Chapter 708： avoid war

"The nine battlecruisers of the German Navy Expeditionary Fleet can be called the most powerful battlecruisers in the world. Especially the three 'Makensen-class' battlecruisers and the three 'Derfflinger-class' battlecruisers The cruisers are all equipped with 380mm main guns with 50 times the caliber. None of our battleships can fight against their powerful firepower. Even the main guns of our battleships, even the armor of these German battlecruisers They can’t even penetrate them. Under such circumstances, how can we fight against them? It’s not because the Imperial Navy fears the enemy and avoids fighting, but because the German Navy’s expeditionary fleet is too powerful, and the strength gap between the two sides is too great! If we confront the German Navy head-on If the expeditionary fleet confronts, it is no different from seeking death. We cannot let the officers and soldiers of the Imperial Navy die in vain." Admiral Yatsushiro Rokuro said.

"Hmph! A coward is a coward, what's the use of sophistry?" Admiral Oka Ichinosuke whispered.

But there are only a few of them in the conference room. Even if General Oka Ichinosuke speaks in a low voice, General Yatsushiro Rokuro can still hear clearly. This groundless accusation by Oka Ichinosuke made Yashiro Rokuro furious.

"If the death of the navy officers and soldiers can help the empire win this war, we will die without hesitation. I am willing to be the first one. However, it is a pity that even if we all die in battle, we will not hesitate to die. We can't beat the German Navy's expeditionary fleet. Therefore, we need to keep our useful bodies in order to defeat the Germans in the future." Yashiro Rokuro looked sad and indignant.

Oka Ichinosuke wanted to make a sarcasm, but was stopped by Okuma Shigenobu.

The war is about to begin, and Shigenobu Okuma does not want the army and navy to be in trouble. In that case, how can this battle continue? I'm afraid that before the battle even started, they themselves would start fighting among themselves.

"Yatsushiro-kun, how does the Navy think?" Okuma Shigenobu asked.

"Your Excellency, in view of the fact that the strength of the Imperial Navy is far inferior to that of the German Navy Expeditionary Fleet. Therefore, the Imperial Navy plans to avoid direct confrontation with the German Navy Expeditionary Fleet after it arrives, and use coastal fortifications to confront it. If there is a suitable opportunity , the Imperial Navy will dispatch warships to attack the German Navy’s logistics supply ships. The German Navy’s expeditionary fleet traveled thousands of miles to conquer the island country, and all logistical supplies depend on a few supply ships. If those supply ships are sunk by us, the German Navy will soon It will be in a situation where there is no fuel, no food, no shells or even clean water. At that time, the Imperial Navy can fully seize this opportunity and capture these warships of the German Navy Expeditionary Fleet. In this way, the Imperial Navy can not only get Victory, on the contrary, we can seize this opportunity to further strengthen our strength!" Yashiro Rokuro said.

The important ministers of the island nation present all stared wide-eyed. They did not expect that the navy would actually have such an idea. If the Navy's plan can be successful, then they can win. Moreover, the navy of the island country can also add a few powerful battleships because of this, which is simply killing two birds with one stone!

"Hmph! Are the Germans stupid? Once their logistics supply ships are attacked, they will definitely retreat. Besides, the Germans will not be so stupid as not to send warships to protect those logistics supply ships." Okashinosuke snorted coldly .

"It is true that it is very difficult to complete this plan. However, this is already the best battle plan we can think of." Yatsushiro Rokuro did not become angry because of Oka Ichinosuke's doubts.

"This plan is indeed very good. Although I am not a soldier, I also know that if it can be successful, it will be of great benefit to the empire." Foreign Minister Takaaki Kato said.

Okuma Shigenobu nodded: "Since the navy already has a plan, let's proceed according to the navy's plan. This time, the Germans did not send the army, which is a good thing for us. We can have more It's time to prepare. The army will strengthen its defense in Southeast Asia from now on, and at the same time plunder as much resources as possible. The navy will send transport ships to help the army transport more war materials to Southeast Asia, and at the same time, the army will find Those resources are transported back to the mainland. The empire now needs to seize every minute and use the resources in Southeast Asia to make the empire stronger!"

"Hi, Your Excellency the Prime Minister." Yatsushiro Rokuro and Oka Ichinosuke replied immediately.

"My lords, the empire has reached the most critical moment. This battle is related to the fate of the empire. We have already used the state of the empire as a bet. Therefore, we have no other choice. If we win, the empire will Soaring into the sky, becoming stronger and becoming one of the real world powers, and if it fails, needless to say, everyone should know what the consequences will be. Therefore, we must do our best to win." Okuma Shigenobu looked solemn.

"Hey! The empire will win!" The important ministers of the island nation looked enthusiastic. They all believe that in the next battle, their chances of winning are still very high.

While the land and navy of the island country were preparing for the battle, the German Navy expeditionary fleet was crossing the Indian Ocean.

The long-distance voyage is undoubtedly a great test for the officers and soldiers of the German Navy. Fortunately, the supply preparations of the Imperial Navy were adequate, so that the Imperial Navy basically had no problems during the long-distance voyage.

The speed of the fleet is not fast, and it has been cruising. And it will stop from time to time to perform simple maintenance on the battleship.

It would be best if a port could be found for maintenance before the battle. In that case, all warships can be brought into full play. But unfortunately, Germany now does not have a single military port in the Indian Ocean or even the entire Far East. Therefore, in this naval battle, the strength of their warships could not be fully utilized. There is no way around this. The Russians suffered such a big loss back then.

But even so, Lieutenant General Spey, who was in charge of commanding the expeditionary fleet, was still full of confidence in defeating the island navy. Even if the performance of these warships of the Imperial Navy cannot be maximized, their combat effectiveness is definitely higher than that of the island nation's navy.

On July 27, the German Navy expeditionary fleet entered the South China Sea. However, not even a warship or merchant ship from an island country was encountered.

Lieutenant Admiral Spei immediately issued an order for the fleet to go north. Since no navy or merchant ships of the island country were found, they would go directly to the offshore waters of the island country. In that case, the islanders will naturally have no way to retreat.