"Admiral...Admiral? Is it Zhang Biao and Marshal Zhang?" Zhang Jingliang asked doubtfully while receiving the letter.

"Yes, it is Hubei Admiral Zhang Biao. He has just returned from the capital and is gathering officers and soldiers to fight back." The messenger replied.

Zhang Jingliang couldn't wait to open the letter, and it turned out to be Zhang Biao's handwritten letter. Tears filled his eyes for a moment. He raised his arms and shouted:

"Brothers, my old Shangguan is back. He personally led a large force to fight over. There are hundreds of thousands of new Beiyang troops behind him, and a naval fleet is on the way. Let's return to Mr. Zhang's side and follow the revolution.

If the Party members start a rebellion, there is no hope, and the nine tribes will be exterminated by then."

"Okay, let's follow Zhang Guan's lead and return to the Admiral's side."

"..."

Just like this, before the war started, a battalion rebelled on the battlefield, which had a very bad impact on the morale of the revolutionary army.

Soon, the news of Zhang Jingliang's on-the-battle rebellion reached the commander-in-chief Chen Tianhua, but he behaved surprisingly calmly.

He knew very well:

The success of the revolution does not lie in the rallying cry at the time, but in whether the new regime can persist in the face of a comprehensive counterattack by the forces of the old system afterwards.

As the main force of the new Beiyang Army continues to gather in Hubei, the harsh reality test is still to come, especially those who have surrendered from the old system to the new system. The imperial power ideology for thousands of years is deeply rooted, and events in history have

The righteous rebellions were vigorous at first, but ended in failure in the end. The fate of the nine tribes being exterminated can be found everywhere.

The Wuhan military government cannot and does not have the energy to reform and brainwash the thoughts of these people who are not firm in their thoughts in a short period of time. Naturally, it is impossible for them to be of the same mind as the revolutionaries who are determined to reform China.

Due to the limitations of the times, it is completely understandable that Zhang Jingliang rebelled on the battlefield. If the mistakes were really investigated, it should be the frontline commander Jiang Yiwu who should be responsible for his improper employment.

For such an important but dangerous post, a comrade with a strong revolutionary will should be sent to it.

Now, the morale of the revolution must be high, so that everyone can see the dawn of the success of the revolution. Therefore, the defensive battle at the front of Liujia Temple in Hankou is crucial. This battle must boost morale and must not be defeated.

This battle was related to the overall situation, so Chen Tianhua decided that he would personally go to the front line of Hankou to supervise the battle.

It is said that Jiang Yiwu heard that Zhang Jingliang refused to fire a shot and rebelled directly on the battlefield. He was so angry that he almost vomited blood. He also realized that the appointment was too hasty and did not consider that a revolutionary should be sent.

Angry and angry, Jiang Yiwu decided to attack the Sandaoqiao Fortress and recapture the fortress in order to boost revolutionary morale and military prestige.

Sandao Bridge, also known as Sandao Bridge, is the only way from Liujiamiao to Shekou, Beijing. There are three long sections of iron bridges built over large lakes and swamps. The Beijing-Hankou Railway tracks are laid on the iron bridges, so it is named

name.

It can be seen that this three-way bridge is easy to defend but difficult to attack. There are large lakes and swamps on both sides, which cannot be passed by the army. The only access is a railway bridge.

Zhang Biao's armed Qing troops gathered at the north end of Sandao Bridge and established a bridgehead. He used powerful firepower to suppress several charges by the revolutionary army, causing heavy casualties on the revolutionary army's side.

Fortunately, Chen Tianhua arrived in time. He immediately stopped the revolutionary army's blind attack, severely criticized Jiang Yiwu's lack of composure, and ordered the revolutionary army to build fortifications at the south end of Sandao Bridge, dig deep trenches to Liujiamiao, and build a single

Soldier bunker to prevent Qing artillery fire.

