War Photographer's Notebook

On the deck filled with the fishy smell of the sea, the black burly man beside Wei Ran stared blankly at the colorful fountain rising into the sky in the distance, and then stuffed all the potato cubes he had just distributed into his pocket at the fastest speed , put on the helmet again.

At the same time, Wei Ran also hung the sling of the double-mounted Erikon in front of him around his buttocks, and tightened the heavy body armor that had just been put on indiscriminately.

At this moment, the jeep aircraft carriers escorted by this ship obliquely in front also began to turn. Immediately afterwards, he noticed that the ship under his feet turned, speeded up, and rushed out of the formation!

At the same time he took out the flyback watch fixed with the compass from the metal book, thick smoke began to billow from the funnel of the destroyer!
Started to smoke. If this ship is the Johnston, then it should be um now. Probably between 55:[-] and [-]:[-].

While muttering, Wei Ran adjusted the flyback watch in his hand to 57:[-] and started to wind it.

While he was busy here, the strong black man next to him was still stuffing the hot fried potato wedges into his mouth, but his attention was all on the sea surface, guarding against the possibility of existence The torpedo hit by the submarine.

Look at the soldier on the other side, he is concentrating on patrolling the high altitude, in case the plane sent by the enemy who can't see him yet makes a low-altitude dive.

Looking further away, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Wei Ran took off his helmet as a cover, took out the camera bag as quickly as possible, and took out Robert's camera with a wide-angle lens from it. Take back the camera bag.

Almost forward and backward, the destroyer under the feet, which was responsible for pulling smoke to cover its tracks, also began to turn again and move in a zigzag line.

A rare opportunity, Wei Ran put on his helmet indiscriminately, held the dual cannon in one hand, and held up the camera in the other. He turned around and took a picture of the destroyer, and then pressed the button on the fleet he was protecting. shutter.

Naturally, his small actions did not attract the attention of the two soldiers, but Wei Ran, who had completed the daily secret shooting task, did not take back the camera, but wrapped it with a hood and stuffed it with some fried potatoes. gas mask bag.

"Victor, what are you looking for? Tobacco?" The black man who had eaten all the potatoes he was given asked loudly curiously.

"Find my mask!"

Wei Ran yelled, pulled out the hood with a piece of fried potato stuck on it from the mask bag and shook it towards the other party, then put it on slowly and put on the helmet again.

Under the gaze of the black soldier, he pulled out a pair of rimless goggles from the side of the body armor and put it on his face.

Compared to his undisturbed protection, that strong black man is much more chic. Not only is he not wearing a bulletproof vest, but even the sleeves of his tattered blue uniform are torn off. Yes, but at the position of his lower back, there are three full US military standard water bottles hanging side by side.

To say that the only thing he still wears according to the regulations is the rimless goggles on his face-after all, this thing can really block the sea breeze and splashing water.

"Aren't you too heavy?" the black man tapped Wei Ran's body armor and asked loudly.

"Don't you think it's too heavy?" Wei Ran pointed to the opponent's lower back.

"Of course it's not too heavy!"

While speaking, the black soldier actually took down a kettle and threw it to Wei Ran, winking and shouting loudly, "If you don't think it's too heavy, I'll give it to you!"

"Thank you!"

Wei Ran happily took the kettle, and when he twisted the lid, he immediately smelled the smell of beer, and at the same time, thick white foam came out of the spout.

Screwing the lid on the pot as quickly as possible, when Wei Ran turned his head to look at the other party, the latter patted his lower back proudly, "Keep it! I still have a lot! Thank you for your chewing gum!"

"Thank you for the mouthwash too!" Wei Ran responded loudly, and greedily hung the water bottle on his belt.

The two bottom-level mice of the fleet were busy exchanging snacks before the formation, and the destroyer under their feet was also speeding up all the time, and was performing a zigzag maneuver, leaving a thick line on the sea that was enough to block the enemy's sight. smokescreen!

At the same time, the fleet behind them, which had already begun to move towards a cloud and rain area far away, also launched a large number of carrier-based aircraft, and amidst the buzzing of the propellers, rushed towards the destroyer that was far away from Wei Ran and others without hesitation. Enemy ships getting closer!
Compared with the series of actions on their side, those enemies who could hardly see clearly also fired dense shells one after another. From time to time, water columns exploded around the destroyer!

