No, you're here to smash the field on purpose?

I haven't seen such a tough one in the discussion before, but now the imperial council is deliberately messing around in front of the emperor, right?

Song Zhongkai made everyone unable to get off the stage, and although the cabinet tried to maintain self-restraint, he didn't know how to respond for a while.

At this moment, Zhu Lingjing sneered helplessly in her heart, and then said: "There is no need to issue a military order, this Wenhua Hall is not a battlefield, how can the negotiation strategy be arbitrary?" ”

The spacious hall was silent for a moment, and Song Zhongkai got up and arched his hand: "What Your Majesty said is extremely true, just now the minister was impulsive. ”

Lin Xi also said calmly: "It is impossible to make such a decision on this kind of military affairs, even if you swear a poisonous oath, you can only judge right and wrong according to reason." ”

"Anyway, the truth is here, who is unreasonable?" Song Zhongkai nodded at the memorandum in front of him, "There is a great possibility that the United States will approve the aid to the British, and forty or fifty destroyers are enough to solve the urgent need, and after that, the British will be able to easily deal with the Germans for a year and a half." ”

"Then we'll wait until these ships are actually in place. Most likely, it is not 100%, and everything is possible before the Anglo-American suspicion breaks. Li Guangyuan said.

As a minister of finance, he has always opposed the Ming Dynasty launching a full-scale conflict with the United States without taking the lead, and the economy is an important criterion for measuring national strength.

Only when the situation is right, the advantage of the Ming in the size of the population can offset the advantage of the United States.

At this time, Wu Weihuan stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Mingyin, according to what you say, if the United States hands over the assistance of the escort ship, do you agree with what Xia Jinbo said before?" ”

"Not necessarily, the old man can't say anything about military affairs, personnel training, fleet formation, etc., it also takes time, Wei Guogong might as well discuss a thing or two with He Zhong?" Li Guangyuan casually played Tai Chi and threw the ball to Lin Xi beside him.

The old fox is so slippery! In the end, you have to let me do it.

The latter pursed his lips covertly and quickly, and then said with a straight face: "First of all, to clarify our views, since the Americans do not have a clear intention to join Europe, it is difficult to guarantee that they will not follow the strategy of the European war in the past, and our country and the DPRK can sit calmly and firmly in the Diaoyutai and concentrate on developing and stabilizing the South Seas." ”

"That's not right." Wu Weihuan said calmly: "The delay in time means that a large number of warships built by the United States in the two Vincennes Act will be completed and put into service. In particular, the fortresses in Hawaii will also be more perfect, and Zhou Zhizhao knows this very well. ”

Aha? Why did you kick the ball to me?

Seeing that Zhu Lingjing was still calm, Zhou Changfeng said loudly: "In view of the rapid offensive of our army in the Nanyang Campaign, the United States is further spending money to strengthen the defense of Hawaii. According to known information, at least twenty forts are being built at the same time on Oahu, and they should be completed and put into operation within six to nine months, which will obviously make it much more difficult for our army to capture Hawaii. ”

"Half a year's work, it's quite sufficient, and it's easy." Li Guangyuan said casually.

Yu Shenhua, who was thoughtful, opened his mouth and asked: "In other words, what is the military department's plan for the strategy of forcing the United States to make peace without going to Hawaii?" ”

"Responsibly, none of those strategies are the best choice, there are many uncertainties, and only a war to win Hawaii is the safest." Song Zhongkai changed his previous attitude and said solemnly: "Your Majesty is present, and there is no lie. ”

"So it's best for you to stick to the early battle?" Gao Qingkui's eyes were sharp, and he asked: "Have you considered the United States abandoning its European strategy and confronting the Ming Dynasty?" ”

"It's possible." Wu Weihuan muttered: "However, the upper echelons of the United States are not stupid, and they may as well devote the same energy to fighting against China and North Korea, so they might as well pour it into Europe." This point should be very clear to all the elders. ”

The two sides exchanged views back and forth, and the atmosphere in the council hall was always filled with a faint smell of gunpowder.

It seems that the civil and military sides are naturally not suitable to get together? It seems that at any moment there may be an argument over a small spark.

Compared to the last imperial meeting, this time it was actually much better, at least it didn't take long for the two sides to reach a consensus between whether to fight or not.

Beat! In the face of Australia's abundant mineral resources, how can we turn a blind eye and give it to others?

I don't know why, Zhou Chang couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, Zhu Lingjing, who was on his side, finally ended the state of watching from the wall, and asked bluntly: "As far as I know, it is okay for the country to transport troops to Australia across the north and south, but if you want to go on an expedition to Hawaii at the same time, it will be tight, and there is no strategy for the best of both worlds?" ”

The emperor's question caused everyone in the military department to be overjoyed, and Cheng Han, the staff officer, immediately replied.

