General Crook had a different feeling when hearing these words. He definitely wanted to be the Minister of Defense. But although he was strong in the navy, he lacked sufficient political background.
This gave him enough knowledge about how far he could go in the military. Therefore, this opportunity to become the Deputy Minister of Defense was a great surprise to him.
But it was not until this moment that he realized that the opportunities and resources he had been pursuing were actually right beside him. Especially when Fang Lang suggested that someone recommend him to the President as the Minister of Defense, he realized that the relationship between Fang Lang and the President was much closer than he had expected.
Because he did not ask his cousin who is the president's secretary to recommend him, but asked someone else. The meaning behind this sentence is very intriguing.
Who would be the one who could recommend the Secretary of Defense to the President? How important would that be? Even the dumbest person could understand the difference, and Crook was clearly not a fool.
From this point of view, my trip today was indeed the right one, and it was worth it for me to protect Fang Lang and recommend him to take over my position. Now, hasn't this earned me a lot of goodwill?
Fortunately, I didn't ask the other party this question right away, but told him my support for him first. Now it seems that my support for him is not enough!
If I want to have the opportunity to become the Minister of Defense in the future, the first person I need to make friends with may be this subordinate.
However, although he was very tempted by Fang Lang's suggestion, he quickly shook his head and said:
...
...
“Don’t mess around, kid. We have already coordinated within the army. This is the best choice made by General Morais after balancing the interests of all parties.
If the new president disrupts the rhythm and really appoints me as Secretary of Defense, the military will be in chaos.
You also know that we, the officers from the Navy, are not very powerful in the Ministry of Defense. If the President forces the appointment and people from other branches of the military make things difficult for us, it will be difficult for me to truly control the real power of the Ministry of Defense.
By then, it will not only fail to help the President stabilize the military, but will have the opposite effect.”
General Crook's words were always based on the overall situation, and his meaning was very clear. It's not that I don't want to be Secretary of Defense, but now is not the right time.
Fang Lang was of course well aware of this. He smiled slightly, nodded to General Crook and said:
"No problem. I will definitely fully support you, General Crook. When you think it's appropriate, we will push it forward with all our strength. By then, it will be considered breaking the tradition of the Secretary of Defense always being from the Army.
A good start for our Navy."
After saying that, he looked at General Crook curiously and said:
"So who is Marshal Morais going to recommend to be the Minister of Defense this time?"
Of course, this question is now a secret among the top officials of the Ministry of Defense, but General Crook only hesitated for a moment and then spoke directly:
"Only a few people know about this matter now, so you must not spread it. Among the ministers of our three armed forces, except for General Nero Mora of the Air Force, who will remain in office, there will be changes in myself and General Humberto Olde, the Minister of the Army.
I serve as Deputy Minister of Defense, and General Humberto Olde is the new candidate for Minister of Defense, but the final candidate still needs to be confirmed by the new president.
Therefore, the current Chief of the General Staff of the Ministry of Defense is also one of the candidates, but considering that the Chief of the General Staff is President Dutra's confidant, there is almost no possibility that he will be retained.
If nothing unexpected happens, the final defense secretary will be General Humberto Olde."
Hearing this, Fang Lang was shocked. He didn't expect Marshal Moraes to be so good at playing games. The candidate he provided was almost the only option. Either choose the former president's confidant to serve as the new Minister of Defense, or choose the candidate nominated by the Ministry of Defense.
In this situation, it is easy to imagine what choices the new president will make.
However, Fang Lang only sighed and did not want to interfere too much. At the same time, he understood why General Crook was confident that he could hold the real power in the Ministry of National Defense.
This Minister of the Army, General Humberto Olde, if Fang Lang remembered correctly, was the former Minister of the Army who resigned after the army was defeated in the suppression of the Eddie brothers' anti-government armed forces.
The new Army Minister who was dragged here! I had some understanding of him at the beginning, and this guy's ability is average!
No wonder General Crook didn't take him seriously, but it must be said that this guy was quite successful in his career. The old minister was demoted to the lowest position, so he took advantage of the opportunity and became the Minister of the Army. He thought he would be replaced soon, but he didn't expect to stay in this position for so long.
