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Piaotian Literature of the Fourth Empire of China www.piaotia.com Chapter 705: Fight to the Death

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    At 6 o'clock in the morning on December 11, a huge fleet was sailing quickly on the Red Sea.  However, this fleet does not look majestic at all, but rather a bit embarrassed.  This fleet is exactly the British and French naval fleet that is escaping.  At this moment, the fleet also consisted of two battleships, five armored cruisers, and nearly thirty light cruisers and destroyers.  However, even with such a powerful combat power, they no longer have the courage and determination to fight. As early as their battleships sank to the bottom of the sea one after another under the sneak attack of Chinese submarines, their courage and confidence had disappeared.  Already defeated.

    Lieutenant General Howard, commander of the British Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, stood on the bridge of the battleship HMS Formidable, his face a little pale. The pride and confidence that always appeared on his face had completely disappeared.  For him, this disastrous defeat will cost him a huge price.  Even if he is given a lighter sentence, he may be forced to retire.  If it is more serious, it is very likely that he will be sent to a military court.  Lieutenant General Howard was very frightened when he thought of these consequences.

    "Damn Chinese, I curse you all to go to hell!" Lieutenant General Howard cursed fiercely.  He blamed everything on the Chinese. If the Chinese had not invaded the Middle East, Britain and France would not have gone to war with China.  If he had not started a war, he would not have been ordered to block the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and he would not have been severely defeated.  You know, he is only in his early forties now, and it is very likely that he will become the Minister of the Navy in the future.  And now, everything is ruined.  Therefore, Lieutenant General Howard was full of resentment towards China.  However, he was unable to retaliate.

    "General, telegram from the Navy Department!" At this time, Lieutenant General Howard's adjutant came to Lieutenant General Howard with a telegram. However, the adjutant's face was very unnatural, and there was a trace of despair in his eyes.

    Lieutenant General Howard took the telegram and read it. The telegram was not long and he read it in a few seconds.  However, after reading this, Lieutenant General Howard's expression changed drastically, and his body shook suddenly, as if he could no longer stand still. If the adjutant hadn't caught him in time, he would have fallen to the ground.  Obviously, this telegram from the Navy Department shocked Lieutenant General Howard deeply!

    "How could this be possible? How could they do this to me?" Lieutenant General Howard's voice trembled.  The telegram was from Lord Admiralty John?  Sir Fisher personally issued an order, requiring Vice Admiral Howard to lead the fleet in his hands to fight the Chinese Navy in a decisive battle, to severely damage or sink the Chinese battleships as much as possible, and to create favorable conditions for future battles.  For the British and French navies who had suffered heavy losses, this order undoubtedly caused them to die!  How could the British and French navies, with only two battleships left, be the opponent of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet.

    "General, what should we do now?" the adjutant asked.  He had read the telegram first and knew the order above clearly.  However, he was also full of fear about it.

    "What else can we do? If we disobey, even if we can escape back to the UK, we will be directly sent to a military court!" Lieutenant General Howard smiled miserably.  Lord Admiral John?  Sir Fisher gave them two choices, either to fight the Chinese navy like a warrior, or to be sent to a military court and then hanged. Apart from this, there was no other choice.

    "Send the order! Order all warships to turn around and prepare to fight the Chinese to the death!" Lieutenant General Howard finally made up his mind.  Since he is destined to die, he might as well fight with the Chinese. Even if he dies in the end, he can still be a hero.  Anyway, the Chinese are the culprits that caused all this, and fighting the Chinese to the death, regardless of victory or defeat, can be regarded as revenge for themselves.

    After Vice Admiral Howard¡¯s order was issued, the entire British and French navies became uproar.

    "No? Why give such an order? We refuse to fight the Chinese!"

    ¡°Chinese people are all devils, we can¡¯t defeat them!¡±

    "Oh God! This is basically asking us to die. We will not accept such an order!"

    Nearly all the warships sent telegrams of opposition to the flagship.  For these British and French naval officers and soldiers, they have failed at this moment and have been defeated by the Chinese navy.  The most important thing now is to escape, and it is not necessarily possible to escape. Turning around and fighting the Chinese Navy is the only way to die!  The instinct of survival made them all oppose Lieutenant General Howard's orders.

    Especially the French battleship Paris.  Of the four battleships of the French Navy, only the Paris is left.  The French were frightened out of their wits and asked them to die. How could these French people, who were so embarrassed by nature, make fun of their own lives?  However, it didn't take long for the captain of the battleship Paris to compromise.  Because, he also received a telegram from France.  The French government¡¯s response to the British proposal?¡¯s plan expressed approval.  Therefore, they personally sent a telegram to the battleship 'Paris' asking them to work hard to become heroes of the French Republic.  If they become deserters, what awaits them will be the gallows.

