Just after the old calendar year, the headquarters decided to implement the Nanyang strategy and ordered the Burmese Front to launch an attack from the Indochina Peninsula to the Malan Peninsula. In order to cooperate with the operation, the Republic of Lanfang crossed the Maka Strait from Kalimantan Island and launched an offensive against Sulawesi, the Maluku Islands, and New Guinea. The combat mission of the Republic of Lanfang was to take Sulawesi, the island of New Guinea, and create conditions for the capture of Australia by the Chinese Empire. In order to ensure the safety of the landing operation of the Lanfang army, the Pacific Fleet of the Chinese Empire dispatched 4 battleships, 10 frigates, and 10 destroyers to cover the landing operation.

After the French were forced to evacuate Annam, Annam was re-occupied. At this time, Vung Tau in southern Annam became the 2nd naval base of the South Ocean Fleet. After the Nanyang Fleet completed the task of covering the Philippine landing operation, it was pulled to the Annam Vung Tau military port to stand by. On this morning, four battleships, under the cover of 10 frigates, 10 destroyers, 4 minesweepers, and 5 submarine hunters, rushed towards the Malay Peninsula. After the Allied Headquarters and the Pacific Fleet retreated from the Japanese archipelago, all the main warships of the Allied Atlantic Fleet were transferred to Australia for defense.

In the Malay Peninsula and the South China Sea, the Allied Atlantic Fleet left only 10 battleships and more than 80 warships of various types, of which 5 battleships and other warships were active in the Indian Ocean. The timing was very favorable, so the headquarters ordered the Nanyang Fleet to go out and cooperate with the Burmese Front to capture the Malay Peninsula. On this day, the Nanyang Fleet set off in accordance with the careful deployment of the headquarters, and in the command cabin of the flagship Taishan, fleet commander Zheng Haitao and fleet deputy commander Wen Biao stood side by side. "Commander, I heard that the 2nd Pacific Fleet is going to be formed. It seems that you are the candidate for the commander of the fleet. ”

Zheng Haitao heard Wen Biao's tone and said with some jealousy: "There is this news, but it is not sure yet." Dude, I understand your feelings, no matter what, it's an order from headquarters. You don't have to have a knot. Even if I go, the commander of the South Ocean Fleet will naturally be you. The next step is to form the Indian Ocean Fleet, and it is logical that you will be the commander of the Indian Ocean Fleet. "Brother Zheng, I am self-aware, and I won't be emotional. I now hope to run into the coalition fleet, which we have not had a decent naval battle since the formation of the South Sea Fleet. Wen Biao changed the subject.

"I reckon. The coalition forces will not give up the Malay Peninsula easily. As soon as Zheng Haitao's words fell, a subordinate came in to report: "Report, reconnaissance submarine calls." In the waters of the Natuna Islands, near 105 degrees east longitude and 5?5 degrees north latitude, five battleships and more than 30 combat ships of the Allied Atlantic Fleet were discovered. ”“haha！ Great, order the fleet to go full throttle! Zheng Haitao was overjoyed when he heard the news. Wen Biao was even more anxious: "Brother." I went to the battleship Hengshan to personally command the battle! Without waiting for Zheng Haitao's acquiescence. Wen Biao's figure flashed out.

The mountains in the southern part of the Indochina Peninsula are about 1,700 meters above sea level. This mountain range traverses the eastern and western coasts of the southern Indochina Peninsula, and the coalition forces built permanent fortifications on this mountain range. At the beginning, the Malan Peninsula was mainly defended by British troops, with about 100,000 troops and some Dutch troops of about 20,000 troops. After the French army was forced to retreat from Annam, 100,000 troops entered the Malay Peninsula, so the defense of the Malay Peninsula was greatly strengthened. Taking into account the combat effectiveness of the Dutch army, the troops defending the Luanshan line were mainly Anglo-French troops.

The total strength of the Burmese Front is 250,000. According to the operational deployment of the headquarters, 100,000 troops are retained along the India-Myanmar border. Under the command of Nie Shicheng, deputy commander of the Burmese Front, it prevented the British from launching a counterattack on Burma. The commander of the Burmese Front, Liu Yunlong, led 4 field armies, a mixed artillery division, a total of 15 troops, to launch an offensive on the Malay Peninsula. At present, under the careful management of Governor Li Tong, Myanmar has developed rapidly, and a railway has been connected to Yunnan through Mandalay, and is connected to the trunk railway in China.

