Tan Renhao returned to the port of Apra on 29 May, and instead of returning early, he entered the port of Apra with the fleet. Only Task Force 1 and Task Force 2 returned this time. When he was on the road, Liao Hanxiang arranged the maintenance work. The two aircraft carriers of Task Force 2 were relatively badly damaged and were all repaired in Apra Harbor, saving the time required to return to Naha Harbor. The damage to the two aircraft carriers of the 1st Task Force was relatively light, of which the "Gaoyouhu" did not need to enter the dock for repairs and would remain in the port of Apra, while the "Hongzehu" had to enter the dock to be overhauled and could only return to the port of Naha.

The first to enter the port was the "Longganhu" aircraft carrier, which can be regarded as special care for Tan Renhao. The port of Apra is still a purely militarized port, and the empire has not yet arranged civilians to Guam, and there is no welcoming team in the port, and there is no crowd to welcome the fleet's triumph, only a few engineering teams waiting to board the aircraft carrier for maintenance. Tan Renhao did not feel lost, in the past few days of his return, he received an important telegram, that is, Spruance has returned to San Francisco, and it is not Spruance who commands the Fifth Fleet to fight, but Mitchell, or Turner!

This also explains the biggest question that Tan Renhao has always had before, the US military's performance on the battlefield is very abnormal, and there are many mistakes made. Tan Renhao had long suspected that it was not Spruance who was commanding the Fifth Fleet, but before receiving the telegram from Liao Hanxiang, Tan Renhao had never dared to believe his suspicions, very simply, he did not believe that Nimitz would change generals and remove the best commander. But it was true, and intelligence had confirmed that Spruance had been in San Francisco four days after the naval battle, and then had gone to Washington. Extrapolating from the time, when the Fifth Fleet fought a decisive battle with Tan Renhao, Spruance had already left the fleet.

"General Tan, we have arrived. General Liao Hanxiang and they came to the dock to meet us. ”

Tan Renhao saw his father-in-law standing on the dock waving to him, he also waved at Liao Hanxiang, and then said to Zhu Rongzhe next to him: "Arrange the repair and maintenance of the battleship as soon as possible, the officers and soldiers take turns to go ashore to rest, you come to the theater headquarters in the evening, and we will have dinner together." ”

"There's no need, you son-in-law ...... meet"

"Don't be a sissy, I'll come when I tell you to come. Remember to come early, we won't wait for you. Tan Renhao patted Zhu Rongzhe on the shoulder.

"Okay, then I'll go over after I've arranged my work." Zhu Rongzhe hesitated for a moment, "Talking about the general, my attitude ...... a few days ago"

"It's okay, don't think about it so much." Tan Renhao laughed, "Don't think about it, you just did your duty, and this is what you should do." Alright, I'll go down first. When you come. By the way, call the chief of staff of Task Force 2, don't be late. ”

Zhu Rongzhe sent Tan Renhao to the side of the gangway, and he did not leave the aircraft carrier with him. There's a lot of work to be done in the fleet.

Liao Hanxiang greeted him with a spring breeze on his face, and he patted his son-in-law on the shoulder a few times. "Well done, the Navy Command has just sent a commendation order to commend the 1st Task Force, the 2nd Task Force and the 4th Task Force. Specifically, the document will be delivered in a few days, and I heard that even the Prime Minister has greatly praised your actions this time......"

"Dad, we'll talk about this later." Tan Renhao's expression was not so good, "Is the hospital ready to receive the wounded?" ”

"Don't worry, it was ready yesterday, and the ambulance is over there." Liao Hanxiang pointed to the row of convoys outside the dock. "The doctor will take care of the wounded, I heard that you lost a few captains?"

Tan Renhao nodded. "Colonel Yao Boyan was killed, An Shile was seriously wounded, several other senior pilots were killed, and the losses of the Second Task Force and the Fourth Task Force were not small."

