After the meeting of the naval fleet command, the commanders of the various detachments went back one after another to prepare.

Ye Zugui, commander of the Sixth Fleet, was left behind, and Lin Jianzhang and Li Dingxin still had important matters to discuss with him.

"Your insight just now is very unique, did you have an idea for the attack on the combined fleet this time, or did you think of it on a whim."

Lin Jianzhang was very interested in the tactical tactics of the aircraft carrier battle group that Ye Zugui had just proposed, and the Admiralty had a lot of strategic and tactical battle plans, and he wanted to hear Ye Zugui's thoughts and then decide which tactics to adopt.

Ye Zugui replied: "Lord Qiyu, the idea of humiliation has been a long time. Back in the sea trials of our first aircraft carrier, we sank a target ship for the first time with carrier-based aircraft, and since then, I have felt that the future development of aircraft carriers is very promising, and with His Majesty the Emperor repeatedly mentioning the matter of aircraft carrier battle groups, I am more informed. ”

Lin Jianzhang nodded, and Li Dingxin next to him asked, "So apart from you, what do the other aircraft carrier battle group commanders think?" ”

Ye Zugui replied: "Of course it's the same as my thoughts!" The officers and men of our aircraft carrier battle group are united in their belief that the main force of future naval warfare will be our aircraft carrier battle group, so we are diligently training various tactics every day and waiting for this day to come. ”

Li Dingxin and Lin Jianzhang glanced at each other, both showing satisfied expressions, and the latter said, "What you want is your strength!" ”

Then Lin Jianzhang said: "After going back, we must sum up our experience, after this time, I believe that it will not be long before all countries in Europe and the United States will develop aircraft carriers, so we must continue to maintain a leading edge in this regard." ”

"Yes!" Ye Zugui immediately asked, "My lord, are we going to attack Pearl Harbor?" ”

Lin Jianzhang avoided answering and asked rhetorically: "Why do you think so?" ”

Ye Zugui said: "Compared with the United States, it is obvious that the United States is a greater threat to the empire. If it was because we exposed the aircraft carrier battle group this time, causing the US Navy to be on guard, then we really shouldn't. ”

Seeing Ye Zugui's pleading face, Lin Jianzhang and Li Dingxin glanced at each other, and the latter said: "There is such a perfect thing in this world, don't mention this matter to others when you go back." The attack on Pearl Harbor was only a pre-plan of ours, and it is impossible to determine when it will be carried out. Whether or not the empire goes to war against the United States involves the interests of the empire and even all European countries, and it is not so easy to fight. Rather than waiting in vain, it is better to attack the combined fleet with you this time, which can be regarded as providing valuable practical experience for the Imperial Navy's aircraft carrier battle group to innovate its tactics. Tactically, you're doing the right thing, and strategically it's not necessarily a bad thing. ”

Lin Jianzhang added: "The General Staff believes that this time our aircraft carrier battle group fought alone and wiped out the combined fleet in a few hours, which will definitely deter the European and American powers and let them see the great power of the Imperial Navy." The General Staff believes that after learning of this incident, the United States will certainly not dare to start a war with the empire, so that if our empire attacks the homeland, the United States will not dare to intervene. This is also one of the main reasons why the General Staff decided to implement the anti-Japanese operation plan ahead of schedule. ”

Ye Zugui said: "In any case, we have exposed the strength of the aircraft carrier battle group this time, and the United States will definitely be prepared to develop aircraft carriers and air defense weapon systems." I am afraid that this will make it more difficult for the empire to fight against the United States in the future. ”

Li Dingxin explained: "Even if the United States is prepared, it will not be able to do it in a short time. It will take them a year and a half to refit aircraft carriers, and the US Air Force has only recently begun to develop them, and because they cannot form combat effectiveness in a short period of time, it is not possible for land planes to get the aircraft carrier platform at sea in a year or two, at least it will take a lot of time to train personnel. Our imperial aviation is so strong, and it has taken six or seven years to develop aircraft carriers, do you think the US Navy will be able to do it in a short period of time? ”

Ye Zugui nodded in agreement, obviously he also understood this truth, even if the United States has a very strong industrial capacity and is not weaker than the Chinese Empire, even if they build an aircraft carrier, it will be difficult for its aircraft carrier pilots to be trained in a short period of time, and suitable carrier-based fighters will not be able to meet the requirements, and it will take even more time to form combat effectiveness.