Due to the rapid economic development of Burma, especially the increasing number of immigrants from the mainland, the grain and various military supplies produced in Burma can fully meet the needs of the troops. In addition to rifles and artillery, artillery shells and bullets can be self-sufficient and do not need domestic transshipment, so it can be said that Burma, as a logistics base for the army, can meet the needs of the army for at least one year of continuous operations, so the Burmese front has the conditions for expeditionary operations.

In the southern part of the Indochina Peninsula, the headquarters of the Burmese Front in Palau was brightly lit and telegraphs were constantly heard. At present, due to the excessively large size of wireless transmitters in land communications, wireless transmitters are only installed at the army and division levels, and command organs below the division level cannot be installed for the time being until the wireless transmitters are not miniaturized. There was a lot of artillery fire at the front, but the news from the front made Liu Yunlong depressed. The front-line position in the eastern part of Luan Mountain was guarded by the British army, and the terrain was conducive to the attack, so Liu Yunlong chose the breakthrough point on the defensive line of the British army.

The British worked this front, tailoring the characteristics of the Chinese attack to the characteristics of the attack, building a large number of permanent fortifications, and connecting them with secret tunnels and bunkers, which added considerable difficulties to the attack. After three days of continuous attack, the 2nd Army captured only a few heights, which was far from the operational requirements. "Report to the commander, the 1st Army has attacked overnight without any progress. The commander of the 1st Army reported that the British army was well fortified and equipped with very tight firepower, and it was difficult to bear losses in the event of a strong attack. ”

When Liu Yunlong heard this, he just wanted to have a seizure, and the chief of staff said, "Commander, you can't be in a hurry. I know how you're feeling. At present, the various battlefields are advancing rapidly, but let's watch the excitement. Now it's our turn to strike, and it's understandable that you're going to take a sulky breath, but you can't rush it. The troops had not fought for several years, and their combat experience was relatively lacking compared to that of other fronts, and coupled with the strong fortifications carefully built by the British army, we could only slow down the offensive but not force the attack. The headquarters has not given us a specific deadline, so how about we train our troops to accumulate experience and create conditions for continuous campaigns? ”

Liu Yunlong's expression softened when he heard this: "Chief of Staff, it seems that I am in a hurry. Order the 1st Army not to be in a hurry, adopt the spirit of ants gnawing bones, and capture bunker by bunker for me, I want to see how long the British army can hold out. However, Liu Yunlong didn't expect that the battle situation suddenly took a major turn, and he actually broke through the Luanshan defense line without much effort. Maybe it was Liu Yunlong's good luck, or maybe it was the causal relationship between the entire battle situation that gave birth to a change.

This morning. Zheng Haitao led the Nanyang Fleet to appear near the waters of Natuna Island, and met the Atlantic detachment of the coalition forces operating here as scheduled. The commander of the Atlantic detachment of the coalition forces found that the Chinese fleet consisted of only 4 battleships. Immediately decided to meet the enemy, and a naval battle broke out in an instant. Heavy artillery shelling was launched on both sides. The Atlantic detachment of the coalition forces had three new battleships with a displacement of about 8000 tons, and two old battleships with a displacement of about 2500 tons. The coalition forces have about 30 gunboats, while the Nanyang Fleet has only 20 frigates and destroyers, and the two sides do not have an advantage over the Chinese fleet. Therefore, the commander of the enemy fleet was full of confidence.

However, soon after the roar of the naval guns, the Allied Pacific Fleet was a little difficult to parry. The point is that the frigates and destroyers of the Chinese fleet strike quickly and quickly, in less than an hour. Two gunboats of the coalition fleet were sunk. Two hours later, two old battleships of the coalition fleet withdrew from the battle wounded. By noon, four gunboats had been sunk and six had withdrawn from the battle with serious wounds. However, only 2 frigates and 1 destroyer of the Nanyang Fleet withdrew from the battle with wounds. The point is not to sink a single battleship.

