Chapter Five: Three Hundred White Bone Spirits (Part 2)
Just as the Tone was busy with its own self-destruction, the submarine's second wave of torpedo attacks began. The Isokaze, still struggling to save itself, was hit by multiple torpedoes and suddenly exploded internally. This 3,700-ton cruiser was blown into several pieces, sinking into the water amidst flames and thick smoke.
There were no more floating warships, the attack had stopped, and Japanese sailors who fell into the water were looking for all sorts of things that could float on the surface. The cries of the wounded, the screams of fear, rose and fell. Several Japanese sailors were crowded onto a lifeboat that had been blown into the sea, and by the light of the burning fires, they searched the surrounding water for anyone who looked like they might still be alive.
On the bow of the lifeboat, a middle-aged Japanese officer was directing the sailors on board to use wooden boards they had picked up as oars to row towards a person in the distance who was clinging to a liferaft and shouting for help. Just as he was loudly shouting slogans, he suddenly stopped, his mouth agape, staring blankly at the sea ahead.
On the sea surface several hundred meters away from the wreckage of the Japanese fleet, a large area of water bubbles suddenly appeared, as if the seabed was boiling. After a while, one by one, huge black objects emerged from the waves, slowly revealing their rounded heads and towering foredecks.
The Japanese sailors who survived on the surface of the sea all found these black giants, and many people were frightened, bowing to these sea gods. However, some mid-to-high-level officers who had studied in the UK probably recognized this thing, which was not a sea god at all, but a submarine, which was also equipped in the Japanese Navy, but looked very different from those with round heads.
In that era, submarines up to the World War II period were all ship-shaped, with a deck and a bottom. This shape was beneficial for sailing on the surface of the water but created great resistance when traveling underwater. Due to limitations in power systems and electrical systems at the time, submarines could not stay submerged for long periods of time. Therefore, this shape that favored surface navigation was suitable for submarines back then. The fish-shaped design like the "Tang class" emerged after World War II, mainly to increase speed underwater. After the war, the power systems of various countries developed significantly, and high speeds underwater would greatly enhance a submarine's combat capabilities. As a result, the surface-oriented shape gradually disappeared.
"You fools, stop bowing! This is the enemy submarine that sank us!!" Two officers were furiously shouting and kicking at the sailors who were kneeling beside them.
The sailors had not yet recovered from their fright, numbly enduring the officers' abuse, and one after another looked up at the submarines not far away.
"There's someone up there... There's someone up there... That's really a submarine..." A lookout used his professional eyes to be the first to spot a figure emerging from the conning tower of the submarine, excitedly shouting to his companions beside him. In his view, whether they were defeated or victorious, these people should have been rescued and would not die - something worth rejoicing about in any nation.
"Turn on the searchlight, prepare the machine gun... Free fire!" Standing on submarine 005 of the first submarine squadron, Squadron Leader Wu Mingxue scanned the sea surface with binoculars and gave the order to shoot with an expressionless face. This was not the first time he had done this kind of work, and the compassion and sympathy in his heart had long been consumed away.
The order issued by the General Staff was to annihilate the enemy fleet and all personnel as much as possible, without taking prisoners. This order was reluctantly passed after Liu Yubai had argued with the foreign advisors of the General Staff many times, Liu Yubai did not have a deep hatred for the Japanese nor was he born cold-blooded, but made this decision after considering the current situation in Taiwan.
Currently, Taiwan only has submarines and torpedo boats as defensive weapons, and the number is not enough, the combat power is not strong enough. If the outside world knows about this naval weapon and combat method, it may be studied and used by various countries, and if you want to launch a surprise attack on the enemy's fleet, there will be countless troubles and casualties. Letting the enemy die and letting one's own people suffer casualties, this choice is easy to make. As for the knight spirit that Europeans advocate, Liu Mei doesn't care at all. When she becomes strong enough to ignore the enemy, she can also choose to show her tolerance, magnanimity, and compassion. Now it's safer to be more ruthless, as for how long the secret of submarines can be kept, it's not something she should worry about, just do what one can and leave the rest to fate.
Dozens of submarines, 12mm heavy machine guns roared one after another. Dozens of high-power searchlights appeared like the eyes of death gods, and everything suspicious on the sea surface would be swept away wherever they appeared. After dozens of minutes, the sea surface calmed down again, and the submarines slowly sank into the water, disappearing without a trace. The sea surface that had been ravaged by machine guns only had some burning debris and countless floating corpses.
On June 18, in the Port of Naha, Okinawa, more than 20 Japanese naval transport ships and auxiliary vessels were quietly anchored in the harbor. Since there was no news from the attacking troops, a sense of foreboding hung over the entire fleet. In the temporary army command post at the port, Lieutenant General Wada Hiroshi, commander of the Japanese 4th Division, sat at his desk with a serious expression, questioning his staff officers.
Since the invasion fleet set sail yesterday, there has been no news until now. According to the previous plan, Tōgō should have dispatched warships back to Ryukyu upon arrival in Hualien to inform the follow-up landing troops to set sail. However, according to the time calculation, the returning ships should have arrived long ago, but not a single ship has been seen returning in the port.
Nishizawa Niichiro had heard the rumors of the previous two fleets' disappearance, but as a Japanese Army Lieutenant General, he would not use some mysterious excuse to cover up failure. In Nishizawa's view, it was the Navy's mistake and they were using various mysterious reasons to shirk responsibility.
This time the Empire's strongest fleet set sail, they will destroy all resistance on that small island of Taiwan, and then bring their brave warriors to land on Taiwanese soil, and then use a string of victories to hang a medal of Taiwan for the Japanese army.
The fleet waited for two more days in Naha Port, but still did not receive any news from the invasion fleet. However, they received a telegram from Japan, which was sent by the Ministry of War and ordered Lieutenant General Niihara to quickly gather his troops, board the ships and return to Japan. The tone of the telegram was very severe.
Regarding the movements on the Ryukyu side, the Taiwan General Staff has been paying attention. Liu hesitated for a long time and finally did not send out a submarine fleet to intercept the landing ship fleet returning to Japan. There are two reasons: First, the distance is too far, and the submarine fleet needs an oil tanker to follow it in order to ensure safe return after completing the attack; Second, the enemy returns during the day, and there are many ships on that route, making it difficult not to be discovered by other ships when completing the attack and clearing the battlefield. Rather than taking the risk of being discovered to kill a few thousand soldiers, it's better to let them return home. After all, they are land troops, and Taiwan is an island without warships, so they will never set foot on Taiwan. Let them go back home.
The destruction of the Third Expeditionary Fleet shocked Japan, and with the empty ports and thousands of troops returning home, it was impossible to cover up the loss of all of Japan's main warships. The Ito Cabinet immediately collapsed, and the succeeding Okuma Shigenobu immediately called on the Japanese people to donate to the nation and passed a budget to purchase four more cruisers from Britain. Although the new cabinet successfully stabilized the domestic situation, the cabinet members understood that Japan would be unable to send troops to Taiwan in the short term, and this short term was not short at all; Japan could only watch as Taiwan gained independence.
After three ambushes on the Japanese fleet, Liu Xuan roughly calculated the number of various warships sunk and roughly understood the scale of the Japanese Navy from David. After adding and subtracting, Liu Xuan was delighted to find that the Japanese Navy's assets had basically all sunk to the bottom of the sea. This time, Liu Xuan was thoroughly relieved. At the speed of building warships in this era, at least within three years, the Japanese would be crippled. Not to mention forming an expeditionary fleet, it would be good if they could keep their home safe.
