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Text Chapter 213 Sino-Japanese Naval Battle in the East China Sea

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    The performance of the light cruiser "Leshan" undoubtedly gave the Japanese who asked for instructions from the Western Sichuan Navy a severe slap in the face, allowing them to gradually calm down from the arrogance of defeating the Beiyang Fleet.  Just one light cruiser from Western Sichuan left them helpless. There were so many powerful warships in Western Sichuan. Is it possible for the Japanese combined fleet to win this naval battle?  Many Japanese navy soldiers asked themselves.

    However, on the battlefield, there is not so much time for them to think about these things.  At 11:30, the light cruiser "Qijiang" rushed to the battlefield, and together with the "Leshan" launched a fierce attack on the Japanese Navy's first guerrilla force.  The two light cruisers, with their high speed and fierce fire, left a deep impression on the Japanese navy, and they were basically in a state of being beaten.  If this continues, they will only have the order to be sunk.

    As a last resort, Heyuan Kaname, commander of the First Guerrilla Force of the Japanese Combined Fleet, issued an order to retreat.  Reunited with the main unit of the Combined Fleet, and relied on its strong strength advantage to force the Western Sichuan Navy to retreat.

    After the Japanese fleet turned, the "Leshan" and "Qijiang" immediately followed.  Among the first guerrillas of the Japanese Combined Fleet, the "Takachiho" and "Naniwa" have a maximum speed of only 18 knots, which is far from the opponent of the Western Sichuan Navy.  Including the injured "Akitsusu", the speed was only 20 knots.  Even if they turned to escape to the north, they could not escape the pursuit of the Western Sichuan Navy.

    At 11:50, four other "Leshan-class" light cruisers, "Panzhihua", "Guangyuan", "Bazhong" and "Zigong" rushed to the battlefield.  Immediately, the Western Sichuan Navy took a huge advantage, which also represented the end of the first guerrilla force of the Japanese Combined Fleet.  The "Panzhihua" took the initiative to confront the "Yoshino", while the "Bazhong" and "Zigong" confronted the "Takachiho" and "Naniwa" respectively.  The "Guangyuan" joined the siege of the "Qiujinzhou".  Injuring ten of his fingers would be worse than cutting off one of them. West Sichuan hit three warships and launched a fierce attack on the "Akijin Island".

    In an instant, artillery fire flew across the sea, causing huge splashes of water on the sea.  The "Qiujinzhou" is no match for one "Leshan" alone, let alone being besieged by three ships.  Almost everyone realized that the "Akijin Island" was doomed this time.

    However, even so, the Japanese naval soldiers on the "Akitsusu" also burst out with the belief of fighting to the death, and fired at the Western Sichuan Navy crazily.

    At 12:05, a salvo from the "Leshan" accurately hit the chimney of the "Qiujinzhou" and broke one of the chimneys.  A large amount of poisonous gas spread on the ship, and more than ten sailors in the power cabin were all smoked to death by the poisonous smoke.  Immediately afterwards, the speed of the "Akitsusu" began to decrease rapidly, from 20 knots at the beginning to 14 knots.

    "Leshan", "Qijiang" and "Guangyuan" seized this opportunity and poured out firepower crazily on the "Qiujinzhou".  A large number of artillery shells hit the "Akitsusu", and the water splashed from the sea wet the deck and hull of the "Akitsusu".

    In order to improve the hit rate, the "Leshan", "Qijiang" and "Guangyuan" were shortened to a distance of five thousand meters. This distance is almost the distance of naval battles in this era.  The Japanese sailors on the "Akijinzhou" used superb artillery bombardment skills and once again accurately hit the "Leshan".  Blast a big hole in the front deck of the "Leshan".  The sailors on the deck also suffered heavy casualties.  Fortunately, it did not hit the ammunition depot, otherwise the explosion of the ammunition would have been enough to bury the "Leshan".

    It is difficult for two fists to defeat four hands. Although the "Akijin Island" showed brave fighting spirit, it could not escape its misfortune in the end.  At 12:15, the "Guangyuan" accurately hit the bridge of the "Qiujinzhou" and killed all the captain and other officers inside.

    At 12:20, a shell fired from the main gun on the bow of the "Leshan" hit the "Qiujinzhou" again, and the hit position was just at the waterline.  The violent explosion tore open a hole as large as three meters, and a large amount of seawater poured into the "Akijin Island".  The hull of the "Akijin Island" tilted rapidly.  Subsequently, the chief engineer of the "Akitsusu" ordered water to be injected to the left side, hoping to restore the balance of the battleship.  However, this is of no use at all.  Ten minutes later, the "Akitsusu", which had taken in too much water, slowly sank to the bottom of the sea. None of the more than 200 Japanese sailors on the battleship survived.

    After sinking the "Qiujinzhou", the "Leshan", "Qijiang" and "Guangyuan" set their targets on the "Yoshino".  This is the second fastest fast battleship in the Japanese combined fleet.  In the battle between the "Yoshino" and the "Panzhihua", they were almost evenly matched.  But on the "Leshan", "After the "Jiang" and "Guangyuan" joined, they immediately fell into a situation of being surrounded.

