Chapter 944 D-Day (6,600 Votes Plus Additional Content)

"No, you are wrong. Attacking Australia and New Zealand cannot force the United States to sue for peace. Attacking Hawaii and the West Coast can force the United States to make peace. Australia and New Zealand survived because of the support of the United States. If the United States does not protect the mainland, according to the short-sighted ostrich approach of those in the United States, Will they choose to give up on Australia and New Zealand? Especially this is an election year, and both parties have to please voters. Horikichi and Yamamoto are both familiar with the United States, so don’t think they don’t understand this." Hoffman smiled, "That's it. They learned it from us. Didn’t we make the Americans give up on Britain?”

Keitel suddenly realized: "That's it, the head of state is far-sighted, we..."

Hoffman waved his hand: Keitel's flattery was so obvious that he didn't believe the staff officers at the Supreme Command couldn't even notice it. Then he asked: "How long does it take to get the 500,000 tons?"

"He wants to get the first batch of 100,000 tons before the end of July, and hopes to get 100,000 tons every two months thereafter. Cole speculated that Japan will attack in mid-August, because by then the newly built Shinano battleship, Unryu aircraft carrier, and modified The Béarn aircraft carrier will be combat effective - they have just been delivered to the troops. If Japan hurry up, the Amagi aircraft carrier delivered early next month may also be in time."

Hoffman knew the tragic experience of the Shinano after it was converted into an aircraft carrier. After turning into a super battleship according to its original trajectory this time, he wondered whether its fate would be better this time.

"Do they still have battleships on the slipway?"

"No." Keitel denied with a smile, "The guys who advocated building battleships have been slapped. Now there are only aircraft carriers. In addition to a bunch of Yunlong-class ships, two more Axis-class ships have been started this year, and it is said that the third one will be started next week. Of course, there is no comparison with us, we have already started construction of 8 ships..."

Hoffman thought for a moment: "I will give him 150,000 tons at the end of July, and the delivery frequency of the remaining parts will remain unchanged. All deliveries will be completed before the end of the year."

"Do you want to increase the price?"

"No." Hoffman shook his head, "If the quantity is large, I'll give him a 50% discount."

Keitel was surprised that Japan did not intend to fulfill the original gentleman's agreement to carry out the Second Western Expedition but instead made small moves. He originally thought that the Führer would be unhappy, but it seemed that he was wrong.

"On the reservation of North-West India for the British..."

Hoffman interrupted: "You can call it Pakistan."

"Yes, we have communicated with Japan about Pakistan. Although the Army was reluctant, Marshal Horikichi said that we could discuss it, but we had to wait until the Battle of Delhi was over and Britain formally sued for peace. There was no rush. He offered to It will be discussed at the Cairo meeting in August. Cole believes that there is room for negotiation, and of course it must give benefits to the Japanese.”

As soon as Cole brought up this matter, Japan's top brass set off an uproar. Before the military could say anything, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Minister Masayuki Tani jumped to their feet, believing that Germany was going too far: It was promised that all of India would belong to Japan. , the words still lingering in your ears, why did you suddenly interfere? The Soviet Union issue initially prompted Japan to adopt a posture of marching north to contain Stalin. However, within a few months of turning around, Japan even signed an armistice agreement. We believe that we cannot sit idly by and allow Germany to engage in "over-the-top diplomacy." After hearing that Britain was interested in suing for peace, this complaint became even more intense.

But the faces of the military leaders were solemn: the Soviet Union lay down and the United Kingdom begged for mercy, which meant that the war in Europe was coming to an end soon. At this time, Germany did not lack or owe Japan anything, but might betray Japan in order to speed up peace with the United States. Especially after Roosevelt passed away and the United States issued the Three Principles for Peace with Germany, everyone felt more urgent and nervous about Germany's actions. I'm afraid that Berlin will send a telegram tomorrow to end the "Three Powers Axis" treaty - everyone knows that the credibility of the head of state is not very good.

Originally, the base camp had an indifferent attitude towards the Cairo Conference, but now the situation has become that it is necessary to go and remain humble. After a fierce argument, everyone reached an agreement: keep a low profile as much as possible, maintain close relations with Germany, and increase supplies. , technical procurement efforts, and another outstanding payment (200 tons of gold, 350 tons of silver) will be delivered in August. At the same time, the German head of state has not given any decent gifts after giving birth to Kohler, so this time he must be extra carefully prepared. All in all, regardless of politics, economy, diplomacy, interests and personal feelings, Germany must be impeccable.

In order to test Germany's attitude, Horikichi made a desperate request to purchase bulk supplies with the unique shrewdness of a businessman - not only to buy goods that are in short supply, but also to buy peace of mind and peace of mind.

"Please rest assured, Marshal Horikichi, that the Japan-Germany friendship is unbreakable. We will fight the Americans to the end, well... at least support Japan to fight to the end!" Hoffman smiled slightly, "So even the Me-262 jets and V2 rocket technology will be given to Each of them gave away two dozen items in kind, and the total amount was only 400 million marks as a friendly price. "

"Ha..." Keitel almost laughed out loud: 3 days ago, the second-generation jet Ta-183 has been officially verified and finalized, and is ready to start mass production in August. The Me-262 is also preparing to cut orders. As for V2, Japan will not be able to produce a complete set of technology plus physical objects and hands-on instruction within 2 years. Of course, this means selling to Japan. If it were sold to the United States, the head of state might not be willing to part with 1.4 billion.

