"Commander, the guerrilla fleet is here [Xiamiwenxue.]" Sanzen Katsumi pointed to the smoke where the water and sky met in the distance and said.

"They're on time." Shiki Kayama looked at his pocket watch and nodded with satisfaction.

"According to the intelligence department, the Beiyang Fast Fleet's Guiyuan ship was too seriously injured and was still lying in the dock, while the main force of the Beiyang Fleet was in Zhenyuan, except for Dingyuan and Zhenhai, and only Zhiyuan, Kaiyuan and Jiyuan could fight. Those 1570-ton cruisers of the third rank and Guangjia were completely repaired. Even if they go to war, they won't play a big role. Sanshan said seemingly casually.

"Sanshanjun is very dissatisfied with the imperial intelligence department?" Shiki Kayama said with a smile.

"The information they provided to the navy was not accurate, first of all, the Battle of Toshima, and the news of the dispatch of the Beiyang Rapid Fleet was not found at all. This was followed by news that the Beiyang Fast Fleet had fled to the East China Sea, which was also not provided. Finally, there is the Battle of Gunsan Bay...... Those intelligence services didn't send even a single piece of information on paper! The more he talked, the angrier he became.

"But all this is no longer important, after several major wars, although the Combined Fleet has suffered huge losses, we have also formed an advantage over the Beiyang Fleet." The birch mountain Shiki opened the road ..........

"And we went to the Datong River Estuary blockade mission this time, if nothing else, in order to rescue tens of thousands of Qing troops in Korea, I think the Beiyang Fleet will come out." A smug smile appeared at the corner of Shiki's mouth.

"Yes, those army guys have always wanted the navy to give them a hand, but they don't know that our navy used the army to besiege Nie Shi as a bait to lure the Beiyang Fleet into battle, so as to annihilate the Beiyang Naval Division in one fell swoop." Sanshan said proudly.

In the established plan of the base camp, the navy was originally to ensure the security of the anchorage in Gunsan Bay and the Korean Strait, and the Korean issue was led by the army. But when it took more than 2 months for the mountain genji to finally compress the Qing army to Pyongyang. Sudden discovery. The Qing army, which was full of ammunition, was so difficult to fight! Although Motoji Yamagi changed his tactics, the pace of the attack slowed down significantly, which directly caused serious dissatisfaction among political bigwigs such as Hirobumi Ito and Konobo Saionji.

Under pressure from the top of the political circles, the War Department had to ask the Navy to continue northward so that it could cut off the supply lines and retreat routes of the Beiyang Army. "Y, Army you also have today!" After seeing the army deflated, the reaction of the navy bigwigs was two words - happy!! After the pleasure, Shiki Kayama and the captains of the ships discussed and decided to delay the ......... for the time being.

It's not all selfish. The Japanese fleet needed time to regroup. To be on the safe side. Shiki Kayama decided to take all his belongings with him and go to the mouth of the Datong River after the assembly was completed in Japan. Because the current Japanese army, although it has achieved an advantage over the Beiyang Fleet. However, with the loss of a large number of warships, the main ships of the Japanese army were only 12. The others were small gunboats and torpedo boats. There's really no room for a mistake. If they go separately, in case one of the teams encounters the main force of the Beiyang Fleet, then the navy behind it will not be easy to fight.

For this final battle, Shiki Kayama gathered all the forces of the Japanese Combined Fleet. The fleet was still divided into two teams, Fuji, Yashima, Itsukushima, Matsushima, Hashidate, Izumi, and Chiyoda, with a total of seven warships. The guerrilla fleets were Kurama, Asahi, Yoshino, Naniwa and Takachiho, with a total of 5 warships. In order to avoid the problem of disjointedness of the fleet here. Both the own fleet and the fast fleet must act at the speed of the ship with the lowest speed.

