After lunch, Chang Jianxin and Hao Dongjue returned to the fleet to deal with the maintenance of the battleship and the rest of the officers and men. Tan Renhao stayed, he had already handed over the relevant matters to Zhu Rongzhe to be responsible, and in terms of personal ability, Zhu Rongzhe was enough to be worthy of the commander of the fleet, and Tan Renhao had nothing to worry about. Most mainly. Tan Renhao has a lot of questions, and it is not good to ask them in front of Chang Jian Xin and Hao Dongjue. He needs to talk to Lei Shaoqing alone.

"Renhao, are you still worried about me?" Lei Shaoqing made a cup of green tea for Tan Renhao, "Don't think about it so much. I won't contradict Jiang Zhongmin. This time, the chief of staff gave me clear responsibilities and authority, and also greeted Jiang Zhongmin, as you can see, there is no contradiction between me and Jiang Zhongmin now, and there is no need to make any contradictions......"

"I'm not worried about this. I also believe that you will be able to handle the SHKP relationship well." Tan Renhao took the teacup, "My main thing thinking about now is, why did the chief of staff arrange such an errand for you?" ”

Lei Shaoqing laughed. Do you think it's drudgery? ”

Tan Renhao didn't answer, but he really thought so. Anyone with a discerning eye knows that being the commander of the Gibraltar Fortress at this time is at most just a life that will go down in history. And the benefits of being able to get the land are quite limited. The fortress of Gibraltar was in ruins, and when the British evacuated the fortress, all the infrastructure of the fortress was destroyed, and now the Imperial Navy is going to rebuild the fortress. Everything had to start from scratch. Judging from the current situation, even if the Imperial Navy sends troops to capture the island of Malta. In the future, the island of Malta will be used as a base for advancement, and the real role of the Mediterranean will be the fortress of Gibraltar. In this case, the Imperial Navy had to spend a lot of effort to build a lot of infrastructure in the fortress of Gibraltar, and even to build shipyards, ship repair docks and other large projects. It doesn't matter who it is. At this time, the commander of the fortress of Gibraltar will be drained. But again, these contributions are not counted in the merits of the war. For a young general, this is tantamount to delaying his future here. It will be difficult to get better development in the future. Tan Renhao also takes this into account. That's why I'm worried about Lei Shaoqing's future.

"Renhao, do you know what I talked about with the chief of staff?" Lei Shaoqing didn't look a little worried." To tell you the truth, I know it's a chore. When the Chief of Staff approached me, I didn't want to come. After talking to the Chief of Staff, I accepted the appointment."

Tan Renhao frowned slightly. Wait for Lei Shaoqing to continue.

"I'll be here for a year at most, this is a promise from the chief of staff, maybe in half a year, I will receive a new appointment." Lei Shaoqing took out a cigarette, "On the surface. I'm on a mission to rebuild the fortress, but I'm not a construction talent. There are people in the navy who are more suitable for this position, so my real mission is not to be responsible for the reconstruction of the fortress."

"You mean. Did the chief of staff arrange for you to come over and coordinate the relationship between the two fleets? ”

Lei Shaoqing nodded slightly. Right. That's what I'm really doing. Now the rebuilding of the fortress is in charge of the people below. And the newly appointed deputy commander of the Stronghold will probably arrive at the beginning of next month, so I won't need to bother with that at that point. In addition to having me in charge of coordinating the relationship between the two fleets, there is also an important point. And that's what I'm really here for."

Tan Renhao only thought about it for a while, and immediately understood the meaning of Lei Shaoqing's words, and then laughed. Seeing that Tan Renhao figured it out, Lei Shaoqing also laughed.

Plainly. Gan Yongxing arranged for Lei Shaoqing to come to the Gibraltar fortress at this time. It's not harming Lei Shaoqing. It's helping Lei Shaoqing. It can be said that after Lei Shaoqing was injured last time, Gan Yongxing has been secretly helping this young general. And this and, in fact, we have to start from Gan Yongxing's conversation with Ren Haodi's help.

