Age of Conquest Reborn

General Fernandez, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in Australia, was so shocked by his own thoughts that he broke into a cold sweat. According to the usual practice of the Chinese Tang Qiuli, this possibility is not impossible. Otherwise, there is no way to explain his sudden action.

reason.

General Fernandez, use the usual British thinking to judge this great thing that fell from the sky, that is, interests. Don't talk to me about illusory morality or the obligations of the Allies. If that Chinese Tang Qiuli,

If he really cared about this, he would not hesitate to cut off such a large piece of flesh from the British Empire. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that his judgment was correct.

Then, accepting help from the Chinese would be an act of luring the wolf into the house. General Fernandez was about to call his staff to stop Colonel Griffiths, the Director of Communications, from sending out the telegram that would bet the future and destiny of the entire Australia.

However, when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back. There was a serious practical problem in front of him. If Tang Qiuli's aviation unit did not escort, the 100,000 troops evacuated from Luzon Island would be what the Japanese Navy said.

A piece of fat meat, before it sees the Australian mainland, will become a hundred thousand innocent souls at the bottom of the vast Pacific Ocean. Next, with the few troops in hand, how to resist the nearly 300,000 Japanese soldiers who are like wolves and tigers?

?

The final result was that Australia would fall into the hands of the Japanese. Admiral Fernandez sadly discovered that neither the Japanese nor the Chinese, with his current strength, could not resist him and were circling back and forth in the room like a trapped animal.

Son, racked his brains to weigh the pros and cons. After calculating the pros and cons, he finally came to an unavoidable conclusion. At least in the current situation, it would be better for Tang Qiuli's troops to intervene in Australia than to let Australia fall into the hands of the Japanese.

many.

At the very least, the British and the Chinese are allies. No matter how greedy Tang Qiuli is, he would not dare to blatantly invade Australia. Moreover, everything is based on driving the Japanese out of Australia. To use a Chinese idiom,

To describe General Fernandez's difficult decision, "the lesser of two evils," is the best way to describe it.

Now that he had made a decision, General Fernandez felt relieved in his heart. At the same time, he also felt helpless that he could not control his own destiny. After wandering around for a while, the Commander-in-Chief actually fell asleep calmly and peacefully. It was a kind of confidence.

The serenity of fate.

When I received a call back from the British, it was already late at night on August 24th. Since the afternoon, the radio station of the division headquarters had been calling continuously, but it was always fate to contact them. Over there, Le Yiqin's fighters and bombers

The first echelon formation of the troops has begun to assemble at the Singapore Field Airport. Here, the British are like sinking into the sea, refusing to come out despite repeated calls. Colonel Chen Feng, the director of the Communications Department, is sweating profusely.

Chief of Staff Zhao Yuhe was also restless and ran to the telecommunications room countless times. However, division commander Tang Qiuli was not in a hurry at all. He was drinking tea and reading a book with the calmness of an old god. He could be as leisurely as possible.

How relaxing.

Later, seeing that Zhao Yuhe was almost going crazy with anxiety, he put down the book in his hand and said: "Yuhe, it's useless to be anxious. You can't contact the British. They should be on the way to retreat and don't have time to turn on the radio."

, you go tell Chen Feng, don’t worry, just keep calling normally. I judge that we should be able to contact you by night."

Zhao Yuhe smiled bitterly and said: "Commander, can you not be anxious? We have thousands of troops here on the move, but there is no news at all from the British!" Tang Qiuli smiled and said nothing more, Zhao

Yuhe couldn't sit still anymore and ran to the telecommunications room to wait for news.

Just as Tang Qiuli judged, when the radio station contacted Fernandez, the poor Commander-in-Chief was on the way to escape, with Japanese soldiers chasing after him like wolves and tigers. He didn't even have time to stand, let alone turn on the radio.

.

Therefore, when they received a call back from the British, it was already late at night on August 24th. Zhao Yuhe and Chen Feng hurried back to Tang Qiuli's office. Zhao Yuhe said: "Sir, the British finally contacted me."

On board, they called back and said everything would follow our arrangements. The contact information of the British task force and the troop carrier formation would be sent immediately. Admiral Fernandez said at the end of the telegram that he would send the contact information of the 100,000 British and Australian soldiers.

Life safety is in your hands!"

Tang Qiuli said slightly strangely: "Oh, the British agreed so happily, which is not in line with their usual style!"

Zhao Yuhe said: "Commander, at this moment, the British are desperate. A fleet transporting 100,000 soldiers is floating in the Pacific Ocean. It is just a fleet without an aircraft carrier to escort it. Even a fool knows that the Japanese cannot

I'll let this go

Good opportunity, your move, that Fernandez, is not like seeing God. I judge that this British fleet was deliberately left behind by the Japanese. Otherwise, on the day the Australian war started, it would have become

It’s a pile of scrap metal!”

