I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France
Chapter 145: Did You Do This Intentionally?

Chapter 145: Chapter 145: Did You Do This Intentionally?

The rain was falling quietly, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, occasionally pausing for a while, but soon it would start drizzling again, seemingly endless.

The two-week deadline was getting closer, and the railway had already been repaired ahead of schedule and officially opened for traffic.

To keep the Germans from knowing when the tanks were being transported from the Shire Tractor Factory, the train entered the Shire Tractor Factory regularly every night at five o’clock and left the factory to return to Paris at five o’clock the next morning.

They were not all empty cars. Gali publicly announced that the army had signed a long-term tractor and motorcycle purchase agreement with the Shire Tractor Factory, and the railroad was built to facilitate the timely delivery of these to the battlefield.

At least part of this was true. The Shire Tractor Factory had completely monopolized the army’s demand for tractors.

Although Francis had a factory and production line capable of producing 500 tractors a month, he did not dare to re-enter the market to compete with Shire.

However, the real purpose of the train transportation was to prepare for the battle of Lafox.

In the future, one day, Shire would be transporting not tractors and motorcycles, but tanks and troops, and no one would notice. As a result, the Germans would be unable to determine Shire’s attack timing.

This week and more, Shire had relative freedom. He was responsible for training the troops in preparation for the Lafox attack, so he did not need to report to headquarters.

On this day, while Shire and Estiny were further discussing the coordination between the sidecar and the tank, Laurent stepped forward to report, "Lieutenant, the General wants you to go to headquarters!"

Shire was somewhat surprised. Gali had already completely entrusted the training to Shire without asking, so why did he suddenly want him to rush to headquarters now?

With a sense of doubt, Shire instructed Estiny, then got into the car with Laurent.

On the way to headquarters, Shire suddenly guessed the reason Gali was looking for him, and a faint smile appeared on his lips as he inwardly commented that he was going to get scolded again.

...

Sure enough, when Shire walked into the headquarters, Gali took him directly into the lounge.

Gali picked up a newspaper from the table, turned around, and handed it to Shire, his voice low, "Don’t you want to explain this?"

When Shire took the newspaper and looked at it, he saw the headline on the front page:

"Shire Believes That Speed and Mobility Are One of the Important Indicators of a Tank. Only in This Way Can It Avoid Enemy Fire"

Gali stared at Shire, his eyes burning with anger, and asked, "Did you say this?"

"Sorry, General..." Shire replied, "I misspoke!"

This happened last evening. Shire had left work early without waiting for the troops to finish training. The training was in the hands of Estiny and Brownie, so he had no worries.

Just as he stepped out of the door, reporters swarmed around, shouting one after another:

"Lieutenant, General Joffre launched a third attack yesterday and was still frustrated. What are your thoughts on this?"

"As the inventor of the tank, do you think such an attack is necessary?"

"Do you think their tactics need to be improved?"

...

Shire usually wouldn’t answer any questions. Matters of confidentiality, even a single word, could give the enemy a clue.

Colonel Laurent cooperatively came over with the guards to block the reporters and clear the way for Dejoka’s car.

Before the car started, a reporter approached loudly and asked, "Lieutenant, many people think that your tanks are vulnerable. Is this true? By not participating in the bidding and delaying bringing the tanks to the battlefield, are you implicitly acknowledging this?"

Shire couldn’t help himself. He turned his head and replied, "Which tank is vulnerable, hasn’t it already been proven on the battlefield?"

"But they think there’s no difference with your tank!" The reporter, finding the provocation effective, continued to lure Shire into speaking, "Many people think your tanks are even more vulnerable because, obviously, your tanks have only machine guns and fewer of them!"

With a look of disdain, Shire replied, "Cannon and machine guns aren’t important. This is their biggest mistake. Tanks need speed and the ability to cross trenches. They must first be able to approach the trenches and get in front of the enemy so that the weapons can take effect. Otherwise, they’re destined to be ’vulnerable’!"

The reporters were in an uproar. Many of them had long been writing military articles and knew that according to Shire’s theory, the CA-1 tank and "Saint Chammon" tank had undoubtedly taken the wrong direction.

Upon further reflection, they found the words made sense: if the tank couldn’t even get in front of the enemy, what use were the cannons and machine guns? They were just decorations.

Instantly, the reporters, like seizing a topic, raised their cameras and took a flurry of photos of Shire, then crowded in to ask:

"So, do you think General Joffre’s attacks should not continue?"

"Does your tank have the capability to defeat the enemy?"

"Do you have confidence in your tank? If you were to command this battle..."

Shire seemed to realize he had misspoken, regretting it deeply, he urged Dejoka to drive and fled the scene.

Gali couldn’t contain his anger. Pointing at the newspaper report, he said with undisguised sarcasm:

"Now, your correct development strategy has been exposed to everyone, Lieutenant!"

"Congratulations, many people believe you are right. You have once again become the hero of France, the only correct one!"

"The military and civilians now think that you should be the one to lead this battle. They say all others are fools who do not understand tanks!"

"But..."

Gali’s face darkened: "Have you considered that the Germans will also know what you said?"

"Yes, of course!" Shire smiled and replied calmly.

"But you..." Gali was taken aback, sensing something amiss. After pondering for a moment, he suddenly smiled: "Did you do this on purpose?"

Shire nodded slightly: "Yes, General. There are too many spies in my factory. I cannot clear them out in a short time, so I could only use this method!"

Gali’s expression became a bit strange. After a moment of silence, he nodded and sighed, "You tricked me, little guy! But... I’ll forgive you!"

Shire was stunned. Now, shouldn’t I be considering whether to forgive you?

Then, catching Shire completely off guard, Gali suddenly roared angrily:

"You actually let such important information be known to everyone, including our enemies!"

"This is basically espionage!"

"Do you understand what this means?"

"We will pay a heavy price for this, not just in tanks, but in the lives of French soldiers!"

...