Now, in order to balance the interests of the army, he has been nominated as the only candidate for Minister of Defense. I have to say that this guy is really lucky.
But according to the information Fang Lang had learned, it seemed that General Humberto Olde did not have any outstanding strength other than good luck.
During the years he served as the Minister of the Army, he was just like a Bodhisattva. The military leaders under him did not take him seriously. However, the forces under him were evenly matched and no one could defeat anyone. In the end, he became the new Minister of the Army, which allowed him to stay in this position for so long.
I just wonder if these people in the Army Department will fight for the position of Army Minister after he is transferred this time!
"So the Chief of General Staff is also going to be replaced. Who will be our new Chief of General Staff?"
Fang Lang certainly would not miss this rare opportunity to learn about the inside story of the top leadership of the Ministry of National Defense, so he opened his mouth and asked without hesitation.
Hearing this, General Crook shrugged his shoulders and shook his head helplessly:
"Marshal Morais originally wanted me to be the Chief of the General Staff, but the Army Department opposed this unanimously, citing my navy background and my lack of knowledge of land warfare as an excuse.
In the end, Marshal Morais could only appoint me as Deputy Minister of Defense. As for the candidate for Chief of the General Staff, as far as I know, it seems that it has not been decided yet. "
Fang Lang didn't say anything after hearing this, nor did he condemn from the Navy's perspective. After all, General Crook was about to become the Deputy Minister of Defense, in charge of the three armed forces. Who knew if he still liked to hear bad things about the Army?
He has already started thinking that he may have a chance to become the Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Defense. If he didn't know the situation of the Brazilian Ministry of Defense before, he might not be able to participate too much in the affairs of the Ministry of Defense.
But since he completely took control of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency, the situation of the Brazilian army has become completely transparent to him, and he has detailed files on officials at all levels in the army.
This file not only refers to the individual's resume and network of relationships, but even his negative information is recorded very completely, and a lot of it even has complete evidence.
As long as he wanted, he could send those people to prison at any time. This was also the reason why he was sure to completely control the navy. Even without the support of General Crook, no one could stop him from completely controlling the Brazilian navy.
Because he has leverage over anyone who might become an obstacle. In this case, he doesn't believe anyone dares to say no to him.
While thinking about the candidates who might have the chance to become the Chief of Staff, Fang Lang slowly said:
"So, this Chief of General Staff can only be chosen from the Army?"
Seeing Fang Lang's thoughtful expression, General Crook didn't think much about it and nodded.
"Well! It can be said that who makes the army the most powerful!"
After receiving a positive answer, Fang Lang's eyes turned and he couldn't help but look up at General Crook, who looked puzzled. Just as General Crook was about to ask Fang Lang what he was looking at, Fang Lang picked up the fairness cup in his hand and poured another cup of tea for Crook.
"Doesn't General Crook have any friends in the Army?"
Crook, who was originally confused, was shocked when he heard Fang Lang's words, and immediately fell into thought. Even though he was slow to react, he understood what Fang Lang meant at this time.
But after thinking for a while, I couldn't help but sigh.
"Alas! I do have a few friends in the Army, but their ranks and qualifications do not qualify them to run for Chief of the General Staff!"
Hearing this, Fang Lang couldn't help but raise his hand and touch his chin, then slowly said:
"General, what do you think of General Leta, the chief of general logistics, as the chief of the general staff?"
After hearing Fang Lang's proposal, General Crook couldn't help but fall into deep thought. It's not that he didn't know General Leta, but the other party was not from the same faction as him.
Moreover, Fang Lang had just proposed that someone from General Leta's faction be appointed as the Navy Minister. If General Leta were to become the Chief of the General Staff, the power of the logistics department might become too great, making it difficult to control them.
The opportunity to take control of the logistics department mentioned above may no longer exist.
