The gross tonnage of merchant ships is the main measure of a country's ocean-going shipping capacity, and it is impossible for the navy to maintain a large transport fleet even in peacetime.

Generally speaking, the Navy will be equipped with some special landing ships and high-speed troop carriers to facilitate the operation of the fleet.

And the vital logistical supply lines are all handled by these inconspicuous, easily overlooked, and slow civilian merchant ships.

Last year, that is, the 38th year of Zhichang, the United Kingdom had the world's largest merchant ship fleet, as much as 21.2 million tons; The United States followed with 12 million tons; followed by Daming, with a total of 9.7 million tons; Then there is the Tokusha, about 3.9 million tons.

In addition, France has 3.5 million tons, Italy has 3.85 million tons, Norway has 2.4 million tons, and Tsarist Russia has 1.3 million tons.

Historically, Japan had a total of 6 million tons of merchant ships, and the navy was expected to lose about 900,000 tons of merchant ships in the first year after the war began, and only about 700,000 tons in the second year. Therefore, they plan to build 450,000 tons of merchant ships in the first year and 600,000 tons in the second year to make up for the loss and maintain capacity.

However, the ideal is very plump, and the reality is very skinny.

[Picture]

The fact is that in the first year, 954,000 tons were lost, but only 259,000 tons were rebuilt, and in the second year, the losses were completely unexpected, and the losses soared to 1.79 million tons.

By the third year, the U.S. military had sunk a total of 3.84 million tons of merchant ships throughout the year, most of which came from the U.S. submarine force.

Before the war, no attention was paid to anti-submarine, and during the war, because of backward technology, anti-submarine efficiency was extremely low, and the vast Pacific Ocean almost became a paradise for US submarines.

In contrast to the Japanese, who despise logistics, the Akito seems to naturally attach importance to the "grain route"? Moreover, the number of small ships in the Ming Navy is ridiculously large, and the corresponding shipyards also abound.

"Although you all know something, in order to avoid negligence and omission, let's briefly describe it." As he spoke, Cheng Han glanced at the participants in the hall and stated without thinking:

"Over the past 30 years, a large number of British immigrants have migrated to Australia. As of last year, Australia had a total population of more than 7.2 million, of which 490,000 were workers. ”

"Monopoly capital is rife in the country, the government is accustomed to intervening and directing economic development, and vigorously invests in the establishment of state-run enterprises, 30 years ago, Australia's industrial output value was only 10,000 Australian dollars, and now it has reached 60,000 Australian dollars."

"The mining, manufacturing, and metallurgical industries have all grown significantly, and in terms of steel output, its steel output last year was 1.2 million tons, which was similar to the year before and relatively stable......

Considering that there may be differences in the sources of information, as well as memory biases, it is necessary to recount the scene in a unified manner.

Ma Mingli, vice president of the Advisory Yuan, flipped the page of the booklet in front of him and asked, "How many troops do you plan to send?" ”

Obviously, Cheng Han, as the leader of the General Staff Office, was fully prepared, and replied in an orderly manner without thinking about it: "The General Staff Office estimates that Australia can mobilize up to 600,000, and if there is enough mobilization time, 800,000 can also be requisitioned." However, the number of its weapons is bound to be in short supply, and the total number of imaginary enemies in our army is tentatively set at 400,000, and the weapons and equipment are uneven, so it is enough to send 200,000 troops. ”

As soon as his words fell, a new question came, this time Li Guangyuan asked: "What about the specifics?" How many infantry, how many artillery, how many baggage, how many ships? ”

"I'm sorry, this involves actual deployment, and I need the approval of the Duke of Wei to inform you of the elders."

Cheng Han refused to answer the question, and the spacious meeting room fell silent for a short time, and the atmosphere was a little tense as a result.

Metropolitan Governor Wu Weihuan was already in poor health, and he had been worried about it for several months before, and he was recuperating at home these days, so he was naturally not at the venue.

The ministers reacted quickly and chose to find themselves under the stairs. Li Guangyuan didn't look annoyed, he still looked like a good old man who was casual and smiling.

He said: "Yes, then let's calculate it roughly, counting eight infantry divisions, four field artillery brigades, three tank brigades, three mechanized infantry brigades, plus some miscellaneous baggage troops, a little more than 200,000." ”

None of the military personnel present denied it, and they could be regarded as agreeing with this estimate.

The crackling sound of the abacus beads sounded, and Li Guangyuan calculated the approximate data in three or two clicks.

