Chapter 142 Special Artillery Regiment

I don’t know when it started, but there has been a slight “anti-Charles” breeze in Paris.

It was not brought up by the public, but the media suddenly changed its tone before people could react, from praising Charles to questioning him:

"Charles' tanks didn't even participate in the bidding? Are they ashamed of themselves?"

"Has Charles run out of ideas? This is the industrial age. One person's wisdom is no match for a traditional arms company!"

"It is said that his tanks don't even have guns installed!"

…

There were even newspapers comparing the Saint-Chamond tank with Charles's original tank, the original tank!

Although the detailed data of "Saint-Chamond" was not released for confidentiality reasons, several key points were revealed: "Saint-Chamond" has artillery, four machine guns, and an advanced electric drive engine.

People were originally full of confidence in Charles, but they were inevitably swayed by the overwhelming publicity and questioning in the newspapers.

They still acknowledged Charles:

"This is quite rare for a 17-year-old boy!"

"Yes, Ciel's victory is unmatched!"

"Charles is the best. At least no one can surpass him now."

…

However, they planted the seeds of doubt in their hearts:

Is the Shire outdated?

He provided the idea, but it was the arms dealer who subsequently developed the tank into a major success!

After all, Charles is still young and has no experience. The task of defeating the Germans should perhaps be handed over to a commander with a better global perspective and more experience!

…

In the La Fox area, there is a small town called Fervois, about ten kilometers from the front line.

After daybreak, the rain suddenly got heavier. The bright white raindrops fell happily, like waterfalls from the sky.

Xiafei stood in front of the window of the temporary command center, frowning as he looked at the rain waves outside that were blown up by the storm, feeling quite heavy-hearted.

He arrived here in the early morning and set up a command center. He even broke his habit of going to bed and getting up on time.

But Joffre had to do this. He needed to win a victory to re-establish his heroic image among the military and civilians. Even more so, only by defeating Charles could he keep his position and regain the part of the command that he had lost from Gallieni.

"General!" Deputy Commander Kanais reported to Joffre holding a document: "There are already 100 CA1s and 16 'Saint-Chamonds' on the train. It is estimated that they will arrive at 2 pm!"

Xiafei said "hmm" and asked without turning his head: "Where is Colonel Christian? Are he and his soldiers ready?"

"Of course, General!" Kanais replied, "They are looking forward to this battle!"

"Then let them get ready!" Xia Fei ordered expressionlessly: "We must achieve this victory in an orderly manner! A perfect victory, no mistakes are allowed!"

"Yes, General!" Kanais responded.

After he went out, he walked to his desk, opened the drawer and took out a document that had been prepared long ago. He wanted to give it to the staff officer, but after hesitating for a while, he finally decided to go to Colonel Christian in person.

Colonel Christian was a combat hero of the First Army.

A month ago, during the attack on Alsace, when the First Army was defeated by the Germans and almost everyone was fleeing, Christian, who was still a major, led more than 200 of his men and lay on the ground disguised as dead bodies.

When the German troops following France caught up to them, they suddenly jumped up from the ground and attacked the Germans with bayonets and swords.

The German army thought they were ambushed and fell into chaos immediately. Christine took advantage of the situation and led the Second Infantry Battalion to repel the enemy. Christine killed seven people with her sword in that battle and still has a scar on her face!

"This is the kind of hero France needs!" Kanais muttered to himself.

He walked through the corridor and down the stairs, and finally came to the sofa in the living room and said to Colonel Christian, who stood at attention: "Let's discuss your afternoon mission, Colonel!"

"Yes, General!" Christine responded.

Kanais sat down on the sofa, motioned Colonel Christian to sit next to him, then opened the file bag and handed over a document, with praise in his tone: "Your troops are very brave, so we plan to reorganize the First Infantry Regiment into the 'First Special Artillery Regiment'!"

"Special Artillery Regiment?" Christine was stunned: "But we are infantry, General! We can't even fire..."

"You misunderstood, Colonel!" Kanais explained with a smile: "We don't need you to be able to fire artillery, you can still fight like infantry!"

"I... don't quite understand, General!" Christine's mind was confused. If they were still fighting like infantry, why were they called artillery?

There was a hint of mystery in Kanais' eyes: "Have you heard of tanks, Colonel?"

"Of course, General..." Christine suddenly realized something: "You mean, we will fight together with tanks?"

"Yes, and they are the most advanced tanks in France!" Kanais' eyes were full of pride. He took out another document from the file bag and handed it to Christine carefully as if he was holding a treasure. He tapped the document twice meaningfully: "A total of 100 CA-1 tanks, 16 'Saint-Chamond' tanks, it represents the most powerful military force of France. Leave it to you, Colonel!"

Christine took the document and opened it carefully, and found that it contained detailed data and firepower configuration of the "Saint-Chamond" tank and CA-1 tank, as well as photos from various angles.

Christine was at a loss: "But General, how can we...coordinate the battle with these tanks..."

"Like I said!" Kanais said confidently, "You just need to fight as usual, the tanks will cut through the enemy's barbed wire and lead you to break through the defense line!"

Kanais leaned back on the sofa and said in a relaxed tone: "Think about it, each tank carries a 75MM cannon and two to four machine guns. They are the arsenal, Colonel. What is moving forward with you is an arsenal with a total of 116 cannons and 264 machine guns. They will destroy all enemies that stand in your way! All of them!"

Finally, Kanais concluded: "And your troops only need to follow them and occupy the enemy's position, understand?"

There was even a hint of envy in Kanais' eyes, as if he was saying, lucky guy, the victory of the first large-scale tank battle in human history is about to fall on you, you should feel honored for it!

"Understood, General!" Christine replied in a stiff tone.

His eyes never left the documents in his hands. He didn't quite believe that the battle would be so easy.

According to his past experience, actual combat and imagination are often two different things.

Did these generals, who had been hiding in their offices for years, think that the Germans were too easy to deal with?

(End of this chapter)