On the surface, the Dutch fleet is far from the United States. After all, the Dutch have been operating in Nanyang for half a century and have a wealth of money. However, the Dutch fleet also has many problems. They are mainly armed merchant ships with slowness and low defense. The firepower of these armed merchant ships is also very weak, and they are equipped with four-pound and six-pound guns in large quantities. The United States' main battleships and battleships are almost immune to this type of artillery. The professional warships of the East India Company also have the characteristics of small tonnage and weak firepower, which cannot be compared with the United States' strong and powerful ships.

The only disadvantage of the United States Navy is that the number of ships is too small to ensure combat in both directions at the same time.

"According to the combat plan jointly formulated by the Navy and the Command, the core theater of the Dutch operation is set up here!" Simmons stood up and explained the Nanyang map that had just been replaced behind him. The long baton drew a circle with the southernmost end of the Strait of Malacca as the core, and surrounded the range of 1,500 miles in it. There are two important strongholds for the Dutch, and there are also two equally important straits, namely Malacca and Batavia, and the Straits are Malacca Strait and Sunda Strait.

Needless to say, Malacca is the key to controlling the Strait of Malacca and monopolizing trade between the two oceans. Batavia is the core of the rule of the East Indies. The Dutch's largest stronghold is also the largest gathering area, the center of politics, economy and military. The Sunda Strait on the west side is the only way for the Netherlands to trade east and west. Merchant ships returning from Europe every year must pass the Sunda Strait. (After the 1970s, as the Dutch rule in Ceylon stabilized, some European ships could directly travel to Ceylon Island)

As for other directions, the Dutch in Ceylon was restrained by the Portuguese, while the Dutch ships in Nagasaki in Japan were blocked by light warships and armed ships seized from the Dutch. Only part of the ships were sent to the Spice Islands. After all, it was too far from Batavia.

"At present, the port closest to the war zone in the United States is the Port of Beida Nian, but it is still too far away. Without the support of the port near the war zone, it will be difficult for us to compete with the Dutch in the Java Sea. Therefore, we need a front-line support port. In this regard, we need allies in the Java zone, Madalan, Banten, Zhanbei, and Palembang. We must at least get support from one of them. In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still working hard, but we cannot wait, so the first goal is to the Dutch lackey Johor Sultan, the lackey of the Dutch, which is also to meet one of our demands for this war and control the Strait of Malacca!" Simmons passionately announced his strategy to everyone.

"You mean to destroy the country of Johor Sultanate?" Lin Cheng asked.

Simmons shook his head: "Not only Johor, but also all the sultans on the Malay Peninsula, such as Pili, Pahang and Kedah."

"Destroy the country, destroy four at once!" Pan Xuezhong exclaimed in surprise.

Simmons smiled: "If Terengganu, Kelantan, and Negeri Sembilan are all the city-states affiliated to the sultanate countries, they will be seven countries. In fact, it just sounds amazing. The total number of people on the Malay Peninsula is less than 500,000, which is equivalent to a Chinese government. These sultans and castles are mainly Johor Sultan under the permission of the Dutch, and Johor Sultan is also an alliance with the Dutch, so they are all the Dutch lackeys, and it is a good choice to cut off the enemy's wings first."

It was on this issue that the Johor Sultan was born and the Malacca Sultanate, which was destroyed by the Portuguese, formed an alliance with the Dutch. Although the Johor Sultanate has long declined, it should be pointed out that the Tianfang Sect in Southeast Asia has been introduced from this. The Johor Sultan has a high status in the Tianfang Sect in the Nanyang region, and it is naturally no problem to become the leader of the Tianfang Sect on the Malay Peninsula.

Lin He said: "As far as I know, Pili is not a vassal state of Johor or an ally of the Dutch. How can we make our war acts more legally based?"

"Why do you have to find any legal basis? A group of Nanyang barbarians will be destroyed if they are destroyed." Song Laoqi muttered, and seeing that Li Mingxun's face was not good-looking, he chose to shut up.