"The total amount of this army to Australia needs to be occupied...... The transportation capacity of 3.12 million tons will need to consume 5,100 tons of materials per day after all the attacks are carried ashore. ”

"The daily consumption of materials is relatively ideal, but in fact, it is necessary to consider the damage caused by the attack, as well as the deterioration and decay, and an additional fifty percent must be added." Cheng Han said flatly: "But it's not difficult to achieve. ”

Seeing that the two of you have been back and forth for a while, Lin Xi also said: "It's really easy to look at it this way, but attacking Australia will inevitably make enemies with the United States, which will involve many wars." ”

It is certainly not enough to focus on Australia alone, and once the United States gets involved, the entire Pacific Ocean will have to be ablaze with war.

First of all, the Americans are still relying on Osaka, Kyoto, Aichi and other places in Japan, where the ground forces are of little use, but the submarine units cannot be ignored.

Secondly, the Philippines also had to be solved as soon as possible, the Americans had been operating here for decades, and there were all kinds of fortifications and permanent fortifications.

Submarines and long-range bombers can be deployed in both places, which can pose a serious threat to the Ming Dynasty's sea lines and inland cities.

The B-17B bomber has a range of up to 3,000km, and can reach the line of Changsha and Nanchang from the Philippines, and can directly threaten Jingshi Ying Tianfu from Japan.

The Metropolitan Governor's Office estimated that only two infantry divisions would be needed to solve the problem of the American army in Japan, and some supporting servant troops.

The Philippines, on the other hand, is more tricky, with not only the 150,000 troops of the United States and the Philippines, but also tight permanent fortifications.

Although the sub-treaty of the naval treaty restricts the deployment of tanks and heavy artillery in the Philippines, it has now been two years since the expiration of the treaty, and the federal government has not been idle, and has been providing a steady stream of funds for the past two years.

Combined with the ability to make money and the cheap labor of the local indigenous people, the fortified area of Bataan can be said to be as strong as it is every month.

"The siege of Luzon is very important, and the Americans intend to make it a bloody ground to delay our Korea, and we must find ways to take it as soon as possible."

"According to the strategy developed over the years, the army needs to commit at least six divisions, as well as four to five field heavy artillery brigades, and two siege heavy artillery brigades."

Cheng Han outlined the solution to the threat at the doorstep.

"Rao is like this, probably can't take it in the short term, the fortress is a fortress after all." Ma Mingli said.

Several military personnel were silent and could not refute it, because no one dared to guarantee that the more than 100,000 enemy troops relying on a strong defensive line could be quickly resolved.

This is also where the contradiction between the two sides lies, and the opponents believe that if Luzon cannot be pacified quickly, the Ming Dynasty will be strategically passive.

On the one hand, a large number of elite troops and heavy weapons are pinned, and on the other hand, they are threatened by submarines and bombers.

Is this going to send another army across the world to Australia? It's just a joke about the safety of the community.

What if we wait to take Luzon before attacking Australia? It may have been a year since then, and Australia has more time to complete mobilization and expansion; The United States also had time to deploy the Atlantic Fleet and send reinforcements to Australia at the same time.

This is the disgusting thing about the Philippines, obviously, the Americans would rather lose money than insist on entrenchment in the end, which greatly limits the pace of the Ming Dynasty.

However, Zhou Changfeng is naturally not as bottomless as others, he is generally aware of the situation in history - as long as he is not brutal, the Bataan Fortress Area can be quickly taken.

It is true that Britain and the United States did not face the Ming Dynasty with contempt as they did when they faced Japan in history, so they were more attentive to the defense of the Far East, but the national strength of the Ming Dynasty was not comparable to that of Japan.

This has been fully demonstrated in a series of battles to pacify the South Seas.

"Hmm... Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to share my personal observations. ”

As soon as Zhou Changfeng spoke, more than a dozen eyes gathered at once.

He said eloquently: "Putting aside the early field battles, in the final regard, for the attack on the fortified area, I think that if the method is appropriate, it should be solved in a month." ”

In order to avoid misunderstanding due to his special status, Zhou Changfeng specifically emphasized that this is a personal opinion.

The ministers subconsciously felt that this kid must have been too beautiful recently, and he was a little floating, but looking at his expression, it didn't look like he was bragging.

And the emperor was also present, so it was really difficult for everyone to question.

After a while, Lin Xicai pretended to be serious and said: "Zhou waits for the edict, the temple discussion can't be believed. ”

Zhou Changfeng smiled bitterly: "I can carry this weight, I just want to remind you, don't think of the fortress of Luzon as terrible, it will never take a year and a half as estimated." ”

After saying that, he added, "Compared to Luzon, Hawaii is the strategic location of real trouble." ”

The Philippines is relatively large, with a relatively sufficient battlefield width, so it can land first and then deploy heavy weapons, and then calmly attack the fortress.

However, Oahu, Hawaii, was different, the width of the battlefield was limited, and the landing force had to go ashore under fire and then storm the fort.

