I Became a Tycoon During World War I - Chapter 172

Chapter 172: This is a Cannon

In the conference room of the Ritz Hotel in the center of Paris.

Outside, the rain continued to fall and the cold wind howled, but inside, the warmth of the stove made the room cozy and comfortable.

Steed arrived half an hour early to wait in the conference room.

Today was Halloween. He walked to the window, puffing on a cigar, and curiously watched the jack-o'-lanterns lit up on the street below.

An amusing image unexpectedly appeared in Steed's mind: Charles leading other children to knock on doors, shouting at the homeowners, "Trick or treat!"

If that happened, how would the homeowners react?
He imagined they would probably stand there, forgetting to even hand out candy!

At that moment, Steed saw a black Ford Model T pull up to the hotel entrance. He realized that it might be Djoka's and Charles's car. He quickly snuffed out his cigar and opened the curtains to let in some fresh air.

This was Steed's first meeting with Charles, and he didn't want to give Charles a bad impression.

Then, Steed became nervous. He wasn't sure whether he should sit and wait or stand by the door or go out to greet them.

In the end, he decided to sit back in his chair and pretend to know nothing, but then he felt uncomfortable, not knowing where to place his hands or feet.

Soon, Charles and Djoka arrived.

The butler opened the door from the outside, and Djoka politely called out to Steed, whose expression was somewhat awkward: "Mr. Steed, sorry to have kept you waiting!"

Steed was relieved and quickly stood up, stepping forward to shake Djoka's hand. When he shook Charles's hand, he couldn't help but feel a little excited. "I've heard so much about you, Charles. It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir!" Charles replied calmly. He looked at Steed for a moment, his face showing some confusion.

Charles didn't understand why Steed appeared somewhat nervous. As the owner of Saint-Étienne, Steed should have seen many grand occasions. What was so special about this one?
Steed studied Charles for a while before realizing what was happening. He muttered, "Uh," and walked toward the conference room, warmly inviting both of them to sit down. "I apologize for only meeting my partner today, as you know, it's due to caution!"

"I understand, Mr. Steed!" Charles replied.

Charles had a military background, and when meeting with Steed, a capitalist, he had to be careful to avoid any suspicion, just like when Gallieni secretly met with Charles. Otherwise, it would be easy for people to think there was military-business collusion.

This was also the reason why Gallieni could discuss grenade prices and place orders with Charles, while on the surface, Saint-Étienne was the one doing business with him.

Everyone understood what was going on, but it had to be done this way to avoid giving anyone a reason to criticize.

The butler served coffee to everyone, which surprisingly had an Algerian flavor.

Charles smiled lightly as he smelled the aroma. He knew that Steed had probably made a mistake while inquiring about his preferences, mistaking the flavor Francis liked for his own.

Steed added two sugar cubes to his coffee and stirred it gently, his eyes full of anticipation as he looked at Charles. "I have an unusual request, Charles. I hope our collaboration project won't just be about grenades!"

Charles pretended not to understand. "But I don't have any other projects, sir..."

"I'm talking about the future!" Steed said. "If you think of anything in the future!"

Then Steed added, "Something similar to grenades, or anything else. I want you to only contact me, Charles! I'll also offer you contracts similar to the grenade one!"

Charles calmly replied, "Such a collaboration obviously cannot be formalized with a contract. Do you think a verbal agreement would be meaningful?"

"Of course!" Steed nodded seriously.

If it were someone else's verbal agreement, Steed knew it would be meaningless, but Charles was different. Even if it was just a verbal agreement.

Steed needed Charles to show some commitment, otherwise, he would constantly worry, afraid that Charles might hand over another invention to someone else. That would be a fatal blow to Saint-Étienne.

Djoka understood what Steed meant. He looked at Charles with an anxious expression, as if to say, "This is Saint-Étienne. What are you hesitating for?"

But Charles didn't respond immediately. He took a sip of coffee and said slowly, "Mr. Steed, have you heard that the military plans to purchase 105mm artillery from Schneider recently?"

"Yes," Steed nodded. "The M1913 howitzer."

Schneider had always had the ability to produce large-caliber artillery, but because the 75mm cannon was so successful, the military was only willing to equip it and had discarded all other artillery models.

As a result, Schneider had no choice but to produce the M1910 howitzer for export to Russia.

Later, Schneider tried to secure an order from the French military, improving the gun into the M1913 model, but the military was still uninterested, purchasing only a few for testing.

Steed looked at Charles with confusion. "But we can't stop Schneider. The military needs this artillery, and we..."

Steed's face showed a hint of embarrassment. Saint-Étienne had always focused on small arms and couldn't compete with Schneider when it came to heavy equipment, especially artillery.

"I know we can't change anything," Charles replied. "The military will inevitably purchase this 12-kilometer range artillery to gradually replace the 75mm cannon."

This was the military's weakness in terms of equipment. They needed the M1913 howitzer to suppress the German artillery. The short range of the 75mm cannon was a weakness that was no longer bearable on the battlefield.

"But..." Charles's tone shifted. "I believe the soldiers on the front line have other needs that the military has yet to realize."

"What do you mean?" Steed asked, confused.

Charles turned his gaze to Djoka. Djoka understood and quickly took out a document from his briefcase and handed it to him.

Steed turned on the desk lamp and opened the document under the orange light. He then widened his eyes, abruptly looked up at Charles, and eagerly returned his attention to the document, carefully reading it.

"Trenches, sir!" Charles said calmly. "Everyone has overlooked one point. The soldiers on the front line need to be able to throw explosives into the enemy's trenches, just like grenades."

"But this..." Steed lifted his head, puzzled. "This is a cannon, Charles!"

"Yes, it is indeed a cannon!" Charles nodded. "But it's a cannon for soldiers to use on the front line. Imagine, when both sides are throwing grenades into each other's trenches, what will happen in the end?"

Steed suddenly understood.

Both sides would certainly want to throw their grenades farther to ensure that they could hit the enemy while avoiding being hit. But human strength has its limits. Eventually, they would need a cannon—a short-range, high-angle cannon—that could help them throw "grenades" deep into the enemy's trench from a great distance.

Upon realizing this, Steed's eyes instantly lit up. He eagerly grabbed the document in his hand, laughing like a child. "Wonderful, Charles, wonderful! This is exactly what we need! We can now compete with Schneider in artillery!"

Table of content - Next Chapter >>>