The coalition Pacific Fleet woke up like a dream. Knowing that it would be difficult to parry the battle any longer, he immediately ordered the fleet to retreat. The enemy fleet retreated, and Chen Sheng pursued the Nanyang Fleet. Around dusk, the coastline of the Malay Peninsula is clearly visible. "Report to the commander, the enemy fleet retreats closer to the coastline and comes within range of the fortified artillery." "Order the fleet to stop the pursuit and deter along the coastline." Having approached the coastline and freed itself from pursuit, the enemy fleet immediately retreated along the coastline towards Singapore. The commander of the Atlantic detachment then reported the situation to the Supreme Commander of the Malay Peninsula.

This fleet commander in order to shirk the responsibility for the defeat. He actually lied about the military situation, saying that the Chinese fleet had dispatched more than 20 large battleships and a large number of combat ships. Therefore, he was overwhelmed and had to retreat. The commander of the Atlantic Detachment lied about the military situation and made a fatal change in the defensive operation of the Malay Peninsula, which caused the collapse of the coalition forces on all fronts. In fact, the miscalculation of the Malay Peninsula Defense Command was not only the defeat of a naval battle, but also the fact that it was inseparable from the entire war situation, and the key was the evil result of the complete psychological loss of self-confidence of the commanders of the coalition forces.

Inside the Malay Peninsula Defence Command in Kuala Lumpur, the air of the big war is tense. Although the British army stubbornly defended on the front line of Luan Shan and successfully contained the powerful offensive of the Chinese army, the Supreme Commander of the Defense of the Malay Peninsula, Cole, was still in a heavy mood. The coalition headquarters told him to hold on to the Malay Peninsula, but Cole did not have enough information about holding the Malay Peninsula, but fortunately, with 100,000 French troops joining, he was able to stabilize his position. Even so, Cole is not confident about the future of the Malay Peninsula.

"Report to the commander, the Chinese army suddenly delayed the offensive, for unknown reasons. According to the report of the front-line commander, the Chinese army seems to be unable to attack! "The Chief of Staff reports. Cole is about 50 years old and has a moderate build, not fat. He is younger than his actual age, especially his blonde hair and mustache are very eye-catching. Cole stroked his beard and rolled his blue eyes and said: "The Chinese army is very cunning, order the front-line troops, pay close attention to the enemy's movements, and prevent the enemy from playing tricks, they are too cunning. ”

At this moment, one of his subordinates said with a telegram in his hand and a panicked expression: "Report to the commander, the commander of the Atlantic detachment reports that the fleet has encountered the enemy's main fleet on Natura Island, with 25 enemy large warships. The fleet has suffered heavy losses and has withdrawn to Singapore, and at the moment the enemy fleet is close to the coastline, ask the commander for instructions. Cole was taken aback when he heard this, and his eyes couldn't help but look at Natuna Island. Stumped that the Chinese army is going to launch a landing operation? "The chief of staff was a little breathless.

"Isn't the main fleet of China in Japan? How did you get to the South Seas! Cole asked. The chief of staff said: "The Chinese have always used troops strangely, often shooting in places you don't think. The sudden delay in the offensive of the Chinese army on the Luanshan front line may have been a tactic of attacking the east and attacking the west. "If the Chinese army chooses to land in Singapore, it will be meaningless to hold the Luanshan defensive line, and our hundreds of thousands of troops will become turtles in the urn. "The situation is critical, it should be reported to headquarters immediately!" Chief of Staff is in a hurry.

Cole said disdainfully: "Let that group of stupid pigs at the headquarters operate, I'm afraid we will become prisoners of the Chinese long ago." The detachment was ordered to immediately go to Kuala Lumpur, and the fortified batteries along the coast were ordered to block the Strait of Malacca. The British and French forces on the Luanshan line were ordered to retreat quickly, and the major ports in the Strait of Malacca were ordered to prepare, and the troops were immediately withdrawn to India after boarding the ships. "Inform the Dutch army?" "The Dutch can't fight, and the love plot is strong, so let them fight bravely!" Cole was clear that he couldn't take care of the Dutch at the moment. (To be continued......)

PS: The Nanyang strategy kicked off.