"Lord Winston, do you have any good idea?" Hearing Churchill's words, two fires of anticipation suddenly lit up in Studdy's eyes, and he asked with some eagerness.

Churchill glanced at the Chief of Staff of the Navy, but there was no joy on his face, and said: "Since the outbreak of the war in Europe, the Entente bloc has been defeated repeatedly, and the resentment and depression in the hearts of the British people have been accumulating in the successive news of defeat, so there are the current protests and demonstrations throughout England. Therefore, we only need to find the victory we deserve in the Allies to ease the current situation. ”

"Is it the Allies?" Study keenly grasped the crux of Churchill's words and asked suspiciously.

Churchill nodded slowly and said: "At present, the strength of the German Army's lineup has reached its peak, and it is impossible for our army to compete with them head-on for a long time in the future. Although the main force of the German Navy has been dormant in the harbor for a long time, no one can doubt the great power of this fleet. It would be extremely difficult and risky to start with the Germans. Other countries, however, are different. Whether it is Austria-Hungary or Italy, there is a huge gap between their land and navy strength and Germany, and the heretics on the peninsula of Asia Minor are a group of sick men and bad horses, and Britain can crush them lightly! In the next stage, we should first attack these countries, so as to firmly hold the Mediterranean in the hands of the Entente. To kill a ferocious crocodile, you should avoid its sharp teeth and choose to slam its soft belly instead. ”

Study said with some confusion: "But Your Excellency, it seems that the current Britain no longer has the extra strength to throw into the Mediterranean. Troops from India, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other federations. Priority deployment to the French battlefield is required; The French are desperately needing our troops to take over the northern line of defense. so that they could devote all their forces to the battle for the city of Paris. And in the naval field. The number of our capital ships is even more scarce, and we can't even send 2 Invincible-class ships to the Far East, so how can we reinforce the Mediterranean? ”

"I am going to send the capital ships of the Grand Fleet to the Mediterranean, and first completely defeat the sea forces of Austria-Hungary and Italy!" Churchill showed a look of determination in his eyes, and said categorically, "After Italy joined the Central Powers, the geographical restrictions of the Austro-Hungarian navy were also removed; It is foreseeable that the current calm in the Mediterranean will be broken in a short time. This is both a great threat to our Mediterranean shipping routes. It's also a great opportunity for us to win. ”

"Scarpa's Gulf, located in the far north of Scotland, is desolate and desolate, and heavily guarded; If we secretly send a detachment, it will be difficult for the Germans to detect the absence of the Grand Fleet. As long as we plan well and think carefully, it is entirely possible to secretly transfer a detachment into the Mediterranean. The relatively narrow waters of the Mediterranean Sea undoubtedly provide reliable external conditions for warships to arrive at the battlefield in time to provide support; When the Allied fleet and our Mediterranean Fleet fight fiercely, this detachment drawn from the Grand Fleet into the Mediterranean will win the naval battle in one fell swoop! "Churchill clips a cigar in his mouth. With his fat short fingers, he was a little heavier in the Eastern Mediterranean region, and said in a slightly raised tone.

"But Your Excellency. It was a long journey from Scapa Bay to the Eastern Mediterranean, and even if the Germans were unable to enter Scapa Bay to reconnoiter the formation of the Grand Fleet, our detachment would probably be exposed on the way! If the German Navy took the opportunity to go out, how would the Grand Fleet, which had lost its numerical superiority, choose? Studi's face was stunned, as if he didn't expect the fat man in front of him to have such an unreliable idea, and even raised his own objection, "Didn't Sir Fisher's dispatch of battle cruisers to kill the German Far East Fleet be rejected at the meeting more than a month ago?" ”

Churchill shook his head and said, "General, I think we have all fallen into a stereotyped thinking before. We always wanted to gather as many warships as possible on our home soil, so that we could guarantee victory over the Germans in a decisive battle at sea, and for this reason we did not hesitate to allow the Spee fleet to hunt our merchant ships in the Far East. But after paying so much price, did we gain the confidence to fight head-on with the German Navy? The answer is undoubtedly no! ”

"At present, the ratio of the number of capital ships of the Home Fleet to the German Navy is 34 to 26; Add to this the seven German ships equipped with six or eight 11-inch guns, and we have almost no numerical superiority. After all, there are too many uncertainties in naval warfare, and the advantage of the firepower projection of the Grand Fleet alone is obviously far from being the key factor in our confidence in a decisive battle with the German navy. ”

