Chapter 1490: Chapter 1407: Useless Submarines

Sun Guang was continually strengthening the Dorne defense line he led, and over the past few days, he gradually received many…submarines from Qin Country.

A year ago, Qin Country began a large-scale construction of submarines to make up for the lack of a navy and insufficient combat strength, but the results were unsatisfactory.

Most of Qin Country’s submarines and submarine supply ships were ineffective. Even after the loss of Shu Territory, they were chased all over by the Great Tang Empire’s destroyers and anti-submarine helicopters.

With the loss of Shu Territory, the remaining submarines lost their supply base, forced into exile, with those having sufficient fuel ordered to regroup at Dorne.

Of course, most submarines were directly captured by the Great Tang Empire due to lack of fuel, leaving them no choice but to surrender obediently.

These submarines were almost like scrap iron, as their technology was outdated, comparable to early WWII U-boats, and had almost no practical value.

Besides the surrendered submarines, there were more than ten whose captains chose a tragic self-destruction. Unwilling to hand over their submarines to the Great Tang Empire, they went down with their vessels, resting eternally beneath the waves.

The remaining dozens of submarines made their way to the Dorne Empire, preparing to continue fighting against the Tang Army there.

However, these submarines weren’t effectively utilized by Dorne either; most were left abandoned at the docks, as the Dorne Navy didn’t particularly prioritize submarines, resulting in few submarine docks being constructed.

When the United Fleet was completely annihilated, Dorne’s submarines didn’t participate, thus suffering minimal losses. Now, these submarines are tasked with outer perimeter security, serving little purpose.

Seeing that their submarines were ineffective, it was only natural to look down on the Great Qin Empire’s submarines. Despite the Great Qin Empire’s submarines achieving the only combat success since the war began by sinking a transport ship outside Nanshan Port, achieving a brilliant victory, Dorne still had no plans to rely on these not-so-reliable allied submarines.

On one hand, there were no spare parts for maintenance, making the operation of these submarines a hassle; on the other hand, Dorne’s focus was on rebuilding the naval fleet.

From the perspective of the Dorne Navy’s higher-ups, stopping the Tang Army’s landing ultimately depended on traditional surface ships.

After all, the Dorne Navy had a tradition; when Strauss served as the fleet commander, they had achieved a series of victories, earning brilliant war results. From that time, the pride of the Dorne Navy never faded.

Even though Mike Ravel consistently opposed the reestablishment of the fleet, the Dorne Navy still began constructing 3 cruisers and 10 destroyers at the undestroyed docks in several ports.

Simultaneously, Dorne’s army was actively preparing for battle, constructing various fortifications along the coastline, with a level of seriousness far surpassing other empires.

Comparatively, Dorne was actively engaged in combat with the Great Tang Empire, facing danger head-on, naturally feeling more pressure.

“These Dorne people don’t trust us at all.” A submarine captain, who hadn’t been to sea since arriving at Dorne, grumbled about the unfriendliness of their allies in Sun Guang’s office.

Sun Guang, while reviewing documents, lifted his head to console, “It’s alright, this is quite good. Going out to sea means danger; I’m already very glad you made it to Dorne, no need to take further risks.”

“But, General… the Empire is in a crisis; if we can’t alleviate Your Majesty’s worries…” The captain, still filled with fighting spirit, was the one who executed the surprise attack, sinking that ill-fated Tang Country transport ship outside Nanshan Port.

An entire shipload of premium lumber destined for Tang Country’s mainland sunk with the giant vessel. Fifty-two crew members fell into the water, with seventeen deaths, marking the Great Tang Empire’s most severe naval loss since the war began.

Because Qin Country’s submarines had never appeared on this route, the Great Tang Empire Navy was somewhat negligent, ultimately allowing this sneak-attacking Qin Country submarine to escape.

“Dorne’s side doesn’t approve fuel, so there’s nothing I can do.” Sun Guang shrugged, expressing helplessness.

He indeed hoped to utilize the over twenty submarines that sought refuge in Dorne, at least to disrupt Tang Country’s fleet, making them wary and choosing to maneuver further from the coastline.

But the reality didn’t allow him to do so: as soon as the twenty-plus submarines arrived in Dorne, three to four had already malfunctioned, with many unable to go to sea.

These submarines ran out of fuel and food, requiring Dorne to provide supplies. However, with Dorne short on its own fuel, who could allocate supplies for these out-of-budget submarines?

Even if provided, how effective could they be? Most long-distance submarines needed repairs, requiring workers, and familiarizing workers with these Qin Country submarines took time, presenting yet another challenge.

Moreover, once these Qin Country submarines exhausted their torpedoes, could they continue fighting? Dorne’s torpedoes were not the same as those of the Great Qin Empire, whose torpedoes were directly provided by the Great Tang Empire, technologically superior to Dorne’s, hence the torpedoes of the two countries weren’t interchangeable.

With all these issues combined, utilizing the Qin Country submarines was fraught with challenges, and no one was willing to mention it.

In fact, these submarines were indeed like scrap iron, quietly docked, awaiting their end.

“Sigh…” The meritorious Qin Country submarine captain sighed. Had he known, he wouldn’t have traveled all this way; he might as well have gone down with his ship courageously.

Sun Guang noticed his sorrow and continued to console, “I understand your feelings. I also wish to alleviate the Empire’s worries, but… presently, we can only focus on the tasks at hand, helping our allies stabilize their positions as much as possible.”

“But I just heard… Tiger Pavilion has already fallen.” The captain, with a worried face, mentioned the news he’d just heard.

In reality, his information was already quite outdated, as the news announced by the Great Tang Empire was only confirmed through Dorne’s repeated affirmations before spreading quietly as “news.”

And at this moment, Liu Zhian’s troops were firmly holding their ground on the outskirts of Huai Mountain for a long time.