"Our forces will advance eastward to first cut off the connection between the US fleet and the Mariana Islands. Before reaching this position, we will not consider launching further attacks for the time being," Yamamoto ordered. This command highlighted the priority of completing the operational objective: capturing the entire Mariana Islands to prepare for the assault on Hawaii.

Despite this, Rear Admiral Zhang Lingfeng, who advocated for continuing the offensive, presented his view. "According to intelligence from our reconnaissance aircraft, there is no sign that the US military is disengaging from the battlefield. Commander, if we can inflict heavy damage on the US forces here, it will reduce the pressure on our forces when we attack Hawaii."

Yamamoto kept a stern face as he spoke, "We have not disengaged from combat, and the US military has every opportunity to attack us. Moreover, this time we are striking second; we will launch our attack only after the US attack formations reach our vicinity."

Seeing that Rear Admiral Zhang Lingfeng did not appear convinced, Yamamoto assumed the posture of a commander. "Rear Admiral Zhang, our mission is to capture the Mariana Islands. While achieving this objective, we must avoid losses. With the United States' industrial capacity, this war is far from over!"

After saying this, Yamamoto suddenly thought of Nagumo Chuichi. Yamamoto himself held an offensive stance, or at least he once thought of himself as a very aggressive naval officer. The conservative view he just expressed was one commonly held by Nagumo. But Yamamoto did not feel there was anything wrong with his choice; the gap between pre-war assumptions and the reality of war was too great. Before the war, Yamamoto truly believed that the Allied Forces' technological strength surpassed that of the US military, and the war should have gone very smoothly. Indeed, China's engine technology did surpass that of the US, and Yamamoto was truly willing to believe that Chinese technology exceeded America's.

However, the actual battle reports had calmed Yamamoto, who had studied and worked in the United States for many years. While China's air defense system, composed of radar and computers, was very advanced compared to Japan's, the US military possessed similar products. Judging from the battle reports received so far, the US military's technological research and development progress was no slower than China's. This reminded Yamamoto of the endless oil wells in the US West Coast oil production areas, as well as the countless skyscrapers and dense factories in the East Coast and Great Lakes industrial zones.

The United States remained that powerful industrial nation, a powerful industrial nation with very advanced technology. After feeling this sentiment again, Yamamoto naturally chose the plan with the greater chance of success. The strategy formulated by He Rui had already achieved tremendous success. If the US military only had the Hawaiian Islands left in the Pacific, they would have effectively lost the war.

As the commander, Yamamoto held battlefield command authority. Moreover, the highest priority operational objective of this naval battle was to capture the Mariana Islands. Although Yamamoto's decision did not satisfy the officers who advocated for continuing the battle, they had no grounds to firmly oppose his decision. Ultimately, the Chinese carrier strike group began to move eastward.

Among their opponents in the US military, Nimitz was undoubtedly an expert in operating carrier strike groups. A significant portion of the tactics now adopted by the US carrier strike groups had been formulated by Nimitz.

But Nimitz was not the commander of the US Pacific Command's 1st Fleet. Just as Nimitz thought that the Commander, upon learning via the radio conference that the carrier group commanders believed the naval aviators could not continue the fight, would agree with this assessment, he heard the Commander order: "Since the aviation forces are unable to execute combat missions alone, then immediately begin forming a combat detachment with battleships as the main offensive force to launch an attack on the Chinese naval carrier strike group under the air cover provided by the aircraft carriers."

Nimitz could actually understand this order. After all, the US fleet air defense system had already demonstrated excellent combat effectiveness in battle. Most of the anti-aircraft guns on US aircraft carriers were 2-inch guns, while the anti-aircraft guns on US battleships were the 24 dual-purpose 5-inch guns used as secondary batteries. This type of artillery was also adopted by the cruisers acting as fleet air defense nodes, and their performance on the battlefield was quite outstanding.

There was also a struggle between the battleship faction and the aircraft carrier faction within the US military. The battleship faction believed that compared to aircraft carriers, battleships possessed both offensive and defensive capabilities. As long as they had air force protection, battleships could exert combat capabilities exceeding those of aircraft carriers. Nimitz knew that the Commander had once been relatively supportive of the battleship faction.

