"Recently, Dong Jue hasn't caused any trouble, right?" On the way to the theater headquarters, Tan Renhao asked the driver to slow down.

"After being taught a lesson by you, he was much more honest and basically didn't get into any trouble." Lei Shaoqing took out a cigarette, "It's just that when the Fifth Task Force went to take over the Second Task Force a few days ago, he was still a little emotional, and I heard that he still controlled himself later and didn't make trouble." ”

"That's good, Dong Jue just lacks the ability to control himself, and when he learns to control his emotions, we don't need to worry about him."

"I heard that you almost had an accident over there in Guangzhou."

"Me?" Tan Renhao immediately laughed, "This is not called making trouble, and even if you want to make trouble, you have to take advantage of the reason first, as long as you have a reason, even if you make trouble, no one dares to do anything to you." ”

Lei Shaoqing shook his head with a smile, it is indeed strange to talk about Renhao's theory.

"By the way, when you get to Yan Guozhong, it's up to you to explain." Tan Renhao sighed, "I will make additional explanations when necessary, but the main problem still has to be discussed by you." ”

Lei Shaoqing immediately glanced at Tan Renhao, and then understood what Tan Renhao meant. As the commander of the theater fleet, Lei Shaoqing is actually half of Tan Renhao's boss, although everyone understands the relationship between Tan Renhao and Lei Shaoqing, but what is on the table is different. And Tan Renhao let Lei Shaoqing come forward, naturally taking into account Lei Shaoqing's current identity. Lei Shaoqing is also very grateful. To put it bluntly, the specific idea was put forward by Tan Renhao, which is more like Tan Renhao giving him the credit.

Soon, the two came to Yan Guozhong's theater headquarters. When they walked into Yan Guozhong's office, they found that Yan Guozhong was sitting behind his desk eating dinner. And at the same time, he was reading a document, and it seemed that Yan Guozhong was also busy.

"Sit down, pour yourself something if you want to drink." Yan Guozhong raised his head and greeted the two, "You sit down for a while, and I'll finish eating right away." ”

"Lao Yan, don't be in a hurry, you eat slowly." Tan Renhao went to make two cups of tea. Then he sat on the sofa with Lei Shaoqing.

Two minutes later, Yan Guozhong walked over while wiping his mouth. "I didn't expect you to come so soon, and I saw Chang Jianxin, right?"

"We just had dinner, and we just sent Chang Jianxin to the airport at the beginning." Tan Renhao said as he kicked Lei Shaoqing below.

"Lao Yan, we thought about it in the afternoon. Ren Hao and I both felt that it was definitely necessary to prepare for firepower in advance, and in order to ensure the destruction of the enemy's main fortifications and reduce the combat intensity of the pilots, one day was the most basic, and if possible, 36 hours of advance fire preparation was even more necessary. ”

Yan Guozhong nodded slightly. "I also thought about it for a while, and I didn't think about many details before. Afternoon. I also consulted with a few of the main staff officers, and they all felt that it was necessary to prepare for firepower in advance. But now the problem is that if we can't arrange it, then the landing time is likely to be delayed, and the marshal has already given the order, and the deadline is twenty days. ”

"There is a great certainty that we will land on the 20th." Tan Renhao took over the topic, "I looked at the list of targets that need to be hit, and Shaoqing and I both think that all the preliminary preparations are in place. The fleet began bombing the US defense line on the 18th, and by the morning of the 19th, it was able to basically ensure the destruction of most of the US fortifications. If all goes well, the Marines will be able to go ashore on the morning of the 19th, or on the 20th. ”

Yan Guozhong pondered, and talked about Renhao's words to the point, and this was also the issue he was most concerned about.

"The fleet will leave the port early tomorrow morning and arrive at the operational sea area on the evening of the 17th. Third, the task force will also be maneuverable in place. And the recent weather forecast also shows that in the next half a month. The weather conditions in the western waters of the Tasman Sea are good, and there will not be much of a problem with the timing of the strike. ”

"Xiao Lei, Ren Hao, I think one of the main questions is, if we prepare for firepower in advance, will MacArthur see through our landing operation arrangements and get enough time to adjust the deployment of troops?"

