The topography of Sicily is mainly mountainous, with the exception of some plains along the coast, which are mostly rugged and mountainous. At the same time, the traffic conditions are also relatively poor, and many areas of the island are in an undeveloped state. The 10 infantry divisions of the Chinese Army only occupied the coastal plains after they landed on the island, and for some Italian troops who fled to the depths of the island, they only sent small units mainly reconnaissance troops to pursue them, and the rest of the troops were stationed in the plains of the island. At the same time, most of the main forces are cooperating with the engineering troops in the construction of field airfields and ports for mooring submarines.

In order to facilitate the commander's defensive operations on Sicily, with the consent of the Imperial Emperor Wang Yuze, the Imperial Army General Zhou Shun was appointed as the commander of the Mediterranean theater of operations, with full responsibility for the battle in the Mediterranean direction. In fact, it will be a defensive operation for a long time. The Indian Ocean Fleet will also return to the Indian Ocean to prepare for an attack on India and Australia, after assisting the defenders in Sicily in defeating the combined British and French naval fleets. At this time, the Indian Peninsula coincided with the rainy season, and poor transportation was not conducive to the Chinese army's heavy equipment march, so the war against India had to wait until after the rainy season was over. And during this time, the Indian Ocean Fleet was just in time to cooperate with the defenders of Sicily to defeat the combined fleet of the British and French navies. After the end of the war, the main force of the fleet withdrew to the Indian Ocean, leaving only a small fleet in the Mediterranean. After the combined fleet of the British and French navies suffered a heavy loss again, the British navy probably did not dare to attack Sicily lightly, and the situation in the Mediterranean Sea would also enter a period of stability.

The western Sicilian city of Marsala became the headquarters of the Mediterranean theater of operations. Admiral Zhou Shun arrived here with the landing troops. At the moment, the outskirts of Marsala have become a busy construction site. Field airfields are being built here by engineering troops. The Navy's aviation will be the main force in dealing with the combined ship fleet of the British and French navies this time, and only after the combined fleet of the British and French navies has been defeated will there be enough time to build a regular airfield on the island. In addition, the base of the submarine force was also started in Trapani, 25 kilometers north of Marsala.

The Navy's aviation, in addition to carrier-based aviation, also has shore-based aviation, and this time it was the Navy's shore-based aviation that was dispatched to Sicily, with a total of 240 fighters from two wings transported to Sicily by guò transport ships, loaded and unloaded, and then assembled. The range of the current fighters is still relatively short, and the effective combat radius is only 200 kilometers, and it is not possible to fly directly from China to Sicily. After the army troops boarded the ship, the warplanes of the two wings of the Navy also came on board and arrived in Marsala on July 30. The ground crew immediately assembled the planes, and the pilots began to familiarize themselves with the environment.

Now the time is not far off for the combined fleet of the Anglo-French Navy to enter the Mediterranean. According to information received by the Chinese side, the British Navy's reconstituted Mediterranean Fleet will depart from the British Southern Naval Base Portsmouth Military Port within a week and head to the Mediterranean, where it will enter the British Naval Base in Gibraltar. The French Navy would then go to Gibraltar to join the British Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, after which they would launch an attack on Sicily.

Attending the meeting were Lieutenant General Changjiang Qiao, chief of staff of the theater, Admiral Li Haitao, commander of the Indian Ocean Fleet, Lieutenant General Tang Hongtao, commander of the 8th Marine Division, Major General Chen Guoguo, commander of the 1st Wing of the Naval Air Force, Major General Cai Shudong, commander of the 4th Wing, and several division commanders of the army.

"Ladies and gentlemen, according to information from the General Staff, the rebuilt Mediterranean Fleet of the British Navy has been formed in Portsmouth. Admiral Jericho served as commander, and Roslyn. Vice Admiral Wells served as Chief of Staff. After forming a joint fleet with the French Navy, the two men will also serve as commander and chief of staff of the combined fleet, respectively, and the deputy commander will be Admiral Palmiro of the French Navy. This time, the British Navy's Mediterranean Fleet was strong, including 10 battleships and three battle cruisers, plus three battleships of the French Navy, and the entire combined fleet would have 16 capital ships. But I believe that the final victory will definitely be ours! Admiral Zhou Shun said. After being appointed commander of the Mediterranean theater, he was summoned by Cai Yun, the chief of the General Staff, and Cai Yun talked with him for two hours. During this period, Cai Yun clearly told him that the warplanes and submarines of the naval aviation would be the most advantageous weapons in the Mediterranean theater. As long as these two forces played normally, it would not have been possible for the enemy to land in Sicily. The task of the army was mainly to prepare for the Italian direction. After all, the Strait of Messina is only three kilometers wide, and it is not very difficult to expand the strait and land. As a result, Admiral Zhou Shun deployed three infantry divisions near the Strait of Messina.

