In the White House in Washington, President Cleveland listened to the report of Pacific Fleet Commander Buck, and was silent in the face of all heavyweights. While Buck was still at sea, President Cleveland and his ministers had already been hit hard, and the time of suffering was over, and now they urgently needed to know what was really going on. After a long time, President Cleveland said quietly: "We have just realized the importance of aviation vehicles in the military field, and it is unbelievable that the Chinese Empire has been put into combat in the aerospace field on a large scale, and directly into naval operations?" ”

Cleveland looked around and said, "What does it mean that our folk enthusiasts' space activities have been at least 10 years old, and the Chinese Imperial People's space activities are almost unheard of?" This shows that our military experts have turned a deaf ear to the role of aircraft in warfare, while the Chinese Empire has thought of the role of aircraft in the military field. Just one step away, our mighty Pacific Fleet was defeated. According to Commander Barker's personal experience, future naval battles will be the world of aircraft carrier duels, and the Chinese are ahead. ”

"Gentlemen, who will be responsible for such a heavy blow to the Pacific Fleet? Is it Commander Barker? I think the responsibility lies with me and all of you. Now we have to admit that our opponents are terrible, terrible and suffocating. The decisive battle of the oceans, which we expected the most, and which we thought was the most effective, collapsed in an instant, and we surrendered control of the oceans to the enemy. But I reiterate that the American people will not give in. I firmly believe that the final victory will be ours. ”

President Cleveland's expression and words seemed to have a tragic meaning, and Secretary of State William stood up and said: "We have no choice but to face the crisis, and we must unite in this life-and-death situation." At the moment, carrier-based aircraft of the enemy's aircraft carrier fleet are the greatest threat. How to defend effectively is our core task. An armament expert stood up and said, "According to the losses in the naval battle, and according to the situation reported by General Barker, the range, speed, and attack intensity of the enemy's carrier-based aircraft are not very large. ”

"But the enemy's carrier-based aircraft did not aim to sink the battleship, but to deal with the ship's guns, which were intended to render the guns useless. The combat efficiency of the enemy is too high, and we do not have any anti-aircraft weapons, even with machine guns on battleships will not inflict such heavy losses. The enemy seized precisely on this. The greatest result of the naval battle was created, but it was basically a one-sided massacre. In particular, the enemy's carrier-based aircraft launched an attack on the propeller of the battleship at a low altitude, and we were helpless to watch as it hit our vital point. ”

"Terrible lessons. The enemy seized on precisely our unwitting mistakes. Gentlemen, what do you think? Cleveland's depressed expression was suffocating. Secretary of the Navy Vanst stood up and said: "President, according to the research of weapons experts and fire control experts, the use of rotating machine guns to deploy anti-aircraft firepower on a large scale on warships is the most effective method at present. As long as it prevents low-altitude attacks by carrier-based aircraft. The intensity of his air strikes will be greatly reduced. Carrier-based aircraft deliver bombs at high altitudes. Affected by air, wind speed, etc., the hit rate will drop by 70%. ”

Navy Commander Lester stood up and said: "According to the proposal of the Admiralty, the Ordnance Department is urgently developing anti-aircraft machine guns and anti-aircraft guns, anti-aircraft machine guns can be put into production in a month, and anti-aircraft guns are estimated to be installed in a year." In addition, the Admiralty has come up with a plan for the rapid formation of an aircraft carrier fleet, and there are no problems in creating aircraft carrier warships, and we can use the modifications of warships under construction. But carrier-based aircraft are the bottleneck, the aviation department reports. It will take three years to build carrier-based aircraft at the earliest, but the enemy will not give us three years, so now our warship defense can only defend against the air. ”

Ingmart, commander of the US-British coalition forces, stood up and said: "Your Excellency, the enemy's carrier-based aircraft are monoplanes, and their speed, range, and maneuverability are all above ours. At present, we are conducting research on monoplane fighters, but this will take time, and aviation experts analyze that our monoplane fighters will not be able to form combat capability until the end of the year at the earliest. At present, our biplane fighters have formed combat strength and formed an army aviation group. In view of the situation of land warfare, we have set up machine guns on our fighters and carried small bombs to be dropped by hand, which can effectively support land operations. ”

Everyone was talking about it, and Ingmart continued: "We are going to deploy the army aviation brigade in the western coastal area, mainly for sea defense. In addition, the 2nd Army Aviation Brigade will be formed in the middle of this year, and the 3rd Army Aviation Brigade will be formed by the end of the year. Cleveland turned to Buck and said, "General Buck, the responsibility for the loss of the fleet is not yours, I hope you will cheer up, continue to integrate the fleet, and deploy the West Coast coastal defense as soon as possible, do you have any suggestions?" ”

Buck said: "At present, the warships that have been withdrawn to the mainland are deploying anti-aircraft weapons, and everyone knows the basic situation, so I will not repeat it. I would like to remind you that the enemy, having captured the Hawaiian Islands and, using them, will soon launch an attack on the American continent. Now that the enemy is ready to go on an expedition to the American mainland, we must be on guard. Han Ruowei, chief of staff of the US-British coalition forces and an Englishman, stood up and said: "I agree with General Buck's view that the Chinese have always been surprising, and it is very likely that they will launch a landing operation on the US mainland. ”

