Early the next morning, Tan Renhao came to the naval headquarters and officially reported to Gan Yongxing. As ever, he remains the unnamed second chief of staff of the Navy Command. That office was still reserved for him, because Duchenne had gone home to visit relatives, so Gan Yongxing arranged a secretary for him.

"Don't take what the principal said yesterday to heart." Gan Yongxing brought the teacup to Tan Renhao, "This is the new tea that arrived a few days ago, you can taste it, usually the tea leaves I have here are taken by the adjutant to drink." ”

Tan Renhao took the teacup. "Actually, I know what the principal means."

"That's good, at the beginning, I also thought that the principal's arrangement was a bit wrong." Gan Yongxing sat down, "But in the long run, I think the principal values you very much." ”

Tan Renhao smiled reluctantly, he didn't want the chief of staff to feel like a threat.

"And in the short term, in fact, right now you don't have much room to play in the fleet.

Gan Yongxing took out a cigarette, "Huang Xiaotian's ability has been proven, maybe this is our second discovery in the war, with time, his ability will definitely continue to improve." Hao Dongjue's ability is not bad, we have been observing him, and we also know that you have been training Hao Dongjue, so that he can command the fleet more smoothly. Chang Jianxin's ability has also been proven, perhaps, he is not very suitable for commanding the aircraft carrier fleet, but in the third task force, he is much better than Yan Shiqi. And Lei Shaoqing is suitable to be a staff officer, which we are already considering.

Now Jiang Zhongmin can also be on his own. There are also people like Zheng Guanhua, Wei Dongbei, and Li Wenlong. And a large number of young generals have emerged, and sooner or later they will move to higher positions, right? ”

Tan Renhao laughed. Many people were eliminated in the war, but a large number of outstanding soldiers also emerged.

"It's not the same as when the war just broke out. The last thing we lack now is a fleet commander. Let's put it this way, in the past few years, the number of commanders of our fleet has grown from scratch, from few to many, and more and more officers have been tested on the battlefield. It also enriches the experience. Relatively speaking, our conditions are much better than those of the U.S. military, and as more and more talent emerges, what we need now is not a fleet commander, but a commander who can command multiple fleets in combat. ”

Tan Renhao frowned, now he understood a little.

"The principal is still thinking about specific things." Gan Yongxing laughed, "You should also be able to think of one or two, as long as the conditions are ripe, there will naturally be a place for you to exert your ability." And I'm sure that's what you really need. ”

"Chief of Staff, can you be more clear?"

"It's not settled yet. How can I explain this to you? Gan Yongxing patted the armrest of the sofa, "But you don't have to worry about it, it's a matter of course." When the time comes, we will not forget you. ”

Tan Renhao's mood is only slightly better now.

"By the way, if Lei Shaoqing recovers, do you think it's best to arrange for him to do any work?"

"This ......" Tan Renhao hesitated a little, it stands to reason that the chief of staff should not ask for his opinion on this issue, first, it is impossible for Lei Shaoqing to return to the fleet, and second, Lei Shaoqing's relationship with him is very special, and Tan Renhao's opinion is not necessarily objective.

"I've got two positions ready now." Gan Yongxing said directly, "First, I went to the Southwest Pacific Theater to assist General Yan Guozhong in commanding the fleet to fight, and served as the chief of staff of the theater, and his main job was to coordinate the coordinated actions of the fleet and the Marine Corps. In other words, he will be in command of the fleet operating in the southwest Pacific, so that Yan Guozhong can devote more energy to the operations of the Marine Corps, and in addition, he can also give full play to the combat effectiveness of the fleet as much as possible. ”

"It's a good choice."

Gan Yongxing pressed his hand: "Another option is to stay in the Navy Command and assist me in planning the overall strategy of the Navy, especially the combat operations of the fleet in the future. ”

"That's not bad, either."

"So, which one do you think is better for him?"

Tan Renhao thought about it, and the first thing he thought of was not which position was more suitable for Lei Shaoqing, but the purpose of this arrangement.

