In the early morning, the port of Kuwait was crowded with the Victory ship from China, which was a wartime standard ship, limited by the size of the domestic dock, so the unladen displacement was about 1,000 tons smaller than that of the American Liberty ship, and there were only four cargo holds. It can carry 5,000 tons of bulk cargo alone, or 1,300 Hanjiang Jeeps / or 340 Type 31 tanks / or 200 million rounds of ammunition, which can be stuffed into a standard armored regiment of the Chinese Army if mixed together.

The Victory ship project is spearheaded by the Navy and manufactured by five civilian shipyards in the country. Because too many dockyards were occupied by the navy, the army and air forces also ate up a lot of manufacturing capacity, and the total industrial scale did not reach the level of the United States, a total of 413 ships were built in the more than two years of the war. Fortunately, Yang Qiu actively developed ocean-going shipping before the war, and the total tonnage was squeezed into the top three in the world in 1937, and after the Japanese army went south, it purchased millions of tons of British and French ships stranded in the Far East, and the wartime losses were far less than expected, so the shipping capacity was not much worse than the British and American countries that were currently threatened by German submarines. Moreover, the standard of the victory wheel is higher than that of the free wheel, all of which adopt a unified oil-fired boiler, steam turbine and double propeller design, and the speed is 13 knots. The longer the slipway time is the one with high technology, which is one of the reasons for limiting production. The reason for the construction of the standard wheel is more important to test the industrial capacity after twenty years of standardized roads. In addition to the Shengli ship, the ore standard ship and the oil standard ship are also being built in China at the same time, but both of these tonnages are more than 30,000 tons, so the manufacturing volume is very small, mainly used to test whether super-large ships can also be built in standardized batches.

Although ocean-going vessels have complete loading and unloading equipment such as cranes, it is also a difficult task to unload hundreds of thousands of tons of materials. Moreover, after the opening of Malacca, the Logistics Department of the General Staff had already drawn up a plan for large-scale seaborne replenishment, according to which the second convoy had already passed through the Andaman Sea at this moment, and even the third group had begun to assemble in Singapore, arriving in the Persian Gulf four weeks later at the latest.

Unprecedented maritime reinforcements required a large number of trucks to be transferred. Fortunately, the Dodge six-wheeled heavy truck aided by the United States has arrived, so Bai Chongxi lined up almost all the trucks in his hand to transfer supplies.

"Divisional commander! Haha, I'm looking forward to you back. ”

As soon as Li Jin got off the boat, a slap came from behind. Turning his head, he saw that it was Zhao Sanbiao and Ran Nanxuan, who were killed from Tehran with him to protect the Iranian king. "Good boy, they're all majors." I haven't seen him for more than half a year, and he is very happy to see his acquaintances at first glance. Looking at Zhao Sanbiao's shoulders, he already had the rank of major, and Ran Nanxuan was also replaced by a lieutenant colonel.

"That's not as good as you, the division commander, tell me, isn't the battle of the Urals very painful?" Zhao Sanbiao, who has a straightforward personality, pulled Li Jin and asked about the situation of last year's counterattack in Central Asia. Originally. In order to train officers, Li Jin and some officers of the Persian Gulf Theater were transferred back to the Central Asian Theater last year to participate in the Kostanay Campaign in the Urals. This transfer was a turning point in his military career, and he saw real armored combat. After the Battle of Singapore, his original Independent Armored Regiment was officially reorganized into the Army's 109th Armored Division, and he himself was promoted to colonel and returned to the Persian Gulf as division commander.

"You just can't change your monkey temper, what's the hurry." Ran Nanxuan pulled away Zhao Sanbiao with a smile and pulled Li Jin into the jeep: "Let's talk on the road, the headquarters has already called, and there will be a meeting in Ahvaz at ten o'clock." ”

After the big jeep drove onto the Basra road. Li Jin saw that this road was almost entirely full of Allied vehicles, most of which were trucks of the Chinese Persian Gulf Army traveling between Kuwait and Ahvaz, and there were also many British, American, and even French vehicles. Among them, tank trucks are the majority. Because both Yang Qiu and the Saudi government have promised to ensure oil supplies in the Middle East and North Africa. These subtle changes were the role of the Cape Town Conference, when the Allies finally began to cooperate in the true sense of the word. Although there are still contradictions and even hostility between the parties. But just like this Anglo-American-controlled choke road, the medium ** car is unimpeded all the way. This kind of cooperation brought great changes to the Allied forces, and also allowed China, the United States, and Britain and the 70 percent of the world's resources, troops, and industrial capacity under their control to be fully utilized. Therefore, many optimistic military commentators believe that the Allies will be able to regain the initiative in half a year at most.

