Hao Dongjue left Zhoushan the next morning and rushed to Keelung to join the fleet. At noon that day, Yan Guozhong arrived in Zhoushan, and Tan Renhao went to the airport to greet the Marine Corps general. On the way back to the naval headquarters, Tan Renhao told Yan Guozhong about the situation of the Second Task Force, and in disguised hope that Yan Guozhong would support the Second Task Force. Yan Guozhong also agreed, promising to give the Second Task Force enough opportunities to exercise and enough space for free movement.

With Yan Guozhong returning to the naval headquarters, the meeting for the campaign preparation for the attack on the Australian mainland was also scheduled. In the afternoon of the same day, Tan Renhao completed the battle plan of the fleet, he originally wanted to send this plan to Gan Yongxing, but Gan Yongxing has been busy arranging some important issues at the meeting, Tan Renhao has not found Gan Yongxing, as a result, he can only go directly to the principal.

"When I see it, you can give it to the chief of staff." Nie Renfeng put the documents on the desk, and then asked Tan Renhao to sit down on the sofa, "I heard that Hao Dongjue rushed back yesterday?" ”

"Yes, I'll pick him up, and he'll go back to the fleet early this morning." Tan Renhao was secretly surprised, the fleet commander was not allowed to return to the headquarters during the operation, but it seemed that the principal had no intention of pursuing this matter.

"It's good to come back and take a look, I heard that your sister has been transferred back, right?"

Tan Renhao nodded, he sometimes really wondered if the principal knew everything, and these small things had to be asked, it seemed that this naval commander was indeed not capable of being a mortal.

"I've been thinking about it some time ago", Nie Renfeng let out a long breath and paused slightly.

He continued, "Originally, I wanted you to go to a place where you could make the most of your talents. In other words, you will leave Task Force 1. You should have thought about this thing, right? ”

Tan Renhao also sighed. "Headmaster, I've thought about this too, but it's just ......"

Nie Renfeng pressed his hand and didn't let Tan Renhao continue. "As I originally thought. The first task force will be handed over to Chang Zhixin, or Huang Xiaotian, to command, and you will be the commander of the theater fleet. A few days ago, Gan Yongxing suggested that Lei Shaoqing be appointed commander of the Southwest Pacific Theater Fleet, so that he would be in charge of all task forces and responsible for coordinating the actions of the fleet and other units. In other words, keep you in Task Force 1. But this brings new problems. ”

Tan Renhao nodded, he also thought of this question.

"If Lei Shaoqing is the commander of the theater fleet, then Lei Shaoqing will be the commander of the task force. Before, Lei Shaoqing had always been your subordinate, but now he has become your superior. I don't know if you have any objections? ”

"Headmaster, I haven't thought about this question yet, but I don't have any opinion, Lei Shaoqing's ability is recognized by us. And he can play a bigger role in this position. ”

"Don't talk so hard." Nie Renfeng laughed, "I know your relationship with Lei Shaoqing, but well, I have already thought about a solution." Lei Shaoqing will not be able to return to the team until next month at the earliest, and by then, he will definitely not be able to fully familiarize himself with the next combat operations, so I will consider only giving him the power to coordinate, but not the power to give him specific command. When the time comes, you will still be in charge of commanding the task forces. ”

"This ......"

"This arrangement has not been determined for the time being, I will make a decision after discussing with Gan Yongxing, I am just asking for your opinion now, and you don't need to answer." Nie Renfeng has been paying attention to Tan Renhao's expression, and he has already seen Tan Renhao's attitude from the change in Tan Renhao's expression. "Alright, let's talk about it when I make a decision. This meeting is under the sole responsibility of Gan Yongxing, and your workload is not very large, so you can relax. ”

"Headmaster, when can I go back to the fleet?"

"Didn't you already arrange for Zheng Guanhua to go to Naha to take charge of the fleet's training?"

Tan Renhao sneered, and his mind was immediately seen through by the principal.

