Under the fire of the heavy cruiser Myoko, an American cargo ship exploded and was seriously injured. Two crew members died and four crew members were injured. The remaining two American cargo ships immediately signaled their surrender and raised the white flag, stopped the ship, and allowed the Japanese to
The sailors went up.
The three ships are all equipped with Ford military vehicles. Not only that, the compartments of the military vehicles and the gaps between the military vehicles are filled with large and small parts, all wrapped in oil paper, with the manufacturer and instructions for use printed on them.
...This is obviously to make full use of space and allow each cargo ship to transport as much stuff as possible.
Needless to say, the remaining two cargo ships were also sunk by the Myoko with two cannons each. All American crew members were also imprisoned on the Myoko. The Japanese treated them with courtesy, and the four injured Americans
People were still being treated in the medical cabin. But now, the facts have come out: Japan made a choice, sank the American cargo ship, and killed the American crew.
While the Japanese warships were bombarding, the other two American cargo ships sent telegrams to inform the country of the situation urgently. The American political, business and civilian circles were in an uproar. And Ming Dynasty knew about it immediately. Shen Rongxuan knew that he had no choice now and had to stay in the United States.
Issue a statement before public opinion changes.
Shen Rongxuan didn't bother to worry about other ministers' meetings and called Dongchang directly to give an explanation.
An hour later, Kerensky, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, who was far away in Khabarovsk, gave a radio speech. In his speech, Kerensky emphasized several things:
First, we strongly condemn the brutal acts of the Japanese Navy and call the Japanese Navy "pirates".
Second, announce that in the future, any losses suffered during delivery to Russia will be fully compensated by the Russian government, including this time.
Third, in view of the piracy of the Japanese Navy, Kerensky suggested that American captains should cooperate with stopping the ship after encountering Japanese warships in the future to avoid casualties. In addition to the cargo ships, the Russian government will still pay for the sunk cargo.
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Half an hour later, Shen Rongxuan of Nanjing also gave a radio speech. He said that in view of the friendly relations between the Ming Dynasty and the Russian Federation, as well as the interdependent alliance interests between the two countries, the Ming Dynasty Navy may provide escort to the U.S. merchant fleet in the near future.
This series of short-term and quick measures caused the isolationist faction in the U.S. Congress to wane before they even started to make trouble. As for the voices of American people, in addition to being angry at Japan, the mainstream opinion is that they should continue to supply goods to the Ming Dynasty.
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In Japan, these two speeches also shocked the Japanese military and political administration. Especially the latter one by Shen Rongxuan - the Ming Dynasty announced that it would escort the merchant fleet!
From the perspective of the Japanese military and political leaders, the Ming Dynasty now has at least two options. The first is to divert all American merchant ships to the Atlantic and Indian Ocean routes. Merchant ships departing from the east coast of the United States can go directly to the Atlantic Ocean. From the west coast, merchant ships depart directly from the Atlantic Ocean.
Merchant ships departing from the port must first go south to Central America, then pass through the Panama Canal, pass through the Caribbean Sea, and then enter the Atlantic Ocean. Although this is a long way, it does not require escort after all. The second option is to serve the Pacific route.
Merchant fleet provides escort.
Now the Ming Dynasty has chosen the second path. It is obvious that the Ming Empire intends to take the initiative seriously.
This attitude of the Ming Dynasty gave Japan mixed feelings of joy and sorrow. Fortunately, for such a long time, the main force of the Ming Navy has been hiding in the harbor to avoid a decisive battle with the Japanese fleet. The "Decisive Battle at Sea" that the whole country of Japan has been brewing for many years has been delayed.
I can't wait for it to happen. Well, now, since the Ming Dynasty wants to defend its maritime transportation lines, surface naval forces are bound to be dispatched in large numbers. The Pacific Ocean War is about to begin before our eyes.
