"Tactically, this is a good start, but strategically we have lost the suddenness of the attack, and if nothing else, Makanov should have received a telegram from the beginning of the war today. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info" Heihachiro Togo said with a little frustration.

Although the number one target of the Japanese fleet was the Makanov fleet, it did not mean that the Essen fleet and the Arthur Port fleet in Vladivostok were left alone, especially the former, which was an order that could influence the tide of the war, so in order to completely block this fleet, the Japanese Navy's camouflaged minelayers began to lay minefields at night after the Makanov fleet arrived in Cam Ranh Bay. Then, unexpectedly, this time the Russians actually came out so early! Although a single mine temporarily removed a capital ship from the combat sequence, as Heihachiro Togo said, from a strategic point of view, the Japanese fleet actually suffered a loss.

So now the question is clear, what to do next for the Japanese fleet? Will it be against the Essen fleet in this port or will it continue to deal with the Makanov fleet? If it's the former, how to intercept it? If the latter, where will the new ambush be chosen?

"We're going on an adventure!" Chief Staff Officer Mayuki Akiyama took a deep breath and said, "We can't catch the Essen fleet, they have a lot of endurance, and they are fast, and their actions are erratic. If it is not separated, it is difficult to find, and if it is separated, it is easy to be broken by each one. ”

"Our target should still be the Makanov fleet, but this time, we will take the initiative and attack the adversary in the South China Sea! Instead of waiting for the other party to throw themselves into the net! Akiyama added. Moreover, I have a hunch that the Essen fleet should go to join the Makanov fleet. ”

"If this is the case, our homeland will be empty, and before we come back, the Russians will fight as they want, and if something happens, who will be responsible?" Sotaro Misu asked.

"This is a loss that needs to be borne, how can there be no loss in a war? As long as we can take out the Makanov fleet, then everything is not a problem, if this task cannot be completed, then everything is over. Uemura clearly supports Akiyama's proposal.

"Yes, you have everything when you win, and you have nothing when you lose." Heihachiro Togo sighed. He knew that Akiyama Shinyuki's suggestion was right, now that the war had started, Makanov could not be stupid enough to throw himself into the net, and the sudden departure of the Essen fleet also reminded the Japanese that the Russians may have seen the Japanese plan, so the choice they made was to concentrate their forces in the South China Sea and then go north! Was the Japanese fleet capable of breaking through Arthur or Vladivostok in a short time? No! Then it is only possible to strike at the Russian fleet.

But it's easier said than done, with such a large area in the South China Sea, how can the Japanese fleet look for targets? If the Japanese fleet had gone south, and the Russian fleet had gone north and had just slipped through the gap, it would have been all over! Once the three Russian fleets succeeded, Japan would lose half of them.

"The fleet moved in the direction of the Philippines, and sent a telegram to the base camp saying that during the period of dealing with the Makanov fleet, the combined fleet is not capable of maintaining the security of the sea lines of communication, so I hope the government can make a plan! At the same time, contact the British, we need their help to keep an eye on the Russian fleet! Eventually, Heihachiro Togo decided to take the initiative to go south in search of the Russian fleet.

And just when the Japanese decided to do it, Makanov also received a telegram from Essen, but for this crucial telegram, Makanov could only smile bitterly, the plans of the Japanese were exposed, and eighty percent of the plans of the Russians were also exposed, and all the operational schedules had to be advanced, but for the Russian fleet at this time, this was really not good news. Now his own fleet has just arrived in Cam Ranh Bay, and even the next batch of German supply ships has not yet arrived, and this war has broken out!

Even if Makanov himself wants to go, he will definitely not be able to go, because there is not enough fuel, and he has to wait for the American fleet, and now that the war has begun, if the Americans cannot send the fleet before the official declaration of war between Japan and Russia, then under the pressure of the neutrality clause, it is a question whether the Americans can deliver the battleships they have agreed in advance! Now, it is clear that it will take quite a while to get from the German colony to Cam Ranh Bay. If the Japanese had gone south right now, Makanov would have no choice at all, because Cam Ranh Bay would not have so much high-quality coal to supply the entire fleet!

So all Makanov could do was raise the level of the fleet's readiness and urge the German transports to send coal over immediately, and the rest could only depend on the will of God.

The British were indeed good allies of the Japanese in this era, and not long after the Japanese government sent a request, the British began to help gather intelligence on the Russian fleet. The intelligence of the British was very useful for the Japanese Navy, but it was not the British who helped the Japanese the most, but the good friend of the Russians, France!

At a reception hosted by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a French military attache in Japan once inadvertently revealed that France did not have enough coal reserves in the Far East, and even planned to go to Tianjin to buy coal for the French Far East Fleet, and this news made the Japanese more determined in their strategy!

What is the difference between a fleet without fuel and salted fish? Maybe the Russians' warships will not be enough to sail to Arthur or Vladivostok with their own coal reserves, and even if they are temporarily replenished, then in order to ensure the voyage, they can only choose the nearest route! So if this news is true, then all the problems are easy to handle, the nearest route! And because of the problem of endurance, the speed of the Russian fleet cannot be fast!

At this time, the British government sent a reassurance to the Japanese, the German merchant ships transporting coal for the Russian fleet had just entered the Red Sea, and it would take a long time for them to reach the Far East, and the British also confirmed the information that the Russian fleet was short of coal through their own channels, and even the American Far East Fleet sold its own coal stored in German ports to the Russians, of course, this coal was in the warehouse of Kaiser Wilhelm's domain, and had not yet been loaded into .......

"It turns out that the Makanov fleet at this time is the weakest!" Looking at the information that was collected, Heihachiro Togo finally showed a smug smile! Before the arrival of the coal carriers, the Makanov fleet could only be in Cam Ranh Bay, and yesterday the Japanese government had already declared war on the Russian government, and after the declaration of war, according to the terms of neutrality, if France upheld neutrality, then the Russian fleet could not stay in the port for more than three days! Unless the Russian fleet is willing to be disarmed! And now, the Japanese fleet has moved to the southern part of the Philippines, which is not far from Cam Ranh Bay!

The third is more present~~~! Ask for subscription, ask for tips~~~! (To be continued.) )