"The First Task Force will definitely be back in combat power by March, and Zheng Guanhua's performance over there is not bad, you have nothing to worry about, and it's not too late to rush back before the fleet enters the battle. Maybe Task Force 1 will get a new aircraft carrier at that time. ”

Nie Renfeng also laughed, "Now, I still have two things to ask for your opinion. ”

Tan Renhao rubbed his hands and immediately concentrated.

"You should have read the information on the ships that entered service in the Navy in the early 26 years, right?" Nie Renfeng went to get a document, "The first thing is the arrangement of these warships, we will get at least six fleet aircraft carriers, how do you think these aircraft carriers should be arranged?" ”

"This ......" Tan Renhao took the document, he had thought about this matter before, but neither the chief of staff nor the principal had mentioned to him the arrangements for the new warship, so he didn't think about it.

"In terms of commanding the task force in combat, your experience is already above that of Gan Yongxing and me, so your opinion is very important."

"Headmaster, I think each task force should be equipped with three fleet carriers." Tan Renhao quickly sorted out his thoughts, "I have also read the information of the new warships of the US military, if the US military obtains new warships within two months, it will definitely be organized into two task forces, if our task force maintains the current level of two aircraft carriers, it will be difficult to meet the challenges of the US military on the battlefield." ”

Nie Renfeng nodded slightly, motioning for Tan Renhao to continue.

"The three-aircraft carrier establishment can maximize the combat effectiveness of the fleet, which has been proven in actual combat. Whether it is in ground operations or sea operations, the striking power of the three-aircraft carrier fleet far exceeds that of the two-aircraft carrier fleet. Moreover, our current fleet command system has been improved, and the fleet's command capability has also been improved, and the command of the three-aircraft carrier fleet will not be a big problem. Tan Renhao paused slightly, "If you can, then the first task force, the second task force, and the fourth task force should all be equipped with three aircraft carriers." ”

"Do we need to equip more aircraft carriers?"

Tan Renhao shook his head. "At least from the point of view of the situation at this stage. It is of little significance to have four or more aircraft carriers of the ground fleet, and it is not possible to fully bring into full play the combat effectiveness of the four aircraft carriers. ”

"Then, we will have at least three more fleet carriers." Nie Renfeng crossed his hands. "That is, without replenishing the aircraft carrier ground for Task Force 5. We can also form a new task force. So, how do we deploy this fleet, and who will be the commander of the fleet? ”

"This ......" Tan Renhao had a headache, this question is not easy to answer.

Nie Renfeng laughed, and he didn't say any more. Instead, he patiently waited for Tan Renhao's answer.

"Headmaster, it seems to me that if the U.S. Navy is quickly restored, then we will definitely have to send the Fourth Task Force, or the Second Task Force, to the Central Pacific Theater, while the First Task Force will remain as a mobile fleet, and the Third Task Force will support the Marine offensive in the Southwest Pacific. Then, it is better for the newly formed fleet to be sent to the Southwest Pacific Theater for training first, where the combat intensity is relatively low and it can be withdrawn at any time. It is the most logical arrangement to avoid being devastated. ”

"So, what about the choice of the commander of the fleet?"

"Headmaster. I can't say anything about this. Tan Renhao sighed secretly, "If you can, you can consider the chief of staff of the Fourth Task Force, or transfer Jiang Zhongmin back." Let him command the new task force, and the fifth task force can be incorporated into the South Pacific Theater of Operations, under the direct command of General Weng Yiming.

Nie Renfeng nodded slightly, and then suddenly asked, "How about letting Chang recommend Xinlai as the commander and hand over the Third Task Force to Gu Zhenyun for command?" ”

"But Gu Zhenyun's ability ......"

"It seems that you are not thinking about this from a personal point of view." Nie Renfeng laughed, "Then I won't embarrass you, I will consider your suggestion." In addition, we already have six small aircraft carriers in service, and now the opinion is that these six small aircraft carriers will be assigned to the Southwest Pacific Theater and organized into a theater fleet under the theater command, which will be mainly responsible for providing aviation support to the Marine Corps. ”

"Headmaster, in my opinion, it is better to deploy these six small aircraft carriers to the Central Pacific theater."

