I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 113: Original text - One Hundred Thirteen Asymmetric Warfare Modified - Asymmetric Warfare

Chapter 113: Original text: Chapter One Hundred Thirteen Asymmetric Warfare Modified: Chapter 113 Asymmetric Warfare

Gallieni neither refused nor agreed.

He smiled gently and said, "If you can prove they are worth this price, I would be happy to pay 10% interest for it, otherwise..."

Shire originally wanted to protest, this had nothing to do with him, the money he spent for the military should be reimbursed.

But Gallieni added, "And I will also consider the flight club at an assessed price of 300,000 francs!"

Shire immediately raised his hands in surrender; the 200,000 francs difference was unreasonable, though it was also in accordance with the procedure.

Seeing Shire’s helpless look, Gallieni nodded contentedly and shifted the topic to the war: "Antwerp has fallen, just last night, the Germans blew up Wavre Castle and destroyed the water supply system. People panicked, and they had to choose to evacuate Antwerp!"

This was within Shire’s expectation. He only asked, "What about the King?"

"He left Antwerp and moved to Ypres!" Gallieni pointed along the coast on the map and said, "He is a respectable King! He could have gone to Britain, but he insisted on staying with his people to fight against the Germans!"

Shire grunted in agreement. Albert I, as a king, did indeed perform commendably. It was just that he couldn’t decide whether this behavior was foolish or wise.

"He wants to meet you!" Gallieni’s face showed a hint of playfulness, "He wants to apologize to you in person. But in my view, he hopes to keep you in Ypres. That’s the last piece of land in Belgium, and he doesn’t want the Germans to take it over no matter what!"

"You surely refused for me again!" Shire said.

Gallieni nodded slightly, "No one would be foolish enough to send you to the front lines, even in the second line with the King. That could even be detrimental to the battlefield!"

"Detrimental to the battlefield?" Shire didn’t understand the meaning of these words.

Gallieni looked up at Shire, "Do you think, when you were in Antwerp last time, why did the Germans completely blockade Antwerp?"

Shire understood, "I could possibly become a bait!"

Gallieni smiled ambiguously, this little guy thought he was just a "bait"?! He was clearly the ultimate weapon both sides would go to any lengths to seize!

However, Gallieni did not point it out. He did not want to waste too much time on other matters. Now, he had to quickly make this little guy understand the battlefield situation, so he might come up with a way to respond.

"I believe we cannot achieve the goal of flanking the enemy!" Gallieni continued to analyze as he pointed to the map: "We have already lost the opportunity to outflank. Now, even if we have the advantage or can gather faster at some location, it would merely push the front line towards the Germans a little bit!"

Shire agreed with this statement. Gallieni’s judgment was very accurate; now a stalemate was forming: the front line was there, reinforcements from both sides meeting, creating just another extended line on the map.

"And it’s very difficult for both sides to break through the other’s defense line!" Gallieni frowned slightly, "The war could be even more brutal than we imagined; trenches, barbed wire, machine guns, and artillery. The attacking side will inevitably pay a heavy price!"

Gallieni’s gaze turned to Shire once again, "Even your tanks won’t be effective!"

"Yes!" Shire openly admitted it.

The French Army was using the original tanks produced by Francis. Such tanks could block bullets and scare the enemy on the plains, but against well-prepared trench fortifications, they would only become targets.

"We also discovered that the Germans are gathering here!" Gallieni pointed at Ypres on the map and said, "Ypres is characterized by flat terrain full of swamps and mud. It’s very difficult to build trench fortifications here. The Germans are likely to choose this as a breakthrough point!" freewebnøvel.coɱ

Gallieni made this judgment because German military quality was generally better than the French Army. In terrain where it’s difficult to build trenches, the German Army’s quality could be more evident and give them a better chance of victory.

But the French Army was seriously understaffed and could only send untrained new recruits to block this breakthrough point... If this gap in Ypres couldn’t be filled, the entire front line could collapse.

Shire listened quietly, saying nothing.

Gallieni looked puzzled at Shire, with a tone that carried some dissatisfaction, "What are your thoughts?"

Shire answered softly, "General, have you heard of ’asymmetrical warfare’?"

Gallieni’s eyes lit up, a new term, it sounded impressive.

"No, never heard of it!" Gallieni responded bluntly, with a look full of anticipation.

But he waited for a long time without Shire continuing, his look turned from puzzled to faintly urging.

Shire pouted, "10%!"

Gallieni was taken aback, quickly realizing this little guy was bargaining.

"No, 6%!" Gallieni answered straightforwardly, thinking a single term could claim all the interest, dream on!

"Alright!" Shire replied helplessly, "Asymmetrical warfare refers to suppressing the enemy on another level, aiming to cause the enemy to collapse like a row of dominos, rather than infantry against infantry, artillery against artillery. This is obviously unfavorable for France and would cause significant casualties!"

Gallieni gave a hum of interest, "Interesting. But how can we achieve this kind of level suppression?"

"9%!" Shire said.

"No no... 7% at most!" Gallieni’s tone was indisputable. His nickname of "iron rooster" was well-earned.

Shire rolled his eyes. Was such an advanced tactic only worth "1%"?

But Shire had no choice, he would have to explain it anyway, might as well earn something.

"In specific implementation!" Shire said, "We can use planes to completely suppress enemy aircraft. With absolute air superiority, we can then use the advantage to suppress the enemy’s artillery, causing chaos. Our artillery would then be free to deal with the enemy’s infantry... this way, layer by layer, putting the enemy in a completely passive state!"

Gallieni looked at Shire with a face of astonishment. He had never heard of such tactics, yet they seemed feasible.

It wasn’t like conventional combat where infantry and artillery clashed head-on, but rather, they were staggered, aiming for continuous victories: planes suppressing enemy artillery, artillery easily handling enemy infantry... My God, the result could be huge victories with minimal casualties!

"But!" Gallieni asked again, "How can our planes achieve complete victory and even suppress enemy artillery?"

With "Congreve" rockets?

They might be useful for balloons and bombing artillery, but ineffective against fast-flying planes!

"10%, interest paid monthly!" Shire’s tone was firm, "And the flight club calculated at 300,000 francs acquisition price!"

Shire wasn’t worried that Gallieni wouldn’t agree, as planes were key in this "asymmetrical warfare." If you don’t agree, I’ll flip the table!