mesbooks Chapter 588 British Warships (1)
Chapter 588 British Warships (1)
4 month 20 day,
Taizhou, Yangtze River Waterway,
A thin layer of mist spread over the river like a veil, adding a bit of hazy poetry to the river. As the sun rose, the golden light penetrated the mist and sprinkled on the river, making the waves sparkle, as if countless tiny gold foils were jumping and flashing in the water.
Suddenly, the shadow of a warship appeared on the river, coming from downstream. The warship was huge and gloomy. The steel of the hull was shining coldly in the sun, and the muzzle of the gun was raised arrogantly, as if declaring the so-called "authority".
A British Union Jack fluttered arrogantly on the mast, rustling against the sound of the river waves, making it even more harsh.
On the deck, British sailors were in uniform, some leaning on the railings, looking around with a relaxed look. They talked and laughed loudly, and their tone was full of contempt for this land!
Bridge command room,
A British Royal Navy lieutenant commander whistled in a relaxed manner! This is Captain Skinner of the British Navy's Amethyst frigate.
A naval captain beside him said with some concern,
"Captain, this section of the Yangtze River is closed. Apart from us, there is no other ship in sight!"
"Yes, the Communist Party issued a notice ten days ago, requiring all ships not to enter the Yangtze River waterway!"
"Captain, the Communist Party's announcement also requires all foreign ships to evacuate the Yangtze River before April 4!"
Skinner laughed arrogantly and then said, "What? The Chinese Communist Party asked us to withdraw from the Yangtze River? Just because they don't even have a warship? They want us to withdraw the warships of the British Empire?"
"Captain, I'm just worried. After all, this is a war zone now!"
"Hahaha, you have to know that since 1840, our British warships have had unimpeded access on the Yangtze River, and no one can change this!" Skinner's face was full of contempt!
Boom boom, two rumbling gunshots suddenly came from Jiangbei.
The shells landed on the water 200 meters away from the warship, stirring up a huge column of water.
"Captain, this is a warning from the Chinese Communist Party. What should we do?" the navy captain said in panic.
Skinner narrowed his eyes and said contemptuously: "Don't worry about them, the Chinese don't dare to stop us, speed up and move towards Nanjing!"
Just ten days ago, the CCP issued a special announcement!
"The Chinese people must defend China's territorial sovereignty! Foreign governments are absolutely not allowed to infringe upon it. The Chinese People's Liberation Army demands that the British, American, and French warships, military aircraft, marines and other armed forces in the Yangtze River and Huangpu River and other parts of China quickly withdraw from China's territorial waters, territorial seas and airspace, and not help the enemies of the people fight a civil war." The PLA also specifically stipulated the time for foreign warships to withdraw from the Yangtze River Basin, which was April 1949, 4, the final date for the signing of the armistice negotiation documents between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
However, the British did not take this announcement seriously at all. They were reluctant to give up their interests in China, especially the privileges they had gained since the beginning of the Opium War!
Of course, the British have a more sinister idea. They hope that the Kuomintang and the Communist Party will divide the country and constantly stir up civil unrest in China, so that they can reap the benefits!
The warship continued to accelerate towards Nanjing!
Boom boom, two more cannon shots rang out, this time, they landed 50 meters away from the warship.
The splashes of water from the shells hit the glass. Skinner was very angry: "The Chinese army actually dared to attack us. Gunners turn the muzzles and fire! Let them see the power of the 'Sun Never Sets Imperial Navy'!"
In Jiangbei, on the position of the Third Artillery Regiment of the Third Field Army,
Several shells whistled in.
It fell on the artillery position and exploded.
Two cannons were destroyed on the spot and more than a dozen soldiers fell in a pool of blood!
The Third Artillery Regiment immediately returned fire.
They were equipped with up to 24 105mm howitzers.
Just two salvos,
More than 50 people were killed or injured on the Amethyst, and a huge fire broke out! Even Captain Skinner was killed on the spot!
The Amethyst was forced to flee to the south bank and ran aground on Taiping Island, 7 kilometers southwest of Sanjiangying. The arrogant British hurriedly hung up a white bed sheet as a white flag, and our artillery immediately stopped the shelling.
When the Third Artillery Regiment saw the enemy hoisting the white flag, they stopped firing.
Due to severe damage to the hull, the Amethyst slowly approached the north shore, waiting for rescue!
After receiving the telegram for help, Vice Admiral Madden, Deputy Commander of the British Far East Fleet, ordered the "HMS Companion" in Nanjing to rush to rescue the "HMS Amethyst"!
At about 2:00 p.m., the Companion also arrived from Nanjing. They came to the side of the Amethyst.
At this moment, although the officers and soldiers of our Third Artillery Regiment had already calibrated the firing parameters, they did not open fire because they did not want to escalate the situation.
Who knew that the Companion had gone astray and actually fired at the position of the 3rd Artillery Regiment again!
This time, the angry Third Artillery Regiment concentrated all its firepower and bombarded the Companion again. The Companion was hit by more than 30 bullets, and its power system was seriously damaged. It emitted clouds of black smoke, so it simply hoisted the white flag and started to put out the fire on its own!
The "Companion" truly became the companion of the "Amethyst". The two brothers in distress docked together and could no longer move!
Zhengzhou Railway Station,
Two forklifts were skillfully unloading bales of cotton from the sealed carriage. They delivered the bales of cotton directly to a warehouse next to the platform!
All the porters had fire in their eyes.
With the arrival of the forklift, their income dropped by more than half!
However, this feeling of hatred only lasted for three days!
Because, opposite the station,
The construction of Zhengzhou Railway Station West Square has started.
More than half of the workers went to work as laborers at the West Square construction site. It is said that they earn 800 yuan a month, which is double their previous income!
However, Dagang is not envious at all.
He became familiar with Xiao An, who drives a forklift, treated him to two meals, and now is following Xiao An to learn how to drive a forklift!
Today, he started practicing alone!
Xiao An was originally one of the first forklift operators from Mulan County, but after unloading the goods, he and another colleague were asked to stay at the train station to unload the goods!
The next day, his extra money came.
Those cotton merchants came to ask them for help and promised to pay them fifty cents for each trip!
Although it was very tiring, I actually made more than 60 yuan in extra income at the end of the day!
Seeing that Dagang had nothing to do, Xiao An tried to get close to him and simply taught him how to drive a forklift, and gave half of the extra money he earned to Dagang!
Dagang is so happy now. This job is much easier than the physical work before, and he can actually earn thousands of yuan a month!
Today, Dagang accidentally asked Xiaoan about a pair of rain boots. He then learned that the price of such rain boots in Mulan County is only 10 yuan, but in Zhengzhou it costs 38 yuan!
Dagang is a man who likes to use his brain, which made him fall into deep thought!