The Rise of the Empire

What is there a word called? If things are going to get worse, then it's bound to get worse! When the fleet was stationed in Shanghai, Tirpitz suddenly ordered the armored cruiser Mainz to go north and enter the Bohai Sea. On the one hand, he completed the diplomatic mission of visiting the base of the Beiyang Fleet, and at the same time took the supply ship Cormorant to replenish coal in Tianjin Port. .

The south is short of coal, and because the British Far East Fleet seems to have a plan to go north, the British Concession authorities in Shanghai purchased a large amount of coal. After the German fleet entered Shanghai, they suddenly found that there was not enough coal for the fleet. The only way was to go to the north to buy coal. The best coal in the north is naturally the Kailuan Coal Mine in Tangshan.

This coal mine under the control of Beiyang is naturally willing to provide fuel for the German fleet, but the premise is that you have to go to Tianjin Port to pull coal yourself! And considering that it is already May 1894, the situation between Qing and Japan is very tense, and it is obviously not good to let a supply ship go alone! So it was decided that Tirpitz would let the Mainz perform this escort mission!

Although Ruprecht knew that Japan would definitely cheat, and even though he knew that 80% of the merchant ships that encountered an innocent disaster this time were German ships, the prince believed that it was very unlikely that the Japanese would do anything before the German fleet left the Far East. After all, the British were Japanese. The boss behind the scenes, if you do something, you will be fine, but the Germans are different. If something happens, how will the Japanese end up?

And as a traveler from the future, His Royal Highness really hopes to visit his hometown in Northeast China and see the compatriots who fought for the Chinese nation at sea in that era. Originally, Tirpitz planned to let His Royal Highness stay in Shanghai. The cruiser Mainz's visit to the Beiyang Fleet was just a courtesy greeting. It's a bit too much for His Royal Highness to go in person, not to mention the situation in the Yellow Sea is very bad now! What if something goes wrong?

"I will eventually follow the path of my ancestors. My uncle could fight against the French bullets. His Majesty Frederick III won the reputation of the Prince of Shotgun in the Franco-Prussian War. And I shrink back because of the slightest danger." If so, I think, everyone who is doing it will despise me, glory and safety, I choose the former!"

The awe-inspiring righteousness of the prince made all the generals present feel admiration. At the insistence of the prince, Tirpitz could only agree. Of course, before departure, Ruprecht also specifically mentioned this sentence: "Although the probability is very small, if something happens, I think it will be difficult for Captain von Ingenauer to take due responsibility."

There is a reason for this. It was the first time in history that the German fleet and the British fleet met in World War I. The Germans had an overwhelming advantage. As a result, this buddy shouted decisively. Even the captain of the fleet at that time bluntly said to follow this Such a commander could not win the battle, and the commander of the High Seas Fleet was later dismissed because of this. If something happens, a little hesitation will lead to unpredictable consequences, the prince is very worried!

"It doesn't matter. Colonel von House is my representative. He will have the highest command of the fleet. I will let him discuss some things. But you must remember that you should not interfere in military affairs. Your diplomatic strategy and The way to deal with the crisis is very correct, but for the navy, it is best to leave it to professionals." Tirpitz said very seriously.

After several years of contact, Tirpitz admired the prince's knowledge and ability. As a general, he commanded the fleet to perform normal tasks, but when dealing with emergencies and major political issues, The current Tirpitz is still a bit worse. Although the prince is young, his two lifetimes of experience and knowledge make him see things far beyond ordinary people, and he was born in an emperor's family since he was a child, so he comes into contact with and learns from these things every day!

After some explanations, a squadron composed of an armored cruiser and a supply ship officially headed north,

The main force of the German fleet stayed in Shanghai, opposite the British fleet. Rear Admiral Tirpitz had a friendly and sincere exchange with Fremantle, Commander of the British China Squadron.

Ruprecht and his party entered the Yellow Sea from the East China Sea. At this time, the surface of the Yellow Sea was already full of gunpowder. The Japanese fleet and the Beiyang Fleet frequently appeared in the Yellow Sea. The nerves of both sides were tense. The gun went off, and as time passed, the Japanese finally couldn't sit still.

If there is really a God in this world, then the prince believes that he must have personally planned what will happen next, everything is preordained, and even an event with a small probability will inevitably happen. However, the prince was very open-minded after the fact. After all, things like crossing that violated the laws of nature and objective laws happened. What's so difficult about other things happening by chance?

The maximum coal storage of a Munich-class armored cruiser is 1,500 tons. If there are 4 ships, it will be 6,000 tons, because after replenishment in the Qing Dynasty, it will go to Vladivostok, and then cross the Pacific Ocean to the west coast of the United States. There will be no replenishment points, so the cormorant coal-fired supply ship must be filled with up to 6,000 tons of reserve coal. It is obviously not possible to fill up so much coal in the backward Tianjin Port in a day or two.

Coal ships can be slowly loaded in the port, and von Haus believes that warships should not just waste time like this. Under his command, the armored cruiser Mainz began to wander directly in the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea... . This is not only for training at sea, but also for escorting passing German merchant ships. According to Colonel Von House, as the Imperial Fleet, it is necessary to guarantee the interests of Germany overseas. This is the task!

The Yellow Sea is just such a small place, the so-called look up and see down. No, the armored cruiser Mainz, which was dangling on the sea, spotted a ship coming from the northwest in the waters close to North Korea, and the lookout confirmed the identity Finally, the Germans knew that this was a Beiyang squadron. They were escorting the hired German ship Haisheng to North Korea!

"Look, that's our latest armored cruiser. I just saw it last year! It's so beautiful and powerful. There won't be such a powerful warship in the entire Far East." Old Willy, the captain of the Haisheng, pointed out Speaking of the armored cruiser Mainz approaching them in the distance.

"Greeting with a light signal, it's fine to fire a salute, after all, the situation here is very tense." Von Ingenuel looked at the approaching Qing fleet, and then ordered.

The fleets of the two sides met each other at sea and then went about their business. But at this moment, the prince standing on the bridge couldn't help feeling a little throbbing in his heart. When the fleets of the two sides passed by each other, the Jiyuan and Guangyi appeared in front of him, which gave him a feeling of deja vu!

"I suggest that all personnel be in a state of level 2 combat readiness, and all command personnel should go to the command tower." The traverser immediately said to Colonel Von House.

"This, a little too nervous, right? The two sides didn't declare war..." House was a little puzzled.

"Trust my intuition, I always feel wrong." The prince didn't have a good reason to convince his opponent, but he still took his adjutant Hipper to the command tower, while a group of senior officers were still staying on the bridge.

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