Chapter 145 Conditions

This was the first time that Charles was called to the headquarters by Gallieni during his vacation.

Charles was taking a nap at that time.

Several factories were on the right track under Deyoka's leadership. The only drawback was that the aircraft manufacturing factory was too far away from the town of Darvoise, and it was not very convenient for Deyoka to manage it.

Therefore, Charles had his own time to do his own things.

Just when Charles had just woken up and was in a daze, Laurent's voice came from outside the door: "Lieutenant, the general asked you to return to the headquarters immediately!"

...

On the way, Charles learned about the general situation of the war: more than a thousand casualties, 59 CA-1s and 15 "Saint-Chamon" were lost.

Most of the "Saint-Chamon" were not destroyed by the enemy but were stuck in the craters and could not move. The Germans did not even find them for quite a long time.

Even so, the French engineers still couldn't drag them back from the battlefield. These guys were too heavy, 27 tons with tracks, and several cars couldn't drag them stuck in the craters.

Then, after the rain was less, tragedy struck again. The Germans discovered these tanks and bombarded the area. Not only was the "Saint-Chamond" blown to pieces, but hundreds of engineers were killed and wounded and more than a dozen cars were taken.

Laurent sighed: "No one expected that the "Saint-Chamond" that had high hopes would perform so badly on the battlefield. Joffre also invited reporters from major newspapers and media to gather in La Foulkes. He planned to publicize it immediately after the victory. Now he has shot himself in the foot!"

But Charles disagreed.

Joffre is a heroic image established by capitalists in France with propaganda tools. He is a stabilizing force. The capitalists will not let him fall easily, especially during this war.

On the other hand, the right-wing supported CA-1 and the left-wing Schneider's "Saint-Chamond" went to the battle. They all had propaganda tools in their hands, and some newspapers and media that were not under their control could be dealt with with money and transactions.

Then, the final result of this matter is likely to be a diversion of focus or a cold treatment. After a long time, people will ignore it, and it will not affect Joffre.

Sure enough, when Charles got off the car, he heard someone whispering:

"I heard that it was a design flaw in the tank that caused the military to suffer heavy losses!"

"Yes, it has little to do with the soldiers in combat, they fought bravely!"

"This is because the designers don't understand the battlefield situation, they are out of touch with reality!"

...

This is the magic of mastering the right to speak. The capitalists will cleverly shift people's attention to the military, soldiers and designers, and let people choose one of them to be responsible.

But they actually have nothing to do with this matter. The people who really need to be responsible have already taken a large sum of money from the military and continue to hide behind the scenes.

Gallieni saw Charles coming up and walked directly into the lounge. He sat on the chair with a livid face and said helplessly: "What you are worried about has really happened, Lieutenant, our tanks didn't even see the enemy, and they were completely in a passive state of being beaten!"

This was within Charles's expectations. The tank soldiers only had a very small observation hole for their external vision. When the battle started, it was heavy rain or even rainstorms, so it was impossible to see the enemy clearly.

"Is your tank okay?" Gallieni asked.

Charles' attitude was ambiguous: "It should work, I'm not sure, General!"

Charles was not in a hurry. If the military wanted to make a breakthrough in the defense line, they would have to consider tanks. Now Charles was the only one with tanks, and the military had no choice but to buy them.

Therefore, Charles did not need to make any promises to the military. He put on an attitude of "take it or not, forget it" and looked indifferent!

Galieni seemed to see through Charles's thoughts. He smiled slightly, tapped his fingers on the table, and his tone became stern: "Lieutenant, I need you to give me a detailed evaluation report on the tanks produced by the Charles Tractor Factory. Give it to me within half an hour. Can you do it?"

Charles was stunned. Another trick?

Then Gallieni added: "You are not trying to tell me that you don't know about this tank?"

"No, General, I know about this tank!" Charles could only answer.

"Very good!" Gallieni nodded with satisfaction: "So, are you going to tell me in the evaluation report, or give me the answer directly now?"

Charles stepped forward and said: "Report to the general, Charles' tanks can break through the enemy's defense line, but there are conditions!"

"What conditions?" Gallieni asked with interest.

Charles replied: "I need Colonel Brownie and his troops from the Fifth Army!"

Galieni nodded in agreement.

Colonel Brownie was the first commander to cooperate with Charles. This was known to the world in the Battle of the Marne River. They called Charles the "inventor" and Brownie the "commander."

Charles asked Colonel Brownie's troops to cooperate with him, which was reasonable.

"What else?" Gallieni asked.

"Maybe the First Flying Squadron is needed!" Charles said again.

Galieni nodded and agreed immediately without thinking too much. This was originally a force commanded by Charles, so it was not a big request.

Then Charles lowered his voice, with a slightly hesitant tone: "I need another artillery colonel, his name is Estiny!"

Galieni was stunned: "Estiny? Who is it?"

Charles' voice was even lower: "The developer of CA-1..."

"No, that's impossible!" Gallieni looked at Charles in confusion: "If he developed CA-1, it must be someone from the right wing!"

The right wing had conflicts and contradictions with Charles, and Gallieni certainly knew who tricked Charles to Antwerp.

And now Charles actually wants to join forces with the right wing?

"No, General!" Charles explained: "It's just Colonel Estenny, I have no idea of ​​joining forces with the right wing. Colonel Estenny designed the CA-1 for the right wing for some reason, and he came to me!" "

When Charles said this, Gallieni remembered: "Is that the guy who was beaten up by Laurent a few days ago?"

Laurent reported this to Gallieni, but Gallieni did not take it to heart.

"Yes!" Charles nodded: "I need him to train the tank troops!"

Brownie is more suitable as a frontline commander on the battlefield. He only needs to "know what is going on" and then command operations according to a set of systematic rules.

As for Colonel Estini, he must "know why", because only by knowing and fully understanding the military theory of coordinated operations mentioned by Charles can he train troops as a qualified instructor.

Gallieni replied expressionlessly: "I reserve my opinion on this item. I will investigate it thoroughly and then get back to you!"

Gallieni shook his head slightly as he spoke, as if to say, this little guy is too trustworthy. If this Colonel Estini is sent by the right wing, you will lose everything!

Then Gallieni said "hum" again. If Estini is really a spy, then he will regret it!