After walking into the fortress commander's office, the three of them were stunned, because they didn't expect that the newly appointed commander of the fortress in the naval command would be Lei Shaoqing! What surprised the three of them even more was that at this time, Lei Shaoqing was laughing with Jiang Zhongmin. Outcome. The three of them forgot to say hello to Lei Shaoqing until Lei Shaoqing took the initiative to catch up. Only then did the three of them react.

"Why, don't you know me?"

"Shaoqing, why don't you say hello to us?" Tan Renhao immediately rushed up and hugged his friend, "Yes, you kid has learned to surprise us now, when will you get to the ground?" ”

"It's only been a few days, I wanted to send you a telegram, but you probably saw it, the situation on this side of the fortress is very chaotic now, I've been busy these days, so I've been forgetting about it, if I hadn't started to remind Zhongmin, I didn't know you would have arrived today."

Tan Renhao was secretly surprised. At the same time, he secretly glanced at Jiang Zhongmin, who was sitting on the sofa, and was even more puzzled.

"Lao Chang, Dong Jue, don't stand still. If you want something to drink, go get it yourself, you're welcome! Lei Shaoqing beckoned to the two people behind him. While pulling Tan Renhao to sit down.

"Boss, what do you want to drink?" Hao Dongjue was also unusually surprised in his heart, he pulled Chang Jianxin to the cabinet next to the door, and then asked in a low voice, "Is there something wrong with Lao Lei's brain, and he fought with Jiang Zhongmin to the death before. Why are you so affectionate now? What kind of 'Zhongmin' land, it's disgusting to death."

"You're disgusting enough. And say someone else? Chang Jianxin almost laughed out loud, but in the same way, he also felt that Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin had a very strange relationship.

In the same way, sitting down and greeting Jiang Zhongmin, Ren Hao couldn't figure it out in his heart. At the beginning, in the Southwest Pacific Theater, in order to compete for the command of the fleet, the contradiction between Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin was not small, and it was done in the end. If it weren't for Tan Renhao's timely return to the ground, I'm afraid the two would have fallen out long ago. Since then. There was a gap between Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin, and later Jiang Zhongmin was sent to the South Atlantic, and Lei Shaoqing was transferred to the Pacific Theater. That's the end of it. Tan Renhao has not yet been surprised by the relationship between Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin. What surprised him the most was why the Navy Command sent Lei Shaoqing over at this time? Didn't Chief of Staff Gan Yongxing know that there was a deep contradiction between Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin? Or will the time come to leave the First Fleet behind and let the Second Fleet go on an expedition to the United States? Thinking of this, Tan Renhao felt even more uncomfortable, to put it bluntly, this was obviously suppressing the First Fleet and secretly supporting the Second Fleet.

It is precisely because the three of them are puzzled in their hearts that the topic has not been talked about where everyone is interested. In front of Jiang Zhongmin, it was not easy for Tan Renhao to ask directly.■Dong Jue didn't have a good face to show Jiang Zhongmin.After all, in the previous combat operations, it was precisely because Jiang Zhongmin wanted to compete with Tan Renhao that the Sixth Task Force suffered heavy losses. The Second Task Force also lost dozens of fighters, and more than 20 pilots were killed, including eight ace pilots. Although Chang Jianxin didn't show Jiang Zhongmin his face. But he was still very dissatisfied with Jiang Zhongmin in his heart. If the Fifth Task Force had acted according to Tan Renhao's initial deployment, how could it have caused so much trouble later? Of course, whether it is Hao Dongjue or Chang Recommended. Their understanding was problematic, after all, Jiang Zhongmin didn't want to see the Sixth Task Force suffer heavy losses. And before the battle, who can accurately judge the progress of the battle?

After chatting for a while, Lei Shaoqing mentioned the key point. Fleet ground repair work will be carried out after a full inspection. When the time comes. It will be determined which ships can be repaired at the Gibraltar Fortress and which ships must be returned to the Reich for repairs. These matters are handled by the Fortress Command. In addition, Lei Shaoqing also conveyed the new instructions of the Navy Command. The two main fleets must be restored to combat effectiveness as soon as possible. During this period, all combat operations will be refrained, and officers and men must be well rested. This is the "mission" of the fleet's new land. After saying these two things, Jiang Zhongmin said goodbye "knowingly."

