Six Hundred and Ninety-Three Regret

A melodious siren echoed in the sky, looking at the rough sea, everyone on board felt a deep sense of powerlessness and fear for the future. The ship under their feet didn't even have a name, and the crew affectionately called it "No. 317", and it wasn't a passenger ship, but a refitted freighter for transportation.

As a German family living in the United States for a long time, the Kohler family had their own small company in New York, the outbreak of the war affected the American economy, and their family was not affected due to luck, so it can be said that in 11 Before March 20, World War seemed very, very far away from the Kohler family.

But just yesterday, the United States began to expel people of German descent, and as a temporary agreement between the two sides to declare war, civilians between the two countries will be free to leave Hong Kong for one month, and the two sides are not allowed to attack transport ships that evacuate civilians. So for several days in a row, the pier was full of Germans who were leaving the United States, carrying big leather suitcases, and waiting for the ship from the motherland with their families.

If you are lucky, you can board the evacuation ships from the United States to Germany for some money. Those ships are all passenger ships, which look high-end and powerful, so most rich and well-connected people take that kind of ship. Ships leaving the United States. And if the plan is cheap and there is no way out, then you have to wait for a ship from Germany to greet you.

The hasty declaration of war disrupted the daily life of the Germans in the United States. They were required not to take away more than 10,000 dollars in cash, and not to take away any industrial equipment and drawings. In the future, the patents of these Germans will no longer be Under the protection of the law, those who wish to stay in the United States must also live in a centralized place and accept the supervision and inspection of the US security department.

This made the Germans who have lived in the United States for many years feel humiliated, and more people are also worried about their own safety and future social status, so many Germans finally choose to leave. Get out of the queue and board the place where they have lived for decades.

Being away from home made these Germans not have a good impression of the great head of state of the motherland. They lost their jobs, lost their income and even lost a large part of their property, just because the far away head of state did not know what kind of madness he had, but he wanted to be with him. America declares war. Many people don't care about things like the US bombing of Romania. It would be easier for them to discuss what to have for lunch if they understand the importance of oil fields to Germany.

And when the transport ship from the motherland came to pick them up and leave, everyone felt a strong sense of rejection towards the motherland that they had no impression of. The interior of the large transport ship is obviously used for transporting goods. The temporary hammocks are extremely simple, and even the private space is not separated. Everyone’s luggage is thrown under their feet. It will be thrown away.

Compared with the ships that pick up and drop off their own nationals in the United States, these transport ships from Germany are no different from thatch tents.

At least the Germans have no advantage at sea, and the only power they have is filled into the navy. As for civilian ships, there are really not many.

Because with the defeat of the British mainland, there were a large number of British civilian ships that fled to Canada. These ships were basically useless, and they did not dare to go south into the control of the German Navy, so they could only be idled or sold to the Americans. There are so many passenger ships that the United States can hold in its hands that it is unimaginable.

On November 20th, the Axis group, headed by Germany, declared war on the United States, and only ten minutes later, the United States also declared war on the Axis powers. It took only a dozen hours for the two sides to go from neutral to war Time, and this time will start from the United States' attack on Romanian oil fields. Therefore, most of the diaspora from both sides did not have time to evacuate, and this is why there was such a weird event as the exchange of diaspora between the two sides that started the war. So much so that later historians like to set the actual start of the war between the two sides as December 20, because it was only on that day that the two sides really cut off the exchange of immigrants and officially opened fire.

The big man opened his mouth, and the little man broke his leg. This sentence can be said to be a very correct description at any time. Following Akado's words of war, Germany then began to organize transport ships to the United States to evacuate the expatriates. However, compared with the huge fleet of the United States, the Germans are much poorer, and most of them are older ships temporarily transferred. The old Hercules transport ship, only a very small part of the passenger liner.

