Chapter 187 Propaganda War

At the headquarters of the Little Journal, as soon as Bonnet received the order from Steed, he immediately realized that the time had come to regain sales.

God, an exclusive interview with Charles would help him fight against other newspapers. It would make Le Petit Journal the spokesperson for Charles, and if it wins, it would be regarded as a hero by the French people!

Bonnet didn't dare to neglect it. After hanging up the phone, he rushed to the editorial office like a gust of wind and shouted to the busy reporters: "Emergency, positive report about Charles!"

Dozens of reporters stopped what they were doing, and some of the more agile ones even started packing their backpacks and cameras for going out for interviews.

Since the circulation of the Little Daily had been compressed, Bonnet had embarked on internal reforms. He planned to add more photo materials instead of using only cartoon images, and for this purpose he added many foreign reporters.

"What are the positive reports?" Bonnet asked loudly.

"Victory on the battlefield!" A reporter responded, this is what impressed people most about Charles.

"No!" Bonnet rejected the proposal without a second thought: "It's a matter of life, against the high price of 'Holt 75'!"

Although the words were brief and incoherent, the reporters understood them.

This was to establish a positive image of Charles and respond to attacks from other media on Charles' sale of the "Holt 75" to the military at a high price.

After a moment of silence, a reporter responded: "Field hospitals, Shire has been providing funding for field hospitals!"

Bonnet quickly pointed in the direction of the voice: "Antoine, be in charge of the interview at the field hospital!"

Antoine responded, and ran out of the door with a few assistants, like a soldier charging at the enemy on a battlefield.

"Orphanage, sir!" Another reporter shouted, "I know there is an orphanage in Charles, and they have been taking care of disabled soldiers!"

"August!" Bonnet pointed with his big hand: "You are in charge of the welfare home!"

Oxter cheered and went out with his assistant with an excited look on his face.

"And there are volunteers! They support the transportation of supplies and the rescue of the wounded, and part of their funding comes from the Shire!"

"Baptiste!"

"In the small town of Darwaz, the Charles family has a good reputation there!"

"Baudouin!"

…

Teams of reporters were sent out one after another, looking for good things Charles had done in any possible place in the streets and alleys.

Some of them even Ciel himself didn't know about.

For example, providing funds for volunteers was the result of a discussion between Djokovic and Camille, who believed that as capitalists they should also do something about this matter.

…

At the Fifth Field Hospital, a Hebrew doctor was interviewed in tears:

"Yes, Charles is a capitalist with a conscience, there is no doubt about that!"

"Anyone who doubts him has ulterior motives and they should be sent to the gallows!"

"I still remember Charles's look at that time. He couldn't stand what he saw. Soldiers were wounded in the battle with the enemy, but they were waiting to die here because of lack of supplies."

"Char yelled at me angrily, 'Everything you need is on me, I will give you everything you need!'!"

"Then he really did it. He wasn't just talking, he really did it!"

The reporter asked: "Can you tell me about the expenses of the Shire in the field hospital?"

The Hebrew doctor took out a thick stack of documents and placed them on the table, tapping them gently and answering:

"Of course, every transaction is recorded."

"Eight thousand francs a day at first..."

The reporter exclaimed: "Eight thousand francs? Every day?"

The Hebrew doctor nodded:

“This is just the beginning.”

"After that, everyone heard about the Fifth Field Hospital. They knew that this place had the highest survival rate because of Master Ciel's funding, so the wounded were sent here in an endless stream."

"Some of the wounded were even sent here from hundreds of miles away. Can you imagine?"

"This also brings greater expenses to the hospital. Now it needs about 13,000 francs to barely support it!"

The reporter exclaimed again: "Thirteen thousand francs? Every day? God, this is not a small amount!"

"This is definitely not a small amount!" The Hebrew doctor's eyes turned red, and his voice gradually became heavy: "But Charles has no complaints! This is not money, sir, this is life. Master Charles used his money to buy a lot of fresh lives. This is a great act of kindness! I am proud of him! I am very happy to serve him!"

…

In the Welfare House for Veterans, as soon as the reporter entered the factory and explained his purpose, he was immediately surrounded by wounded soldiers who had rushed over after hearing the news:

"Most of us are soldiers rescued by Master Ciel, and only Master Ciel is willing to help us."

"Yes, we have sacrificed so much for our country. We risked our lives on the battlefield. Now we have broken limbs, but no one is willing to look at us, except Master Ciel!"

"He gave us jobs and allowed us to have our own lives here. We can even save money. He not only saved us, but also gave us the courage to live!"

…

Neighbors in Darwaz:

"Their family are all good people. Camille has been a volunteer with us."

"Yes, she was busy in the field hospital for several days. During the busiest time, she didn't sleep all night."

"They live a simple life, they have no servants at home, you can't even tell they are capitalists!"

One neighbor even pointed at Deyoka's house and said, "Look, that's where they live. Can you tell the difference between it and ours?"

The reporter held up his camera and took a lot of photos of Djoka's shabby little house.

…

The volunteers were originally loyal fans of Charles, and during the interview they praised Charles:

"The Charles family has provided us with tens of thousands of francs!"

"Mrs. Bernard is a very kind person. She has contacted us several times and has said a lot about the Charles."

"We were originally organized because of Ciel, so everything we do is Ciel's doing to some extent!"

"Yes, this is Ciel's influence!"

…

Soon, the "Little Daily" published these interviews with photos in the newspaper, and finally asked a series of soul-searching questions: "Is everything Charles did really for himself? What did other capitalists do? What is the purpose of the capitalists slandering him at all costs?"

The "Meritorious Newspaper" never said a word about this matter from beginning to end. It showed the calmness that the military should have, and seemed to be disdainful of intervening in such self-defeating rumors.

The Little Daily also did not tell the truth.

The truth cannot be told because that is the unspoken rule of the deal between capitalists and the military. Once it is exposed, the "Little Daily" will become the target of criticism from the capitalists because it will block their financial path.

However……

There are still several "rumors" among the people:

The capitalists had always sold supplies to the military at four or five times the price, but Charles insisted on trading at twice the minimum price.

The reason why Schneider's tractors were sold at such a low price was an accident, and the capitalists made a big fuss about this accident.

The citizens understood instantly:

"God, they're trying to bring down Ciel!"

"After defeating Shire, they can sell tractors at four or five times the price without any scruples."

"This is a conspiracy of capitalists. We were almost cheated!"

…

Gallieni smiled and said nothing when he heard these "rumors".

He knew that only by protecting Charles could the military obtain supplies at twice the price, or even at par.

For example, the "Holt 120" that Schneider is selling!

Thanks to: loloipp and Blooming Popcorn for the tip, thank you very much!

(End of this chapter)