"Old Lei, is there something wrong with your brain?" After Jiang Zhongmin left, Hao Dongjue immediately said what he was holding back in his heart, "Why are you still talking and laughing with Jiang Zhongmin, do you still suffer a lot of land losses?" ”

Lei Shaoqing shook his head with a smile, ignoring Hao Dongjue's well-intentioned rebuke.

Chang Jianxin also shook his head, he didn't directly attack Lei Shaoqing, but it can be seen. He was also very incomprehensible to the "new" relationship between Lei Shaoqing and Jiang Zhongmin.

"Dongjue, you just don't say a word." Tan Renhao glared at his brother-in-law first, and then asked Lei Shaoqing, "This time the chief of staff arranged for you to come over, right?" ”

"Yes, before leaving, I also went back to the Navy Headquarters and talked to Chief of Staff Gan Yongxing several times individually. And then I got this new appointment." Lei Shaoqing said while looking at his watch, "It's not early, what do you want to eat at noon?" You're probably hungry too, what's the matter, let's talk while eating, although there is no good food here, but it's much better than the food on the battleship."

After soliciting everyone's opinions, Lei Shaoqing instructed the adjutant to go to the kitchen and order a few side dishes, and then set up a table in the office. It's a temporary restaurant. After a while, the adjutant brought a few kitchen cooks to deliver a few small dishes that had just been fried. At that time, the conditions of the Gibraltar fortress were quite simple, and tens of thousands of officers and soldiers were stationed in the fortress of less than six square kilometers, and its living conditions can be imagined.

"You're welcome. The conditions are simple, so let's do it first, and when the fort is built, maybe there will be a few more restaurants here."

"Shaoqing, why did you send you over this time?" Tan Renhao picked up the chopsticks as he spoke, and at the same time glanced at Hao Dongjue and Chang Jianxin, "Let's eat first, talk while eating. Don't let the food get cold."

"Actually. I didn't expect that either." Lei Shaoqing just picked up the chopsticks, then put them down again, and then let out a sigh." At that time, the chief of staff told me that when I was asked to come to the Gibraltar Fortress and serve as the commander of the fortress, I couldn't believe it, after all, we all know that coming here is actually cooperating with the Second Fleet, and you know better what the relationship between me and Jiang Zhongmin is."

"Then why did the chief of staff make such an arrangement?" Chang Zhixin frowned slightly and put down his chopsticks.

"Later, I thought about it carefully, and it was not difficult to understand what the chief of staff meant." Lei Shaoqing took out a cigarette. As he dispersed the smoke, he continued, "You know better than I do the importance of the fortress. Now that the European continent has been largely 'united' by the Germans, we only have one occupation zone in central Spain, and France has been completely occupied by the Germans. And there's one more thing you may not know."

"What's the matter?" Hao Dongjue kept moving his chopsticks, looking hungry.

"After the defeat of France. Italy had been secretly negotiating with Germany in the hope of an honorable exit from the war. Before I left, the chief of staff told me that there was a good chance that Italy would surrender to Germany. Then Germany will occupy all of Italy."

As soon as Lei Shaoqing said this, the room immediately fell silent, and even Hao Dongjue put down his chopsticks.

Tan Renhao was quite surprised, because the empire had been fighting for Italy before, although it was not sure that it could control Italy alone, but at least it could occupy Italy separately from Germany, so that it would be difficult for Germany's tentacles of local power to penetrate deep into the Mediterranean, and it would be impossible to compete with the Tang Empire in the Mediterranean. Similarly, the Persian Empire, as the main force in the Mediterranean theater, has always hoped to advance its sphere of influence to Italy in order to ensure the interests of the Persian Empire in the eastern Mediterranean. If Germany had taken sole control of Italy, German influence would have penetrated deep into the Mediterranean. This threatened the fundamental interests of the Tang Empire and the Persian Empire in the Mediterranean. It is clear that if at this time Italy surrendered to Germany. Then the fortress of Gibraltar will become the most important fortress of the Tang Empire in the Mediterranean, and it will also be the most critical military base.

"The fortress is our base in the Mediterranean, as you all should know. Whatever the way Italy ultimately surrenders, German influence will penetrate deep into the Mediterranean, which will not be an easy thing for us." Lei Shaoqing lit a cigarette, and then gave the match to Chang Jianxin." At present, the command of the Navy has not yet determined the next step of the ground combat plan. But before I go, I received the message that we have a target underground......"