The participants were all smiling, and although the enemy was strong, in their eyes, they were like a chicken-and-tile dog. As long as there are no accidents, such as extreme weather, which prevents the fighters of the naval aviation from taking off for battle, the fighters of the two wings are enough to bury all the capital ships of the combined fleet. The establishment of the Chinese naval aviation is the same as that of the army, with a total of one hundred and twenty fighters in each wing, including a group of 40 'Puffin, fighters, a group of 40 C' Ospreys, torpedo attack aircraft, and a group of HBD' Fish Eagles, dive bombers. Because the horizontal bomber is not very powerful in naval warfare, in the final adjustment, the HBB'Sea Harrier, the bomber has reduced its equipment and has become a separate strike force on the ground, not participating in the attack on the ship.

"Well, then, this time, we will teach the English and the French a good lesson, and tell them not to think that by defeating the Germans, they will be able to show their might before us. As for the specific battle plan, we will wait until the combined fleet of the British and French navies arrives before making specific deployments. I hope that you will unite and win this battle for the Empire! Admiral Zhou Shun said.

"Yes, General!" Everyone replied loudly, even Admiral Li Haitao, commander of the Indian Ocean Fleet. Although they had the same rank, he was also a naval general, and many of the generals in the Mediterranean theater belonged to the navy. But after all, General Zhou Shun was the commander of the theater ordered by the General Staff, and he was still approved by the emperor Wang Yuze. They also had to cooperate with Admiral Zhou Shun's actions. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, they will all be severely punished.

On August 4, the commander of the British Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, John Murphy, was born. Admiral Jericho led the fleet from the military port of Portsmouth, preparing to enter the Strait of Gibraltar. The British Navy's newly formed Mediterranean Fleet includes nearly 60 large and small warships, and its capital ships include 10 battleships and 3 battlecruisers, all of which are relatively advanced warships. It can be seen that the British Navy has invested enough money to defeat the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy this time.

The ten battleships owned by the Mediterranean Fleet of the British Navy included three 'Queen Elizabeth-class, battleships, 'Warrior, battleship,' Balham, and 'war-weary,' battleships, three 'Iron Duke-class, battleships, 'Iron Duke, battleships, 'Iron Duke, battleships,' Ben Bau, battleships, and 'Canada, battleships, two' King George V-class, battleships, 'Daring, battleships, and 'Centurion, battleships, two ships

'Orion-class, battleships, 'Conqueror, and 'Thor,' respectively. These battleships, all of which belong to the most advanced battleships of the British Royal Navy, are now all dispatched to the Mediterranean Fleet, which shows that the British Navy attaches great importance to this battle.

The three battlecruisers are the "Lion class, the battle cruiser of the battle cruisers" of the royal princess, the "Indefatigable class", the battlecruiser of the battleships, the battle cruiser New Zealand, and the only one that was not severely damaged in the naval battle of the North Sea.

On 10 August, the British Navy's Mediterranean Fleet entered the Strait of Gibraltar and completely sealed off the entire strait. At the same time, Admiral Palmiro, commander of the Mediterranean Fleet of the French Navy, also led three 'Brittany-class, battleships of the French Navy, arrived in Gibraltar. The combined fleet of the Anglo-French Navy was officially established.

After that, the combined fleet of the British and French navies carried out a run-in on the one hand, and preparations for war on the other.

During this period, the British and French combined fleets sent a number of light cruisers to the waters near Sicily to reconnoiter the movements of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet. The Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy immediately began to counteract, sending the battle cruiser 'Wang Ben, which led several heavy cruisers and light cruisers to hunt and kill these cruisers sent by the combined fleet of the British and French Navy. In a few days of naval battles, at least more than 10 light cruisers of the combined British and French naval fleets were sunk, so that the combined British and French naval fleets lost a lot of troops before the war began. However, these warships of the combined fleet of the British and French navies were not lost in vain, they at least figured out the reality of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy in Sicily.

When he learned that the main force of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy was still near Sicily and that there were no other warships, John . Admiral Jericho thought he had a win. With the huge strength of 13 battleships and three battlecruisers of the Combined Fleet, against eight battleships and 1 battlecruiser of the Indian Ocean Fleet of the Chinese Navy, isn't that still handy?

On August 14, the combined fleet of the British and French navies set off from Gibraltar and made a fierce attack on Sicily.