Latest website: In a telegraph office in London, a telegram was received by the clicking keys. When a female telegraph operator was about to treat it as a normal telegram, another supervisor next to her noticed the telegram.
address.
"Wait a moment."
The supervisor said, and then he quickly searched for a form in the folder.
A moment later, a motorcyclist drove quickly through the streets of London that had been hit by air raids. Since last May, the French Imperial Airship Force had carried out hundreds of air raids on British cities, including London, causing
Thousands of people were killed or injured.
Even now, after Britain is equipped with hundreds of American-made JN-1 aircraft and shot down many French airships, there are still many traces of bombing in the city. Motorcyclists quickly sent this telegram to Britain
The telegram was sent up through the ranks of the Admiralty, and finally was delivered to the hands of a rear admiral.
At this moment, the hour hand was pointing to 9:12 a.m., and the date on the calendar card was January 23, 1996. The content of the telegram seemed very simple, just an ordinary commercial telegram. The rear admiral verified the contents of the telegram.
After that, he took out the code book from the safe. After decoding the telegram, he looked at the naval loss record written on the wall and said to his colleagues:
"Okay, it's confirmed, it's a submarine! It was the Ming Dynasty's submarine that attacked the cruise fleet we sent to Belgium!"
The sinking of three armored cruisers may seem trivial to the Royal Navy, but it once again clearly tells the Royal Navy a fact - the threat of submarines cannot be ignored.
Soon, this loss was reported at all levels, all the way to Downing Street. For Downing Street, what they saw was not just the loss of three armored cruisers, but a far-reaching future.
"Gentlemen, submarine!"
In the Prime Minister's Office, Robert Gascoigne Cecil, the Conservative leader who was appointed wartime Prime Minister after the outbreak of the war, looked at the Lord of the Admiralty, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Colonial Secretary and several others standing in front of him.
said a staff official.
"Just as General Fisher speculated, the Ming Empire did not, or even supported the French fleet in a decisive battle with the Royal Navy in the Atlantic Ocean. They adopted a brand new tactic - submarine warfare!"
Submarine warfare is really fatal to Britain!
After all, more than 60% of Britain's industrial raw materials and food come from overseas. In the past, the Royal Navy only considered interception by surface ships at sea. When did it think that submarines could actually be used to attack merchant ships and attack their overseas transportation lines.
"Instead, they use submarines to attack our merchant fleet in order to strangle the British Empire's overseas transportation lines. But what about our merchant fleet? In the vast Atlantic and Indian Oceans, the British Empire's merchant fleet travels to and from North America and Africa.
As well as the transportation fleets of the Indian colonies are dotted, our escort system is not yet complete and perfect, and because the routes are scattered and long, the limited escort force has been ruthlessly dispersed and diluted.
This situation provided an opportunity for the Ming Dynasty submarines to take advantage of. They were almost vulnerable to submarines. Now, just the submarines not only restrained a large amount of our power, but also led to another situation."
Turning his sights to Admiralty George Goshen, Prime Minister Cecil said.
"We have to maintain a strong fleet at home to deal with threats from the sea, but at the same time, our power in other areas is extremely limited."
"Yes, Mr. Prime Minister,"
George Goshen said.
"After the war broke out, France's power in the Mediterranean region formed an overwhelming advantage over us. France could transport African colonies to Tunisia and Libya through the Sahara Railway, and their merchant fleets could freely transport through the ports of Tunisia and Libya.
Supplies, and what about us? The huge Royal Navy has become a fleet, stuck in the port. We can neither go far away from the empire's mainland, to the Mediterranean, nor to the South Atlantic, because no matter which direction we go, we need to consider France or
The threat posed by one side of the Ming Dynasty to the homeland."
George Goshen didn't even mention aircraft - the new weapons that were used in last year's surprise attack on Hampton, and of course he didn't mention aircraft carriers. However, none of this is a problem now. Soon, the British aircraft carrier will be launched.
In service. Although it was converted from a coal ship, at least Britain has an aircraft carrier and no longer has to worry about being beaten passively.
The only problem is the strategic dilemma of the Royal Navy. The Royal Navy is afraid of wolves in front and tigers in the rear. To strengthen its power in the Mediterranean, it is worried that the Ming fleet will seize its hometown. Take the initiative to challenge the Ming Dynasty. It is also worried about being taken over by France.
Way back.
In short, it’s difficult!
"Yes, this is the stalemate we are facing, and when we are stuck in this stalemate, our enemies - Ming Dynasty, France, and Russia are constantly strengthening their power at sea. In the Mediterranean, their power
They have already gained the upper hand, and soon they will seize the advantage of the Indian Ocean. In the Atlantic, the US Navy, which has suffered heavy losses, is no longer able to stop the Imperial Fleet, but what about the Royal Navy? But they have trapped a large number of them with small submarines.
The power of power, gentlemen, is the situation we face."
Taking a deep breath, Cecil looked at everyone and then said.
"What have we been worried about since the war broke out? The Ming Empire's fleet will suddenly appear in the South Pacific and occupy Australia and New Zealand. And according to the current information available, a large number of ships are being built in the Ming Empire's shipyards.
landing ships, it can be expected that they will definitely attack Australia and New Zealand in the near future. The question before us now is whether to sit back and wait for death, or to break the deadlock!"
When the Prime Minister finished speaking, Chief Secretary James Bond suggested directly.
"Your Excellency Prime Minister, we must break the deadlock! Take back the initiative!"
As the chief secretary, James Bond will not lose his job due to the change of prime minister. The prime minister is a loser, but as a senior civil servant in the empire, he is the resident of No. 10 Downing Street.
"Yes, James, we must break the deadlock, but how can we break the current deadlock and dilemma!"
Turning his gaze to General George Goshen, Prime Minister Cecil asked,
"General, what are the Admiralty's plans?"
"Mr. Prime Minister, power, only with strong enough power can we break the current deadlock!"
Admiral George Goshen answered directly and straightforwardly. Perhaps the pride of the Royal Navy made him unwilling to accept the current status quo, but in naval battles, power is power, and it is impossible for the Royal Navy to disperse its operations now.
The navy's answer was obviously not what Cecil needed. He turned his attention to his nephew Arthur Balfour as his political advisor. After receiving the look from his uncle, Balfour said.
"Mr. Prime Minister, I think that compared to the slow process of increasing strength through shipbuilding, the most important thing at the moment is diplomacy! We are not just ourselves, we should unite the strength of our allies. Isn't this the purpose of signing the agreement?"
Then he looked at everyone present and said directly.
"By uniting with Germany through diplomacy, we jointly sent some warships to the United States, and together with the American fleet, we fought a decisive battle overseas and severely damaged the Imperial Navy!"
When Balfour made this suggestion, James Bond, as the chief secretary, just nodded slightly. He could sense that there seemed to be some secret between this guy and the Prime Minister, but what secret was it?
Form a joint fleet with Germany and the United States?
This is not a secret at all. In fact, in the past few months, the Royal Navy has also made such a call, but to challenge the Imperial Navy!
This is a bit new...
(End of chapter)
This chapter has been completed!