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In the Charlottenburg Palace, Jochen leaned back in his chair with a calm face, staring at the report on the table from afar for a long time without speaking, and the emperor's silent attitude made Holwig, Goltz, Tirpitz, and Georg look at each other. The emperor was not angry, nor was he anxious, he just sat there calmly without saying a word, but the four of them couldn't figure out the emperor's mood at this time.

Tirpitz was the most difficult to understand the state of His Majesty the Emperor at this time, because he was startled when he first received the news, and then he went crazy and forced everyone in the entire General Staff to verify the navigation plans of all the submarines of the German Navy that day, so as to make sure that the British were attacked by submarines and indeed did not do it by his own people, and now the Emperor's calm appearance seems to be a bit unreasonable.

Prime Minister Holwig was the first to hold back and broke the silence in the room: "Your Majesty, we must respond to this matter and set the facts straight......"

"Response? Of course we have to respond. Jochen's tone was unwavering, even a little sarcastic: "But to clarify the facts? Did we clarify? ”

"Your Majesty......" Holwig tried to explain the government's response strategy to Jochen, but was interrupted by Jochen.

"Our response is only to state the facts, but the British now don't care about the facts, they only want to get the results they want from this matter, so the facts don't help." Jochen smiled slightly, looking a little strange in this situation: "Sixteen years ago, the Spaniards also tried to explain the facts, but in the end the Americans themselves came to the result they wanted. ”

The four people present at the "Maine Incident...... are no strangers to this incident. Tirpitz was a direct participant in a series of German actions against Spain.

"Why are they all sad?" Yochen was a little relaxed at this time: "We have been avoiding this situation, but we have also been preparing for this moment, we have not been caught off guard, but this incident has come too dramatically." ”

"Your Majesty, what do you mean......" Holwig was a little unsure of what His Majesty the Emperor meant, because he couldn't explain it clearly? Isn't that right?

Response. Of course we're going to respond, but since it's not going to do much to state the facts, let's just make it a little more dramatic. Jochen said with a smile: "At present, the French navy is divided into two fleets, large and small, and their main fleet is mainly concentrated in the Mediterranean, while there is only one strait fleet in the Atlantic Ocean. ”

These words of the emperor are somewhat confusing, what does this have to do with the French? However, everyone still listened quietly to His Majesty's speech: "There are no capital ships in the Strait Fleet, only 6 armored cruisers, 1 protective cruiser and a small number of destroyers and submarines, as well as a Dunkirk mobile force composed of torpedo boats, and the commander is only an officer of the rank of major general. This is a very weak fleet. There is no chance of victory against the main forces of the Ocean Fleet, and if we attack from the sea, they are simply powerless to stop. Therefore, if they want to ensure their safety on the Atlantic coast, they can only hope for the British. And when the British were reluctant to take a stand, the French decided to take a risk in order to pull the British into the water......"

"So the French submarines attacked the British warships and planted the blame for us?" Having said that, if the four of them don't understand it, they will doubt whether they are capable of their current positions.

"Since we can't clarify, let's muddy the waters. No one will believe that the British themselves blew up and sank their own ship, so what if the French blew it up? War between Germany and England was inevitable. But let's not forget that we are fighting a holy patriotic war. It is never us who cause war. Jochen explained.

Such a response may induce distrust of France among the British public, and the British government's insistence on taking the side of France will be questioned. Even if it can't change the situation, at least it can alleviate our suspicions. Holwig nodded: "Even if it doesn't have these effects, it can stimulate our country's determination to fight France to the end." ”

"The Navy can also help the French develop a complete plan of action." Tirpitz, the old baton, is not a good guy either: "Definitely a very, very credible plan of action." Moreover, the commander of the Channel Fleet of the French was only an officer of the rank of rear admiral, and we can also portray his pressure in the face of the Ocean Fleet, and the eagerness of the British to enter the war. ”

Jochen nodded. Signaling Holwig to prepare the government's response in this tone, he then turned to Tirpitz and said, "Alfred, how is the fleet ready?" ”