"Even so, the United States will not be able to confront us in terms of the aircraft carrier battle group combat platform in a short period of time, but I also feel that we should take advantage of this good opportunity to quickly take action against the US Navy and nip the US Navy in the bud.

Lin Jianzhang smiled: "Do you think we haven't thought about it? Just a war against the United States is a matter of great importance, and the members of Congress have been thinking about how to make money and make a fortune by taking advantage of the war in Europe all day long, and on the question of whether to go to war with the United States, they have succeeded in convincing His Majesty on the grounds that a war against the United States will lead to a long war of attrition and drag down the economic development of the empire. ”

Ye Zugui asked, "Your Majesty doesn't have any ideas?" ”

Li Dingxin said: "How can Your Majesty's mind be what we can guess? However, His Majesty also seemed to waver, on the one hand vetoing the General Staff's plan to wage war against the United States, and on the other hand, he continued to allow the General Staff to draw up a war plan against the United States, saying that he would wait until the Ming-class battleships were completed before discussing it. ”

Lin Jianzhang added: "The Ming-class battleships will not be completed until the end of next year, and they will be able to enter service at the beginning of the next year, so in this year or so, most of our time will be spent on Yu himself." ”

Ye Zugui sighed: "The Navy is basically no longer a threat. After tomorrow, the remnants of the combined fleet will be wiped out by our battle cruiser detachment, and the Nagato-class battleships and Tango-class battlecruisers under construction will also be destroyed in the shipyard. Covering the landing of the army is completed, but it is only a week's work, how to spend a lot of time in the future? Do you have to sit back and wait for the US Navy to become stronger? ”

Seeing that Ye Zugui was more and more excited, Li Dingxin was worried that Lin Jianzhang would be persuaded and what would happen, so he immediately ended the conversation and said: "Okay, let's not talk about this, Shangfeng has Shangfeng's overall consideration, which is not something we can understand." I see that the people of your aircraft carrier battle group are very excited today, and since you are full of energy, then you will leave tonight, and you can carry out the mission early tomorrow morning. ”

"Chief of Staff!" Ye Zugui paused for a moment, and was about to ask a question, but saw Li Dingxin's face sink and said, "Is there still a problem?" ”

"Report, no more problems! Let's go! Ye Zugui swallowed back the words that followed, turned around and left, and went to organize the Sixth Detachment to carry out the order to bomb the naval base and port shipyard tomorrow.

After Ye Zugui left, Lin Jianzhang asked Li Dingxin: "What, this is sending him away, and you are not in a hurry for a while?" ”

Li Dingxin said: "I think he will talk about it for a while, and you will be so carried away that you may order a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor." ”

Lin Jianzhang was stunned for a moment, and then smiled: "It's not that exaggerated, right?" Besides, today is the celebration of Ye Zugui and their Sixth Fleet, there is no need to be so unkind, let them set off at night, right? ”

Li Dingxin said: "We can't let them get too carried away, after all, the aircraft carrier battle group has been established for too short a time, and whether it can undertake the main task of the decisive battle of the fleet remains to be seen." It's too early to tell, let's see how they do tomorrow. ”

Lin Jianzhang nodded, and also agreed with Li Dingxin's words.

