Chapter Thirty-Three: Effortless Brushstrokes

  Under the vast expanse of emerald waves, the "Swordfish" was like a whale that had just surfaced to catch its breath, and then dove back into the dark depths. Only when the depth gauge read "240" did Huajianfeng pat the helmsman's shoulder, keeping the submarine at this depth.

  "Just received news, the mixed fleet has set off from Zhanjiang Port and is heading south." Huajian Feng looked at the officers gathered in the command center, "Three hours ago, the Indian fleet that had been active in Kempade Bay turned south, two aircraft carrier battle groups, not one aircraft carrier battle group."

  The commands received by Le Jia Cheng and relevant intelligence are displayed on the large screen of the fire control computer.

  The officers looked both surprised and excited, with a hint of concern.

  To everyone's surprise, the two aircraft carrier battle groups of the Indian Navy went south together. This can only mean that India would rather give up the action to blockade Pakistani ports and destroy the Pakistani Navy, and concentrate all its efforts on intercepting the Chinese Navy's special mixed fleet, even at the risk of a decisive battle with the special mixed fleet.

  What thrilled everyone was that they would have the precious opportunity to ambush two aircraft carriers.

  What worries many is that the anti-submarine warfare capability of two aircraft carrier battle groups is more than twice that of one aircraft carrier battle group. In addition to doubling the anti-submarine forces within the battle group itself, India will also dispatch shore-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft to escort the battle group and even dispatch submarines to perform anti-submarine missions.

  Ambushing an aircraft carrier and ambushing a nuclear submarine are two different things.

  The movements of nuclear submarines are top-secret naval intelligence. When performing combat readiness patrols, the navy only arranges a general patrol area and entry and exit routes, without planning a detailed patrol route for the nuclear submarine. Except for entering and leaving ports and extremely special situations, nuclear submarines stay underwater throughout the mission period, even rarely using periscopes. Before the birth of the "Swordfish", the only ones that could ambush nuclear submarines were other nuclear submarines. The battles of nuclear submarines occur underwater, blocked by seawater, and are often unknown to people. Even if a battle occurs between nuclear submarines, as long as the countries involved do not want the situation to escalate, they will take an attitude of "hushing up" and downplaying it. During the Cold War, the US Navy's "Long-tailed Shark" was tracking a Soviet strategic nuclear submarine when it was discovered by the other side and sunk. After the incident, the Soviet Union remained silent, while the United States covered up the shocking conflict that almost triggered World War III as an "accident".

  Aircraft carriers are surface warships, and in the era of reconnaissance satellites filling the sky, their movements hold no secrets. If an aircraft carrier were to be sunk, the situation would definitely not subside, nor could it be explained as an "accident". So far, there has not been a single case of an aircraft carrier sinking due to an "accident" in the world. Moreover, aircraft carriers will not act alone; from the day they are born, they are surrounded by a large group of "bodyguards", operating in a clustered manner. It is easy to take down one aircraft carrier, but taking down an entire aircraft carrier battle group is absolutely not something that can be done by a single "Swordfish".

  At the end of the day, military officers led by Hua Jianfeng had to consider two issues.

  One is whether sinking an Indian aircraft carrier would lead to India declaring war on the Republic and drawing it into war. Two is whether the "Swordfish" can retreat unscathed after sinking an Indian aircraft carrier.

  During the transit, "Swordfish" rose to periscope depth every four hours and extended its satellite communication antenna above the surface of the water in hopes of receiving more accurate orders and more detailed intelligence.

  On the way, Hua Jianfeng was also thinking about the first question.

  According to the pre-arranged task of the General Staff, after completing the "strategic mission" of ambushing the "Destroyer", the "Swordfish" turned to free hunting, focusing on attacking the combat ships of the Indian Navy. Without receiving new orders, it means that the General Staff has not adjusted the previous deployment. The newly received intelligence also does not explicitly mention whether to ambush the Indian aircraft carrier battle group, indicating that Huajianfeng can make decisions according to the actual situation as the captain of the boat.

  Although it's a bit far-fetched, in Hua Jianfeng's view, the first question no longer exists.

  What needs to be emphasized is the second issue, namely the tactics of ambushing an Indian aircraft carrier battle group.

  "We at least don't have to worry about being ambushed by Indian submarines." Le Jia Cheng broke the silence. As usual, he would engage in a verbal sparring match with Hua Jianfeng before making a decision, and after making the decision, he would unconditionally support Hua Jianfeng. "The speed of the Indian aircraft carrier battle group exceeded twenty knots, and the conventional submarines of the Indian Navy could not keep up with the pace of the aircraft carrier battle group. Moreover, the Indian aircraft carrier battle group turned south only after we made the decision to dispatch a special mixed fleet, so it is impossible for the Indian submarines deployed in the Arabian Sea to move south in advance. The Indian submarines deployed in the Bay of Bengal can arrive in the waters west of Sri Lanka at the earliest forty-eight hours later. As long as we take action within two days, we don't have to consider the threat of Indian submarines at all."

  "The threat of anti-submarine vessels and helicopters cannot be ignored." The captain's question was very sharp.

  "We should have confidence in the 'Swordfish'. First, let's decide on the ambush area, the Strait of Malacca or the southwestern waters of Sri Lanka?"

  There is no doubt that this is an extremely critical issue.

