side injured? How could it be??"

On the New York, fleet commander Nancy couldn't understand why a warship that had been severely damaged just now and was about to withdraw from the war miraculously came to life and was still shelling them.

"Damn it, no matter what, I'll kill you first!!"

Nancy thought of the news that had just come from the Chicago, and no longer thought about the topic of "injury or not", but accelerated directly, preparing to use "counter-sniper" method to kill this ship that had been pestering her from day to now. their guys.

On the opposite side, King Qin Zhaoxiang not only did not fear, but instead tried his best to cater to him.

When both sides entered the firing range, the artillery battle also started.

Boom boom boom! !

A dense rain of bullets hit the somewhat "bumpy" King Qin Zhaoxiang from the naval guns on the New York, directly disrupting the firing rhythm of the King Qin Zhaoxiang.

If Huo Anting hadn't always said he wanted to be "stabilized", he might have "unable to hold it in" now and something would happen.

In the end, the relatively sturdy King Qin Zhaoxiang, relying on the desperate protection of the maintenance personnel, was able to withstand this most dangerous wave of artillery fire.

Entering into a real moment of physical combat.

The artillery fire from both sides seemed to be free, hitting each other, but judging from the battle situation, the New York, with thicker armor and stronger firepower, clearly had the upper hand.

And this advantage is still expanding with the adjustment of the entire New York.

All in all, if King Qin Zhaoxiang does not break away, it will definitely be the one who dies in the end.

If a normal warship encounters this situation, it should find a way to escape or even escape directly.

But the King Qin Zhaoxiang did not. Instead, uncharacteristically, he moved forward in the dark and headed towards the New York! !

It may also be that the night was a cover that caused the New York on the opposite side to misjudge the distance between the two sides, or it was the arrogance of the impending victory that made the command staff, including Nancy, unaware of the approach of the King Qin Zhaoxiang.

When the distance reached a few hundred meters, the people on the New York suddenly woke up from a dream. A terrible "idea" suddenly popped into Nancy's mind. Not even two seconds passed, the King Qin Zhaoxiang continued to accelerate on the opposite side. The speed frightened him so much that his heart almost jumped out of his chest.

"Quick, retreat quickly!!"

"Fire, fire!!"

After realizing something was wrong, Nancy kept shouting "Retreat". After shouting, she did not forget to order to fire the artillery shells, delaying the opponent's movements.

In the age of sails, this distance of a few hundred meters would be enough for both parties to separate smoothly, but in the age of steam ironclads, a distance of several hundred meters would be the same as nothing.

In less than a minute, King Qin Zhaoxiang was less than thirty meters away from the New York.

Maybe it was accelerating too fast, but the smoke coming out of the entire Qin Zhaoxiang King's chimney could be seen clearly even in the dark with the moonlight.

The gray-black smoke enveloped everything around it and took away the lives of 600 soldiers of King Qin Zhaoxiang.

"Boom!!"

When the bows of the King Qin Zhaoxiang and the New York were staggered, before the other party could react, the tilted King Qin Zhaoxiang directly pressed on the other party as the water poured in.

"Fake!!"

Seeing the New York, which was suppressed by half the deck and stuck, Nancy had the urge to kill someone with a knife.

"Boom!!"

When it was completely flooded, the heavier Qin Zhaoxiang King finally completely overwhelmed the New York, which was several thousand tons larger than it.

This process lasted for seven or eight minutes, and by the ninth minute, slowly, both parties were immersed in the sea water.

Perhaps it was God's blessing or a trick of fate. When several lifeboats representing both sides met together, a "unique" bayonet fight at sea officially started.

The final result ended with one Chinese ship alive and all American ships destroyed.

There was no Huo Anting on that ship, because he had already sunk into the sea with the King Qin Zhaoxiang.

As he wrote in his suicide note:
"When I was a child, I was playful and eager to learn about heroes. When I was young, I wielded a sword and imitated the loyalty of heroes. Later, I joined the army for ten years. Thanks to the blessing of my ancestors, I was appointed as the captain of the battleship King Qin Zhaoxiang. Later, I was called into the mixed fleet to fight. Today Because of the accident, everyone has the ambition to die together. If the plan succeeds, he will no longer be a big man and will no longer have the chivalrous spirit of a young man. If it fails, he will still be a hero!!"

"If future generations join the army, they must not forget the word family and country!!"

On the Caribbean battlefield at this moment, the situation of the war has become completely clear.

With the New York and King Qin Zhaoxiang perishing together, the Caribbean Fleet has lost its biggest "spiritual pillar".

And as the Chicago was seriously injured and completely lost its combat effectiveness, the remaining Boston was also unable to support itself.

"Boom!!"

With the subsequent injection of more than a dozen shells, the USS Chicago, the battleship named after the city of Chicago, slowly sank into the Caribbean ocean.

With the demise of the Chicago, the remaining Boston quickly hoisted the white flag under "coercion".

In the secondary battlefield, as another cruiser was sunk, the remaining two cruisers and two battleships had also entered a "panic".

Ten minutes later, as the huge figure of the Shihuang appeared here, the last spiritual pillar of the US Navy completely collapsed! !
On the night of the last day of the 22nd year of Longwu, this Caribbean battle, which has gone down in history, finally cost the Han Navy a battleship and two cruisers, and annihilated four battleships and four cruisers of the U.S. Navy. Three battleships and two cruisers were captured, for a total of thirteen battleships.

(End of this chapter)