Chapter 352: Crushing the T‑Head

"Near miss!" the lookout shouted, "All fleet ahead!"

But as soon as the words fell, the real hits began.

Deguo battleship "Emperor"—one of the newer dreadnoughts in the fleet—became one of the first victims. A 343‑mm Shell from the "Iron Duke" hit its fore deck. The explosion blew away the entire forward secondary gun position, flames and shrapnel swept the deck, and more than twenty sailors were killed instantly.

In the forward Main Gun turret of the "Emperor", Sergeant Huo Si Te felt the whole hull shudder violently. The explosion roar came from above, and the turret lights flickered.

"Hit!" Han Si shouted in terror, "We've been hit!"

"Calm down!" Huo Si Te roared, "Check damage! Communications, report the situation!"

But the communicator only emitted a harsh electric hum. Contact between the turret and the bridge was lost.

Sergeant Huo Si Te knew what that meant—cables might have been blown, or worse, the bridge itself hit. He forced himself to stay calm and followed the training protocol.

"Manual control!" he ordered, "Rotate the turret, aim to starboard! Load armor‑piercing Shells! We must return fire!"

But at that moment, a second Shell struck the "Emperor".

This time the hit was lower and more lethal. The Shell pierced the hull's midsection armor belt and exploded near the boiler room. High‑pressure steam gushed out, instantly scalding all personnel in the boiler room. The propulsion system was damaged, and the "Emperor"'s speed began to drop.

Ahead of the "Emperor", the "Lü Zuo Fu"—Deguo's most advanced battlecruiser and Xi Peier's Flagship—suffered an even more dreadful blow.

Two Yingguo Shells struck her almost simultaneously. One hit the frontal armor of the forward Main Gun turret, ripping through 305‑mm armor with a 343‑mm armor‑piercing Shell. The Shell exploded inside the turret, detonating some of the ready‑to‑fire ammunition.

But miraculously, a cook‑off did not occur—Deguo warships' magazine safety system kicked in, fire doors closed in time, preventing flames from spreading to the magazine. (Deguo crews seem to have always defended well.)

However, the turret itself was destroyed. All the crew inside were killed, including Huo Si Te's comrade, that unknown Deguo artillery chief.

Another Shell struck the "Lü Zuo Fu"'s midsection near the waterline, tearing a huge hole. Sea water surged in wildly, and the battleship began to list.

On the bridge of the "Lü Zuo Fu", Xi Peier was knocked to the deck by the blast wave. He got up, wiping blood from his face—unsure which fragment had cut his forehead.

"Report damage!" he roared.

"Forward Main Gun turret destroyed! Hull taking on water! Speed down to 18 knots!" The Adjutant's voice was almost drowned out by alarms and explosions.

Xi Peier looked out the window. The sight before him would stay with him for life.

In the thick fog, the outlines of Yingguo battleships flickered, arranged in a neat line, their broadside guns constantly spitting fire. Meanwhile, Deguo's fleet had ships turning and evading chaotically, the formation already a tangled mess. Some vessels returned fire, but their fire was sparse and disorderly. More ships blindly surged forward, trying to break through the death line.

"We've been tricked…" Xi Peier murmured.

A perfect trap. Bei Di didn't flee; he was the bait. Jie Li Ke wasn't unprepared; he had been ready long ago, waiting silently in the fog like a spider waiting for a fly to hit its web.

"Commander!" the Signalman shouted, "Flagship order: all turn 180 degrees! Disengage!"

Xi Peier looked toward the Flagship "Frederick the Great". In the thick fog and smoke, he could just make out the massive silhouette of that battleship; it too was turning and under fire.

"Execute order!" Xi Peier commanded, "Hard left rudder! Course 180! Release smoke! Full speed disengage!"

But at that moment, the third round of Yingguo salvos fell.

This time, the Shells were even more accurate. Yingguo fire‑control officers had already adjusted the firing parameters based on the first two rounds' impacts, and now their Shells were truly finding the target.

18:35. Only five minutes after the battle began, the tactical advantage of crossing the T was already fully evident.

On the Yingguo side, every Main Gun along the entire battle line could fire on the Deguo fleet. Fire density reached an astonishing over three hundred large‑caliber Shells per minute. Moreover, because the Deguo fleet was coming almost perpendicular, British Army gunners didn't need complex calculations for lateral movement, making aiming relatively simple.

On the Deguo side, only the Main Guns of a few battleships at the front of the Column could bear on the Yingguo. And because the formation was chaotic and the turn hurried, many ships couldn't even obtain a stable firing platform. Their return fire was sparse and ineffective, with most Shells missing.

In the fire‑control room of the "Iron Duke", Major Shi Mi Si stared at the rangefinder readings, his face showing an incredulous expression.

"Hit Rate… My God, the Hit Rate exceeds fifteen percent!"

In battleship duels, a five percent Hit Rate is already considered good. Fifteen percent is slaughter‑level efficiency.

"Deguo's formation is too dense," a calculator said excitedly, "they're packed together, turning chaotically, practically live targets!"

Shi Mi Si looked at the speaking tube, hesitated, then connected to the bridge: "Sir, fire‑control room report: enemy fleet formation chaotic, turn slow. Recommend concentrating fire on their lead ships, knocking out the vanguard; the ones behind will become even more disordered."

A few seconds later, Jie Li Ke's reply came: "Approved. Notify the entire fleet: concentrate fire on the three to four battleships at the front of the enemy Column."

The order was transmitted via light signals. Soon, the Yingguo battle line's fire began to concentrate.

"Emperor", "Lü Zuo Fu", "Frederick the Great"… these battleships at the front of the Deguo Column endured unprecedented fire.

So on the "Emperor", the situation was on the brink of losing control.

The third, fourth, and fifth Shells hit in succession. A secondary turret was blown away entirely, the bridge was damaged, and fires broke out in many places. Flooding worsened, and the ship's list exceeded ten degrees.

At the damage control center, officers frantically directed leak‑plugging and firefighting. But every report was bad news.

"A‑section boiler room total loss! B‑section boiler room taking on water!"

"Forward magazine water‑filled, but aft magazine water‑filling system failed!"

"Hull breach too large, cannot seal!"

The Captain knew his ship couldn't hold out much longer. He made a painful decision: "Prepare to abandon ship. But before that…" He looked at the communications officer, "Tell the Flagship that the 'Emperor' can still fight. We will hold out to the last moment."

In the forward Main Gun turret of the "Emperor", Sergeant Huo Si Te still didn't know the ship's severe condition. He only knew the turret could still rotate, the guns could still fire.

"Loading complete!" Han Si shouted, his voice hoarse from fatigue and fear.

"Fire!" Huo Si Te ordered.