The battle of Guika started, and the two thousand Japanese troops were surrounded by more than five thousand British troops. Although Hashimoto Shun was not worried about the British army's ability to eat these two brigades alive, he remembered another very important thing. As for the urgent matter, I immediately called Yamamoto Isoroku without delaying for a second. While reporting the battle situation, I pointed out: In view of the fact that there are still a large number of British troops in the city, is it true that the so-called British troops escaped by taking advantage of the Americans' evacuation operation? There is another mystery. Before Isoroku Yamamoto received this battle report, he was on the verge of going berserk because the aircraft carrier "Kaga" was ambushed by a British submarine. The "Kaga" is the only aircraft carrier after the "Akagi" Father, in the days after the loss of the "Akagi", the "Kaga" has become a symbol of the Combined Fleet, and has become another totem for the people to worship the Imperial Navy. Since the "Sink It" operation, Yamamoto Isoroku has been everywhere Be careful, be cautious at all times, fearing that you will suffer a similar blow again. Since the beginning of the Western Expedition, everything has gone smoothly, and good news has come frequently. However, just when you were about to defeat the British army and capture the British bridgehead in Southeast Asia, something like this suddenly happened. thing,
At this time, Yamamoto Isoroku still did not know that the disaster of the "Kaga" was caused by the cadet army. Otherwise, he would probably lose his mind in anger, ignore the consequences of war with the United States, and order an attack on the "U.S. withdrawal" "Overseas Chinese Fleet",
Hashimoto Jun's telegram arrived just in time. The British army returned to the land from the sea. Yamamoto Isoroku forced himself to calm down. He held the telegram in his hand and thought seriously for a while, then asked Soma Masabumi: "You said, Will Americans go to war with our country now?"
This issue was discussed by senior Japanese officials at the Tokyo base camp long before the Japanese navy launched its western expedition. The unified answer they came to at that time was: as long as Japan does not threaten the interests of the United States in the Indian Ocean, based on the consistent position of the U.S. government, He should not take the initiative to declare war,
Since the Western Expedition, Soma Masafumi has been playing the role of Yamamoto's number one aide, and he has gradually become accustomed to looking at problems from a broad perspective. He thought for a while and said: "Probably not, otherwise the Pacific Fleet should have appeared in the Philippine Sea by now. "
"I don't think so, but how do you explain that they sent so many ships to participate in the evacuation operation this time? We all know that there are only more than 2,000 so-called American expatriates in Singapore at most."
"This is indeed contrary to common sense. Sir, could it be that senior American officials in the Philippines couldn't bear the private requests of the British and decided to help the British withdraw their troops? Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain that British submarines suddenly appeared off the coast of Singapore. They The action is obviously to cover the evacuation fleet. Hey, it would be great if we could know how many British troops are still in Singapore. In that case, we can easily determine the mystery behind the US evacuation operation."
Hearing what he said, Yamamoto Isoroku couldn't help but get angry. The heavy damage to the "Kaga" was a huge blow to him. He rubbed his temples vigorously with his thumbs, and after a while he said: "You know I What are you most worried about? I am most worried that this is simply a British conspiracy. If the British really want to use this evacuation to break out, they must obtain the consent of the U.S. government. But if the United States does not want to go to war with our country, then it must will not agree to the British request, then is it possible that the British deliberately caused mischief and asked senior American officials in the Philippines to help bring more ships to create the illusion that they were going to break out from the sea? It is not difficult to do this, as long as the British Without truly borrowing the U.S. evacuation fleet to break out, the Americans in the Philippines have not violated the orders of the U.S. government."
"Sir, I think your inference makes sense, but I always feel that things will not be that simple. What if the Americans in the Philippines really agreed to the British request in private? We all know that the British and the United States People are inextricably linked. It is not ruled out that they made some arbitrary decisions because of their personal relationship. There was a scuffle in Singapore before. This is really puzzling. Is it possible that the British army was fighting for the opportunity to escape? There will be a fight. Given the British nature, I think it is entirely possible."
Yamamoto Isoroku would never have guessed that the reason why the Americans' evacuation operation was so weird was that the Xuebing Army had a hand in it. Ouyang Yun's hand was stretched too long this time, and before that , China has never done anything like this, so it’s no wonder that Yamamoto didn’t consider whether there were Chinese people at all causing trouble.
It was because the Japanese noticed the melee in the city of Singapore that they determined that the Americans' evacuation operation was shady. However, until now, they have not figured out the truth behind the melee in the city. Soma Masafumi's speculation is not unreasonable. This made Yamamoto's thoughts even more confusing. He took off his hat, scratched his hair vigorously, and suddenly shouted: "No matter what, we really don't have the capital to go to war with the United States at the moment, even if the British really use the United States to evacuate their citizens to break out. , we can only choose to endure it for the time being, and immediately send a message to Hanazuka Hitoshi and ask him to strictly order all ships not to move without authorization to avoid conflicts with the Americans."
"Your Excellency, this will seriously dampen the enthusiasm of the soldiers. Have you really decided?"
"This is the most correct choice, Souma, don't forget, the two British submarines are still watching. If we really attack the American evacuation fleet, it will not only trigger the United States to declare war on us, but also We may also lose some more ships, which is such a disadvantage. The British have been completely frightened by us. So what if they can escape this time. If we encounter them on the battlefield in the future, they will not be defeated in one blow."
"Okay, sir, I'll do it right away."
Colonel Hanazuka Hitoshi is the backup commander of the "Kaga" aircraft carrier fleet. Yamamoto Isoroku didn't know if Yamada Shiri was still capable of commanding him. In order to ensure that his orders were effectively executed, he simply conveyed the orders directly to him. ,
Off the coast of Singapore, the captain of the "Kunshan" saw two Japanese ships approaching aggressively. He felt extremely nervous and immediately asked Zhang Liangfeng for instructions on the next course of action.
Although Zhang Liangfeng acted extremely tough in front of Tan Kah Kee and others, he was actually quite uneasy in his heart. As an old man from the Xuebing Army, he was familiar with the nature of the Japanese and knew that it was impossible to judge the Japanese with common sense. Once the Japanese went crazy, He really can do anything, "Keep the course unchanged, the Japanese will hit him if they dare to intercept." After giving such an order to the "Kunshan" on the walkie-talkie, he quietly looked into the distance. On the dark sea surface, I silently waited for the two Song-class submarines to achieve another great feat.
At this moment, only two Song-class ships can divert the attention of the Japanese and change this unfavorable situation, right?
Seeing the "Kunshan" getting closer and closer to the Japanese ship at the head, everyone in the captain's room of the "Qiangyun" held their breath, their hearts almost raised to their throats.
The displacement of the "Kunshan" is more than 12,000 tons, while the leading Japanese ship is only more than 6,000 tons. In terms of tonnage alone, the "Kunshan" does not suffer, but considering the different construction techniques of merchant ships and warships, the armor
The protective capabilities are even different. Moreover, the Japanese ship may have relied on its flexibility to seize a favorable position, but the result of this collision is extremely unpredictable.