Tan Renhao started eating some easy-to-digest foods (mainly baby food) on the third day after waking up, and on the fifth day, he was able to get out of bed and walk with the help of others. Within a few days, many people came to see him, Lei Shaoqing and they came once before returning to the fleet, and this time, Tan Renhao did not sleep.

"General, the doctor approved that you can bask in the sun outside for half an hour today."

After Du Xing returned from the refresher class, he chose to continue to be Tan Renhao's adjutant, and in most cases, he was taking care of Tan Renhao. "However, the sun doesn't seem to have much strength today, should we go back sooner?"

"No, help me get the newspapers for the past few days!"

Tan Renhao really wanted to breathe the fresh air outside, and the ward was filled with the smell of potions.

"This ......"

Duchenne was very embarrassed, and the doctor was not allowed to talk about Renhao too much, so he was forbidden to read the newspaper to him.

"What, you're like those doctors, mother-in-law?"

Tan Renhao glanced at Du Xing, then shook his head with a smile, "Forget it, I won't embarrass you, so as not to be scolded by your sister-in-law." Sit down and talk to me. ”

Du Xing laughed awkwardly, then pulled over the chair and sat down opposite Tan Renhao.

"Haven't you learned a lot in the training class?"

Talking about Renhao has nothing to do to open the topic.

"Okay, a lot of it I didn't know before."

Duchenne scratched his scalp, "I heard that this training course is conducted in accordance with the requirements of the officers, except for some basic knowledge, all the courses offered are in accordance with the curriculum of the military academy, but the time is very tight." ”

"There's no way around it. Back then, it took three years to train an officer, and now it is not allowed to train for such a long time, and it is not bad to give you three or four months. ”

Tan Renhao laughed, and the wound on his face had healed a lot. "But you should be half a year of study, right? How did you come back two months early? ”

"Anyway, I've already passed all the exams, and there's nothing to do to stay in the training class, so I'll be back early."

Tan Renhao nodded slightly. After pondering for a while, he said, "What are your plans for the future?" ”

"General, I've already submitted my volunteer form."

Duchen knew what Tan Renhao was asking for. After receiving training, these adjutants have a new choice, that is, to go to the army as officers and get more opportunities for promotion. However, in fact, there are very few adjutants who choose this path, and only a few of the hundreds of trainees in this training choose to go to the grassroots units. The reason is simple: the adjutants who can be recommended for the training course are appreciated by their superiors. This is the basic understanding of adjutants, so the vast majority of adjutants will choose their old positions after completing the training.

Tan Renhao didn't continue to ask, he knew very well what choice Duchenne would make. Perhaps, Duchenne was just a very ordinary member of the Imperial Navy, but like most Imperial Navy soldiers, he was very simple, without too complicated thoughts and no ambitions. Perhaps, after Duchenne became Tan Renhao's adjutant, the only thing he thought of was to be a good adjutant!

"General. Actually, I didn't think about it that much. Just felt ......"

"I know, and I will respect the choice you make."

Tan Renhao smiled and nodded at Du Xing, "It seems." I'm not a failure. In the past, other subordinates said that I was an impersonal commander, but now at least one more person is willing to follow me, isn't it? ”

Duchenne laughed awkwardly. When Tan Renhao was the commander of the fleet, he really didn't like the officers and soldiers below, mainly because he rarely had contact with ordinary officers and soldiers, and he always gave people a feeling of being on top. In comparison, Lei Shaoqing and Chang Jianxin are much better than him, and Hao Dongjue is unanimously liked by the officers and soldiers.

"Who says you're unloved?"

Tan Renhao was startled, and immediately turned around, Nie Renfeng and Gan Yongxing were walking towards him.

"A good general who can get along well with ordinary officers and soldiers. But what can bring victory, it's not just a good general! ”

Nie Renfeng walked over with a smile, "Yongxing, do you say that's the truth?" ”

"The principal is right, if you can't win the battle, no matter how well you get along with the officers and soldiers, you are not a good general."

Gan Yongxing added the second half of the sentence.

"Headmaster, Chief of Staff, why are you here?"

Tan Renhao said as he went to get the crutches next to him.