Therefore, compared with the evacuation fleet dominated by American cruise ships, the German transport ships can be said to be dilapidated. It is precisely because they have seen the luxury of the United States and the shabbyness of Germany that these Germans who have not yet set foot on German territory The personnel began to despair and pessimism, and even regretted their decision to leave the United States and return to their motherland.

The only thing that is gratifying is that the old German Hercules transport ship has a relatively large hull. Although the speed is average, it still has a good performance in terms of wind and wave resistance. In addition, the tonnage of the Hercules transport ship is not small, so although life The conditions are very simple, but it has somewhat relieved the pain of some seasick people.

Such an old and slightly old Hercules transport ship can be seen from its welded hollow metal stairs and the handrails full of mottled rust. Drifting on the sea, it does its best to transport all kinds of production materials for its motherland. Some iron bars have been twisted and deformed, but the simple and practical thick design style of this ship can still be seen.

"This is a good ship. If it is not for transporting people, I think it must be more competent." Even though the weather in November in the North Atlantic is already very cold, Kohler still prefers to stand Blowing the icy sea breeze on the deck is also uncomfortable, but it is more in line with Kohler's personal appetite.

The German captain stood on a short deck outside the cab, holding the binoculars in one hand, and was obviously surprised when he heard Kohler's standard German, and then replied very politely: "Your German is really good, Few people want to blow the wind and enjoy sailing these days, and you are a born sailor."

Kohler really wanted to scold that bastard head of state, and then tell the captain who was talking to him, if that bastard hadn't declared war on the United States, he would still be lying on a comfortable big bed, spending a happy weekend with his wife and children! However, in order to keep the conversation going, of course he would not speak like this. After all, he is a businessman, and the topic of the two quickly turned to such an irrelevant direction as the weather.

While the two were chatting without saying a word, on the sea level in the distance, an American destroyer was turning its bow and heading in the direction of the German Hercules transport ship. The 127mm cannon on the bow looks majestic, and the sharp bow cuts through the cold sea water, turning up beautiful white waves.

On the bridge of the American destroyer, the captain of the American destroyer was very satisfied with the prey he found. He was ordered to maintain order in the nearby marginal waters, and he understood this task as being able to rob some unarmed German transport ships along the way—— There are thousands of German expatriates on board, and they can almost extort one hundred and eighty thousand by threatening them. This kind of errand will definitely make colleagues drool with envy.

So under the watchful eyes of the German captain, the American destroyer was getting closer and closer to the route of the German Hercules transport ship. The distance between the two ships had been shortened to a few kilometers. The civilians on board were trembling with fright.

"Listen to the ship in front! We are a destroyer of the US Navy! Please stop the ship immediately and accept our inspection!" Inside the bridge, in the public channel band of the radio communication channel, the broadcast of the US destroyer is being played over and over again, although using English is spoken, but everyone on the ship obviously knows that everyone has to pay some "fees" after the ship stops.

"In the content of the agreement between the two parties, there is no requirement to stop the ship for inspection! Ignore the other party, keep the course and speed! Keep going!" The captain ignored Kohler who was looking at him nervously, and said to the first officer who came to ask for countermeasures: "German ships, There is no habit of being ordered by outsiders."

"Boom!" A few minutes later, the American destroyer seemed to see that the German transport ship had no intention of stopping, so it finally opened fire unbearably. A shell passed the bow of the German transport ship and exploded at a distance of about 100 meters, setting off a high water column. Because of the opponent's firing, the speed of the German transport ship was forced to slow down.

Kohler saw the opposing destroyer leaning forward in a show of force, and felt that his personal safety was not guaranteed. He really wanted to go back to the cargo hold below, and he was optimistic about the gold bars and dollars that were secretly brought out. He also really wanted to be with his own. The family stays together because maybe this is his last day.

"A bunch of bastards!" The American captain proudly put down the binoculars in his hand, and said with a smile to his subordinates, "I think we really gave them face if we didn't fire! Although the German navy is powerful, a broken transport ship can still Beat my destroyer? Let the sailors get their guns ready to board, gentlemen, we're going to be rich!"