Before Nimitz could rebut, a group of carrier strike group commanders began to refute the Commander's view, especially those commanders who had suffered the greatest losses. Having witnessed with their own eyes dozens of fighter planes taking off from the full decks only for a scant few to return, the carrier group commanders knew that the strength of the Chinese Navy was very powerful, stronger than imagined before the war.

The US officers did not know that the officers of the Asian Allied Forces, like their US counterparts, had believed before the war that they possessed military technology superior to the other side. Added to the fact that they had been preparing for war for several years, the battles should have gone very smoothly. Now that they had kicked an iron plate, there seemed to be no other choice but to retreat.

The Commander was the Commander; no matter how reluctant Nimitz and the other officers were, they still had to obey his orders. As a last resort, Nimitz suggested, "Your Excellency, I believe we can provide a two-wave attack plan. The Air Force will launch another attack first, followed by the carrier strike group's attack. What do you think?"

After Nimitz finished speaking, he felt somewhat uneasy. This suggestion looked like it was for the sake of prudence, but it was actually to delay. This plan was not something he came up with on the spur of the moment; it was a plan made before the war. Nimitz himself had participated in formulating the aircraft carrier part of it and knew clearly the difficulty of this matter.

In his anxious wait, Nimitz heard the Commander, who had been silent for a good while, say, "Alright. Let's do it that way!"

Nimitz breathed a sigh of relief. After the meeting ended, he immediately began to adjust the attack formations according to the pre-war plan. During this process, Nimitz had a question in his mind: why did the Commander want to do this?

At this time, more than 1,300 kilometers east of the US Pacific Command's 1st Fleet, the US Pacific Command's 2nd Fleet was moving towards the 1st Fleet, preparing to launch further operations after rendezvousing.

To the west of the US Pacific Command's 1st Fleet, in the US-occupied Guam of the Mariana Islands, everyone on this 549-square-kilometer island felt the earth shake and the mountains sway. Some local islanders with poor balance even stumbled and fell directly to the ground.

Following the tremors, an earth-shattering explosion rang out, sounding like thunder in the ears of the soldiers and civilians on the island. Moments later, a mushroom cloud actually rose from the ground.

Japanese commander Rear Admiral Kurita watched this mushroom cloud with a truly apprehensive heart. Fortunately, just as the mushroom cloud was blown away by the sea breeze, news arrived: "Commander, the US military has surrendered."

Amidst the cheers of the staff officers, a smile appeared on Rear Admiral Kurita's face. The Rear Admiral had studied in the United States and had quite a few American friends. Therefore, the US military's desperate defense of Guam had surprised him. This was clearly not like the US military's style.

Fortunately, Guam was only 549 square kilometers in size, and the US military had only built a defensive system covering twenty-some square kilometers over several years. Kurita had carried out a large number of concentrated attacks against the strongest points of the US defenses this time. Unexpectedly, the US military had placed an ammunition depot beneath that stronghold. When the fortifications there were penetrated, the ammunition depot detonated, leading to that earth-shattering scene.

If the situation had come to this and the US military still did not surrender, then they would truly not be the Americans Kurita knew.

Although he still had various thoughts in his mind, Kurita proceeded to do what should be done at this time: hurry to send a telegram to Tokyo and go to accept the surrender.

Further south in the Philippines, the US Philippines Command, having completely lost its air force, had fallen into a desperate situation. Originally, the US military had wanted to retreat to the precipitous terrain of the Bataan region to mount a defense, but the Chinese Air Force had destroyed the bridges around Manila, rendering the US military unable to move. At this point, of the three defensive lines the US military had established in Manila, only the final one centered on the headquarters remained.

The local Philippine army had vowed solemnly before the war that they would fight to the death against the Chinese army. However, as soon as the battle entered a fierce state, these local Philippine troops collapsed, and some even surrendered directly. If the US military had not relied on these local Philippine troops, they might have been able to hold out a while longer. Encountering such terrible teammates, the US military, unable to maintain the battle line, could only retreat again and again. Now they had reached the point where there was no retreat left.

