When Tan Renhao came to the Navy Headquarters, most of the officers were already starting a new day's work. Gan Yongxing's adjutant was waiting for him outside Tan Renhao's office.

"Go and clean up the office first, and then go and ask General Lei Shaoqing when he left Zhoushan." Tan Renhao assigned Du Xing a task, "Wait for me in the office." ”

Duchenne left with a lot of interest, he was just an adjutant.

"General Tan, the chief of staff is waiting for you."

"I know, is there anything big going on?" Tan Renhao stopped outside Gan Yongxing's office.

The adjutant of the major shook the mop, and then helped Tan Renhao push the door open.

Gan Yongxing's office is still like that. In Tan Renhao's memory, since Gan Yongxing became chief of the general staff of the Imperial Navy, his office has always been like this, with simple furnishings, slightly serious decorations, and those trophies, medals, and the two flags hanging on the wall, none of which have changed. This may be a direct manifestation of the conservative thinking of the Imperial Navy, and no one would have imagined that the office of the Chief of the General Staff of the Imperial Navy, who commanded the operation of millions of officers and men of the Imperial Navy (including the Marine Corps), would be so simple.

"Sit down, what do you want to drink?"

"Whatever." Tan Renhao hung his hat on the coat rack by the door, and then loosened the top button of his military uniform, and in early September, the climate in Zhoushan was a bit stuffy.

"Let's have some coffee, this is sent back by Weng Yiming, I have a can with the principal, I haven't drunk it yet, how about you come and taste it." Gan Yongxing made Tan Renhao a cup of coffee. He didn't add sugar, and Tan Renhao didn't like to drink sweetened coffee.

"How did you talk to Lei Shaoqing?"

Tan Renhao was stunned for a moment, could it be that the chief of staff planted a spy next to him?

"Didn't you ask the adjutant to take a copy of Lei Shaoqing's medical record away?" Gan Yongxing sat down with a smile.

Tan Renhao also laughed. "I haven't talked about it directly, but I'm sure he'll be able to recover," he said. ”

Gan Yongxing nodded slightly. "You should be clear. Lei Shaoqing's physical condition no longer allowed him to command the fleet to fight. If he is willing to stay in the naval headquarters, I will arrange a more suitable place for him. Of course, it is up to the principal to decide. ”

Tan Renhao didn't say much, he also knew that these things had to be decided by the principal. At most, the Chief of Staff has the power to make comments and suggestions.

"Originally, we should have given you a few more days off, but now we don't have much time to waste." Gan Yongxing took out his cigarette, "Have you read those documents I gave you?" ”

"The scale of the British expeditionary fleet is really not small, can Weng Yiming stop it?"

"It depends on whether Jiang Zhongmin's Fifth Task Force can arrive in time, and whether Weng Yiming can find a way to hold back the British Expeditionary Fleet." Gan Yongxing hesitated for a moment, and then said, "We don't need to worry about this, General Weng Yiming's ability is enough. He is also extremely knowledgeable about the situation on the South Atlantic side, and Jiang Zhongmin has proven his ability. The combat capabilities of the aviation of the British expeditionary fleet were not strong, and the British Navy did not have much experience in aviation operations. So. We don't have to worry about fighting in the South Atlantic. The question now is how much victory we can achieve in the Pacific. ”

"General Yan Guozhong has already launched an attack on the Port Moresby side, right?"

"The U.S. convoy did not go to Port Moresby."

Tan Renhao was slightly startled, and immediately asked, "Then where did they go?" ”

"Port Vila, and it's been confirmed. MacArthur reinforced the New Hebrides with about three divisions, all of which were Army divisions, which were slightly smaller than the Marine Divisions, but they were enough to strengthen the defenses of the New Hebrides. ”

Tan Renhao frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "In this way, MacArthur also knew that Port Moresby could not be defended, and was ready to defend the New Hebrides with all his might?" ”

"At least for now." Gan Yongxing slowly exhaled his cigarettes, "Yan Guozhong has already prepared for a general attack on the Port Moresby side, and he will probably launch an attack in these two days. He planned to take Port Moresby in ten days, then transfer his forces to attack the New Hebrides by the end of the month. MacArthur's move to reinforce troops in the New Hebrides would cause Yan Guozhong a lot of trouble. ”

Tan Renhao nodded, judging from the deployment of the US military this time, MacArthur is ready to fight a protracted war with Yan Guozhong.

