I Became a Tycoon During World War I - Chapter 180

Chapter 180: The Brown Affair

The next day arrived, and it was time for Charles to report for duty at the headquarters. Originally, Charles had planned to stay in bed a bit longer.

Since arriving in this time and place, he had been constantly switching between the roles of staff officer and businessman. Though there were holidays, he never really had time to relax. Whether for military matters or business, he was always busy.

At that moment, he did want to slack off a little, staying cozy in his warm bed during the chilly autumn weather.

But Camille gently knocked on the door and reminded him, "Charles, Major Laurent has been waiting downstairs for half an hour!"

"I'm coming, Mother!" Charles responded helplessly.

The sky was overcast, with rain threatening to fall but never quite doing so, creating a somewhat oppressive atmosphere. The cold wind blew mercilessly through the gaps on either side of the T-model car, sending a chill down Charles' spine. He instinctively pulled his military coat tighter around him.

Major Laurent, while driving, said, "From now on, we might not have to hide from the crowds anymore, Lieutenant!"

"Why?" Charles asked, a little confused. Had he been abandoned by his fans?

Major Laurent explained, "Because of another hot topic. Everyone's been wondering where the Spee fleet will be and where the next naval battle will take place, so..."

Charles nodded with a quiet "oh."

This wasn't just a concern for the citizens of Paris; it was the same for governments around the world.

At this point, the land frontlines had temporarily stabilized. Neither side could gain the upper hand, and both had shifted their focus to the sea.

Germany hoped to open up a new battlefield at sea to delay British reinforcements to France.

The Allied powers, on the other hand, hoped to suppress a few of the German warships before they could fully emerge and perhaps use their maritime advantage to break the deadlock on land.

Thus, everyone's attention and focus turned to the sea.

This was fine with Charles, as it meant fewer worries for him.

Sure enough, when the car arrived in Paris, the streets were only sparsely populated, with a few small groups of people waving and calling out to Charles. Compared to before, the scene was much quieter.

Charles couldn't help but think: Count Spee really is a good man. One might even say he sacrificed himself for the cause!

To his surprise, when he stepped into the headquarters, he was greeted by a burst of cheers from the staff, making him jump.

"Welcome, Major Charles!"

"Salute to Major Charles!"

"Congratulations, Major Charles!"

...

"Major?" Charles looked around at the cheering crowd with a puzzled expression.

Lieutenant Colonel Fernand directly pushed Charles toward Gallieni, saying, "Come on, Charles, your promotion review was approved yesterday!"

Gallieni, smiling, handed Charles a stack of documents and said, "Your uniform is ready, and some members of the First Squadron are also being promoted with you. Take a look and see if there's anything you'd like to add!"

"Yes, General!" Charles responded, standing straight as he took the documents from Gallieni.

It turned out that the pilots of the First Squadron were all freshly enlisted and were all second lieutenants, which made it inconvenient to give orders during combat.

Gallieni had decided to promote Charles, the squadron leader, directly to major, and Carter, the deputy squadron leader, to captain. Several second lieutenants were appointed as squadron commanders, and thus a hierarchical command structure was formed from top to bottom.

In reality, squadron leaders in a flying unit should typically be majors or captains, with lieutenants serving as flight commanders, but due to the low ranks when the unit was just established, they had to make do with the current arrangement.

Charles returned to his dormitory to change into his major's uniform. This time, he didn't even bother to look in the mirror. It seemed that he had already gotten used to it all.

When he stepped out of the dorm and into the office, he was once again greeted by colleagues' congratulations, and some even joked:

"Isn't it time for you to be promoted to colonel next month?"

"We get promoted one rank per year, but Charles gets promoted two ranks every month!"

"It won't be long before you're a general, right?"

...

Kobdo was still holding a camera and snapping pictures of Charles, certain that tomorrow's Meritorious Report would feature another headline: "Charles Promoted Two Ranks to Major."

There might even be some commentary: "Charles may be the fastest-rising officer in France, and the youngest, but most people think his promotion isn't fast enough..."

A lot of chatter, and Charles began to worry that Kobdo would once again draw too much attention to him.

Gallieni nodded at Charles and silently walked into the lounge.

Charles understood and followed him in, closing the door behind them.

"Have you heard of the Brown Affair?" Gallieni casually asked while leaning back in his chair.

"No, General!" Charles replied, "I haven't heard of it!"

"It happened over twenty years ago, back when you were not yet born!" Gallieni briefly summarized the event: "Brown was a general, and during his service, he was wounded multiple times and earned numerous commendations. He had a high reputation among both the military and civilians. Later, he wanted to enter politics, so he left the military and entered the political arena. He even won an overwhelming majority of votes in the parliament, but in the end… after some scandals were revealed, he chose to commit suicide."

Gallieni's tone was calm and devoid of emotion, as if recalling an insignificant event.

At first, Charles thought the same, but later, he learned more and realized that Brown's actions in the early stages were somewhat similar to his own...

After entering politics, Brown implemented a series of reforms, such as improving soldiers' rations, allowing soldiers to keep their beards, supporting workers' strikes, and abolishing aristocratic privileges, which garnered massive public support—support that could even be described as "fanatic."

When he was removed from his position as Minister of War by the capitalists through disreputable means and had to leave Paris, 150,000 people surrounded the train station and its vicinity, blocking all exits. The people excitedly embraced him, clamoring to shake his hand and shouting:

"You can't leave!"

"You are our hope!"

"France can't be without you, Mr. Brown!"

...

But his opponents were capitalists, and they were adept at digging up discrediting information about their rivals and publicizing it widely, ultimately ruining their reputations and taking everything from them.

Although Charles wasn't fully familiar with the situation, he could tell that Gallieni was using this event as a warning to him—to not get lost in public support and ignore the hidden adversaries lurking in the shadows.

"I understand, General!" Charles said. "I will be mindful of my words and actions!"

This was a society of double standards. Even if capitalists committed enormous crimes, it would often go unpunished, as seen in the Panama scandal.

But for ordinary people, as soon as any dark secret was exposed, no matter how small, their bright futures could be ruined forever, and they could even face death.

Although Charles was a capitalist, he was, in front of Schneider, as ordinary as anyone else. He could not afford to lose.

Gallieni nodded in satisfaction and then continued, "One more thing, Major. Have you heard that the Germans are developing tanks?"

"Tanks? The Germans?" Charles was startled and immediately thought of the A7V.

"Yes!" Gallieni confirmed. "But the news isn't confirmed yet. It came from the capitalists."

This was typical. Capitalists were more sensitive to such information and sometimes knew more than the military or even the government.

"The news says..." A flicker of concern crossed Gallieni's eyes. "The Germans' tank is aimed at your 'Mark I,' and they plan to equip it with artillery. Aren't you considering adding artillery to yours?"

Charles responded firmly: "No, General, I don't think it's necessary!"

With the Renault tank, there was even less need for artillery on the "Mark I."

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