Chapter 182: Setting Sail

"It seems the fish have already smelled the bait." Chen Feng looked back at the sea chart, where the red dot was blinking at the position of Pontianak Harbor. "Notify the Fuxing to set sail according to plan. Notify the Bismarck formation to prepare for departure. This play is about to begin."

Li Te stood at attention: "Yes, sir!"

"One more thing," Chen Feng stopped him. "Send a telegram to the Borneo garrison. Starting tomorrow, all units are to enter secondary combat readiness. If there are changes at sea, the land forces must be prepared to absorb the impact."

"You're worried Japan might launch a landing simultaneously?"

"Better safe than sorry." Chen Feng's voice was very quiet. "Tell the frontline commanders that if the Japanese fleet really comes, if a naval battle really breaks out... then every inch of Borneo's soil will have to be paid for in blood."

After Li Te left, Chen Feng stood alone in the command center for a long time. He watched the blinking dots on the sea chart, watched the route extending from Pontianak to Qingdao, watched the area beside the route that might become a battlefield.

Outside the window at Dubai Harbor, a cargo ship was leaving port, its whistle long and low, carrying far through the night sky.

And several thousand nautical miles away, under the same starry sky, another fleet was also preparing to set sail. The iron beasts were awakening from slumber, boilers began building pressure, turrets began rotating, and sailors were checking every shell, every hawser.

Pontianak Harbor, 5:40 a. m., the sky not yet fully light.

The funnels of the battlecruiser Fuxing began emitting grayish-white smoke—at first just a few wisps, then quickly thickening into billowing clouds, climbing upward in the dawn's faint light. In the boiler room, all twelve oil-fired boilers had been ignited, the pressure gauge needles slowly climbing, steam gathering force in the pipes.

On the bridge, Lin Haisheng wore a military greatcoat over his shoulders, holding a cup of strong tea. The tea had been specially brewed by Zhao Wenyuan, who said it would sharpen the mind, but Lin Haisheng knew what he needed was not sharpening—it was calm.

"All departments, report readiness." His voice sounded especially clear in the quiet bridge.

Communications Officer Li Jing was the first to answer: "Radio room ready, all equipment tested and normal. As ordered, we have switched to the public frequency band to transmit identification signals."

"Navigation department ready." Navigator Zhou Zhiwei followed up. "All sea charts updated, gyrocompass calibration complete, depth sounder operating normally."

"Gunnery department ready." Gunnery Officer Wang Zhen guo stood straight. "Main and secondary gun ammunition distributed to secondary combat readiness standards, all gun crew members in position, fire control radar powered on and warming up."

"Engineering department ready." Chief Engineer Liu Ming de's voice came through the voice tube with a slight echo. "All boiler pressures have reached departure standards, main engine trial run normal, power can be provided at any time."

One after another, from the damage control team to the medical group, from the radar room to the signal station, all departments reported their readiness status.

Lin Haisheng took a sip of tea, the scalding liquid flowing down his throat, bringing a brief clarity. He set down the cup and walked to the starboard observation window. On the pier, a few early-rising dockworkers were gathered around watching; farther off, two tugboats were already in position, waiting to tow the thirty-eight-thousand-ton giant out of port.

"Captain." Zhao Wenyuan walked to his side and said softly, "The reporters are all settled, arranged in the passenger cabins next to the officers' dining room. I told them not to enter combat areas freely during the voyage."

"Did they have any objections?"

"Old Zhang from the Lanfang Daily complained a bit, saying the restrictions were too many to do any reporting. But the British Reuters reporter, a man named Anderson, was quite cooperative." Zhao Wenyuan paused. "He quietly asked me whether this voyage involved some special mission."

Lin Haisheng's brow furrowed slightly: "How did you answer?"

"I said that every warship has its own mission when setting sail, but the specifics are military secrets. If he wanted to report, he could take more photos of the officers and soldiers' daily training and life—those are also part of naval development."

"Good answer." Lin Haisheng nodded. "These foreign reporters, especially the British and American ones, need to be watched closely. Their reporting could influence international opinion."

Zhao Wenyuan was about to say something when the bridge door was pushed open. Executive Officer Chen Qiming strode in, his face somewhat pale.

"Captain, we just received a telegram relayed from shore." He handed a message slip to Lin Haisheng. "The Security Bureau reports that yesterday afternoon, Japanese Combined Fleet Commander-in-Chief Kato Tomosaburo arrived in Yokosuka from Tokyo. At the same time, the three main naval ports—Kure, Sasebo, and Maizuru—all show signs of unusual activity."

Lin Haisheng took the message and quickly scanned it. The content was simple, but every word was as piercing as a needle.

"Understood." He folded the message and put it in his pocket. "Notify the entire ship: cast off and depart in fifteen minutes. Follow the planned route, speed twelve knots, maintain routine radio communications."

"Yes, sir!" Chen Qiming turned to relay the orders.

Zhao Wenyuan looked at Lin Haisheng's profile and could see the tension hidden beneath the deliberately maintained calm. "Captain, if we really encounter the Japanese..."

"Then we fight as we trained." Lin Haisheng cut him off, his voice not loud but very firm. "The Fuxing isn't made of paper. If the Japanese want to swallow us, they'll lose a few teeth too."

Five minutes later, Lin Haisheng's voice came over the shipwide broadcast system.

"All officers and sailors, this is Captain Lin Haisheng. Our ship is about to set sail on a friendly visit to Qingdao. This voyage may last seven to ten days, during which we will pass through multiple sea areas. I require every person to perform their duties and remain vigilant. Remember your training, remember your responsibilities. The glory of the Fuxing depends on every one of us to defend it."

After the broadcast ended, the ship fell silent. Then, low responses came from all quarters: "Understood!" "Received!" "Rest assured, Captain!"

Lin Haisheng set down the microphone and said to the helmsman: "Cast off, depart."

"Cast off, depart!" The order was repeated.

On the pier, sailors untied the bowl-thick hawsers, and the tugboats began slowly pulling the giant ship. The Fuxing's massive hull gradually left the pier, her bow cleaving the calm seawater, heading out of the harbor.

Lin Haisheng stood on the bridge, watching the silhouette of Pontianak Harbor gradually recede in the morning light. The harbor lighthouse, the pier cranes, the buildings on shore—all slowly shrank, finally becoming blurry shadows on the horizon.

"Captain, course set, speed twelve knots." Navigator Zhou Zhiwei reported.

"Maintain this heading. Increase speed to fifteen knots after entering the designated route."

"Yes, sir."

The Fuxing sailed out of Pontianak Bay and entered the open South China Sea. The sun rose from the eastern horizon, golden light spilling across the deep blue sea, the waves sparkling. Seagulls circled the bow, emitting crisp cries.

Everything looked so calm, so normal.

But Lin Haisheng knew that beneath this calm surface, undercurrents had already begun to stir.