"Your Majesty, that was the previous estimate, and at the moment, we are considering recruiting multiple batches of civilian merchant ships to optimize the voyage arrangement, and the capacity is sufficient."

"The Governor's Office envisages two relay sections to increase efficiency, one between our country and Makassar, and the second between Makassar and Australia."

"As for the expedition to Hawaii, it is irrelevant, because the voyage is long and it will accompany the fleet operations, so it will be the responsibility of high-speed troop carriers and landing ships."

Zhou Changfeng remembered that the staff office's last few discussions had only envisaged the delivery of one marine brigade and one infantry division, with a total of 360,000 tons of standard shipping, but these forces seemed to be somewhat insecure.

"I know the same thing, I have the impression that even if the thirteen Pingyang-class destroyers that have been removed from active service are converted into troop carriers, the total capacity of a single trip will only be close to 400,000 tons, and if you want to bring some troops as reserves, it will be useless."

Cheng Han asked in surprise: "Zhou Zhizhao, is this a new view?" ”

With a calm expression, Zhou Changfeng glanced at the left and right, "New news, you should all know that the Americans are forming two new division-level troops in Canada and Asia, and it is unlikely that both of them will be sent to Australia. If Hawaii had an entire division, the gap between the enemy and us would be too great and would have to be treated with caution. ”

"It's going to be difficult to increase the number of troops, unless you add a few new super cruise ships." Cheng Han said helplessly: "There is no concealment at all. ”

Super cruise ships such as the Shengping and Suzaku are potential large-scale high-speed troop carriers, which have attracted much attention, and countless eyes are staring at them.

What's more, cruise ships cannot be used directly as troop carriers, and before that, they have to be sent to shipyards for modification.

The Ming Navy has not yet reached a conclusion on the specific strategy, and the Zhengda Bright Expedition and the sneaky surprise attack have their own advantages.

Unlike the historical surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the so-called surprise attack of the Ming Navy actually refers to declaring war after approaching Hawaii, leaving only six to twelve hours for the United States to react at most.

Tiger Tiger Tiger? Wrong!

Dragon, Dragon, Dragon!

But the problem is that it is difficult to ensure concealment in such a large-scale operation, because the Ming naval expeditionary fleet also has to piggyback on a large number of landing troops and ammunition supplies.

If it had been detected in advance, it would have been better to rush straight to Hawaii from the beginning and force the US Pacific Fleet in a dilemma.

Zhou Changfeng's doubts made several military bigwigs in the council hall a little confused - did this mean the emperor?

When everyone was silent, Zhu Lingjing said lightly: "If the garrison on Oahu Island remains unchanged, it can be tried, but since the United States will increase its troops, it must not be rushed, otherwise it will be a gambler's act." ”

The initial planned Ming landing force was about 24,000 to 25,000 troops, and it was quite a win against the existing 20,000 US troops.

But if there is an infantry division of more than 10,000 people after that, it will be difficult to say, after all, the Americans are not an army made of sand, and they rely on strong permanent fortifications.

Five or sixty percent of the certainty is called a brave attempt, but only two or three percent of the certainty is still hard, then it becomes an arrogant gambler.

According to the repeated deduction and study of the Governor's Office Staff Office in the past half month, even if the current strength of Oahu is only calculated, the probability of failure of the attack is still not less than 40 percent.

When rolling the dice to determine the random situation, the Ming army, as the attacker of the cross-sea landing, will be magnified many times by a slight disadvantage; However, the U.S. military is a defender who relies on the fortress, and its disadvantage has little impact on it, but its superiority can significantly enhance its combat efficiency.

And even if the deduction was successful, many of them were not optimistic - in the end, the front-line units of the Ming army were basically exhausted, and they almost lost their combat effectiveness.

A group of senior staff members of the Governor's Office can only sigh that in addition to objective factors, the capture of Hawaii is indispensable for luck, and I am afraid that it really needs to be strengthened by national fortune to get a satisfactory ending.

In this way, the imperial meeting lasted until the evening, and after the initial consensus, the Ming monarchs and ministers carefully discussed a series of changes and possibilities, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of different strategies.

Compared to the last inconclusive Imperial Council, this time it will be much more successful.

First, the attack on Australia should be finalized in a month and a half – depending on whether the United States gives British aid to help stabilize the situation.

