I Became a Tycoon During World War I - Chapter 146

Chapter 146: Special Training

Charles had considered the possibility: Could Colonel Estigny be a spy sent by Grevy?

If so, it would undoubtedly be a brilliant move by Grevy. Estigny could learn about the design direction of the tank and even advanced combat theories from Charles.

But Charles did not believe Colonel Estigny was a spy.

If he were, Grevy would have learned about the flaws of the CA-1 tank from him and would have taken measures to prevent it from being deployed on the battlefield.

Grevy was not short on money, and everything he did was aimed at increasing the right wing's influence over the military. Suffering a defeat and becoming a laughingstock would clearly go against that goal.

More importantly, historically, Colonel Estigny was a well-known figure, celebrated as the "Father of French Armor." Not only did he develop the CA-1 tank, but he also later created a heavy tank, the "Char B1."

The latter became legendary during the German invasion of France in World War II, when a single "Char B1" faced off against 13 German tanks, destroying all 13 without sustaining any damage. This tank was hailed in France as the "Giant of the Battlefield."

Someone like Colonel Estigny, a tank designer and developer obsessed with tank combat theories, would be inherently incompatible with the anti-industrialization faction of the right wing, perhaps even directly opposed to them.

If Grevy had indeed placed Estigny next to Charles as a spy, it was highly likely that once unleashed, he would be impossible to reel back in. Someone as shrewd as Grevy would never take such a risk.

“Are there any other conditions?” Gallieni asked.

“None!” Charles replied. “But it might take two to three weeks of training!”

“Two weeks!” Gallieni’s tone was unequivocal.

“General…”

Gallieni cut Charles off. “Colonel Browning and his troops already have training and combat experience. Two weeks should be sufficient!”

Charles understood why Gallieni was in such a hurry. On the frontlines, Joffre was still using the two failed tank models to continue his offensives. If one tactic failed, he would simply switch to another until it succeeded, at which point the media could be deployed to tout the victory.

Thus, every day Charles’ tank was delayed in proving itself on the battlefield meant more casualties for the frontline troops.

Gallieni could not tolerate such a scenario and had to push Charles to speed things up.

Charles didn’t respond, implicitly acknowledging the demand. Instead, he said, “Perhaps you should be more concerned about how much my tank will sell for, General!”

This comment hit Gallieni’s sore spot. The military was not only out of funds but was also deeply in debt.

Gallieni hesitated for only a moment before snorting, “If they can spend over 13 million francs on a pile of useless junk, they should be able to afford your tank!”

“No loans?” Charles asked, somewhat surprised.

“No loans!” Gallieni answered firmly. “But your price must be within a reasonable range!”

Charles hesitated for a moment before naming a price. “Ten thousand francs…”

“Deal!” Gallieni agreed before Charles could finish speaking.

Charles was stunned. The “Mark I” tanks he produced used readily available blueprints and engines and were Kobdoled together using modified tractor treads. As a result, the research and development costs were minimal, and each tank cost just over 3,000 francs to produce.

In previous dealings with the military, doubling the cost to around 5,000 or 6,000 francs was standard, yielding a 100% profit margin.

Given Gallieni’s notoriously frugal nature, Charles deliberately quoted a higher price, expecting it to be negotiated down. He never anticipated such an immediate and enthusiastic agreement.

What Charles didn’t know was that Gallieni was working with a completely different mental calculation:
The CA-1 tank cost 12,000 francs, and the Saint-Chamond tank cost 21,000 francs, yet both had failed miserably on the battlefield.

By that measure, Charles’ tank, capable of achieving victory, should be worth at least 20,000 francs!

When Charles offered 10,000 francs, it confirmed Gallieni’s view of him as a fair-minded capitalist, and he quickly sealed the deal.

Without much thought, Gallieni added, “The first order will be for 100 units. Is that a problem?”

Gallieni worried that this order quantity might be too small. After all, the two failed tanks had each been ordered in batches of 400.

“No problem!” Charles swallowed hard. It was another million-franc deal.

The key point was that the “Mark I” was only meant to be a transitional product, with planned production limited to around 100 units. Producing more would be unnecessary, as it would soon become obsolete.

Charles felt a twinge of regret. If he had known, he would have set the price even higher!

...

Colonel Estigny was on vacation with his family in Provence, more than 700 kilometers away. It had taken them a day and a half, traveling by train and car, to reach their destination.

He had hoped to relax for a few days, far from the battlefields and gunfire, but when he awoke that morning and purchased a newspaper, the front-page headline read: “CA-1 and Saint-Chamond Tanks Suffer Disastrous Debut, Design Issues Suspected.”

Instead of anger, Estigny felt a surge of excitement. Tossing the newspaper aside, he began changing his clothes and called out to his wife, who was still in bed, “Stay here with the kids, my dear! I’m leaving you some money. I need to head back!”

Still groggy, his wife murmured an acknowledgment and drifted back to sleep, only to realize moments later that he was already gone.

...

The Fifth Army was stationed near the Somme River in the region of Le Cateau. As the defensive line stabilized, Colonel Browning and his motorcycle infantry unit could no longer carry out harassment and special operations as before.

General Garde decided to “make the best use of waste” by assigning the motorcycle unit to transport supplies and wounded soldiers between the frontlines and the rear.

Colonel Browning resented such assignments, believing that supply transport did not require soldiers of their caliber. However, he feared that voicing his discontent might lead to their motorcycles being confiscated altogether.

“Since you’re not using them anyway, why not reassign them to the logistics units? Then you can rejoin the infantry!”

Reluctantly, Colonel Browning maintained an appearance of enthusiasm, directing his troops to shuttle back and forth.

One night, after a long day, the exhausted soldiers returned to camp to rest. Colonel Browning received a call from General Garde.

“Colonel, congratulations! General Gallieni has decided to transfer your unit to Paris for special training under Charles!”

“Really? That’s fantastic!” Colonel Browning exclaimed. “Thank you, General! Thank you very much!”

“But your motorcycles belong to the Fifth Army’s logistics division. You’ll need to leave them behind…”

“What? I can’t hear you!”

“I said, you must leave the motorcycles behind!”

“Sorry, General! The signal is poor; I can’t hear clearly…”

“Leave the motorcycles behind!”

“Understood, General! I’ll report to Paris immediately. We won’t be late!”

With that, Colonel Browning hung up with a bang, turned to his men, and shouted, “Did you hear that? Special training organized by Charles! Get ready to depart!”

The soldiers erupted into cheers.

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