After receiving the feedback from the German side, the Tokyo base camp breathed a sigh of relief again: This gesture is good. Some people thought it was expensive and wanted to make a counteroffer, but both Ishihara and Isoroku Yamamoto, on behalf of the army and navy, expressed opposition and clearly replied to Berlin, "Northwestern India is easy to negotiate. We have great sincerity. Please let Germany take the lead in negotiating peace with Britain." , all the materials and technologies mentioned were purchased according to the prices given by Germany and shipped back as soon as possible.

Horikichi remained silent, as if he was thinking about something. Finally, everyone looked at him and asked him to say a few words.

"Please ask the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to secretly communicate with the United States through Swiss or Swedish channels to see if we can reach an understanding. Then we can agree to return the Philippines to the Philippines and withdraw our troops from mainland China. We can also negotiate an apology and compensation."

"Hori-kun?"

"There needs to be a clear answer before August 15th. Yes, both parties will sit down and sign the agreement; no..." Horikichi waved his hand, sighed deeply, and lowered his voice by an octave, "I am the only one who goes out to fight! Just die!"

King Higashikata Minuhiko complained: "Hori-kun, why is this happening? Why is this..."

"Yes, please don't say things like this in the future. It hurts morale." Tada Shun said, "It seems that we can't survive if we lose. The empire clearly has the upper hand! Delhi can only be won in these two days. If the territory of northwest India is given up, the war in India will be over this month. The construction of the army and navy is in full swing, a large number of new aircraft and tanks are in service, the mecha force has been strengthened as never before, the local economy is prosperous, the people's lives are stable, and there is employment and production. They are all in a prosperous state... The attitude of Germany and other European allies is not bad. They have given them new aircraft and new tanks, aviation fuel, train guns, and even new jet and rocket technology. This is after the war. The best situation!”

Had it not been for Horikichi's numerous achievements and constant fighting, he would have been labeled as "vacillating in compromise, traitorous and seeking peace."

Horikichi persuaded earnestly: "If we negotiate peace on these terms, you won't have to bear the responsibility. When the time comes, you elect me as prime minister, and I will sign, and then you can send people to 'Tianchu****'! If the United States If people want to judge those responsible for the war, just hand me over."

Everyone's expressions changed: It's not that Horikichi's becoming Prime Minister scared them - it's not easy to be Prime Minister with his status? The key is that he spoke so pessimistically that everyone was caught off guard. Even Yamamoto Isoroku said it seemed like he was going too far.

King Higashino Miyazaki stood up and said to smooth things over: "Everyone admires Hori-kun for his foresight, but as Tada-kun said, the situation has not reached this point yet, so there is no need to be so pessimistic... Let's talk. , conditions such as the right to garrison troops in the Philippines and mainland China can be put on it - this is also the bottom line of what we can tolerate. Reparations and apologies are related to the dignity of the imperial country. Don't say it until it is absolutely necessary. Now that the axis allies have won consecutive victories, our army has achieved numerous results. , the public sentiment has always been high, and it will take time to change their minds. Moreover, Hori-kun has always said that only by fighting can we make peace. I think the navy will prepare for the operation as usual, and the country will fully support it. The landing force and the army will be more supportive. Don't be influenced by diplomacy. Influence."

Yamamoto Isoroku advised: "From ancient times to the present, the status of a great power has been fought out, and I have never heard of it being negotiated. At that time, our posture was so low during the Nomura negotiations. Did the Americans let us go? Later, halfway through The US failed to accept the compromise of Case A and Case B, which shows that no matter what we do, the United States has no intention of negotiating with us. The power gap between Japan and the United States has been greatly narrowed, and the oil problem has been basically solved. The production of food and steel has also been reduced. It has been increasing year by year, and China's bottomless battlefield military expenditure has been curbed. Now the strongest Japan is facing the weakest United States. Since the Americans are unrepentant, we will fight to the end and let the American corpses be strewn all the way from Washington to Tokyo. , I want to see how many people can die in the United States!"

Shimomura Sada said: "How can we hand over Hori-kun? Will the empire still have a face in the world in the future? If the Americans give us other favorable conditions, but they must have decent face, we can deal with a few responsible persons at will. Anyway, Nagumo who fought at Pearl Harbor is dead, and the others can be fooled by just making up one or two things. But if Hori-kun goes out, what will the millions of army and navy think? What if the United States insists on handing over His Majesty again? What should we do? This kind of peace condition is like suppressing the crater with stones. Can it be suppressed? "

"You can't do this even if you have 100 million pieces of jade!"

Ishihara Wanji also said: "The Army fully supports the Navy's initiative to attack. The Kwantung Army has promised to hold its troops temporarily. In the attack on Midway, the Army decided to support the 2nd Guards Division, which can board ships directly from the mainland. The division Lieutenant General Nagaguri Hayashi Tadamichi, he is a rare American expert in our army; if the Navy decides to attack Hawaii in the next stage, we can send out 5 more divisions! By then, India will also be tied, and there will be plenty of troops. "