Whether it is Gan Yongxing or Nie Renfeng, in fact, Tan Renhao has already been determined to be the future naval commander of the Imperial Navy. Now Renfeng is over sixty years old, and he can only work in the position of naval commander for ten years at most, according to the general situation, after the end of the war, Nie Renfeng will continue to serve as the commander of the navy for a few years, and deal with the problem of the transition from wartime to peacetime, and then Nie Renfeng will return to his hometown with his age. Then. Tan Renhao is also about to be forty years old, although he is still very young, but in the history of the Imperial Navy, there are two marshals who served as naval commanders at the age of forty. And after letting Tan Renhao become the commander of the navy, it is natural to arrange a suitable partner for him.

The position of Chief of the General Staff of the Navy is very important, and the requirements for the Chief of the General Staff of the Navy are extremely strict. In the history of the Imperial Navy, the marshals of the Navy were known for their outstanding command ability and high prestige. and is known for his ability to judge the big picture. Correspondingly, the Chief of the General Staff of the Navy served as the first deputy of the Field Marshal. It is necessary to have a wealth of military experience, a good understanding of all aspects of the Navy, and most importantly, the Chief of Staff of the Navy must have the ability to deal with the details and solve problems quickly. Of course, regardless of ability, the relationship between the marshal and the chief of the general staff of the Navy must be very harmonious. This is also a long tradition of the Imperial Navy, and almost all of the Chiefs of the General Staff of the Navys have a close relationship with the Admirals. Many also have close personal relationships.

From the perspective of personal relationship, Lei Shaoqing is definitely the best partner for Tan Renhao. If Tan Renhao is finally appointed as the commander of the Navy, then it will be an ideal choice for Lei Shaoqing to be the Chief of the General Staff of the Navy. But the problem is that Lei Shaoqing is also very young. I don't have a lot of service experience, and I don't have a deep understanding of all aspects of the navy. At this time, Gan Yongxing arranged various tasks for Lei Shaoqing, and the time of each new appointment was controlled within one year. This is obviously to let Lei Shaoqing accumulate service experience. For example, Lei Shaoqing was previously appointed as the commander of the Southwest Pacific Theater Fleet, and then Lei Shaoqing was transferred to the Pacific Theater to be responsible for the logistics support of the fleet, and now Lei Shaoqing has been sent to the Gibraltar Fortress to be responsible for the naval infrastructure construction, all of which are allowing Lei Shaoqing to accumulate capital.

It was with this thought that Tan Renhao was relieved. The chief of staff did not harm Lei Shaoqing, it seems that this is a chore, but as long as Lei Shaoqing works here for a year, it will only take half a year. At that time, he will have the experience of supervising the naval infrastructure project and accumulate the capital of Xindi, and if there is a Xindi mission at that time, then Yongxing will definitely consider letting Lei Shaoqing be responsible. In this way, Tan Renhao fought on the front line, and Lei Shaoqing was responsible for support and support in the rear, and the two formed a Xindi cooperative relationship, which laid the foundation for the two to continue to cooperate in the future.

It can be said that . In dealing with this matter, Gan Yongxing has good intentions, but after thinking about it further, Tan Renhao also understands that this must be the principal's meaning. Although the detailed personnel arrangements of the Navy will not all be decided by the principal, and most of the time the chief of staff will have the final say, it is impossible for the principal not to know about such a major personnel arrangement, and at the same time, it is impossible not to see that Gan Yongxing is secretly helping Lei Shaoqing. If the principal thinks that Lei Shaoqing is not capable of becoming the next chief of the general staff of the Navy, then he will not agree to such an arrangement. In other words, the principal has also acquiesced to Lei Shaoqing's position, and at the same time recognized Lei Shaoqing's position.

After the mood is relaxed, the atmosphere will naturally relax a lot. The topic is also a lot lighter. Tan Renhao asked about some things in the back, and of course he didn't forget to ask about the situation at home. Lei Shaoqing also visited Tan Renhao's family many times when he was in the naval headquarters, and brought several letters to Tan Renhao.

"I'll see these when I get back." Tan Renhao put the letters in his pocket, "Hearing what you started to say, I don't have anything to worry about. Looks like you're not going to be here for long."

"Same, same." Lei Shaoqing took out another cigarette, "You should have seen the future development situation, and according to the meaning of the chief of staff. From now on, I will mainly follow the First Fleet's buttocks, and I will follow the First Fleet wherever it goes, and be responsible for the logistics support of the First Fleet. Well, this is a good arrangement, at least you don't have to worry about logistics."

