Chapter 508: Battle between Land and Sea

The reason why the "Secretary of the Navy" was here was because of the promise he made before: "If the Battle of the Dardanelles fails, I will go to the battlefield as a soldier with a rifle."

He did carry a rifle as a soldier, but he did not go to the battlefield: he became the commander of the Royal Scottish Fusiliers Battalion, which was mainly responsible for security and alert work in the port.

(The above picture shows the "Secretary of the Navy" as the commander of the Scottish Battalion)

As a mature politician, the "Secretary of the Navy" behaved politely in front of Charles.

The "Secretary of the Navy" first saluted Charles as a subordinate, then looked at Charles with admiration, and said in English: "I have heard of your name for a long time, General, it is my honor to meet you."

General Winter, as an interpreter, repeated the words of the "Secretary of the Navy" in French.

Charles did not hide his inner disgust for the "Secretary of the Navy": "If the purpose of your coming here is the "Camel" fighter, you can rest assured that it will be delivered soon."

A few months ago, Britain exchanged 5 artillery production lines for the "Camel" fighter. Now that the artillery has successfully entered mass production, Britain will soon get the "Camel" fighter as it wishes.

Charles' words are almost like an order to expel guests, meaning that if there is nothing else, you can leave.

But the "Secretary of the Navy" shook his head: "No, General. Although the "Camel" fighter is very attractive, I am here for other things, some more important things."

Charles had no choice but to take them to the reception room on the first floor and told the orderly to prepare coffee.

Charles deliberately left the "Secretary of the Navy" aside and asked General Winter: "So, you finally ended the war in the Dardanelles?"

"Yes." General Winter glanced at the "Secretary of the Navy".

The Battle of the Dardanelles was a major failure of the "Secretary of the Navy" and the reason why the "Secretary of the Navy" became a captain here was because of this. Charles' question was undoubtedly exposing the scars of the "Secretary of the Navy".

General Winter secretly winked at Charles, with a pleading look in his eyes, even for a friend, please be merciful!

Charles pretended not to see it and said to himself:

"Smart move, Lieutenant General. Continuing will not achieve anything, but will only increase casualties."

"You British are very generous to the Allies, pushing the Ottoman Empire into their arms."

"So many lives and manpower and material resources were wasted in the Dardanelles."

"All of this could have been avoided!"

Then Charles said "Oh": "I almost forgot that it was not the British native army that died there, but the colonial army. You won't care, right?"

General Winter looked embarrassed, and he looked at the "Secretary of the Navy" helplessly with an apologetic look in his eyes.

If it were in the past, the "Secretary of the Navy" would have been furious, or used his eloquence to argue with Charles.

But now, he listened to Charles's sarcasm with interest, stirring the coffee on the tea table slowly while listening, and said after taking a sip: "It would be great if it could be replaced with brandy, but of course you don't have this."

"You guessed it, Captain." Charles replied: "My troops are not allowed to drink during missions, which seems to be different from the habits of the British Royal Navy."

General Winter rolled his eyes, he felt that he should not bring the "Secretary of the Navy" at all.

Perhaps sensing General Winter's nervousness, the "Minister of the Navy" comforted him: "It's nothing, Winter, I see a child who doesn't understand politics and doesn't know how to hide himself, I won't bother with him."

Charles laughed instead of getting angry:

"I almost forgot that the captain is a veteran who has been in politics for decades, and you are very good at hiding your heart."

"So, does this mean that you are furious under your calm surface at this moment?"

"Is this the main reason you want to drink?"

"If you admit it, I might be able to make an exception and have someone send some..."

General Winter couldn't help but stop him: "We are allies, Major General, you can't be prejudiced against the "Minister of the Navy" just because he made a mistake. No one wants this to happen."

Charles smiled and shook his head. He was indeed prejudiced against the "Minister of the Navy".

But it was definitely not because of the Battle of the Dardanelles, but because of countless operations in history.

"Please put it this way!" Charles put the coffee in his hand on the table, stared at the "Minister of the Navy" and said coldly: "Politicians often say that countries only talk about interests. If you and I have different interests, we are destined to be opponents. This means that any false courtesy will be useless, right?"

The "Minister of the Navy" nodded: "You can say that."

"Then." Charles spread his hands: "Why don't we openly say what your purpose is today? Or is there anything that needs to be exchanged?"

Charles thought of directional mines and mines.

But it doesn't seem like it. This is army equipment, and the navy doesn't need it at all.

The "Minister of the Navy" met Charles's eyes: "The point is that we have common interests, General. So, I came here to discuss cooperation this time."

Charles was stunned, and then laughed: "I'm sorry, I don't think there are any common interests between us, Captain. So there will be no cooperation."

The "Minister of the Navy" leaned back on the sofa leisurely, habitually touched the cigar in his arms, but put it back before he took it out.

Charles didn't have the habit of smoking cigars, he would definitely refuse.

The "Secretary of the Navy" raised his eyebrows and said, "If it was before, your idea was right, but it is different now. I guess you have already felt the pressure from the British Army, am I right?"

Charles was stunned.

He has always simply thought of the British as "British", but he did not expect that they could be divided into the British Navy and the Army.

Come to think of it, the French people can be divided into the civilian class who supports Charles and the powerful class who oppose Charles. Of course, Britain also has different forces.

The "Secretary of the Navy" said slowly:

"Britain has always been based on the navy, General. It became the 'Empire on which the Sun Never Sets' because of the navy. The navy is the cornerstone of its security and strength."

"But now, this cornerstone has been shaken."

"The reason is not unrelated to the failure of the Battle of the Dardanelles. I think you can understand."

Charles nodded slightly.

The British Royal Navy tried its best but failed to defeat the Ottoman Empire, which it had originally disdained, while the Western Front was caught in a fierce battle with the army: Britain, France, Germany, Russia and other major powers were all digging trenches to fight the army. Although the stalemate was still there, it proved the importance of the army.

This can easily lead to a misunderstanding: the navy is useless, and the army may play a decisive role in the future!