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Chapter 1316 [Reality is cruel]

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    Sir Considine didn't even need to return to the British Consulate General in Shanghai. He already knew why Wang Xueqian looked so confident just at the door of the Banking Association, which made him feel a little lack of confidence even when he threatened to export.  Sitting in the consulate car, the secretary sitting in the front row suddenly exclaimed: "Your Excellency, it is Mr. Hollem." "What is he doing here?" Although Sir Considine showed extreme impatience, he always felt that Wang Xueqian  His confidence comes from a power he is familiar with but has been neglected.  Could it be an American? I'm afraid it's unlikely. Americans' interests lie in the Americas. Even after the Spanish-American War, the United States did not take too many actions in Asia.  That kind of cautious attitude made the British government very satisfied.  The subsequent cooperation in matters in the Far East further demonstrated the position of the United States and that it is a very good partner.  The consulate car slowly drove out of the Bank Guild Gate. Suddenly the secretary sitting in front exclaimed: "Your Excellency, it's Mr. Hollum." "What is he doing here?" Sir Considine nodded and stopped the car.  In the current situation, the unexpected consulate car in the concession showed a nervousness as if facing a powerful enemy.  This sentiment even affects those working inside the consulate.  Everyone's face showed a nervous look, like a frightened soldier, but the pride of the British will keep them going, at least they will not admit that they are a little frightened.  Be careful and nervous.  Just when Sir Considine was stunned, Hollem's hands had already grabbed the window door where he was sitting, and his voice was full of panic and loss: "Your Excellency, something big has happened." "Get in the car and say  !¡± Although he was not so happy about his subordinates¡¯ sudden appearance, Sir Considine still showed a kind and tolerant attitude.  After the special car continued to start, Hollem revealed the reason for his panic: "The fleet encountered big trouble at the mouth of the Yangtze River. Major General Augustine has led his troops to surrender to the Republic of China army." "Impossible." Sir Considine glared.  He retorted that the fleet was his biggest confidence to stay in Shanghai. If there was a problem with the fleet, even to the worst extent, in his impression the Royal Navy was fully capable and had the strength to withdraw from the battlefield.  Instead of completely disregarding the honor and tradition of the navy and surrendering to the Republic of China Navy, which was much weaker than them.  It was like a joke that was unbelievable.  However, in conjunction with the Bank Guild, Wang Xueqian also spoke about the surrender of the fleet, which made Sir Considine begin to doubt his own judgment.  "Is there any confirmation?" "The radio station of the consulate has been in contact with the fleet, and the situation of the fleet has been confirmed. The cruiser Suffolk lost its ability to move after sitting on the beach, and then one of the other two destroyers was seriously injured and lost power.  "Sinked" "Sinked? Did the Republic of China have the ability to sink a destroyer? And it was within just two hours." "I have to say that even under very unfavorable circumstances, Sir Constant  The brain is still very useful.  He was able to deduce the approximate time of the Stingray's sinking from the time of its last contact with the fleet, but he never expected that the Stingray destroyer would not last as long as he imagined.  Instead, the sinking of the Stingray can be explained by lightning.  This is the power of aircraft, which is born to dominate the sky and can attack warships from any position. This is already divorced from the concept of modern naval operations.  "Have you asked other officers? What did the Military Intelligence Department say?" If the British had experienced the Malayan Naval War, they would not be so entangled and believed that this was an impossible battle scene.  After that naval battle, the British got used to the results of the air force being able to completely send a huge fleet into the bottom of the sea.  In that naval battle, the Japanese used more than a hundred aircraft to completely send Britain's third Far East Fleet to the bottom of the sea.  "It's a pity that this is the thirteenth year of the Republic of China. Any weapon that threatens warships can only be warships or submarines.  But it is obviously impossible for a submarine. The waters of the Yangtze River Estuary are still too shallow for submarine operations, and it is easy to be stranded.  If the Zhejiang Navy has a submarine force and wants to use submarines as a tool for sneak attacks, the most suitable sea areas for submarine ambush are off Ningbo and Hangzhou.  This is the only way for the fleet to pass. At the same time, there are many islands in this sea area, which is easy for submarines to hide and attack.  