Tan Renhao laughed. So, I can't get rid of you? ”

"Of course, don't you think I'm capable of handling the logistical side of things?"

"Of course not. If that's the case. Then I'll have to give the chief of staff a big gift when I go back this time." Tan Renhao changed the topic with a smile, "Listen to you, we will have a new land mission soon?" ”

"This ......" Lei Shaoqing hesitated for a moment, and then sat down next to Tan Renhao. As I have already said at the beginning, the main consideration of the naval command now is how to solve the Italian problem and whether or not to attack the island of Malta. If we finally come to an agreement with the Persian Empire, then we will send troops to attack the island of Malta. But this is only a secondary direction, judging from the attitude of the chief of staff, this will most likely be arranged for the Second Fleet to be executed, and you should not feel aggrieved, this is clearly to let the Second Fleet stay in the Mediterranean for a long time, so as to free the First Fleet."

"And what else have you heard?" Tan Renhao followed and asked.

"Well, it depends on what benefits you can give me."

"Come on. Isn't your sister-in-law helping you pull the red line? If you say anything good, then be careful that you will be happy for the rest of your life." Tan Renhao laughed. Ever since Lei Shaoqing met that beautiful nurse in the hospital. Liao Yingyu took the initiative to get close to the nurse, and even managed to transfer her to the Navy General Hospital. I have also been to her house many times to place it, and it is clear that she is pulling the red line and solving Lei Shaoqing's lifelong events.

"Dude, your trick is too bad!" Lei Shaoqing immediately shouted.

"So, what else did you hear?"

"A lot, I don't know where to start." Lei Shaoqing pretended to laugh mysteriously. So what do you want to hear? ”

"Whatever dad is, as long as it has something to do with the fleet."

"Well...... Lei Shaoqing thought for a moment and said. I think the most important thing is to negotiate with the UK, you should know that, right? ”

Tan Renhao nodded immediately. He had long known that secret representatives of the Empire and the British were negotiating in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"Before I left, the chief of staff arranged a secret trip. It was as if a minister of the Cabinet was going to Rio de Janeiro and the trip was arranged by a special team from the Navy Command. In those days, the government also sent a lot of local officials over, and it seems that this time he went to Rio de Janeiro to be an important person."

"Prime Minister?" Tan Renhao was secretly surprised. If the Prime Minister really goes to the ground, it is enough to prove that the negotiations with Britain have entered the most critical stage, and Britain is likely to be about to surrender.

"No, it shouldn't be. Before I left, the Prime Minister was still in the capital, and it was the Prime Minister who decided to strengthen the status of the fortress of Gibraltar." Lei Shaoqing shook his head slightly, "But no matter what. This is definitely an important matter, and the previous trip to Rio de Janeiro was at most at the level of deputy foreign minister, but this time it was at least a minister. I think there has certainly been significant progress in the negotiations with the UK. If you think about it, now that the British Navy is basically finished, even if the bullish British Prime Minister still refuses to surrender, will his local officials and the British king continue to hold on? ”

"If Britain surrenders, it will definitely be a good thing for us."

"Definitely, I think, there is a ninety percent chance that Britain will surrender quickly." Lei Shaoqing hesitated slightly, "Before I set off, the chief of staff also specially told me to strengthen assistance to the Marine Corps, and at the same time complete the hoarding and transportation of Marine Corps combat materials as soon as possible. I also meant to attack the British mainland, and almost all of the land I had delivered in the past few days was grain, food. as well as tents, clothing and other daily necessities. What do you think these supplies are used for? ”

Tan Renhao already agreed with Lei Shaoqing's analysis in his heart. If Britain surrendered, the Imperial Marines would have to take on the task of rescuing the war refugees, and Britain had been blockaded and bombed for several years, and there would have been a shortage of food and medicine. In addition, many large cities have been bombed into ruins, and there is a greater need for tents, clothing and other supplies.

"Well, the British surrender was an absolute good thing for the First Fleet. Ren Hao, think again, if Britain surrenders in the near future. And where will the First Fleet go? ”

Before Lei Shaoqing asked, Tan Renhao had already thought of this question. As Lei Shaoqing said, if Britain surrenders, then the First Fleet will definitely be sent to other battlefields, and it is an important battlefield.