At 9 o'clock that night, all the officers and men of the aircraft carrier battle group of the Sixth Detachment of the Pacific Fleet immediately loaded up their ammunition and sailed out of the Baitan naval base after a short celebratory dinner, heading straight for the mainland. Their operational objectives were to attack the Sasebo Naval Base, Yokosuka Naval Base, Yokosuka Naval Yard, Kawasaki Kobe Shipyard, Mitsubishi Nagasaki Shipyard, Maizuru Factory, Kure Naval Base, Kure Naval Shipyard and other targets in the bright sky, and to focus on attacking the four Nagato-class battleships and four Tango-class battlecruisers under construction, so as to completely destroy the hope of the Namoto Navy.

In Tokyo, the lights in the conference room of the National Assembly Building were kept on, and dozens of cabinet ministers and officials sat around the long tables, all silent, and the atmosphere was somewhat suffocating.

Just a few hours ago, when the combined fleet of the Chinese Empire was attacked by a large number of aircraft from the Chinese Empire, Heihachiro Togo had already sent the situation back to the base camp in time. However, since Heihachiro Togo could not tell whether the planes attacking the Combined Fleet were from the Imperial Chinese Air Force, the Naval Air Force, or the Army Air Force, he temporarily reported the situation to the base camp in a telegram that it had been attacked by a group of aircraft of the Imperial Chinese Air Force.

Since then, the base camp of the Navy, in addition to reporting that they had been attacked by the aircraft of the Chinese Empire, was the last "desperate telegram" before dying.

When Heihachiro Togo sank into the sea with his fleet flagship Fuso, the Tsumoto Naval Base Camp immediately panicked, and then the other three Fuso-class battleships and four Kongo-class battlecruisers were sunk one after another, and a large number of Tsumoto battleships were heavily damaged, causing the Tsumoto Naval Base Camp to suddenly blow up the camp and quickly report the information. However, a few hours later, when the only radios left in the Combined Fleet were Tsushima (the radio handles of the other warships had been blown up) sent back the news that the Combined Fleet had been completely destroyed, the whole Tsushima was in a panic.

Yamamoto's cabinet, together with the War Department, convened an emergency meeting, at which Yamamoto demanded an exact explanation from the Admiralty as to why the Combined Fleet had been attacked by a large fleet of aircraft from the Imperial Chinese Air Force. However, the Admiralty could not explain at all, and could only say that this was the second large-scale operation of the Imperial Chinese Air Force after the air raid on Jeju Island.

"According to our intelligence, although the air force of the Chinese Empire is strong and has been ahead of the aviation weapons of all countries in the world for many years, their range simply cannot reach the position where the combined fleet was located when the accident occurred."

"It may be that the Imperial Chinese Air Force has developed a long-range fighter, and with their aviation industry capabilities, this is entirely possible."

"Impossible! The telegrams sent back by the ships of the Combined Fleet clearly pointed out that the other side had only about 30 large planes among its attack planes, and the others were all small planes, and the range could not be that far. ”

Everyone was arguing, so Yamamoto Gonbei called the general affairs of the special high school to inquire.

The General Affairs Department of the Special High School immediately investigated all relevant information, and finally concluded: "According to our information, at the time of the incident, the fleet of the Imperial Chinese Air Force was assembled in Busan and Ulsan, and it seems that they were preparing to attack Kyushu. Army aviation was assembled in the Jinan Military Region in Shandong, and it was under the constant surveillance of our intelligence officers and was not dispatched. Our intelligence officers hiding in the vicinity of the White Beach Naval Base in the Ryukyus discovered that more than 20 aircraft-carrying cruisers of the Sixth Detachment of the Pacific Fleet of the Imperial Chinese Navy had left the White Beach Naval Base one hour before the incident, and their whereabouts were unknown. The last time to return was after dark, which coincided with the time when our Combined Fleet was attacked by a large number of aircraft. ”

War Minister Yama Youpeng frowned and said, "You don't mean that these aircraft-carrying cruisers of the Chinese Empire sank the main force of our combined fleet, right?" As far as I know, these aircraft-carrying cruisers are nothing more than transport ships for transporting aircraft, basically there are not many armament systems, and the firepower is not very strong, how can it be possible to sink our capital ships? ”

Prince Nohisa, Minister of the Navy, said: "Don't speculate if you don't understand, they all say that it was not sunk by artillery." It was sunk by bombs and torpedoes dropped by hundreds of planes of the Imperial Air Force of China, and from the beginning to the end our people did not see the opposing warship appear, only planes in the sky. ”

Youpeng in Shan County was immediately dissatisfied, but the other party was Prince Nengjiu, so he had to endure it.