But the Yangtze River Estuary is really not suitable for submarine attacks.  Sir Considine, who originally wanted to find Cunningham, the American Consul General in Shanghai, no longer had the intention to determine the position of the Americans. According to past experience, the United States would appear in their camp when the United Kingdom was absolutely powerful.  Once the British attitude changes, or the British fails militarily and diplomatically, the Americans will definitely have a wait-and-see attitude, which has never changed. ?What Sir Considine wants to know most is what method the Republic of China, or to be precise, the Zhejiang Navy used to make the Royal Navy Fleet Commander feel that continued resistance is a futile resistance, and the outcome is already doomed.  But what happened next left him almost dumbfounded. Rear Admiral Augustine said on the radio that he had obtained first-hand information, and that the naval battle took no more than half an hour at most. During this period, except for the fish attack boats at the beginning,  , no warships participated in the naval battle.  The protagonist of the battle is the aircraft.  After the formation appeared over the fleet, it launched an attack so fast that the sailors of the surface ships were almost unable to react.  The Military Intelligence Department was very interested in this news and believed that this was a key discovery.  The loss of only three aircraft completely suppressed a fleet, setting the tone for victory in a very short period of time.  Once this tactic is proven, it will completely change the pattern of naval warfare.  The expensive battleships are no longer the invincible giants, but the petite and flexible aircraft will become the protagonists.  From the British standpoint, the development of aircraft carriers is not in the interest of the British navy.  The British Navy has always believed that battleships are the magic weapon to dominate the ocean. Even at the Washington Conference, the British diplomatic corps tried every means to ensure the absolute advantage in the number of British surface ships.  No Admiralty wants to see a report on the development of aircraft carriers.  But the people in Military Intelligence don't care, they are not under orders from the Admiralty.  The news that the Republic of China defeated the British fleet at the mouth of the Yangtze River had spread throughout Shanghai in the evening of that day. Except for a few people who said it was impossible, most of the people were very excited.  Most people living in Shanghai are not the kind who have made a lot of money by working as compradors for foreign banks and foreign banks.  Ordinary people still occupy the main part.  These people encountered various difficulties from the concession authorities and endured great humiliation.  Even if there is no direct contact in this aspect, they are people of the Republic of China after all. Their fragile national feelings have been almost destroyed by repeated failures, but deep down in their bodies, they still hope that the Republic of China will have something they can be proud of.  that moment.  When this day finally arrived, the cultural community was even more excited than the Zhejiang Air Force who had defeated the British Navy.  The mainstream newspapers in Shanghai all chose to add additional issues at this moment. The newspapers that were sold in the morning were extremely popular in the evening.  Outside the nickname, "Declaration" exclusively reported that the British ocean-going fleet was annihilated by the Zhejiang Navy at the mouth of the Yangtze River, and the British fleet commander raised a white flag to surrender.  Newspapers such as "News" were not to be left behind. They even rented a flying club plane and took a set of aerial photos, bringing the naval battle to the eyes of ordinary people intuitively What followed was more and more requests from newspapers.  Cover the results of naval battles and enter blockaded waters.  Some brave reporters even rented small boats and broke into the battlefield, causing a lot of trouble for the surrendered Zhejiang troops.  The British sailors had anticipated the humiliation that surrender would bring to them, but in fact, under the curious eyes of waves of reporters from the Republic of China, they felt like beasts in a cage, being bought tickets for a tour.  The humiliation endured in my heart simply increased exponentially.  Although there was no talk of boycott originally, the Chamber of Commerce, which was generally not optimistic about Wang Xueqian and the Zhejiang Army, also held an emergency meeting overnight.  The content of the discussion is the celebration. For businessmen, their living environment is very dependent on political stability. If Wang Xueqian can show a stronger character and can suppress the British who dominate Shanghai, it will herald a better future for them.  Big business opportunities.  