  Because the hydrological situation in the sea area between Lakshadweep and mainland India is very complicated, it is the ideal ambush site for those submarine captains who believe that there are 77 virgins waiting for them in heaven. Therefore, the Indian aircraft carrier battle group may go south from the west of Lakshadweep, then head east through the Eight Degree Channel between Minicoy Island and Ihavandiffulu Atoll, and finally enter the Bay of Bengal around Sri Lanka. The Palk Strait is too narrow and shallow, and it is difficult for the large-displacement "Vikramaditya" aircraft carrier to pass through, so the Indian aircraft carrier battle group will not go through the Palk Strait.

  "It's best to make our move at the eastern end of the Strait of Eight Degrees." Le Jia Cheng pulled up a nautical chart from the fire control computer. "When entering and exiting the Strait of Eight Degrees, the aircraft carrier battle group will have to change direction twice. We don't need to pursue the aircraft carrier battle group, we just need to occupy the most advantageous attack position in advance."

  "What about withdrawal after the attack?" The armorer raised a key issue.

  "If the attack catches them off guard, the Indian aircraft carrier battle group will be in disarray, giving us an opportunity to retreat." Huajianfeng paused for a moment and continued, "Try to retreat southwards. As long as we can enter deep waters, we can escape. If retreating southwards is difficult, we'll do the opposite and head into shallow waters, intentionally grounding ourselves on the continental shelf; the Indian Navy won't know our identity and might even think we're a regular Pakistani submarine. The search will last at most two days; after two days, when India relaxes its vigilance, that's when we'll leave the shallow waters."

  "We can also retreat into the Arabian Sea." Le Jia Cheng supplemented Hua Jianfeng's tactics. "This will make India believe that we are a conventional submarine of Pakistan."

  "This is the only way out." Hua Jianfeng did not deny Le Jia Cheng's tactics. "Is there anything else? If not, we'll head to the Strait of Malacca and wait for the Indian aircraft carrier battle group to deliver itself to our doorstep."

  After letting Le Jiaceng take over re-planning the route, Hua Jianfeng left the command center and returned to the captain's quarters.

  Before long, Lao Jia came to "visit" him.

  "There's one thing, you didn't mention it, and neither did anyone else." Le Jia Cheng pulled the chair to the bedside and sat down beside Hua Jianfeng. "But I can tell that everyone was thinking about it, they just didn't bring it up."

  "American submarine?" Hua Jianfeng said as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and handed one to Le Jiacheng.

  Taking the cigarette, Le Jia Cheng did not light it immediately. "Before the outbreak of war, all four US submarines deployed in Diego Garcia set sail. We only know that two of them helped the Indian Navy search for Pakistan's three 'Agosta 90B' in the Arabian Sea, and there is no news about the other two."

  "One of them is the New Hampshire." Huajianfeng turned over on his bed, "I've thought about this problem a long time ago, and I knew that after we ambushed the J-11, the New Hampshire would very likely enter the Bay of Bengal to search for our traces."

  Le Jia was shocked, he had never expected Hua Jianfeng to have such concerns.

  "New Hampshire" is the fifth "Virginia"-class attack submarine, with the hull number SSN-778. It was commissioned seven years ago and deployed to Diego Garcia three years ago, becoming the most advanced attack nuclear submarine of the US Navy in the Indian Ocean. As a replacement for the "Los Angeles"-class, the "Virginia"-class is not only the first batch-produced attack nuclear submarine after the US gave up on continuing the construction of the "Seawolf"-class but also the most advanced attack nuclear submarine in the US Navy and even in navies around the world.

  "According to my speculation, the New Hampshire and another submarine were operating separately at the western end of the Malacca Strait and south of the Sunda Strait, searching for and monitoring our attack nuclear submarines sent to the Indian Ocean." Hua Jianfeng flicked off the ash and took another puff. "After the demise of the 'Destroyer', the US Navy will definitely take emergency measures. If the captain of the New Hampshire is slightly clever, he would think that we not only won't leave the Indian Ocean but also head to the western waters of Sri Lanka to look for opportunities, and even enter the Arabian Sea to attack the Indian aircraft carrier battle group. Now that the Indian aircraft carrier battle group is heading south, it's very likely that the New Hampshire will go to the Eight Degree Channel like us to wait for an opportunity."

  "Since it has already been considered, why take the risk?"

  "Adventure?" Hua Jianfeng smiled faintly and said, "We've already encountered the 'Virginia' in the Chongwu Islands, not only were we not discovered, but we even collected the 'Virginia's characteristic noise, filling in the blanks. Even if we encounter it again, we won't be at a disadvantage."

  Le Jia Cheng's eyebrows twitched slightly, what he lacked most was Hua Jianfeng's richest confidence.

  "The US submarine coming in to lend a hand will only make the situation more chaotic, and we'll just be muddying the waters." Hua Jianfeng extinguished his cigarette butt and yawned. "Don't worry, I've already thought it through. Once we're done with this job, we'll go back and enjoy the sunshine, beaches, and beautiful women. As for everything else, to hell with it."

  Le Jia hesitated for a moment, then stood up and prepared to leave.

  "Call me in four hours." Hua Jianfeng pulled up the quilt, "You are the deputy captain, and you will become the captain in the future. Don't be so startled by a little wind and grass, it's not good for the officers and soldiers below to see."

  For Hua Jianfeng's "advice", Yue Jia Cheng could only bitterly smile in response.

  He is not Hua Jianfeng, and he also knows that he will never become a captain like Hua Jianfeng.