Shadow of great britain

On the deck of the Conqueror, General Codrington pointed to the city emerging on the coastline in front and enthusiastically introduced its long history to Arthur.

That's where the Channel Fleet is based and the oldest naval base in Great Britain - Portsmouth Naval Base.

As the birthplace of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth Naval Base carries a fine tradition of foreign operations.

As early as the Roman Empire, Portsmouth had been established as a castle, and the Portchester Castle on the north side of the port is one of the traces left by the Romans.

During the later Viking Age, it was used as a frontline fortress to resist the invasion of Viking pirates.

During the Hundred Years' War between England and France in the 14th century, Portsmouth served as the forward base for the Plantagenet Dynasty's operations against France.

The naval tradition here began with the establishment of Portsmouth Naval Dockyard in 1496, and in 1540, the Royal Navy officially announced its establishment here.

Arthur looked out over Portsmouth from the deck and saw only the red brick buildings and white lighthouses that were characteristic of the Royal Navy.

In addition, there are the fortress walls and the defensive forts with shore batteries that stretch out and cover almost the entire city.

On the sea not far away, you can also see the figure of the Royal Navy's legendary battleship HMS Victory.

This meritorious battleship, which served as the flagship of Royal Navy admirals John Jervis and Horatio Nelson and witnessed the victory of the Battle of Trafalgar, was withdrawn from active service in the Navy in 1812 and was exempted from the Navy with special approval from the Admiralty. The fate of being demolished.

Not only that, the Admiralty also allocated special funds to allow the aging HMS Victory to be partially renovated and refitted at the Portsmouth Dockyard, allowing it to continue to play its role as the flagship of the Portsmouth Base Commander.

With the afterglow of the setting sun, the Conqueror and the Reckless towed the Beagle and Blackthorn respectively, which had basically lost their ability to move, into the port.

On the pier of the port, many Royal Navy sailors and British reporters who had gotten the news from nowhere were already waiting.

The Conqueror slowly rolled up the sails and lowered the anchor. The sailors stood in front of the guardrail on the side of the ship, with serious expressions and heads held high.

As soon as the Conqueror came to a stop, the garrison sailors who had been waiting on the shore immediately lifted the cockpit and built a long ladder for the Conqueror to disembark.

The sailors on the ship also naturally took out the red carpet they had prepared early in the morning. They grabbed one end and let the other end roll down along the bridge.

General Codrington, who was wearing a red cloak, came to the cockpit and glanced twice, always feeling that something was missing around him.

He turned around and saw that Arthur was standing behind him, standing with Colonel Fitzroy, the captain of the Beagle.

Codrington smiled and shook his head, then put his arms around the two of them and pushed them to a position parallel to him.

Colonel Fitzroy was flattered and said: "General..."

Codrington smiled helplessly: "I have no hope, but you are still young. Besides, this is the honor you deserve. Young people, you have to fight for what you should fight for, but you can't shrink from everything. In the back. In the Royal Navy, people won’t think you’re being modest, they’ll just think you don’t know how to use your brain.”

Arthur said: "What you said is indeed true for Colonel Fitzroy. But Your Excellency, I am not affiliated with the Royal Navy."

Codrington raised his finger and shook it, he smiled and said to Arthur.

"I just heard what Fitzroy said about you. I can tell you for sure that the Royal Navy is very honored to have an outstanding boarding general. But the key to the problem is that Sir Peel persuaded the First Sea Service Chancellor Thomas Hardy.

If one day Sir Peel is willing to let go, then I can assure you that the Royal Navy is always welcome to join you. My promise to you still stands, because I really need a scientific secretary with both brains and strength. "

As soon as General Codrington finished speaking, he heard a uniform sound of running coming from the dock.

Two rows of sailors in neat military uniforms lined up along the pier, and at the end of the pier, there was a white-haired man holding a cane, wearing a full set of senior officer uniforms, with his chest covered with medals, and slightly hunched over. Even the old man is a little wobbly when he walks.

That was General Edward Pellet, commander of Portsmouth Naval Base.

I saw the old man holding a cane and walking slowly to the bottom of the Conqueror amidst the clanging of medals.

He slowly raised his head, and the sea breeze blew up his white eyebrows.

The old man took a deep breath, lifted the cane tremblingly, and then slammed it down.

Immediately afterwards, an old but powerful voice spread throughout the port.

"Congratulations to the Channel Fleet of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on their triumphant return!"

The old man gave an order, and the roar of cannons came from the fort in Portsmouth Port.

