I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 925: Mercenaries

But Shire wasn’t planning to let them off so easily.

"Is it possible to implement this operational plan?" Shire asked seriously. "If not, should we discuss compensation for breach of contract?"

Not far away, Tijani, sipping coffee, was taken aback and coughed with a hint of laughter.

After sensing the murderous gaze of General Winter and Baker, he made an apologetic gesture and hastily left with his coffee.

It was clear he tried to maintain composure, but he couldn’t suppress a chuckle after turning away.

General Winter turned his gaze back to Shire, "Are you joking, Vice Admiral?"

"Do I look like I’m joking?" Shire retorted.

"In the military, we don’t joke, Major General. Do you know how much effort my army and I have put into this operational plan?"

"Targeted training, exercises, live ammunition firing, it’s wartime now, and these are all precious resources."

"But now you’re telling me that you can’t cooperate with my operation? Was all my effort in vain? What about my losses?"

Shire spoke convincingly, leaving Baker and Major General Winter dumbfounded.

Baker, although a seasoned political diplomat, had never encountered someone like Shire who could turn black to white and present it so "logically and persuasively" that no one could refute.

He could only turn his pleading gaze to General Winter, who was friends with Shire, hoping he could handle it.

General Winter remained silent for a moment, realizing that reasoning with Shire was futile.

Although Shire was lying, to debunk this lie, the Anglo-American forces would first need the strength to carry out the feint operation.

If the Anglo-Americans didn’t have the strength for a battle, they would have to let Shire’s arrogance go unchecked.

"Very well, Vice Admiral." General Winter suppressed his rage, "Now, I want to know if France’s commitment to participate in the attack still holds."

As long as the French Army participated in the attack, the Allies could break through the Hindenburg Line and defeat Germany, which was the most important thing.

"Of course." Shire put on an innocent look, "I am the one keeping promises, Major General, you have no reason to doubt me."

General Winter was so angry he could gnash his teeth, now it seemed we were the ones not keeping promises?

"Then." General Winter waved the plan in his hand, "Modify this plan to change the Anglo-American feint to an Anglo-American-French joint operation."

Baker’s eyes lit up, secretly applauding this move.

A good idea, the Anglo-American forces couldn’t organize such a large-scale feint, but with the French Army added, the operation could be successfully executed.

Let’s see how Shire would respond!

"Good idea." Shire gave a thumbs-up, "A credit to the Minister of Military Supplies’ protégé."

But then he shifted the tone, asking, "How many French troops do you need to cooperate?"

After a discussion between Major General Winter and Baker, comparing the 1 million troops needed for the feint in the attack plan, they quickly arrived at a conclusion.

"Approximately need two armies, 500,000 men." General Winter said.

Having the French Army involved was definitely a good thing.

Perhaps because of their affinity for France, the Anglo-American military had developed a superstition about the French Army, believing that any campaign involving French troops would be victorious, boosting confidence and morale.

And this was precisely what the Anglo-American forces needed.

"Hmm." Shire nodded,

"Two armies, 500,000 men, counting equipment, supplies, personnel employment, and compensation."

"A rough estimate would require 1 billion US Dollars."

"The United States to bear half, 500 million, as for the UK to bear the other half..."

General Winter was stunned by Shire’s words, "You mean to convert these 500,000 troops into money?"

"Of course." Shire replied, "These are the additional troops we’re sending, and that’s 500,000 troops, Major General. Do you think they can fight for you for free?"

"But we are allies." General Winter’s eyes showed anger, "That was what you promised us for joining the war..."

"Major General." Shire interrupted General Winter,

"France has already fulfilled its ally obligations, continuing the war has no benefit to France, what I promised was to cooperate with the Anglo-American attack, not the Anglo-American forces cooperating with the French Army attack."

"The French Army’s 500,000 infantry, plus the heavy armored army, can independently defeat the Germans without needing the Anglo-American forces."

"I think you know the difference between these two scenarios, right?"

General Winter was left speechless, Baker was also stunned.

Shire continued,

"So, I can only calculate it as mercenary work."

"I believe both the parliament and French officers would support this approach."

"It’s a fair price, 500,000 well-trained, fully armed soldiers, for only 1 billion dollars, they can even help you defeat a nation."

Germany’s total reparations after World War I reached as high as 33 billion US Dollars, and were not fully paid off until 2010.

Shire was being kind enough to shave off a few billion from that amount.

Baker couldn’t help but interject, "This is extortion, this is forcing us to accept!"

Shire replied without hesitation, "It’s a free market, Minister. If you think it’s extortion, you are free not to buy."

General Winter looked at Shire with a stern face, speechless.

Shire responded with a helpless expression, "Although I want to help you, the army doesn’t belong to me, I can’t make decisions on my own."

General Winter nodded gently, turning his gaze to Baker.

Baker took General Winter aside, angrily asking, "Are you really planning to agree to his terms?"

"Otherwise?" General Winter retorted, "Do you have a better option?"

This question left Baker speechless, the war was stalled at the frontline, and the Anglo-American forces were even at risk.

The morale and combat effectiveness of both armies had been affected to varying degrees, and if the Germans launched a large-scale counterattack at this time, the Anglo-American forces could be routed.

This issue was especially apparent for the US Army, as they were new recruits, making them more prone to collapse; the issue of soldier casualties was also more prominent.

After considering for a while, Baker raised a concern, "How can we ensure that after paying these costs, he will definitely participate in the attack? He might find another excuse."

"What other excuse?" General Winter asked, "Our forces are nearly unable to fight, what other excuse could he find next?"

Baker thought for a moment and agreed, the situation had already hit rock bottom.

"Then." Baker nodded helplessly, "We should consult with our superiors and let them make the decision."

General Winter responded with a hum, turning back and raising his voice to ask Shire, "The UK doesn’t have that much money, we can provide you with more detailed aircraft carrier data..."

"I no longer need that data, Major General." Shire crossed his legs, "Besides, it’s not worth 500 million."

"Then what do you want?" General Winter asked.

Shire handed General Winter a file, "Look at this."

General Winter took the file and saw it was an application for Malta to join the International League.

"Malta is a British colony," Shire said, "We can’t decide to approve its membership."

Then General Winter understood, Shire wanted control over Malta.