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Port Said, an important city in northeastern Egypt, was originally just a small fishing village. However, after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1859, it quickly prospered and became the largest coaling station in the world at the end of the 19th century. At the beginning of the 20th century, it had a population of 50,000 and became the second largest port in Egypt.

After the squadron captured the Suez Canal, Port Said became the seat of the squadron's headquarters in Egypt. And the Egyptian government, having no opinion on this, is as if the root does not know about it! This is the sorrow of a small country, whether it is China or Britain and France, they are both world powers, and they are not something that a small country like Egypt can provoke. The two sides fought on Egyptian soil, and Egypt, in order to avoid being implicated, only closed the door and acted as a turtle with a shrunken head, as if nothing had happened.

Because of the war, the Suez Canal has been temporarily blocked, and the originally prosperous Port Said has also been deserted. Many Egyptians who relied on the port to survive also fled to the countryside. The headquarters of the squadron is located in the port area of Port Said, where the commanders of the Army's Seventh Army, the 2nd Marine Division, and the Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet are all gathered.

With the failure of diplomatic contact, the squadron stationed in Egypt also received a warning from home. Britain and France, after diplomatic failures, are likely to resume the war. The squadron had to crush the offensive of the Anglo-French forces so that China could gain the initiative and make the benefits of this war completely clear.

"Ladies and gentlemen, according to the latest information we have received, the Anglo-French army has amassed 200,000 troops in Alexandria. They were all elite troops mobilized from within Britain and France. Their next step is likely to be an attack on Port Said! We must be best prepared for the Great War! General Du Qizheng, commander of the Seventh Group Army, said sternly. Because of his highest military rank, he has also been officially appointed commander of the Egyptian theater of operations, with full command of the Seventh Army, the Second Marine Division, and the Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet. It's just that he also knows that he is not good at naval warfare, so when it comes to naval warfare, the command of naval warfare is all up to the Indian Ocean Fleet itself.

"Commander! In that case, I built yì our forces immediately began to shrink in Suez City and Ismailia. Only a small number of troops were left, and the main forces were all gathered in Port Said! "Lieutenant General Niu Fakui, chief of staff of the Seventh Army, said in the first place.

"But what if, at the same time as attacking Port Said, the Anglo-French forces sent troops to attack Suez City and Ismailia?" Major General Peng Jiantong, commander of the 2nd Marine Division, asked.

"Now that the Suez Canal is under our control, we can use the canal. Rapid mobilization of troops. Therefore, it is only necessary to leave one regiment of troops each in Ismailia and Suez City. The main force, all assembled in Port Said, and fought a decisive battle with the British and French forces! As long as we crush their attack, we will win this battle! Lieutenant General Niu Fakui said with great certainty.

Everyone agrees with this. Though. The Anglo-French army had 200,000 men, but the combat effectiveness of the Anglo-French army could not be compared with that of the Chinese army. With the strength of the Seventh Army, defeating 200,000 Anglo-French troops is not a big problem.

"Alright! The troops stationed in Ismailia and Suez were ordered to assemble at once by ship to Port Said. Prepare to face the Anglo-French forces in Port Said. But. On the naval side, the American fleet also arrived. The other party is menacing! General Lee, is the Navy sure of victory? Lieutenant General Du Qizheng asked. At present, although the Indian Ocean Fleet has been strengthened, the Turkish Fleet's battlecruisers "Baiqi" and "Mengtian" have arrived. However, the Indian Ocean Fleet also had only four battleships and three battlecruisers. The opponent had ten battleships. The gap between the two sides is too great, and the armor of the battlecruiser is too weak, if you bombard the battleship, it will be a great loss. Therefore, everyone is a little worried about the battle of the navy!

"From the current point of view, the Navy really does not have an advantage. However, it will not be so easy for the British and American navies to defeat us. Once a naval battle breaks out, we will not fight them hard, but will take advantage of the speed advantage to distance ourselves from the British and American navies and fight them at a long distance. Our ejaculation accuracy is much higher than theirs, and we will not suffer at a distance of more than 12,000 meters. In addition, the submarine forces of the Navy will also lie in ambush in the sea, waiting for opportunities. In this battle, our chances of winning may not be great, but it is impossible for the British and American navies to defeat us! Vice Admiral Li Haitao, commander of the Indian Ocean Fleet, said.

"In this case, the key is war on land. As long as we can crush the offensive of the British and French forces, then there is no need for the British and American navies to continue fighting! Admiral Du Qizheng said.