"Simple, the Dutch monopolized the tin of the Sultanate of Pili. There were businessmen and shopping malls there, and we could ask them to hand over the Dutch. You know, these small South Asian countries have always liked to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight. We are not sure about the victory or defeat between the Dutch and they will not bet, so the Sultan of Pili can declare war on the grounds that they shelter the Dutch colonists." Simmons said that if you want to fight, there are many reasons, and if you can't find a reason, you can also create a reason.

"What about Malacca?" Song Laoqi asked again. This was the only stronghold of the Dutch in the Malay Peninsula. The Santiago Fort, which inherited the Portuguese era, was very strong. The Dutch used the lives of two thousand soldiers and three commanders of the 6th Army to exchange for him. How much did the United States need to pay?

"It is a solid fortress and a place where the Dutch will not give up. Our plan is to blockade at sea. After all, our 6th Army is very precious. Instead of dispersing its power to attack Malacca, it is better to attack Batavia with all your might." Simmons explained seriously.

Of course, the United States attacked the Malay Sultanate not only to cut off the Dutch wings, but more importantly, to gain a place of survival for the United States on this crucial land.

"If we don't use this battlefield to capture Malacca, it will be unfavorable for us to control the Strait of Malacca." Song Laoqi was a little unwilling.

Li Mingxun said: "In fact, we cannot dominate the Strait of Malacca. This Strait is too important. It is impossible for countries to support us to master it. Everyone, you must understand that we are essentially different from the Dutch. The Dutch are just colonists, which means they will not have strong control over the South China Sea. But we are different. The United States can use fifty years to completely dye the Malay Peninsula yellow and use it as a base to actually control the surrounding waters.

Of course, this is our ultimate goal, but it should be pointed out that the stronger the country, the more we need to conceal its ambitions and deal with competitors. It is better to slowly concoct it by boiling a frog in warm water. In our hands, we cannot do this war, and the next time will be the same."

"I agree with you, but we should have our own stronghold in the Strait of Malacca to ensure that we can use this lifeline freely. Malacca is the traditional trading center of the Strait of Malacca. Without it, we need to build a glass port?" Gao Feng asked.

Glass Port is currently a small port in Peking University. With it as its starting point, it crosses the hilly mountains in the center of the Malay Peninsula, arrives at Songkhla, and then reaches Peking University again. Of course, most areas still have to travel by carrying livestock, but the disadvantages of Glass Port have been revealed. This port is not a deep-water port, and many large-tonnage ocean-going merchant ships are not easy to moor. It is not appropriate to use it to control the Strait of Malacca and become a transit port for East-West trade.

In fact, Malacca City is not suitable. There are too few plains near this city and there are no minerals, so it cannot support the increasingly large scale of East-West trade.

"Of course, the Glass Port is not good. After investigation, Penang is the most suitable." Lee Mingxun said affirmatively. He stood up and pointed out an island south of Glass Port, and wrote the word Penang, saying: "Penang will be the key to our control of the Strait of Malacca."

Penang is called Penang by ancient Chinese navigators. As early as the Song Dynasty, Chinese people came here to trade. The vast Penang is across the sea from the Malay Peninsula. The peninsula is vast coastal plains, producing lilac, tropical hardwood, coconut and oil palm. There are also tin mines locally, which are enough to support the exhibition of a city. The Penang port is not bad, and most ships can enter. It also guards the northern entrance and exit of the Strait of Malacca, and the location in the ground is also good.

Of course, Lee Myung-hoon also wanted to choose Singapore in later generations as the core of controlling Malacca, but the ‘one-step’ is obviously limited by the actual conditions. The reason is very simple. Most of the Straits of Malacca are located in the equatorial windless zone, and Singapore is mostly islands of large and small. Without sufficient 6 winds, it is impossible to expand into a port in the sail era, and it cannot become a transit station for East-West trade. This is also one of the reasons why Malacca is not qualified.

Penang is different. It is outside the equatorial windless belt and next to the Malay Peninsula. It has sufficient northeastern and southwest winds. In history, Penang was the first place in Malaysia to be called a city, and it was also the core area where British colonists controlled the Malay region at that time. It has an administrative agency of the same level as Mumbai and Madras, so it is called the Indian Ocean emerald, while Singapore was a port that only emerged after the popularization of steam power.