When Prince Chihito saw Prince Nohisa reprimanding his subordinates, he was immediately displeased, and came forward and said, "Then you mean that this batch of planes took off from an aircraft-carrying cruiser?" But as far as I know, the aircraft-carrying cruisers of the Chinese Empire were nothing more than transport aircraft, and I have not heard that they were used as airfields. ”

At this time, the general affairs of the special high school explained again: "Your Excellency, my lords, we also have intelligence that the aircraft-carrying cruisers of the Chinese Empire seem to be able to take off and land aircraft. ”

When Chiren heard this, he was immediately displeased: "Why didn't you report it earlier?" ”

"We also just learned that the Chinese Empire seems to have deliberately concealed that their aircraft carriers have always been in Guam and the Pacific region, where our intelligence officers cannot infiltrate, and they first appeared in the Ryukyu Islands, and this is what our intelligence officers know."

Prince Nohisa analyzed at this time: "This aircraft-carrying cruiser can transport a large number of aircraft to a place not far from the combined fleet, and then let the carrier-based aircraft take off from there to attack the main force of our combined fleet, so that it can be explained why our combined fleet will be attacked by a large number of aircraft, because the combined fleet is simply within the range of the opponent's aircraft-carrying cruisers." ”

Prince Chiren immediately scolded: "These damned Shina people will always come up with some unimaginable tactics and weapons, which will make us miscalculate and exhausted. ”

Prince Nohisa said, "Actually, we have thought about it before, but we have not invested in research. Now that the Chinese Empire is the first to sail out, it seems that the huge attack power of this aircraft-carrying cruiser cannot be ignored. ”

Gonbei Yamamoto asked, "Since you have found the reason, please hurry up and find a solution." It is painful that our combined fleet has been wiped out again, but now it is imperative to respond to the next attack on the mainland of the Chinese Empire by its land, sea and air forces. ”

"What are you going to fight without the navy?" Prince Nohisa, the Minister of the Admiralty, was in great despair, and the destruction of the Combined Fleet dealt a major blow to his spirit, and he seemed to be half dead.

Yamamoto Gonbei comforted: "Don't we still have four Nagato-class battleships and four Tango-class battlecruisers?" They are all super crossbow (super god bow) warships, with these eight capital ships, plus some destroyers and submarines, we can still defend the country. ”

Hirobumi Ito, who had been silent, asked, "When will these eight capital ships be completed?" ”

Prince Nohisa replied, "It's the end of the year at the earliest!" But these eight capital ships could not stop the attack of hundreds of capital ships of the Chinese Empire at all, and they were not even enough to plug their teeth. ”

Hirobumi Ito said, "Then we should finish it as soon as possible, so we can't surrender now, right?" If you can have a little strength, that is, a little bargaining chip, you can pay less reparations and cede land after the war. ”

Foreign Minister Lin Dong asked, "Ito-kun, you can't be ready to sue for peace, right?" ”

Only then did everyone react and immediately looked at Ito Hirobumi.

Ito Hirobumi smiled bitterly, "The current situation is very unfavorable for us. The main forces of the four divisions of the army were burned alive on Jeju Island, and the main forces of the navy were completely annihilated in the East China Sea, how many chips do we have for resistance? In addition, our ally the United States seems to be even more shameless, they watch us being bullied but don't care, the two major military blocs in Europe are afraid of the military power of the Chinese Empire and don't want to offend, it is impossible for us to join either camp, in this case, how many chips do we have? ”

"Damn Yankees!"

