Jericho agreed to strengthen the Betty fleet and was willing to split a fleet to support Betty's actions. In the end, the lonely Queen Elizabeth-class battleship Warrior and the newly-served Queen Mary battlecruiser were handed over to Betty, and the Australian temporarily replaced the Indomitable, because the former was faster. In this way, the Betty fleet temporarily had 7 fast battleships, namely the Warrior, the Lion, the Tiger, the Grand Princess, Queen Mary, Australia and New Zealand.

In addition to these fleets, Jericho also temporarily allocated the first battleship squadron to Betty. The first battleship squadron was commanded by Lieutenant General Geram, and was under his command of four George V-class battleships equipped with 10 343mm artillery. (That's right, the same name as George V in the history of Battle 2.) These four battleships were George V, Aes, Centurion and Elling. At the same time, the third light cruiser team was transferred to the First Battleship squadron. This light cruiser team was commanded by Major General Napier and was under four light cruisers.

"In this case, the Betty fleet has a total of 7 fast battleships and 2 light cruisers, a total of 8 light cruisers. In addition, the first battleship squadron and the third light cruiser team responsible for support, a total of 11 main battleships and 12 light cruisers. Such a lineup can protect itself even when facing the main force of the high seas fleet." Sir Fisher said.

"Actually, I have always doubted whether the German fleet would choose to escape the battlefield if it encountered such a powerful Betty fleet? If we were not on the way back, it would probably only be a defeat rather than annihilation." Churchill said.

"It is naturally the best if we can stop the opponent, which is what we hope to see. If it is a normal encounter, the four super-Dreadnought Battlecruisers will be faster. They will first entangle the opponent, while the two Deathless Battle Cruisers and the Warriors will slow down. They may fall behind. So we may not have a big advantage at the beginning, and the Germans may not choose to evacuate. Even if we evacuate, we have a complete three light cruiser formations, and there is a chance to hinder the opponent's evacuation through lightning strikes and interference." Fisher said.

"This plan can be tried. Anyway, we will not lose much if it fails." Churchill was not very satisfied with Fisher's answer, but thought that this was indeed an attempt to take the initiative. Without finding the reason for failure, Churchill believed that the "subjective initiative" of front-line fleet personnel should not be limited. Especially now, the situation in the Indian Ocean is unclear.

"I hope that when General Betty launches an attack, your great fleet can provide support." Although Jericho has promised to temporarily place the First Battleship Squadron under Betty's command, Churchill still feels a little uneasy. Although he doesn't know where his worries come from, he still hopes that the British Empire Navy can act together.

"This depends on the situation. Recently, the large fleet has to conduct five suppression patrols every two weeks. Sometimes we return near the edge of the German minefield. The fleet is under great pressure and some fuel is not available. The fleet can come out, but it may be difficult to provide high speed support unless the Admiralty can provide me with 20,000 tons of fuel and Welsh anthracite." Jericho said helplessly.

"Let's wait next month." Churchill said embarrassedly. In fact, the current submarine warfare has put a lot of pressure on the British, especially after the German Navy turned the waters around Britain into war zones and announced that all merchant ships heading to Britain could take attacks, the losses of the British transport fleet rose sharply, and a considerable number of neutral merchant ships were unwilling to go to Britain again due to security issues. This has caused certain difficulties in the supply of British materials, although it has not yet been required to speed up to 18 knots like in the late period of World War 1. However, the overall speed of the fleet is still limited to a lower level due to fuel issues.

Of course, you can't throw all the pot over German submarines. It's a problem that the large fleet is too edible. Although the North Sea is not big, it can't stand it five times in two weeks. The Jericho Fleet has two battleships, as well as a large number of light patrols. If you want to count the destroyers, the number of various auxiliary battleships is directly above the three-digit number. Such a fleet runs through the North Sea three times a week... It's only twice a week in history. You should know that if a super fearless ship is full of coal and fuel, it's normal to reach 4,000 tons. Just run like this all day, and Jericho's additional 20,000 tons of coal and fuel is not necessarily enough.

"Try to solve the difficulties as much as possible. The large fleet can be dispatched in advance. After all, we can already estimate the time for our opponents." Churchill said.

"If there is no problem, then let's decide this first. Commander Jericho, you and General Betty will complete the fleet handover work as soon as possible. Leave the task of intercepting the Shippel fleet to General Betty for planning. As for Thomas? This time he is lucky. Let him continue to stay in the Indian Ocean and command the war-wearing and Malaya to deal with the Suxiong fleet." Fisher said and looked at Churchill, hoping to ask for his opinion.

"I fully agree with this plan. If there is no problem, everyone will move first! Maybe on the other side of the North Sea, our enemies are ready to attack again." Churchill said.

Churchill was right this time. Just when the British Navy was adjusting its deployment and preparing to do a big battle, the German high seas fleet, far away from the other end of the North Sea, had already made the final preparations before the attack. Although before this, Hippel often went out to wander around, this time, whether in terms of scale or strategic sense, Hippel's actions were simply incomparable to the upcoming battle.

Just the day before the British meeting, Ruprecht had arrived at the Port of Kiel, and here he met almost all the senior leaders of the German Navy, Navy Secretary Tirpitz, Commander of the High Seas Fleet General Von Boer, Commander of the First Battleship Detachment, and Commander of the Battlecruiser Lieutenant General Hippel.

"From the current situation, everything is going according to our plan. General Su Xiong's performance seems to be better than expected. Not only did he temporarily avoid the encirclement of the British fleet, but he also sent two Queen Elizabeth-class battleships into the dock. If nothing unexpected happens, Thomas' fleet can be eliminated from the combat sequence. They will not appear in the battlefield in the North Sea in a short time. Even if they return to Britain, they will probably have advanced docks and turrets or something." Ruprecht said with satisfaction.
Chapter completed!