"Malta?" Tan Renhao rushed to speak out in front of Lei Shaoqing.

"Yes, the Naval Command is assessing the difficulty of occupying the Maltese Island. and the geographical importance of the island of Malta in the Mediterranean." Lei Shaoqing nodded slightly, "But the problem is. The island of Malta is not only about our interests, but also about the interests of the Persian Empire. Therefore, the attitude of the Persian Empire on the question of who should occupy the Maltese island has a great influence on our land, so until now, the naval command has not decided to attack the Maltese island, probably because the Persian Empire has not agreed."

Tan Renhao let out a sigh. So, the naval command sent you here to be mainly responsible for the construction of fortresses, and at the same time to deal with relations with the Persian Empire? ”

"Pretty much. I have already been in contact with the commander of the Mediterranean Fleet of the Persian Navy . As for who should capture the island of Malta. It's not something I can decide." Lei Shaoqing went to get a document, "This is the telegram I received yesterday. The Navy Command asked us to draw up a plan for attacking the Maltese island as soon as possible, but instead of naming you to complete it, we gave it to me."

"What does that mean?" Chang Jianxin immediately asked.

"In other words, there is a good chance that the First Fleet will not attack Malta this time." Lei Shaoqing laughed, "Don't think about it so much, at least judging from the current situation, there is no difficulty in attacking the Malta Island. It stands to reason that such a battle plan should be the responsibility of the fleet commander. And not by me, the commander of the fortress, is in charge . Judging from the arrangement of the naval command, it has not yet been determined whether to send troops to attack the island of Malta. Secondly, it was not determined who would do the task. Therefore I think that even if it is finally decided by us to occupy the Maltese Islands. Then this task will also be given to the Second Fleet, not the First Fleet."

Tan Renhao nodded slightly, hearing this. He probably knew it in his heart. Attacking the Maltese island was a breeze, whether it was the British army on the island or the Italian army. Practically none of them have the ability to resist, so the ground fleet that carries out this combat mission will not be too strong. If the Navy Command decides to assign the Second Fleet to accomplish this task, then the strength of the First Fleet will be guaranteed and even strengthened. In addition, the Second Fleet will also be left in European waters, as the Imperial Navy's garrison fleet in European waters, and the real main force will be the First Fleet.

Chang Jianxin and Hao Dongjue also heard this meaning, and their faces looked much better. At least, for now, there is no need to worry about the First Fleet being weakened and letting the Second Fleet pick up the benefits.

"Shaoqing, I still can't figure it out." Tan Renhao thought about it for a while, and then asked, "Why did Chief of Staff Gan Yongxing send you over?" ”

"This is the third time you've asked this question." Lei Shaoqing laughed. Ren Hao, do you think you and Jiang Zhongmin's contradictions can be hidden from the principal and the chief of staff? ”

Tan Renhao was stunned for a moment, and then smiled bitterly. He had always felt that he had no contradiction with Jiang Zhongmin, but in fact, since the First Fleet arrived in the North Atlantic, the contradiction between the two had already erupted. Although the contradiction was not exposed on the surface, judging from the differences between the two in the next combat operations, the two have been fighting openly and secretly, and this kind of fighting is very harmful.

"I think the chief of staff arranged me here probably because he wanted me to act as a buffer. As for whether this was arranged by the principal, I don't know yet. But one thing is clear, after I am the commander of the fortress, you and Jiang Zhongmin will not have a direct conflict. At that time, the Fortress Command will be responsible for the logistical support and support of the two fleets, and the operational appointments will be conveyed by me." Lei Shaoqing paused slightly, "Ren Hao. Don't think I'm the same as I used to, the Chief of Staff talked to me several times before I came here. I will handle the relationship with Jiang Zhongmin, but you guys, pay attention to your words and deeds, especially Dong Jue, don't write everything on your face."

■Dong Jue grimaced, and Chang Jian Xin laughed. Tan Renhao sighed secretly, the chief of staff was obviously helping them, Lei Shaoqing's words also explained a lot of problems, but Tan Renhao still had a lot of questions in his heart that had not been answered.