Chapter 985： Fisherman

"emission!"

"Change formation!"

...

A great battle that attracted worldwide attention was launched in the Philippine Sea. The billowing smoke was clearly visible from dozens of miles away.

With a loud "bang", the "Naniwa" that rushed forward unfortunately became the first victim. The rushing sound of water started from the stern of the ship, which opened the prelude to the sinking.

An officer cried out: "Captain, the warship is seriously damaged, and rescue is impossible. The ship is sinking!"

The enemy’s battleship’s main gun hit the enemy’s battleship as soon as it entered the battlefield, and the "Nanisuke" possessed by the mold **** was naturally going to be cold. As a thin-skinned cruiser, the "Nanisuke" obviously bears a burden that should not be borne by itself.

As Captain Togo Heihachiro, he wanted to cry without tears at the moment. Who knew that the Spaniards on the opposite side would put their battleships and not fight, and ran to bully them as "Little Douding"!

"Shut up, order the troops to continue firing on me. As long as the ship has not sunk, the shelling cannot stop!"

The warship that has been hit hard cannot withstand the toss, the more you insist on firing the guns, the faster the warship will sink.

Togo Heihachiro naturally knew such a simple truth. But there is no way, this is where the battlefield Naniwa is located, even if it wants to withdraw from the battlefield, it is too late.

Anyway, the "Nanisuke" can't be kept anymore, it's better to take the opportunity to fire a few shots, and maybe even be able to take an enemy warship to bury it.

As for stopping losses in time, abandoning warships and jumping into the sea to escape, such things are very common in European countries, but this is not feasible in Japan.

The glory of the soldiers determines that they can't do this. At this time, they abandon the ship and escape, and they don't even want to raise their heads for the rest of their lives.

The officers and soldiers of the "Nanisuke" chose to fight to the end. As the commander of the total fleet, General Yuhiro Ito could not sit idly by. The navy is not an army horse dung. You can have as much as you want. It is very important to train a qualified naval soldier. Expensive.

"Naniwa" was doomed to fail, and the hundreds of officers and soldiers on the warship could not just give up.

Now we are in a decisive battle with the Spaniards, and we don’t know how many warships will sink. If they all coexist with warships, it is unknown how much the Japanese navy will remain after this battle.

"If the order continues, all officers and soldiers must abandon the ship and escape if the warship is seriously damaged and cannot be rescued. Heihachiro Togo is ordered to execute the order immediately."

The episode did not affect the development of the decisive battle. The key to determining the outcome of this war is the battle of the battleship. The thin-skinned cruiser is to contribute to the enemy's record.

The sinking of the "Naniwa" was not an end, but a beginning. Immediately afterwards, the "Fuso" followed in the footsteps and opened the prelude to the sinking.

Watching all this happen, Ito Yuhyung is helpless. If possible, he would not do it. But the reality is cruel. The Japanese army has only two former dreadnoughts, while the enemy has three former dreadnoughts.

There is no way, the Japanese government can only buy the British Far East Fleet in a hurry. This fleet is invincible in the Far East, but in essence it is only second-rate.

The most advanced warships are all occupied by the local fleet. It is the turn of the Far East Fleet that are older warships, and there are only two "pre-dreadnoughts".

There is a clear gap in the performance of the old British warship against the new French warship that has just been in service for three or four years. In addition, the Japanese army was forced to go to the battlefield just a few days after the acquisition, and the operation was not proficient enough, and it was even more disadvantaged in the fight.

The current advantage of the Japanese Navy has been concentrated on the number. The original warships + the purchased British Far East Fleet, both in terms of number of warships and total tonnage, far exceed the Spanish expeditionary fleet.

"The quality is not enough, the quantity will come together."

The principle that ants often kill elephants is also applicable in the navy, but the price paid is a bit high.

This has been proved now, and the ordinary warships sent to entangle the Spanish battleship are now performing the most tragic scene.