And for strategic purposes, the Japanese fleet abandoned the strangulation of the Beiyang Fast Fleet. Because after many actual battles and deductions, it was found that the protection and speed of the Guiyuan-class cruiser brought it great survivability, and if the Guiyuan-class wanted to withdraw. Except for Kurama and Yoshino, the other ships were not fast enough, but these two ships alone could not defeat the opponent. So after thinking about it, this Beiyang fast fleet doesn't fight. …………。

In this way, the focus of the Japanese army became to reasonably encircle and annihilate the Beiyang Fleet itself, and to expel the Beiyang Rapid Fleet de facto. In order to achieve this strategic goal. The Japanese fleet will abandon the tactics of the past that cut across the Beiyang Fleet. Instead, the two fleets outflanked from the left and right flanks, and at the same time sent torpedo boat formations to launch lightning strikes to scatter the Beiyang Fleet. (At that time, because of the close distance of the engagement, it was still possible to outflank from both flanks within visual range.) ）

After completing the formulation of the plan and the assembly and replenishment of warships, the main force of the Japanese Combined Fleet finally sailed out of the port of Nagasaki and headed for the mouth of the Datong River. Look at the two teams of battleships arranged in columns and the torpedo boats in front of the fleet that are on alert duty. The Japanese Navy went up to the commander of the fleet and down to the ordinary sailors. They are confident.

Although after successive bloody battles, the Japanese army suffered huge losses. However, the total number of capital ships that the Beiyang Fleet can dispatch is already less than 10...... Among them, there are also old ships with more than 2,000 tons of scooping to recharge. Face the elite Japanese fleet. The arrival of the Beiyang Fleet could only be a battle exploit for the Japanese fleet. Looking at this fleet, which has been built with decades of exhaustive national strength, the hearts of the Japanese officers and men are full of pride!

The bow of the Fuji splits the sea. Beat the spray into a mist and drain it to both sides, and the thick 9.2-inch gun is pointed forward. The dense array of artillery on the side chords indicates the strength of the Fuji. Alongside the Fuji was the guerrilla fleet's flagship Kurama, a 7,000-ton first-class cruiser that had been reupgraded after months of repairs, with a slender hull, dense guns, and high speed, making it one of the best cruisers in the Japanese army. The two flagships sent sailing together to lead the main fleet to the distant ..........

And Yashima behind the Fuji. Although it was not as beautiful as the Fuji and Kurama on the surface, this armored cruiser with 8 8-inch guns and 10 6-inch guns was actually the most powerful battleship in the Japanese fleet. Hidaka believed that if it were only a projection of firepower, his Yashima would be the strongest of the ships participating in the battle. And next to him is the Asahi class, also from Russia. Adhering to the Russian tradition of fighting with guns at that time, Asahi Yoshiyoshi was also the second most firepower in the Japanese cruiser fleet after Kurama. However, compared to the new cruisers such as Kurama and Yoshino, this battleship with its sail equipment is a bit old. A mere 6-inch main outfit is not worth relying on.

In the back were the various 2nd class cruisers of the Japanese army, including the Sankei ship, which was produced by the Japanese army to deal with Dingzhen, and the Armstrong-type cruiser Naniwa and Takachiho, which were specially purchased as follow-up ships after the abandonment of the Sankei. The cruisers followed in two columns.

Twelve battleships, although much less than the combined fleet of the Japanese at the beginning of the war. However, most of the elite remained, and now, they will run to the unknown battlefield. Embrace their own victory or defeat! The fate of the Qing-Japanese War, and even the national fortunes of the Qing and Japanese sides, will be written by them and the Beiyang Fleet! …。

Thank you for the monthly pass support of the book friends, jialiufan, Tianji scholars, Kongchen, and Zhong**ren. Anyway, the side bit clicked on the subscription query last night to see, I!! New chapters are less than 300 subscriptions a day? What is this situation? If the book is not good, you can give your opinion, don't hit the author like this-! Tomorrow is a holiday, and the author decided to work hard~~ Double more!! On the eve of the Great War. Let's support us. Your support is my biggest motivation. )。