Everyone showed shocked expressions when they heard this, and then a senior strategic expert stood up and said: "We have studied the ideas put forward by General Buck and General Han Ruowei. It is not denied that the enemy has captured the Hawaiian Islands and, relying on a powerful aircraft carrier fleet, has the conditions for an expedition to the continental United States. But having the conditions is not enough. We believe that the biggest difficulty of the enemy's expedition to the mainland of the United States is logistical supply, and the sea distance is so long, how can the enemy solve the supply problem? If the supply problem cannot be solved, how can the enemy launch a landing operation? ”

The senior expert continued: "You must know that the enemy is an expedition to land on the mainland of the United States, and the degree of difficulty is far greater than that of landing in Panama. Taking a step back, even if the enemy grabs the beach and lands to occupy a place, not to mention the long transportation routes, especially during the summer storm period, the enemy's transportation lines will encounter unimaginable difficulties, especially during the storm period, the entire transport fleet will be in danger of being lost at any time, and it is difficult for our enemy to take such a risk. If the enemy's supplies cannot keep up, hundreds of thousands of troops and huge fleets will fall into annihilation. Even if the enemy barely landed, he would not be able to gain a foothold. ”

"At that time, the right time and place will be on our side, and we will fight valiantly to defend the American homeland, and the enemy will have to retreat because of logistical supply problems, so we have concluded that it is impossible for the enemy to launch a landing operation on the American mainland!" Han Ruowei stood up and asked: "The Hawaiian Islands are as far away as Panama, and the enemy is also facing logistical supply problems, how can this be explained?" The crowd agreed, and a reason was needed to convince them.

The senior expert stood up and explained: "Although the enemy's landing in Panama also faces logistical supply problems, an important reason is that once the Chinese army successfully lands, it can divide its troops into two routes, one to the south and the other to the north. Wherever the Chinese army goes, the South American countries, including the Chinese and American countries, will soon surrender, and the Chinese army will solve the supply problem on the spot, especially the South American countries, which will become the supply base of the Chinese army, this is the most prudent strategic policy, any military strategist can see this, and choosing to land directly on the US mainland is a military adventure. ”

"Even if the Chinese army succeeds in landing in Panama, it will inevitably pay a heavy price, and the offensive will be slow after the landing. This has bought us time for defensive operations, and now the defensive front in northern Panama has been formed and solidified, and once the war is protracted, the final victory will be ours. The longer the war drags on, the better it will be for us, and the enemy's sharpness will be worn out, our morale and cohesion will be higher and higher, and the enemy's defeat will be a foregone conclusion. ”

The army did not move the grain and grass first, and anyone who knows military common sense will understand this, the war is fought in logistics, and everyone quickly reached a consensus. President Cleveland said: "Gentlemen, judging the enemy's intentions, it is not to abandon the defense of the West Coast of the United States, the next step is to invest in the defense of the West Coast, and the Pacific Fleet to withdraw to the homeland must be fully invested in the defense of the near sea." Ingmari, commander-in-chief of the US-British coalition forces, said: "According to the report of the Panama Pacific task force, enemy reconnaissance ships have frequently appeared in Panamanian waters recently, maybe this is a signal!" ”

"What is the readiness of the Panamanian ministries against the attack power of the aircraft carrier fleet of the Chinese Empire?" President Cleveland asked. Navy Secretary Fanst replied: "At present, the 2nd Special Task Force has strengthened its air defense on a large scale, and a large number of rotating machine guns have been deployed on each warship, and the anti-aircraft firepower has basically formed an air defense system. Chief of Staff Han Ruowei said: "We have formed a coastal air defense force on the shore, and on the basis of the artillery of the fortress on the shore, we have increased the mobile strike force and heavy artillery troops, and at present, the British army has transferred two more armies from the mainland to strengthen the defense of Panama. ”

President Cleveland said, "Although the United States is facing a great crisis, I am glad to see your courage. Her Majesty the Empress of Great Britain sent a telegram saying that no matter what happened, Great Britain would always be America's most trusted ally and brother. I firmly believe that the warriors of the United States, Britain and the United Kingdom, as well as in the free world, will surely see the day of victory and use our blood and courage to ??????。 Buck walked out of the White House and got into a military jeep, which was a newly developed military jeep in the United States, similar in appearance to the military jeeps of the Chinese Empire, but narrower in width and slightly thinner in tires.

Buck was just about to start the engine when Han Ruowei appeared in front of the door and greeted, "General Buck, please stay!" Buck immediately got out of the car and raised his hand to salute: "Your Excellency, General, is there something wrong?" "General Barker, do you think the Chinese's target must be Panama?" "Your Excellency General, this is exactly what I am worried about, the Chinese have a proverb called, Ming Xiu Plank Road secretly crosses Chen Cang. However, the analysis and judgment of military experts are impeccable, and I have nothing to say. Buck replied truthfully.

Han Ruowei said: "I have the deepest experience of dealing with Chinese, they have always been unpredictable, I will go to the west coast to inspect in two days, and we will discuss it later." "Your Excellency, we'll see you on the West Coast!" After Buck finished speaking, he got into the jeep and drove away, and Han Ruowei was clouded in his heart. (To be continued......)

PS: Reluctant choice, reluctant acceptance.