Empire Conquest
Chapter 251 - 247: The Stolen Merit

Chapter 251: Chapter 247: The Stolen Merit

On the "Heng River."

Having received the second battle report sent back by Zhu Huasheng, Bai Zhizhan felt even more troubled and perplexed.

It wasn’t about whether to launch a third attack.

On "Heng River," all the bombers and torpedo bombers had been dispatched, with the first wave led by Shen Pu only expected to return after five. Even if the ship-borne aircraft managed to land and were refueled and rearmed without checks, they couldn’t make it back before nightfall.

When planning, Bai Zhizhan had not considered arranging a third attack.

What troubled Bai Zhizhan was whether to recall Li Jie and Jin Hong, that is, to have the two "Xu Sea" class ships return.

In the early morning, upon receiving news from Liu Xiangzhen that he had dispatched four fast battleships to the landing area for a nighttime bombardment on Liuhuang Island, Bai Zhizhan immediately guessed his intentions and then sent Li Jie and Jin Hong with two fast battleships forward, to seek and seize the opportunity to intercept the Permanent Fleet.

When making these arrangements, Bai Zhizhan did not plan to share the achievements with Liu Xiangzhen.

Like previously mentioned, Liu Xiangzhen did not hold back, so why should Bai Zhizhan show courtesy?

Past events when assessing the main achievements had already made Bai Zhizhan see clearly; since conflict was inevitable, he could not relax from the start.

After receiving Lieutenant He Weigu’s reconnaissance report, Bai Zhizhan sent a seaplane to deliver new combat orders to Li Joie and Jin Hong’s hands.

Full-speed assault, to intercept the Permanent Fleet after sunset.

There was no choice, Bai Zhizhan only had one carrier, more than seventy torpedo bombers and bombers, and time only allowed for one sortie.

With such limited forces, it might not be possible to completely annihilate the Permanent Fleet.

Wait until tomorrow morning?

Liu Xiangzhen might not stay obediently southwest of Liuhuang Island, he could possibly come over during the night and steal the credit for annihilating the Permanent Fleet.

But the problem was, Zhu Huasheng mentioned in the telegram that the four battleships had been severely damaged and might all sink during the night.

Two waves of attacks had only managed to sink seven heavy cruisers, and the Permanent Fleet still had several light cruisers and over a dozen destroyers capable of fighting.

These warships posed a significant threat at night.

The Saiyi Navy always valued field combat and possessed the world’s number one "Spear" oxygen torpedoes; a night melee could see destroyers threatening battleships.

Moreover, only four light cruisers accompanied the two "Xu Sea" class ships in the strike.

If Saiyi warships swarmed, four light cruisers might not hold them back.

For safety, Bai Zhizhan held back four "Wuzhou" class heavy cruisers.

Additionally, the First Special Mixed Fleet had already entered the sea area of the Volcanic Islands, and if it continued to sail northward, by early tomorrow morning it would enter the strike range of the Saiyi Navy’s shore-based air force. If it were necessary to deploy the ship-borne aircraft for an attack, there might not be enough fighters left for air defense.

To put it bluntly, is it necessary to risk the lives of two close comrades for four battleships that are about to sink?

Or to avoid risk, pass up the opportunity to sink four battleships?

That’s like meat that has already reached the mouth, or even entered it; should it really be let go and spit out?

Bai Zhizhan was well aware that by tomorrow, when the Special Mixed Group arrived, there would probably not even be bones left.

However, the risk of a night battle was indeed great.

"Commander!"

As the communications officer approached, he suddenly shouted, causing Bai Zhizhan to shudder several times.

This guy, having seen Bai Zhizhan regain his composure, quickly stuffed the telegram into Zhou Yongtao’s hand and then scurried off.

It seemed, varying the methods of startling Bai Zhizhan had become one of the great amusements for the staff at Fleet Headquarters.

"This... How is this possible!"

"What did you say?"

Zhou Yongtao didn’t explain, but simply handed the telegram to Bai Zhizhan.

He caught sight of it and Bai Zhizhan was also stunned.

A submarine tactical report, merely forwarded by the Navy headquarter.

At the onset, the "Blue Ringed Octopus" had sunk four battleships of the Permanent Fleet with twelve torpedoes within fifteen minutes!

Indeed, they were sunk!

All four battleships were in the same sea area, and it was between these battleships that the captain of the "Blue Ringed Octopus" had risen to the surface to send a telegraph only after witnessing through the periscope the sinking of the four battleships. This report must be accurate, as observation through a periscope would certainly involve taking photos as proof.

Moreover, the submarine was still in the combat zone, had not been attacked before or after sending the report, and might not yet have been discovered by the Saiyi Navy’s destroyers and light cruisers.

The telegram also mentioned that after dark, once the enemy ships had departed, the "Blue Ringed Octopus" would search and rescue pilots who had fallen into the water.

"Go send a telegram, have them return."

"About the others..."

"Since the main credit has been taken by others, even if we destroy the other warships, what good would it do?"

Zhou Yongtao turned and walked away, sighing deeply, clearly feeling a great sense of regret.

Conversely, Bai Zhizhan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least, he no longer had to face a dilemma.

Such was fate!

Truth be told, the Imperial Navy had never placed much importance on submarines. It wasn’t that they didn’t recognize the value of submarines, but within the strategic system of the Imperial Navy, submarines had little significance, especially in the early stages of the war, hence they were not considered particularly important.

A strategic chokehold?

After seizing control of the seas, would there still be a need to dispatch submarines to strangle the enemy country?

That would be as absurd as saying that the Bulan Royal Navy would use submarines to strategically strangle the Tiaoman Empire.

Here in the West East Ocean, it was the Imperial Navy, not the Saiyi Navy, that controlled the seas, making it unnecessary to use submarines to strategically strangle the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom.

If they were to rely solely on submarines, then the Empire would not be far from defeat.

Although the Imperial Navy had about eighty submarines, the majority were small ones that could operate only in coastal waters, with fewer than twenty being large, ocean-going submarines.

Right before the outbreak of the major conflict, which was at the end of December last year, these large submarines had all entered the West East Ocean.

According to the plan, all submarines were primarily devoted to reconnaissance, which involved searching for and surveilling the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom’s fleet and naval bases.

No one knew the whereabouts of these submarines, not even Bai Zhizhan.

In the waters near the Volcanic Islands, there were at least five large, ocean-going submarines.

Among them was the "Blue Ringed Octopus."

A few days ago, a submarine had sunk a transport ship more than three hundred kilometers north of the Volcanic Islands, which was delivering combat supplies to Liuhuang Island.

Afterward, for safety, the Saiyi Navy had stopped transporting supplies to Liuhuang Island by ship.

If necessary, they would use warships to transport supplies.

Before this, Bai Zhizhan hadn’t even considered the submarines.

To find a fleet in the vast ocean was difficult, not only for submarines but even for reconnaissance aircraft. Moreover, submarines operating alone generally wouldn’t risk attacking a fleet protected by destroyers and other anti-submarine warships, as once targeted, the submarine’s chances were slim.

Who would have thought that this very submarine would run into the Permanent Fleet?

And crucially, just as the Permanent Fleet had suffered a bombing.

This luck was truly indescribable.

Bai Zhizhan felt very emotional, even somewhat resigned.

After all the hard work for so long, losing over a dozen ship-borne aircraft, to have someone else step in just as the fruit was ripe for the picking.

It felt like being on the verge of entering the bridal chamber, only to be told that someone else was the groom.

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