Everyone had to scold the United States, compared to the naked bullying behavior of the Chinese Empire, the United States would not save it when it saw death, and even hoped to sacrifice the original in exchange for the short-term peace of the United States, which made them despise and anger even more.

"Have you contacted the U.S. side? Have they changed their position? ”

Yamamoto Gonbei still looked at Lin Dong and Ito Hirobumi with illusions, the former shook his head, and the latter said: "The United States has said that their military strength is not yet able to compete with the Chinese Empire, so they need time to prepare. They asked us to be patient for a while, and when they had finished their preparations, they would naturally come back to reinforce us. ”

"It's pure fart!" Prince Chiren immediately scolded: "These untrustworthy Yankees want to sacrifice us in exchange for their living space and use us to drag down the Chinese Empire, and their appeasement policy will be regretted sooner or later." ”

The word "appeasement" was first derived from the "Three Kingdoms? Wu Zhi? Lu Xun's Biography": "Jun Qimao shows his virtues, cultivates his achievements, respects the king's orders, and appeases the Quartet." However, in the 20th century, the meaning of "appeasement" as a policy changed dramatically, and countries expressed it as a practice of appeasement.

"Americans are always whimsical, thinking that by sacrificing us, they can stop the Chinese Empire. Didn't they realize that the Chinese Empire had deployed a large number of troops around the United States, blockading the United States like an island chain? The United States has so much wealth, if I were the emperor of the Chinese Empire, I would definitely not let the United States go. Slaughtering the United States with one knife is equivalent to 10 years less struggle for the people, and sacrificing the United States once is 50 years less struggle. ”

Ito Hirobumi nodded, shook his head again, and said, "Not exactly! I thought about it before and after, although the military strength of the United States has developed very rapidly in recent years, the military strength of the Chinese Empire has developed even faster, and the United States is indeed not an opponent of the Chinese Empire now. In addition, the Chinese Empire dispatched a powerful concealed weapon-carrying cruiser this time, and it is estimated that the United States will not dare to rashly start a war against China. ”

"Don't talk for the Americans!" Lin Dong said: "Our top priority now is how to deal with the Imperial Chinese Navy, the sea dominance must be theirs, and if I guess correctly, they will definitely blockade us like the British blockade, and even with the support of the navy, their land will land on the Imperial Territory, and we have to hurry up and be prepared." ”

"The empire has been put under full martial law, and all coastal cities and military facilities have entered a state of combat. However, without the support of the navy, it is difficult for the coastal defense system to be effective, and we have to consider the possible surnames of the landing of the Imperial Chinese Army on our homeland, and prepare for a long-term war of resistance against China. ”

Hirobumi Ito suddenly asked, "How is the defense of Tokyo Bay?" Can you block the enemy? ”

"How?" Prince Noh said: "Our entire combined fleet wiped out the Chinese Empire's aircraft-carrying cruiser battle group in two hours, and we didn't even have the strength to fight back?" The West Sea Fleet in Tokyo Bay could not withstand it for half an hour. Without a naval guard, the artillery batteries on land alone could not stop the attack of the enemy's super-crossbow-class battleships. ”

Then Prince Neng Jiu paused and asked rhetorically, "Do you know the power of the 17-inch main gun of the Yuan-class battleship of the Imperial Chinese Navy?" A single shell weighs one and a half tons, and a single shot can knock down our current 30-story Capitol. ”

Then he looked at Prince Chiren again and said, "Without the navy as a meat shield, the army will be a river of blood in front of this kind of super warship, and no number of people will be able to defend the coastline." ”

Although Prince Chihito was dissatisfied with Prince Nohisa's praise of the important surname of the navy in front of him, he had to admit that this was the truth.

Seeing that Prince Chihito did not refute for the first time, everyone also understood that what Prince Nohisa said was correct, and they were shocked. In particular, the officials, who had not seen the cruelty of war, had goosebumps all over their bodies.