The capture of the Malay Peninsula cut off the passage between the Indian Ocean and the East. Obviously, the war in the 6th place would last for a long time. This part was completed by the 6th Army. After obtaining the front coastal port near Batavia, the Navy sought an opportunity to fight the Dutch fleet. Once the sea control power was taken, the 6th team would immediately go ashore and besiege Batavia City.

This is the entire strategic concept of the United States. In the process of war, we should try our best to gain benefits, and then expand these benefits after the war, and after a decisive victory, we should gain enough benefits at the negotiating table to avoid falling into protracted war and total war.

November, Taiwan.

The wind blows from the northeast wind. The Qinglong just sails out of Taipei and sails south along the coastline. Behind this huge naval flagship is a fleet of huge size, with a total of 60 ships.

The Qinglong, Xuanwu, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Yongning and Luzon formed a full battleship formation, while the Kirin and four Orca-class battleships formed the second fleet, while the twelve Uranus-class sail frigates, four free trade-class armed transport ships and ten express transport ships, twenty-three flute-shaped ships and large Yahat ships formed the transport fleet.

The huge fleet lined up on the turbulent sea, with masts like forests and bulwarks like castles. Li Mingxun stood on the stern of the Qinglong ship, looking at the fleet extending seven or eight miles, with a spirit and spirit. How much he loved these giants. This is a symbol of power, a reliance on conquering the world, and a step to reach the peak. Li Mingxun loved them more than everything, and those who had never enjoyed power would not understand all this.

In the battleship formation, the main mast of the Qinglong, the golden dragon chasing sun flag was hung exclusively for Li Mingxun, and the long blue flag of the navy red and black meets each other on the foremast. The bow and stern flag poles were hung with the black-bottomed golden dragon flag of the Republic. The Qinglong had a flagpole specially for the national flag on the Qinglong. The huge national flag of 500 square meters spread out in the wind, and was majestic. Because of the Li Mingxun's heraldic flag, the First Fleet was also called the Dragon Fleet.

The Second Fleet was personally led by the Navy Admiral Simmons. The flagship was the Qilin, which is also a beast-class. On the flags on its flying, in addition to the national flag and the Changliu flag, the heraldic flag on the main mast is the Qilin Fleet, which belongs to Simmons, so it is also called the Qilin Fleet.

The third fleet had already been released, led by Li Beiji, commander of the Nanyang Fleet, to Beida Nian. Among his ships, four heavy patrols and two large cruisers were mixed together. It was the only fast fleet in the United States Navy. Because Li Beiji's heraldic flag was a bloody eagle, it was also called the Eagle Fleet.

According to the regulations of the United States Navy, only generals above the fleet commander have personal heraldic flags. Therefore, there are only three heraldic flags in this expedition.

This time, the large fleet went south, in addition to the ship itself, it also transported 4,000 6th Army troops from the Guangdong War Zone and a battalion of 6 naval teams. These troops will join the Malay battlefield and conquer the seven Malay countries.

After that, the United States will also organize a mixed fleet to go south to support, which will be led by Taylor. At present, the fleet includes two orca-class main battleships (because it was repaired in the dock and failed to join the expeditionary fleet in time), two cruise ships (having not returned from the Indian Ocean fleet). These four ships are confirmed, and some are uncertain. Some of them are armed merchant ships, some of which are recruited and transformed by domestic merchant ships in the United States, and some are seized from the Netherlands. The scale of the mixed fleet changes depending on the occupation of the South Ocean.

Taylor's mixed fleet also has a special mission, which is to escort the six teams supported from the Shandong battlefield to Nanyang. The four fleets had twenty-one main battleships (according to the naval regulations, those with more than 40 artillery guns of nine pounds can be called main battleships) and four large cruise ships. This means that the United States Navy has come out in full swing and will decide the victory and defeat with the Batavian fleet of the Dutch East India Company.
Chapter completed!