Volume 2: War breaks out Chapter 14: Suspicion (Part 2)
"General, what orders have we received now?"
Tan Renhao swallowed his saliva. He didn't feel nervous, but just felt a strong threat.
"Let us return to Naha as quickly as possible, rest and report to the Navy Headquarters and the Cabinet on the situation of our visit to Japan."
Wu Xianyu answered Tan Renhao's question.
"In other words, the Empire did not take the maritime conflict between Japan and the Kingdom of Korea seriously this time?"
Wu Xianyu nodded and then smiled bitterly.
You can only cry "wolf" three times, and Japan has made so many small moves in the past six months, each time causing the Empire to sound the battle alarm. However, over time, the Empire no longer took these provocative actions of Japan so seriously.
"What about the orders for the other fleets?"
Tan Renhao became more certain that this was no longer a threat, but a prelude to war.
"The First Fleet remained in Naha, exerting pressure and threats on Japan.
The Second Fleet will once again return to the waters east of the Philippines to serve as our support force.
The Third Fleet will move south to the Java Sea to threaten the Japanese military base on Timor Island, and the Southwest Fleet will cooperate with the Third Fleet.
The naval command will inform each fleet of the actions of other fleets in the region so that the fleets can coordinate their actions.
Wu Xianyu shrugged his shoulders. "However, this time the headquarters did not issue a mobilization order, nor even a combat readiness order. They just asked us to continue to pay attention to the activities of the Japanese fleet. Before receiving more intelligence and confirming the movements of the Japanese main fleet, the headquarters does not intend to take any radical actions."
"This is an order personally issued by Prime Minister Xue Xiyue. Now our diplomats are actively working to get Japan back to the negotiating table and try to resolve the issue through negotiations."
Liao Hanxiang added a sentence to make Tan Renhao understand that this was not an order from Marshal Sajitin, but a direct intervention from a higher level.
Tan Renhao sat down on the chair. Now, he was almost certain that what the Japanese wanted was not negotiation, but a sudden attack to destroy the Imperial Navy in the shortest time and force the Imperial Navy to leave the Pacific.
As long as Japan gains control of the sea in the Western Pacific, it will be guaranteed to have the initiative in the early stages of the war, and the Empire will be forced to engage in strategic defense.
Perhaps, the empire can still win in the end, but it will inevitably have to pay a greater price for victory.
"Major, do you think there is a problem?"
Liao Hanxiang frowned slightly. It was the first time he saw Tan Renhao so distraught.
Tan Renhao was slightly startled, then stood up.
"Commander Liao, the war is bound to break out soon!"
The three generals were all shocked, and then looked at Tan Renhao with some disbelief.
In their view, if a war was to break out, there had been several opportunities before, but Japan did not take action.
This time, it was just a small conflict between Japan and the Kingdom of Korea at sea, and it had no direct relationship with the Empire. Would Japan take the initiative to declare war on the Empire because of this?
"If Japan wanted to declare war on the Empire and win, they would never declare war first and then fight, because Japan is no match for the Empire in terms of overall strength."
Tan Renhao took the cigarette from Ji Xiaobin and lit it with a little trembling. "If Japan wants to win, it must seize the initiative on the battlefield and try to drag us down so that we can't concentrate our strength. Then, by occupying the Nanyang region and expanding the output of strategic resources, it will force the Empire to defend in the early stages of the war, and finally use huge war losses to force the Empire to recognize Japan's hegemony in the Western Pacific. If the Empire suffers huge losses in the war and the domestic industrial infrastructure is severely damaged, then we are likely to recognize Japan's position in the Western Pacific, avoid suffering greater losses, and then concentrate our strength on preparing for the next war."
Ji Xiaobin frowned.
"If Japan receives the tacit support of the Western powers, we may have to withdraw from the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific. Then the global order dominated by the Empire will completely collapse. Japan and the Western powers will become the new world's dominant forces, and the Empire will decline to a second-rate country."
Wu Xianyu hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"It is very possible. Japan has always had close relations with the Western powers, and now the German Empire and the French Empire are on the verge of a war over the Belgian issue.
I heard that William III has approved a new military expansion plan and the German Empire will issue an ultimatum to the Kingdom of France in the near future. If the Kingdom of France does not withdraw from Belgium, the European continent will become a battlefield.
The British Empire has been secretly supporting the Kingdom of France and has secretly contacted Japan to win over the United States of America.
If these four countries come together, then our war with Japan will surely evolve into a new global war.”
“And the conflict between the Persian Empire and the Russian Empire in the Caucasus.”
Liao Hanxiang smiled bitterly, then sighed, "The Persian Empire has always been our most important ally. If their conflict with the Russian Empire turns into a war, then the Empire will definitely support the Persian Empire and even declare war on the Russian Empire directly. Now, Prime Minister Xue Xiyue attaches the most importance to the problems in Central Asia, so he has been asking the navy to exercise restraint and not to have any conflicts with Japan before the contradictions between the Persian Empire and the Russian Empire are resolved."
"But this is definitely not something we can achieve by giving in!"
Tan Renhao seemed a little rash. "Commander Liao, it is not up to us to decide whether to fight or not. The power to start a war is in the hands of the Japanese. If Japan decides to fight, then no matter how much concessions the Empire makes, it will be impossible to avoid it."
"Yes, I know, but what can we do?"
Liao Hanxiang lit up a cigarette. "Major, the key to the problem is that Japan was defeated by the First Fleet in the last war. Although they have been working hard for more than 20 years and have been thinking about revenge, do they have the strength to do so? If Japan cannot defeat the Empire, or at least defeat the Imperial Navy, will they rashly start a war?"
The other two generals also looked at Tan Renhao, obviously they needed more reasons.
Tan Renhao nodded slightly, then pulled the sea chart over. He had to convince General Liao Hanxiang of his point of view. As for whether General Liao Hanxiang could convince Marshal Sajitin, that was not something he could decide.
