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Volume 3: The Wind Rises in the South Chapter 134: Gunboats and Mines

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    One night three days later, when the moon was at its dimmer, the mountain wind blowing from the Arakan Mountains blew across the river, making a whining sound. Soldiers from both armies huddled in their shacks to reduce losses.  The heat, enjoying the rare silence.  The "Repulse" was completely dark under the blackout. There were only two gas lamps on the bridge, which were used to illuminate the commander.  Alexander stood on the bridge and looked at the fleet following the "Repulse".  The entire squadron moved in single file, like a flock of ducks following their leader.  The reason for choosing this formation is very simple. Although the navy has used small boats to clear a channel in the minefields laid by the Chinese these days, due to time and conditions, no one can guarantee that the minefields will be completely cleared.  Well, if we line up in one column, the probability of hitting a mine is the lowest.  "Colonel, there is a minefield ahead. The captain invites you to go to the captain's cabin below. It is safer there!" A young officer whispered to Alexander.  It is true that compared to the captain's cabin, the danger of the bridge located at a high place is much greater once it hits a mine.  "No, you thank the captain for me, but as the fleet commander, I should stay where I can see all the ships clearly!" "Yes!" Alexander stood on the bridge, with the rhythmic sound of the steam engine in his ears.  , in order to reduce the noise and reduce the possibility of being discovered by the Chinese, Alexander ordered the entire fleet to pass through the minefield at a full speed of four knots.  Alexander knew that all ships were under blackout and it would be very difficult to pass the enemy blockade on this dim moonlit night, but he firmly believed that well-trained Royal Navy sailors would be able to complete this task.  Time is passing slowly. With the sharp eyes trained in the navy, Alexander can see the white waves rolling next to the bow of the ship. At this time, his fearless heart can't help but rise.  According to the intelligence obtained, the Chinese have laid hundreds of mines here. Only one of these powerful underwater weapons is enough to sink their own ship. Although they have tried their best to send ships to clear a channel in the minefield,  But anything can happen in a war. Who knows whether a mine will escape the cleaning and appear in the "Repulse" channel?  I don¡¯t know how much time passed, but the expected explosion never happened. Alexander breathed a sigh of relief, took out his pocket watch and took a look under the gas lamp. Twenty-five minutes had passed. According to previous calculations, the fleet should have passed.  A minefield laid by the Chinese.  "It seems that God is on the side of Great Britain this time!" Alexander made a cross on his chest and was about to walk off the bridge and go to the captain's cabin for a drink.  To be honest, his nerves were so tense that he couldn't bear it now.  At this moment, there was a violent vibration under his feet. Before Alexander could react what was going on, he fell off the bridge.  "Damn it!" When Alexander climbed up from the deck, he felt a sharp pain in his right arm, which was obviously injured in the accident just now.  Alexander checked his arm and confirmed that it was broken. He tore off a piece of cloth from his clothes and hung the injured arm around his neck to avoid being hurt twice in the next action. Then he stood up.  , quickly ran towards the direction of the captain's cabin.  It was already chaos on the "Repulse". Groups of sailors were running on the deck, almost knocking Alexander down several times. It took him six or seven minutes to reach the captain's room.  "Captain Busson, how is the situation on the Repulse?" Alexander shouted as soon as he opened the hatch.  "Commander, you are injured!" Captain Busson noticed Alexander's arm hanging around his neck: "I'll get the doctor over right away!" "It doesn't matter, a commander doesn't need to shoot, as long as his head can still work.  That's it!" Alexander asked loudly: "How is the ship?" "It's very bad!" Captain Busson replied in a low voice: "The starboard side of the ship was struck by a mine, and it was under the waterline and had no armor protection.  So a big hole opened up in the back, and a lot of water was pouring in. I have tried my best to rescue it. In order to prevent the ship from tilting, I have ordered the port side to also start filling with water to ensure that the ship is balanced, but you know, this is a big problem for the 'counterattack'  "The ship is very unsafe!" Alexander immediately understood what the other party meant. Generally speaking, in order to prevent warships from tilting and sinking due to water intrusion, the navy at that time would actively inject water on the other side of the ship's side to maintain the balance of the ship. However,  The draft of a shallow-water gunboat like the Counterattack is already very shallow. If too much water is added, it will sink directly. Therefore, this method is particularly dangerous for the Counterattack.  "As the captain of this ship, I will persist until the last moment! But Colonel, you are the commander of the entire army. I suggest that you immediately transfer to another ship and continue to command the battle!"  "Okay!" Alexander immediately understood that Captain Busson was not optimistic about the situation of the 'Repulse'. The Chinese on the shore must have known the movements of the British fleet. If he, as the supreme commander, continues to stay,  on board the Counterattack, which would be detrimental to the entire operation.  "Take the commander to the port side and prepare a speedboat to take him to the "Courage"!" Captain Busson ordered an officer next to him.  "Yes, sir!" Alexander followed the officer to the side of the ship, got into the lifeboat with the help of two soldiers, and then lowered the lifeboat. Due to the tilt of the ship's hull, the lifeboat collided with the outer wall of the "Repulse"  Rubbing, making a sharp sound.  Alexander endured the severe pain from the fracture of his right arm and listened to the shouts from the deck above. He couldn't help but feel a slight regret in his heart, wondering whether his action was too risky this time.  Suddenly, Alexander felt a shock underneath him. He immediately realized that the lifeboat had fallen to the river. The experienced man quickly grabbed the handrail on the side to avoid falling into the bumpy lifeboat.  The old Scottish petty officer from Aberdeen on the ship jumped up quickly, cut the rope with the iron hook on his left hand, shouted loudly, and directed the sailors on the lifeboat to go to the "Courage" hundreds of meters away.  Cross out.  On the shore, Shunjun Battery C.  "Master Feng, Master Feng!" The hurried shouts from outside the door woke Feng Kaigui from his sleep. He jumped up from the thatched bed, grabbed the pistol under the pillow, and shouted: "What's going on, Britain?"  "The British did not attack, but there were explosions on the river. It must be that the British fleet wanted to sneak over and encountered the mines we laid last night. Please go to the fort and take a look."  "What?" Feng Kaigui groped on the bunk twice and found his hat and coat. After putting it on, he pushed the door open and rushed out. He rushed to the fort in three steps and saw that there was indeed a place on the dark river.  In the light of the fire, he picked up his telescope and looked in the direction of the fire. He could vaguely see the shadow of the huge ship's mast.  "Great!" Feng Kaigui slammed his palms and ordered loudly: "Send the order, all gun positions, aim in the direction of the fire and fire!" "Yes, sir!" The officers and soldiers on the fort responded in unison, and then  Running around, although it was already late at night, the morale of the soldiers on the fort was extremely high.  These soldiers all knew that the mines used by the Shun Army contained at least hundreds of kilograms of yellow gunpowder and were extremely powerful. If a British ship hit a mine, even if it did not sink immediately, it would lose its ability to move and become a living target for the fort.  These fort officers and soldiers have been hit by British ship shells a lot these days. Now that they have a chance to take revenge, their morale is naturally high.  Soon, the nine-inch cannon on Battery B where Feng Kaigui was located fired its first blast. The heavy shell tore through the air, flew over the masthead of the "Counterattack" and landed on the water more than 70 meters away, exploding.  The grenade splashed water columns tens of meters high.  "Damn it, the Chinese on the shore have already discovered it!" Alexander cursed in a low voice on the lifeboat. The lifeboat was less than two hundred meters away from the impact point of the shell just now, and the falling water was like a heavy rain.  and the sailors on the ship were soaked to the skin, and the rough waves almost overturned the lifeboat in the middle of the Irrawaddy River.  "You idiots, please concentrate on paddling, or I will use the iron hook on my left hand to pull out your intestines! Break your necks!" At this moment, the loud voice of the old Scottish sergeant pierced the night sky  , his voice was so loud that even the rumble of cannons from the shore couldn't suppress it.  Although his curses were very rude, they were very effective. The sailors restrained their panic and accelerated their oars. The distance between the lifeboat and the "Courage" was quickly shortened.  When the lifeboat was only sixty or seventy meters away from the "Courage", Alexander suddenly discovered a terrible problem: in the dark, they had no way to notify the "Courage" to stop so that they could board the ship.  At the time of radio, the only way for warships to communicate at close range was semaphores, which were replaced by lanterns at night. However, when the Chinese on the shore were engaged in an artillery battle with the fleet, it was simply impossible to use semaphores to notify the other party to stop.  