What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 333 Operation (7000 monthly votes in April)

"Minister, we've sunk another submarine off the coast of the Bahamas, this time a Type IX U-boat. The wreckage is already..."

"Enough! I don't want to hear about submarines anymore, Fxxk those sons of bitches submarines!"

Johnson clutched his head and crouched in pain on the chair.

He never expected the enemy to use such a despicable method.

The Imperial Navy proved to be still very powerful. After urgently recalling its warships to enter large-scale anti-submarine warfare mode, it was also prepared to deal with high-speed torpedoes and had already dodged several attacks.

and then?
This has resulted in huge expenses. Ship deployment requires consideration of maintenance time and manpower costs. In the past month, the Imperial Navy's expenditures have increased several times. It is entirely relying on huge investments of manpower and resources to stay afloat, which is simply unsustainable.

Furthermore, this has already affected normal deployments in other regions, and the situation is extremely dangerous.

Faced with the vast Atlantic Ocean, even the Imperial Fleet was but a drop in the ocean, barely able to keep watch over the near seas.

Even though the IAA and FIB fought desperately, the Second Fleet's submarines were able to sustain a mutually destructive conflict with the Empire, essentially sacrificing their own lives.

They helped smugglers and human traffickers at prices lower than transoceanic ship tickets, even though many inside agents couldn't resist the temptation to get involved, since submarine smuggling was an unsolvable and highly efficient method.

Even though they're all junk, there's no way anyone but the navy could find them!

If it were done by another country, the Empire would be furious and its carrier battle group would have to meekly back down.

But the Second Fleet couldn't even find the hiding place, so even if they were furious, they had to obediently search for the underwater little men.

The Empire is now sinking a submarine almost every day or two, yet the IAA is finding that there are more and more submarines.

Last time, an agent named Charles went to Libya to stake out a submarine. After discovering the submarine, he killed the captain and led his agents to storm in, hoping to find the navigation log or classified documents.

Who knew that the submarine would sink automatically without its hatches closed, taking everyone with it to the bottom of the sea.

The very next day, a second U-boat arrived in Libya, openly searching for daring, money-grubbing smugglers.

After discovering that many human traffickers were afraid of IAA retaliation and dared not cooperate, seaplanes began distributing leaflets in nearby cities and ports to directly attract individual customers and continue their business.

Furthermore, in several regions of Eurasia, they have also moved their operations to chaotic areas, completely outside of international jurisdiction, where their business is booming.

Even if the IAA has extensive connections, it cannot launch a global offensive.

They've even made a name for themselves in the wiring industry, and many people are looking forward to collaborating with them.

Seeing Johnson tormented to the point of near insanity, his subordinates quickly offered words of comfort:

"The federal government has passed a bill to mobilize the National Guard to join the fight against underwater smuggling. Law enforcement vessels in many states are being retrofitted with sonar, and large quantities of solar-powered floating sonar have been ordered. Soon, an anti-submarine network will be deployed throughout the entire East Coast."

Johnson: "When can we send our fleet to Antarctica? There must be a secret submarine factory there!"

"This... many supplies have not yet fully arrived. Even if we send out a fleet now, we cannot maintain search capabilities, and there are even more serious security issues. There will be many difficulties in deploying the Enterprise."

After that voyage, Captain Calvin of the Enterprise requested that the Enterprise would not be deployed unless it had a complete escort fleet.

He had two requests:
First, the fleet accompanying the Enterprise must have 24-hour alert capability, with at least 4 frigates and 2 or more nuclear submarines ready to search underwater at any time;

Secondly, it must have the capability to escape unscathed from a sudden encounter with four battleships, just like in the Battle of Antigua, so it must be accompanied by at least four to five Ticonderoga-class or Arleigh Burke-class battleships.

This is not cowardice, but a thorough and well-considered decision.

But at this critical juncture, how much effort would it take to deploy an aircraft carrier strike group of this size?

Or rather, although the loss of over 2000 sailors last time infuriated Congress, it wasn't given the highest priority because the Second Fleet consisted of only old and dilapidated ships. If it were leaked that those U-boats had already reached coastal waters, or that the Enterprise needed to be part of such a large fleet, Johnson would certainly be severely reprimanded for the incompetence of the world's leading navy.

Johnson suddenly turned his head and asked:

"Those submarines only smuggle goods and never attack civilian ships?"

The subordinate thought for a moment and said, "It seems that's true. Submarines can't distinguish between warships and civilian ships underwater, and they only attack us after we've been chased."

"But how could a bunch of rats, remnants of a great war, not have the heart to harm civilians?"

Just as the subordinate was about to think of an answer, he looked up and found that Johnson's bloodshot eyes were filled with an uncontrollable ferocity, as if he wanted to devour someone.

His heart skipped a beat before he realized:
This is not a question, it is an affirmative sentence.

Since they cannot expose the navy's inability to keep submarines out of the near seas, they have no choice but to...

The chill made his back go numb and lose all feeling. He couldn't help but swallow hard, realizing why the minister had told him this.

The fierce glint in Johnson's eyes remained undiminished as he calmly continued:

"The wreckage that was salvaged today doesn't need to be brought ashore yet; it will remain on the ship."

……

Santa Maria City.

"Congratulations! Now that you're on board, you're heading towards freedom! Haha!"

Suha shook his head as he looked at the chaotic crowd in front of him, including Annamese, locals from Luzon, as well as Koreans and people from China.

So many heroes have come here with dreams, all lured by a path to freedom.

Suha discovered that Luffy hadn't lied to him; the brokerage fee alone had made him a fortune, not only allowing him to escape a disaster but also providing him with a lucrative opportunity.

"Luffy, I never expected you to have those kinds of methods!"

Wang Hu waved his hand:
"Haven't you heard? The Second Fleet is at odds with the US, and they'll do it even if it means losing money, and the rotten people they send there are the better!"

"No matter what, anyone who brings us money is a good person!"

Looking at the grinning Suha, Wang Hu leaned closer and asked:
"Weren't you in charge of the Spratly Islands issue before? Now that oil has been discovered somewhere, why don't you go and get involved? Wouldn't you make even more money?"

"Oh, Gaijin is too powerful now. The higher-ups are planning to seek international help and ask the Helan people for assistance."

"What help can the Dutch offer?" Wang Hu asked, looking puzzled.

Suha didn't hide anything from him:
"They wanted to find someone in The Hague to pull strings behind the scenes and get legal approval to do it... like this..."

After listening to the explanation, Wang Hu suddenly understood. He not only praised the ingenuity of the operation, but also realized that the operator had been keeping quiet all along because he was preparing something big.

"Why don't you go back and continue such an important task? You'd definitely gain a great reputation."

Suha: "No, no, no, I need to keep a low profile right now. Let Gonzalez go; he'll probably be leaving soon."

González.

Wang Hu remembered the name.

(End of this chapter)