Tirpitz straightened his chest and replied with some pride: "All the ships of the Ocean Fleet, the Mediterranean Fleet, and the various colonial fleets have been repaired and maintained according to the situation after the start of the war to ensure that they are restored to the best condition. The Helgoland Bay defense plan is ready to be launched. Minelaying operations in the North Sea are also ready, and the Mediterranean Fleet can immediately begin blockade operations in the Eastern Mediterranean. If the British want to fight, we will fight with them! ”

"The refit of the four East Prussia-class ships has not yet been completed, and the subsequent training will take a lot of time. After thinking for a while, Jochen said: "The British will not directly press all their forces at first, first blockade our country, and then test the defensive strength of our Helgoland Bay, and then try to defeat us in a battle when they are sure." In this way, if the East Prussian class does not form a fighting force, we will suffer a lot if we engage that 'huge fleet unparalleled in the history of the world'. ”

Tirpitz knew what His Majesty was talking about, and after the outbreak of the Balkan crisis, not long after the British fleet returned home, it carried out a shocking parade of ships. The entire Royal Navy gathered all the warships on the mainland to participate, and the ranks of warships were more than 30 nautical miles, filling almost the entire Solent Strait, and this parade not only showed the huge military strength of the Royal Navy, but also tested the mobilization mechanism of the Royal Navy. And what His Majesty the Emperor was talking about was the description of the Royal Navy in the media at that time.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured that the refit of the four East Prussian-class battleships will be completed by October at the latest. Moreover, most of the officers and men on board the ship have been stationed in the West Prussia class to familiarize themselves with the use of the new ship's guns and fire control equipment, which will shorten the run-in time of the crews after the completion of the East Prussia class refit, and it is expected that they will be able to form combat effectiveness by the end of the year. As long as the British dare to come out to fight, we will give them a big surprise at that time. Tirpitz said confidently.

"An unrivalled fleet in the history of the world?" Which one can fight the Prussian-class with its 380 mm cannons?

"Colma, what is the conclusion of the Army's assessment of the situation on the Western Front?" Jochen turned to Goltz and asked.

"Your Majesty, it is unlikely that the situation on the Western Front will change in a short period of time." Goltz was also full of confidence: "We had predicted that the British would only be able to draw no more than one army group from their home territory to support France in the shortest possible time, and judging from the current situation of our engagement with the French on the Western Front, it is unlikely that only one army group will be able to reverse the whole situation." However, the British will certainly continue to draw troops from the colonies, so we need the navy to act. ”

"There's no problem with that." Tirpitz responded in one go, this kind of thing was expected for a long time, and the navy was naturally prepared: "The British forces in Africa cannot be easily mobilized, because they also need to deal with our troops in Africa. As a result, they can only draw troops from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and India. Rest assured, Your Majesty, that the British do not expect their troops to arrive in Europe so safely. ”

"The British did not understand what their choice would bring." Jochen shook his head: "No one in the whole of Europe can understand what the outcome of a full-scale war between industrialized powers will be, and even we don't really fully understand. "Jochen was just a military fan in his previous life rather than a theoretical researcher, and for decades, relying on the memory of his previous life and the study of his current life, what he summed up was not necessarily higher than the level of "Total War" summarized by Ludendorff after World War I, and he himself had no bottom on how much he could use what he summed up.

As important ministers of the Empire, all four people present knew His Majesty the Emperor's views on an industrialized all-out war. Holwig bowed his head and said, "Even if we don't fully understand, we can understand that such a war would be a catastrophe, and therefore we cannot afford to lose." ”

As for the blockade of Germany after the Anglo-German war, the German government also had a plan in mind, through neutral countries to continue to obtain supplies from the outside world, and to effectively and properly arrange the use of domestic reserves, Holwig believed that through effective planning, Germany could survive this war to the end.

"Now, let's wait quietly for the British to declare war." Jochen stood up: "This is a catastrophe, and it should also be a catastrophe for the British, the French, and the Russians. Oh, by the way, Alfred, as soon as the British declare war, I want the navy to strike back. The target, that Harwich fleet, since the British slandered their warships that our submarines sank, then let's really sink their warships with submarines. ”

"The Navy will do your best to accomplish your will, Your Majesty."

[It's about to be 515, I hope to continue to hit the 515 red envelope list, and the red envelope rain will be able to give back to readers and promotional works on May 15. A piece is also love, and it must be better! (To be continued.) )