The sea breeze roared and the waves were dancing. On the vast sea surface, a huge fleet was gushing with rolling coal smoke, moving forward quickly to the northwest. The giant cannons were long and the chimneys were like forests. The tall freeboards and solid triangular masts of the large warships in it undoubtedly demonstrated the fleet's camp.

On the tail deck of the battle cruiser "Lion", Betty, who was straight in military uniform, silently stared at the quickly distant sea area, feeling complicated and did not speak for a long time. The wind blew the lieutenant general's uniform and flew; he wore the brim of the hat, but Betty had no intention of straightening him.

"General, we put down the prey that had been sent to our mouths and fled in panic?" Captain Lion Captain Colonson flashed his eyes, and he couldn't help but speak to Betty, who was a head shorter than him, "The German patrolman was directly hit by two torpedoes and twelve 13.5-inch shells, and the anchor chain on the head of the ship was buried in the water; as long as there were another ten minutes, we could completely sink it! It would be a pity to give up like this!"

Betty said lightly: "Of course I know that I will give up all my previous efforts. However, I have no choice. In this raid on the Gulf of Helgoland, the Royal Navy sent only five battlecruisers as the main support, while there were 6 German battlecruisers appearing in the southeast at that time; except for the Luzov, which had not yet fully formed combat effectiveness, Hippel had brought out all his belongings. The most important thing is that the battleship group of the German High Seas Fleet is likely to follow closely! When the water level at the mouth of the Jed River was already high, the Germans would definitely not let the battle patrol act alone. Do you think that these five battle patrols can confront the entire German Navy head-on?"

Colunsen's lips twitched, his eyes full of unwillingness.

"In addition, don't forget the real mission of our trip. The plan to raid the Helgolan Bay in the Admiralty is just a military operation against the German outer patrol fleet, not a decisive battle between the main fleets. If it weren't for General Jericho's dispatch, you and I wouldn't even appear on the list of this operation!" Betty slowly turned around and said to the naval colonel ten years older than him in front of him, "We rushed into the periphery of the German military port. We were already brave enough to be caught in the water

The great risk of thunder and submarine attacks; the only hope is to fight quickly with the advantage of firepower, eliminate the German fleet and then quickly evacuate. When the main force of the German navy has arrived to support, our fleet is at a comprehensive disadvantage in terms of force and situation, and has completely lost the qualification to continue fighting. If this sneak attack on the German outer patrol fleet eventually turns into a disastrous ending of losing a precious battlecruiser, then the whole of Britain will not forgive me!"

Corenson was silent for a while and said, "But even so, we cannot explain to the people who are eagerly looking forward to the people in the country. In this battle, the Royal Navy lost a total of 2 armored cruisers and 8 destroyers, another armored cruiser, 1 light cruiser and 4 destroyers were severely damaged, while the Germans only sank one patrol and 5 torpedo boats. Although we do not know the specific casualties of the Germans, judging from the fact that their sunk ships were far less than ours, it is almost impossible to have more than 1,400 deaths. The poor Cresey was sunk in an instant. Except for the two of them who survived by chance, none of the remaining 758 officers and soldiers survived!"

"The failure of this operation is not the fault of you and me, but the front-line officers eager to eliminate the enemy, and the group of idiot staff members in the Admiralty. Next time, I will bring all nine battle cruisers. There will definitely be no shameful situation like being driven away by the Germans today!" Betty clenched his fists and said with hatred.

"Bang." A series of crisp sounds of gunfire resounded through the sea area, and white smoke curled up. All British ships who had crew members died in battle were neatly lined up on the side of the British ships in white uniforms. They were holding rifles in their hands and shooting bullets into the sky as a way to see off and mourn the dead. The mechanical twists and the bed boards rose. On them, a royal naval officer and soldier who had lost his life lying quietly and lying on them suddenly slid into the sea. The waves splashed, and then they never saw each other again. This was the sea burial of the British navy against the dead warriors, which has been passed down from the Viking era to this day. Seeing this, Betty felt sour and stagnant. He took off his military cap, raised his right hand, and gave the most solemn military salute to the splashing waves.

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Under the same sky, in the ocean, countless warships hanging from the black vulture cross battle flags also slashed the waves and sailed straight towards their base. In the middle of the fleet, a large warship with a severe head tilted and its deck was less than one meter away from the sea, staggering forward under the drag of four torpedo boats; the waves surging, soaking its deck like a submarine. Its chimney broke, the tower collapsed, and the entire bridge turned into a broken steel ruin. Even the front main turret weighing hundreds of tons was fixed from the bearings. The two main guns drooped down weakly, a miserable scene of extreme desolation.