Zhang Biao's Qing troops began to attack the southern end of Sandao Bridge, but they also encountered difficulties. Over the next few days, they suffered heavy losses, and the exposed artillery positions were constantly destroyed by Chen Tianhua's new mobile heavy artillery.

This made Zhang Biao furious, but he had no choice but to wait patiently for Tie Liang's First Army to arrive, and the navy commander Sa Zhenbing's mixed fleet to enter Hankou, so as to launch an amphibious counterattack.

…

It is said that the Qing government ordered the Navy Ministry to form a mixed fleet. After gathering on the Jiangsu River, it marched along the Yangtze River waterway toward the three towns of Wuhan.

The commander of the mixed fleet, that is, the commander of the Navy Department, is the famous Sa Zhenbing, and the deputy commander is the admiral of the Yangtze River Fleet, the assistant commander Shen Shoukun.

The mixed fleet mobilized a total of three cruisers, namely Hairong, Haichi and Haichen.

These three cruisers were re-ordered by the Qing government from the German Vulcan Shipyard after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894. They served in the New Beiyang Navy in the 24th year of Guangxu's reign, and were incorporated into the Navy's cruise fleet in the first year of Xuantong.

These three cruisers belong to the same class, and their main technical parameters are:

The ship is 95.77 meters long, 12.4 meters wide, has a draft of 5.79 meters and a displacement of 3150 tons.

Steam turbine power, main propulsion power of 7,500 horsepower, speed of 19.5 knots, and a normal crew of 265.

The ship's main guns are three 150mm caliber Krupp main guns, two on the main deck, one on the aft deck, four 105mm caliber cannons on the left and right sides, two 60mm front armor secondary guns, and four 37mm rapid-fire guns. artillery, five 8mm caliber Mark Mi machine guns, and one torpedo tube.

Although these three Haizihao light cruisers have been in service for ten years, in terms of their technical parameters and firepower, they are definitely powerful when placed in an inland river. They are indeed much more powerful than the Wolfzihao of the Fengzhong Yangtze River Escort Fleet.

In addition to the three cruisers in the mixed fleet, there are also six shallow-water gunboats named Chu from the Yangtze River Fleet of the Navy, namely Chu Tai, Chu Yu, Chu Guan, Chu Qian, Chu You, and Chu Tong.

These shallow-water gunboats named Chu were actually the legacy left by Zhang Xiangshuai during his lifetime. He served as the governor of Liangjiang, the governor of Huguang, and the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. Wherever he went, there were waters, so he vigorously developed the navy. The government established the Yangtze River Fleet of the Navy, and the inland river gunboats it gathered were all left over from when he was in office.

The Chu shallow-water gunboat is 60.96 meters long, 8.99 meters wide, and has a draft of 2.43 meters. It is steam-driven, has a speed of 13 knots, and a displacement of 750 tons.

The firepower configuration is not weak either: the main guns on the main and auxiliary decks are 120mm caliber artillery, two 76mm caliber rapid-fire cannons on the left and right sides, two 25mm machine guns, and two 6.5mm caliber machine guns.

In addition to cruisers and shallow-water gunboats, the mixed fleet also has five logistics supply ships and two minesweepers, totaling sixteen large and small ships.

The flagship of the fleet is the Hai Rong, with Naval Commander Sa Zhen Bing in charge, and the deputy flagship is Hai Chen, with Commander Shen Shoukun in charge.

The fleet was led by Haichen as the vanguard, Hairong in the center, Haichi in the rear, and in the middle were shallow-water gunboats and supply ships. The entire fleet stretched for several kilometers on the Yangtze River. It was vast and murderous.

On the orders of the Regent Zaifeng, Minister of the Navy Zai Xun ordered the mixed fleet to speed up its advance without stopping midway, and quickly headed for the Hankou River, where the support of cruiser artillery was urgently needed.

Sa Zhenbing immediately issued instructions to all ships, ordering the fleet to move forward quickly.
Chapter completed!