When Fletcher's fleet was struck, Fletcher broke the radio silence and sent a message to the Navy Command. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 info And the command of the Navy quickly forwarded the message to Spruance.

After receiving the telegram from the command of the Navy, Spruance immediately confirmed his previous judgment. The Ming fleet that has been going around in circles with them is not their main force. Under these circumstances, Spruance immediately made up his mind to defeat his immediate enemy by surprise.

Spruance was keenly aware that Fletcher was very likely to be defeated, and once he waited for the main force of the Ming navy that had defeated Fletcher to arrive, he would be in danger. In this case, Spruance chose to give it a go.

To maintain concealment, Spruance sent a long-range seaplane with his message to Johnston Atoll, using the island's radio station to send the encrypted message to the Pacific Fleet command in San Diego.

However, the seaplane almost lost its flight due to a faulty instrument on the way, wasting a lot of time. After flying to Johnston Atoll, we encountered a lot of trouble. Eventually, it took a lot of time to get the telegram out.

Although the Ming Naval Intelligence Department also intercepted this telegram, it was unable to determine what it meant in a short period of time. The telegram did not play its due value.

On the morning of November 4, 1941, Spruance, who was in the bridge of the USS Essex, was frowning and thinking about the strange performance of the Ming fleet in the distance, but his thoughts were interrupted by the communications staff officer who suddenly broke into the bridge.

"Sir!" The communications staff officer, who looked a little panicked, quickly came to Spruance's side with a telegram in his hand, and shouted loudly: "I just received a telegram from the Pacific Fleet Command, the 59th Task Force under the command of General Fletcher was suddenly attacked by the superior Ming naval fleet more than an hour ago, and the two sides are fighting fiercely at this moment!" ”

"Huh!" With a thud, Spruance abruptly stood up from his seat. The US officers and men on the bridge who heard the words of the communications staff officer also looked at each other in surprise.

Everyone thought that the main force of the Pacific Fleet of the Ming Navy was going in circles with their own fleet, how could they suddenly run thousands of miles away to attack the 59th Task Force? Did they fly over?

"I see." Spruance, who hurriedly read the message, did not have a panicked and surprised expression, and after a gentle sigh of relief, he said softly, "I finally understand." ”

Spruance's chief of staff, Rickman. Kelly. Rear Admiral Turner stepped forward to take the telegram and read it, and asked with a look of shock on his face, "How is this possible?!" Isn't the main force of the Daming Pacific Fleet near us? ”

"What's impossible?" Spruance turned to the nautical table, leaned over to look at the charts, and said in a deep voice, "There is only a fleet of equal strength to us near us, and they are a decoy fleet used to contain us and make us mistakenly think that they are the main force." The real main force of the Daming Pacific Fleet is now attacking Fletcher. If I'm not mistaken, Fletcher is going to be out of luck this time. ”

After drawing on the chart with a pencil and ruler for a while, Spruance straightened up, threw away the pencil in his hand, sighed, and said, "When Fletcher is eaten, the main fleet of the Ming Navy will go south at full speed to cooperate with the fleet near us and eat us." Finally, there's Frederick. They want to use their strength to break each one! ”

"So what are we going to do?" Turner, who hadn't digested the shocking news yet, looked at Spruance and asked out loud.

This is the time for the commander to make a decision. And how you decide will determine the course of the campaign. This is where the importance of front-line commanders lies. Choose well, get twice the result with half the effort. If you don't choose well, you will have to pay a heavy price.

"We now have two options." Spruance turned and leaned back on the nautical table, folded his arms around his chest, and said, "The first is to abandon Johnston Atoll and go south at full speed to Kiribati to join Halsey." As for whether to fight the main fleet of the Ming Navy together after the convergence, or to end the campaign and retreat to the west coast, it is up to the Pacific Fleet Command to arrange. ”

After a pause, Spruance continued, "But I personally think that this battle is so important that neither the Pacific Fleet, nor the Admiralty, nor even Mr. President, will allow us to retreat." And after losing nearly a third of his strength and fleeing back to the West Coast, this kind of thing is not acceptable to everyone anyway. Because we will lose our strategic resistance. ”

"But we don't have enough strength." Turner opened his mouth in confusion: "Even after we join up with General Halsey, it will be difficult to fight against the main force of the Daming Pacific Ship. It was already a little lacking, but after losing General Fletcher's 59th Task Force, it was even more difficult to fight. ”

"It's not that it's hard to fight." Spruance shook his head, "It's basically a lost loss, unless there's a miracle." But we can't put our hopes on miracles. That's not what a military man should do. ”

"What about the other option?" A dark-looking Turner was silent for a moment before asking.