While Wei Ran was anxiously waiting to take out the flyback watch from his mask bag again and again to watch the time, after the destroyer sailed at high speed for about 15 minutes, the main guns on the deck finally fired!

In the sound of the rumbling guns, the smoke and shock waves caused Wei Ran, who participated in the naval battle for the first time, to subconsciously open his mouth, but even so, only the roar of the cannon was left in his ears, and in his field of vision, except for Except for the thick smoke and the own carrier-based aircraft flying overhead, it is almost impossible to see the shadowy enemy ships in the far distance.

Looking at the dual-mounted 20mm cannon he was in charge of, Wei Ran couldn't help shaking his head. It was just an estimate. The distance between them and the local ships is at least ten kilometers, which is very important for this destroyer. The main gun is already within range.

But for the cannon he was in charge of, it was a long distance that couldn't be reached even with projectiles—even if the destroyer, which was constantly firing, had been trying to close the distance between the two sides amidst the enemy's straddle artillery!
Invisibly, he also became a spectator riding on the death line, but he couldn't help at all.

Under his nervous gaze, the intensive shelling and advancement never stopped from the beginning to the end while the flyback watch hands that were taken out from time to time were beating unhurriedly.But in the field of vision, the enemy's fleet became more and more clear, and there were more and more water columns around it because of the shells!
But compared to these, Wei Ran was horrified to find that he seemed to be seasick!This is a situation he has never encountered before!
Suppressing the vomiting of Yu Wang, Wei Ran reached into the mask bag, first put away the flyback watch, then took out the camera wrapped in the hood, pointed at the torpedo tube that was releasing the torpedo in the distance, and pressed the The shutter barely recorded the moment when the torpedo set off.

After firing the torpedo, the destroyer, which had almost pulled up its speed to the highest and the closest distance, finally began to take an evasive route and hid in the slightly pungent smoke.

Almost at the same time, Wei Ran also vomited, vomiting out all the fried pork cutlets and fruit that he had managed to eat into his stomach.

But at this time, the water jets exploding densely around him, and the water splashes pouring on his head and body from time to time perfectly concealed the embarrassment of his rookie, and even the vomit stained on the machine guns blinked. The room was washed clean.

After pressing the camera in the mask bag, Wei Ran became more and more uneasy.

Before entering this fragment of history, he found a detailed battle process with the help of Xia Shushi, but the more he did this, the more he knew what was going to happen next. As far as the position is concerned, it is getting more and more tormented.

But whether he wanted it or not, no matter how much security the smoke filled his body brought, about 10 minutes after the torpedo was fired, three shells were fired, accompanied by three explosions that almost deafened the ears and tremors that made the soles of the feet numb. It still smashed into the port side of this destroyer!
Almost instantly, Wei Ran felt the speed of the destroyer suddenly stagnate, as if being held by a big hand, it lost its previous momentum!
"Shot! We were shot!" The black man beside Wei Ran yelled, looking left and right to find the location where the destroyer was shot.

"Hide it!" Wei Ran yelled to remind the other party, but at the same time his inner anxiety became more and more serious!
"Don't be afraid!" The black soldier showed his big white teeth, "The shell just hit it."

"Boom boom boom!"

Before he could finish his words, there were three more violent explosions and accompanying tremors, and billowing smoke and flames also appeared around the bridge above their heads!
And in the explosion that was almost at hand, the flying shrapnel and broken steel finally brought huge casualties to this brave boat.

Even if he had been prepared for this, Wei Ran was unavoidably frightened when he saw the scratches on the machine gun caused by shrapnel or other splashes, and the crashed reentry machine, and then touched the back of the body armor He subconsciously looked at the black man next to him who had given him beer.

It's a pity, this unlucky ghost who didn't have to be afraid of Wei Ran just a second ago, now most of his body is gone, his thighs don't know where he went, and the hideous wound on the left side of his ribs also made his organs flow On the ground, but his black face was still stained with some fried potatoes, but there was still the optimistic smile when he spoke just now.