The fighting temporarily ceased at this moment. This silence allowed the US soldiers to breathe a sigh of relief, but the US officers felt a greater threat. The opposing Chinese army had performed quite outstandingly in battle; it was absolutely impossible for them to drop the ball now after fighting to this point. There was only one true reason, and that was that the Chinese army was preparing for the final assault.

According to what the US officers had learned in military academies and some scenes they had witnessed, at this stage, the Chinese army would come to persuade them to surrender one more time. The US officers had not lost their will to fight, but they knew very well that if they continued to fight, the US military would inevitably fight to the death. If the defeat in the air could be attributed to China utilizing geographical advantages to mass more fighter planes than the US military, there was nothing to say about the failure on the ground. When those Chinese tanks with thick, long barrels charged onto the beachhead, the US military discovered that their infantry frontline artillery had no way to cause any damage to these Chinese tanks.

The Chinese tanks did not fire from a stationary position but fired at exposed US fire points while constantly moving. With the Chinese Air Force constantly bombing and strafing overhead, and Chinese tanks that infantry frontline artillery could not penetrate in front, the US military had no choice but to retreat continuously.

Now only the final line of defense remained. If positions were swapped, the US military would have countless ways to annihilate the opponent. The best course of action right now was nothing other than a dignified surrender.

At this time, Major General Wainwright, commander of the US Philippines Command, was sending a telegram to Washington, explaining the reasons why surrender was unavoidable.

After sending the telegram, Major General Wainwright sat dejectedly in the command post. His predecessor, MacArthur, had left less than three days ago. Although the Major General knew he was the scapegoat, he had not expected that within just three days, he would already have to face the fate of surrender. This injustice caused the Major General great pain, yet he was helpless.

Just then, the communications officer stood up, took off his headphones, and shouted to the Major General, "Commander, a telegram from Washington!"

Major General Wainwright was somewhat surprised. He had already decided to surrender, so he had not expected Washington to reply. But thinking that Washington might order him to fight to the death, Major General Wainwright asked listlessly, "What does the telegram say?"

The communications officer read: "Your unit is authorized to surrender. Before surrendering, transfer command authority to Major General Henry, who continues to hold out on Mindanao."

Major General Wainwright was stunned. It wasn't that this order was particularly surprising, but that the bastards in Washington were actually willing to shoulder the responsibility of ordering a surrender. Generally speaking, if Major General Wainwright expressed his intention to surrender, Washington would no longer reply. This time Washington replied, preserving Major General Wainwright's honor.

Just as Major General Wainwright was trying to figure out why the bastards in Washington had suddenly found a conscience, the guards outside came to report, "Commander, the Chinese army has sent someone!"

While Major General Wainwright ordered the burning of various codebooks and confidential documents and attempted to stall for time by negotiating surrender terms with the Chinese army, US Army Chief of Staff Marshall put down the phone and said to his adjutant, "Prepare the car, go to the White House immediately."

The reason General Marshall helped Major General Wainwright was not only that he truly believed this surrender had nothing to do with Major General Wainwright's command of operations, but also that he accepted the request of General MacArthur, now the commander of the Australian theater. MacArthur did not want his deputy to surrender dishonorably, so he asked General Marshall to intervene.

General Marshall, having helped, was now prepared for the possibility of being relieved of duty. The war had reached this point, and the US military was suffering defeat after defeat. Although from a military perspective, China's means of defeating the United States did not have any tactical brilliance but relied entirely on hard power to fight a war of attrition with the United States. Since China's supply lines were far shorter than America's, US logistics were difficult, and they could only helplessly be drained dry by China.

Sitting in the car heading to the White House, Marshall looked at the conscription advertisements on both sides of the street outside the window. An old man dressed in the American flag pointed outward, with "Uncle Sam Needs You!" written next to him.