Judging from the first line, the main purpose is to temper Lei Shaoqing's ability to command and plan campaigns, so that he can familiarize himself with the tactics of other units other than the fleet in the position of chief of staff of the theater, enrich his command ability, and lay a solid foundation. If he continues along this road, he may be promoted to theater commander in the future, but this is not very likely, after all, according to the current principle of the navy, during the strategic offensive, a commander from the fleet will generally not be appointed as the commander of the theater. And he is most likely to be transferred back to the Navy Command after completing this shift as a senior staff officer and a senior assistant to Gan Yongxing. In other words, this is to decentralize Lei Shaoqing to exercise.

The latter path will be less troublesome, and if Lei Shaoqing is allowed to serve in the naval headquarters, then he will have more knowledge of campaign planning and overall strategy, and will have enough time to learn from Gan Yongxing's experience.

In fact, the final way back for these two roads is the chief of the general staff of the Navy, that is to say, Gan Yongxing is likely to train Lei Shaoqing as his successor. Of course, Lei Shaoqing is by no means the only successor chosen by Gan Yongxing, if he wants to become the chief of the general staff of the Navy, Lei Shaoqing still needs more time to train and defeat competitors.

The key to the problem is not Lei Shaoqing, and Tan Renhao has already seen that Nie Renfeng and Gan Yongxing are both thinking about their future successors. This made Tan Renhao a little puzzled, after all, the war was far from over, and no one even knew that the war would last for a few more years, and judging from the current physical condition of Nie Renfeng and Gan Yongxing, they would definitely be able to hold out for a few more years, so why rush to train a successor? Tan Renhao didn't guess this reason, what he thought of was that Nie Renfeng and Gan Yongxing both excluded Lei Shaoqing from the list of future naval commanders, and they were popular candidates for chief of naval staff, so this arrangement must be directly related to Tan Renhao.

According to the tradition of the Navy, the commander of the Navy and the chief of staff are generally held jointly by the previous ranks. This is just like the relationship between Nie Renfeng and Gan Yongxing, and after the Imperial Navy established the position of Chief of Staff. Almost all chiefs of staff are deputies to their commanders, former subordinates, or former students. Almost without exception. And this arrangement is quite justified in the Navy. The commander is the decision-maker, and often the commander's decisions need to be carried out by the chief of staff, so the chief of staff must unconditionally obey the commander's orders, so the old subordinate is arranged to serve as the chief of staff. This is the tradition of the Navy, and it is the guarantee that the Imperial Navy can function normally. It's as if Gan Yongxing would never oppose Nie Renfeng's decision-making, if the naval commander and the chief of staff don't get along, then there will be a big trouble.

It is precisely for this reason that Tan Renhao thinks more. If Gan Yongxing uses the method of successor to train Lei Shaoqing, then who is suitable to be the next naval commander? Gan Yongxing? This is possible, but the problem is that if Gan Yongxing can take over as the commander of the navy, then he will not train Lei Shaoqing, but will choose his old subordinates. So. Gan Yongxing should not be the next commander, and even if he is, it will only be a short-term transition. Other words. The person who really took over Nie Renfeng's class should be Lei Shaoqing's previous boss, or someone that Lei Shaoqing would not oppose.

With this in mind, Tan Renhao connected with the conversation with Nie Renfeng the night before. Now he understood a little, and then, he looked at Gan Yongxing.

"Actually, I think the former option is better." Gan Yongxing rushed to the front and spoke, "Lei Shaoqing's qualifications are still relatively shallow, and he is not very clear about other things other than fleet operations, he needs more exercise, and he also needs time to master more basic knowledge, isn't it?" ”

"Chief of Staff, I also think so, commanding troops to fight at the front is the best exercise."

"That's good, how are you going to convince Lei Shaoqing?"

"Me!?" Tan Renhao looked over in surprise.