Look at the soldier on the other side under the cracked hatch. After a brief moment of stupefaction, Wei Ran decisively left the useless Oerlikon cannon, resisting the pain caused by seasickness. Feeling dizzy and uncomfortable, he rushed to the injured sailors on the front deck without hesitation.

Almost at the same time, the destroyer, which had started to slow down due to the bombardment just now, also happened to sail through the thick smoke into the sea covered in heavy rain.

Soon, there were hurried whistles and slightly hoarse shouts on the deck, and the surviving and uninjured soldiers were gathered together and began to carry out pipe damage operations in the rain.

"Moose! Your team is responsible for cleaning the deck!" Amidst the rain, an unknown voice gave the order.

"Come with me!"

A man with a thick voice, almost naturally suitable for a tenor, yelled and led a group of people past Wei Ran.

At the same time, Wei Ran also helped a soldier whose calf was blown off a section to stop the bleeding with a belt, then picked him up, and ran into the cabin with the stretcher soldier in the distance.

Putting down the wounded and grabbing two medical kits, Wei Ran exchanged a helmet with a red cross from the body of a medical soldier, and then took advantage of the chaos to join the medical rescue team.

Thanks to this sufficient preparation, he clearly knew that the round of shelling just now not only took the lives of a large number of sailors on the deck, but also caused the destroyer's captain, Evans, to lose two of his left hand. finger.

And the reason why he endured the discomfort caused by seasickness and changed his identity as a medical soldier was to get as close to the bridge as possible to find Captain Evans!

However, before he found a chance to enter the bridge, the destroyer frigate, which had been dangerously hidden in the cloud and rain area for repairs, opened fire again as it was recorded in history!

Immediately afterwards, the destroyer also began to turn again.Wei Ran, who was shaken almost unsteadily, was also blasted onto the deck by a sergeant who rushed down from the bridge to continue to rescue the wounded.

Although he had no chance to meet Captain Evans, this time he met the burly sailor nicknamed Moose who just hurried past him.

The sailor is about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a loose helmet without laces on his head, a pair of blue coarse trousers on his lower body, and a dirty T-shirt on his upper body with the same type of bulletproof as Wei Ran Clothes.

Although his height is not as good as that of Wei Ran, his two arms are extraordinarily strong like a bodybuilder.

Not only that, Wei Ran also saw a crossed tomahawk tattoo on one of his arms.It's a pity that he not only wears the same frameless goggles on his face, but also wears a fireproof mask like Wei Ran, so the two sides can't see each other's appearance at all.

"I heard that you are an Indian?" Wei Ran asked loudly while treating the wound on the thigh of the wounded man he was holding.

"Who did you hear?" Sailor Moose, who was holding the wounded down with one hand, asked loudly.

"Your skin color!" Wei Ran reached out and pulled out a piece of metal embedded in the wound while speaking, "The great chief also has the same skin color."

"You're not a Negro either!" exclaimed the Moose, "even lighter than mine!"

"I'm Asian!" Before Wei Ran finished speaking, he covered the wound with a pack of sulfa powder.

"Your Asian brother is firing at us with artillery!" The moose pointed to the direction of the main gun behind him.

"That's not our brother!" Wei Ran shouted while bandaging the wound, "They are Wendigo!"

"You actually know Wendigo?!" The moose responded to Wei Ran, and lifted the wounded man up by his waistband.

"Man-eating Wendigo!" Wei Ran responded loudly, and at the same time confirmed that the other party was probably Tatanka's father.

"Then let's kill the Wendigo!" Before the moose finished speaking, it had already carried the wounded and ran to the cabin.

Taking out the camera, Wei Ran took a photo of the back of this powerful Popeye in the rain, then wrapped the camera with the hood and stuffed it into the mask bag again.

Taking advantage of the opportunity to treat the wounded, Wei Ran was able to wander around most of the destroyer's positions. While he was busy, several other ships appeared around the destroyer.

Even without a telescope, Wei Ran, who had seen the answer in advance, clearly knew that it was Hall, Herman and Roberts.

And the only difference between them is that the destroyer Johnston that Wei Ran is on has no torpedoes, and what it will do next is to risk its life to provide fire support!

Amidst the thick smoke and rain, this destroyer, whose speed was no longer as fast as before, was creating a thick fog that covered the battlefield while firing from time to time, dancing an Indian war dance like an assassin walking on the tip of a knife!