Okay, you kid, which pot doesn't open and which pot is it, which one is it on, which side are you on?

The military personnel present were quite speechless, Hawaii is easy to defend and difficult to attack, there is really no good way, and everyone often deliberately avoids this issue.

"That's all for today, let's study it again."

"Luzon and Hawaii must think more and not fall behind strategically."

"Only by winning Hawaii can we ensure that this big game is secure."

Everyone was ready to get up and salute, waiting for the emperor to leave first, but at this time, they found that Zhu Lingjing was gone, and they didn't know when they would leave.

Out of the Mandarin Palace, everyone dispersed, and everyone still had their own things to do.

Lin Xi specially walked to Zhou Changfeng's side and said helplessly: "Hey, in fact, you shouldn't mention Hawaii in front of them." ”

The latter was also very helpless, "There's no way, Ge Lao, they're not stupid, it's useless to avoid it, if they don't solve all the key problems, they will definitely not let go." ”

If we do not consider selfishness and conflict of interests, this is where the differences between the pros and cons lie -- how to force Americans to die?

In the final analysis, the Philippines can only be regarded as a bridgehead to contain the Ming Dynasty, and the strategic node of Hawaii is the key.

As long as Hawaii is there, the Americans will continue to project military power into the Far East.

Those who advocate the invasion of Australia in the Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of War have been avoiding the importance of Hawaii, and there is a sense of wanting to get by.

Liang Yuexi, the commander of the Governor's Army, also came over, and he asked rather dissatisfiedly, "What does Zhou Zhizhao think?" ”

"I'm not against attacking Australia, but the essence of this war is against the United States." Zhou Changfeng replied without hesitation: "The fruits of victory come too quickly, you can't be in a hurry, there is no regret medicine in the world." ”

The main battle faction naturally wants to win the emperor's support, but Zhou has this attitude, which seems unlikely at present.

On the way home, Zhou Changfeng sneezed several times in succession, and he secretly felt that someone must be speaking ill of him behind his back.

The more he thought about it, the more angry he became, and as soon as he entered the house, he began to complain, "Outrageous, a group of stupid things that are blind when they taste the sweetness!" ”

"Sir, you... You okay? Xia Xiaoshi was amazed, she rarely saw someone like Zhou, and thought that he had suffered some grievances today.

After calming down, Zhou Changfeng began to reconsider the macro problem.

Forcing Americans to die is easier said than done, and if the Ming Dynasty's industrial capacity was strong enough, Hawaii's importance would have diminished accordingly.

But the problem is that the industrial capacity of the Ming Dynasty is not as good as that of the United States, and it must occupy Hawaii as a strategic node to gain a dominant position in disguise.

He planned to visit the Governor's Office tomorrow to discuss the plan of attack against Hawaii.

As for attacking Australia, it is secondary, and if you can block the US military, you will naturally be able to deal with Australia.

The Governor's Office has recently completed the adjustment and revision of the operational plan for the attack on Australia, which is roughly divided into two phases.

The first stage is to occupy the islands of Oceania, such as Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and Samoa, as a springboard and barrier for an offensive to cut off the United States from Australia.

The second stage was to land in the Cairns area of northeastern Australia, and the army marched south along the east coast, sweeping through the elite area, making Australia unable to resist.

This plan is certainly reasonable, but it is difficult to say whether it will be implemented in place.

The bored Zhou Changfeng didn't want to eat much at noon, and it wasn't until he went to his office in the Forbidden City in the afternoon that his mood was finally relieved.

"I can't get along with those people, I have a flat mentality, I have my own national conditions here." Luo Fu patted him on the shoulder and handed over a plate of plum blossom cakes.

Zhou Changfeng picked up a piece casually and continued to flip through the various pieces that needed to be handled.

When he saw that the Navy Department had submitted a proposal for the construction of submarine hunters, he couldn't help but sigh that it was only those "little people" who were really worried and serious.

In the Atlantic, the submarine forces of the Germans were killing in all directions. Just half a month ago, the U-71 submarine and the U-30 submarine cooperated to successfully ambush the aircraft carrier Ark Royal and send it into the icy and dark submarine tomb.

As a result, some sensitive people realized that everyone still underestimated the threat of submarines, so the officials of the Navy Department turned up some ship designs that had been mothballed in the past, and planned to build a first-class professional ocean-going submarine hunting ship based on them.

The current sketch shows that this is a small warship with a displacement of 850 tons, a maximum speed of 28 knots, and is equipped with three single-mounted 112mm naval guns, two depth charge projectiles, and two depth charge slides.

The battleship, which was more than 800 tons, actually carried as many as 56 depth charges, which was even more than a destroyer of more than 1,000 tons.

(End of chapter)