The time has reached five o'clock in the afternoon, and the sun has begun to set towards the west. The setting sun shines golden on the sea. At this moment, the sea level is relatively quiet, and there are no big winds or waves.

Since arriving yesterday, the submarine of Task Force Jiaolong has been traveling on the sea for nearly a day and a night.

Of course, their speed was extremely slow, and they were responsible for searching more than 300 nautical miles of water. They only advanced less than 70 nautical miles in one day and one night.

By now they were more than two hundred nautical miles from the coast.

Since it is almost dark, the Air Force's Zero fighter group has begun to prepare to return.

At this moment, an Xxi submarine at the forefront of the entire task force suddenly discovered something unusual.

"Captain, Captain, look, there's something going on ahead." A lookout suddenly said urgently.

At this time, their submarine was in a semi-floating state, and the lookout glass was exposed to the sea.

Because there are waves hitting it from time to time, it is generally difficult to find.

The captain's name is Liu Taoyun. He is twenty-five years old this year. He is one of the most outstanding sailor trainees in this group, so he was directly promoted to the captain of a XXX submarine.

Liu Yuntao walked quickly to the lookout mirror. After grabbing the lookout mirror and looking at it for a while, he immediately turned around and ordered: "No, it's the Japanese naval fleet. Dive immediately and notify other submarines immediately. Hurry!"

The officers and soldiers in the submarine became busy, and soon the xxi submarine quickly dived into the sea water.

Ives was currently on a submarine with Wang Yunhai, the first captain of the Dragon Task Force. Due to the British's laid-back personality, the British guy was leisurely drinking a drink and reading a book on a bed.

Wang Yunhai and his subordinates all stayed at their posts conscientiously. A telegraph operator suddenly came over and reported to Wang Yunhai: "Captain, report No. 001, an enemy fleet has been spotted ahead, the one closest to our unit

Less than five nautical miles."

"Huh?" Wang Yunhai was shocked when he heard this, and the British man Ives also ran over quickly and asked in blunt Chinese: "Wang, captain, what's wrong?"

"The Japanese fleet has been discovered." Wang Yunhai said nervously.

"Dive, all dive, now! Hurry!" Ives reacted quickly as if he had received an electric shock.

"Do as instructor Ives said. Quick, pass the order. In addition, order all units to move closer to us immediately. We are going to face the enemy." Wang Yunhai immediately ordered.

"Yes!" The telegraph operator agreed in a loud voice, then turned around and took the order.

The fifty xxi submarines quickly received the order and instructions, and began to dive quickly. In a short time, they all disappeared on the sea surface.

On Wang Yunhai's flagship, Ives suddenly said to him: "Captain Wang, you cannot attack at this time."

"Why? If we don't attack, the enemy will probably take off to attack Nanjing with air strikes." Wang Yunhai, who was about to order an attack, asked in confusion.

"First of all, you should immediately report this situation to your headquarters, our Commander Zhang Xinghan, and ask him to find a way to notify Nanjing City to prepare for air defense.

Second, the sun has set now, and it will be dark in another hour at most. The Japanese are still two hundred nautical miles away. They will not take off at this distance because the round-trip distance has exceeded the effective combat radius of their aircraft.

.

So they will at least move forward fifty to a hundred nautical miles before taking off the plane, and it will be dark by then, so they will definitely choose to launch an air strike tomorrow morning.

I suggest that you first dive to a safe depth, hide, and follow them. Wait two or three hours until it gets completely dark before attacking them. This will be more beneficial to us.

Because it's going to be harder for them to spot us in the dark," Ives explained.

"Oh, that makes sense." Wang Yunhai nodded, changed his attention, and then turned to give the communications soldier another order.

In fact, Ives's caution was somewhat redundant given the equipment level and excellent performance of the Japanese Navy's combined fleet in this era.

Because based on the equipment level of the Japanese at this time, it was impossible to detect the whereabouts of the Jiaolong Task Force without even a radar, and the Xxi was an advanced submarine that could launch attacks directly underwater.

It is possible to quietly drive close to the Japanese warships and launch a direct attack from the bottom of the water, which can also cause heavy damage to the Japanese fleet.

Of course, Ives' caution is not without some merit, that is, the officers and soldiers of the Dragon Task Force are all rookies who have not experienced actual combat.

If they launch an attack underwater, there will be no difference between day and night.

And if it's night, they can rise to the sea to launch an attack, which is more conducive to their actions.

For rookies, underwater attacks are still more difficult than surface attacks. On the water, they can launch torpedoes more directly and accurately until the frontier witnesses the target being hit and sunk.

For rookies like them, this can increase their confidence and practical experience in winning.

……………………

Dalian, 4th Army Headquarters.

The cooking team had just prepared dinner, and Zhang Xinghan, Jiang Baili, Zhao Zhenfan and others were eating together.

A communications staff officer suddenly ran in in a hurry, and before he could stand at attention, he said: "General manager, please call me from the Jiaolong Task Force for an urgent call."

"Huh?" Everyone stood up immediately upon hearing this. Zhang Xinghan stepped forward directly, took the telegram in his hand, read it over in a hurry and said: "The Japanese have appeared, and Jiaolong is preparing to attack."

"Then what should we do?" Zhao Zhenfan asked.

"It's getting dark, and the Air Force can no longer rush to join the battle. Jiaolong asks us to notify Nanjing as soon as possible to prepare for air defense." Zhang Xinghan said and ordered the communications staff: "Go and call Jiaolong immediately and tell them that during the attack,

Don't be greedy, just attack the enemy's largest warship, which must be their aircraft carrier or battleship.

After a successful attack, we should immediately take advantage of our diving depth to evacuate. There is no need to be reluctant to fight. As long as we kill the enemy's aircraft carrier, their air raid will end in vain."

"Yes, I'll go right away." The communications soldier responded, quickly turned around and ran away.

"Zhongzi, please notify Shen Xingye immediately and ask him to arrange for someone to notify Nanjing and prepare for air defense immediately." After the communications staff member left, Zhang Xinghan ordered Guo Zhong again.

"Okay, I'll go right away." Guo Zhong nodded in agreement and stood up to leave.

"Chief, can the Jiaolong succeed? The Japanese navy has always been known as the best in Asia and the third in the world!" Jiang Baili was a little worried. After all, this was the first battle of the Jiaolong task force. You must know that they have just formed an army.
Chapter completed!