Anti-Japanese War, weapons designer at Fengtian Arsenal

The moment the order to fire was given, all the guns with firing angles on the battleship launched the attack. First, a gun on the bow fired a single burst, and then several secondary guns placed on the side of the ship fired in unison.

These artillery pieces fired a string of rapidly moving scarlet bullets in the air, which landed near the Japanese merchant ship in an instant, blowing up handfuls of sea water. The 410mm shell in particular created a column of water that flew more than 70 meters high.

Li Qinwu in Cambridge was shocked. When the 410mm main gun fired a single burst, the huge recoil made the entire battleship tremble, and the sound almost shattered his eardrums.

He finally understood why the bridge of the Nagato needed 20cm thick bulletproof glass. This thing was probably not only for bulletproofing, but also for soundproofing.

Now a big hole was blown out in the bulletproof glass, and the sound of the gunfire came through, causing him to feel a tinnitus in his ears.

He endured the discomfort and raised the telescope to look towards the shelling point. Although his eyesight was poor and he could not see the specific situation clearly, he knew that none of the shells hit the target and all fell into the sea.

If the shell hits, a bright light will be seen at night, which is an important factor in judging whether the shelling has hit.

The sniper on the lookout tower of the Nagato had night vision capabilities. He clearly saw where the shell landed and sent the location of the landing point and distance from the merchant ship to the artillery. The artillery corrected the firing point and continued to fire the second shot.

Unfortunately, the second shot still failed. The shell fell to the side and rear of the battleship, causing a huge column of water but causing no substantial damage to the merchant ship.

Along with the second attack of the main gun, the secondary gun also launched a second round of firing. Still unpleasantly, the secondary gun's shooting did not hit the enemy.

This is how naval warfare works. Both your own and enemy combat platforms are maneuvering quickly, and it is normal to miss a target when bombarding from a distance of 10 to 20 kilometers.

Often when the warships of both sides bombard each other, it is normal for no one to hit the target for an hour or two. However, if you want to increase the hit rate, the most intuitive method is to get closer to the enemy warship and shorten the distance.

As long as the distance between the two sides is shortened, the probability of artillery hitting the enemy will increase exponentially.

Like the Battle of the Denmark Strait, the British battleship Hood and the German battleship Bismarck engaged in a duel. The two sides bombarded each other from 20 kilometers away, but the hit rate was touching and they were unable to cause fatal damage to the enemy.

But as time went on, the two sides fought closer and closer. When the two sides approached to 14km, the Hood successfully used its own ammunition depot to hit a shell fired by the Pismarck, destroying it.

Let us pay tribute to the HMS Hood, the fastest-sunk battleship!

It was the third minute of the Nagato's shelling. The four main guns on the two front turrets of the Nagato fired once, and the last shell landed just over 4 meters away from the Japanese merchant ship.

This is already very close. If it were a little closer, even if the merchant ship was not hit directly, the shock wave caused by the shell in the water would cause damage.

Li Ruinian felt that it was time and gave a loud order: "Start firing!"

The Nagato began to fire at full strength, with the four main guns in front firing at intervals of 4 seconds to avoid interfering with each other.

Four shells carrying enormous power blew up four water columns near the Japanese merchant ship. The main guns on the side of the ship also started firing, and an endless barrage of bullets exploded beside the Japanese merchant ship.

The Japanese merchant ship was also confused. They had not responded since the first round of attack and were in a panic, not knowing what to do.

They naturally discovered the warships firing at them in the darkness in the distance. The huge flames from the main guns were clearly visible dozens of kilometers away.

Although he couldn't see what type of warship was attacking them, the captain still shouted in his heart, "Am I breaking the law? Is it necessary to send a warship to attack me?"

The only large warships nearby were from the Empire. He thought the Imperial Navy had misunderstood him, so he frantically used the ship's telegraph to contact the other side, informing them that he was an Imperial merchant ship and not to fire.

But the other side did not respond at all and just kept bombarding. He even used the radio to inform the other side that they would slow down and stop the ship, but the other side ignored him. What greeted them was the shells that were getting closer and closer.

The Japanese captain was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. Just as he was racking his brains to think of a countermeasure, the worst situation happened. A shell exploded directly on the deck of the merchant ship!

With a loud bang, the steel structure on the deck was blown apart, tearing open a large hole leading to the lower cargo hold.

All the Japanese on the ship felt the violent explosion and screamed in agony, but they should be thankful that it was not the 410mm shell that hit them, but the 140mm secondary gun, otherwise their ship would have been disabled with one hit.

At this point, the Japanese captain finally understood that the unknown warship really wanted to destroy them!

He gave up communicating with the other party and began to save himself with all his strength.

The situation at this time was that the distance between the two sides was shortened to 8 kilometers and was still approaching. The Nagato turned its bow to the right, with the aim of making the flank face the Japanese merchant ship as much as possible. In this way, the four turrets and all the secondary guns on one side could fire, which was the posture with the strongest firepower.

The optical aiming equipment on the Japanese merchant ship was not very advanced and could not see clearly. They only saw that the warship seemed to be heading to the right. The Japanese captain ordered the merchant ship to turn to the left without even thinking, trying to get away from the Nagato.

This was perfect. The Nagato originally had to turn around for a while before it could aim its side with the most concentrated firepower at the Japanese merchant ship, but the merchant ship turned left on its own, which was equivalent to the merchant ship actively aiming its side at the side of the Nagato.

Previously, the Japanese merchant ship aimed its bow at the Nagato, making it difficult for the gunners of the Nagato to hit it. Now, the Japanese merchant ship aims its side at the Nagato, and the area that is exposed to bullets increases dramatically, making it much easier to hit.

The four turrets all aimed at the Japanese merchant ship. After Li Ruinian's order, a round of fire was fired. Eight 4mm shells flew out of the gun barrels one after another and headed straight for the Japanese merchant ship.

Perhaps because of the novice protection period, this time the main gun of the Nagato hit the Japanese merchant ship!

Li Qinwu, who had been keeping a close eye on the merchant ship, held up a telescope. After this round of shelling, he saw a beam of fire suddenly appear on the sea in the distance. Although the fire was fleeting, he did capture it.

Li Qinwu shouted excitedly: "Hit it!"