Spruance suddenly smiled and said, "Another option is for us to take the initiative!" ”

"Take the initiative?" The officers and men on the bridge all looked at Spruance in surprise, not understanding what he meant by taking the initiative.

"I've been analyzing all aspects of intelligence before, and I always feel that the Ming fleet on the other side is very strange. Obviously, they have an absolute advantage in strength, but their preference seems to be avoiding us. Now I know, because they are not the main fleet. Spruance smiled and said, "I think their quality is not much different from ours, which means we have a chance to take the initiative to beat them." As long as we defeat the opposing fleet, then we will have the ability to compete with the main fleet of the Ming Navy that is exhausted after a battle with Fletcher! ”

"I see." Turner nodded vigorously, "Sir, should we report to the Pacific Fleet?" ”

"Report it, of course." Spruance narrowed his eyes and whispered, "Not now, though. We can't break the radio silence at this time. We can't let the Ming people on the other side perceive that we are preparing to attack. ”

After a pause, Spruance continued, "The fleet continues to maintain the strictest radio silence, ordering the USS Salt Lake City to send a seaplane with a message to Johnston Atoll to send a message to the Pacific Fleet command on the island's Marine Corps radio." ”

"Yes, sir."

......

"Lin Luo and Han Dongwen have done it." Hundreds of nautical miles away, the First Air Fleet commanded by Tong Haifeng was really heading northeast at a cruising speed of fifteen knots. They only need to involve Spruance in the distance, and they don't need to take the initiative to attack.

"They're overwhelmingly superior in every way, and they're raiding. There is a great chance that this attack will achieve brilliant results. The chief of staff on the side raised his hand and pushed his glasses and said softly.

"Hmm." Tong Haifeng, who was not wearing a military hat, combed his hair meticulously, and was shiny after applying hairspray, nodded, and said, "When they defeat Fletcher and rush over to join us, then the next battle will be simple." ”

It was indeed simple, the main forces of the entire Pacific Fleet went to deal with Spruance, and then Halsey. No matter who commands, there is no chance of a comeback. At that time, the Americans, who had lost the main force of their navy, would open the door to the entire West Coast, and the Ming army would directly threaten the American continent. As long as he thinks of that kind of strategic advantage, Tong Haifeng will nod with satisfaction. But before he could do that, he had to hold on to Spruance and keep him from escaping.

"How's Spruance doing?" After a while, Tong Haifeng asked out loud.

"According to the reconnaissance aircraft last night, Spruance's fleet is still swimming near this area." The chief of staff came to the nautical table, pointed to a certain area of the sea on the chart, and said: "After calculating their speed and time, it is roughly judged that they are still moving near this sea area." ”

After a pause, the chief of staff continued, "The reconnaissance plane that was released before dawn should be almost in the vicinity by now, and it won't be long before we can get accurate information." ”

"Good." Tong Haifeng looked at the chart and said, "We must firmly hold on to Spruance, and we must not let him run away." ”

"Woo~~~" The chief of staff was about to say something when a terrible siren suddenly sounded from the fleet. Tong Haifeng looked stunned, picked up the binoculars and turned to look at the sky.

In the distant clouds, a number of small black dots are constantly shuttling back and forth, from time to time from the clouds. Moments later, a US reconnaissance plane was forced out of the clouds by the air defense fighters of the Daming Navy. Then it fell into the sea in black smoke under the siege of several anti-aircraft fighters.

"Did you send a telegram?" Tong Haifeng put down the binoculars, turned around and asked with a frown.

"The Radio Reconnaissance Division reported that unidentified radio waves were detected emanating from the airspace near our fleet." An operations staff officer put down the phone in his hand and spoke.

"Humph!" Tong Haifeng snorted coldly, narrowed his eyes slightly, and said, "The radar is turned on, and the air defense fighters are patrolling." The fleet turned fifteen degrees north, and the whole fleet accelerated to twenty-one knots. ”

"Sir." When the chief of staff heard this, he stepped forward and asked, "If the radar is turned on now, it may expose our target." ”

"The message has already been sent, what else is there to hide?" Tong Haifeng glanced at his chief of staff and said in a cold voice, "Do what I order." (To be continued.) )