    ??Although, the orders issued by the British and French governments are somewhat unreasonable.  But for these naval officers and soldiers, they have no choice at all.  Rather than going to the gallows, it would be better to fight the Chinese.  Perhaps, there can still be a glimmer of hope.

    At 6:30 in the morning, the British and French navies completed their turn and rushed towards the Chinese Navy¡¯s Indian Ocean Fleet.  With grief and anger, they prepared to fight to the death with the Chinese Navy.  The orders issued at home are very clear, requiring them to severely damage or sink at least one Chinese Navy battleship. Only in this way can Britain and France have a chance.

    In fact, even if the British and French navies desperately tried to escape, they had no way to retreat.  The battleship "Formidable" and the battleship "Paris" both have a maximum speed of only 21 knots.  The speed of the two 'Qin-class' battleships and the 'Wang Ben' battlecruiser of the Chinese Navy chasing them has reached 22 knots.  With such a gap, they simply couldn't escape.  Unless, the British and French navies abandon their two valuable battleships and escape on faster light cruisers and destroyers.  However, if they gave up their precious battleships, what was the point of their existence?

    At 7:30 in the morning, the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet and the British and French navies once again encountered each other on the Red Sea. The distance between the two sides was less than 20 kilometers.  At this moment, the sun has risen, and the sunlight has dispersed the heavy fog on the sea. The lookouts on both sides have been able to accurately distinguish each other's warships.

    "General, great! The Chinese only have two battleships and one battlecruiser to catch up. Their battlecruisers will not participate in the battleship duel. We can fight the Chinese one to one.  Field." Lieutenant General Howard's adjutant said with joy.

    "Order all ships to prepare for battle. This time, we must let the Chinese know how powerful we are. In the navy, it is not the yellow-skinned monkeys like them who can grasp the essence!" Lieutenant General Howard also said with high spirits.

    The British and French navies quickly began to adjust their positions and prepared for a decisive battle with the Chinese Navy.  The Chinese Navy's battleships actually dispersed, which gave them an excellent opportunity.  As long as they can severely damage the Chinese navy's capital ships and make them lose their combat effectiveness, even if they surrender by then, they will not be punished after returning home.  After all, they had accomplished their mission.  In this case, it is acceptable and understandable that they try to save their lives.

    On the battlecruiser ¡®Wang Ben¡¯, Lieutenant General Li Haitao, commander of the Chinese Navy¡¯s Indian Ocean Fleet, and Major General Wu Zhiyuan, chief of staff, were also very surprised. Aren¡¯t these British and French people running for their lives?  Why did he run back in the blink of an eye?  Could it be that there is something wrong with their brains?

    "Chief of Staff, no matter what the British and French think, since they are here, we can't let them go! I will go to the battleship 'Qin Shihuang' to command the battle, and you will take the 'Wang Ben'  , kill the British and French cruisers and destroyers. The two 'Qin-class' battleships are enough to deal with the two British and French battleships!" Lieutenant General Li Haitao, commander of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet, ordered.  This is a good opportunity to completely annihilate the British and French navies!

    "Yes, Commander! However, should we wait for the 'Huaxia' and 'Shenzhou' to arrive before we engage in a decisive battle with them?" Chief of Staff Wu Zhiyuan said.  After the other two 'China-class' battleships arrive, the Indian Ocean Fleet will be able to gain a greater advantage.

    "No, you can order the Huaxia and Shenzhou to come, just in case. However, if nothing else happens, the two Qin-class battleships can already solve the problem!" Lieutenant General Li Haitao said.  Whether it is the British 'Dreadnought-class' battleship or the French 'Guba-class' battleship, they all use the 'Chinese-class' battleship as the imaginary enemy.  The combat power of the 'Qin-class' battleship is at least 20% ahead of the 'Zhonghua-class'.  There will be no problem at all in using two 'Qin-class' battleships to deal with the British battleship 'Formidable' and the French battleship 'Paris'.

    Soon, the Chinese Navy¡¯s Indian Ocean Fleet was also ready for battle.  Fleet Commander Lieutenant General Li Haitao boarded the battleship "Qin Shihuang" to command the battle.  Under the protection of several destroyers, the battleship "Qin Shihuang" and the battleship "Prince Fusu" faced the two battleships of the British and French navies.  The two sides will start a head-on showdown of new battleships!  (To be continued. Please search Piaotian Literature, the novels will be better and updated faster!)
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