Chapter 288: London

Advanced chapter at my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/caleredhair

“Take a look at these,” the new Prime Minister, Chamberlain, said, tossing a stack of photos to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Churchill.

“Take a look at these,” the new Prime Minister, Chamberlain, said, tossing a stack of photos to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Churchill. The photos scattered across the table, but Churchill knew with a glance that these were photos of the U-boat U-211 after its return to port.

There was a group photo of the submarine soldiers, several frontal photos of the main officers, and some photos of them fooling around at a banquet. There were also two close-ups of the U-boat U-211, as well as some newspaper and document analyses. And of course, there was a copy of a document that was giving Churchill the biggest headache.

Churchill had also seen this document before it had arrived at the Prime Minister’s residence today. It was a summary report. In five days, Britain had lost nine transport ships. The loss of more than 70,000 tons had almost made him, the First Lord of the Admiralty, vomit blood and faint. On the long British sea transport lines, there always seemed to be German submarines ambushing British transport ships. This loss was even more chilling than the loss of warships, because if you were to compare Britain to a person, then compared to chopping off a finger, slitting an artery was a much greater harm.

“To be honest, Mr. Prime Minister, up to now, it seems we have been suppressed by the Germans. Our navy has suffered heavy losses under Germany’s sneak attacks and has almost lost the command of the sea on which we depend for survival. Our air force has suffered heavy losses and can no longer maintain security over the skies of Europe. Now our transport fleet is also suffering losses, and the speed of the losses is staggering… All of this makes it impossible for us to see any hope of victory,” Churchill said with a frown after weighing his words for a long time. As he spoke, he glanced at a man who looked like a secretary standing behind Chamberlain. Churchill, who had been to the battlefield, could feel that this man was very dangerous.

But what he said next was his true thoughts. “But what is most intolerable is that our British Empire’s sea power and hegemony have been challenged. We have to choose between bowing our heads and waiting to die in the future, or continuing to be the master of the world. I don’t think this is a difficult choice. We must fight to the bitter end! Give the Krauts a heavy blow, and then let them know how naive they are.”

Churchill was one of the core members of the war party, while the current Prime Minister, Chamberlain, was clearly not keen on fighting a bloody battle to the end with the Germans. He hoped more to use a single victory to conclude a peace treaty and then, as after the First World War, to restrict the development of the German army. So this time, he had summoned Churchill just to put pressure on this hardliner, so that the soldiers on the front lines would quickly win a decent victory to force the Germans back to the negotiating table.

“Just this month, we have lost tens of thousands of tons of steel raw materials. Even ships from Canada fully loaded with agricultural products have been sunk. This is not good news for our island nation. On the other hand, just after you took over the Royal Navy, we have had more than 70,000 tons of warships sunk. His Majesty the King is already very uneasy about this war. So I have called you here to hear you speak the truth, not to hear you shout slogans at me,” Chamberlain said, his face unfriendly, his eyebrows twitching as he suppressed his anger.

He pointed to the map behind him and, staring at Churchill, continued, “Just a few days ago, Japan invaded Shanghai, China. This terrible war has destroyed our financial investments in Shanghai and has ruined our concessions there. Over a hundred British people have been killed, and yet we are unable to spare the troops to put pressure on Japan. They haven’t even given me a single statement of apology to this day!”

“Mr. Prime Minister! The Far East issue is just a matter of interest! We have indeed suffered losses, but it will not affect our international status in the slightest! But on the European continent, Germany is destroying the European order that we have established! This is a devastating blow that Britain cannot bear. You naturally understand which is more important. There is no need for me to say more, is there?” Churchill said helplessly.

“Then let’s talk about a topic that truly concerns the fate of the nation now,” Chamberlain said, tapping his fingers on the table, a little annoyed. “Mr. Churchill! Are you willing to tell me when your naval fleet can deal with the German Navy, just as in the First World War, and blockade them in their ports so that they can no longer pose a threat to our supply lines?”

Churchill knew that this was a question he could not answer. Chamberlain, in order to leave him speechless, would definitely ask this question that made him extremely ashamed. But he had to answer. So Churchill carefully considered his words and then replied, “Mr. Prime Minister, the combat effectiveness of the Royal Navy has not yet recovered. We cannot ensure that an offensive operation can achieve victory. Therefore, I suggest that we should shift our focus to the issue of escorting convoys.”

“That’s right! You have allocated a full three million pounds, enough to build a new battleship, to modify the existing warships, and it’s just to add some small-caliber cannons to them! For this modification plan, you even made the decision to suspend the construction of four new cruisers,” Chamberlain said indignantly. “Are the German carrier fleets more terrifying than their submarines?”

