While the Tang Empire was amazed by the results of the "Battle of the Coral Sea", the US military side was also extremely shocked. Spruance returned to Pearl Harbor on the night of the 25th, just as the battle on the Coral Sea had just begun.

Throughout the night, Nimitz and Spruance were waiting for the battle report from the front, first received the news of the encounter between the 33rd task force commanded by Kincaid and the third task force of the Tang Imperial Navy, and then the 33rd task force was defeated, the 32nd task force bombed the airfield on Tagura Island, and then was retaliated by the fourth task force of the Tang Imperial Navy, the 31st task force dispatched bombers to attack the fourth task force, and the first task force suddenly appeared, The 31st Task Force continued to attack the 4th Task Force, and then the 31st Task Force was completely annihilated, and finally MacArthur sent a message that the bombing of the 3rd Task Force had completely failed, and the two battleships were towed into the Solomon Sea, and the Tang Empire's fleet took the initiative to withdraw from the Coral Sea, and the battle ended. …． 1

By this time, Nimitz and Spruance were shocked or shocked. There is no doubt that the commander of this battle must be Vice Admiral Tan Renhao, the number one fleet commander of the Tang Imperial Navy, although it is a joint operation of the three task forces, but Tan Renhao must be the supreme commander, and the first task force commanded by him is the protagonist on the battlefield. Throughout the operation, Task Force 1 inflicted two fatal blows on Task Force 31 and itself remained unscathed. In addition, the performance of the Fourth Task Force also exceeded the expectations of the two, and Rear Admiral Huang Xiaotian left a deep impression on the two of them, and attacked three times. And two excellent defenses led to the defeat of Task Force 31 to be undone. In addition, Task Force 3 performed very well, especially in that thrilling artillery battle. The 3rd Task Force was inferior to the 33rd Task Force and went so far as to kill the 33rd Task Force.

Arguably. The performance of the three task forces of the Tang Imperial Navy in this battle was extremely exciting, and they were even exceeding. The three task forces each performed their duties and cooperated with each other, and in this case, Halsey was doomed to failure. For the Navy of the Don Empire. This is a major victory, but for the US Navy, it is the most painful defeat, the most painful defeat since the beginning of the war!

As it got dark, Spruance and Nimitz were still waiting for news, waiting for news from Halsey, who had not yet sent a telegram back.

Spruance hadn't rested in more than two days, and he was extremely tired. But at this time, the mood is difficult to calm down. The crushing defeat at Coral Sea made his victory in the Central Pacific seem insignificant and meaningless. The Imperial Navy of the Tang Empire now has six fleet aircraft carriers, two small aircraft carriers. Five battleships (all of which were overhauled), dozens of cruisers, hundreds of destroyers. Most of these ships can be immediately thrown into new battles. But the U.S. Navy now only has one fleet aircraft carrier that still needs to be repaired, and three small aircraft carriers. A dozen cruisers, as well as more than thirty destroyers. There are almost no capital warships left in the Southwest Pacific.

The gap in strength between the two sides has widened significantly, and the Tang Imperial Navy has an absolute advantage, and it will definitely turn the advantage in strength into an advantage in the battle situation. When the Tang Imperial Navy launched a large-scale strategic offensive, how should it be fought?

Nimitz was also in a bad mood, as it was the heaviest U.S. Navy loss, or the most brutal defeat since the outbreak of war. Prior to this, the U.S. Navy had also suffered huge losses in many battles, but every time it came down, the losses of the Tang Empire's navy were also very huge, so the strength of the two sides was not pulled away, but was bitten very tightly, the U.S. Navy has been counterattacking, and the Tang Empire's naval offensive has not been very smooth. But now, in just 20 hours of fighting, the accumulated strength of the US Navy has been lost, all counterattacks have come to naught, and the Tang Empire's offensive will definitely be more fierce. The situation in the Pacific theater has taken a major turn, what should be done next?

Although both were waiting for news from Halsey, at this time both were thinking about the next phase of combat operations. A passive situation has formed, and it is impossible to quickly recover the defeat. The new batch of warships will not be commissioned until the beginning of next year, and it will be difficult to replenish the large number of officers and men lost this time. In the next few months, it will definitely be a harsh winter for the US Navy, and whether or not it can survive these months will be directly related to whether the United States can hold out in the Pacific theater.

"Report!"

Nimitz and Spruance looked up at the same time.

The staff officer walked in briskly. "I just received the news, Lieutenant General Halsey may ...... Maybe already killed. ”

Nimitz and Spruance were both startled, and the two immediately stood up.

"A telegram from General MacArthur that General Halsey was not among the retreating men, and that the officer who saw him last confirmed that General Halsey was in his cabin at the time of the sinking of the aircraft carrier Lexington, and that no one saw him come out."

Nimitz and Spruance glanced at each other, which was even more unexpected. The staff officer also left with interest.

"This can't be ......," Spruance's hand trembled slightly. Halsey was his former boss, and it was Halsey who recommended Spruance, so Spruance had a chance to become the commander of the fleet. He simply did not believe that Halsey would look for short-sightedness after the defeat, and that there was no tradition of martyrdom in the U.S. Navy.

Nimitz's lips twitched a few times, and he said, "Perhaps, he didn't have time to withdraw from the battleship, or he had already withdrawn, on some other battleship, but MacArthur hadn't received the news yet."

Spruance knew that this was impossible, and MacArthur must have sent the message after confirming the list of evacuees, and if Halsey was among the evacuees, then MacArthur would not have sent this telegram back. But that's all he can think about.

At that time, Halsey was included in the list of missing persons until five years after the end of the war, after the Tang Empire repatriated all American prisoners. Halsey was officially included in the list of those who died in battle.

