บท 66: Chapter 6: Meeting Point
Administering both preventative and heart-strengthening measures, Zhang Hainuo finally managed to have his crew relatively calmly accept the reality of Germany's surrender. Perhaps for most of them, the abdication of the German emperor already signaled Germany's defeat, and the surrender now was just a formal gesture!
Although the crew didn't show any overtly dramatic reactions, when Zhang Hainuo toured the various compartments, he noticed many quietly shedding tears in the corners. Even his dear friend Edwin, upon receiving the confirmed news, stood alone on the deck for several hours.
They were truly a group of outstanding soldiers—loyal and resilient, brave and straightforward, pursuing honor without resorting to slaughter of the innocent (a tradition maintained by the Wehrmacht during World War II, distinct from the actions of the Armed SS and Gestapo). They often compensated for their numerical and technological disadvantages with their tactical prowess and unwavering determination. Yet, their endings always seemed to be so regrettable.
This scene filled Zhang Hainuo with countless emotions. But if he didn't want to witness this scene again twenty-seven years later, he either had to die early or change history through his own efforts.
Zhang Hainuo wasn't one to give up easily, so his character led him to firmly choose the latter.
However, while he had this grand plan in mind now, whether the next steps would unfold as expected depended also on luck—a factor Zhang Hainuo believed in. As long as luck wasn't too bad, they could surely find valuable items from the merchant ships sunk during the war. Not every merchant ship would carry precious cargo, but in the chaos of sudden attacks, crew members often didn't have time to take the most important things with them, either fleeing alone or sinking with the ship.
As the outline of Crete appeared to starboard, Zhang Hainuo suddenly remembered his last memory from that era, also on Crete, with this azure sea. Would the temporal gateway connecting the two eras open again upon his arrival? Would he be transported back to the past at this crucial moment?
No!
A clear voice resounded in Zhang Hainuo's mind. Since he had already invested so much in this era, since he had found the purpose of his life here, since he had so many loyal followers, then, Heaven, please let me continue my struggle in this era!
There was no response from Heaven, and Crete was gradually left behind, disappearing completely from the horizon.
Zhang Hainuo put away his unnecessary thoughts. He knew that the Strait of Gibraltar was not the final obstacle to completing his plan. Next, he had to quickly rendezvous with Hessen's U21 and be vigilant against the ships of the Allied Powers, including Greek warships, freighters, and even fishing boats!
In Europe, Greece was relatively weak in both economic and military strength. Since gaining independence in the early 19th century, they had engaged in a series of wars aimed at consolidating their territory and expanding their borders with neighboring countries, especially the two Balkan Wars in the early 20th century. In World War I, Greece initially maintained nominal neutrality but allowed British and French ships to use their anchorages and provided them with supplies. After a long period of hesitation, they officially joined the Allies in June 1917. Although they didn't engage in large-scale combat with the Central Powers on land, their navy actively participated in Allied military operations in the Mediterranean.
Although the Greeks were very unfriendly, when Zhang Hainuo formulated this plan, after careful consideration, he ultimately decided to navigate the submarine to the Aegean Sea and rendezvous with Hessen's U21 there. One reason was that the North Sea and the Baltic Sea lacked suitable hiding places—after the war ended, Britain and France would surely conduct thorough searches there. In comparison, the Aegean Sea, with its more than 2,500 islands, was geographically much more complex; secondly, Hessen was very familiar with this area, and his U21 submarine, being small, had relatively weak seagoing ability and a shorter range compared to U148, making it easier for them to rendezvous here.
Of course, there was another very important point: a small part of the eastern Aegean islands belonged to Turkey. This country had chosen the side of the Allies in World War I, and the experiences of the war had left their officials, generals, and people with a favorable impression of the Germans. Although the defeat also brought them great pain and losses, it should be much easier for Zhang Hainuo and his crew to obtain supplies from Turkey than from other countries.
After entering the Aegean Sea, Zhang Hainuo indeed encountered many Allied ships. However, now that the war was over and the German government had ordered the army to withdraw to the homeland and the navy to remain in port, the officers and sailors of the Allied ships had relaxed considerably. Zhang Hainuo noticed that they no longer zigzagged even when sailing in broad daylight. What they feared the most should no longer be German submarines but the sea mines left over from the war.
This expected situation put Zhang Hainuo's mind at ease. During the day, they cautiously avoided the sight of the Allied ships, diving into the sea when necessary to evade detection. At night, they quickly moved along the predetermined route. As a result, on the fourth day after Germany's surrender, they finally arrived in the southeastern Aegean Sea, near the Nisipolazes Islands and Kalpazos Island. This area was far from the Greek mainland, about a hundred nautical miles from Crete and Rhodes, and about 120 nautical miles from the nearest Turkish port.
Choosing this as their rendezvous point was a decision made by Zhang Hainuo and Hessen after a joint discussion at Finken estate. Hessen had passed through this area several times during the war. Apart from the larger islands of Kalpazos and Astypalea, which were inhabited by Greeks, the other islands were desolate and uninhabited. Most of these islands were only a few square kilometers in size, some not even one square kilometer. They were mostly bird islands or volcanic islands, with countless hidden reefs. Therefore, until the early 20th century, ships from various countries tried to avoid this area as much as possible.
Hessen told Zhang Hainuo that in the winter of 1915, he once approached one of these volcanic islands to avoid a storm. It was very accidental that he discovered a natural cove there, which could be used to anchor small boats. Although it couldn't accommodate ships of over a thousand tons, it was enough for U148, a large submarine!
After the storm subsided, Hessen had his crew thoroughly survey the island. The only regret was that there was no fresh water on the island, and the vegetation was scarce. Other than these two points, it was like a secret base designed specifically for submarines!
Since the name of this abrupt volcanic island was not marked on the nautical chart, Hessen named it after himself: Hessen Island.
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