"I have already contacted Luo Jinming, and the additional pilot will be able to arrive in a few days." Liao Hanxiang sighed, "Fortunately, the fleet did not suffer much loss, and the backbone of the aviation force was preserved. It was a terrific victory. War kills people, and none of us can change this, and you should be proud that there are so many excellent officers and soldiers. ”

Tan Renhao smiled reluctantly. "I just hope they can rest in peace under the Nine Springs. Not to mention these things, what's the best place to eat tonight? I've been eating boxed lunches for months, and now I want to vomit when I see canned food and cured meat. ”

"Want some fresh veggies? No problem, I can still meet your little request, and when Hao Dongjue comes, we will go back. ”

Half an hour later, the aircraft carrier "Xingkaihu" also docked, and Hao Dongjue quickly rushed over. Unlike Tan Renhao, he seemed very excited, and he couldn't see the grief after the battle in him. The three of them quickly got into the car, and Liao Hanxiang left behind all the senior officers of the theater command who he had brought with him, and they were responsible for assisting the fleet in dealing with the aftermath.

"It's a fresh fruit, you can taste it first, it was brought by plane yesterday." Liao Hanxiang invited Tan Renhao and Hao Dongjue to sit down, "I have probably read the battle report you sent back in advance, although I missed the opportunity to pursue and destroy the 52nd Task Force at the last moment, but Ren Hao's decision is correct, we have won a huge victory, there is no need for the three task forces to continue to risk pursuing the 52nd Task Force." And our intelligence services have also received new intelligence, which proves this. ”

Tan Renhao picked up an apple and took a bite, he looked at his father-in-law, not knowing what the intelligence department would use to prove that he had made the right decision to abandon the pursuit.

"Shortly after you retreated, Nimitz ordered all the American heavy bombers to be dispatched, but thankfully, they were not able to find you or catch up." Liao Hanxiang rummaged through the table for a while, found a document, and handed it to Tan Renhao. "This is intelligence intercepted by the intelligence department, in addition to arranging heavy bombers, Nimitz also mobilized more than a dozen US submarines in the nearby waters to encircle and suppress you, these submarines have arrived in the nearby waters that night, if you do not retreat in time, you will definitely be besieged by US submarines at night."

"It seems that our retreat is quite timely." Tan Renhao just flipped through it roughly, and then gave the document to Hao Dongjue.

"It is indeed timely, and both the marshal and the chief of staff affirm it." Liao Hanxiang slapped his thigh, "This time, you attacked Pearl Harbor and immediately annihilated the Fifth Fleet. The victories achieved were unimaginable. But there is a point",

Seeing his father-in-law raise a finger, Tan Renhao knew what his father-in-law was going to say.

"You are carrying out this combat operation in violation of orders, this point must be understood, even if you want to take action in the future, you should also report it, so I haven't slept well for a few nights." Liao Hanxiang laughed, "But." You don't have to worry, I have amended the order, and the marshal and chief of staff have no intention of holding them accountable. ”

"General Liao, we are the victors, and it would be unfair if we had to take responsibility for this." Hao Dongjue immediately mentioned that his brother-in-law was unhappy.

"But we did break the order." Tan Renhao did not avoid this question, "Of course, one yard is one yard, even if you want to punish me, I will admit it." ”

"Come on. He also said that the matter was serious. Liao Hanxiang picked up an orange. Thrown to his son-in-law. "Don't think so much, you all have to be commended this time, maybe the prime minister will personally commend a few of your generals."

"Our officers and soldiers who deserve the most awards." Tan Renhao immediately took out a document from the document bag he brought. "This is a list of the meritorious officers and men of our three task forces, they all have outstanding performances in the battle, they are all real heroes in this battle, they deserve to be commended and honored, and they also deserve the respect and rewards they deserve."

Liao Hanxiang took the document and slapped it with his hand. "No problem, I will report this matter directly to the above, this time I will not delete one person, and try to ensure that no one loses the due reward, are you satisfied?"

Tan Renhao smiled and nodded. That's a big deal.

"What do you want to eat at night?" Liao Hanxiang glanced at his watch, "I sent someone to arrange it earlier, it looks like you're all hungry." ”

"A few good bottles of wine." Hao Dongjue immediately shouted.

Liao Hanxiang looked at his son-in-law and asked Tan Renhao's opinion with his eyes.

"Just make a little list, get more fresh vegetables." Tan Renhao made the previous request.

Liao Hanxiang called the adjutant in, and after giving some instructions, he returned to the sofa and sat down.

"Dad, what's going on in front of you now?" Tan Renhao asked the question he wanted to ask the most.