Churchill paused, and then added: "In addition, the decisive battle of the fleet is not only a military issue, but also a matter of national strategy. Compared with the Germans, who were based on land power, Britain's fleet was obviously more precious and could not be lost; Once the fleet is too badly lost, what do we do to maintain the colonies and maritime trade routes that spread all over the world? You know, in the current era of industrialization, it will take an average of two and a half years to build a new battleship at the earliest; Once a capital ship is sunk, the entire navy will inevitably face a long-term lack of combat effectiveness. All of these factors forced the Royal Navy to avoid a decisive fleet battle with great uncertainty as much as possible. ”

"In other words, even if the Germans suddenly make a decision to let the High Seas Fleet sail to the North Sea for combat cruises, the Home Fleet will avoid a decisive battle with it?" Studdy's eyes widened and he said.

"If we do not know exactly what is going on and respond most effectively, then we should indeed avoid direct confrontation with the Germans. If not, how could Jericho have been cruising the Scottish waters in the north and refused to go further south into the North Sea? Churchill took a deep puff of his cigar and said, "As much as I don't like Jericho, I have to admit that he is one of the few wise-minded men in the Royal Navy today." Sir Fisher had chosen him for this vital position, and it was not just a matter of personal preference. ”

"I see what Your Excellency means. Since the current Grand Fleet does not have the conditions for a decisive battle with the German Navy, in most cases it is necessary to give priority to avoidance; Then we will simply abandon this task at all, and first make every effort to solve the difficulties that our Great Britain has encountered overseas. Study nodded slightly, but there was still a look of confusion in his eyes, "However, Your Excellency, a large part of the reason why the main force of the German Navy is still dormant in the harbor is precisely because of the fear of the lineup advantage of our Grand Fleet. What if our capital ships appeared in the Mediterranean, and the Germans saw that there was an opportunity to take advantage of it, and they directly poured out of the nest and hit the door? ”

Churchill's face showed a little complicated, as if proud, bitter, and sad, and he said softly: "If the Germans want to seek a decisive battle, must we meet it?" As long as we lay a large number of mines with far more light ships than the Germans, combined with the 67 active submarines in the Royal Navy, it would be enough to terrify the German main fleet as it cruised off the coastline of Britain. Besides, we will not send too many capital ships to the Mediterranean, and the fleet in Jericho's hands is still a force capable of killing the Germans, and I think these Germans will have some fear in their hearts. ”

"But even then, we can't account for the angry people. The bombardment of the British mainland by the German reconnaissance fleet had already triggered large-scale protests and demonstrations; If the whole German High Seas Fleet is allowed to come to the door in waves, and the Home Fleet still does not move, Lord Winston, you and I will not only be court-martialed and become the most shameful sinners of the Saxon nation for three hundred years, but it will also be 100% a matter to receive bullet envelopes! Study said with some urgency, his voice changing with anxiety, "Otherwise, how many more dreadnoughts will we transfer from the Channel Fleet to the Mediterranean?" ”

Churchill struggled to his feet, his deep eyes looking through the window at the large black crowd of demonstrators at the gate in the distance, and said in a gentle tone: "As long as the detachment we have drawn can achieve a victory in the Mediterranean that the entire Entente group desperately needs; Then even the stain of being hit by the German fleet and not fighting back will be completely washed away because of this. The reason why the people are now shouting for Churchill instead of Kitchener to step down is simply that they have been spurred on by the successive reports of defeat, and that their most trusted navy has not filled their restless and fearful hearts with a victory. And the victory in the Mediterranean will be enough to solve this qiē at this stage. What's more, judging from the previous situation, the German Navy may not have the will and determination to fight to the death, and such an extreme situation may not occur. ”

"Boom!" A rolling thunderclap suddenly exploded in the air. Churchill looked up and saw that the sky outside the window was completely covered with dark clouds; From time to time, a blue-purple lightning bolt lit up instantly, and then brought an even more violent thunderous roar. The damp wind howls and winds, mixed with the unique smell of impending heavy rain. After a while, the torrential rain poured down. The citizens of London, who were demonstrating in front of the Admiralty building, were so angry that they were evacuating the scene in a wolf and shouting curses at the damn Devilish weather and the Navy bags and rice bags from Churchill onwards in collusion to dispel their righteous deeds. Seeing the empty Admiralty gates, Churchill smiled at the corners of his mouth and said, "Now, we can go to Sir Fisher to discuss this issue." (To be continued......)