I Became a Tycoon During World War I - Chapter 170

Chapter 170: The "Tactician" Who Talks War on Paper

Kobdo's actions were swift. He chose to rent a factory across from Eric's aircraft factory and set up the "Meritorious Report" there.

The reason for choosing this location was twofold: firstly, because Paris's 20th district, like the 19th district, was a poor area, where rents were low, and cheap labor could be found.

On the other hand, Kobdo also considered Charles.

With the company gathered in one place, if Charles wanted to visit or inspect, he only needed to go to one location rather than running between two places.

Charles liked subordinates who thought ahead for him, as he was always well-prepared.

Gallieni's attitude was similar to Charles’s. They were not particularly concerned about the newspaper itself but were more focused on the newspaper and how much influence it could exert within the military.

As a result, the launch was a remarkable success. 200,000 copies sent to the frontlines were instantly snatched up by the soldiers, and 100,000 copies sent to the civilians were in short supply.

This success was credited to Kobdo's strategy. Colonel Fernand even had an argument with him about it:

"The headline must be the Battle of Lafox!" Kobdo insisted on his viewpoint.

"I don't think so!" Colonel Fernand disagreed. "Our goal is to teach the soldiers how to use grenades. We can't let it be secondary!"

"Colonel!" Kobdo countered. "If you were in the trenches at the front, knowing that death could come at any moment, would you prefer to have a newspaper that excites, uplifts, and energizes you, or would you prefer to follow a dull, dogmatic manual?"

"Perhaps you're right!" Colonel Fernand reluctantly agreed. "The soldiers would rather see victory, but learning to use grenades might save their lives!"

"The key is that we must first make the soldiers like this newspaper!" Kobdo earnestly explained. "Only then will they be likely to look at the grenade tutorial. Otherwise, even if we put the grenade tutorial on the front page, the soldiers would just use it to wipe their behinds!"

...

Kobdo viewed the issue from a journalist’s perspective, while Colonel Fernand was focused on its importance. The two argued fiercely, each unwilling to give ground.

In the end, it was Charles who resolved the matter.

Charles said to Fernand: "Colonel, perhaps we can look at it this way: let’s put the Battle of Lafox on the front page. It may attract more attention."

"After the soldiers read the headline, they’ll be excited, and they'll also end up learning the grenade tutorial. This way, more people will learn how to use grenades."

"On the other hand, if we put the grenade tutorial on the front page... not only will it fail to achieve the desired effect, but it might even backfire!"

Kobdo agreed, "Exactly, that's what I was trying to say."

Then Kobdo added: "Just like... while Charles has been using 'Saint Chamond' and more troops to launch direct attacks on Lafox, he ends up paying a huge price with no results."

"But the lieutenant, with less than 100 tanks and just 2,000 men, easily broke through from the flank and achieved an astonishing victory."

"Given these two options, which would you choose, Colonel?"

Colonel Fernand was eventually persuaded, and even Gallieni, who had not participated in the discussion from across the room, nodded slightly.

Gallieni glanced at Kobdo, a hint of surprise in his eyes. This journalist was quite eloquent and seemed to have a deep understanding of Charles’s tactics.

"Lieutenant Kobdo!" General Gallieni raised his head slightly, signaling him to step forward.

Kobdo was astonished and saluted.

It was a strange feeling; he had always found it difficult to get an audience with Gallieni, and now he had the opportunity to speak directly with him, and as a subordinate.

"Did you ever serve in the military?" Gallieni asked.

"No, General!" Kobdo replied. "I only... out of interest in military matters, and due to the nature of my work, have reviewed a large amount of information!"

Gallieni seemed to understand. He realized that Kobdo was a "tactician" who only talked about war on paper.

Perhaps because he had never served in the military nor attended a military academy, Kobdo had not been influenced by the stubborn and biased "offensive tactics" of the French army. Instead, he was more open to Charles's new tactics.

Gallieni thought that Kobdo was not suitable for actual battlefield command. He was able to understand tactics but was incapable of applying them in real-life situations, which was a different matter from Charles.

However...

Gallieni quickly thought of a way to utilize this "talent."

"You might be able to play a role somewhere else, Lieutenant!" Gallieni looked at Kobdo with interest and asked, "Do you know of the Saint-Cyr Military Academy?"

"Of course, General!" Kobdo replied, looking puzzled. He didn’t understand what his connection to Saint-Cyr was.

"Here’s the thing," Gallieni glanced at Charles, who was discussing the issue of military newspaper leaks with Colonel Fernand.

Gallieni lowered his voice and said, "I’ve compiled Charles’s tactics and battle examples, and I sent them to the Saint-Cyr Military Academy to be used as teaching materials."

Kobdo fully supported this and nodded vigorously, moving closer and whispering, "A wise decision, General! One day, when these officers go to the battlefield, if they can apply even a tenth of Charles's tactics, the French army will be transformed!"

"But it had no effect!" Gallieni shook his head with a regretful look. "No one took these tactics seriously. They’re all so used to the 'offensive tactics' that they treat it as a holy book. Even though these tactics were made into textbooks under my orders, they’re just gathering dust in a corner!"

Kobdo understood why this happened.

The instructors and teachers at the military academy were the very same people who had studied the "offensive tactics" of France for years, and they were staunch supporters. Otherwise, they would be labeled as "heretics" and expelled from the school.

The cadets, on the other hand, had never been tempered by real battlefield experience. They still had no understanding of warfare and were waiting for the instructors to instill in them the so-called tactics.

They had formed a rigid, repetitive cycle of "normal operation."

Although Charles’s tactics had been proven right on the front lines and on the battlefield, for the "well-oiled machine" that was the Saint-Cyr Military Academy in the rear, they were like a grain of sand in the gears. They would undoubtedly be treated as a "dangerous ideology" and kept out of the academy’s theoretical curriculum.

"But..." Kobdo asked in confusion, "General, what can I do?"

"I need someone to go to the Saint-Cyr Military Academy and give lectures!" Gallieni stared at Kobdo. "The person will lecture on Charles’s combat theories. I believe that once someone starts lecturing, cadets will start thinking about which combat theory is correct. That’s what I need!"

Kobdo swallowed. "General, you don’t mean... you want to send me, do you?"

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