The "Battle of the Coral Sea" did not confuse MacArthur, and MacArthur's deployment this time showed that he had found the right focus. If he blindly strengthened the defense of Port Moresby and fought to the death with the Imperial Marines in Port Moresby, it would not do MacArthur much benefit, and the final result would be that the American army was defeated by the Imperial Marines without sea supremacy, and paid an extremely heavy price. Therefore, MacArthur chose to strengthen the defense of the New Hebrides at this time. He knew very well that the ultimate goal of the Tang Imperial Marines in the Southwest Pacific was to attack the Australian continent and occupy the Australian continent, and before that, the capture of the New Hebrides was a key step in attacking the Australian continent, and it was also a step to expand the strategic advantage in the Southwest Pacific!

MacArthur's purpose was definitely to delay the time to 26 years, waiting for the US Navy to restore its combat effectiveness, and if the US Navy could regain sea supremacy, then the Tang Army's attack on the Australian mainland would definitely be delayed, or even eventually abandon the plan to attack the Australian mainland. This is also directly reflected in MacArthur's troop deployment. When it was no longer possible to defend Port Moresby, he chose to strengthen the defense of the New Hebrides, so as to ensure that the US ground forces could hold out longer!

"The problem on MacArthur's side is not very big yet, and we will send more troops to the Southwest Pacific Theater again. The combat operation to land on the Australian mainland has been largely decided, and the army has pledged to send 50 divisions to the Pacific Theater early next year, and another 30 divisions by the middle of next year. Gan Yongxing paused, "The key question now is. While we launch a strategic offensive in the southwestern Pacific, we must hold the defensive line in the Central Pacific.

If the U.S. military is allowed to win in the Central Pacific, then our offensive in the Southwest Pacific will inevitably be affected. ”

"That's why Task Force 1 was sent back to Naha?"

"Partially. Now, however, Task Force 1 has a more critical mission. Gan Yongxing laughed. In your opinion, what will the US military do next after they take Wake Island? ”

Tan Renhao glanced at Gan Yongxing, he was not in a hurry to answer this question, but was thinking about why Gan Yongxing asked this question.

"From our inferences. The U.S. military now has four options. Which option to choose will depend on how many chips Nimitz has in his hands and what their ultimate goal is. ”

Tan Renhao nodded slightly, this is basic common sense.

"If Nimitz has enough chips in his hands, such as the fleet carrier, which can be repaired quickly, then he can choose to attack." Gan Yongxing raised three fingers, "If the U.S. military still chooses to attack, then they have three directions to choose from." One is to turn back and lay down Midway Island to ensure the safety of the Hawaiian Islands; The second is to go south to occupy the Marshall Islands and the Gilbert Islands. open access to the Southwest Pacific theater of operations and eradicate the salient on our defensive line; The third is to advance westward, attacking the Mariana Islands and the Caroline Islands. Push the front to our doorstep. And how to choose to fight depends on what the intentions of the American army are, and how sure Nimitz is that his fleet will be victorious. ”

"If only Nimitz knew that Task Force 1 had returned to Naha.

Basically, the latter two possibilities can be ruled out. Tan Renhao immediately followed.

"This is also the reason for sending Task Force 1 back to Naha, if Task Force 4 is allowed to return, I'm afraid Nimitz will have more options, at least, it won't have such a good deterrent effect." Gan Yongxing laughed for a moment, and then said, "If Nimitz chooses to defend, he will have to find a way to take Midway, at least so that we can't use Midway." ”

"In other words, the only option Nimitz can choose in the next stage is to land on Midway?"

Gan Yongxing nodded. "This is our initial judgment. Of course, this does not rule out the possibility that the Nimitz sent the fleet south. Similarly, it is not ruled out that Nimitz would consider the possibility of us launching an offensive in the Central Pacific to strengthen the defenses of Wake Island. ”

"So what are we going to do?" Tan Renhao looked towards Yongxing.

