Iron Cross

"As long as we can destroy the enemy's troops and weaken their advantages, no matter where they are, we will gradually reduce the attack - who stipulates that the enemy must follow the path we have planned for them and fight all the way to the homeland? Americans before the Battle of Midway Island Didn't they just use the aircraft carrier to launch a surprise air attack on Tokyo? The battlefields, routes, tactics, strategies, etc. for the enemy were all created by stupid staff officers who were rigid and did not know how to adapt... The tactics were flexible. , Did the Americans know that our first punch would be at Pearl Harbor?”

Kusaka Renichi couldn't help but feel ashamed: Although the officer's words were referring to General Yamamoto Isoroku's high ginseng Kuroshima Kameto - this man didn't like bathing, often walked around naked, and his whole body exuded a putrid smell. The "immortal" staff officer has been sent ashore by Horikichi, but it seems that he has a tendency to develop into a "stupid" staff officer recently.

"Why do I have to fight the designated war with the enemy at the given place and at the given time? Why can't I catch the enemy's weakness and strike hard? Throughout the ages, it is legendary to use the weak to attack the strong, and to use the strong to attack the weak is The art of war! There are very few who can win by attacking the weak with the strong, but not many can end up capsizing by attacking the weak with the strong." Horikichi glanced at Soga Ren and asked meaningfully, "Kusaga-kun, if there is a game of strength and weakness. It’s a clear battle, and you’re betting on it, which side will you bet on?”

Caolu Renyi nodded sincerely: "Sir's advice, I will always keep my humble position in my heart."

"Unfortunately, in terms of national power and national strength, we are on the weaker side. This gap is much larger than the existing gap in military strength. Therefore, I was firmly opposed to a war between Japan and the United States - this is like firmly opposed to placing bets on the winning side. The small side! But now that the bet has been made, it is almost a gamble, and there is no room for regret. I can only think of more ways to increase the chance of winning. Isn't this the starting point for implementing the Indian Ocean strategy and consolidating and leveraging the advantages of the three countries? "

Caolu Renyi said quickly: "Under the leadership of the commander, we still have a chance. Didn't we win last time? The chance of winning this time should be not small, and the Germans are particularly powerful in land warfare. I think they control Egypt. It’s just a matter of time.”

"I hope so." Horikichi nodded, and then sighed, "Now I just do my best to obey fate."

On the 17th, the fleet moved forward in fear. As a result, everything went smoothly. No movement of the British and American navies was detected, and no merchant ships were encountered. The command headquarters was not only happy. On the 18th, during the voyage, they encountered a merchant ship flying the British flag. It seemed to be engaged in transportation between Persia and South Africa. Although the two cruisers quickly sank the merchant ship that came in stupidly, Kusuka Ren was Still with a sullen face, he told Horikichi: "Sir, the situation is not good. We intercepted the telegram signal sent by the enemy ship before it sank. Although it is only the simplest 'SOS', I am afraid that the follow-up trouble will not be small."

Horikichi comforted him calmly: "That's good. It's several days later than the time I expected to be exposed - now even an hour later is good. Notify the fleet to be prepared, and reconnaissance planes are ready to dispatch at any time."

Seven hours later, it was getting dark, but there was still no movement. No warships came to investigate, no planes passed overhead, and no radio signals were intercepted. Horikichi became suspicious. Since the British Even though he didn't care about it, he was happy to accept this gift. In fact, the British escort command stationed in Mombasa, Kenya, received the distress signal and subsequently deduced the source of the signal and the ship that sent it. However, because it was just a simple SOS signal, it was not specifically released. In my mind, I never expected to encounter the main force of the Japanese fleet.

The escort command simply believed that the merchant ship probably encountered a German or Japanese submarine. This was the most likely scenario - more than half a year ago, the Sovereign-class battleship Lamiy was attacked by a Japanese submarine torpedo after completing the occupation of Madagascar. After being wounded, he returned to the UK for maintenance. The escort authorities responded immediately. Since the sea area where the incident occurred was too far away from the land, it was temporarily unable to send aircraft to check. They simply reminded all transport ships to pay attention to avoiding enemy submarines. At the same time, they notified the British fleet command of the discovery of suspicious targets and suspected submarines. Officer General Cunningham.

Cunningham seemed uneasy and uneasy after receiving the telegram. He had a strong sense of crisis, but he couldn't explain clearly what it was.

Before this telegram arrived, he was still holding a telegram from Alexander in his hand. The commander-in-chief of the Middle East theater has now become an ant on the hot pot. He can send three telegrams a day to ask about the fleet's itinerary and location. At the same time, he told Cunningham in frustration that Rommel had commanded the German troops to approach Cairo from the north, west, and east. Although the ground battle had not yet begun, sporadic air strikes had already occurred. He urgently begged the fleet to come to the rescue. he.

