Chapter 623: So They Will Let Them Pass—Through Gritted Teeth

"President, you mean that what we go to do is one thing, and what slogan we shout is another."

"The two need not be the same," Chen Feng nodded, "Yingguo can intercept neutral ships on the high seas for inspection, but they have no right to stop a neutral fleet from conducting normal training in international waters. As long as we don't openly supply the Deguo, as long as our supply ship doesn't deliver oil to a German battleship in front of the Yingguo, they have no reason to act."

Li Te added from beside, "Moreover, Sheer's position is in the middle of the Atlantic, far from any Yingguo port. Even if the Yingguo suspect, they cannot dispatch a main fleet to intercept— their main force was just crippled, and the remainder must defend the homeland."

Zhang Zhen thought for a moment, then asked, "But the Yingguo will block us in the Suez Canal."

"They will," Chen Feng said, "but they don't dare to actually block."

"Why?"

"Because they're not sure." Chen Feng stood up, walked to the window, "They're not sure whether we're truly just going to train. They're not sure if blocking us would push Lanfang completely toward the Deguo side. They're not sure exactly how many cards we have in hand— they still don't know about the Nagato."

He turned around: "So they will let us pass. They'll let us pass through gritted teeth. They'll curse while letting us through, and curse while giving us way."

Zhang Zhen was silent for a few seconds.

He was pondering a question. A question that must be asked.

"President," he finally spoke, "are you sure about doing this? It's a gamble. Gambling that the Yingguo won't dare to act, gambling that the Meilika won't seize the chance to cause trouble, gambling that Sheer can hold out until we arrive."

Chen Feng looked at him, for a long while.

"General Zhang," he said, "do you know which sentence in Sheer's telegram impressed me the most?"

Zhang Zhen shook his head.

"It's not 'We earnestly request your nation to lend assistance.'" Chen Feng said, "but 'If it is inconvenient to intervene publicly, even just inform us of the nearest supply area.' Sheer knows we are watching, knows we are waiting for the moment. He doesn't demand us to fight, only asks us to give a way out."

He paused: "A man like that is worth a gamble."

Zhang Zhen stood at attention: "President, Zhang Zhen acknowledges the order."

"We depart in three days," Chen Feng said, "Li Te, is the engineering team ready?"

Li Te nodded: "Thirty engine engineers, twenty hull engineers, ten fire‑control experts are on standby. All volunteered."

"Tell them," Chen Feng said, "going doesn't guarantee return. The Deguo's situation may be worse than we imagine. No one knows whether those two Bismarck Class ships can survive to leave the Atlantic. If they sink together with the Deguo…"

Li Te was silent for a moment: "They know. They all signed the volunteer forms. Their families have arranged everything that needs arranging."

Chen Feng nodded.

He looked at the massive ship still under the spotlight outside the window and said softly, "The Nagato won't be commissioned for another two months. Until then, the Huai River and the Pearl River are our cards in the Indian Ocean and Atlantic. Zhang Zhen, don't lose them."

Zhang Zhen stood at attention: "Yes."

"Also," Chen Feng walked back to the chart table, his finger on the Mediterranean exit, "after passing Gibraltar, maintain radio silence. I'll have Sheer's coordinates updated daily. At the rendezvous point, stay no more than three days. Three days later, whether repaired or not, you must return."

Zhang Zhen was startled: "What if it's not repaired?"

Chen Feng looked at him: "Then let them figure it out themselves. We can't linger in the Atlantic; the Yingguo will react."

Zhang Zhen was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Understood."

Chen Feng glanced at the wall clock—04:20 AM.

"Dawn is near," he said, "go back and prepare."

Zhang Zhen and Li Te stood at attention together, saluted, turned, and left the conference room.

After the door closed, Chen Feng stood alone at the chart table, looking at the spread world map.

His finger traced the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Mediterranean, and finally stopped on the tiny spot in the middle of the Atlantic.

There, two Deguo battleships were awaiting death.

There, Lanfang's fleet was about to set out.

There, a game that would change the course of the war had just begun.

At 3 p. m. on February 22, Tirpitz entered the study of Wuyou Palace.

Wilhelm II stood by the window, back to the door, watching the grayish sky outside. Berlin in February has no snow, but the sky is always gray, gray like lead, like iron, like monuments of a bygone era.

"Your Majesty," Tirpitz stood at the doorway, bowing slightly.

Wilhelm II did not turn: "Alfred, you're here. Sit."

Tirpitz did not sit. He walked to the desk, stood still, waiting for the emperor to speak.

Wilhelm II finally turned. The frenzy of yesterday was gone from his face, replaced by a restrained excitement—like a flame pressed beneath water, still burning, though the fire is unseen.

"Alfred," he walked back to the desk, hands on the surface, "when do you depart?"

"Tomorrow, Your Majesty. By special train to Vienna, then through the Ottoman Empire, finally reaching Dubai. The whole journey takes about eight days."

Wilhelm II nodded: "Eight days. After eight days, you will meet Chen Feng."

He paused: "Alfred, I did not sleep a single night last night. I was wondering what to say when I meet Chen Feng."

Tirpitz said nothing. He knew the emperor needed no words, only his listening.

"I have thought a lot," Wilhelm II continued, "I think about what Deguo can give Lanfang. Colonies? New Guinea, Nauru, Samoa, all to them. Trade privileges? Lanfang merchant ships can freely enter all Deguo ports, with tariffs halved. Technology sharing? Deguo's submarine tech, gunpowder tech, optics tech—if they want it, we can negotiate."

He lifted his head: "But after pondering, I feel these aren't what Chen Feng wants most."

Tirpitz finally spoke: "Your Majesty, what do you think he wants?"

Wilhelm II was silent for a few seconds.

"He wants time," he said, "I thought for a long time, finally understood. I have repeatedly studied the words Chen Feng said to Wilson in Hawaii. He said, 'Meilika's downfall, Lanfang will also fall.' But he said 'also will,' not 'at the same time.'"

He walked to the window, back to Tirpitz: "The difference is, he wants to fall only after Meilika falls, not when Deguo needs it most."

Tirpitz was silent for a few seconds.

"Your Majesty, you are right," he said, "Lanfang doesn't want colonies, they want balance. They want us and Yingguo to wear each other out, Deguo and Faguo to wear each other out, and when everyone is roughly exhausted, they will step out to clean up the aftermath."