The roar of artillery fire continued. No matter how tragic the battlefield was, no Japanese warship chose to retreat. On the contrary, several Spanish warships withdrew from the battlefield after being damaged.

Observing the ship from a distance, Governor Chandler, who was on the front line, was looking at the battlefield with a telescope, and a clerk was holding a pen and continuously recording on paper.

A similar situation is happening not far away. Everything that happens on the battlefield is precious experience, vital to the Holy Roman Navy, which lacks naval battle experience.

Governor Chandler, who was born in the navy, has clearly realized this. At present, the observation ships of the Shinra Navy have been distributed in all directions of the battlefield. Hundreds of officers are observing the battlefield from various directions and collecting data.

If you look closely, you can also find dozens of airships in the sky, also looking down below, flying at a height of only a few hundred meters. If it weren't for the sound of the gunfire, you might still be able to hear the "click" of the camera.

These actions of treating the warring parties as having nothing, naturally caused dissatisfaction with the navies of Japan and the West, and then the two navies unanimously decided to ignore the existence of these peskys.

"Your Excellency, it's time to eat."

The voice of the attendants awakened the fascinated Governor Chandler from his "hobby". There is no doubt that it is not his job to collect data. Leaving the Governor's Mansion to join in the fun is obviously beyond the scope of his work.

However, the Austrian South Pacific has always been calm. There is neither a serious threat nor a place to expand. There is not much work that belongs to the governor.

It makes sense to inspect the sea in my free time. As for whether the Philippine Sea is counted as the sphere of influence of the Holy Roman Empire, this question will be counted as long as Governor Chandler has the final say.

Just find an island or a reef, plant a flag, and run the boat to enclose the land.

Anyone who has an opinion can discuss with the Shinra Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or have a friendly discussion with the Shinra Navy.

Looking at the watch in his hand, Chandler nodded: "It's really time, let's have dinner! Let the boys take turns to eat, every scene on the battlefield must be recorded."

This is how experience in naval battles is accumulated. Although it is not as effective as going on the battlefield in person, valuable experience can still be accumulated through observation.

Not far away, a bearded officer who was about 50 or 60 years old joked: "Our Chief Governor, is it possible that his memory has deteriorated when he is old, and he has forgotten even the group rotation?"

"Enough, Ales. Don't forget that you are one day older than me. If your memory deteriorates in old age, you will come first."

"It's not a day old, it's fifteen minutes! Even this can be mistaken, it really is that memory has deteriorated.

It's right to think about it, but I often run around the world, unlike you staying in a gentle country every day, surrounded by a bunch of flattering people, the memory decline is understandable. "

"It's a day after the early morning, so don't quibble. Which eye of yours sees me staying in the tender country? Who doesn't know that I hate slackers, or who sent you over."

"Stupid, of course it's me. Is it because the governor has been in office for a long time, and even the internal division of powers in the navy is not clear..."

...

The quarrel between the two people has long been taken off by everyone. Being a young man and comrade-in-arms, but also ascending to high positions at the same time, is a legend in the Holy Roman Empire.

It's just that the two protagonists in "Legend" seem to be innately guilty. When they were in China, they should pay attention to no conflicts in aristocratic etiquette. When they went overseas, there were not so many scruples. The two of them were completely exposed and almost pinched when they met on.

The two quarreled but did not affect the relationship between each other. If anyone ran to persuade them to fight, they would surely be bothered by them.

"Don't talk about what is useless, have you found that the performance of the Japanese Navy is completely two extremes. Some warships are completely excellent, and some warships are completely fooling around."

Governor Chandler smiled slightly: "You just don't understand the situation. You know that six months ago, the total tonnage of the Japanese Navy was only more than 30,000 tons, but it has suddenly expanded to nearly 100,000 tons.

The modernization process of the Japanese Navy has not been twenty years since its inception. Where will they go to find so many qualified officers?