"Alright. You sit down, you're welcome. ”

Du Xing had already gone to get a chair, and at the same time he was standing behind Tan Renhao.

"How's it going, it's a lot better, isn't it?"

Nie Renfeng sat down with a smile, "I wanted to come to see you a few days ago, but I didn't finish the business at hand, and I went to the capital for a trip, and I only rushed back today." In the past two months, you have made us cry, and the chief of staff has made a phone call to the hospital every day, asking about your condition every time, which has made the doctors nervous. By the way, I have been asked to bring you a letter of condolence. ”

Tan Renhao took the letter with the imperial seal, and handed it to Du Xing behind him. It was only a symbolic greeting letter, and it had little substance other than nonsense to recognize the merits. Generals wounded on the battlefield will receive such a letter.

"The principal has also been concerned about your condition, and he will call back every day these days."

Gan Yongxing also sat down, "I have already asked, the doctor thinks you still have to rest for a month, but now you can read some documents and do some mental work." Of course, we're not going to let you start working again so soon. ”

"Chief of Staff, you're kidding, I'm actually almost recovered."

Tan Renhao said, trying hard to stand up.

"Forget it, look at what you look like now!"

Gan Yongxing laughed, "Take care of your injuries, the battle is not over yet!" ”

Tan Renhao gave up his efforts, he didn't have much strength in his legs, and without crutches and the help of others, it was difficult for him to stand up.

"We all know how you feel, so I'll call the Chief of Staff to come and see you when I come back this time."

Nie Renfeng crossed his hands, "How to say it, there are some things that maybe shouldn't be told to you now, but I think you should know." ”

"Headmaster, let's talk about it!"

Nie Renfeng nodded at Gan Yongxing, obviously there were some things that he was not easy to talk about, so he asked Gan Yongxing to replace him. Tan Renhao looked at the two of them in a little surprise, and quickly reacted.

"Here's how it goes......"

The naval battle two months earlier was known as the Second Battle of the Marianas, and the two sides were the 1st and 2nd Task Forces of the Tang Empire and the 17th Task Force of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. This was the last large-scale naval battle between the two sides around the Mariana Islands, and it was an extremely tragic naval battle, with losses on both sides of the war being so great that it could be said that there was no real winner.

The three aircraft carriers of the 16th Task Force were sunk, which has been confirmed (it was only confirmed by the Empire's spy agency more than a month after the end of the naval battle) In addition, more than a dozen escort warships were sunk, and the fleet lost more than 4ooo officers and men, and Rear Admiral Spruance miraculously returned to Pearl Harbor unharmed! All four battleships of Task Force 17 were destroyed, three were sunk, and the other was scuttled by the Americans themselves because of too much water ingress on the way back to Pearl Harbor. It is a pity that the aircraft carrier "Enterprise" actually escaped back, after being heavily damaged. Finally returned to Pearl Harbor in less than four knots!

The bomber pilots who attacked the "Enterprise" reported that the aircraft carrier was finished. Then. The "Enterprise" was indeed hit by four bombs, two torpedoes, and the top three compartments inside the aircraft carrier were almost completely destroyed. And it lost more than half of the power, and the water ingress was more than 25oo tons. But the problem is that the aircraft carrier did not sink, and by reverse water injection, the aircraft carrier did not capsize, but persisted. At that time, a fire had already broken out on the aircraft carrier, and the pilots of the Tang Empire, who had finished dropping bombs and torpedoes, were convinced that the aircraft carrier would definitely be finished, and as long as the fire expanded, then the aircraft carrier would not be saved. But in fact, the American officers and men on the battleship fought for four hours. At the cost of more than 200 firefighters, the fire was extinguished, and the last boiler of the aircraft carrier was saved, and in the end, the carrier fled back to Wake Island under the cover of several destroyers, and after minor repairs (mainly plugging the underwater holes), it staggered back to Pearl Harbor.

On the other side of the battle, the losses of the Tang Empire's navy were also extremely heavy.