Halsey was the fifth general to be lost by the U.S. Navy during the Great War, also under Kimmel.

The highest-ranking general. As to how Halsey died in battle, this has become a mystery. There is even a suspicion that Halsey committed suicide after the battle. The suspicions were given for the complete defeat of the battle, the failure to prevent the two battleships from falling into the hands of the enemy, and the avoidance of capture. But whether Halsey died in battle or committed suicide. No one has come up with conclusive evidence, they are just making inferences. The only thing that can be confirmed is that Halsey sank into the sea with his last flagship, the aircraft carrier Lexington.

Nimitz and Spruance did not calm down for a long time, Halsey was an excellent commander, a strong-willed and tenacious general, a soldier worthy of anyone's respect and respect, and a commander who was loved by his subordinates. And in this naval battle, the US Navy lost two generals. Two excellent fleet commanders. A few days later, the news of Kincaid's death was confirmed. The commander and chief of staff of the Third Fleet were killed, and Nimitz temporarily appointed Mitchell as interim commander of the Third Fleet. He was responsible for rebuilding the headquarters of the Third Fleet, collecting warships, reorganizing the ranks, and doing a good job in dealing with the aftermath. Of course, that's all for later.

"I'll return to the fleet tomorrow." Spruance stood up, "The counterattack operation needs to be modified, and it is very likely that the Tang Imperial Navy will send a task force to the Central Pacific, and it is very likely that it will be the first task force." When the Franklin arrived, it needed to be repaired as soon as possible, so I went to arrange the relevant things and then returned to the fleet. ”

"I'll take care of the repair of the Franklin." Nimitz sat Spruance down, "The Tang Imperial Navy will definitely launch a large-scale attack, but for the time being, their focus is still on the southwest Pacific. ”

Spruance hesitated, then sighed secretly. The strategic counterattack plan he had previously determined would definitely not be implemented, and the key now was to take Wake Island as soon as possible, then consolidate the defense of Wake Island, and land on Midway Island, placing the fleet northeast of Wake Island, and preventing the Tang Imperial Navy from counterattacking in the Central Pacific. MacArthur would certainly be fully defended in the Southwest Pacific, and if he could hold it out for a few months, there might be some hope when a new batch of warships entered service.

"This defeat was a big blow to us, but the pressure on the Tang Imperial Navy was also great."

Nimitz gradually calmed down, "The British expeditionary fleet has gone south, and the Tang Imperial Navy will inevitably divide forces in the South Atlantic." Up to now, their newly formed Fifth Task Force has not participated in combat operations, but has been conducting training in the rear. They will definitely send Task Force 5 to the South Atlantic. Now, their third task force will definitely need to return to port for repairs, and it will take several months to regain combat effectiveness. And in the southwest Pacific, their offensive will not stop, and they will definitely capture Port Moresby first, then at least a task force will be needed to stay. If they wanted to march into the New Hebrides at the same time, then a second task force would have to be arranged to fight in the southwest Pacific. Even if the advance into the New Hebrides was put on hold for the time being, they would first consider returning a task force to recuperate and replenish their forces.

Therefore, for the time being, our offensive in the Central Pacific will not be much of a threat. ”

"Then we'll have to take Wake Island first, and use the extra forces to strengthen the defenses of Wake Island, and land on Midway Island at the same time." Spruance had already put his thoughts together, "We had to abandon the plan to continue the attack, and when the strength was restored, we would look for opportunities to launch a counterattack." ”

"The opponent won't give us this chance." Nimitz stood up, "At most, in a month, the Tang Imperial Navy will launch a full-scale attack, whether it is in the Southwest Pacific or the Central Pacific, it will be difficult for us to block their attack." Judging from the information obtained before, it is very likely that they will enter the Australian continent early next year. ”

"Then we should go on the offensive now?" Spruance also stood up.

"No, we don't have that ability." Nimitz's grasp of the battle situation is quite clear, "Now we are struggling to defend, where do we have the strength to attack?" And the only thing we can count on is perhaps the British expeditionary fleet to fight a beautiful battle in the South Atlantic. In addition, on the battlefield in Western Europe, France can drag on for a few more months, and Russia's offensive can be effective. In this way, we will have time to recover. ”

Spruance smiled bitterly, that is, whether the U.S. Navy can survive this harsh winter depends on the situation on other fronts, and these battlefields are beyond the control of the U.S. Navy.

"First replenish the fleet with aviation, strive to take Wake Island within five days, and then deploy two marine divisions to Wake Island." Nimitz looked at Spruance, "In addition, we still have three marine divisions to mobilize, you plan the operation to attack Midway, after taking Wake Island, we must take advantage of the opportunity of the Tang Imperial Navy to adjust the deployment of troops to land on Midway, as long as these two islands are under our control, with the current strength of the Fifth Fleet, we should be able to hold the defense line in the Central Pacific, and how to delay the enemy's offensive speed, this is MacArthur's business." ”

"Okay, then I'll go and arrange for the replenishment of the fleet with planes first."

"Raymond," Nimitz called his men.

Spruance stopped and turned around.

"No, it's okay, you go get busy." Nimitz didn't say what he wanted to say.

Spruance hesitated, saluted Nimitz, and then went out.

The room fell silent as Nimitz walked to the window. Outside is Pearl Harbor, where dozens of merchant ships and more than a dozen warships are parked in the harbor. It was only at this time that Nimitz felt that he had been cornered and that he had no way out.

Suddenly, a lightning bolt pierced the night sky, thunder grew from far and near, the raindrops changed from small to heavy, and a storm came, which was a stormy season. In the port, many dock workers and soldiers are delivering supplies exposed to the rain to the warehouse, and many sailors are busy tying ships to the docks. The U.S. Navy is like a battleship adrift in a storm......