"Will this shell be able to hit our Capitol?"

"What do you say?"

Everyone was silent for a moment, and then Lin Dong said, "Let's move the capital, right?" ”

"Moving the capital? That's a great idea! Yamamoto Gonbei smiled bitterly and said, "Then where do you say we are moving to?" ”

Lin Dong said: "How is Kyoto? It was the former capital, and it was acceptable for the people to move there. ”

Prince Nohisa snorted coldly: "Kyoto? Isn't it close to the sea? Osaka Bay is the base of heavy industry in the Empire, and it must be the key target of the Imperial Chinese Navy, and it will be easier to go up the Osaka River. ”

Lin Dong didn't understand military affairs, and he was immediately embarrassed.

"Move what?" Ito Hirobumi immediately objected, and said, "Are you afraid of this before you hit the doorstep?" The Chinese Empire would not necessarily attack the mainland itself. Besides, even if you attack the mainland of Japan, it will have to start from Kyushu Island. After all, it was close to the Korean Peninsula, and it was easier for the troops of the Chinese Empire to survive the Korean seafood and land on the mainland. ”

Yamamoto Gonbei asked Prince Xiang Chihito, "What do you think?" ”

Prince Chiren thought for a moment and replied, "It's really not appropriate to move the capital now!" Before that time, the rash move of the capital would only make the emperor [***] people lose their fighting spirit. However, we have to guard against it, the Chinese Empire has always played its cards out of common sense, and is especially keen on sneak attacks, and it cannot be ruled out that they will suddenly attack Tokyo. ”

Hirobumi Ito nodded, "That's right! From what I know about the Chinese Empire, they like to achieve maximum gains at the lowest cost. The raid on Tokyo, once successful, will suddenly collapse the empire, then there will be no suspense in this war, and it will definitely end in a short time. At that time, even if the American side is ready, it will not be able to save us. ”

Gonbei Yamamoto asked, "What do you mean?" ”

Ito Hirobumi looked at Blazing Ren, who nodded, so Ito Hirobumi said, "Let's set up a companion capital first, right?" As soon as something happens in Tokyo, we will move to the capital as soon as possible, so that the empire's war of resistance against China can continue. ”

Gonbei Yamamoto asked again: "Now that our empire has fully shifted to war mode, based on the military point of view, where do you think our accompaniment should be chosen?" ”

The officials of the navy and army, such as Chihito and Nohisa, studied it, and finally Prince Chihito replied: "The territory of the empire is small and long, facing the sea on all sides, and the depth is not large. Nagano, the widest part of the island of Honshu, requires a lot of effort to land the Imperial Chinese Navy from the north or south. In addition, Nagano is the roof of the main archipelago, with the highest altitude and dangerous terrain, making it a good choice for a long-term war of resistance against China. ”

Gonbei Yamamoto consulted with several other ministers, and finally decided to choose Nagano as the accompanying capital, preparing for the upcoming all-out war of resistance against China.

That night, Gonbei Yamamoto and Prince Chihito, as well as the ministers of civil and military affairs, went to the palace to meet Emperor Taisho and ask Emperor Taisho for his approval to establish a companion capital.

Emperor Taisho was so sad that he thought that he could enjoy a lifetime of happiness as an emperor, but he didn't expect that the heart of the Chinese empire to destroy made him tremble all day long since the time of the crown prince. However, his father, Emperor Meiji, died at the most critical time, leaving a lot of messes to deal with with him, which made the inexperienced Taisho extremely annoyed. Just in time for the outbreak of the Third Sino-Chinese War, the ministers of civil and military affairs demanded that the capital be moved, which made the majesty of the emperor suddenly swept away.

Helpless, in order to save his surname, he can't stick to Tokyo at that time, right? Emperor Taisho then agreed to the proposal to establish Nagano as a companion capital and allowed the capital to be moved if necessary.

(To be continued)