Second, the formation of forces against the Philippines should be initiated, and the plan already drawn up should be followed for the time being, with four infantry divisions, two field heavy artillery brigades, one siege heavy artillery brigade, one engineering brigade, and three air force detachments.

Third, preliminary preparations for the expeditionary force should begin, including two tank brigades, two motorized infantry brigades, nine infantry divisions, four field heavy artillery brigades, two engineering brigades, two destroyer detachments, one dive bombing detachment, and one light bombing detachment.

Fourth, the plan to capture Hawaii is put on hold for the time being, but the naval fleet must be fully prepared.

Fifth, preparations for the renovation of several major cruise ships have begun, and the renovation must be completed within two months as far as possible; The reconstruction of the amphibious command ship should be completed within two and a half months.

After this meeting, except for the capture of Hawaii, which has not yet been finalized and is still to be discussed, the rest of the strategic issues in the Asia-Pacific region have been confirmed by the Ming monarchs.

In addition, more importantly, the construction of the Handan Arsenal has been preliminarily completed.

In half a year's work, dozens of large and small factories have risen in the factory area, several water towers, and a vast weapons testing field, and the narrow-gauge railway that surrounds and runs through the factory area has also been laid.

According to the previous plan, after the completion and acceptance of the plant, a large number of machines prepared for it will be relocated to the factory one after another.

Most of the brand-new machine tools ordered from many domestic machine tool factories have been manufactured, and the machines and equipment ordered from France, Germany and Slovakia have also arrived.

The Cheng'an incident made the relationship between the Ming and France cold, the French detained most of the machinery and equipment at customs, and the Ming people had no hope for it, but just last month, this batch of machinery and equipment was actually released from detention, loaded and shipped, and now it has passed through the Suez Canal.

However, the efficiency of the French was as low as ever, and the Akito had ordered thousands of machines and more than 10,000 tons of machinery and equipment from the two companies, half of which had not yet been manufactured.

Now that the Germans have called, I'm afraid this order is going to be lost, right?

Grinding and chirping Frenchmen! Refund!

After leaving the Wenhua Palace, the emperor and his entourage returned to the Inner Dynasty by car.

"Although they are all conclusive, but once the battle starts, who can predict how it will end in the end?" Zhu Lingjing still felt that those people in the military department deliberately spoke a lot more optimistically in order to persuade everyone.

"Uh... There are not as many variables as Your Majesty thinks, the speed of scientific and technological development is traceable, and now it is far from the extent that you can ignore strategic locations, and it will suddenly become clear when you take Hawaii, and the initiative is on our side. Zhou Changfeng said comfortingly.

"In the past, I was also ambitious, and I thought it would not be difficult to send troops to sweep the South Seas and wave to Australia, but now I ...... Ay. ”

"Ahem, as the monarch of the Ming Dynasty and the head of a country, Your Majesty, you must first be full of confidence."

Look, isn't this conservative nature revealed? Zhou Changfeng's Zhu Lingjing in the past was quite pioneering, but now he gradually lost his original courage and courage after easily taking the Dutch East India Du into his pocket.

Zhou Changfeng, who was quite helpless, then left the Forbidden City and went home for dinner.

There has been a lot of good news recently, which has made him more confident, but it is a pity that it is difficult for the Ming monarchs and ministers to understand.

Unit 909 (E909) recently submitted a confidential report summarizing their clinical trials of penicillin over the past two months.

Compared to the steadily advancing research at the University of Seremban, the E909 unit is much more "efficient and bold", and it has been confirmed that penicillin has an excellent killing effect on all gram-positive bacteria, including scarlet fever, pneumonia, gonorrhea, and diphtheria.

At the same time, they also verified that the total incidence of allergic reactions is about 10%, which is divided into A, B and C according to the severity, and the most severe A will have anaphylactic shock, sudden drop in blood pressure, and respiratory depression.

The incidence of anaphylactic shock cannot be determined because sample data are insufficient to determine the prevalence, and only a rough estimate of the probability is low, and if it occurs, an epinephrine and oxygen mask should be administered immediately, and endotracheal intubation should be performed if necessary.

The conclusion of the E909 unit is that it is advisable to do everything possible to mass-produce penicillin and to perform a skin test before each patient applies it.

This secret report made Zhou someone happy, Daming was at the forefront in this regard, seized the time to overcome the problem of mass production, and took advantage of the fact that the United States has not yet been mass-produced, and made a lot of money first!

The second piece of good news is even more important, that is, the basic theoretical demonstration of the atomic bomb has been completed.

The research team clarified the prospect and believed that it was necessary to carry out substantial research and development projects with the strong support of the imperial court, and they would also start to build a model of the physical system.

(End of chapter)