Just as General Crook was lost in thought, Fang Lang seemed to know what was in General Crook's mind and spoke again:
"I believe you also know that most of the people in General Leta's faction are greedy for money. Although General Leta, the chief of logistics, has been covering up well, no one can catch him. This also allowed him to stay in the position of chief of logistics for so long.
But unfortunately, I happen to know some of his dirty laundry, including how he collected money and his accounts. If Your Excellency the General feels that he can control the other party, I can come forward to talk to him as a lobbyist.
I believe that he would be very unwilling to step down from the position of Chief of General Logistics now!"
Upon hearing this, General Crook looked at Fang Lang in disbelief. He was well aware that Fang Lang had secretly purchased several transport planes from the Americans, which had made the people in the General Logistics Department very dissatisfied.
Later, Fang Lang did solve the matter himself. Although no one knew what means he used to solve it, it seems that Fang Lang did have some leverage over General Leta.
This forced him to start thinking seriously about Fang Lang's proposal.
First of all, General Letta is an old-timer in the Brazilian army. He is not President Dutra’s man, so even if the president is replaced, he will not be purged.
Secondly, he was a logistics officer and might not be good at the work of the Chief of General Staff. If he could seize the power of the other party's Chief of General Staff through exchange of interests, his power would be no less than that of the Logistics Department.
Secondly, since Fang Lang has the other party's handle, it means that he can control the other party's lifeline. If the other party dares to disobey him, he can make him step down directly.
After thinking this through, General Crook couldn't help but look at Fang Lang with some surprise.
"Why are you helping me like this?"
Hearing General Crook's words, Fang Lang knew that the other party was moved, and said with a hearty smile:
"You are joking, General. I am not helping you. I am helping myself.
I have recommended General Leta to you as the Chief of the General Staff. General Leta, will you remember this favor? In the future, if I need any help within the scope of his General Staff, will he support me?
Plus, with you as the Deputy Minister of Defense as my supporter, my position in the Navy Department is as secure as a rock, isn't it?"
Seeing Fang Lang being so frank, General Crook couldn't help but burst into laughter after just a moment of thought.
"Haha...good boy, I really made the right decision to come here today. You are really my lucky star."
After laughing, he turned serious again and slowly said:
"Are you sure?"
As soon as these words came out, Fang Lang understood that General Crook agreed to his proposal, which made him feel ecstatic. Just as he said, if he had a deputy minister and a chief of staff as his backers in the Ministry of National Defense, his days in the navy would be really easier.
Even so, he couldn't pat his chest and assure General Crook that it would work, because if he did that, he might end up making things worse. If General Crook thought he was deliberately tricking him, he would be in trouble.
“I can’t say how confident I am, but as long as General Leta is still motivated, I don’t believe he will refuse to become the Chief of the General Staff of the Ministry of Defense.
Furthermore, if the forces on their side knew that he had the opportunity to become the Chief of the General Staff, I believe that whether he wanted to or not, their people would definitely push him to the position.”
Now, Crook really admired this young man Fang Lang.
His grasp of people's hearts was so accurate. These guys in the logistics department were not strong and did not dare to hope to become the Chief of the General Staff, but if they had his support and agreed to support General Leta to become the Chief of the General Staff.
This group of people will definitely support me with all their strength, even if General Leta doesn't want to come up.
Moreover, General Crook believed that General Leta himself would never be willing to be marginalized. Otherwise, why would he deliberately maintain his good image in the logistics department?
After figuring this out, General Crook looked at Fang Lang seriously and said:
"Time is very short. You have two days. If you can successfully convince the other party, we can meet here again in two days and let me talk to him face to face.
If we can't reach an agreement within two days, then this matter will be treated as non-existent.
Also, your conversation with him must be kept confidential and not known to outsiders. Do you understand me?"
Fang Lang was a very smart man. As soon as he heard this, he understood what General Crook meant. He didn't want outsiders to know so early that there might be an alliance between him and General Leta, which would definitely be detrimental to pushing General Leta to the position.
Because this will obviously further increase General Crook's voice in the Ministry of Defense, and by then, someone might jump out to stop it.
"Yes, General, please rest assured. I know my limits."
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