A large room in the Bombay Palace has now been decorated to look like a chart room. A huge chart table was placed in the center of the room, and a large chart of the Indian Ocean was spread on the table.
In one corner of the chart, the Straits of Malacca, Temasek Fortress, Malacca Fortress, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and other terrains are drawn. There are also small flags placed next to those important strongholds to show the current ownership there.
Outside the exits of the east and west sides of the Strait of Malacca, dozens of small ship models have been placed on each side. Each model has the Union Jack and the sun and moon flag painted on it. What these ship models represent is obviously the confrontation between the Nanyang Fleet and the Indian Fleet of the Ming Navy.
The new Indian Imperial Secretary of War, Earl Nelson, the Commander of the Indian Grand Fleet, Admiral Codrington, and the Commander of the Indian Grand Fleet Air Force, Major General George Elliot, were also standing by the chart table at this time, frowning. Listening to Emperor William speak.
"The current situation is very obvious. Our advantage is on the west of the strait, and Ming's advantage is on the east of the strait. Temasek Fortress and Ming's Batam Fortress are like two nails. If we enter the South China Sea through the Strait of Malacca, then Pakistan will Awashima will choke our neck. Anyway, as long as the main force of the Ming Dynasty's fleet enters the west side of the Malacca Strait, our chance to annihilate them will come.
Therefore, we have only two problems to solve now. One is how to deceive the main force of the Ming Dynasty's Nanyang Fleet into passing through the Strait of Malacca; the other is how to annihilate them? Earl, am I right? "
"My Majesty, you are so wise!" Earl Nelson raised his only thumb. "Your Majesty, do you have any good way to deceive the main force of the Ming Dynasty's Nanyang Fleet into passing through the Strait of Malacca?"
The Indian emperor has been thinking about this problem these days, and now he has the answer. He picked up a wooden stick and clicked on the Persian Gulf on the chart. "First, we must blockade the Persian Gulf. This is not to seize Persia." Gulf, but to fully confuse the enemy and make the enemy think that our goal is to drive away the Ming Navy fleet in the Persian Gulf, and make the enemy think that our main force is in the Arabian Sea. Count, what do you think?"
"My Majesty, you are truly an outstanding naval commander." Earl Nelson praised from the bottom of his heart.
The Indian Emperor became more confident and said: "In order to achieve this goal, we must organize a certain number of camouflaged main fleets. The camouflaged main fleet should include a certain number of old battleships, first-class cruisers, second-class cruisers, and third-class cruisers." Waiting for cruisers and camouflaged cruisers converted from merchant ships. In the early stages of the mission, the real main fleet can even be dispatched to serve as a cover mission."
"Your Majesty," Earl Nelson said, "I completely agree with your plan!"
Emperor William's confidence greatly increased, and then pointed at Temasek Island with a wooden stick: "Secondly, we should pretend to negotiate with the enemy, and use blockade of the strait as a means of exerting maximum pressure. This will induce the enemy to send the main force of the Nanyang Fleet to approach Temasek Port, and even It is possible to provoke a conflict and send the army to advance along the Malay Peninsula towards Temasek. And this is really what we are looking forward to.
However, we must pay special attention to the defense of Temasek Island. Once Temasek Island is lost, the Strait of Malacca will be opened. All our plans will fail! "
Admiral Codrington said: "Your Majesty the Emperor, we can dispatch a large number of shallow-water heavy artillery ships to Temasek Island to cooperate with the forts in performing blockade missions."
Emperor William said: “We cannot lock the Strait of Malacca too tightly, we must allow part of the enemy’s main fleet to pass through.
Because we will also set up an ambush in the west of the Strait of Malacca! "
"Your Majesty, how should we set up an ambush?" asked Earl Nelson.
"We should..." Emperor William thought for a while, "We should pretend that Temasek Island is in danger and send armored cruisers to escort the fast troop transport ships into the Strait of Malacca. If the Ming Dynasty's fleet detects them, they will definitely send some capital ships to intercept... At this time we can lead them to the west!"
"That's great. As long as they reach the west of the Strait of Malacca, we can annihilate them all." Earl Nelson waved his fist heavily, "Your Majesty, your naval talent is undoubted...so you can completely sit in Bombay. , using the radio station we just imitated for remote control command. There is no need to take risks at all!"
"Yes, the count is right. You can completely control the situation remotely without having to go to the front line in person."
"Yes, the front line is too dangerous. If anything happens..."
Admiral Codrington and Major General George Elliot quickly echoed Earl Nelson's words.
Regardless of whether Kaiser Wilhelm was a genius naval commander or not, they could not let him go into battle.
Once the land battle is defeated, we can still run away quickly. It's hard to say about naval battles... The British battleships currently have a speed of only 21 knots. What if the Ming Dynasty has a 22-knot battleship?
Now that Great Britain is making progress, will Ming Dynasty remain still?
Not sure at all!
Emperor William understood the hard work of the people below, but he still had an uncontrollable ambition.
At this moment, there was a voice: "His Excellency the Chief Minister has arrived."
Emperor Wilhelm's chief minister, Viscount Amherst, suddenly rushed in with a telegraph newspaper, shouting as he ran: "His Majesty the Emperor, His Majesty the Emperor, His Majesty the King... passed away!"
The king is dead?
Which king?
"Prime Minister, what happened?" Emperor William asked.
"The King, His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom, he... just passed away! The Chief Minister, the Duke of Wellington, asked you, do you want to return to the UK immediately?"
"Oh God!" Emperor William finally realized who was dead? He quickly crossed himself and said, "Isn't this too sudden? Why did he do it? What should I do now?"
"God, may he rest in peace!" Nelson also looked sad.
It seems that the death of George IV still made Emperor William, Earl Nelson and others feel very sad.
"Your Majesty the Emperor," Earl Nelson immediately suggested, "I'm afraid now is not the right time for the breakup of the Ming Dynasty. Why not... postpone the start of the war."
"Yes, you should return to the British mainland as soon as possible." Viscount Amherst and Nelson reached an agreement.
"No, I won't go back." Emperor William is not stupid. How could he leave a good Indian emperor and become the British king when he goes back?
The British don't have much money to take when they are kings!
But he cannot be less than the King of England. After all, the British officers and soldiers in the Indian Grand Fleet and the Anglo-Indian Allied Forces were only loyal to the United Kingdom.
"I, I can't go back now," Emperor William changed his words slightly, "I should, like Emperor Napoleon, personally command the Indian Grand Fleet to fight, and then return to the United Kingdom after a complete victory in the Indian Ocean Defense War.
At that time, I will not only be the Emperor of India and the King of the United Kingdom, but also the Lord of the whole world! "
"Your Majesty the King, you must not take the lead." Earl Nelson frowned and said, "The current naval battle battlefield is too dangerous, and you will lose your life if you are not careful.
Therefore, Your Majesty, you should stay in Bombay and take command. Mumbai has very good communication facilities. "
Viscount Amherst also said: "Yes, as long as you are in India for one day, the entire Indian people will be greatly inspired. Moreover, you can also remotely control the fleet on the front line through the radio station, so there is no need to leave at all."
(End of chapter)
