In Japan, before the war, no one knew that there was an island called New Britain Island in the South Pacific Ocean, 5,100 kilometers away from Tokyo, and still less did they know that there was a port called Rabaul on New Britain Island.

It was once the stage for the performance of the savage forces of nature. A prehistoric volcanic eruption created a large volcanic lake with a gap, into which seawater poured into it, turning it into a natural harbor.

The inhabitants of Rabaul were often plagued by volcanoes and earthquakes, but the Japanese did not care, and since replacing the Australians as Rabaul's masters, they not only stayed comfortably, but also turned Rabaul into a huge military station and fortress.

Today, Rabaul has become a famous place, and the war has completely changed its appearance.

By the time Fan set foot on the land, Rabaul had already lost his former appearance at all, the jungle had been cut down into large clearings, and gray tents were everywhere.

Boxes full of weapons and ammunition were stacked inside and outside the tent, and mountain artillery and military supplies could be seen everywhere.

Anti-aircraft guns and machine guns with high barrels were everywhere, and on distant mountain peaks, the shadow of radar could be seen.

In the port, there are barracks, hospitals, warehouses, fuel storage facilities, airports, vehicles, and soldiers are crowded everywhere.

Even on the edge of the airport, Fan Yize saw a prostitute with a size of at least 1,000 people. The women's troupe, all young women dressed as Koreans, endlessly served the Japanese soldiers here.

Rabaul's busyness does not mean to stop at all, like a busy ant colony.

Wandering around the Japanese camp, Fan Yize swept through everything he saw and heard on the road, as if he was in a no-man's land, and soon arrived at the residence of Rabaul, the former governor of Australia.

This former Australian governor's palace is currently the headquarters of Japan's Eighth Front.

This Eighth Front Army is the name of Japan's newly established new unit in the Pacific Theater, which is based on Japan's 16th Army and is formed by drawing troops from the Pacific and Shenzhou Theaters.

The goal is naturally to recapture Guadalcanal, and so far, the Japanese base camp has no intention of abandoning Guadalcanal.

As the commander of the Eighth Front Army, Jun Imamura, known as the first Confucian general in the Japanese Army, has the rank of lieutenant general.

This first Confucian general of the Japanese Army has won the trust of the Japanese base camp and the support of the officers and men under his command.

For most Japanese officers and soldiers, with the Confucian general in command, Guadalcanal no longer seemed out of reach.

At present, almost all the main forces of the Eighth Front have arrived in Rabaul, and they have basically formed combat capability.

When Fan Yize infiltrated the governor's palace and found this Imamura Jun, the Confucian general was holding a meeting to inquire about the specific situation of Guadalcanal.

The situation on Guadalcanal was not optimistic for the Japanese army, and Rabaul also knew a lot about Guadalcanal.

One of the young men who reported on the situation also made a special mention of the failure of the Sendai Division, focusing on the obstruction of the transportation of the Nagoya Division.

Guadalcanal was facing a severe state of hunger, and the Japanese soldiers on the island were in extremely poor condition, dying of starvation, swelling, and dying from various tropical diseases more than twice as many as in battle.

This kind of death is very bad, because the elite soldiers of the Great Japanese Empire did not die at the guns of the enemy.

Behind the Nagoya Division, the last supporting detachment, including 4,000 elite soldiers from the Shenzhou Battlefield and the Pacific Theater, were all buried in the bay of Guadalcanal, with no bones left.

Fan Yize, who was lurking inside, quietly listened to the introduction of this young minister, he didn't know much about the situation on Guadalcanal, and the role of the bait seemed to be better than expected.

A large number of Japanese troops were destroyed, and two Japanese battleship fleets were destroyed, and the destroyed Japanese transports, destroyers, and cruisers achieved remarkable results.

If Guadalcanal hadn't attracted it, it wouldn't have been so easy to achieve such good results.

After all, Japan has controlled these islands in the western Pacific for a long time, and it will be quite easy to build a large number of airfields to cover the fleet's movements and reconnoiter the sea situation.

Under such circumstances, even if all the main forces of the White Tiger Fleet were dispatched, it would be difficult to inflict any devastating blow on the remaining main forces of the Japanese Combined Fleet.

However, the bait of Guadalcanal Island has gradually lost its effect, and the Japanese are not stupid, not to mention that even if the Japanese Army wishes again, the Japanese Navy cannot afford to pay for it.

In the office, after listening to Shaosa's words, Imamura looked out the window, looked at the busy crowd outside, and said: "In the Dutch East British India Campaign, the Maruyama Division and the Sano Division were under my command. With only these two divisions and regiments, plus one division and one brigade later, our army conquered a vast territory with an area equivalent to a population of 70 million in Europe, and our army suffered less than 1,000 casualties. And in order to capture an airfield, the two most elite divisions plus the entire Seventeenth Army are not possible, I have not seen it with my own eyes, and even I do not believe it. ”

Imamura paused for a moment and continued to ask the crowd, "Can anyone tell me about this war in the Solomon Islands?" ”

Shao Zuo, who had just spoken, ignored the gazes of the other generals and staff officers around him, stood up and said, "The war in the Solomon Islands is different from any previous war of our army. It is a three-dimensional war in which the three aspects of the sea, land, and air are closely integrated. In order to fight for air supremacy, it was necessary to capture the Guadalcanal airfield with infantry; In order to ensure the success of the infantry, the airfields were shelled with the fleet and the transport ships were covered, while the enemy's aircraft and warships threatened, prevented the artillery bombardment and reinforcements of our troops, the purpose of which was to assist the enemy's marines in holding the airfields. ”

"In this battle, our army did not have enough food, too little artillery, too far in the rear, and it was very dangerous to transport; The enemy is the opposite. In addition, our army did not anticipate the factors of the rainforest of Guadalcanal, and only relied on the white-knuckle tactics and the spirit of daring to die against the weak enemy in the past, and did not know the enemy's situation and firepower, and the result of defeat was inevitable. Sun Tzu's Art of War: 'Ten are to surround it, five to attack it, and to divide it if it is doubled, the enemy can fight, if it is less, it can escape, and if it is not, it can be avoided, so the small enemy is strong, and the big enemy is captured. 'Because of the successive victories of our army at the beginning of the war, our army has contempt for the art of war from top to bottom. Therefore, our army will lose on Guadalcanal. ”

Hearing this Shaozuo's words, many people in the conference room looked angry.