I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 754: After modification - Interest Distribution
Salpetriere Hospital was very busy, with a large number of severely injured soldiers requiring surgery being brought in from the front lines, while some were resting after their surgeries.
In and out of the corridors, there were injured soldiers with bandages or crutches everywhere.
They all recognized Shire, and when Shire passed by, they would stop and salute.
Shire always stopped to exchange a few words:
"Take care of yourselves; the country will not neglect you."
"Don’t worry, if you can’t find a job, come to my factory."
"Believe me, you can sustain yourselves. The soldiers of France will never be defeated!"
The injured soldiers, with tears in their eyes, solemnly paid their respects.
They knew Shire’s words were true because that was exactly what Shire was doing.
Shire had given the injured soldiers jobs and new goals, preventing them from falling into destitution or even starving to death after they spent the 130 francs pension.
Shire walked up the corridor to the second floor, saluted Major Fernan in front of the ward, took the carnation from the guard, and then walked into the room.
"You seem much better today," Shire said to Gallieni, who was lying in bed reading the newspaper, while casually changing the flowers in the vase.
Although Gallieni was still gaunt, his face had regained some color.
Gallieni made a sound of acknowledgment, slowly put down his newspaper, and looked at Shire: "How did you do it?"
"What are you referring to?" Shire moved a chair to sit by the bed.
Gallieni gently removed his glasses from the bridge of his nose and said, "The Parliament, Shire. They should have dismissed me by now, but they did nothing. You stopped them, didn’t you?"
Shire made a sound of agreement and replied, "You don’t want to know; I used some not-so-honorable methods." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
This was the difference between Gallieni and Shire; Gallieni was too upright, always demanding due process for everything.
But Shire would resort to any means necessary to achieve his goals.
In the past, Gallieni would have scolded Shire for this,
arguing that only due process could ensure the country ran normally and healthily; otherwise, it would eventually fall into disarray like before.
But now, he slowly nodded: "Maybe you are right."
Shire looked at Gallieni in surprise; this was unlike him.
Gallieni responded with a blank expression: "You must think I’m old and stubborn, don’t you?"
"No, General," Shire replied. "I just..."
"Don’t deny it; I know what you’re thinking," Gallieni sighed lightly. "If it can save more soldiers’ lives, then go ahead. I will stand by you no matter what. That is my promise!"
Having faced death, Gallieni felt his thoughts begin to change.
Why persist in procedural justice?
Is it worth sending countless soldiers to their deaths?
The ones who should pay the price are those parliamentarians, politicians, and capitalists.
Shire felt relieved.
Before this, Shire had always been hindered, partly due to Gallieni’s fairness, as he adhered to principles rather than showing favoritism.
Now, with Gallieni’s words, Shire felt unburdened and at ease.
"You should have thought this way sooner." Shire peeled an apple for Gallieni and cut it into small pieces on a plate for him.
"That’s because it’s you," Gallieni answered, taking the plate. "I know there won’t be any issues with power in your hands, but don’t forget to maintain boundaries, of course."
"Yes, General," Shire replied, though inwardly he was indifferent.
Gallieni refused to admit his mistake; when he conceded, he had actually given up on his principles.
...
In Mezieres, Fuxu was energetically overseeing the defense and surrender operations at the command center set up at the airport.
This was his unprecedented moment of glory; in just three days, the troops he led had advanced from Verdun to Mezieres, recapturing vast lands and capturing nearly 200,000 German soldiers.
Indeed, everyone knew it was Shire who played a significant role.
But as the Commander-in-Chief of France, all the victories were officially attributed to Fuxu. These achievements were handed to him by Shire.
At this time, two "Aphro" planes landed at the airport under the protection of fighter jets.
Seeing this, Fuxu was a bit puzzled: "Do we have ’Aphro’ planes at our airport?"
The officer walked to the window, looked out, and excitedly answered, "Commander-in-Chief, that is Shire’s plane."
"Are you sure?" Fuxu asked.
"Sure," the officer nodded convincingly. "His plane has a cockpit cover. So far, France has less than ten planes with cockpit covers, and the ’Aphro’ is one of them."
Fuxu quickly took off his military cap and belt from the wall and went to welcome him.
Indeed, it was Shire. Fuxu approached him with a big smile and warmly hugged Shire: "You should have called, Vice Admiral; I almost thought it was the German’s plane."
As he spoke, Fuxu nodded towards the plane behind Shire.
Shire smiled and replied, "No worries, as long as the air force recognizes it."
Currently, with scanty air defense equipment, the only threat to planes flying over 100 km/h was fighter jets.
But Shire’s words had another meaning.
He subtly reminded Fuxu that the most crucial war resources were in his hands, including the air force.
Fuxu smiled indifferently: "Yes, of course."
Fuxu had accepted his fate.
Not long ago, he learned that Shire had retained Gallieni’s position as the commander of the Reserve Army Group from the Parliament.
Fuxu had not yet figured out what methods Shire used exactly.
But it was the Parliament; for Shire to make the Parliament submit and change their decision showed his immense power.
Additionally, with Shire controlling supplies, military industry, energy, and elite troops, along with the victories he could bring...
Fuxu did not believe he had the leverage to oppose or compete with him.
The two walked into the meeting room together; when they were alone, Shire said with a blank expression:
"I came here to discuss with the Commander-in-Chief the appointments of the various army group commanders."
"You know, the Meuse River defense line has basically stabilized."
"We should take this time to promote capable officers to important positions. I believe only then can the army exhibit greater combat effectiveness."
Fuxu immediately agreed: "Yes, that’s exactly what we should do."
He remained calm on the surface but inwardly exclaimed: My God, this is the Parliament’s jurisdiction, even I, the Commander-in-Chief, cannot decide, and you want to ’discuss’ it with me now?
Shire continued in a relaxed tone: "I think appointing Major General Wei Gang as the commander of the Northern Army Group is a good choice. What do you think?"
Fuxu was taken aback; Wei Gang was his man.
But Fuxu quickly understood; this was a distribution of benefits.
"Oh, yes, I agree," Fuxu nodded. "And the commander of the Reserve Army Group should undoubtedly be General Gali."
Fuxu was returning the favor.