"This hasn't been decided yet." Gan Yongxing hesitated for a moment, "Before, the principal and I both thought that we should launch an attack in the Central Pacific, even if we can't fight all the way to the Hawaiian Islands, we can at least contain the strength of the U.S. military, so that the U.S. military can invest more troops in the Central Pacific, thereby weakening its investment in the Southwest Pacific." But now, we must first take care of the Southwest Pacific Theater, so that Yan Guozhong can conquer the New Hebrides before the beginning of next year, and even capture New Caledonia, complete the strategic encirclement, and prepare for the final landing in Australia. As a result, the number of troops that we can commit to the Central Pacific Theater will be much smaller. ”

"How many?" Tan Renhao sighed secretly, MacArthur's defensive line adjustment forced the Imperial Navy to adjust its strategic offensive plan.

"We have a maximum of four Marine Divisions, and with the three divisions that Liao Hanxiang now has, we have a maximum of seven Marine Divisions of ground forces in the Central Pacific. Moreover, two or three marine divisions must be left for defense in the rear, and the campaign reserves must be reduced, and only three divisions can really be put into front-line operations. If the reinforcements of Midway are included, it is likely that only two Marine Divisions can be mobilized. ”

Tan Renhao nodded slightly. "Then, I propose to attack Wake Island, first bring Wake Island back, and draw the battle line."

"The U.S. military has at least two Marine Divisions on Wake Island, and it will be difficult for us to take Wake Island."

"The fleet has seized sea supremacy, and there is no need to reinforce Midway for the time being." Tan Renhao said quickly, "As long as the sea control can be guaranteed, the three marine divisions will only need time to conquer Wake Island." As long as we take the main attack, then Nimitz has no choice, he has to reinforce Wake Island, and we don't need to think about threats from other directions. ”

"You mean, we're the main attacker?"

"Yes, we have to attack resolutely." Tan Renhao thought for a moment, "The situation in the southwest Pacific is very delicate now, and it will be very difficult for Yan Guozhong to attack New Caledonia at the beginning of next year, and even the operation to capture the New Hebrides will not be too smooth. Our attack in the Central Pacific can contain the U.S. military, and even if we end up in a dead-to-death battle with the U.S. military on Wake Island, we will have to do so. As long as Yan Guozhong achieves a crucial victory in the southwest Pacific, then Nimitz will have to shrink his line. In addition, if we were to attack in the Central Pacific, Nimitz would not dare to send his fleet to the Southwest Pacific, which would also help Yan Guozhong! ”

Gan Yongxing nodded slightly. "Looks like we're thinking of going together."

"And when can I go back to the fleet?" Tan Renhao looked at Gan Yongxing.

"Don't worry, the principal has a lot of things to deal with in the past two days, so I didn't let you go over immediately, you have to rush back to the fleet, you should also say hello to the principal, right?"

Tan Renhao was stunned for a moment, and immediately nodded with a smile.

Gan Yongxing went to get a document. "This is the general plan for the next phase of operations in the Pacific theater, you can take a look at it first. By the way, there is also a document......"

Tan Renhao walked over and watched Gan Yongxing rummage through the piles of papers on his desk.

"This is it." Gan Yongxing pulled out another document, "This is the new fighter information of Hainan Airlines, you can take it and take a look." Originally, it was planned to replace the fleet with new fighters this month, but the fifth task force had already gone to the South Atlantic, the fourth task force was fighting on the front line, and the first task force would soon have a combat mission, so we decided to replace the second task force with new fighters first, and then reequip the first task force after the battle was over. ”

"Task Force 2 has a new aircraft carrier?"

"Yes, the newly commissioned 'Poyang Lake' aircraft carrier will be assigned to the second task force to resume fleet training first, and just take advantage of this opportunity to let pilots adapt to combat aircraft, which can save a lot of time." Gan Yongxing gave the two documents to Tan Renhao, "You read these materials first in the past two days, and the principal will come to talk to you when he is free." ”

Tan Renhao didn't delay much, and immediately said goodbye to Gan Yongxing, it seems that this time he will have to delay in the naval headquarters for a while.