Chapter Sixteen: The Trump Card (Seven)

  The tactical deception maneuvers played before the war had long been clear after fermentation over time, and the Royal Navy's attempt to divide and conquer was humiliatingly discovered that they were dragged down by the Germans' speed advantage. The First Battlecruiser Squadron led by Beatty and the Second Battlecruiser Squadron led by Admiral Moore were beaten one by one by the thick-skinned Germans.

  It was like a nightmare, the HMS Royal Princess sank in the vanguard battle, and the HMS Aversion's rudder was destroyed in the subsequent encounter battle. If not for a bit of luck, it would have been finished off by German torpedoes.

  Fortunately, the nightmare had receded, and it was found that the steering engine of HMS Abdiel could not be repaired simply, so she had to retreat towards the British coast under the protection of the First Destroyer Flotilla, which also suffered heavy losses. However, even so, David Beatty still had a strong hand with eight fast battleships after joining forces with the Second Battlecruiser Squadron, while his old opponent Franz von Hipper only had four!

  The fast fleet formed two columns on the ocean, with the first team being Shī Hào, Tigris, Bù Qū and Bù Náo four battle cruisers. The second team was located on the right side of the first battle cruiser squadron, slightly pulling down 100 meters, which were Yī Lì Shābó, ào Dà Lì Yǎ, Xīn Xī Lán and Bù Juàn four ships. In the cool sea fog, the flag with the letter "M" was flying high, and the iron fleet sprayed coal smoke on the North Sea surface, pulling out white waves in this shallow pool.

  Everyone knows that the war is not over yet, perhaps just before sunrise, perhaps at the moment when the morning fog disperses, or maybe on the Jutland coast, or in the Skagerrak Strait, the Grand Fleet and the High Seas Fleet will inevitably decide who is the rightful master of the Atlantic! Under the icy night sky, the main fleet's majestic gun barrels pointed sternly towards the north where the Germans might appear, the sailors in the lookout tower widened their eyes to scan all directions, while the staff officers inside the Lion's command tower argued heatedly over the possible position of the Germans.

  The fast division searched northwest, the last reported position of the German First Scouting Group, for two hours but found nothing and had to abandon the futile search. At 0:55, the fast division turned northeast and reduced speed to 18 knots, approaching the Skagerrak.

  The Skagerrak Strait is the rendezvous point for the Grand Fleet, and it's no secret to old opponents Heidekamp and Scheer that the First Scouting Group should be on its way there!

  At 2:51, by the faint light, Lion's lookout tower unexpectedly spotted a huge shadow moving rapidly to port of the fast squadron.

  Betti was slightly stunned, and the familiar term "T-Head" flashed through his mind, and the attack order was issued. On March 4, 1915, on the sea surface, only the First Reconnaissance Fleet could appear in this sea area, as for Scheer's High Seas Fleet main force, with a maximum speed of only 23 knots, they might still be tens of nautical miles away, desperately chasing after them.

  The fire control director tower relayed the rough data from the spotting tower, and the cumbersome main gun began to be powered by electrically driven winches, adjusting its firing direction; hydraulic devices were activated, and the main gun was quickly laid flat, pointing at his opponent with a majestic posture.

  "Enemy fleet at sea fog boundary, three capital ships, bearing 201, distance 3100 yards."

  More detailed data was fed back from the ranging towers. The heavily armoured conning tower fell silent for a moment, then burst out cheering. Three capital ships, this number slightly different from what the British imagined to be the German First Scouting Group, but the sea fog made it all reasonable: right in front of the fast fleet was the fog area, perhaps the German flagship Lützow had already drilled into the fog; The southwest direction that the German main battleship came out of was inexplicable, but that course was heading towards Skagerrak!

  "Lion targets Enemy Number One, each ship in the First Division targets Enemy Number Two, and Elizabeth targets Enemy Number Three!" The moment of expectation has finally arrived. Perhaps Scheer's High Seas Fleet is not far away, but Beatty is confident that he can deliver a crushing blow to his old opponent within half an hour! "Hoist the battle flag, Royal Navy, engage in combat!"

