Chapter 263 Naval Technical Advisor

Charles did not interfere much in the formation of a new party, nor was it convenient to interfere too much, as long as the party was based on him and would support him in the future.

After this matter was over, Charles turned his attention back to the tank.

He told Estiny not to tell anyone about the "tank development direction", including the military.

Estiny was puzzled at first: "But Colonel, if you don't tell the military, won't the military develop in the wrong direction?"

But then Estiny understood that Charles did not want competitors like Schneider to know the tank development direction and get ahead.

After weighing it for a moment, Estiny nodded in agreement.

After all, it was the Charles Tractor Factory that produced tanks for France. As long as Charles and Estiny knew the development direction, France would not go in the wrong direction.

What Estiny didn't know was that he was "judging others by one's own standards" by thinking this way.

...

The next day, the first thing Charles did when he returned to the city defense headquarters was to make a request to Gallieni.

"General." Charles said seriously, "I hope to transfer a technical consultant from the naval shipyard to assist us in our work."

"Shipyard?" Gallieni looked at Charles with a strange expression: "You don't want to build warships?"

"No, General." Charles replied: "In fact, I want to build tanks. You should know that I have two tanks."

Galieni said "hmm", one "Mark I" and one "Charler A1".

"But..." Gallieni was puzzled: "Isn't the 'Mark I' tank going to be eliminated?"

"No, General." Charles answered with certainty: "On the contrary, it is not only not eliminated, we will further upgrade it."

"Upgrade?" Gallieni looked confused: "Will we still use the 'Mark I' in the future?"

"Of course." Charles explained seriously: "These two tanks have their own strengths: the 'Charter A1' is fast and maneuverable, but the armor is thin and there is no extra space for large-caliber artillery. Although the 'Mark I' is slow and logistically difficult, it can be equipped with thicker armor and may be equipped with large-caliber artillery, which is beneficial for attacking or destroying enemy bunkers."

Galieni believed it immediately, after all, what Charles said seemed to make sense.

But after a moment of hesitation, Gallieni asked again: "What does this have to do with the technical consultant of the shipyard?"

"We are going to make the 'Mark I' bigger, General." Charles explained: "Its size and weight may be several times larger than the current 'Mark I', which will make it more like a ship, including counterweights and force problems in various parts of the body, etc., which are similar to shipbuilding."

Galieni said "Oh", and then responded very straightforwardly: "I will contact the shipyard immediately..."

"No, General." Charles interrupted Gallieni and reminded: "For confidentiality reasons, this technical consultant is best to be a military person!"

Galieni thought it made sense and nodded: "No problem, I will notify the Navy Department to send someone."

After that, Charles let the matter develop.

He didn't really want to upgrade the "Mark I".

France already has a tank with a turret like the "Charle A1". If it is to be upgraded, it is the "Charle A1". Upgrading the "Mark I" is redundant.

But Colonel Estiny reminded Charles.

To be precise, it was Schneider's "light tank" that reminded Charles: If Schneider would develop a light tank because of the "Charr A1", would the Germans have similar ideas?

The Germans had sufficient reasons to develop light tanks:

The A7V, which they developed at great expense, was equipped with cannons and machine guns and required 18 people to operate, but was beaten to a pulp by a small tank operated by 2 people.

More importantly, Germany was the enemy of France, and they did not have any problems with "industrial property rights".

So what are you waiting for? Of course, you should copy the "Charr A1"!

Germany is obviously more terrifying than Schneider: they have a stronger industrial base, more and more comprehensive talent reserves, and more reliable research directions, and even the A7V has already used suspension.

And what Germany developed is still used on the battlefield, and it will have a life-and-death duel with the "Charr A1".

Therefore, whether in public or private, Charles needs to dig a "pit" for the Germans to jump into.

The most reliable "pit" is undoubtedly the "super-heavy tank".

The Germans seemed to have a certain obsession with "super-heavy", such as the "Big Bertha", and later the "Paris Cannon", and the "Gustav" cannon during World War II. In terms of tanks, the Germans were able to develop the "Maus" even during World War II.

Considering this aspect, Charles believed that it was not difficult to lead the Germans' tank development direction to "super-heavy", but the difficulty was how to convey the information to the Germans without leaving any traces.

Charles thought of the spy Harry.

He also thought of the Minister of the Navy.

If someone could be transferred from the Navy Department, could the development information of this "super-heavy tank" be conveyed to the Germans through them?

So there was a request to Gallieni.

Charles was not sure whether he could succeed, "Man proposes, God disposes", so he just waited and saw what tanks Germany would send to the battlefield.

In fact, Gallieni had doubts about Charles' request.

He knew the relationship between Charles and Wells. Not long ago, Charles had saved Wells' son Tijani. Wells enjoyed privileges in the navy. It was only a matter of words to transfer someone through Wells. Now he had to go through him to contact the Navy Department.

However, this thought only flashed through Gallieni's mind.

He simply thought that Charles did this to keep a distance from Wells.

...

Soon, Charles found that things did not seem as simple as he thought.

That afternoon, Charles was surprised to find Tijani running in front of him.

Tijani was panting, as if he had run all the way upstairs. He said cheerfully: "Report to you, Colonel!"

"What are you doing here?" Charles asked in confusion.

Then he looked at the guards strangely. They should not let Tijani in.

Since the "rectification" of the headquarters, "idle people" are not allowed to enter and leave the headquarters at will, including officers.

Tijani smiled slightly, took out a document and handed it to Charles: "This is a transfer order, Colonel! Don't you need a naval technical consultant? It's an honor to serve you!"

"You, are the technical consultant sent by the Navy?" Charles looked at Tijani with difficulty.

This guy must have "fought" for this position through connections, otherwise a naval technical consultant would never send a major general of the army.

Tijani admitted it generously, he spread his hands: "Don't underestimate me, Colonel, I may be a comprehensive technical consultant."

Then he added: "No matter what the problem is, I can find someone to help you solve it!"