Chapter 595: Victory of the Nanhua Navy

The smoke over the waters of Liao nei qundao gradually dissipated, and the lingering wreckage of ships and floating oil on the sea surface silently narrated the ferocity of the battle.

The news that the Nanhua Navy had utterly crushed the Japanese Army Quinary Fleet and sunk the two aircraft carriers "Akagi" and "Kaga" was immediately sent back to Nanhua's homeland and spread throughout every region of Southeast Asia under Nanhua's control.

All of Nanhua boiled with excitement; cheers and celebrations rang unceasingly.

In Singapore, within Nanhua's temporary supreme command headquarters, Jiang Anguo stood by the window, watching the celebratory crowd outside, and a long‑absent smile appeared on his face.

The Chinese in Singapore had seen Japanese aircraft carriers before, and their generally higher cultural level meant they recognized it as a formidable great ship.

The adjutant hurried in and respectfully said, "Commander, all battle reports have been compiled; shall we announce the victory of the sea battle to the whole world at once?"

Jiang Anguo nodded, his tone firm: "Announce! Not only announce the victory, but also make it clear to the whole world that the Japanese Army's 'Akagi' and 'Kaga' aircraft carriers have been completely sunk by our Nanhua Navy, so that everyone knows the strength of the Nanhua Navy!"

That afternoon, Nanhua used radio, wired telegrams and other means to issue a global announcement of the sea battle's victory. The notice explicitly stated: "Our Nanhua Pacific Fleet, together with the Second Aircraft Carrier Fleet, fought jointly in the waters east of Liao nei qundao, successfully crushing the Japanese Army Quinary Fleet, sinking the Japanese 'Akagi' and 'Kaga' heavy aircraft carriers, severely damaging the Japanese Navy's main force, and achieving a complete victory in the Liao nei qundao sea battle!"

When the announcement was released, the world trembled.

The Chinese in Singapore poured onto the streets, waving Nanhua flags, cheering exuberantly.

Many Southeast Asian residents long oppressed by the Japanese Army also felt a secret joy; even within occupied zones, they hurried to spread the victorious joy to every piece of land where Chinese lived in Southeast Asia.

At the same time, it sparked their resolve to resist the Japanese invaders.

Far in Mandalay, Chen Jiageng sent a congratulatory telegram to Jiang Zhiyuan.

Within Nanhua, major cities lit lanterns and hung decorations; the military and civilians united to celebrate this historic victory, and the names of participating generals such as Jiang Zhiyuan, Jiang Qing, William, and Chen Zhide were widely praised by the people.

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, Japan, inside the underground command room of the Japanese Army Headquarters, the lights were dim and the air oppressive enough to choke, making even breathing feel heavy and stale.

An urgent battle report was handed by a signalman with both hands to the Chief of Staff Tojo Hideki of the headquarters; Tojo Hideki's fingertips trembled as he took the report, his eyes scanning line after line, and his previously tense cheeks instantly drained of color, pale as paper, while his hands gripping the report shook violently.

Finally, with a "crack", he slammed the report onto the desk, a roar bursting with unmistakable collapse and fury: "Baka! Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! 'Akagi' and 'Kaga' are symbols of the Imperial Navy, pillars of the Combined Fleet; how could they be sunk by a fledgling power like Nanhua? How could they possess such strength!"

Within the headquarters, a group of staff officers and generals hurriedly gathered, scrambling to read the report; each face was filled with shock, disbelief, and unmistakable panic, and the murmurs trembled in chaotic disarray.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Nanhua is merely a cobbled‑together navy; how could it sink both of our heavy aircraft carriers at once? This must be a fake!"

"What on earth is Lieutenant General Kurita doing? The Quinary Fleet boasts two aircraft carriers; how could it lose so disastrously, unable even to protect its flagship?"

"Kurita is so incompetent!" the Army fool seized the chance, beginning to despise the Navy fool.

"It's over; if this is true, the Combined Fleet's strength will diminish, and Southeast Asia's sea control will no longer be maintainable!"

"This must be Nanhua's false propaganda, intended to disturb our morale; we cannot believe it!"

Yet even while denying it verbally, each person's eyes were filled with despair; they knew better than anyone that every word in the report could be an omen of the Imperial Navy's annihilation.

Because this telegram was a farewell telegram sent by Kurita from the Akagi aircraft carrier.

Amid the frantic discussion, the Combined Fleet commander Shanben Wushiliu hurried over, his body exhausted.

He had just received the news and did not understand; the Combined Fleet, even in the Pacific against a great power like the United States, had no equal, so why could a tiny Southeast Asian nation called Nanhua suddenly emerge and defeat the Combined Fleet's two aircraft carriers?

Shanben Wushiliu dared not look at the crowd; with a "thud", he knelt before Tojo Hideki, his forehead pressed tightly to the cold ground, his hoarse voice sounding like a cracked gong, tinged with sobs, saying.

"Chief, I am guilty! The report is true; the 'Akagi' and 'Kaga' were indeed completely sunk by the Nanhua Navy, the Quinary Fleet's main force was annihilated, only a few destroyers barely broke through and fled to Manila, and Lieutenant General Kurita perished with the 'Akagi', sacrificing himself for the nation!"

Tojo Hideki snapped his head around, his gaze ferocious as if to devour, and within a few strides he lunged at Shanben Wushiliu, grabbed his collar, and yanked him up forcefully.

Tojo Hideki barked sternly, "Shanben, tell me, what on earth is happening? I ordered you to redeploy the fleet to retake Singapore and support the Southern Army."

"The two carriers 'Akagi' and 'Kaga', forming the Quinary Fleet to support Southeast Asia, I placed great expectations on you, and this is how you report back to me?!"

Shanben Wushiliu trembled all over, his head bowed even lower, tears mixing with sweat sliding down, his tone filled with despair and guilt: "Chief, I am incompetent!"

"The Nanhua Navy not only has two aircraft carrier fleets but also advanced fighter jets and submarines; their combat power far exceeds our estimates. We were completely surrounded, with no room to resist, forced to take blows passively, which led to such a disastrous defeat; my crime deserves ten thousand deaths!"

"Underestimate?" Tojo Hideki, enraged, let out a bitter laugh full of sorrow and despair, then he violently pushed Shanben Wushiliu to the ground.

"You, as commander of the Combined Fleet, wielding the elite of the Imperial Navy, could actually underestimate the enemy?"

"'Akagi' and 'Kaga' are the Imperial Navy's flagship carriers, years of effort and blood poured into building them; they are the face of the Imperial Navy, and you have personally buried them this way. Can you answer to the Empire? To the soldiers who sank with the carriers? To the Emperor's trust?"

Shanben Wushiliu collapsed on the ground, drenched in cold sweat, lacking even the courage to lift his head, only repeatedly kowtowing and muttering, "I am guilty, I am guilty, please, Chief, punish me, please, Emperor, punish me!"

Facing Shanben Wushiliu, even Hirohito did not know how to handle the situation.

He was a gambler, but it was precisely Shanben Wushiliu who enabled them to win the victory at Pearl Harbor.