The war room of the Nanyang Fleet of the Ming Navy is in a large oval room. In the center of the large room is a very large chart table. On the table is a three-dimensional ocean chart that depicts the conditions of the Southern Ocean and the Western Ocean (Indian Ocean). .
When Zhuge Weidao, Guan Tianpei, and Chen Jian arrived here, a group of staff officers from the Nanyang Fleet were discussing the latest changes in the situation and possible countermeasures around this sea map.
"A fleet of more than 150 ships is concentrated in the Gulf of Oman. It looks like the British are going to do something big!"
"The existing fleet in the Persian Gulf has really stirred up a hornet's nest this time!"
"It looks like the British are about to have a battle with our Ming Dynasty!"
"Let's fight, who is afraid of whom? And we won the first battle, sinking the British armored cruisers and cruisers. At least 5 ships were sunk! A great victory!"
"If I had known that steam gas torpedoes were so useful, I should have shipped more to the Persian Gulf Fleet."
"It's good like this now. If it's too bad to fight the Indian fleet, the British might give up and it will end in another border conflict!"
"That's right. The conflict that Zhuge Daozi caused last time ended in nothing!"
"It's impossible to let things go this time. The British and Indian troops have landed in Muscat! We signed a "Protection Treaty" with the Sultanate of Oman!"
"Yes, we must protect the Sultanate of Oman!"
Most of these were fleet staff officers in their thirties, and some were Zhuge Weidao's classmates at the Naval Academy and Naval Staff College. They were all in their prime of life, and they were all still trying to climb up the ranks.
And Zhuge Weidao and the group of people he brought out have obviously become good examples for them - through events such as "Daoguang Printing", "Jiyi Naval Battle", "Goa Naval Battle", "Enter the Persian Gulf", etc. A large number of people followed Zhuge to get promoted and make a fortune.
This promotion is so good, it’s like the star of fortune in “Fu Lu Shou”!
So when the staff officers of the Nanyang Fleet learned that the naval aviation fleet of which Zhuge Weidao was the admiral would be temporarily assigned to the Nanyang Fleet, they all became excited - promotion and fortune, right now!
"Guan Junmen, Zhuge Junmen, and Mr. Chen are here!"
With a roll call, the discussion in the Nanyang Fleet war room immediately stopped. Everyone turned around and saluted the three people who were walking in with their heads held high. Guan Tianpei, Zhuge Weidao, and Chen Jian also paid tribute to these people. With military salute.
"Pengqi," Guan Tianpei asked the eldest major general in the war room, "does the Naval Staff have any new instructions?"
When Zhuge Weidao heard this, he also glanced at this "Peng Qi". He was a middle-aged man with a white face, raised eyebrows and a mustache. He was in his early 40s and was wearing a neat white navy uniform. He looked very capable.
However, the reason Zhuge Weidao was interested in him was not his appearance, but his name. His name is Ge Yunfei, and you can tell by his name that he must be an "anti-British faction". And his current position is chief of staff of the Nanyang Fleet, who is responsible for the anti-British war!
"Military gate," Ge Yunfei replied, "The Naval Staff just sent a telegram informing our department that the Army's Nanyang Corps has not yet been formed. Currently, only the Japanese Aizu Division, Sendai Division and Changchun Division can be used to attack Malaya. Our 12th Army of the Ming Dynasty in Siam has only 80,000 combatable troops. The number of British and Indian troops in Malaya exceeds 130,000, and there are also Temasek Fortress and Malacca Castle to rely on. The General Staff is responsible for the command of the Malay Peninsula. The war may be protracted!”
"Daozi, what do you think?" Guan Tianpei turned around and asked Zhuge Weidao.
Zhuge Weidao thought about it for a while: "The Malay Peninsula is not a small place, so we have to fight for two months. I don't know if the Persian Gulf can last that long?"
"How long is 2 months?"