"Of course, it has now been confirmed that Hao Dongjue is the commander of the second task force, unless you are willing to give up the first task force, otherwise I will not have a new fleet for Lei Shaoqing to command. In addition, you should know his physical condition very well, even if he can stand up now, he is no longer suitable for service on a battleship. Gan Yongxing paused slightly, "You know Lei Shaoqing best, and your relationship has always been very good, I think, it's more appropriate for you to talk about this, isn't it?" ”

"When will he be back?" Tan Renhao sighed secretly, if Nie Renfeng handed over the trouble to Gan Yongxing to deal with, then Gan Yongxing handed over the trouble to him to deal with, that is to say, Tan Renhao is the chief of staff of the Navy.

"Next month, I contacted Beidaihe yesterday, his recovery is good, the doctor has also organized several consultations, after more than a month of rehabilitation training, he should be able to return to normal life, and then I will transfer him back." Gan Yongxing shrugged his shoulders, "As for arranging the time for him to go to the Southwest Pacific, I haven't thought about it yet, maybe I'll let him stay in the headquarters for a while first, and then let him go to the Southwest Pacific after his state recovers." Anyway, there is only one fleet operating there in the past few months, and his past is of little significance. ”

"Then I'll talk to him again."

"Let's talk about it, in fact, you should know how Lei Shaoqing will feel after knowing that he can't return to the fleet."

Tan Renhao smiled reluctantly, of course he understood what it was like, just as he knew he was going to be transferred out of the fleet.

"Renhao, you have to mature a little bit too."

Tan Renhao raised his head, he didn't understand the meaning of the chief of staff's words.

"In the past, you were fleet commanders, in fact, you didn't let you deal with a lot of troubles, but the problem is that an excellent fleet commander can't be a lifetime, sooner or later, you have to face new challenges." Gan Yongxing's words were very calm, "Let's put it this way, just as Hao Dongjue can't always be your chief of staff, you can't stay in the First Task Force all the time." When you win one victory after another on the battlefield, it has been decided, and you will have a better future. Including Huang Xiaotian and Chang Jianxin, everyone is the same, as long as they have enough ability, they should get a better opportunity to play, rather than overkill. ”

"Chief of Staff, I understand."

"So, now you're going to start getting in touch with some things outside the fleet, and learn how to deal with troubles outside the fleet." Gan Yongxing hesitated for a moment, "This is actually the reason why the principal asked you to stay now, in the past, you could avoid many problems and let others help you solve them, and your first task is to command the fleet to win in battle."

However, from now on, you have to learn to solve all kinds of problems, and this is the path you have to take, these experiences are extremely important to you, and I believe that you should understand the truth. ”

"I understand, in fact, ......"

"If you say you're a person who is afraid of difficulties, then no one will believe you, and besides, we all know that the headmaster doesn't look away, right?"

Tan Renhao had a feeling of helplessness, would he admit that the principal had seen the wrong person?

"Okay, we've been talking nonsense with you for most of the day, it's time for us to do something practical." Gan Yongxing went to get a document, "This is the first thing you have to deal with, take a closer look at it, and then come to me." ”

Tan Renhao glanced at the stack of documents that were at least a thousand pages thick, and now he had a headache, could he have spent the rest of his life in the office?

"You've got three days to read through the materials." Gan Yongxing accompanied Tan Renhao to the door, "Time is very tight, so, hurry up, and after you understand the specific situation, we will discuss." ”

"Chief of Staff, is this a report on the war situation in Western Europe?" Tan Renhao also noticed the name of the document.

"Yes, it's the situation in Europe, anyway, you should hurry up and read it." Gan Yongxing patted Tan Renhao's shoulder, "If you have any questions, you can come to me at any time, of course, it's best not to call me in the middle of the night." ”

Tan Renhao smiled and said goodbye to the chief of staff.

After returning to his office, Tan Renhao couldn't be interested in reading the information on the European battlefield. He was still thinking about the words he had begun to talk to the chief of staff.

This can be regarded as the third turning point in Tan Renhao's naval career, his entry into the Fifth Fleet is the first turning point, Nie Renfeng is the commander of the Navy, and his appointment as the commander of the First Task Force is the second turning point, and now, it is his third turning point, and the real sign of this turning point is that he left the First Task Force and embarked on a more important post, so now it is just a signal.