“Mr. Prime Minister, if I cannot ensure the air safety of the entire fleet, then I cannot make up my mind to engage in a fleet battle. This makes it possible for the German naval fleet, that is, the carrier fleet, to go out to sea and attack our transport lines. This risk is very great. Once the enemy’s carriers appear on the North Atlantic shipping route, our transport lines will collapse,” Churchill, who knew more about war than a person like Chamberlain who had never fought, explained. As the First Lord of the Admiralty, he understood the navy’s difficulties even better.

“Then how long is your modification plan expected to take?” Chamberlain also knew that he could not gain any advantage on a professional issue, so he immediately changed the subject and asked about other aspects.

“Most of the navy’s anti-aircraft weapons are very old. Because we have to maintain the security of our home waters, I can only arrange for a few warships to be refitted at a time. So the progress will take at least six months, or nine months to complete,” Churchill said. He had already increased the speed that could be guaranteed by a year, but he still felt a little guilty.

Sure enough, even if Chamberlain was a military idiot, he also knew that time waits for no man. In half a year, he would lose several million tons of transport ships. A disaster like this would be enough to cause Britain to completely collapse.

“We can’t wait that long. We must counter-attack immediately! If the navy can’t do it, then we can only rely on the army. You must have already seen the air force’s loss report. They have made me feel even more ashamed than the navy, losing 410 fighters on the European continent in one go,” Chamberlain said, feeling as if the world were spinning when he mentioned these losses. He now had the feeling that he wanted to cry but had no tears.

Why was it that when other people were the Prime Minister of the British Empire, there was peace everywhere, and news of successful expansion everywhere? But after he became Prime Minister, the news he received every day was that they had been defeated here, had suffered losses there. These bad news had practically pushed him onto the throne of the unluckiest British Prime Minister in a hundred years.

“That German Führer, is he really a gift from God to Germany? How can the weak Germany have become so tricky in just a few short years?” Chamberlain said, slapping the table in frustration as he thought of this. Hearing this, the man standing behind him’s eyes focused for a moment, but he still made no other move.

“I don’t believe that this bullshit Akado has anything to do with God. He is just a speculator who ran errands for that old fellow von Seeckt!” Churchill was one of the people in Britain who had studied Akado the most. Because of the intelligence from Smith, he had a deeper understanding of Germany’s war preparations.

So he said to Chamberlain, “They did not rise in just a few short years. Under the direction of von Seeckt, Akado had been involved in the plan for the secret development of the German army a long time ago. The copy of ‘Project Pluto’ we obtained was half-true and half-false and lacked a lot of core content. This made us let down our guard against the Germans’ ambitions.”

“If Colonel Smith’s analysis is not wrong, the Germans began to secretly rearm themselves at the end of 1919. In 1925, because of our blind support, their speed accelerated. By 1930, their armed forces had already surpassed that of World War I,” Churchill said, his eyes narrowed. “So the illusion they give of a rapid rise is actually a ridiculous smokescreen.”

Hearing Churchill say this, the man standing behind Chamberlain raised an eyebrow, glanced at Churchill, and then continued to stand there silently. It seemed that the conversation between the Prime Minister and the First Lord of the Admiralty had nothing to do with him.

“It’s useless to say anything now,” Chamberlain said with a sigh. “We can either only hope that the army will win the war, or we will be forced to accept the Germans’ conditions and turn ourselves into one of Germany’s running dogs.”

“There is another way, Mr. Prime Minister,” Churchill said after a moment’s thought, his voice filled with sorrow. “We can sell off a portion of our overseas interests to get some warships from the Americans to reinforce our navy.”

“The Americans? Are you sure you can do it?” Chamberlain seemed very interested in this proposal and hurriedly asked.

“That will depend on whether the chips we offer are big enough,” Churchill said helplessly.

“In that case, this plan cannot be easily implemented,” Chamberlain said, shaking his head. “If we give up too many interests, His Majesty the King and the Cabinet will not agree. We still have to think of another way.”

“If, and I mean if, Mr. Prime Minister, it seems we can use some… unconventional methods to change our passive situation,” the man who had been silent behind Chamberlain finally spoke.

“You? Are you sure?” Chamberlain asked, looking at the man.

“I will use my own people. And even if it fails, Britain will suffer no loss,” the man said in a gruff voice.

Chamberlain stared at the man for a few seconds, then nodded with great satisfaction. “Good! I approve this operation! The First Lord of the Admiralty will give you his full assistance.”