In the eastern Pacific Ocean, 30 nautical miles northeast of German Cliburton Island, the US Atlantic Fleet, flagship of the Wyoming-class battleship "Arkansas", is sailing northward at full speed.

The beautiful scenery of the setting sun can relax a person's mood or make a person think a lot. Lieutenant General Conway, deputy commander of the US Atlantic Fleet standing on the bridge of the USS Arkansas, felt very uncomfortable. Lieutenant General Conway, as a soldier, had no objection to this, but the current development of the situation has made him increasingly confused.

Wearing a thick dark blue military coat, Convey silently enjoyed the cold sea breeze in the Pacific Ocean. At this time, about 8 nautical miles behind his fleet, a small Japanese fleet followed like a ghost. For the Japanese cruiser fleet consisting of six cruisers and two supply ships, before receiving the instructions of the naval commander General Sims, Convey and his fleet could not take any measures against the Japanese for the time being, and the Japanese did not make any hostile moves.

Despite this, Kang Wei knew very well that when he came here thousands of miles away, the Japanese absolutely did not have any kindness tolerant, so he put the ships into alert, and all the sailors were on standby at their respective posts.

There were more than 9,000 American sailors in the fleet of Conway, and the total number of sailors should be 13,000 when each ship was full. In other words, before his Atlantic Fleet set off, about one-third of the sailors did not have time to return to the Norfolk Naval Base. Lieutenant General Conway was also a dumb man, because the documents that approved most of the sailors' vacation were signed by Conway's name, but this situation was something he had never expected at the beginning.

As for the British, Canadian, Australian, and new sailors on these warships, some of whom were transferred to the remaining warships of Churchill on their return flights, and those who returned to Norfolk military port with these warships were left at the US naval base. The British government's salary was paid and the US government was in charge of the meals, so these people were at peace with playing cards and having fun.

When footsteps sounded behind him, Kang Wei took his eyes back from the vast sea.

The visitor was Conway's staff officer, 36-year-old Colonel Ernest. He had directly observed the Japanese naval battle as a military observer and had a relatively good understanding of the tactics and strength of the Japanese navy. Moreover, the commander of the Japanese fleet this time was Togo Hirahachiro who led the joint fleet to defeat the Russian fleet.

"General, the Norfolk base sent a telegram, and 80% of the remaining 3700 sailors have returned to the base to report. They want to know how to arrange these sailors, whether they will wait in Norfolk, or come and meet with the fleet as soon as possible?"

"Let them stay in Norfolk for the time being! When they arrive on land by land, the world will be peaceful long ago!" Conway said this because the United States is too large and because the British area is too small. Germany is about to launch a landing attack recently. Governments and armies around the world have focused on the small British Isles. Those who support the British hope to see the landing German troops being squeezed into the sea, while those who support the Germans are looking forward to seeing the British mainland invaded again after the Roman Empire. Most neutrals are curious about the landing mode in the era of the German army's cannon ships. Some people with sudden whims even hope to take airships to watch the battle. However, the German government has solemnly warned these adventurers not to rashly go to the UK to visit the UK before the end of the Battle of Britain.

"Yes, General James sent a signal asking you to approve him to lead several battleships to drive away the Japanese warships following our fleet!"

"This James is still so anxious! He told him that we will have a chance to repair the Japanese, but not now! I think when our Atlantic Fleet meets with the Pacific Fleet, the Japanese will retreat!"

Regarding the sudden appearance of the Japanese fleet, Convey could only sigh at the political sense of the Japanese. As a naval general, he felt that the big reason for this situation was to the US Congress that reduced the shipbuilding case proposed by the Navy Department several times, otherwise the Japanese Navy would not have jumped to the point where it could compete with the US Navy in just ten years. However, Convey and most naval generals were not worried about this. First, they were very confident in the design and construction technology of their own country's warships, and second, they could also stimulate Congress through this matter. As long as Congress approves the shipbuilding budget, with the US industry and shipbuilding strength, the US Navy will be beyond the reach of the Japanese in a few years. Many people even believed that the strength of the US Navy could completely surpass Germany, the new world's first navy after the decline of Britain.

Alameda Naval Base, West Coast, United States.

On the mast of the forest, star-striped flags were bathed in the bright red sunlight. Most of the waning sunset had already sunk to the sea level. The dreamy sunset in the sky made people intoxicated, but the busy scene on the pier was incompatible with this calmness. Military vehicles painted with white five-pointed stars were carrying a large amount of supplies, food, daily necessities, and ammunition were continuously sent to the warships parked in the harbor.

Outside the base, many American civilians looked at this vibrant harbor from afar. The majestic warships with gun barrels have become their pride at this time. The voices opposing the expansion of the naval scale suddenly disappeared without a trace with the arrival of the Japanese fleet. The naval conscription, which was usually neglected, stood after Christmas and lined up a team longer than the relief distribution point. The Americans' self-esteem and competitive spirit were stimulated.