Everyone nodded one after another, no matter how powerful the navy is, it can't be driven to the shore! As long as the Anglo-French forces were defeated, it would be possible to ensure that the Suez Canal was in the hands of the squadron, and it would be possible to completely cut off the logistical supply lines of the Anglo-French expeditionary force. Hundreds of thousands of British and French expeditionary forces trapped in the Kingdom will become turtles in the urn!

"So, guys, start preparing now! We must win this battle! Admiral Du Qizheng said firmly.

The squadron stationed in Port Said immediately entered the preparations for battle. All the soldiers joined in the construction of the fortifications. There are not many residents left in Port Said, otherwise, the Chinese side is ready to recruit a group of Egyptians to help the squadron build fortifications. The topography of Port Said is easy to defend and difficult to attack. To the west of Port Said, the turquoise waters of Lake Manzailai were to attack Port Said either along the narrow strip between the Mediterranean Sea and Lake Manzailai, which was only two kilometers wide, or the narrow strip of land south of Port Said, which was less than three kilometers wide between Lake Manzailai and the Suez Canal. As long as the squadron deployed heavy troops in these two directions, it would be able to easily resist the attack of the British and French forces. The only thing that needs to be guarded against is the shelling of the British and American navies from the sea. In order to avoid the interference of the British and American navies in a land war, the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy also had to leave the port to fight a decisive battle with the British and American navies!

On December 27, British Field Marshal Frederick Roberts gave an order to attack Port Said in Alexandria, and the 200,000 British and French troops were organized into four corps, with the 11th Army composed of the British Army as the vanguard, attacking Port Said along the Mediterranean. At the same time, the combined fleet formed by the British and American navies also began to march towards Port Said, preparing to attack the Chinese navy. In order to make the US fleet willingly cooperate with the British Navy in combat, the British side paid a lot of money and reluctantly provided the American side with a number of advanced technologies, including the large oil-fired boiler and real steam turbine technology that the United States has always coveted. This will undoubtedly greatly enhance the ability of the United States in shipbuilding.

Five days later, on 1 January 1903, the Anglo-French forces arrived at Damietta, less than 50 kilometres from Port Said. Field Marshal Frederick Roberts set up his headquarters here, and then ordered the Anglo-French forces to launch a fierce attack on Port Said!

On January 3, 1903, the offensive and defensive battles of Port Said officially began.

In the narrow strip of land between Lake Manzailai and the Mediterranean Sea, 10 kilometers from Port Said, the 32nd Division of the Seventh Army of the Chinese Army built a strong defensive line here. The line of defense, which is less than two kilometers, stretches from Lake Manzaile to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Here, the squadron built a strong line of trenches, barbed wire, and permanent points of fire. Moreover, the artillery brigades belonging to the army group will provide them with fire support.

The commander of the 11th Army of the British and French forces was Lieutenant General Hamilton, who had just shone in the Boer War in South Africa, and his headquarters was located ten kilometers away from the squadron's defensive line. It's just that at this moment, the future field marshal is frowning at the moment. The wide isthmus of less than two kilometers made it impossible for the huge forces in his hands to be deployed, and the Chinese had already built a strong position, and if they forcibly attacked, they would inevitably break their heads in front of the strong positions of the squadron.

However, the geographical location of Port Said is such that it is inevitable that such a problem will be encountered whether it is attacked from the west or from the south bypassing Lake Manzaile. If it doesn't work, the Anglo-French alliance will only have to fill it with human lives!

At nine o'clock in the morning, the Anglo-French troops began artillery preparations. The units of the 11th Army, all from British soil, were the elite of the British Army. The entire 11th Army had more than two hundred artillery pieces, more than half of which were artillery pieces of caliber over 105 mm, including 12 heavy howitzers of 155 mm. In order to strengthen the firepower of the Anglo-French forces, the British government and the French government, this time they both took out the old!

"Fire!" With the sound of the artillery commander below zero, the artillery positions of the 11th Army of the British and French forces immediately began a fierce shelling. More than 200 artillery pieces, scattered across 10 artillery positions, rained shells on the positions of the 32nd Division of the Chinese Army. Unable to deploy his forces, Hamilton pinned his hopes on artillery, hoping that heavy artillery fire could be used to smash the squadron's defensive positions, and then the infantry would attack again and advance to Port Said with minimal effort.

At the moment before the shelling began, the soldiers of the 321st Regiment of the Chinese Army, who were guarding the position, immediately drilled into the anti-artillery holes that had been built long ago. Although the entire position was covered in gunsmoke, in fact, the casualties inflicted on the squadron were very limited!