When passing through the Basra Bridge, more than a dozen tall M4 tanks at the head of the bridge attracted Li Jin's attention. "Don't look at it, it's all shows." Zhao Sanbiao was quite disdainful of the M4 tank, and chattered: "The gasoline engine is easy to catch fire, the front is too thin, the tilt is insufficient, and the steel plate is not lined inside, so it can't be prevented from armor fragments." There is no periscope, the 75 gun is not powerful enough, and the Americans themselves say that they are ready to change to the latest 76 gun, anyway, one battalion of mine will fight him at least one regiment! However, the space in the car is quite spacious and comfortable. Made! These American young masters still think that the war is a drive, and they are so comfortable. ”

"As long as you can." Ran Nanxuan kicked him and asked, "Division commander, didn't you say that a batch of new tanks was transported, why didn't you see the dock?" Will we change our division? ”

Li Jin said: "The tanks and armored vehicles are all arranged to be unloaded at the port of Shahpur, and this batch of more than 2,000 is transported, all of which are new and improved types. I've seen the list, and our division will also change its outfit this time. ”

"It's great, I can finally have a good fight." As soon as he heard that he was going to change his clothes, Zhao Sanbiao was so excited that he clenched his fists. Although the Type 31 tank can still fight in the Persian Gulf region, the Soviet Army has also added a lot of new anti-tank weapons such as T34/85, Su100 and ZIS-3/76 during this time, and Iran is all mountainous, so the advantage of the Type 31 tank is slowly disappearing, and the troops are in urgent need of the "Siberian Tiger" main battle tank. Of course, the biggest problem plaguing the Persian Gulf theater is logistics, the previous few supply channels could only ensure daily life and food, and simply could not fight a campaign-level war of attrition, now that the shipping lanes are open, the liberation of Tehran and the whole of Iran is just around the corner.

After entering the Ahvaz base, it was already crowded, and the army, navy, and air force stationed in the Persian Gulf and Iran and other ** officials were all together. In the Persian Gulf landing campaign, the phrase "there are no tanks in front of our battalion" made Li Jin famous all over the world, and he was called the "Tiger of Persia", plus he served as an armored instructor in Tehran before the war, and even many Iranian officers were his students back then, so everyone stepped forward to greet him.

Finally got rid of the entertainment, and when the three of them were about to report to the headquarters, the chief of staff, Li Mingrui, suddenly walked out of it, and stopped the three of them without waiting for him to salute: "Don't salute, I just have a task for you." ”

"Mission?" Li Jin was stunned for a moment, looked at Ran Nanxuan, who was also full of doubts, and asked, "Chief of Staff." I just got off the boat. Besides, we haven't changed our clothes yet, so isn't it too early for me to attack Tehran? ”

"Who told you to attack Tehran?" Li Ruiming's expression became serious, his eyes swept over the three of them, and after a pause, he exhaled: "I just received the news that Germany and the Soviet Union have declared war on Turkey!" ”

"War declared?! The Germans crossed the border? How many troops, how many tanks? Li Jin, who has been concerned about the war situation in the Middle East, hurriedly asked for details, but Li Mingrui waved his hand: "It's not the German army that attacked, it was the Soviet army!" ”

"Soviet troops?!"

Not to mention Li Jin, who had just come back, the officers who came around also shouted in surprise, Li Mingrui nodded and said heavily: "Just half an hour ago." The Soviet Black Sea Fleet made a surprise attack on the Turkish port of Erely on the Black Sea, sinking the battlecruiser Stern and three destroyers, and sending a large number of transport planes to drop paratroopers. The Turkish side said that at least 8,000 Soviet paratroopers were airborne around the harbor, and an unknown number of Soviet paratroopers were also found in Erzurum, and 2 Soviet tank divisions and 5 infantry divisions crossed the border in the direction of Batumi! ”

"The Soviets attacked first." The astonishing news exploded in the ears of the officers, and the entrance of the headquarters fell silent for a moment. No one expected that when everyone focused on the 1.5 million German-Italian troops and guessed when the Germans would attack Turkey. The Soviets would suddenly rise up and attack ahead of the Germans. It's not normal! Stalin would not be stupid enough to take the initiative to get involved in Turkey and then fight a three-front war with China, the United States and Britain, right?! Li Mingrui quickly solved everyone's doubts, and said in a deep voice: "It's basically certain now!" The Soviets and Germany had formed an alliance, and the whole plan for attacking Turkey had been agreed on in the alliance negotiations. So we're all fooled! The German attack on Egypt was to distract attention! Gathering in Greece is also a distraction! It was the Soviet army that really kicked the door! ”

Li Jin nodded silently, it would not be unusual if Deyi did this, but Su De! You know, the whole world knows that Hitler and Stalin didn't deal with each other very well. The Soviet-German alliance was completely forced by the situation. Because of this delicate relationship, the Allied intelligence services believed that the pride of the German army would never allow the Soviets to enter Turkey before them, and at most they would attack from Greece and the Caucasus at the same time. But what about now?! Li Jin had no doubts. The Soviet army did not have the ability to control such a large-scale airborne battle, and it must have been supported by the Luftwaffe. Moreover, with the current situation of the Soviet Union, it is impossible to take the initiative to fall into the whirlpool of Turkey, so the Soviet surprise attack was completely deliberately arranged by Germany, using itself to attract the Allies and let the Soviet army help itself to open the door to the Asia Minor Peninsula! It can also be used to test whether Stalin is truly an alliance, it is really killing two birds with one stone!

