Chapter 262 Next, we are the only ones who can provide weapons here! (First update!)

Before this, Chuichi Nanyun was very anxious. He stared at the map every day and looked for ways to break the deadlock.

The main reason was that the number of Allied warships far exceeded his imagination.

Especially after learning about the strength of the Royal Home Fleet, my scalp couldn't help but tingle.

Even if all the Combined Fleets before the Battle of Midway were transferred to the Mediterranean, they would not necessarily be able to confront the British Royal Fleet head-on.

The main reason is that the gap in strength between the two sides is too big.

Fortunately, over the past few years, the German army has relied on its submarine forces to destroy many British warships. Otherwise, he would have thought of running away.

Even so, the number of Allied warships coming to reinforce was far beyond his imagination.

According to intelligence, there are at least hundreds of warships, or even two hundred warships.

Anyway, the number will only increase, not decrease.

This made Nanyun Chuichi so worried that he couldn't sleep at night.

He kept calculating his resources and wondering how many warships he would need to dispatch to confront the Allied fleet head-on.

The final conclusion is.

If we only talk about the surface fleet, the gap in strength between the two sides is too big.

Unless the German army is willing to send more submarine forces to the Mediterranean, the two sides may still be in a showdown.

Not only that, the Air Force also has to deploy a large number of fighter jets.

But there is another problem, and that is the island of Malta, which is like a thorn in the side.

If the British troops on the island are not dealt with, then when they confront the Allied fleet, the other side will send out fighter planes, which will cause huge losses to the naval fleets of the four countries.

All these problems troubled Chuichi Nanyun.

Chuichi Nagumo really put a lot of thought into the Shikoku Navy.

No matter how he deduced, the final outcome was a disastrous defeat for the navies of the four countries.

Unless the pace of merchant ship transformation is accelerated.

If ten modified aircraft carriers could join the battle, the outcome would be unknown.

Just when he was so worried that he couldn't sleep.

Who knows, there will be twists and turns.

The canal was blocked, and nearly half of the Allied warships were stuck in the canal and unable to pass.

This is a huge surprise.

This means that the number of Allied fleets that the four navies have to face is reduced by half.

The pressure suddenly eased a lot.

"I didn't expect the headquarters to be so thoughtful and send cargo ships to block the canal. This way, the Allied warships will not be able to pass through the canal, and our pressure will be greatly reduced." Nagumo Chuichi said excitedly.

Hearing this, Major General Valerio looked at Nagumo Chuichi with a complicated expression.

"Your Excellency, the canal not only blocks the Allied warships, but also our cargo ships. Without rubber, many of our industries will be affected."

Doesn’t this guy know that the canal is related to the industrial lifeline of the Axis powers?

Originally, the resources they could receive were very few.

Now the canal is blocked, meaning they are receiving even fewer resources.

This is not good news.

"This is not something we need to consider, but right now the canal is blocked, which is more beneficial than harmful to us. Otherwise, the Allied fleet will attack us from the east and west, and our fleet will only be defeated." Chuichi Nagumo knew the impact of the canal being blocked.

But now we have to deal with the Allied warships, so other problems can be put aside for the time being.

"What's more, even without the canal, we can still find ways to transport resources through other routes." Nanyun Chuichi felt that these foreigners were just simple-minded.

Before the canal was built, did countries around the world not communicate with each other?

"You mean, transport those resources to the Arabian Peninsula and then transport them to the coast by land? This is such a waste of time." Major General Valerio was not a fool. He immediately guessed what Nanyun Chuichi meant.

But he felt that this efficiency was too low.

And the risks are simply too great.

Those natives are not so easy to get along with.

"That's not something I need to consider. Right now, we have a more important thing to do. We must take Malta Island before the Allied fleet arrives." Nagumo Chuichi didn't know what the Axis officers were thinking. Why didn't they think about solving the problem of Malta Island?
Don’t you know that the British occupation of Malta means a fishbone stuck in your throat?
Isn’t it uncomfortable?
"It's not so easy to take the island of Malta." Major General Valerio shook his head and said.

Do they really not know the status of the Island of Malta?
Do not!
they know!

But the reason why we can’t take it is because it is too difficult to beat.