Of course, there is a reason not to be optimistic about Wang Xueqian. Ever since the British appeared, China has been trapped on land by British warships. It finally got a navy, but it has not even fought against the Japanese navy.  In addition to disappointment, there is more panic and worry. Britain's powerful naval power has been deeply imprinted in their minds.  The extravagant hope that they had never had before was actually realized at this moment. This made the businessmen of the Chamber of Commerce feel both honored and worried, because at the place where the war started, they opposed the use of force to solve the Shanghai problem.  The victory parade is too early.  However, several requests made by the Chamber of Commerce were rejected by the Marshal's Mansion.  As for the escorting of prisoners and the presentation of trophies, on the one hand, the British fleet was in dilapidated condition and it would be difficult to drag it to the Huangpu River channel; on the other hand, the reaction of the British must be considered. In fact, the nerves of proud people are extremely fragile and cannot be saved.  After falling to the ground, the British sent troops again.  From Wang Xueqian's standpoint, after confirming the facts, public opinion reports are enough.  No need to shock the delicate nerves of the British people.  After the Yangtze River waterway was closed for two days, it was finally time to resume navigation.  Early in the morning, ships waiting in line at the outer sea entered the waterway one after another. Sailors who were familiar with the scenery of the Yangtze River Estuary could not feel the traces of war.  Reverse?The aquatic plants at the Yangtze River Estuary are still dense on the river beach, and the river water is still yellow, but there is no salty smell of sea water, which makes people feel refreshed.  After entering the waters near Wusongkou, the crew and passengers on the ship could see the huge warship stranded on the river beach from a distance.  The 10,000-ton cruiser may be more of a novelty and curiosity to the people of the Republic of China, but if the crew, first mate, or even captain of the British Steamship Company saw it, they would definitely exclaim: "Oh God! What is happening here?"  "The cruiser Suffolk was like a huge piece of evidence, making everyone believe that this big ship encountered an extremely dangerous battle.  The mast of the Stingray above the water further confirmed this result.  The war has indeed happened, but no one on the ship is sure which side won? According to their guess, it was a hard battle, but the British would not be so vulnerable, right?  Even if a cruiser is stranded on the riverside, it doesn't mean anything. In everyone's impression, Britain is the most powerful naval country in the world, and all the power of this country is tied to warships.  Wanting to make the British taste defeat was not something the Republic of China Navy could do.  Maybe the German Navy used to be able to do it, but now the German Navy is in dire straits. Even Germany has been taken over by the great powers. It is not known when it will rise, let alone compete with the British Navy again.  On the boat, there was a man from the Republic of China, wearing a Western-style suit and dress, standing on the side of the boat with a frown, looking into the distance.  He was Beiyang's Foreign Minister Gu Weijun. After being delayed in Shandong for a few days, he began to become anxious.  I am worried that Wang Xueqian will continue to do irrational things.  After all, he is one of the people who understands Wang Xueqian's character better. Even though he is a gentle and elegant person on weekdays, once Wang Xueqian is sure of something, he will not choose to back down or change.  In fact, Wang Xueqian is a strong person. His overconfident character makes him rarely consider whether the outcome is bearable after he has never experienced the ups and downs of life.  This is his understanding of Wang Xueqian.  In fact, Wang Xueqian did make him feel a huge pressure.  Even when he boarded the ship in Tianjin, he felt that his trip to Shanghai might not be easy and would be very laborious.  But the moment he saw the British warship being pulled out of the main channel by a tugboat, he wanted to yell, bastard boy, is there anything else he didn't dare to do?  The two sides must have experienced an evenly matched naval battle, and no one dared to win. For the diplomacy of the Republic of China, it was a huge diplomatic crisis.  The strange thing is that the person standing at the center of this diplomatic whirlpool is Gu Weijun and not Wang Xueqian, the instigator.  This made him feel that he might be a hardworking man all his life.  Soon after getting off the ship, the secretary brought him two days of newspapers. He could find the results of that naval battle without even searching deliberately.  The British navy was defeated, almost annihilating the entire army, which made people who read the newspaper feel a deep chill.  If this was a joke, the person who made the joke would obviously be dying.  (.)
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