On the dock next to one of the battleships, a group of people who seemed to be senior generals were talking about something, and it looked like a group of officers were seeing off the other group. Soon after, a young naval captain ran down from the battleship, and he walked straight to one of the frigid generals with a piece of paper in his hand.

"General, Mr. President sends a telegram!"

Everyone suddenly became quiet, and the general silently received the telegram. There were only two lines of words on the paper, but it contained Wilson and the government's expectations for the navy.

"Okay, everyone! This is not a combat operation, but we must let our opponents know our strength! What we are going to bring to the world is a stronger shock than the Great White Fleet 7 years ago! For those non-friendly countries, we must let them understand that invasion of the United States of America will be the stupidest thing!"

After the general said that, he shook hands and said goodbye to the officers next to him, and finally ordered the communication officer:

"The fleet set sail at 12 o'clock in the evening! Notify Lieutenant General Kang Wei and we will go directly to meet them!"

At 12 a.m. on December 27, 1914, the American Pacific Fleet and the German landing fleet chose this time to set sail. The Americans were to show their strength, while the Germans were to fight a battle of destiny.

After the sun sank to sea level, the dark sky did not immediately come, but the light on the sea gradually began to dim. The water reconnaissance plane that successfully hit Churchill's ship Utah with torpedoes had returned to the raid fleet, and the cruisers Frenberg and Will began to retract them. The slightly injured Munich left the raid fleet and went to take over the surrendered Knight, and the battleships "Election Emperor" and "Oldenburg" continued to shoot at the British battleship fleet ten thousand yards away.

At this time, the speed of the battleship Utah battleship had completely slowed down. As hundreds of tons of sea water poured in from the torpedo hole, its ship was tilted ten degrees towards the starboard side of the shot. In desperation, Churchill had to order a large amount of water to be poured into the bottom cabin. Although the deck of the Utah was restored to a level, the entire battleship was like a buffalo full of water. No matter how hard the British sailors tried, its speed could no longer exceed 5 knots. As for the other two British battleships, the Florida and Bend, which had not yet been hit, no longer approached the German raid fleet directly, but sailed 45 degrees with the direction of the German fleet's advance, so that the main guns of the two British battleships could fire to the same side.

When the Utah was no longer able to continue fighting, the battlefield here had become a gun competition between two German battleships and two British battleships at a distance of 12,000 yards. The Germans had obvious advantages. The school shooting aircraft was still hovering above the British warships. The Germans could shoot 18 305mm main guns in one volley, while the British had 10 305mm and 4 280mm main guns. The Germans had the battleships that were known as the strongest defense in the world, while the British were American battleships with weaker defense than those made by Britain.

But this group of British people did not retreat. The 3,977 British naval officers and soldiers on the three battleships, including the Utah, were making final efforts. Not far behind them, the transport fleet was approaching the land with the hope of the whole British people. People may become extremely calm when facing death. The gunners on the British battleship were exhausted, but they still stuffed shells and fired medicine into the barrel under the high temperature. When the German fleet's firing rate gradually decreased, the British miraculously maintained their initial rate of fire. Every two minutes, three waves of British shells flew towards the German fleet with the determination of British sailors to fight. However, some things were irreplaceable by willpower. British shells still fell hundreds of yards away from the German battleship, blowing up countless small fish, shrimps and seaweed in the sea.

"The fleet turns left 30 degrees and heads 42 degrees northeastward!"

After shooting against the British battleship fleet, Hippel issued the first order to turn, which also caused the two fleets to advance in reverse directions in an approximately parallel manner. Denitz's submarine formation had just sent a telegram that they were still 20 nautical miles away from the battlefield. They had no way to arrive before dark, but for Hippel and his raid fleet, it was only a matter of time before sinking the three British battleships.

The first star appeared in the horizon did not bring good luck to the British. The first wave of volleys after the German fleet turned, the "Florida" that fired a wave of shells more than ten seconds ago, and the three armor-piercing bombs hit the waterline of the warship's bow, the top of the No. 2 turret and the central boiler cabin. Its bow was blown out with a large hole of four meters in diameter, and the warship suddenly became a silly leather boot. As a large amount of sea water surged into the thunder, the ship was still slashing the waves.

The warship that was advancing suddenly stalled and finally could only float on the sea and could not move; the half-ton armor-piercing shell penetrated the armor on the top of the turret No. 2 and fell into the inside of the turret. After a loud bang, shrapnel flew across the turret, and nothing survived in the turret; as for the armor-piercing shell hitting the boiler compartment in the middle of the warship, most of the power of the "Florida" was cut off from the source, and the flying shrapnel, the powerful air waves and violent vibration made most of the British sailors in the boiler compartment lose consciousness in an instant.

