Empire Conquest

Chapter 534 - 530: Seeking Stability

Li Mingbo wasn’t contradicting Bai Zhizhan, he was just reminding him.

After the discussion, Bai Zhizhan made a decision.

First, head north to try their luck, or rather to show their presence, and then based on the situation decide whether to stay and blockade the Howay Islands or to return to Transfer Island.

Of course, it was still not possible to report to the Imperial Navy Headquarter.

They had just destroyed the Newland Fleet, and even if they let the "Qinling" take over to send the report, it might expose the fleet’s movements.

No matter how urgent, the telegram could only be sent tomorrow.

At this moment, at the Imperial Navy Headquarter.

Although they had received firm news last night, precisely speaking, news from the Sixth Bureau, that a Newland navy’s Special Mixed Fleet near the Galapagos Islands had been attacked, including 2 fleet carriers, and there was reason to believe that the attack was launched by the Special Mixed Fleet commanded by Bai Zhizhan. However, Liu Changxun only received the exact news this morning during breakfast. The Newland navy’s 2 carrier ships were sunk, and Fleet Commander Major General Hal was missing and likely had perished along with his flagship.

However, the problem was that they still hadn’t received a telegram from the Special Mixed Fleet No. 21!

Of course, Liu Changxun was very aware that Special Mixed Fleet No. 21 was operating behind enemy lines and had a long way to go, and even Bai Zhizhan needed to tread cautiously.

One wrong step, and it would be an abyss!

Of course, the only certainty was that during the battle with the Newland Fleet, the Special Mixed Fleet No. 21 had not been exposed or struck.

Regarding the impact of this battle, Liu Changxun could say he was beyond thrilled.

Last night, after receiving intelligence from the Sixth Bureau, he immediately went to the chief official’s residence to deliver the good news to Xue Yuanzheng in person.

By morning, after confirming the results of the battle, he even called Xue Yuanzheng.

Speaking of impact, the greatest effect was essentially clinching the victory.

Although the Newland navy still had 3 small carriers and was expected to get 1 large carrier next year, and definitely several large carriers the year after, the Bulan Royal Navy also still had 2 fleet carriers and dozens of escort aircraft carriers, none of these would be enough to alter the current strategic situation. Moreover, the Imperial Navy was building large and small carriers and had civilian shipyards constructing fast escort carriers.

In summary, the Imperial Navy could rely on its current advantages to achieve decisive victory before the Newland navy could recover.

On the East Ocean side, it was actually about occupying the Howay Islands.

Over the Fan Flame Ocean, it was about taking control of Boss Bay.

Continuing westward, on the Land Heart Sea, it mainly involved helping the Tiaoman troops control Malta and seize the crucial Xifan Canal.

As expected, these tasks could all be completed within the year, or at least make decisive progress within the year.

According to Liu Changxun’s estimation, as long as everything went smoothly, especially if they held off the Bulan troops in Malta and sent troops to attack the Jibu Fortress, and made appropriate concessions during negotiations, they could force the Kingdom of Bulan to admit defeat by early next year.

Then, by the second half of next year, there was hope to defeat the Luosha Federation or force the Luosha Federation to surrender.

That is to say, by the end of New Calendar 102 or some time in New Calendar 103, there was hope to end the war by besieging the Newland Federation.

Of course, these were all calculations made according to the best scenario.

Because not everything could develop in the most ideal direction, the great war could possibly continue for another 2 or even 3 years.

Regardless, following the Special Mixed Fleet No. 21’s annihilation of the Newland’s 51st Special Mixed Fleet, they could finally see the dawn of a complete victory in the great war.

And the bringer of this dawn of victory was Bai Zhizhan!

It must be said, Liu Changxun had nearly become a troublemaker.

When Bai Zhizhan sent a telegram proposing to have Wei Jun lead the Special Mixed Fleet No. 22 to Flame Sea to lure the enemy, while he led the Special Mixed Fleet No. 21 in a rapid attack on the Wangxi Canal, Liu Changxun had almost ordered Bai Zhizhan to end the risky operation, he had even thought about going to Xue Yuanzheng to issue the order.

In theory, only Xue Yuanzheng had the authority to order the fleet to return.

Fortunately, after much thought, he finally refrained.

Looking back now, it was good that he had held back.

However, up to this moment, there had been no telegrams from the 21st Special Mixed Fleet, and Liu Changxun was somewhat anxious.

The battle had ended several hours ago, and even if there had been concerns about exposing their location before the battle started, a report should have been sent after annihilating the 31st Special Mixed Fleet.

Moreover, the fleet even had a dedicated flagship.

The key issue was, after the battle ended, they needed to return; what else was there to worry about?

The Newland Navy lacked fleet carriers, and as for those few small carriers, not to mention that they weren’t nearby, even if they were, there was nothing to worry about.

Could it be that the 21st Special Mixed Fleet had encountered some unexpected disaster?

Even Liu Changxun found this thought somewhat absurd.

Actually, the least of his worries should be the 21st Special Mixed Fleet encountering disaster, because if they were attacked, they would definitely send out a telegram.

From this perspective, no news now was actually the best news.

Of course, Liu Changxun still felt a slight unease.

To put it bluntly, he was worried that Bai Zhizhan might continue to take risks, feeling that he could achieve a greater victory without any opponents.

Liu Changxun didn’t distrust Bai Zhizhan’s abilities; he just felt that now was not the time to take risks.

This also matched Liu Changxun’s style.

They had already achieved a decisive victory, and occupying Transfer Island seemed imminent. Capturing Boss Bay, attacking Jibu Fortress, or deploying troops to Land Heart Sea posed no issues; there was even hope to attack the eastern islands of the Howay Islands soon. So, what reason was there to risk the fleet?

Preserving strength would deliver the greatest blow to the enemy!

Next year, with the second batch of "Province" class ships entering service, and more small carriers being delivered, the Imperial Navy could even attack on two fronts simultaneously.

This defensive mindset was not uncommon among the older generation of navy generals.

Not just Liu Changxun, but also the once-conservative Zhu Shijian preferred to preserve strength after achieving victory.

Before aircraft carriers dominated the seas, a strong fleet itself was a guarantee of maritime supremacy.

For those who held a strategic advantage, this was even more so.

Influenced by this, not just the Imperial Navy, but also the previous Bulan Royal Navy preferred to preserve their strength after achieving their operational goals.

Most representative of this were the Jutland Sea Battle and the Watcher Strait Battle during the last great war.

In these two decisive naval battles, the victorious side was not overtly aggressive.

In contrast, in several decisive naval battles of the current great war, unless all the opposing carriers had been sunk, the victorious side would often fiercely pursue the enemy.

This also highlighted the differences in naval thought across two eras.

Of course, Liu Changxun’s concerns soon became reality.

Approaching noon, Zheng Jiangming rushed over, bringing a telegram that had just been received.

A submarine operating in the northwest waters of the Galapagos Islands encountered a large fleet, confirmed to have several battleships with displacements over 30,000 tons and traveling speeds over 24 knots. Based on the gathered information, it was preliminarily concluded to be the 21st Special Mixed Fleet.

The key point was, this fleet was traveling northward, not westward!