What Japan is worried about is that Japan's domestic fuel reserves are now running low. Not only are there not many reserves, but Japan's routes have been completely cut off by Ming Dynasty submarines. There are still a few cargo ships that can break through the blockade, but oil tankers with big targets have already
Even one ship cannot get in. The navy is a big consumer of fuel, and the Pacific Ocean War will inevitably accelerate Japan’s domestic fuel consumption at a geometric rate. If the Japanese navy cannot achieve a major victory in a short period of time, Japan will face an even faster
of death.
The Japanese cabinet and military ministry thought that this was probably the Ming Dynasty deliberately fighting Japan and trying to kill Japan. And Japan had no choice but to give it a try.
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Three days after Shen Rongxuan's speech, on April 8, the East China Sea Fleet's three battleships "Changping", "Yanping" and the overhauled "Zhengde" left the port together, taking three cruisers and twelve destroyers to form a fleet.
, sailed out of Zhoushan Islands, headed south along the coast of Zhejiang, bound for the Nanyang Fleet in Zhanjiang Port.
One day later, on April 9, four aircraft carriers "Tianshu", "Tianxuan", "Tianji", "Tianxuan", and a battleship "Tokunaga" also brought three
The cruiser and a dozen destroyers headed south.
As these two large fleets moved south one after another, the only main battleship left in the East China Sea Fleet base was the "Hongwu".
There are a total of 4 battleships, 4 aircraft carriers, 6 light and heavy cruisers, and twenty or thirty destroyers and other auxiliary ships heading south. Counting the battleships "Yongle" and "Zhurong" that were originally in the Nanyang Fleet,
Cruisers and the Nanyang Fleet are now terrifyingly powerful. Most of the main force of the entire Ming Navy is concentrated in the Nanyang Fleet.
The Ming Navy completely gave up the fight for sea control in the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea, which was equivalent to leaving them all to the Japanese Navy. Coastal defense was mainly guaranteed by aircraft and the army. However, this "giving up" was only a temporary abandonment to concentrate its strength.
It's just a naval battle in the Pacific. Moreover, the Ming army does not plan to win through a head-on naval battle, but is preparing to go around in circles with the Japanese navy in the Pacific, relying on the advantage of two extra aircraft carriers to force Japan to consume oil quickly.
.Once Japan's oil is exhausted, then the Ming Dynasty will have control of the entire Western Pacific region, not to mention the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea.
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The first to take action were the two aircraft carriers. After a brief stay in Zhanjiang Port, at 3 a.m. on April 10, the Tianji and Tianxuan set out from the port with six destroyers. The mission of this aircraft carrier squadron was reconnaissance.
Relying on the advantages of high speed and carrier-based aircraft, we searched the vast Western Pacific and tried to figure out the location of each Japanese ship.
The Tianji Squadron did not take the traditional route to the Philippines, but sailed straight east, heading towards the strait between the southern tip of Taiwan Island and the northern tip of the Philippines. Obviously, the Tianji Squadron did not intend to take a detour
, but intends to go straight in. There must be Japanese ships cruising here, but there should be no aircraft carriers. The Ming Navy plans to once again take advantage of the aircraft carriers, and cooperate with the cover of land-based aircraft from the Taiwan base to directly enter the Western Pacific. If the Japanese army deploys here
If there is a battleship or heavy cruiser, then it is best to attack it first.
The distance from Zhanjiang Port to the Strait is 630 nautical miles, which is about less than 30 hours of voyage for the aircraft carrier squadron. The squadron sets out according to the calculated time, leaving the port in the early morning, and approaching the Strait the next morning, which is convenient for
Air combat can ensure that the entire dangerous journey during the first part of the journey takes place during the day. By the time darkness falls again, the squadron has penetrated deep into the vast Western Pacific and has hidden its whereabouts.
At the same time, more than a dozen U.S. small fleets and individual U.S. cargo ships sailing in the Eastern Pacific have received "advice" from Washington and are heading to a point 230 nautical miles due north of Honolulu, Hawaii, to gather and prepare.
Form a large fleet of 40-50 ships and wait for the escort of the Ming Dynasty fleet from the other side of the world.