Being able to make such a big political concession can also show that Stalin was really forced into a corner by Yang Qiu. It is foreseeable that within two or three days at most, the German Army Group B stationed in Romania will rush into Turkey by planes and ships from the port of Ereli and other places kicked away by the Soviet troops. As long as the back road to Istanbul is cut off, the Greek Army Group Southeast will be able to quickly cross the Eurasian land bridge without fighting at all.

"Chief of Staff, what do you want me to do?" After thinking clearly, Li Jin took a deep breath and puffed up his chest.

"The commander has ordered you to take the 109th Armored Division, the 118th Light Armored Division, and the 69th Infantry Division to Diyala Province, northeast of Baghdad, within three days, in order to cooperate with the US army to attack Kirkuk and prevent the Soviet Army from reinforcing Kirkuk from Tabriz, and then threatening Turkey. So your main task is to cut off the Soviet forces, and then make a detour to the north back to the Tabriz flank. Li Mingrui said: "Don't worry, we have already communicated with the US military. You just have to do your job, and the rest of the Americans will figure it out themselves. As for the change of clothes, you can rest assured, I will also send someone to send the equipment over as soon as possible. ”

"Yes!" After Li Jin saluted, he immediately threw away his burden to prepare for the departure.

At this time, the Soviet Union attacked Turkey before Germany, and the news of Hitler's kicking on the door had spread all over the world, and Stalin's "bearing the burden of humiliation" even made Churchill gasp. Although the intelligence of the Soviet-German alliance negotiations is not uncommon, and the British and the United States have also made plans, they also did not expect that it was the Soviet army that attacked first, just like Li Jin! The airborne combat capability displayed by the Soviet army shocked the two countries even more, because all previous intelligence said that the Soviet army only had less than 300 authorized production of Ju52 transport aircraft, and did not have the ability to organize such a large airborne operation.

The first to react was Churchill, and when Roosevelt was still drafting a declaration of war against the Soviet Union, he personally called Auchinleck and ordered the British Jordanian regiment, which had just captured Syria, to enter Turkey immediately. Vice Admiral McEnany, commander of the US Middle East Theater of Operations, also immediately stopped his previous order to make a detour from Syria, allowing 500,000 US troops in Cyprus to cross the strait directly and land at Adana in southern Turkey, and dispatched army aviation to bomb the Black Sea Fleet and the Soviet Army in an all-out manner. In order to ensure the safety of hundreds of thousands of American troops crossing the sea, he also sent telegrams to the British Mediterranean Fleet and the US Sixth Task Force, asking the navy to blockade the waters west of Cyprus.

But Cunningham was facing two troubles at this time, one was that Tubrug needed the support of the fleet, and the other was that the battleship "Veneto", which he regarded as a thorn in his side, was actually heading for Crete. The destruction of the Italian Navy also meant that there was no opponent in the Mediterranean, so Cunningham discussed with Mitchell, the commander of the US Sixth Fleet, and decided to let the Royal Navy stay in North Africa and continue to cooperate with the army to defend Tubrug, and at the same time seduce the Italian fleet to attack. In addition to leaving two Borg-class escort aircraft carriers to cooperate with the Royal Navy, Mitchell left the remaining six aircraft carriers to rush back to Cyprus to protect the army, but two will secretly return on the way, retreat to the south of Cyprus, and wait for Cunningham to entangle the Italian fleet and give them a fatal blow!

As soon as Cunningham had planned, the two fleets immediately split their forces. But he didn't expect that the cunning Campuoni had no intention of fighting at all, he was just covering for 15 German VII submarines led by Wolfgangrus who secretly entered the Mediterranean.

When Mitchell led the 6th Task Force to set off for the return voyage, 72 German FW190 fighters, 88 JU88s, and 28 DO-217 bombers of the 40th Bombardment Aviation Regiment also entered Crete with 3 Fritz X radio-guided bombs and 46 HS-293A0 bombs that had just been developed, so that the number of German aircraft around Turkey had increased to 1,600. At the same time, the Soviet air force, which "endured humiliation and burden" to push the Germans open the door to the peninsula, also sharpened their knives, and 460 Lager-3 fighters and 560 IL-2 attack planes of the newly built Caucasian 17th and 25th Caucasian Aviation Divisions of the Soviet Army stationed in Batumi and Armenia were also on standby.

The outbreak of a naval and air war on the peninsula of Asia Minor...... (To be continued......)