In order to operate this large-scale fleet, the Japanese government not only recruited retired naval officers and soldiers, but also recruited teachers and students from the naval academy. It is said that it also recruited some sailors from the private sector.

Do you think Ito Yuhiro is so stupid that you dare to bring such a fleet to a decisive battle? "

Ares shook his head: "On the contrary, I think Yuhiro Ito's choice is very smart. Naturally, the officers and soldiers can be trained in peaceful times, and then consider the issue of decisive battle with the enemy.

The current situation is very obvious, the Spaniards have already arrived, it is impossible to leave them time to train the army.

Not being able to avoid the battle at this time will not only make the army on the island passive, but even the morale of the army that has been accumulated in front of the Japanese navy will be lost.

Anyway, there are so many warships that the Spaniards can't eat them. Although the officers and soldiers who have just been recruited are not qualified, most of them are from the navy. The biggest problem now is that they are not familiar with warships and adapt after a battle. This is more effective than usual training for half a year.

Looking at the battlefield chosen by the Japanese, it is known that they are only 40 nautical miles away from Luzon, even if they lose, they can withdraw the main force.

The current situation is very good. Although the loss of the Japanese army was a bit larger, the loss of the Spaniard was not small. Despite the fact that the number of warships they sank was not many, they were injured a lot.

After a battle, most of the Spaniards' warships have to be repaired, and it will be difficult to restore combat effectiveness in the next two months.

If it were not for our help, even if it were to win a battle, the Spaniards would lose the war because of maintenance.

Now, the final outcome is undecided, mainly depending on what the country wants and how strong the British support the Japanese government. "

"You are correct in your analysis. One is working on an expedition, and the other is fighting at home. Time is on the side of the Japanese.

The Philippine Islands are richer than many people think. Since the 16th century, this place has been a transit point for trade. Tens of thousands of tons of silver, thousands of tons of gold, as well as some spices, tea, silk, and porcelain have flowed into Europe from here.

In addition, the Philippine Islands themselves are also very rich in resources. There is no shortage of agricultural resources or gold and silver minerals. In terms of value, it will not be much lower than the entire Nanyang Governor-General.

Spain has been operating here for more than 300 years, and the bureaucracy will take root here for more than 300 years. Except for some of the ones that flowed back to Europe, the rest remained here.

The Japanese made a lot of money this time, otherwise they would have no money to buy warships from the British. The directly plundered property is skipped first, and the Japanese government can't figure it out.

Just look at the benefits that can be seen. After the occupation of the Philippine Islands, the food crisis in Japan has been solved, and the shortage of coal, copper and iron ore has also been solved.

With these things alone, Japan can save tens of millions of Aegis’ foreign exchange expenses every year. If it manages well, the income of the Philippine Islands can catch up to half of Japan's fiscal revenue.

In a sense, the Japanese are now fighting Spain with Spanish money.

Given the terrible financial situation of the Spanish government and the corrupt bureaucracy, if you continue to fight like this, the Spanish will probably be the first to be unable to hold it. "

During the conversation, Governor Chandler couldn't help drooling. There is no way, the Philippine Islands are too rich. Except for the island of Java in the hands of the Dutch, there is no other place in Southeast Asia that can match it.

As a qualified colonist, it is impossible not to be tempted to encounter such a prosperous place. From the analysis, it can be heard that even the resources of the Philippine Islands are clear, and it is obvious that they are well prepared.

In the hands of the Spaniards, Governor Chandler was unable to start due to political influence, but now finally there is a ray of light.

As long as the Spaniards are defeated and give up their ownership of the Philippine Islands, the Nanyang Governor-General will have a chance to obtain the Philippine Islands. After all, there is no political pressure to rob the Japanese.

Not only Governor Chandler’s thoughts, but the colonists of the entire Nanyang Governorate are anxiously waiting for this to happen.

If it hadn't been ordered by the Vienna government, the Spaniards would have used the dock for repairs, and I am afraid that they would not even want to obtain logistical supplies.