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On the evening of March 17, Beijing time, Wang Yuze summoned Cai Yun, General Staff Officer, Zhang Cheng, Minister of Navy, and Jiang Xingguo, Minister of National Defense, to learn about the latest war situation. The world war has been going on for more than half a year, and the war has slowly entered the phase of stalemate. The Allies, especially the German Army, had lost the sharpness of the war. Although the German General Staff continued to plan one campaign after another on the Western Front, it was not only not closer to the goal of defeating France, but was getting farther and farther away.

"Your Majesty, with the advent of spring, the European battlefield is once again lively. Last month, the Russians again marched into the Matsu area to invade German East Prussia. It's just that it was once again beaten by the 8th Army of Hindenburg and suffered heavy losses. However, the Russians quickly regained face in the war against Austria, and the Russians defeated the Austro-Hungarian army in Silesia, destroying at least 300,000 enemies. If it weren't for the arrival of German reinforcements, I am afraid that the Russians would have already invaded the ground! Chief of the General Staff Cai Yun said.

"These Austro-Hungarian troops are also too rubbish. In vain, they also claim to be one of the European army powers. The equipment is not as bad as the Russians, but they have been beaten by the Russians again and again on the battlefield, and they still need the help of the Germans to stabilize the battle line. Germany has such allies dragging it down, and the prospects are not good! Defense Minister Jiang Xingguo said.

Wang Yuze nodded, the performance of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the Great War was indeed not very good. The main enemy of Austria-Hungary was Russia, but it was repeatedly defeated on the battlefield. The trigger for this war was not the 'Sarajevo incident'. Therefore, at the moment Austria-Hungary has not invaded the Balkans. However, with the help of the Germans, Austria-Hungary's performance on the battlefield would have been completely different. Once the Germans joined the battlefield, even if only a small number of Germans joined the battlefield, the Austro-Hungarian army was able to burst into a strong fighting force and cooperate with the German army to defeat Russia. Perhaps, the Austro-Hungarian army was accustomed to fighting with the wind! In fact, the combat power of Austria-Hungary was too poor. It's inseparable from their terrible chain of command. Austria-Hungary was a dualist empire, consisting of Austria and Hungary, plus small states such as Bohemia. Although the industrial power is strong, and the manufacturing industry and the arms industry are only second to Germany and Britain in Europe, their military strength is terrible. The Austro-Hungarian Empire had more than two hundred nationalities. There are also 17 languages, which makes it very difficult for the generals of the army to command the troops to fight, and the problem of language alone is enough to exhaust the energy of a general. From the point of view of combat power alone, in the entire world war, only the Italian army was weaker than Austria-Hungary.

"What about the Germans?" Wang Yuze asked. Although Austria-Hungary was a great power, it did not play a significant role in the world war. Almost dispensable role. China is most concerned about Germany.

"The Battle of Artois, initiated by the German General Staff, has begun. This time, the Germans gathered more than 60 divisions and millions of troops to open the road to Paris again. However, the defense of the Anglo-French army was also very strong. If the Germans want to break through the defense line of the British and French forces, I am afraid it will not be so easy. The General Staff estimated that the Germans would achieve certain results this time, but only to accomplish their goals. I'm afraid it's hard! Cai Yun said.

Wang Yuze also agrees with such a point of view. This has almost become the norm in the early days of the war. The Germans were often able to achieve tactical victories. But strategically, it is difficult to succeed. As more and more French troops mobilized, and a large number of British expeditionary forces crossed the Channel into France to fight, it became increasingly difficult for Germany to defeat France!

"What about the German Navy? It's been more than half a year since the war began, and they've been staying in the port all the time, so it's not going to go on like this, right? Wang Yuze asked. In World War I, which he was familiar with, the German navy had been in the harbor for two years before fighting the British navy.

"Your Majesty, according to the information we have received, the German Navy is probably going to have a decisive battle with the British Navy in the first half of this year. By May, all four of the German Navy's 'Bavaria-class' battleships will be commissioned, while the British Navy's 'Queen Elizabeth-class' battleships will probably not be commissioned until the second half of the year. Moreover, the number of 'Queen Elizabeth-class' battleships built by the British Navy was five, and there were five more 'revenge-class' battleships, and once these ships were commissioned, Germany would not have any more chances. Therefore, put the decisive battle in the first half of this year, which is also Germany's only chance! Navy Minister Zhang Cheng said.