Although the remaining four main turrets of the Florida were still making final efforts, Churchill realized that his combat fleet could not delay much time, and the Germans would never be lenient with targets such as Utah and Florida, which were similar to fixed targets. Bend is just an armored battleship belonging to the era of the Great White Fleet, and 4 or 5 Bends are not opponents of the German raid fleet.

"Thank God, I have done my duty!" Churchill borrowed Nelson's words, but his tone was far from Nelson's tragic spirit. Before Nelson died, he saw the victory of Britain, while before Churchill failed, he saw the slim future of Britain.

"Sir, the Germans send a signal to us to surrender!" The adjutant pointed at the German fleet on the distant sea in panic. The smoke pillar above the fleet looked like a black cloud of a terrifying storm, and it ruthlessly swallowed everything Churchill had.

"Continue to fight! We will die as gloriously as Nelson!" Churchill sat back on the chair silently. He never expected that the magic box he opened with his own hands would destroy the British Empire.

"But sir, your talent is very useful for our army to resist the German attack. Don't you want to drive the Germans back to your hometown with your own hands? I think there should be no big problem with our transport fleet to escape from danger. It is of course honorable to die here, but isn't it better to keep a useful body and continue fighting?"

The adjutant actively lobbled Churchill for retreating. Of course, this inconspicuous officer did not see Churchill's talent. He just didn't want to die here. There was cold sea water outside, and unless Churchill took him on the Bend to evacuate, he would not have the chance to return to the British mainland.

Churchill fell into deep thought. He was not afraid of death, but he was really unwilling to die now. Moreover, his book "German Aircraft, Nothing to Be afraid" has not yet been completed, so he doesn't want to be scolded as TJ. After experiencing this battle, his understanding of German Aircraft has become more practical.

"Will the king and the people spare me? The fleet we exchanged for for land has lost so much in my hands..." Churchill suddenly raised his head and looked at the sea ahead with pessimism. Most of the warships that had sunk before were gone. Judging from the current situation, the Utah and the Florida have no chance to escape from the hands of the Germans.

"Sir, you have been over-considered. It is a great achievement to bring 40 ships of arms back to the land. The people will definitely thank you!"

"40 ships of arms..." Churchill felt that this was a very funny thing. Those arms were gifts from this transaction, but now they have become the big deal for being shipped back to Britain.

"Look, we're hitting the German battleship!" The other officers in the command room suddenly shouted excitedly, and Churchill jumped up from his chair.

In the telescope, the explosion of fire had just dissipated, and the black smoke from the explosion remained above the German warship, but what made the British deflated was that the warship did not burn at all. The 280mm shell of the Bend seemed to have only left traces on the skin of the German battleship.

Soon, the fire balls and white smoke ejected from the main muzzle of the German battleship proved that it was "healthy" and full of vitality. Then another German battleship opened fire. The solitary "Bend" was not so lucky. Although the few near-missile bombs landed near its port side waterline did not leave any fire or thick smoke, it blasted the white-painted warship into several large holes. Soon, the British sailors on the ship announced the failure to plug the leak, and the last battleship of the Churchill fleet began to sink irreversibly.

"Oh my God!" Churchill's adjutant looked depressed.

"Is it that God wants to destroy me? I don't want to spend the rest of my life in the German prisoner-of-war camp. Once the Germans occupy Britain, they will sooner or later know that I arranged the matter..." Churchill finally felt desperate, and he began to wonder what kind of death was the most glorious.

"Look, the Germans are sending signals again, they... they make us surrender!" The young adjutant obviously still has too much attachment to the world.

After the hull of the Bend began to tilt, considering that the sky was getting darker, the German plane that had been hovering over the British fleet returned, so the Hippel fleet did not find any British submarines coming from behind the dying British battleships. After untiing the destroyer's tow cables, seven British submarines in the British special fleet slowly chased after them with their own power.

About a quarter of an hour later, when the German fleet was slowly approaching and the unsinkable British battleship was still insisting on shooting, Churchill, who survived the disaster and the adjutant who was extremely attached to the world, came to a "Holland II" submarine. Most of the British sailors with oily faces stared at the former British Navy Minister. After the British submarine suffered heavy losses in front of the German sonar and deep-water bombs, the British Navy did not have any extra submarine soldiers. This time, the people sent to the United States to receive submarines were mostly British sailors who had served on surface ships before, and many of them had contacted real submarines for the first time.

"Hello, sir, welcome to the submarine "Statouille"! British Royal Navy Lieutenant Roll pays tribute to you and asks for your next action!" The British captain, who had not experienced the cruel battle just now, did not have a trace of fear in his tone. Seeing the tragic situation of three British battleships left on the sea, the British sailors who were already fleeing the warships were more angry in his heart, and this mood seemed to have infected Churchill.

"Lieutenant, do you have torpedoes on your submarine?"

“Abundant torpedoes!”

"Where is the oil?"

"Enough to return to the UK!"

"Okay! Let's suck one or two fucking German battleships before leaving!" Churchill said gritting his teeth.
Chapter completed!