Chapter 066: Dorgel Shallow Tides of Fear (Four)

  The bleak sunset persisted in the sea and sky, dyeing nearly half of the northern sky a deep red; the setting sun lingered, unwilling to leave, while a full moon as thin as a cicada's wing had already lazily climbed up into the eastern starry sky. The gloomy weather over the North Sea was gradually clearing, the wind had stopped, and the waves were no longer crashing against the shore. With the migratory birds returning north and schools of fish competing for food, even the shallow waters without a sail in sight had another kind of romantic beauty.

  At 17:33, three dense columns of smoke rose from the southwest direction over Dogger Bank. Before long, three giant warships with German Iron Cross and Black Eagle flags appeared. These steel monsters emitted a cold glow and an aura of death, having just escaped the bloody sunset on one side of Britain, and accidentally plunged into the deep night sky of Dogger Bank again.

  The faint moonlight sprinkled on the surface of Dogger Bank like frost, and due to the strict blackout regulations, the three giant ships were like ancient beasts, with a black shadow posture, rubbing against the southern edge of Dogger Bank and advancing towards the shallow waters, occasionally opening up white fine waves and pale halos.

  On the towering cylindrical mainmast of the Moqi, two lookouts were on duty, staring wide-eyed at the sea surface where the light was hazy, and their hands holding binoculars soon became hot with sweat.

  "Georg, you said that the British 066 chapter, equipped with 9 x 6-inch guns and 4 x 47mm quick-firing guns. The Birmingham-class light cruiser, with its powerful firepower and good design, can easily face off against Germany's new generation of light cruisers built between 1908 and 1914. However, in the face of the "cruiser killer" - the battlecruiser, the Birmingham-class light cruiser's counterattack is so pale and weak: the 6-inch main gun's armor-piercing shells can't even penetrate the Von der Tann's waterline belt armor, the two 533mm underwater torpedoes have enormous power but are out of range, and escaping from the 25-knot Von der Tann at a top speed of 25.5 knots is even more unrealistic."

  At 17:55, Birmingham was hit and sank after a magazine explosion.

  The sinking of the Birmingham without bloodshed, no cheers or applause, the sailors' faces were filled with solemnity. The decoy fleet didn't even have time to rest, galloping northeast, rushing into the British trap.

  ****

  According to the plan of General Heiti-Silem, the Ocean Fleet needs to use as few troops as possible to repeatedly raid the British coastline, causing the greatest destruction to the British mainland, provoking the sensitive and fragile nerves of the subjects of the British Empire, forcing the main fleet to divide its forces to surround and annihilate the decoy fleet.

  On November 14, Admiral Heidekamp led two old battlecruisers and a large armored cruiser with awkward positioning on the pretext of combat cruising to launch a strike against the British coast, conducting a significant firepower deterrence and surprise attack. Unbeknownst to Heidekamp, the Royal Navy also had a similar plan, and Heidekamp's action undoubtedly disrupted the ambush battle that the British were preparing for, unintentionally seizing the initiative.

  Heidi-Sylem's performance in the surprise attack on November 14 was undoubtedly stunning, bombarding British ports and landing on British soil, a task that no nation or fleet had accomplished for hundreds of years, yet this thirty-six-year-old naval genius did it. Sylem unintentionally seized the initiative, forcing the Royal Navy into a desperate situation, the Grand Fleet, which had not been at a disadvantage since the Anglo-German naval arms race in 1898, did not want to engage in an all-out battle, but rather hoped to use a small-scale and brilliant ambush to sink one or two German main battleships, appease the British public's criticism of the Admiralty, and curb the High Seas Fleet's aggressive momentum. However, from the moment Sylem bombarded Harwich Port, the British ambush plan had already gone bankrupt, and the angry British public would not consider whether the Grand Fleet had the strength to challenge the Germans, but rather whether it had forgotten the Royal Navy's centuries-old tradition of taking the initiative and was in a state of voluntary decline.

  The Grand Fleet was faced with a difficult choice and had to quickly produce dazzling results, but at this time the British did not have the ability to win. Just as the Grand Fleet was in a state of confusion and helplessness, David Beatty, who was affectionately called "Sea Cavalry" by Winston Churchill, emerged as the pride of heaven, not disappointing everyone's expectations.

  Through the cryptic intercepts of Room 40, British Naval Intelligence, Beatty had accurately predicted the German plan in its entirety before the Battle off Harwich and identified the Dogger Bank as a critical node even before Scheer deliberately revealed his hand.

  Unlike the cautious and conservative Admiral John Jellicoe, David Beatty, known as the "Sea Cavalier", was naturally endowed with a bold and daring spirit. He even took the initiative to lead the reinforced 1st Battlecruiser Squadron without reporting to the Grand Fleet or the Admiralty. Standing under the main gun barrel of the Lion, he grasped the telegram from the Birmingham in his hand and said confidently:

  "What a pity, Xilai, your trick of showing weakness won't deceive me, I still have three fearless ships!"

  ****

  At 18:22, the last piece of sunset finally couldn't withstand the surging night color and fell to the distant sea surface, and the North Sea surface finally dimmed.

  The decoy fleet arrived safely on the west side of Dogger Bank, with a full moon in the sky and a bright moonlight. Following the faint light, the lookout on the foredeck of the vanguard ship "Friedrich der Grosse" suddenly discovered a large patch of shadow on the west side of Dogger Bank.

  Dogger Bank is not the main shipping route of the North Sea, and those shadows are undoubtedly warships. The lookout's throat tightened as he tried to stretch out his hand to ring the alarm bell. At this time, under the order of "Chapter 066", the decoy fleet began to turn from column formation to line formation, advancing eastward, trying to open an angle with the British fleet coming from the northeast and occupy a more advantageous shooting position.

  This turn would take at least several minutes to complete, during which time the decoy fleet was on the side of the moon facing the British, who had a better line of fire than the German gunners. Once the turn was completed, however, the decoy fleet would be in an excellent firing position and could hide in the shadow of the moon. The maneuver was extremely risky but offered rich rewards.

  To the left and right, there were no more than five war cruisers. Under the poor visibility conditions of a night battle, Wang Haite had confidence in escaping this black ten minutes. However, the data parameters constantly transmitted from the lookout tower shocked the calm and collected otaku.

  "Bearing 44.7, distance 3800 yards, confirmed enemy main fleet... eight ships?" Wang Hai muttered to himself as he repeated the data transmitted from the lookout tower, his gaze shifting back from the vast expanse of the ocean, his expression heavy: "Betty, I underestimated you..."

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