Wang Yuze nodded, and then said: "So, do the Germans have the courage to fight a decisive battle with the British Navy?" ”

You know, in terms of the number of capital ships, the German Navy is not at all cheap. Now the German Navy has 8 'Nassau-class' battleships, 8 'Helgoland-class' battleships, 5 'Caesar-class' battleships, 4 'King-class' battleships and 4 'Bavaria-class' battleships that will soon be commissioned, for a total of 29 ships. There were also 8 battle cruisers, including 3 von der Tann-class battlecruisers (Von der Tann, Scharnhorst, and the modified Sedlitz), two Moltke-class battlecruisers (Moltke, Go), and 3 D-Vlinger-class battlecruisers (D. Vorringer, Lützov, Hindenburg). The German Navy's enemy, the Royal Navy, had a great numerical advantage, with 1 'Dreadnought-class' battleship (the other five Dreadnought-class battleships had been sunk or captured by China during the Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea battles), 6 'Bellerophon-class' battleships, 6 'Saint-Cent' class, 4 'Neptune' battleships, 3 'Giant-class' battleships, 4 'Orion-class' battleships, 4 'King George V-class' battleships, 7 The Iron Duke-class battleships, as well as five more 'Queen Elizabeth-class' battleships and five 'Vengeance-class' battleships, are in the works. Even counting the 5 'Queen Elizabeth-class' battleships and the 5 'revenge-class' battleships in the back, the British Royal Navy also has 35 battleships. In addition, the Royal Navy has 10 battlecruisers, including 3 Invincible-class battlecruisers (Invincible, Indomitable, Indomitable), 3 Indefatigable class battlecruisers (Indefatigable, New Zealand, Australia), and 4 Lion-class battlecruisers (Lion, Royal Princess, Queen Mary, Improved Tiger). In contrast, the German navy's chances of victory were indeed small. However, there were many factors involved in naval warfare, and if God had favored the Germans, perhaps they would have been able to turn the tables on the tables.

"Now that the decisive battle between the German and British navies is about to begin, we cannot afford to be negligent. It will probably be the largest naval showdown ever. The Admiralty is going to send an observation team to observe this decisive battle! Wang Yuze said. Although the Chinese Navy has decided to take the aircraft carrier route, battleships are still the main force in the Chinese Navy. It is also necessary to observe the decisive naval battle between Britain and Germany. Of course, what Wang Yuze wants to see is that the British and German navies would better lose this time, and that would be the most beneficial outcome for China.

"Yes, Your Majesty! Marshal Deng Shichang, Vice Minister of the Navy and President of the Naval University, will be a delegation sent by us to Germany to observe this naval battle. They will depart early next month from the Persian Gulf to Germany via the Baghdad Railway! Navy Minister Zhang Cheng said.

"Hmmm! That's it! By the way, what about the Italians? It's been more than half a year since the war began, what do they think, should they follow the treaty and join the Allied side to fight, or betray the treaty and join the Entente side to fight? Wang Yuze asked. Italy, a member of the Central Powers, is really shameless. At a time when Germany and Austria-Hungary were already fighting with the Entente in a bloody battle, they still wanted to be the grass on the wall and ask for a price on both sides. Although in state-to-state exchanges, interests are the most important. But there are really not many such brazen ones as Italy.

"Italy is still hesitating. Both Germany and Britain and France are still fighting for Italy. However, the asking price in Italy is also getting higher. They had their eye on the lands of Austria-Hungary, which would certainly not be given to Italy. Germany would not have offended Austria-Hungary for the sake of Italy. Therefore, the General Staff estimated that in the end Italy would probably renegade itself on the Covenant and join the Entente in the war. The reason why they haven't expressed their position yet is probably because the battle situation is not clear enough! And the decisive battle between the German Navy and the British Navy, which is about to break out this time, may be a weather vane. If the German navy wins, Italy should remain neutral or join the Allies. If the British navy wins, Italy will immediately declare war on the Allies! Cai Yun analyzed.

"Hmmm! It seems that everyone has set their eyes on this decisive battle at sea between Britain and Germany! Wang Yuze said. He also didn't know who would win this naval decisive battle between Britain and Germany. In the historical Battle of Jutland, although the British Navy lost more ships, the German Navy achieved a tactical victory. But the German Navy could not break through the blockade of the British Navy until the end of the war. And now the German navy is stronger, and Wang Yuze is not sure whether the German navy can win. It can be said that the European battlefield is coming!