"If we had been clever in our arrangement, there would have been no problem in this area." Tan Renhao didn't finish speaking, but waited for Lei Shaoqing to speak.

"If we continue to bomb U.S. positions in Brisbane while bombing the U.S. lines near the landing site, and make detailed arrangements for the selection of targets for the bombing, then MacArthur will most likely think that we will still land in Brisbane and that the bombing operation near Sydney is just a front." Lei Shaoqing immediately continued to talk about Renhao's words, "In addition, on the 18th, the landing fleet can be assembled off the coast of Brisbane, so that MacArthur will think even more that we will land in Brisbane, and our bombing campaign in the south is to disperse his forces. If this could be achieved, even if we had blown up the U.S. coastal defenses north of Sydney to the ground, MacArthur would not have sent troops to this side. ”

Yan Guozhong still didn't rush to speak, obviously, Lei Shaoqing's words did not convince him.

"Plus, we can make adjustments to the bombing site smoothly." Tan Renhao added Lei Shaoqing's words, "If the bombing time is 36 hours, then we will mainly bomb the defensive positions in depth behind the US defense line during the day on the 18th, especially the airport, barracks, transportation hubs and other important troop transfer and assembly sites. Previously, this type of target belonged to the second batch of bombing, but now it can be advanced to the first batch of bombing, which can effectively hinder the transfer of US reserves. And the targets of the first batch of bombing, such as permanent firepower points on the coastal defense line, artillery positions, troop concentration points on the front line, etc., can be bombed on the night of the 18th, or even on the 19th. In addition, the 3rd Task Force can also be allowed to carry out close shelling at night, and the 1st Task Force ground artillery formation can also join the operation of the artillery bombardment operation. Such. It is possible to partially compensate for the lack of bombing with shelling. At that time, even if MacArthur was alert, I am afraid that he would not be able to send troops over immediately. ”

"But that still doesn't solve the problem." Yan Guozhong's words were very direct.

Tan Renhao and Lei Shaoqing glanced at each other, they were only thinking about the problem of fleet operations, while Yan Guozhong needed to think about more issues. Including the actions of the Marine Corps, the Air Force, and other troops, it is impossible to make decisions as quickly as Tan Renhao and Lei Shaoqing.

"Another point, if we change the preliminary fire preparations, how much impact will it have on the landing plan? If we need to make a comprehensive adjustment to the landing operation plan, then we will not have enough time, and there will certainly be many problems with the new ground plan. ”

"Old Yan. We have also taken this into account, so I think that it is only the part of the preliminary fire preparation that needs to be adjusted, and the other aspects of the battle plan will not be significantly modified. There must be a certain margin in the plan for the landing of the marines, and changing the landing time to the 20th should not be a big problem, right? ”

"Adjusting the landing time is not a big problem, but there will definitely be changes in ground combat operations after landing."

"We should have enough time to adjust ground combat operations." Lei Shaoqing said it before talking about Renhao.

Yan Guozhong nodded slightly. But he still didn't make up his mind right away.

"If this is really not possible, we will continue to keep the Fifth Task Force in Brisbane, and the Fifth Task Force will be responsible for striking the US forces in Brisbane and monitoring the movement of US troops."

Yan Guozhong frowned slightly and looked towards Tan Renhao. Lei Shaoqing was also a little surprised, during the meal, Tan Renhao did not plan the Fifth Task Force, but now Tan Renhao has made a fuss about the actions of the Fifth Task Force.

"By the 1st Task Force. Task Force 2 is the main fleet and is responsible for carrying out the tasks of preparing for fire in the early stage, while Task Force 3 is acting as a supplementary fleet and performs night shelling tasks. Tan Renhao elaborated on his thoughts, "The Fifth Task Force is still operating near Brisbane, focusing on bombing the US military's coastal defense positions, and the landing fleet is assembled off the coast of Brisbane, so it is very likely that MacArthur will judge that we will still land in Brisbane." If something unexpected happens, MacArthur sends his mobile force south. Then the Fifth Task Force can also bomb it, slow down the southward movement of the US mobile troops, and buy us a day! ”