The sailors on the dock also uniformly shouldered their muskets and fired salutes into the sky.

Codrington patted Arthur and Fitzroy slightly from behind, and they understood.

Under the gaze of countless people, three white gloves stretched out from the deck of the Conqueror: "For Nelson!"

Subsequently, under the leadership of General Codrington, Arthur and Fitzroy stepped down the bridge step by step, followed closely by the Marines of the Beagle and other meritorious crew members of the Beagle .

General Codrington walked up to General Pellet, saluted first, and then said: "The Channel Fleet has fulfilled its mission."

General Pellet nodded slightly, patted Codrington on the shoulder and said: "I have almost reached age. From now on, Portsmouth will be handed over to you."

As soon as Pellet finished speaking, reporters who had been impatient for a long time rushed forward. They all rushed to interview General Codrington.

"Your Excellency Codrington, can you talk in detail about the occurrence and process of this diplomatic incident?"

"Who is the man wanted by the French government?"

"After you defeated the Ottomans, do you think you will be re-appointed by the Admiralty because of this opportunity? I heard that the Atlantic Fleet seems to be considering changing its commander."

However, Codrington just shook his head when he saw this situation.

He did not like dealing with these reporters, because a few years ago, he had been vigorously attacked by this group of reporters for being court-martialed by the Admiralty.

In the face of their interview requests, General Codrington refused all, he just said to them: "As you reporters said before, I am just a second-rate general who 'wins but loses'.

So I didn't get too involved in this incident, I just opened fire on the Ottomans as usual.

If you want to ask, you'd better ask Sergeant Arthur Hastings and Captain Robert Fitzroy of the Beagle who are behind me in charge of this case. They are the real heroes behind this diplomatic case against France. "

After saying this, Codrington helped General Pellet board the carriage at the port under the cover of the guards.

The reporters who lost their target immediately turned their attention to Arthur and Fitzroy.

At this time, a reporter suddenly slapped his head, and he seemed to have remembered something.

"Arthur Hastings? Isn't that Scotland Yard's strongest voice?"

"Did he handle this case again?"

"Don't forget, the last large-scale murder and body robbery case was also supervised by him."

"Hastings? Who is Mr. Hastings?"

When Arthur heard this, he quietly shrank back.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he took a step back, Elder's voice sounded behind him.

"Damn it! Arthur, why is it you who always steal the spotlight? Even General Codrington has admired your name for a long time. Do you have any special tips in this regard? You must teach me some other time."

Arthur looked up at Codrington, who was already surrounded by reporters, shook his head at Elder and said, "Are you envious of this kind of treatment?"

Elder cursed in a low voice: "Of course! Who doesn't like to be in the limelight? But every time I want to be in the spotlight, something always happens that makes me unhappy."

Arthur nodded slightly when he heard the words: "Okay, then I will satisfy you today."

Elder was stunned when he heard this: "How can you satisfy me?"

Arthur didn't say anything, he just pressed Elder's back, and then pushed him forward hard.

Then he pointed at him and shouted: "Arthur Hastings is here!"

"What?!"

"Where?!"

The reporters turned their heads when they heard this. They were like sharks smelling the smell of blood, and they ate up Elder in an instant.

Arthur took out the pipe from his pocket and lit it gently. He flicked his hand to extinguish the match, then took a deep breath while holding the pipe in his mouth.

Smoke rose, and behind him all he could hear was Elder's horrified voice yelling.

"Don't squeeze! Don't squeeze! What? What question are you asking me? How did I get here step by step from an ordinary little policeman?

I have to mention the inspiration and teachings given to me by my friend Mr. Elder Carter. Do you know Elder Carter's name?

What? have no idea? Then let me tell you that he is a top student in the Department of Classical Literature at the University of London. He is very cultured and capable. He is currently single and unmarried, so he is in urgent need of a woman of the right age to fill his deep soul and empty heart..."

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but shook his head.

Just as he was about to leave, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and grabbed his sleeve.

Arthur looked back and saw that it was a familiar face.

That was Dickens, who had resigned from his job as a court clerk and was now working full-time on interviews and reporting.

Arthur joked: "Why are you here too? Do you want to have dinner with me and drink tea by the way?"

Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Dickens just lowered the brim of his hat slightly and whispered: "Arthur, thank God for seeing you here."

"What's wrong?"

"You don't know yet, right? Something big happened during the opening ceremony of the Manchester-Liverpool Passenger Railway!"