Tang Qiuli smiled and said to Chen Feng: "Director Chen, after establishing contact with the British fleet, he will immediately transfer the contact information to the Southern Flying Group Air Command and telegraph Le Yiqin to act according to the predetermined plan!"

At midnight on August 24, the Commander-in-Chief of Japan’s Southwest Pacific Expeditionary Force, Admiral Genzaburo Ito, exchanged telegrams with the commanders of the two naval fleets, and then exchanged telegrams with Vice Admiral Yoshihiko Haruta on Luzon Island.

I already have a comprehensive understanding of the war situation.

On the battlefield of Luzon Island, after paying a price, MacArthur finally withdrew all the troops in the Calais Mountains to the Manila defense line. Although the troops suffered some losses, General MacArthur was slightly relieved that most of the troops lost were from the Philippines.

The losses of the U.S. Army to the First and Third Corps were not significant, and the Japanese offensive force seemed to be unsustainable and did not pursue them immediately.

This gave General MacArthur time to adjust his deployment. After contacting Lieutenant General Wagner, the British-Australian Chief of Staff at sea, he learned that the troop transport formation had not been intercepted in front of him, so he began to make arrangements for the retreat.

Lieutenant General Wagner had just received a telegram from the Commander-in-Chief, General Fernandez, and knew that his troop carrier formation would be escorted by the aviation force of the ** Division. For some unknown reason, Lieutenant General Wagner did not take this into account.

The news was conveyed to General MacArthur at the same time. Similarly, the lost General Fernandez did not think of it.

Lieutenant General Yoshihiko Haruta, the commander of the Fourteenth Army of the Japanese Army, was still unhappy. This battle was fought in vain. There was a great opportunity to annihilate the enemy, but he could not let go. He wanted to give this credit to those in the Navy.

Guys, if Commander-in-Chief Ito's order hadn't tied his hands and feet, how could those 100,000 British and Australian soldiers escape by boat? That's fine, let the guys in the Navy take advantage.

But the remaining American and Philippine troops should be allowed to fight freely. The telegram was sent to the headquarters of the dispatched army to explain their thoughts, but the answer they received was, "Order the Fourteenth Army and still not change the established decision."

The tactics are just to maintain appropriate pressure on the US military's Manila defense line, and do not seek to break through the US military's defense line and occupy the city of Manila in a short period of time!"

Lieutenant General Springfield didn't understand. What kind of bullshit order was this? Letting go of 100,000 British and Australian soldiers was a concession to the navy. Could it be that he wanted to let go the U.S. and Philippine troops and then give them to the navy?

Do you want to give a big gift to a shameless bastard?

Lieutenant General Springfield couldn't figure it out and felt aggrieved. With the current battlefield situation in Luzon Island and the rhythm of the battle, he was completely in his own hands. The U.S. and Philippine forces were completely in a passive defense posture. With the current morale of the Fourteenth Army, Lieutenant General Springfield

The general would not dare to boast that he could capture Manila on the same day, but it only took three days for the imperial soldiers to plant the sun flag on the tallest building in Manila.

The more I thought about it, the more uncomfortable I felt. Lieutenant General Yoshihiko Haruta personally drafted a telegram to Commander-in-Chief Ito. The words were not so intense. He could understand the general's embarrassment, but he felt that he should let his superiors know the grievances he felt.

Bar!

Without the interference from the Navy, Admiral Ito, who was in a good mood, took the telegram from Yoshihiko Haruta and sighed to the Chief of Staff, Rear Admiral Kawashima: "It is unimaginable that the Navy is so greedy.

I have already given up the great credit of annihilating 100,000 British and Australian troops, but the order from the General Staff is to continue to implement the plan to annihilate the main force of the Allied forces at sea. In this order, I can see the intention of the Navy Department.

shadow!"

Chief of Staff Kawashima, knowing that his superior was unhappy, persuaded: "General, your analysis is absolutely correct. This order was issued by the base camp and even His Majesty the Emperor in order to balance the navy's psychology. However, in-depth analysis

Now, it might not be a bad thing for us to dispatch troops!"

Seeing that General Ito was listening attentively, Rear Admiral Kawashima continued: "The Allies lack escort warships. It is precisely because of this that the Navy will spare no effort to fight for opportunities and obtain the victory at almost no cost.

Of course they will not let go of the brilliant achievements, and the encirclement and annihilation battle at sea can be repeated. Knowing that you are commanding the imperial army to attack Australia, MacArthur on Luzon Island will definitely be able to see that Luzon Island is already

He will give up if he is to die."

"Withdrawing there is a problem. Admiral Yamamoto's combined fleet has blocked the eastern Pacific waters and cut off contact with the mainland of the United States. It is obviously impossible for MacArthur to escape from death and withdraw to the mainland. As a result, the only option is to withdraw to Australia.

is the only choice. Doesn’t this give the navy another opportunity to destroy the enemy? Therefore, the navy will definitely fight for it with all face. With this order, it is not surprising!"

(To be continued)