But in her cabin, Wei Ran took advantage of the chaos and touched the officer's cabin at the front of the deck of the first platform.

Although Wei Ran has never been to the sailor's cabin of this destroyer, he can tell that the living conditions here are undoubtedly much better than the sailor's cabin.At the very least, it's away from the noisy power cabin, and there are fans.If there is no fighting, there is no doubt that you can sleep well here.

Listening to the sound of firefights outside, Wei Ran sneaked into a cabin, first glanced at the documents on the desk, and then opened the drawers as quickly as possible to search.

It's a pity that the only thing he can use here, other than a pair of toad mirrors, is a Zippo lighter.

Hanging the toad mirror on the neckline and stuffing it inside the body armor, then putting the lighter into the pocket of his trousers, Wei Ran turned and opened the combination cabinet.

There are two unopened glass bottles of vegetable cans here, but these things are cumbersome to carry, and they are not even as useful as the box of razors that Wei Ran put in his pocket.

Leaving this cabin quickly, Wei Ran went into the next cabin. The only difference between the layout here and just now is that the double-layer iron canopy beds have become three-layer, but he still didn't find the most important thing. tobacco.

Reluctant to continue walking from cabin to cabin, he replaced the gas mask bag with a new one, discarded the almost crushed fried potatoes to avoid destroying the camera, and put two pieces of butter in it by the way. Cans, a tube of toothpaste, two toothbrushes with boxes, and an unknown basketball.

Even, even on his hand, there is an extra watch that is still moving.

Continuing to search all the way down, when he himself didn't remember which cabin he entered, he finally saw a pipe stuck upside down in a pen holder on a desk.

Quickly opened the drawer and rummaged through it, and then opened the combination cabinet, Wei Ran finally showed a smile on his face.

He finally found the shredded tobacco he was looking for. It was a glass jar with a capacity of at least one liter. The inside of the jar was stuffed with packs of Bull Durham tobacco. There was also a pack of matches and a wad of cigarette papers and a large roll of dollar bills.

Without hesitation at all, he immediately stuffed the canning jar into an emptied medical bag, then turned around and ran out.But soon, he turned around again and looked at the cabin with the captain's cabin sign not far away!

Gritting his teeth, Wei Ran pushed the hatch. Fortunately, the cabin was not locked.

However, when he walked into the cabin, he didn't see the sailor bag he thought would be here. In this single cabin, there was no hammock at all, and there was even an Indian who he thought was most likely to appear here. No pipe ax!
do not care!
Wei Ran, who had been listening to the commotion outside, rolled up his cuffs and glanced at the time on the watch he picked up, he gritted his teeth and ran back.

It was already the crucial [-]:[-] at this time, Wei Ran knew that the destroyer Johnston would soon usher in a new round of attack, and before that, he had better be able to arrive at the stern of the ship in advance!

However, almost at the same time he rushed out of the sergeant's cabin, he heard the shooter of the No. 52 main gun shouting through the loudspeaker that he needed more shells, but under the horn, the only one responsible for supplying the shells was the Meet Sailor Moose!

This strong man with a figure like a bodybuilder picked up the cannonballs placed upside down on the fuze setting conveyor one after another, and stuffed them into the barrel of the gun time and time again.

At this moment, there was a scratch on his arm that was bleeding all the time, and Wei Ran noticed that he couldn't keep up because of the pain and physical strength, and even his movements began to lose shape!

Follow him to live!
Wei Ran struggled to find a reason to convince himself, and quickly ran over to take over the work of carrying the shells, while shouting loudly, "Bandage the wound on your arm! Do you have gauze?"

"Have!"

The moose responded with a hoarse voice, took out a pack of sulfonamide from the first-aid kit at his waist, tore it and dumped it on the wound, then pulled out a roll of gauze and wrapped it around a few times.

With the addition of Wei Ran, the firing frequency of the main cannon suddenly accelerated a lot.

"Boom boom boom!"

There were three more explosions in succession, and Wei Ran quickly ran up the deck to follow the sound. At this time, flames and thick smoke had already appeared above the engine room, and even the sea surface was dyed red by the bodies thrown in!He knew that the ship's good luck would come to an end.