There were constant shells piercing the sky above the lifeboat and falling on the river. Alexander sat in the lifeboat and was stunned.  At this time, there was another dull explosion from the rear of the British fleet. With the help of the fire from the exploding shells, Alexander could see half of the hull of the transport ship "Tuna" at the end of the fleet emerging from the water. Compared with other warships,  The hull of the transport ship "Tuna" with a displacement of 3,200 tons was much thinner. The huge impact caused by the mine explosion tore the hull of the "Tuna" into two ends.? And lifted half of the hull out of the water, and then the two hulls quickly disappeared under the water. Also disappearing with them were two battalions of infantry and a large amount of military supplies. Seeing all this, Alexander was in pain  's eyes closed.  "Colonel, Colonel!" A burst of hurried shouting made Alexander open his eyes again, just in time to see the ugly old Scottish noncommissioned officer shouting at him: "Colonel, dive quickly, the 'Courage' is coming.  !" Sure enough, behind the petty officer, the dark bow of the Warrior pressed towards the lifeboat, and several sailors dropped their oars in despair and jumped into the river.  "Damn it!" Alexander jumped out of the boat in a hurry. As soon as he left the lifeboat, the bow of "Courage" crushed the poor lifeboat to pieces. Except for some wood chips on the water, there was no trace left to show that there had been anything here.  What exists.  The fort was in a mess, thick smoke filled the air, and the air was filled with the strong smell of burning propellant. Since they had been fired many times in a short period of time, the barrels of the two cannons on the B fort were overheated, and the firing had to be suspended.  Wait for two minutes to cool down.  Feng Kaigui straightened up and wanted to take two steps forward to use a telescope to see what was happening to the enemy ship that had hit the mine. However, his foot slipped and he almost fell. When he looked down, he found that the ground was full of fired shells.  shell.  "Damn, clean it up quickly, or we'll be in trouble later if the shells fall to the ground!" Feng Kaigui cursed a few words, ran to the observation port, picked up the binoculars and looked at the fire, only to see the line that had hit the mine earlier.  The warship was blazing into the sky, and shells fired from other forts exploded around it from time to time. The warship was also unable to move. It was obvious that the warship had been severely damaged and it was only a matter of time before it sank.  On the dark river surface, streaks of fire flashed from time to time. This was other enemy ships on the river fighting back, but under such brightness conditions, the damage to the Shun army was minimal.  Feng Kaigui smacked his mouth in satisfaction. This may be the biggest loss suffered by the British since the war began. At this time, he had already begun to daydream about his future promotion.  Suddenly, another ball of fire rose on the river, and a few seconds later, a dull explosion sounded in Feng Kaigui's ears.  "Another enemy ship struck a mine?" Feng Kaigui could hardly believe that he had such good luck. The order he inadvertently sent out to lay mines last evening actually received such a generous reward.  At this time, there was a burst of cheers in his ears, which came from the soldiers on the fort. Apparently they also saw the explosion on the river.  "Quick, let's see if the barrel temperature has dropped! Seize the opportunity and keep shooting!" Feng Kaigui didn't bother to scold the soldiers. Anyway, under the protection of the night, they were safe.  The morale of the soldiers on the fort was also very high at this time. They quickly loaded the cannonballs into the barrels and started shooting at the enemy ships on the river.  There was chaos on the river. Although there were only two ships hit by mines, the fleet's formation was destroyed. From the lowest trainee sailor to the captain, a thought flashed in their minds: "Could we have taken the wrong route? Navigation  We have entered the enemy's minefield!" But changing the channel in the dark is very dangerous. It is easy to collide with the ships in front and behind, and if you turn on the lights, you will become a target for the enemy's shore artillery. Faced with this dilemma,  Choice, it was almost evenly split between captains in the fleet making different choices.  The other three shallow-water gunboats with large displacement and thick armor all chose to turn on the lights. Anyway, with their armor and large-caliber main guns, they could only shoot at the forts on the shore. The remaining small ships and troop carriers chose to keep the lights on.  .  The sound of gunfire, explosions, and calls for help from drowned sailors echoed on the water of the Irrawaddy River, forming a cruel symphony.
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