At the beginning of the war, Malta, located in the central Mediterranean, became an important hub on the transportation line between Britain and Egypt and India.

As long as Malta is in the hands of Britain, Britain can continue to obtain oil, troops and other resources from Egypt, India and other regions and continue to fight against the German army.

The British ships and aircraft deployed in Malta posed a serious threat to the logistical supply lines of the German Africa Corps and Italian troops in Africa across the Mediterranean.

In order to gain control of the Mediterranean, Italian troops began bombing Malta in June 1940.

In January of the following year, the German Air Force began to intervene.

For more than two years thereafter, Malta suffered fierce naval and air attacks and blockades by German and Italian forces.

The British Army also attached great importance to Malta and did its best to transport weapons and supplies to the island. It also used Malta as a base to attack the German and Italian military forces in the Mediterranean.

There were many fierce clashes between the two sides over Malta.

"That's because the British Navy in Alexandria is supporting us from behind. Now that Admiral Cunningham's Mediterranean Fleet is gone, the British troops on the island of Malta are isolated and helpless. This is our best chance to capture the island of Malta." Nagumo Chuichi shook his head and said.

Before destroying the Mediterranean Fleet, the German and Italian naval forces were unable to completely capture the island of Malta.

But it's different now.

They could easily take the island of Malta.

Pull out the fishbone completely.

Originally, Chuichi Nagumo had thought about taking the island of Malta, but later the Allied fleet was about to sail through the canal.

If the island of Malta cannot be captured as soon as possible, the navies of the four countries will be attacked from the front.

Now that the canal was blocked, it meant they had plenty of time to deal with the British troops on the island of Malta.

Hearing this, Major General Valerio spoke again.

"You mean, send a fleet to support?"

"Yes, all the warships are gathered on the island of Malta. I don't believe that the defenders of the island of Malta can continue to hold out in the face of such a powerful fleet?" said Chuichi Nagumo confidently.

It has to be said that this plan has a very high chance of success.

Before, the navy was not strong enough, and it was unrealistic to capture the island of Malta relying solely on paratroopers and the air force.

But it's different now.

With the support of the navy, it should be easy to capture the island of Malta.

Thinking of this, Major Valerio continued.

"You are right, but this plan requires the support of the German High Command. Without their air force, I am afraid that if we take over Malta alone, we will have to pay a heavy price."

The war on Malta has been going on for two years. What is the situation between the two sides?

He naturally knows everything.

Without the support of the German Air Force, it would be really difficult for them to take the island of Malta on their own.

do not forget!
There are also British Hurricane fighter planes on the island.

They had to be suppressed by German fighter planes so that their naval guns could bomb without restraint.

"Then we should organize our plan and have Colonel Rutte report it to their Supreme Command." Nagumo Chuichi urged. ………

On the other hand, the Japanese military headquarters was stunned when they received a letter of praise from Chuichi Nagumo.

When did they send people to block the canal?
After being confused, he immediately sent someone to investigate.

The result was that the five cargo ships did indeed depart from Hong Kong.

But the British are behind the cargo ship.

"Did our people really do it?" Hideki Tojo looked at the Army Minister Kimura Heitaro in front of him with suspicion.

Don't blame him for looking at him with such suspicion.

Because the Japanese army likes to travel alone.

Therefore, it often happens that a battle breaks out, but the base camp only finds out about it afterwards.

For example, the recent incident with the 4th Division has left the headquarters even more confused.

"It shouldn't be, but we can't find out who it is specifically. The main reason is that the situation of these five cargo ships is too complicated." Heitaro Kimura said helplessly.

The crew of Tianzhu, whose shareholders are British, flew the American flag.

The departure point is still Hong Kong.

Bakayaluo, who are you investigating?

"Don't investigate. Since others did this, they probably don't want us to find out. Even if we find out, the Americans will only think that it was us who did it." Hideki Tojo saw it very clearly.

What if we find out?

Everything happened.

The canal was blocked.

There will be no navigation for the time being.

This means that many supplies will be interrupted.

This was a very good opportunity for the Japanese army.

That is to completely capture India.

Compared with the price paid on the Chinese battlefield, the price paid on the Indian battlefield was really zero.

Those natives are so well behaved.

Resistance rarely occurs, and basically a small team can occupy a large area of ​​territory.