Two days ago, General Ted sent information about the German-Italian combined fleet collected after aircraft reconnaissance: The main force of the combined German-Italian fleet includes 4 battleships\\battlecruisers (Italian 3 Veneto-class battleships, German 1 Dunkirk-class battlecruiser), 5 heavy cruisers, including 2 Italian ones (Zara-class Gorizia and Taranto-class Trieste), 3 German ones, There are about 30 other light cruisers and destroyers.

He paid special attention to Ted's telegram. Because he was in a hurry, he organized all high-speed capital ships into a fast column. The column included one aircraft carrier: the USS Raider; and three battleships, the USS Massachusetts (South Dakota class). ) and the British HMS Warspite and Malaya (both Queen Elizabeth class), 3 heavy cruisers: the American Augusta, Tuscaloosa and Wichita respectively, and other light cruisers and destroyers in two The fleets were roughly evenly distributed - there were two battleships, the USS New York and the USS Texas, and several escort carriers in the slow fleet behind.

After receiving the exact formation information of the German and Italian fleets, he felt deeply that his strength was insufficient, and it was too late to wait for the slow fleet to come up, so he called London to temporarily mobilize the Revenge and Resolve, which had been serving as escort missions in the waters near Kenya. Two battleships (both Sovereign class) joined the fleet. Now his fast column has one more aircraft carrier than the German and Italian fleets - although the combat effectiveness is not strong, and one more battleship - although it is an old ship, it has two less heavy ships. Cruiser, after comprehensive consideration and weighing, he believed that he was now worthy of fighting the enemy, and he had to be particularly careful of the enemy's three battleships. Except for the Massachusetts, which could steadily defeat any of the enemy's battleships, the other battleships in his hands were not necessarily Italian. Battleship rival.

After receiving information about the suspected discovery of enemy submarines, he couldn't help but frown, because the fleet that came all the way to grab time often ignored anti-submarine, so he immediately ordered to increase the precautions against submarines - because of thinking Consciously or unintentionally considering the direction of submarines, the British missed a good opportunity to be discovered by the enemy first.

"How is the war in Egypt?" Horikichi asked Solu Renyi habitually after entering the night.

"The Germans have controlled the entire Alexandria and Canal Zone, and are currently gradually building an encirclement of Cairo. It is reported that the British army in Cairo is about 50,000 to 60,000."

After hearing the news about controlling the canal zone, Horikichi's eyes lit up and he asked quickly: "Where is the canal...did the British destroy it?"

"There is no definite news, but I guess not. The British escaped too quickly, and the fleet was captured by the German and Italian navies. The British neither had enough time nor a big enough ship to block the canal."

Horikichi nodded thankfully: "It's best not. The equipment and supplies Germany gave us are still expected to go through the canal."

"Do you really think the Germans will give us that much?" Caolu Renyi scratched his scalp in embarrassment, "I always thought those conditions were a big deal, but I didn't expect the Germans to agree without any pretense. I always feel that The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is weak and incompetent and is a liability, but this mission was really well done.”

"Yes...if we can show our strength, the Germans may give us more - at most we can pay for the extra part."

"Where's the money?"

"India...haven't you heard of thousands of tons of gold?" Horikichi burst into laughter. "Don't worry that the German head of state will default on his debt. So many countries in Europe are watching him. He wants to do great things and establish a new European order and achieve great results. The European Union, a figure of imperial hegemony, is much more reliable than the slogan of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Moreover, these things are an astronomical figure to Japan, but they are nothing more than drizzle to Germany!”

"This... I don't believe it. I always feel that the special envoy is a bit bragging."

"Don't believe it?" Horikichi smiled meaningfully, "Germany produces more tanks in a month than we do in a year, and its aviation industry is several times stronger than ours, not to mention other chemical industries, metallurgy, steel, and coal. Germany The army conquered France in one month, but how long will it take for us to fight? The army can only defeat countries like China, and it may not even be able to win. Germany may be worse than us with its navy, so they have been wooing the Italians."

Caolu Renyi showed a look of longing: "I really hope to complete the mission as soon as possible and get the supplies and equipment... This trip will be worthwhile."

"Führer..." Hoffman, who was still staying on the island of Crete, received Yoder's report, "We once again received a telegram from the Japanese fleet. They have arrived in the theater in the spirit of joint operations and are currently heading towards The final battle area will be advanced and the battle will be carried out as originally planned - the only drawback is that the British and American fleets have not yet been discovered."

Hoffman stood up excitedly: "Very good! As expected, Egypt has basically won this battle. Now it depends on whether the Japanese can seize the opportunity. Don't interfere with their actions, just ask them to complete their intended goals. But be sure to inform us in time.”