Accompanied by the thunder of the diesel engine, a small traffic boat slowly leaned against the battle cruiser "Deflinger". Major General Mas, who was wrapped in white gauze like a rice dumpling, slowly boarded the largest main warship in the German high seas fleet under the guidance of a staff officer. On the floating front deck, two majestic giant 350mm double-mounted turrets stood tall like prehistoric beasts. Even though Mas served in the navy for many years, he still couldn't help but rolled his Adam's apple and swallowed his envious saliva. Before he could think about it, a middle-aged major walked up to him, saluted him and said, "General Mas, please come with me, General Hippel has been waiting for you for a long time."

The bridge of the main ship during World War I was much simpler than during World War II. After a while, Mas walked into the command tower about 6 meters high from the deck. Seeing a general with a bright head and a goatee beard under his jaw, Mas looked solemn and immediately stood at attention and saluted: "German Mas, commander of the Helgoland Island Defense Fleet, thank you very much for your rescue!"

Hippel smiled slightly and said, "German, you and I are both soldiers of the German Imperial Navy. How could I not save me? In fact, when the patrol troops reported a large number of British destroyers led by light cruisers, I had already guessed that there might be a big guy behind the British, and immediately ordered the battle patrol fleet to set fire and prepare to go out to meet the enemy." Speaking of this, Hippel's eyes were slightly depressed, and then said, "However, due to the water level at the mouth of the Jed River, when I received your telegram, I could only stay in the port until it was close to 10 o'clock. Otherwise, the York would not have lost it."

"Lieutenant General, has the main force of the High Seas Fleet also moved?" Mars paused and asked.

Hippel nodded and said, "When the British battlecruiser was discovered, Admiral Ingnoll (the first commander of the High Seas Fleet in history) was worried that Jericho would also appear near Helgoland Bay, so he immediately took over the "Frederick the Great" and led all 21 dreadnoughts to reinforce. However, the subsequent airship reconnaissance showed that there was only Betty's fleet in this sea area. Unfortunately, Betty was even more cunning than the fox. As soon as my six battle cruisers appeared, he decided to retreat. If he stayed in place for another hour, then none of his battle cruisers could escape the battlefield." After speaking, Hippel curled his lips, as if he was very sorry.

"However, we don't need to be depressed at all. I, Germany, is the unquestionable winner of the Battle of Helgolan Bay in the fog. The tonnage of the British sunk warships is more than twice ours!" Hippel's face returned to his initial smile after a little regret. He patted Maas on the shoulder and said, "We will meet with the High Seas Fleet soon. For your heroic resistance under the siege of the five British battle patrols, both Ingnoll and Germany will reward you with no hesitation!"

Hearing Hippel's words, a happy smile finally appeared on the corner of Maas's mouth. He paused, as if he suddenly thought of something, and said seriously: "Lieutenant General, I still have important things to report. In fact, the reason why Prince Heinrich can support your reinforcements is entirely due to the British's problems with the inferior armor-piercing bombs!" Maas immediately told Hippel in detail what he had observed in the previous battle, including the distance between the British battle patrol firing, the heading angle of his own warships, and the destructive effect of the armor-piercing bombs.

For a moment, the entire commander's tower was silent, only Maas's story reverberated.

"...In addition, there are serious hidden dangers in the safety of our ammunition depot. In order to increase the rate of fire, the explosion-proof door between the turrets and the ammunition depots has always been opened. Once the main turret or the gun seat causes a fire, the door will not be closed at all! In this battle, the former main gun seat of Prince Heinrich was penetrated by British armor-piercing bombs and caused a fire. If Sergeant Corner had not tried his best to open the valve and pour water into the ammunition depot, I would not have appeared in front of you again." Maas's tone gradually became heavier, saying, "So, we must not only strictly order the sailors to close the explosion-proof door immediately after completing the ammunition lifting operation, but also need to improve the current structure, and must prevent the mortal explosion of the ammunition depot caused by the hitting of the turret."

Hippel nodded slowly and said, "I understand. After returning to Hong Kong, you will immediately write a detailed report on this issue and submit it to the Imperial Navy for review."

PS: Thank you to the book friend Zhouyu1976 and February 30 for rewards~~~ Yesterday, the subscription set a record low in history, and the author's heart was like a falling ice cellar ╮(╯_╰)╭...
Chapter completed!