    At 12:40, the "Yoshino" was hit by a bullet and caught fire.  Amid the siege by four Sichuan Nishi light cruisers, the "Yoshino" rushed left and right, still unable to break out of the encirclement. During the siege by the Sichuan Nishi battleships, the "Yoshino"'s superstructure was almost flattened.  The speed has also dropped from the original 22.5 knots to less than 18 knots. Moreover, it is surrounded by dangers and may be sunk at any time.

    On the contrary, the "Takachiho" and the "Naniwa" showed extremely strong combat effectiveness.  These two warships are equipped with two 260mm naval guns. Although the rate of fire is slow, their power is so powerful that neither the "Bazhong" nor the "Zigong" dare to approach.  If he is hit, he will definitely be seriously injured.  Therefore, the combat distance has been controlled to more than 8,000 meters.  The hit rate was extremely low. After fighting for so long, they were unable to cause any serious damage to the two battleships.

    At one o¡¯clock in the afternoon, the situation of the battle changed.  A large black smoke appeared in the northern sky.  Thick black smoke almost covered the sky.  Then, a large number of battleships appeared in the sky.

    "Accelerate and move closer to our team!" He Yuanyao ordered on the "Yoshino".  Besieged by four Kawanishi battleships, the "Yoshino" was now almost severely damaged.  If the main unit of the United Fleet is no longer available, it will probably follow in the footsteps of the "Akitsusu".  However, the "Takachiho" and "Naniwa" suffered no damage.

    "Send a report to the commander, reporting that the main force of the Japanese combined fleet has appeared. We will try our best to hold back the Japanese combined fleet and wait for the arrival of the main fleet!" Li Deming, the captain of the "Leshan" ordered.

    Subsequently, six "Leshan-class" light cruisers took the initiative to distance themselves and slowly left the battle area.  Although the "Yoshino" was severely damaged, they were not sure of sinking the "Yoshino" before the main force of the Japanese combined fleet arrived.  Although the speed of the main force of the Japanese combined fleet is not high, its firepower is extremely fierce. If they are entangled, they may fall into an extremely dangerous situation.  Therefore, it is safer to wait for the arrival of the main fleet.  Anyway, the speed of the Japanese fleet is far behind the Western Sichuan fleet. Once they find them, it will be impossible to let them escape.

    "This! How is this possible? How could the First Guerrillas be like this? Where is the 'Akitsusu'?" On the flagship "Matsushima" of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Fleet Commander Ito Yuhiro dropped his hands in shock.  Telescope, said with a look of disbelief.  The First Guerrilla Force is the elite of the combined fleet. All warships are the fastest and most powerful in the combined fleet.  Now, one ship was sunk and another was severely damaged by the Western Sichuan Navy. This made the Japanese Navy, which was still extremely arrogant, feel as if someone poured a basin of cold water on its head, making it feel cold from the inside out.

    "It seems that the Western Sichuan Navy is not as entangled as we imagined! These are only six light cruisers, and the main fleet of the Western Sichuan Navy has not yet appeared. Their main fleet must be more powerful!" Combined Fleet Staff Officer  Heihachiro Changdong Township said.  His new uneasiness was now solidified.  The strength of the Western Sichuan Navy exceeded their imagination.  It now appears that the Western Sichuan Navy is also well-trained.  With such a huge gap in strength between the two sides, it is already difficult for the Japanese combined fleet to win.

    "Your Excellency, Commander, I suggest that we return immediately. The strength of the Western Sichuan Navy is far stronger than ours. We cannot lose our precious navy here!" Togo Heihachiro suggested.

    "What? You let the great Japanese combined fleet escape? No, there are no cowards among the warriors of the Japanese Empire!" Yuhiro Ito stubbornly refused.  Even if he agreed with Togo Heihachiro's statement in his heart, how could he accept it when he escaped before even fighting the main force of the Western Sichuan Navy?

    "Commander, Your Excellency, if you don't make a decision, there will be no time!" Togo Heihachiro said.  However, Ito Yuheng remained unmoved.  It was Ito Yuhiro's stubbornness that completely led the Japanese Navy into the abyss.

    Thirty nautical miles south of this sea area, the main force of the First Fleet of the Western Sichuan Navy is rushing in at a speed of 16 knots.  If the Japanese combined fleet does not escape, at the speed of both sides, the two sides will encounter each other in an hour and a half.  However, the Japanese Combined Fleet couldn't escape even if they wanted to. The six "Leshan-class" light cruisers of the Western Sichuan Navy were 15,000 meters away from them, monitoring them from a distance, as if they were surrounding them.  Like sharks all around.

    In addition, observation ships from Britain, France, Russia, the United States and Germany also rushed to this area.  They all know that the naval battle between the Western Sichuan Navy and the Japanese Combined Fleet is larger than last year's Battle of the Yellow Sea and has more reference significance.  Is it rapid-fire cannons that are more powerful, or cannons and giant ships that lead the trend of naval development? Perhaps we can learn from this battle.It's obvious enough.

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