Published at 13th of February 2023 07:06:53 AM

German capital Berlin, Imperial Palace.

After Qin Tian succeeded to the throne and became Emperor William III, he naturally couldn't stay on the front line all the time. Fortunately, the German army on the Western Front has completely established its victory. This made Qin Tian not have to worry too much. Even if the command is transferred to the General Staff, there is no problem.

Being the emperor and being the crown prince are naturally completely different. Even if Qin Tian has fully delegated power, the government affairs are in charge of the cabinet, and the military affairs are in charge of the Ministry of the Army and the Ministry of the Navy. He only needs to know the final result. Even so, he was exhausted enough. However, this is also because he has just succeeded to the throne, and he is not familiar with many affairs. After this busy period, it will be much better relatively speaking.

At noon on May 7, when Qin Tian was still eating lunch, the waiter reported that Marshal von Falkenhain, the Minister of War and Chief of the General Staff, and General Waldzer, the Deputy Chief of the General Staff, asked to see him.

"Let them go to the office, I'll be ready soon." After Qin Tian finished speaking, he stuffed the steak into his mouth two or three times, then drank the freshly squeezed juice in the glass, wiped his mouth, and rushed to the office. He knew that von Falkenhain and Waldsee would not have come to see him at this time if the situation had not been urgent.

"Your Majesty!" After Qin Tian entered the office, both Von Falkenhain and Waldsee saluted him. Although Qin Tian is still very young, he is already the emperor of the empire after all.

"Both of you, please sit down. Have you had your lunch? If not, I'll ask someone to prepare it." Qin Tian asked.

"Your Majesty, we have already eaten." Von Falkenhain expressed his thanks.

"Okay, bring three cups of coffee." Qin Tian said one after another.

After the waiter left, Qin Cai asked, "What happened?"

"Your Majesty, something has happened in the battle between the 1st Army and the 8th Army to attack Le Havre," said von Falkenhain.

"What? How is it possible?" Qin Tian couldn't help frowning. The 1st Army and the 8th Army have nearly 500,000 troops, both of which are the most elite troops of the Imperial Army. Attacking Le Havre, where more than 300,000 British expeditionary forces are stationed, should definitely be a sure thing. How could there be problems? This really made Qin Tian a little unbelievable.

"Your Majesty, the British dispatched their navy. They dispatched a huge fleet consisting of 21 pre-dreadnoughts and 13 armored cruisers, which appeared off the coast of Le Havre to attack the 1st Army Corps attacking Le Havre He and the 8th Army launched a fierce bombardment. Under the bombardment of the British's large-caliber naval guns, the 1st Army and the 8th Army not only failed to attack, but also paid an extremely heavy price." Von Falkenhain Marshal introduced.

Qin Tian's complexion suddenly became quite ugly. Although, he didn't see it with his own eyes. But he could fully imagine that when the German infantry attacked Le Havre, the British warships began to shell violently. A large number of large-caliber naval guns fell from the sky and exploded in the ranks of the German army. What kind of scene would it be like? What is certain is that the German army must have suffered considerable losses under the bombardment of the British naval guns.

"How big is our loss?" Qin Tian asked.

"Your Majesty, the 1st Army and the 8th Army lost more than 10,000 people in this attack alone. In addition, hundreds of cannons were destroyed by the British naval guns. The morale of the troops, after this battle After that, it was hit hard. This will be very detrimental to our next battle." Admiral Waldsee said.

Qin Tian nodded. The setback of this round of attack is indeed something that the German Army has never experienced since the start of the war. Especially the 8th Army, whether on the Eastern Front or the Western Front, they have been winning continuously and have never failed. This time, they were beaten by the British naval guns and suffered heavy losses. This was indeed a serious blow to the 8th Army.

"General Crook and General Ludendorff, what are you going to do?" Qin Tian asked.

"Your Majesty, for the time being, the 1st Army and the 8th Army have withdrawn from the range of the British Navy's naval guns. However, if we want to attack Le Havre, we have to consider the threat of the British Navy's naval guns to us. If this threat cannot be resolved, the 1st Army and the 8th Army may not be able to take Le Havre, and may even pay a greater loss there." Marshal von Falkenhain said.

Qin Tian agreed with this. The size of the fleet assembled by the British Navy is indeed huge. This is also the strong background of the Royal Navy of the British Empire, which makes it easy for them to assemble such a powerful fleet. Other countries may not be able to do it at all. Although, those warships are outdated old warships. But it turns out that there has never been any waste in this world, only misplaced resources.

"How do you plan to solve the threat of the British fleet?" Qin Tian asked.

Admirals von Falkenhain and Waldzer looked at it, and then Marshal von Falkenhain said: "Your Majesty, I hope that the High Seas Fleet can send a fleet to the south to defeat the British fleet and relieve the British navy of threat to our Army."

Sending the fleet south to defeat the British fleet is undoubtedly the safest method. However, the German Navy cannot dispatch many warships now.

"The navy may not be able to dispatch the main fleet now. Although our navy has already severely damaged the British navy. However, the blockade of the United Kingdom has also entered the most critical moment. Most of the warships are operating in the western waters of the United Kingdom and the North Sea. In addition, the Admiralty discovered that the British Navy, the French Navy and the Italian Navy were secretly mobilizing. They judged that the British were not willing to fail and were actively preparing to counterattack the Imperial Navy. Therefore, the High Seas Fleet cannot act rashly. All the main forces Ships need to be used to deal with potential threats. In this case, I am afraid that I will not be able to provide support for you for the time being." Qin Tian said.

Naval movements of Great Britain, France and the Kingdom of Italy, albeit in secret. However, it is impossible to achieve complete secrecy. The German intelligence agency, based on clues, speculated that Britain, France and Italy are most likely preparing to deal with the German navy. This made the German navy have to deal with it vigilantly as if it was facing a big enemy. The German Navy can have the current situation, but it has not come easily. It would be a pity if a good situation was lost due to a negligence.