  The Royal Navy personnel who had been struggling through the night finally found a place to use their skills, and they vented their remaining energy and resentment on their opponents. The yellowish medium-caliber shells were loaded into the main guns and 4-inch secondary guns, and the eight capital ships selected their targets and opened fire according to the flagship's command!

  In an instant, the ocean, with only the sound of steam engines roaring, suddenly played a strange variation. A burst of fiery sparks blazed and roared, rushing straight into the dark night on the other side. Unfortunately, the German fleet was at the head of the T-shaped intersection, and they fell like raindrops, quickly splashing up clusters of eerie water columns.

  The British had no great advantage in the T-crossing, but their superiority in numbers was something that the Germans could not counter. The German main body did not choose to open fire and settle the issue at once, but instead chose a most anxious maneuver, turning away from the enemy and speeding into the fog bank to the north.

  The British had a terrifying density of fire, making the attempt temporarily futile. At 2:57, the German battleship Number Three, battered by four battlecruisers, could no longer withstand it and its midship magazine exploded in the sixth salvo from the British, sinking instantly. However, this was also the final swan song of this encounter, as the main fleets of both Britain and Germany entered the fog zone, while Lützow never appeared throughout.

  "The Germans are nearby, find them for me and bite into them!" The earpiece fell silent once more as Betty coldly gave the bloody execution order.

  ****

  How treacherous is the Skagerrak Strait?

  The main body of the fleet approaching from the central North Sea had twenty battleships, and at a night battle range of less than 3000 yards, perhaps before the First Scouting Group could react, 100 twelve-inch guns, sixty thirteen-and-a-half inch guns and forty fifteen-inch guns would be enough to tear the Imperial battlecruiser squadron to pieces!

  Furthermore, the trend of the two British battlecruiser fleets merging is irreversible. Wang Haitao would not think that God would show him any favor just because he was a traverser. Even though the British Royal Princess and the Warship had suffered heavy damage, they still had eight fast main battleships left.

  At 3:03, in the North Sea, as predicted by Davide-Betti, the First Scout Fleet was speeding towards the Skagerrak Strait.

  "Entanglement, this word is indeed worth savoring..." After two naval battles, the upper structure of the Lev Sofiev looked somewhat battered, those armor plates blackened by gunpowder smoke, those shocking scars from sword clashes, and those broken iron chains and steel cables presented themselves to Wang Haoti in the most intuitive way, telling him what war was!

  The sailors on duty were patrolling the deck, while the damage control team was busy with repairs. The gunners were gathered in twos and threes, whispering to each other. Wang Haitie sat on the spiral staircase of the bridge, letting the salty sea mist extinguish the cigarette butt at the corner of her mouth.

  She stretched out her frost-cracked hand and carefully stroked his warcruiser body, Wang Haitian inexplicably felt a sense of fatigue.

  "Commander, don't you think the outcome of the naval battle is unfavorable?" General Staff Officer Singler sauntered over, leaned against Wang Haiti and sat down, asking while holding his military cap.

  "No, Staff Officer, I never doubted the Grand Fleet would fail." Wang Haitian glanced at his fleet with a hint of shame in the corner of his eyes. "But this does not include the First Reconnaissance Squadron!"

  Singerl heard the commander's implicit meaning, he turned his head to look at the fleet in the blackout, sighed, and didn't know how many people from the veteran First Reconnaissance Fleet could escape the soldier's fate and see the coming dawn.

  "Commander, urgent telegram from the High Seas Fleet." The officer on duty in the wireless room hastened over, his face grave. "The 4th Scouting Group of the Second Squadron encountered a British fast division; the Schleswig-Holstein has sunk and the Silesia is badly damaged!"

  Although my writing is poor, it's not that useless, why do you all advise me to give up? Recently I've been working part-time, afternoon shift, 1 pm to 9 pm, it's really hard to find time to write a few words. After finishing the diary, I won't write anymore. Watching the Olympics, chatting with girls, doing part-time jobs... actually, life is quite enjoyable...