Marshall originally could not appreciate such recruitment posters, but at this moment he felt that the United States indeed needed a larger number of soldiers to be thrown into the war. From the perspective of combat generals, the Chinese campaign of simply fighting with superior numbers and bullying the weak could be said to have no highlights. But from the perspective of a Chief of Staff, being able to fully utilize one's own advantages required very brilliant staff work. The Chinese campaign arrangements could be said to be full of highlights everywhere.

The US military's defeat in the Western Pacific was not due to a sneak attack. In the past few years, the US military had continuously strengthened the defense system in the Western Pacific. With the quality and quantity of US equipment, especially the strength of the Air Force, it was entirely possible to win a Western European campaign. And the three countries involved in the Western European campaign—Britain, France, and Germany—were established industrial and military powers.

Even with such ample preparation, the US military was still defeated. And defeated miserably, defeated clearly and plainly. Marshall had had the Army General Staff review the battle multiple times these past few days, trying to find opportunities for a turnaround. The Army General Staff found after the review that the US military's performance was commendable, and MacArthur's command had no problems; if another commander had been in charge, they might have lost even worse.

Since the frontline commander performed flawlessly and the Army General Staff's pre-war preparations were also very sufficient, it meant that the Army General Staff's prediction of the war was wrong. Or to put it more bluntly, the war decision of the current supreme commander of the US military, US President Roosevelt, was the cause of this defeat.

With things at this stage, Marshall believed it was entirely possible for President Roosevelt to throw Marshall out as a scapegoat to save himself. It was with this realization that Marshall had helped Major General Wainwright. Since he was very likely to be dismissed anyway, shouldering this bit of extra responsibility was irrelevant to Marshall.

On the west coast of the Pacific, He Rui did not join in the celebrations of the Military Commission comrades but returned to his office to ponder the development of the war. Although history is by no means static but a constantly operating dynamic, the fact that Marshall left a great name in history did not mean that there were truly no other generals in the US military who could surpass Marshall. However, He Rui still looked forward to Marshall being dismissed.

In He Rui's view, Marshall's greatest strength was likely his political ability. The Marshall Plan named after him, officially known as the European Recovery Program, was a plan for the United States to provide economic aid and assist in the reconstruction of Western European countries damaged by the war after World War II. It had a profound impact on the development of European countries and the world political landscape.

The plan was officially launched in July 1947 and lasted for a full four fiscal years. During this period, Western European countries, through participating in the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC), received a total of 13.15 billion US dollars in various forms of aid from the United States, including finance, technology, and equipment, of which 90% was grants and 10% was loans.

This plan achieved the control over Europe that the United States had long looked forward to. Although this was a US government plan, Marshall, as the executor, demonstrated superb political ability.

The other two who were soldiers but performed outstandingly in politics were MacArthur and Eisenhower. MacArthur was called the "Five-Star Emperor"; he truly helped Japan complete domestic economic reforms and resolved Japan's land contradictions. Plus, MacArthur used Japan as a material supply base for the United States in Korea, restoring the Japanese economy and making Japan the United States' most valuable ally.

As the US President, Eisenhower's political ability was naturally not poor. Moreover, Eisenhower had an eye for talent; he chose Nixon as Vice President and cultivated Nixon, a president of great accomplishment.

Without Eisenhower's help, with Nixon's unattractive appearance, eccentric personality, and difficulty cooperating with others, he could never have become US President. In terms of being disliked by ordinary people, one only needed to look at how the political novice Kennedy successfully defeated Nixon to become president to understand just how much Nixon was disliked by ordinary American voters.

The secretary watched He Rui thinking quietly and dared not step forward to disturb him. Suddenly hearing He Rui laugh out loud, the secretary immediately stood up. He saw He Rui wave his hand, "It's nothing."

He Rui had just thought of how he still couldn't help recalling the past at this time, and couldn't help but feel a sense of mockery towards himself. The world had changed. When Roosevelt had to choose to cooperate with Hitler, and would soon meet with Hitler and Mussolini at the Allied Heads of State meeting, continuing to be obsessed with the past was meaningless.

Moreover, He Rui thought that the photo of the "Big Three" meeting becoming the "Big Four" was truly laughable.