“Three cruisers! The lead ship's type is unknown, the other two are preliminarily identified as Hai Rong-class protected cruisers!”
The Takasago protected cruiser had accelerated to 20 knots. Its bow-mounted 40-caliber 8-inch main guns had their muzzle caps removed and were turned towards the enemy. Captain Ishibashi Hajime noted that the coal smoke above the enemy formation was thickening, indicating they had also spotted him.
According to intelligence, the Cangdong Inspection Fleet's main cruiser, the Hai Rong-class, was generally inferior to his Takasago. With the formidable firepower of two Armstrong 203mm L/40 guns, ten 120mm L/40 quick-firing guns, and twelve 76mm L/40 quick-firing guns, Captain Ishibashi was confident in gaining an advantage in the vanguard battle.
As for the cruiser of unknown type, its silhouette suggested a displacement of no more than 3,000 tons, so its combat power was likely not stronger than the Takasago.
The navy was inherently an offensive branch of the military, and the East Sakura Navy, having learned from the British, emphasized this characteristic even more. In previous battles against the Autonomous Territory's allied forces, the Takasago had been assigned opponents like the Kaiji-class and Nanchen-class, which were old, weak, and ailing, never having the chance to face an enemy of equal caliber.
Therefore, facing the impending battle, all the sailors on the Takasago were eager for a duel with a worthy opponent.
“Range – 14,000 yards!” the lookout reported the distance.
The main gun crew then closed the interrupted screw breeches of the Armstrong quick-firing guns, waiting for the enemy to enter range.
A distance of 14,000 yards was too far for the fire control equipment of the Takasago, Shin Takasago, or Kasagi. Firing rashly would only waste shells.
“Range – 13,000 yards!”
“The enemy cruiser fleet is approximately 8,000 yards from their battleships!”
Captain Ishibashi Hajime noticed the surging morale and nodded with satisfaction. His plan was for the entire fleet to turn west when they closed to 8,000 yards, maximizing their broadside firepower and using the range advantage of their 203mm naval guns to open fire first. This would allow them to suppress the Hai Rong-class's 6-inch quick-firing guns while avoiding being hit by the battleships' fire from the rear.
“Send a signal light, order the Shin Takasago, Kasagi…”
“Enemy lead ship is turning! The other two ships are maintaining course!”
Before Ishibashi could finish his sentence, the lookout reported news that astonished the officers present.
Turning away from the formation at 13,000 yards? This was an extremely counter-intuitive move, and Ishibashi was temporarily unable to understand the opponent's intention.
But when the two superimposed twin turrets on the stern of the enemy ship appeared in the high-magnification binoculars, Ishibashi Hajime finally recalled the pre-war intelligence he had seen about a certain Autonomous Territory in Cangdong possessing a Miracle Battleship with a similar layout...
Just as Captain Ishibashi was flipping through the ship identification manual, the distant cruiser that had broken formation began to flash with muzzle fire.
“A cruiser dares to open fire at this range?!”
“How foolish!”
“Do they think they’re a dreadnought?”
......
The East Sakura Navy officers on the Takasago were full of disdain for this behavior, some even believing that the Yanling had been scared witless by the powerful East Sakura Navy and was firing haphazardly.
But the six water columns that erupted about 150 meters in front of the Takasago left these East Sakura Navy officers dumbfounded. Six or seven seconds after the first salvo fell, the second salvo followed, and then the third. With each salvo, the shell impact points were closer than the last.
The continuous shelling and the rising water columns forced the staff on the open bridge to retreat into the conning tower for shelter.
The fierce firepower of the Type 3 140mm quick-firing naval guns finally allowed Ishibashi Hajime to confirm the opponent's identity — the Yanling Autonomous Territory's flagship, the Yanling!
Although this Miracle Battleship had small main gun caliber and small displacement, thanks to its 3-meter baseline rangefinder, shell flight time calculator, and other fire control equipment, it was fully capable of delivering firepower beyond 10,000 yards. Combined with its extremely high rate of fire quick-firing naval guns, it achieved firepower equivalent to the East Sakura homeland's elite fleet's Yubari-class light cruisers, having few rivals under 4,000 tons.
He had expected an easy target, but instead encountered a tough opponent. At this point, pushing forward was the only option.
Both the Kasagi and Takasago were 4,000 to 5,000-ton class ships, and 140mm-class firepower would not cause fatal damage quickly. However, once the distance closed and they entered the effective range of the 8-inch guns, a single hit would be enough to cripple more than half of the opponent's 2,000-ton small frame.
But during this approach, the three ships would have to directly face the fierce firepower of six 140mm quick-firing naval guns...
As the order for forced draft was given, the Takasago's two vertical four-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines roared, their output horsepower soaring from 16,000 to 23,000 horsepower. Sparks mingled with the black smoke spewing from the funnels, and the 4,000-ton hull's speed broke through 23 knots, nearing 24 knots!
“Boom!”
The gunner pressed the firing button, and the Takasago's forward main gun opened fire in return. At this range, there was no hope of a hit; the only expectation was to interfere with the enemy's firing — as expected, the shell impact point deviated by over 500 meters.
“Boom!”
A 140mm high-explosive shell struck the Takasago's forward main gun shield. Although it did not penetrate the 114mm thick main gun shield, the intense heat and shock from the explosion of 2.86 kg of picric acid and nitrocellulose still passed through the opening in the gun shield, incapacitating most of the gun crew, and damaging the elevation mechanism.
If not for the ship's damage control team rushing out of the compartments and desperately moving the propellant away from the gun position, the Takasago's bow would likely no longer exist.
The continuous barrage of shells relentlessly battered the Takasago's hull. Although 140mm high-explosive shells struggled to penetrate the armored deck and cause critical damage to the core compartments, the cumulative effect was severe. The Takasago's forward section was already disfigured, most of the teak deck had vanished, and what remained was charred. The bow main gun was completely unusable, and two 120mm quick-firing guns on either side were damaged by shrapnel.
The most critical hit was one that struck the main mast, destroying the rangefinder and other fire control equipment on the masthead, further significantly reducing the Takasago's ability to retaliate.
As they closed to 10,000 yards with the Yanling, and were about to engage the two Hai Rong-class ships, Ishibashi Hajime finally accepted the failure of the vanguard battle.
“Send a message! Order the Kasagi and Shin Takasago to turn 20 compass points to port with this ship! Pay attention to covering the two destroyers!”
“Request our main force, the Asama and Tokiwa, to come forward and support!”
He had underestimated the enemy's firepower. Compared to the enemy's main guns, his so-called quick-firing guns were as slow as muzzle-loading flintlock rifles. If they dragged on any longer, his warships might lose combat capability before achieving effective hits, and then unforeseen circumstances would inevitably arise. With one careless move, his three ships could be lost here.
The three ships turned to 225 degrees, their broadside firepower haphazardly bombarding the sea, creating water columns in an attempt to interfere with the Yanling Navy's rangefinding. Meanwhile, 11,000 yards astern, two nearly 10,000-ton Asama-class armored cruisers were rushing forward at 20 knots under forced draft.