The aircraft carrier "Yangtze River" of the 1st Task Force was sunk, and the aircraft carrier "Xuanzong" was heavily damaged, and when returning to the anchorage of Agrihan Island. The water intake of the aircraft carrier has already reached 45oo tons, and the main deck of the hangar is no more than half a meter from the sea. After the hard work of the officers and men on the battleship, the aircraft carrier ran aground at low tide, and then spent several days repairing the hole below the waterline of the hull, and it was not until the 15th that it returned to Naha Port, where it was towed to the dock for a complete overhaul. The aircraft carrier suffered at least five bombs, four torpedoes, and miraculously survived in the end!

The aircraft carriers "Yellow River" and "Pearl River" of the Second Task Force were sunk, and the "Huaihe" returned to the anchorage of Agrihan Island with great difficulty, where it returned to the port of Naha under the cover of several destroyers. The "Huaihe" arrived only eight days earlier than the "Xuanzong", and the aircraft carrier also needed to undergo a major repair for several months.

In this naval battle, the US Navy lost three aircraft carriers, one was heavily damaged, lost four battleships, and lost a total of 23 other warships. 288 aircraft were lost, 487 pilots were killed (some of them were taken prisoner), more than 55oo officers and men of the fleet were killed, more than 8ooo were captured, and more than 3ooo were seriously wounded. The Tang Imperial Navy lost three aircraft carriers, two were heavily damaged, and eight other warships were lost. 478 aircraft were lost (362 of which were forced landings on the sea), 89 pilots were killed, and 72 were missing (captured). More than 24oo officers and men of the fleet were sacrificed, and more than 18oo were seriously wounded.

Judging from this proportion of losses, it is impossible to say who is the winner and who is the loser. Compared with the loss of aircraft carriers, the Tang Empire obviously has to suffer a little, after all, the United States exchanged four aircraft carriers for five aircraft carriers of the Tang Empire, and in a short period of time, neither side has aircraft carriers to put into the battlefield. If we look at the total tonnage of warships lost and the number of officers and men (especially pilots) lost, the United States has suffered a lot of losses. It can be said that if only from the tactical level, the two sides fought a draw, or the advantage was barely on the side of the Tang Empire. If the victory is counted on the Tang Imperial Navy, it is only a crushing victory!

If you just compare the tactical wins and losses, it doesn't make much sense. The biggest difference between naval warfare and the 6th World War is that the campaign and strategic significance of naval warfare are much greater, so the victory or defeat of naval warfare should be judged by its impact on the campaign and strategy.

Now, both sides have lost their main naval forces and are ostensibly back on the same starting line, but the problem is by no means so simple. Most of the escort warships of the 1st and 2nd task forces have been preserved. These escort warships were then incorporated into the Second Task Force, commanded by Lei Shaoqing and Chang Jianxin, and participated in the subsequent battles of Deng-6, playing an extremely huge role. On the contrary, the U.S. Navy has very few warships deployed in the Pacific, and it is difficult to organize an effective force against the second task force without aircraft carriers.

The change in sea power also had a direct impact on the development of the Mariana Islands campaign. The fighting on Saipan continued until mid-April, and the U.S. military, depleted of ammunition and food, made a wise choice and surrendered to the Don Empire. In late April, the Imperial 6 Force quickly swept through Tinian Island and Rota Island, and most of the American troops defending the two islands had retreated to Guam before they prepared to make a final stand on Guam. In addition, the US forces deployed in the Caroline Islands have also begun to shrink their defensive lines towards Guam, and if they continue to maintain a long front after losing their sea supremacy, it will not do the US military any benefit.

In early May, that is, in the first half of last month, the 6th Sentai launched a combat operation on the 6th Guam Island. This time, the U.S. military put up extremely stubborn resistance. In addition, another 6-team team also quickly swept the Caroline Islands, because there were not many American troops stationed on this island, and the Caroline Islands sweep operation was going well.

"The battle on Guam's side will probably last until late July, and General Yan Guozhong has already transferred the fifth 6th Division, and the offensive is accelerating."

Gan Yongxing paused to let Tan Renhao's train of thought follow. "Now, the battle for the Mariana Islands is basically coming to an end, and the battle on Guam has nothing to worry about. We also have new work to do. ”

"Naval reform?"

When Ren Hao heard this, he had already understood, and he looked at Nie Renfeng with an inquiring gaze.

Nie Renfeng nodded, and then laughed.