"Why?" Nie Renfeng asked directly.

"There's already a second task force in the southwest Pacific, and the fourth task force will rush back before landing in Australia. Most importantly, the large number of escort aircraft carriers we build will certainly be commissioned before this time. With the geography of the Southwest Pacific, it is more appropriate for escort aircraft carriers to support the Marine Corps, rather than smaller aircraft carriers with stronger combat effectiveness. "Tan Renhao discussed this matter with Liao Hanxiang last night." The combat effectiveness of the six small aircraft carriers will not be much worse, and if we want to attack the Hawaiian Islands when attacking the Australian mainland, whether we can take Necker Island and Nihua Island in these months is extremely critical. At present, there is a lack of aviation support in the Central Pacific, and the islands are too scattered, and the support role of shore-based aviation is quite limited. More importantly, it is precisely because we do not have aircraft carriers operating in the Central Pacific that the US Navy's Fifth Fleet poses a huge threat to us, delaying the pace of the Marine Corps' offensive. If we can send six small carriers over, we can capture Necke Island and Nihua Island as quickly as possible, laying the groundwork for the next attack on Kauai and even Oahu. ”

Nie Renfeng nodded slightly, but he still didn't rush to make a statement.

"What's more, the U.S. Navy will certainly recover in three months, and they will have at least six fleet carriers in service by then." Now that we have six small aircraft carriers deployed to the Central Pacific to intensify our offensive against the Hawaiian Islands, then the US military will have to consider protecting the Hawaiian Islands first, and their fleet will be deployed to the Central Pacific first, not to the Southwest Pacific to make trouble for us. Therefore, this can also play a role in containing and limiting the US military, which will be of great help to our operations on the Australian continent. ”

Nie Renfeng pondered for a while and said, "If the U.S. military still sends its main force to the southwest Pacific, then what should we do?" ”

"That's great, when the time comes, we can choose to take the Hawaiian Islands first, and as long as we capture the Hawaiian Islands, we can more effectively cut off the sea route from the mainland of the United States to the Australian mainland, Australia will definitely be finished, and the West Coast of the United States will still be in our threat." Tan Renhao looked very confident, "Unless they don't even want their own territory, they have to find a way to block our attack in the Central Pacific." Moreover, judging by Nimitz's commanding style, he will not fight hard with us, and will definitely take advantage of our attack on the Australian continent to create trouble for us in the Central Pacific. When the time comes, we can use a task force to cooperate with the theater fleet composed of these six small aircraft carriers, and at least be able to contain the main fleet of the US Navy. ”

Nie Renfeng is still not in a hurry to make a decision, in fact, these six small aircraft carriers already have combat capability, and escort warships will be assigned in place one after another. But the problem is that no matter which theater these six small aircraft carriers are assigned to, it will bring trouble. He also saw that Tan Renhao must be helping Liao Hanxiang to speak at this time, although Tan Renhao's opinion is very objective, but there are more or less personal factors in it.

Tan Renhao didn't give any more opinions, his words were already in place, and he was indeed helping his father-in-law speak. After chatting with Liao Hanxiang last night, Tan Renhao already felt that his father-in-law was very dissatisfied with the navy's heavy arrangements. Now that the gateway to the Hawaiian Islands has been opened, the Navy still insists on focusing on the Southwest Pacific rather than stepping up its investment in the Central Pacific, making it difficult for Liao to maneuver. Standing in Liao Hanxiang's position, he will definitely be very dissatisfied. And what Tan Renhao can do is to try to help Liao Hanxiang say some good things and pull some "sponsorship"

Finish.

"Well, I'll take your opinion into account." After a long time, Nie Renfeng spoke, "In addition to the distribution of new warships, there is another matter, I need your opinion. ”

Tan Renhao nodded, and he was secretly relieved. He knew the character of the principal very well, and if the principal did not think that his suggestion was of value, he would not consider it at all, and as long as the principal agreed to consider it, there was an eighty percent hope. In addition, the principal generally does not directly state the decision, so Tan Renhao did not speculate about the principal's decision.