"Dozi, do you know how long the Army thinks the Malayan Campaign will last?"
Zhuge Weidao looked at Guan Tianpei and Ge Yunfei who seemed to be surprised, and asked: "How long does the army plan to fight?"
Guan Tianpei stretched out a slap in the face: "500,000 people fight for 5 months! We also need the cooperation of our naval power to block the British reinforcements as much as possible."
Just talk nonsense!
Zhuge Wei Daoxin said: "If you fight 500,000 for 5 months, Qiu Pang wouldn't dare to think of such a good thing, right? But even if it takes 2 months to capture the Temasek Fortress, it's still a long time."
Thinking of this, Zhuge Weidao said: "Five months is too long. I'm afraid the Persian Gulf can't last that long!"
Zhuge Weidao, who "calculates every strategy", also made a mistake this time!
He never expected that the large fleet of as many as 150 ships in the Gulf of Oman was actually a virtual force of the British. Their real force was in the Indian Ocean west of Sumatra!
Therefore, he also feels that it is a bit difficult for the Persian Gulf Fleet to survive for 5 months. Even if it only survives for 3 months, it will still be dangerous. After all, the Ming army's ground troops in the Persian Gulf are less than 10,000, and the British have mobilized troops from India, with 100,000 and 200,000 being no problem.
"Daozi, what do you think should be done?" Guan Tianpei asked.
"We should." Zhuge Weidao thought for a while, "We should divide our troops into two groups!"
As he spoke, Zhuge Weidao walked to the chart table and took a baton from a staff officer beside him. He pointed at Temasek first and said, "The main force of the Nanyang Fleet can go straight to the vicinity of Temasek Island and dispatch the marines to attack the area in the Strait of Malacca." The small island cooperates with the Army's north-south pincer attack. At the same time, combat patrol units and aviation units are mobilized to form a rapid formation, which goes south from the Makassar Strait, then passes through the Lombok Strait, directly enters the Indian Ocean, then turns northwest, along Java Island, Sumatra Advance towards the island and detour to the west of the Strait of Malacca.”
The main force of the Nanyang Fleet's battle patrol detachment is the four "Zhongwang" class battlecruisers. The main force of the aviation detachment is an aircraft-carrying cruiser and three motherships. In addition, there are some escort cruisers, destroyers, and accompanying fast ships. Oil tankers, fast coal ships, fast supply ships.
If these two units fight together, they will indeed be quite capable troops, and they will be very fast!
But once these two detachments leave the Nanyang Fleet, the main force will be dispersed.
"What can we do with so many troops?" Ge Yunfei asked in confusion.
"I don't know." Zhuge Weidao shook his head.
"I don't know?" Ge Yunfei was stunned again and again, "Zhuge Junmen, what does "I don't know" mean?"
"I just don't know what to do after the rapid formation goes around to the west of the Strait of Malacca?"
"Then you are still going?" Ge Yunfei asked.
"Go, you have to go!" Zhuge Weidao replied firmly, "Because I don't know anything, and the enemy probably doesn't know it either! And if they can't guess my intentions, they will feel afraid, and they will If there is a mistake in judgment, I will take advantage of it.”
"This..." Ge Yunfei didn't know what to say.
Guan Tianpei on the side nodded and said: "I think it's okay. As expected of Zhuge's military advisor, he actually uses troops like this... The Lombok Strait is usually in the hands of the Dutch, and the Dutch have long been the lackeys of the British. Our If the rapid formation wants to pass through the Lombok Strait, it must be impossible to hide it from the eyes and ears of the Dutch.
The Dutch knew it, that Emperor William must also know it, and the Marquis Nelson must also know it. Let them guess then...eight battleships, and there are five more battleships! I don't believe they dare to ignore it! As long as they dare not ignore it, whatever they do is wrong. "
With that said, he said to Ge Yunfei: "Just make a plan according to Zhuge Daozi's method and report it immediately."
(End of chapter)