Yan Guozhong hesitated for a while and said: "This method should be effective, but the problem is that after the landing operation begins, we must at least ensure that there are at least two main fleets on the front line to support the Marine Corps in combat, if the three aircraft carrier task forces all participate in the early ground combat operations." Then after the start of the landing, it will be difficult for us to guarantee that there will be two main task forces to support the marines on the front line. ”

"This problem is relatively easy to solve. When the time comes, the theater fleet can take over part of the mission. Moreover, the 2nd Task Force could go to the vicinity of Lord Howe Island on the night of the 19th to resupply and return to the battlefield on the morning of the 20th. In this way, we can ensure that there are at least two aircraft carrier task forces, plus a theater fleet to support the Marine Corps at the same time. ”

"If Task Force 3 carried out artillery bombardment on the night of the 19th, would it be possible to continue the operation on the 20th?"

"The artillery bombardment on the night of the 19th was mainly undertaken by the ground artillery bombardment formation of the 1st Task Force, and by the 20th, the artillery bombardment formation of the 5th Task Force could also provide close support to the Marine Corps. If this is really not possible, as long as the air threat is not very great, we can send some escort warships from various aircraft carrier battle groups to participate in artillery bombardment operations, so as to ensure that the marines can receive the most timely and direct artillery support. ”

After Tan Renhao's explanation, Yan Guozhong's expression also changed a lot.

"If we are going to land on the 20th, it will definitely be very difficult, especially the organization and coordination of the various units. But in the same way, the trouble of the American army will only be greater than ours, not smaller than ours, so we have no need to worry about the American army at all, what we should worry about is whether the Marine Corps can seize the beachhead on the 20th and let enough troops ashore to establish a defensive line. Tan Renhao used all means to get Yan Guozhong to support his opinion, "And judging from the deployment of the US military, MacArthur's mobile troops will be able to reach the landing area on the 21st and 23rd at the latest." Therefore, it is necessary to get the main forces ashore as quickly as possible, so the landing operation must be successful on the 20th, and the fleet will make every effort to support the marines. The battle on the 20th was also the most crucial, as long as we were able to win the landing operation on the 20th, then the next battle would be much simpler. ”

"It seems that we have no other choice."

Tan Renhao nodded slightly. "Even the two days of preliminary firepower preparation seem to be very hasty, Shaoqing and I, as well as Dongjue, Lao Changhui tried to let the fleet play its maximum combat effectiveness, and the fifth task force must also block the US troops going south in the north, if all fleets can give full play to their combat effectiveness, then there is nothing to worry about this landing operation."

Yan Guozhong laughed. "Okay, when are you leaving?"

"Shaoqing will come up with a detailed strike plan at night, and the fleet will set off early tomorrow morning, striving to reach the operational sea area on the night of the 17th, and carry out bombing missions from the 18th."

"Then I'll help you arrange the departure of the fleet." Yan Guozhong stood up as he spoke, "After Xiao Lei has formulated the strike tasks of each fleet, I will send it to you, and at the latest on the night of the 17th, you will receive a specific list of targets." ”

"Lao Yan, Jiang Zhongmin's ......" Tan Renhao said this to help Lei Shaoqing.

"You don't have to worry about this, I'll contact Jiang Zhongmin directly." Yan Guozhong knew what Tan Renhao was going to say, "The Fifth Task Force is now training the officers and men of the fleet through combat operations, and it is more reasonable for them to take on secondary tasks first. In addition, the marshal has made it clear that I am the commander-in-chief of this campaign, so Jiang Zhongmin must obey my orders. ”

Tan Renhao smiled and nodded, he also breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, then we'll take our leave."

Yan Guozhong sent Tan Renhao and Lei Shaoqing to the door. "I didn't entertain you this time, and after the battle is over, I will hold a banquet for a few of you."

"Lao Yan, you are too polite, we should thank you when the time comes!"

After saying goodbye to Yan Guozhong, Tan Renhao and Lei Shaoqing went to the theater fleet headquarters first. After asking Lei Shaoqing to give him the target list of the US military, Tan Renhao returned to the fleet, he had to prepare in advance, how to say, the first task force is also the first main force on the battlefield.