"You mean the battle on Kauai?" Liao Hanxiang took out a cigarette. He handed one to Hao Dongjue first, and then lit it for himself. "Huang Xiaotian: They returned to the battlefield four days ago, you should know this. Han Shaofeng went to the island the day before yesterday and is now organizing the marines to attack with all their might. The biggest problem is not that our fleet support is not strong enough, but that the necessary combat materials for the Marine Corps are scarce. The consequences of the U.S. attack on Midway were much more serious than we had previously thought. I have tried my best to arrange for more supplies to be delivered to the front, but in the short term, the capacity of our fleet will not be able to meet the requirements. The offensive operation has encountered considerable trouble, and it will probably not be able to improve until about the 10th of next month. One thing is for sure, after the Fifth Fleet was routed by us, the U.S. military has lost confidence in holding Kauai. As expected, Nimitz will leave Oahu next month, and the U.S. theater command is likely to move to San Francisco. If this information is true, it proves that the US military is already planning to abandon the Hawaiian Islands. ”

"Give up? It's unlikely, right? Hao Dongjue immediately asked.

"I don't think it's possible, after all, the Hawaiian Islands are the last line of defense outside the U.S. mainland." Liao Hanxiang went to get another document, "This is the defense situation of the United States, the Americans did not expect that its outer defense line would collapse so quickly, they only began to build the 'Pacific Barrier' on the west coast at the end of 25, and the whole project will take at least two years, that is, before the end of this year, it is impossible for the United States to establish a strong defense line on the west coast." Therefore, the US military will certainly try its best to hold us back in the Hawaiian Islands, so it will not give up the Hawaiian Islands lightly, and only yesterday did a US military transport fleet pass through our submarine blockade waters and go to the Hawaii Islands. Now, the intelligence community is gathering more information to confirm whether the U.S. military will abandon the Hawaiian Islands, and in my opinion, this is just a trick by Nimitz, probably hoping that we will underestimate the enemy and weaken the attack on the Hawaiian Islands. ”

Hao Dongjue shook his head, and Tan Renhao laughed when he saw his brother-in-law's expression.

"Regardless, we're going to continue to attack Kauai, and the Marines are trying to capture more airfields and build temporary field airfields. As long as we control Kauai, we will be able to take Oahu, even without the support of the fleet. Of course, the existence of the fleet is necessary, and the 52nd Task Force has not yet been eliminated. Liao Hanxiang pressed his hand, he knew what Tan Renhao was going to ask, "The 52nd Task Force is now in San Francisco, probably the day before yesterday, judging from the information I have obtained now, the US military has no intention of letting the 52nd Task Force set off immediately, Turner's remaining air force is less than a quarter of what the fleet needs, and the 52nd Task Force without aviation is not even as good as the transport fleet." ”

"That's the best, and as long as Huang Xiaotian is still ahead, Turner can't throw any big waves. Unless......" Tan Renhao hesitated, "unless Spruance put on the battle again." ”

"This should be unlikely, since Nimitz removed Spruance, this is not Nimitz's idea, maybe it is the pressure exerted by the American high-level, anyway, Spruance is unlikely to return to the fleet in the short term. Even if he goes back, what else can he do with only three aircraft carriers left? ”

"That's right, Spruance is not invincible, even if he was in the Fifth Fleet at the time, it may not be able to make the result much better."

Tan Renhao glared at his brother-in-law, he didn't like Hao Dongjue's attitude.

"Dong Jue's words are not wrong, there is no need to worry about Spruance now."

"So, is there any other news?" Tan Renhao changed the subject.

Liao Hanxiang shrugged his shoulders slightly. "That's pretty much it, at least there's no bad news. Now all we need is patience, and your aircraft carriers also need time to be repaired, and the officers and men need time to rest, so you should also seize the time to take a good rest. In a few days, Chang Jianxin will be back, and when the time comes, you brothers can get together again. ”

"Lao Chang is going to be transferred back too?" Hao Dongjue immediately became excited.

Liao Hanxiang nodded slightly, now that the battle has entered the hinterland of the island, and the artillery of the Marine Corps has also gained a firm foothold, the third task force has little value in the front line, so it will also be transferred back to rest.

There is already an enemy shouting that he can't stand it, brothers, take this opportunity to kill it!