There is a saying that if there is no tiger in the mountain, the monkey will be the king. This sentence is absolutely correct to describe the current maritime situation in the Far East. After a great war, the Russians lost one-third of their strength. And the Beiyang Fleet also lost its strength.

Due to battle damage and long-term overseas operations, he was forced to go back to rest. For a time, he was far away from home.

The two most powerful forces in the Eastern Ocean have ceased operations. Both sides have huddled in their ports for repairs and preparations. At this time, the Japanese Navy, which has been recuperating, finally has a chance to show off! Two armored cruisers with a

The auxiliary cruiser improved by civilian ships headed for the Japanese Sea!

Yes, you read that right, they are battleships improved from civilian ships. Japan's navy followed the Americans' practice of massively improving merchant ships during the Spanish-American War. Of course, Japan's industrial and financial resources cannot be compared with those of the United States.

Not to mention installing armor and 8-inch heavy guns, it would be good to add a few 12-pound guns and up to a 120mm rapid-fire cannon. Not every ship even has a radio.

"These ships are just consumables. They can only deal with Russian transport ships." Akiyama Masayuki wrote in the report. And these camouflaged attack ships improved from merchant ships did play a huge role in the beginning. These

The painting of the battleship is almost the same as that of the Russian merchant ship. All the weapons are hidden behind the reinforced portholes. When the opponent gets close, the artillery can be pushed out. Just like the ones in the sail era.

Battleships are similar. Some battleships even use the banner of Russian Far East Fleet battleships to deceive Russian transport ships who do not know the truth. Some of these temporarily recruited Russian ships do not often sail in the Far East at all, but they are staying in the Far East after the war.

, and then they were requisitioned along the way! These crew members had no idea about the situation in the Far East, nor did they know that they were about to face the most ferocious Japanese!

If we say that when the Russian Pacific Fleet was still there, Japan himself did not dare to take action, but when the Russian Pacific Fleet all settled in Muroran Port, Japan's sea attack ships were like demons flying out of Pandora's box in the waters around Hokkaido.

Wander!

The first attack occurred on the third day after the end of the war. A Russian transport ship named Ekaterina was stopped by a gunboat flying the Russian flag about 100 nautical miles northeast of the Karutsu Strait.

The other party asked the ship to stop for inspection, and after approaching, asked the ship in Russian to repair the Russian gunboat.

Filled with coal. The Russian captain was also confused. He had seen people asking for help, but he had never seen anyone asking for refueling less than 200km from the coast. But doubts were doubts. The Russian transport ship still did not dare to resist the other party's decision. The high-flying

The St. Andre flag and the dark muzzle of the cannon made the Russians on the transport ship immediately recognize the situation!

The Russians were busy mounting anti-collision rubber pads on the side of the ship to prevent collisions, and with the help of the first mate, they prepared hoisting equipment to add coal to the other side. But when the two sides approached about 10 meters, the other side's watchtower

Suddenly a machine gun appeared. Most of the Russians only heard a click and subconsciously raised their heads like raindrops.

The bullets swept down from the mast! Seven or eight Russian sailors were killed by the hail of bullets before they could react! The Japanese who then rushed out of the cabin completely made the Russians understand the situation. Faced with these ferocious looks,

The sneak attackers. These Russian sailors who had never been on the battlefield, let alone killed anyone, raised their hands obediently.

What happened next shocked the Russians. The Japanese left the sea area after leaving a few soldiers and navigators behind. Under the coercion of the Japanese officers, the merchant ship carrying food for the Russian troops stationed in Japan was seized.

The hostage was taken to a port under Japanese control. The Japanese camouflaged cruiser that pretended to be a Russian gunboat and robbed it was looking for a new target.

Of course, not all Japanese camouflage attack ships can have such luck, and not all Russian merchant ships are soft persimmons! For example, a transport ship named Wanderer was given to a ship named Awa Maru.

The Japanese attack ship caused a big blow. This transport ship was originally planned to transport a batch of 75mm rapid fire cannons and a batch of war horses to the Russian Army who was fighting on the front line. The war horses were sent into the cabin, and the artillery could only be placed in the cabin.

Then fix it on the deck of the boat and cover it with a tarpaulin.

This transport ship, whose deck was fully packed, unfortunately ran into the Awa Maru. As a "first-class camouflaged assault ship" equipped with a 4.7-inch rapid fire cannon, the Awa Maru did not even need to disguise itself.

He directly raised the rising flag to show his identity, and then fired two shots at the Wanderer with a 3-pounder. The meaning was very clear, surrender quickly, otherwise you will be responsible for the consequences!

Soon the Japanese captain saw the Russians running on the deck. They lifted the tarpaulin and were busy with some things. "They are going to push the supplies into the sea! Stop them quickly!" The Japanese captain just started.

I was stunned for a moment and then suddenly seemed to understand something.

Immediately ordered. The Awa Maru rushed towards the Wanderer like a wolf that had discovered a fat sheep. When the distance between the two sides approached 1km, the French-made M1897 rapid-fire cannon with the tarpaulin removed made the dizzy Ri

I couldn't help but shudder!

After all, the Awa Maru is a rebuilt merchant ship. The so-called armor protection is nothing but the 10+mm hull plate. If it is hit by a picric acid high-explosive bomb, you will not be able to go back!

"Turn around, keep distance! Prepare to fight!" Right in Japan

While people were running around on the deck, the eight 75mm rapid fire cannons on the Wanderer had already sprayed out orange flames! Along with the harsh sound produced by the shells in the air, a bright yellow flame was mixed with green flames.

Smoke rises from the deck of the Awa Maru!

The battle was fierce, but also short-lived! Awamaru said that no matter how bad I am, my 4.7-inch cannon is genuine! And the Wanderer itself is a transport ship. The 75-inch cannon loaded on it is a land gun.

The roughness of the bumpy sea can be imagined. At the beginning,

The hit was not so much aiming as aiming! And because the gun position was exposed, the gunners without any protection were quickly killed or injured by the opponent's high-explosive shells and rapid-fire cannons. In addition, it was

The water tightness and damage control of civilian ships cannot be compared with regular battleships. In addition,

Severe overload, the result can be imagined! After lighting up Awa Maru a few times, this brave resister finally ushered in destruction. Two 120mm rapid fire cannons and several 57mm rapid fire cannons rained down

The shells struck the opponent's hull. Ten minutes later, the Wanderer

The starboard side of the transport ship was beaten into a honeycomb, and seawater quickly poured into the interior of the hull. The watertight compartments on the side strings were useless under the attack of artillery and the impact of seawater. After half an hour of exchange of fire, the entire transport ship turned into a burning

The torch, the Russians, supplies and horses on it slowly sank to the bottom of the sea. No one survived!

Thanks to friends athlon9527 and Feiye for their monthly support~~~. There are not many subscriptions, and the author has no motivation--!
Chapter completed!