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

Britain also lacked supplies, even "lacked more." After all, at this time, the Germans were using submarines to blockade the British mainland.

But the British, relying on their reputation as the "world's strongest nation" and their friendship with the United States, secured loans and bought large quantities of arms and supplies.

Now, they were using these supplies to force France, which couldn't even equip its troops with boots, to give in, attempting to gain control of the war on French soil.

...

Shire was having dinner with Steed and Dominic at the Ritz Hotel.

Shire had never found steak or tuna particularly tempting, but after munching on bread for so long, he suddenly discovered they were delicacies, wolfing them down at the table, his mouth full, eagerly washing it down with a sip of red wine.

When he finally stopped, rubbing his stomach, he realized he had overeaten.

Steed looked at Shire in disbelief: "You should take some food with you, General."

As his partner, he knew Shire was wealthy. Even with scarce supplies, it was impossible for him to go hungry. But now, it seemed that was not the case.

Swallowing the last bite of food and greedily taking another sip of wine, Shire replied helplessly, "As a commander, if I took food to enjoy by myself, what would the soldiers think?"

Steed was stunned. As a businessman, he had never considered this. He always thought it was natural for generals to have better food than soldiers.

Dominic agreed: "If you did that, the soldiers would definitely not believe you could share their struggles. They'd think the commander was just using them and wouldn't trust anything he said, essentially losing faith."

"Exactly." Shire wiped his mouth with a napkin, this being the main reason he strictly adhered to the same food standards as his soldiers.

Building a dam is hard; destroying it only takes a few small ant holes.

Steed nodded in agreement, realizing that commanding at the front lines was not as easy as it seemed; it was far tougher than imagined.

But then he smiled again, thinking it might depend on the person. The supreme commander, Xia Fei, seemed to have it quite easy, always managing to eat and sleep on time and even taking pride in it.

"They've decided to discharge Xia Fei from the army," Steed said. "He will spend the rest of his life in Vosalt City."

Vosalt City was Xia Fei's hometown, where he had an old house.

Under normal retirement, he could have received a villa from the government, three attendants, and a substantial pension.

Now, he had nothing.

Dominic shook his head: "He keeps telling everyone it was all Shire's conspiracy, has he truly gone mad?"

"No one cares about that," Steed said.

Shire did not respond. In his mind, Xia Fei was already obsolete, not worth discussing a future for someone with no future.

Steed seemed to pick up on this and tactfully changed the topic: "Considering you need to command in Belgium, Parliament plans to appoint Petain as commander of the Verdun sector. What are your thoughts?"

Steed's question implied that if Shire was unhappy with this arrangement, he could still fight for it in Parliament.

But Shire merely responded with a "hmm," showing no reaction.

Appointing Petain to defend Verdun was a given; historically, he was entrusted with it and successfully held it.

Though his methods were ruthless, forming a rearguard force and drawing a "rearguard line," where anyone who retreated past it was to be killed on sight.

But regardless, he held it.

Steed was puzzled by Shire's reaction: "You have no objections to this, Brigadier?"

Shire looked bewildered: "Should I have an opinion on this?"

This left Steed at a loss, staring at Shire, unsure how to proceed.

Dominic explained:

"The Battle of Verdun has improved under your command, Brigadier."

"Everyone knows the importance of recapturing Duomont Fortress, crucial for Verdun's defense."

"This is your achievement; you should continue to command and lead to victory."

"But now it's being handed over to someone else, which means they are taking credit for your work."

Steed nodded:

"Indeed, I've heard that Petain has already arrived in Verdun to learn your 'Reverse Slope Defense Tactics.'"

"Additionally, he has placed an order with us for Directional Mines through the military."

Pausing, Steed added: "But we can refuse..."

Dominic quickly objected: "If we refuse, people will immediately associate it with Shire. They will think Shire is disregarding the battle and soldiers' lives for his own benefit."

Steed smiled lightly: "There are many ways to refuse, like claiming insufficient capacity or poor quality, or raising the price."

Since I produce the items, who determines if it's round or square but me?

"Father," Dominic became anxious, "we can't do that."

Dominic always had the heart of a Bodhisattva, believing regardless of the situation, the national interest must be prioritized.

Steed glared at Dominic: "Or what? Let others steal the Brigadier's credit?"

Dominic was at a loss for words, realizing it indeed wasn't fair to Shire.

Steed turned his gaze to Shire: "I think it's time to pressure Parliament, Brigadier, to show them not everything goes their way."

Shire did not answer immediately. He asked the waiter to change his wine to coffee, added sugar, and gently stirred with the spoon, then asked, "Do you think it's that simple, Mr. Steed?"

"What else could it be?" Steed's eyes reflected surprise and confusion.

What was he missing?

"Parliament is shaping an adversary for me, sir," Shire said calmly. "If this continues, my military prestige will be unmatched. They want someone to rival me."

Steed exclaimed, "Oh," realizing suddenly: "So, they're intentionally giving the credit to Petain."

"Pressuring Parliament with Directional Mines will only play into their hands," Shire analyzed. "They'd love to see my image collapse while Petain battles the enemy in Verdun, growing in prestige each day."

"But what can we do?" Steed was exasperated: "Let Petain win this war? His prestige would also rise."

Shire's answer was simple: "Help him. I'll even send him notes on the key points of 'Reverse Slope Defense Tactics.'"

Steed was stunned, helping his own rival?

Shire added: "The Little Daily should also play its part."

Steed suddenly realized.

Yes! Publish all this in the newspaper.

If everyone knew Petain won with Shire's help and using his tactics, then Petain's victory would be under Shire's aura.

Petain might even thank Shire and not become his enemy!

Steed stared blankly at Shire, feeling that Shire had matured a lot and had become more adept.

Dominic quietly breathed a sigh of relief, looking at Shire with respect and admiration, feeling that he could easily turn all challenges and crises into nothing.