I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France

Shire was first taken aback when he received the telegram, and then he realized that Kristen was asking for his help.

Shire could fully understand Kristen's predicament at this moment. The capitalist (Schneider) and the politician (Xia Fei) wanted Kristen to lead the "Saint Chammon" tanks in a splendid battle to bring them benefits.

But the "Saint Chammon" tanks were ineffective, especially the "Saint Chammon M21," which was utterly useless and infamous for being a drag.

Thus, a conflict arose. Kristen and his first Specialized Artillery Division were caught between the German Army and Xia Fei, making it hard for them to maneuver. It seemed that only their complete annihilation could prove Xia Fei wrong.

But at that time, what would proving Xia Fei wrong matter?

...

If it was before, Shire would have unhesitatingly stepped in to rescue them. After all, it was a division, twenty thousand lives.

But now he hesitated, having grown accustomed to thinking and weighing from the perspective of interest.

From the viewpoint of reputation and equipment, he shouldn't rescue them. The more disastrously the first Specialized Artillery Division lost, the more it highlighted Shire's commanding ability and the advantages of his equipment, making the "Shire A1" sell better and dealing a bigger blow to Schneider and Xia Fei.

But considering the influence of the military, he should rescue them.

Kristen was a battle hero, and the officers and soldiers of the first Specialized Artillery Division were elite forces in the army. They had considerable influence within the military. If Shire could set aside his feud with Xia Fei to rescue them, he would undoubtedly be welcomed and supported by the grassroots soldiers.

After pondering for a while, Shire deemed the latter more important.

Although the military in France was suppressed by politics and capital, it was still wielding the gun, and in critical moments, they could often save your life.

Shire hesitated no more and sent a telegram back to Kristen, consisting of just two words: "Night battle."

When Kristen received the telegram, he was taken aback: "Night battle? What kind of strategy is this?"

The Germans' tanks lacked night combat capability, and so did our tanks. Shire can't be unaware of this, could he?

A feeling of disappointment surged within him, along with a sense of humiliation and desolation, feeling mocked before his death.

But upon closer thought, a trace of joy appeared on Kristen's face, and his furrowed brows gradually relaxed.

If neither side's tanks had night combat capabilities, there was no difference between advanced or backward, having a rotating turret or firepower meant nothing, as neither could move or fire.

(Note: Tanks had poor perception abilities, and in darkness, they couldn't distinguish friend from foe or navigate, making combat nearly impossible. Tanks didn't acquire night combat capabilities until equipped with night vision devices in the modern era. Before that, only tracer rounds could be used to indicate targets in night battles for limited efficacy.)

Seeing the darkening sky, Kristen made up his mind.

He first ordered everyone to rest, then sought out Lieutenant Colonel Gaston, commander of the 2nd Artillery Regiment, who was Kristen's old subordinate and friend.

However, due to dissatisfaction with the "Saint Chammon M21" tanks, Gaston often had conflicts with Kristen.

Gaston would frequently complain to Kristen: "I don't think it qualifies as a tank. Besides having tracks and a machine gun, what else does it have? A tank should be like the 'Shire A1'!"

At such times, Kristen could only respond helplessly: "I know, Gaston. But they only gave us this. Unless you can build one yourself, there's no other choice!"

When Kristen found Gaston, the latter was organizing maintenance for the "Saint Chammon M21."

Seeing Kristen approach, Gaston didn't show a friendly face. While wiping oil off his hands with a rag, he gestured towards the parked "M21" on the street: "Look, they're slow and have a ton of problems. I even want to remove those four wheels."

"If you want to, then do it," Kristen replied calmly.

Gaston sensed something odd in Kristen's tone and turned to look at him: "What's happened?"

Kristen lightly shook his head: "We are going to attack."

Gaston was stunned and asked expressionlessly: "When?"

This was almost a death sentence.

Kristen looked up at the sky and answered: "As the sky darkens, roughly in an hour!"

Gaston gritted his teeth and said in a low voice: "This is murder, General. Tanks can't fight at night!"

"I know," Kristen replied as he glanced around: "But this is not an order from the top commander—it is from Shire. This might be our only chance to survive."

Although Kristen spoke softly, Gaston still heard him clearly.

Upon hearing "it's an order from Shire," Gaston felt as if he was pricked by a needle. He trembled all over and turned to Kristen in shock.

"You're mad, General!" Gaston said, "I admit Shire is a military genius, but he's our rival. It's in his interest if we get annihilated! He will get us all killed!"

"He isn't that kind of person, Gaston," Kristen calmly replied, "Think about it. Our tanks can't fight at night, but do you think the enemy's can?"

Gaston was stunned on the spot.

Kristen continued: "Moreover, the Germans know we are a tank unit, so they won't expect us to engage in night combat. This might be our only way to survive."

"True, but..." Gaston was still pondering the night combat issue.

"Open the top hatch," Kristen interrupted him.

"What?" Gaston stared at Kristen: "But that means the enemy can toss grenades into the compartment."

Kristen quietly looked at Gaston without speaking.

Gaston understood Kristen's idea. Between two evils, choose the lesser. To gain night combat capability, they must take the risk.

(The above image shows the "Saint Chammon M21" with its top hatch open, usually done during road mobility to enhance external perception and match higher mobility speeds. If the top hatch is opened in the tracked state, the enemy can easily toss grenades inside.)

Finally, Kristen asked: "I choose to trust Shire, do you?"

After considering for a while, Gaston silently nodded.

If Shire wanted to get them killed, he wouldn't need to give any advice; he could just quietly wait for the outcome.

Moreover, Xia Fei was never trustworthy at any time, under any circumstances!

Kristen patted Gaston on the shoulder: "Once the battle starts, don't stop. Move full speed ahead and kill everything you see."

In the dark, it was impossible to distinguish friend from foe, but as long as the tank maintained a full speed of 6 kilometers, no friendly units would be able to run ahead of them!

This instead became the strength of the "Saint Chammon M21." Its slow speed matched the attack speed of infantry, providing a certain level of coordination between them.

After instructing the tank unit, Kristen went to inspect the infantry.

He walked around, but the only thing he didn't do was return to the headquarters to report to Xia Fei.

Kristen was unwilling to stir up more trouble, especially when facing life and death, he didn't want to face Xia Fei's face!