The Fisherman Who Never Catches Fish

In the video footage, the ship's hull was severely damaged, with traces of cannon fire everywhere, the ship's body even fractured.

One can imagine how ferocious the attack this ironclad ship had endured back then.

"Ah... what a pity."

Everyone sighed inwardly.

If the fleet could have been properly developed in that era, perhaps the outcome would have been different.

But the end was tragic.

Under the circumstances of that time, the demise of the Beiyang Fleet was inevitable, an outcome that couldn't be changed.

A group of people looked at the wreck of the Dingyuan Ship on the screen, covered in traces left by time, and their hearts were filled with emotion.

Gradually, the sea area began to bustle, with many ships arriving one after another.

The salvage ships from other places had arrived to help salvage the sunken ship.

Even a Navy vessel had arrived at the scene to assist with the salvage of the shipwreck.

The site was extremely lively.

With this wave of support, there was no need to worry about a shortage of manpower.

With their involvement, the efficiency of the salvage operation had improved.

Bit by bit, parts were salvaged: hatch covers, copper bases, wrenches, and even a copper nameplate from the Dingyuan Ship.

When the salvage crew brought up the copper nameplate, everyone could see the inscription clearly, and they couldn't help but shed tears.

There was no longer any doubt about the identity of the Dingyuan Ship.

At the same time, another object also served as ironclad proof that this wreck was indeed the Dingyuan Ship.

That was a composite steel plate.

The armor of the Dingyuan Ship was Kangba armor, a compound armor of hardened steel plates, each piece measuring 2.86 meters in length, 2.60 meters in width, 0.33 meters in thickness, and weighing approximately 18 tons.

To salvage this piece of armor, it took two salvage ships working together, using lifting equipment, to recover it.

This piece of armor was also key evidence of the Dingyuan Ship's identity.

More and more items were being salvaged.

This time Fang Hao's catch of the Dingyuan Ship brought significant findings, its meaning unparalleled.

Even if the items being retrieved from the seabed seemed worthless, the significance of these seemingly worthless scraps of metal was quite different.

That was a chapter of history.

A chapter of history we must not forget.

"So I've got to smoke a few more packs of cigarettes."

"Next time I smoke, if my old lady dares to nag, I'll have to have a good talk with her."

"Is what I smoke cigarettes? I'm smoking the cost of building an aircraft carrier!"

"Absolutely, you've struck a chord with me."

"Suddenly, the big picture just opens up."

The netizens were also feeling more confident, their backs a little straighter.

Were they just smoking cigarettes?

They were contributing.

The curator of the Weihai Port Maritime Museum watched the salvaged shipwreck items being brought up, overwhelmed with emotion.

He had traveled nonstop and had finally arrived at the scene of the shipwreck salvage.

He couldn't even think about resting now.

All his thoughts were on this sunken ship.

"Thank you..."

The curator, moved, shook Fang Hao's hand, thanking him for finding the Dingyuan Ship.

If it hadn't been for Fang Hao, this shipwreck might have remained undiscovered at the bottom of the sea for who knows how long.

Today, at last, the ironclad was back in the light of day.

Even though it was just a pile of wreckage, those things were witnesses to history.

Every item was extremely important.

Small as a screw, a rivet.

Large as a piece of armor, a gun barrel... and so on, nearly every part was being salvaged from the sea.

The difficulty of this salvage was not high, much easier than previous shipwreck salvages. Earlier salvages were complicated by valuable relics inside the shipwrecks; they had to be careful not to damage these artifacts, so the process was very cautious and slow.

Protection first, speed second.

And now?

This shipwreck was not a merchant vessel; it contained no antique relics, just an ironclad ship, full of what was referred to as 'scraps of metal,' already damaged, not afraid of further harm.

Moreover, many of the parts were made of metal, not so easily broken.

Naturally, the salvage speed increased.

As more items were salvaged, the netizens watching the live stream were astonished.

Seeing the recovered armor, so thick, they exclaimed,

"No wonder the Dingyuan Ship was once called Asia's number one warship; with such armor, ordinary cannonballs would indeed struggle to cause serious damage."

But what a pity.

Such a fine warship had sunk.

The failure of the First Sino-Japanese War made everyone understand a lesson.

Fall behind, and you will be beaten!

Fortunately, times are different now. We've changed dramatically, become much stronger, and will no longer let others bully us so easily!

It also stirred up resentment among the people towards the 'little neighbors.'

They have never been content to fade into obscurity, constantly scheming behind the scenes.

It seemed they were plotting again.

So if the events of the past were to recur, it would be our chance this time.

That was something the netizens were looking forward to.

Today, our strength is completely different from the past; we're no longer the same backward and bullied country.

Today, our overall power is second only to the Eagles.

If we clash within our firepower range, within the First Island Chain, even the Eagles are no match for us.