So Hideki Tojo began to make moves.

I think more troops can be withdrawn from the Chinese battlefield to India.

Before, there were concerns that the British army would send reinforcements.

Now the canal is blocked.

Are you still worried about the hammer?

Directly increase reinforcements and completely occupy India.

"Mr. Prime Minister, what do you mean?" Heitaro Kimura didn't quite understand what Hideki Tojo meant.

"Give up the pursuit and focus on withdrawing soldiers from the Chinese battlefield to support India. If necessary, you can abandon some defense lines." Hideki Tojo weighed the pros and cons and found that the cost of occupying China was too high.

There were guerrilla harassment everywhere, and countless soldiers died in sneak attacks every year.

More importantly, the rate of return brought by the Chinese battlefield is too low.

It’s not as comfortable as India.

The natives did not resist at all, and even helped them fight the British army.

Not only that, but logistical support is also provided.

This is much more comfortable than the Chinese battlefield.

The rate of return is extremely high.

In just this period of time, the army brought back more than 100,000 tons of steel.

The army even came up with a plan to produce new fighter jets.

In addition, there are countless resources such as oil.

This made Hideki Tojo feel that it would be better to occupy India than China.

"Yes." Kimura Heitaro responded quickly.

.........

The last person to receive the news should be Cun Yunsheng, as this was sent to him after Li Si came ashore.

Otherwise, it would take at least a long time for him to know.

"Is it really blocked?" Cun Yunsheng's face was full of excitement when he received the news.

He really didn't expect that this plan would actually succeed.

This plan was something he came up with by accident. The reason for using five cargo ships was that if one cargo ship was not safe, one of them would definitely succeed if there were five.

Who would have thought that all five ships would succeed and actually block the canal.

"It's really blocked? Not even a single person is left alive?" Meng Fanle couldn't help but smack his lips when he heard the news.

At the same time, I didn't expect that Li Si was so reliable that he didn't even leave any survivors.

"Don't leave any one alive. It seems that this Li Si will be used well in the future." Cun Yunsheng said with a smile.

"Commander, I don't understand, is the blockage of the canal really that important to us? Why do I feel that it is not a good thing?" Meng Fan looked confused.

"During this period, the Kunming Station of the Military Control Commission sent me many telegrams, asking us to continue to restore the supply of weapons. Although those American weapons are useful, the speed at which they consume ammunition is too fast. Many troops are running out of ammunition."

"Not only that, the U.S. military has also stopped supplying weapons to Shancheng. Now the price of American weapons and equipment on the black market is rising steadily. They think that now is the time to ship in large quantities and they can definitely make a lot of money."

"Let's put aside the Military Control Commission's request for now. We don't have that many weapons to supply them for the time being. These people are not honest. Why don't they tell us that we have recovered a lot of lost territories recently, and the Japanese army has voluntarily given up many positions." Cun Yunsheng sneered.

“That’s one of the benefits.”

Hearing this, Meng Fan was stunned.

Seeing Meng Fan's puzzled expression, Cun Yunsheng sighed lightly and then explained.

"The canal is blocked, which means that the British reinforcements cannot reach India. If the Japanese are not fools, they will definitely send more troops to India and completely occupy India before the British can repair the canal."

"But Japan is a small country with limited resources and population. What can the new recruits know? They don't even know how to use weapons. So if they want to quickly occupy India, they must draw elite troops from China."

"Without these elite troops stationed here, wouldn't it be easy to recover the lost territory?"

"Is that why the prices of American equipment are so high during this period?" Meng Fan seemed to suddenly understand.

"Yes, this is just one of the benefits." Cun Yunsheng nodded and continued.

"The second is Stilwell, who was originally suspicious of us. He will have to rely on us next time."

"Because the supplies he has available for distribution have become less, no, they are gone."

"So it won't be that easy to control us anymore."

"As for other benefits, there are even more."

Hearing this, Meng Fan became even more curious.

"For example, the British Empire's colonies such as Persia may take this opportunity to fight for national independence, so it will be the British's turn to have a headache next." Cun Yunsheng chuckled.

"Next, we have to urge Major Fettig to speed up production."

"Right now in Southeast Asia, we are the only ones who can provide a large amount of weapons."

(End of this chapter)