Empire Conquest
Chapter 342 - 338 Continue Moving Forward

After discussing, the two decided to proceed as planned.

As originally arranged, the task of the 43rd Sub-fleet was to launch a full-speed assault toward the rear of the Newland Fleet after the war began, to seek out the hidden carrier mixed fleet behind the Main Battle Mixed Fleet. If they encountered the Newland Main Battle Mixed Fleet, they were also to assist the 42nd Special Mixed Fleet in combat.

The Newland battleships had fire control radars, and the four fast battleships of the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet were also equipped with fire control radars.

During their return to port for major overhaul, in order to enhance nighttime combat capability, both "North River" class ships had fire control radars installed at the top of their rear masts, and added related command equipment—having even adjusted the command system, with the command center located on the rear bridge responsible for the gun battle.

This left the main bridge’s command center primarily in charge of anti-aircraft combat.

Due to the many modifications, and the need for a major overhaul, this took several months. Therefore, before the 41st Special Mixed Fleet was established, the two "Xu Sea" class replaced two "North River" class, and were included in the Special Mixed Group commanded by Liu Xiangzhen, providing cover for the carriers.

Had it not been for the excitement of this operation and their inclusion in the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, the two "North River" class ships would have returned to the 21st Special Mixed Fleet to replace two "Lu River" class ships, providing anti-aircraft cover for the two carriers. This would allow the two "Lu River" class ships to return to the shipyard for major overhaul and renovation.

In the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, the four fast battleships were all armed with 400mm naval guns.

Although the number of guns varied and the calibers of their barrels were different, both "North River" class ships had gained the capability to fire new armor-piercing bullets by replacing the firing mechanisms of the main guns during their overhaul, but they were unable to fully unleash the power of these new armor-piercing bullets.

Additionally, the four battleships carried plenty of the new armor-piercing bullets.

Since they were primarily for naval combat, in the main gun ammunition depots of the four battleships, two-thirds were armor-piercing bullets and of those, two-thirds were new armor-piercing bullets.

On average, each main gun of the "Xu Sea" class had over forty rounds, and each main gun of the "North River" class had nearly fifty rounds.

On the opposite side, there were still six Newland Navy battleships that had not appeared, but only three "Kola" class ships were equipped with 16-inch main guns.

Based on the latest intelligence, the three "Kola" class ships had not undergone modernization improvements and thus might not be able to use the newly developed heavy armor-piercing bullets.

If they were using the old armor-piercing bullets from the previous war, the threat would be minimal once the engagement distance exceeded 20 kilometers.

As for the three "New Mo" class ships, equipped with 14-inch main guns, they are hardly worth mentioning.

Theoretically, even with new heavy bullets, it would be very difficult for 14-inch naval guns to penetrate the armor of the "Xu Sea" class within a normal engagement range.

The key point is, there were four fast battleships.

Even if they couldn’t win, couldn’t they still outrun the enemy?

As long as they relied on the speed advantage of the fast battleships to maintain a favorable engagement distance, such as controlling it to be above 20 kilometers, they could firmly hold the initiative.

This was also the result of the discussion between Li Jie and Jin Hong.

They planned to first take out the three most threatening "Kola" class ships through long-distance gun battles, then use the speed advantage to catch up and destroy the other three "New Mo" class ships.

With a bit of luck, who knew if they could achieve a perfect victory like the one in the western side of Watcher Strait against the Saiyi’s First Main Battle Corps?

The carrier mixed fleet?

If encountered, that would be even better.

The 21st Special Mixed Fleet was located to the west of the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, also traveling fast eastward, and would deploy reconnaissance aircraft after daybreak. If the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet discovered the Newland Navy’s carriers before sunrise, the 21st Special Mixed Fleet could then send ship-borne aircraft to launch an attack directly.

With the carrier mixed fleet defeated, could the Main Battle Mixed Fleet ahead still escape?

There was no reason to hesitate because the enemy’s battleships were equipped with fire control radars.

Li Jie and Jin Hong had never considered a question.

What if Liu Xiangzhen and Bai Zhizhan were the ones defeated? Would the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet still have a chance to escape?

Perhaps, neither of them had ever thought that Bai Zhizhan could be defeated.

The battle had already erupted, and stopping now would mean retreating in the face of the enemy.

In fact, what worried Li Jie and Jin Hong was not encountering the enemy’s main battle fleet and the carrier mixed fleet.

According to the plan, if they still hadn’t found the enemy after dawn, the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet would have to head north to assist the 42nd Special Mixed Fleet in annihilating the four exposed battleships, then sail full speed to the south, aiming to rendezvous with the 21st Special Mixed Fleet before nightfall.

Tactically, if Newland Navy’s six battleships were not near the transport convoy, then it’s possible they were further south.

Theoretically, these battleships would head west after nightfall, potentially threatening the advanced 21st Special Mixed Fleet.

The problem now was that it probably wouldn’t wait until night.

Once it was light, the carrier mixed fleet previously active in the east would launch their ship-borne aircraft.

Since they had already advanced at full speed, the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, being the easternmost of the four fleets, might be the first to be attacked.

To put it metaphorically, the 42nd Special Mixed Fleet was like a shield, and the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, a sharp knife.

As long as the Newland Fleet Commander wasn’t too foolish, he would certainly first block this sharp knife.

Even if the 21st Special Mixed Fleet sent fighters, it might not be enough to ensure full protection.

It would be slightly better if they encountered the Newland Navy’s main force.

As long as the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet was intercepted, the threat would naturally cease to exist, and there would be no immediate need to deploy ship-borne aircraft for an attack.

If they hadn’t encountered them, that would be troublesome.

The two sides’ shipborne air forces would then fight a battle around the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet, and the defending side would undoubtedly find it tough to gain an upper hand.

After consulting with Jin Hong, Li Jie ordered the "Xu Sea" to activate its search radar.

Yet, he did not recall the 43.2 Subsquad, which was leading the way.

Then, Li Jie contacted the captains of "North River" and "Nanjiang," emphasizing the basic principles of engagement, to maintain distance from enemy ships as much as possible, fully leveraging their speed and firepower advantages, and avoid close-range gun battles with the enemy, focusing instead on concentrating fire on the most threatening enemy ships.

While making this arrangement, Li Jie had a premonition that the six Newland battleships were right ahead.

The key point was, the Newland Navy would not abandon the four battleships that had been exposed.

Even if they were outdated battleships, they were still battleships and had irreplaceable value in fleet battles.

Moreover, there were thousands of Newland Navy officers and men aboard those battleships.

No matter who was in command, they would not neglect the lives of thousands of officers and men.

Thus, it was essential to have the other six battleships provide cover in the east, and they would likely be in position before dawn to void being caught between the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet and another fleet.

Indeed, if so, in about half an hour, around dawn, the six battleships would be discovered.

If the six battleships were sailing westward, or in a southwest direction, then at this moment, they definitely wouldn’t be more than 50 kilometers away from the 43rd Special Mixed Fleet. If they had already taken their positions, the distance would shrink to around 40 kilometers, and only a bit over 20 kilometers from the 43.2 Subsquad.

Thus, theoretically, the Newland battleships’ radars would have already detected the light cruisers of the 43.2 Subsquad.