I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France-Chapter 930: A Stratagem to Stall for Time

Just as William II was contemplating how to solve this issue, a phantom-like car light swept past the window, resembling a ghost silently crawling onto the roof of Sanssouci Palace, attempting to cast a spell to control William II.

The sound of brakes came, and a car stopped outside the door.

Here he comes, William II sighed inwardly.

The German Army was in Hindenburg’s hands, and he decided whether to ceasefire or start the battle.

William II thought Hindenburg would choose the latter because the changes on the Eastern Front greatly increased the German Army’s chances of victory.

Sure enough, he heard Hindenburg’s hurried footsteps, followed by his loud, vigorous shout, "Good news, Your Majesty, we have achieved victory on the Eastern Front, and it could be decisive!"

Hindenburg spiritedly walked into the living room, his military boots thumping against the floor, and saluted William II with extraordinary vigor.

"You have received the news from the Eastern Front too, Your Majesty?"

William II nodded weakly, "Yes."

"We can pull back at least 600,000 troops from the Eastern Front," Hindenburg waved his hand as if commanding his army, "and a large batch of artillery, tanks, cars, and domestic supplies can be redirected to the Western Front!"

(Note: Around 1917, the German Army had approximately 900,000 troops on both fronts.)

William II asked, "So, you think you can defeat Shire?"

"Of course." Hindenburg confidently replied, "But I won’t attack the Western Front immediately!"

William II exclaimed, "Oh, you wish to defeat Russia first?"

If Russia, in its internal chaos, could be swiftly defeated, it would eliminate one of Germany’s major worries.

"No, Your Majesty." Hindenburg smiled and shook his head, his gaze at William II carrying a hint of mockery:

"I will not attack Russia."

"Most people think like you do, that with Russia in chaos, we should seize the opportunity to defeat it completely."

"But..."

Hindenburg pointed his finger into the void:

"They haven’t thought that we should let Russia remain in chaos."

"Attacking Russia now might unite the Russians against us."

"Just think, that’s 6 million troops, we even lack the ammunition to kill them all!"

(Note: In 1917, Russia’s nominal military force was around 7 million, but only 1.5 to 2 million were on the front lines, and many soldiers refused to fight.)

William II felt his dignity was challenged, as Hindenburg bluntly contradicted him without leaving any face.

But he could only forcefully suppress his anger and put on an appreciative look, "Quite right, Chief of the General Staff. So, where do we attack first?"

Hindenburg, full of spirit, answered:

"Romania, and Italy."

"Increasing troops in these two directions to completely defeat them and prepare for the Western Front offensive."

"We can obtain oil and food from Romania, military factories and equipment from Italy."

In recent years, Italy has increased its investment in military industries in preparation for war, establishing a good number of military factories.

William II, with a test in mind, asked, "Then, the negotiations with Shire we mentioned before..."

"You can continue to seek an armistice with Shire, Your Majesty," Hindenburg slightly bowed to William II, "You know, I might need time to resolve the issues of Romania and Italy."

William II was suddenly enlightened.

Hindenburg used him as a guise, saying he was negotiating an armistice with Shire as a delay tactic, ready to turn hostile after defeating Romania and Italy.

"Shire won’t be fooled." William II said.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty," Hindenburg replied, "I will also reinforce the Western Front in preparation, even if Shire isn’t deceived, I can still hold off his attack!"

Finally, Hindenburg added, "Shire can only wait, because he also cannot break through the Hindenburg Line!"

...

At the Metz command center, a steady spring rain was falling, with the river outside the city swelling from the combined rain and snowmelt, surpassing the warning level and nearly flooding into the city.

Yet no one paid much attention to it, as it seemed trivial compared to the recent sudden shifts in the international situation.

The faces of the military and civilians showed disappointment and regret.

It’s not about Shire; everyone believes Shire has done his best, almost perfectly.

But man proposes, God disposes—no one would have expected Russia to collapse at this time.

"What a pity, the Germans were about to surrender."

"Not surrender, but armistice negotiations."

"No difference, the war might have ended due to Shire’s compassion, but now the Germans have gained an advantage again."

...

This was what Shire was pleased to see, having the military and civilians switch from "ceasefire preparations" to "war preparations."

Simultaneously, it perfectly completed the previous lie: it’s not that I refuse to ceasefire, but the Germans have renewed their wolfish ambitions, and I must take action again to subdue them!

Tijani, holding a newspaper, looked bewildered.

No matter how much he racked his brains, he couldn’t imagine it would be resolved like this.

He carried his coffee over to where Shire was inspecting the paratroopers’ training, stirring with a coffee spoon, and asked, "I’m curious; how did you know this would happen in Russia?"

Shire was already prepared with an answer, replying without lifting his head, "Intelligence, Major General, as long as you have enough intelligence, you can foresee the future."

In fact, Shire completely relied on "foreseeing the future."

Tijani believed it, since Shire indeed had a mysterious intelligence organization more efficient than Bureau Two.

"So, what do we do next?" Tijani asked, "Fight a battle with the Germans?"

This might not seem appropriate as the Germans are still speaking of "ceasefire," at least on the surface.

"Wait," Shire replied.

"Wait for what?" Tijani was puzzled.

At that moment, a staff officer brought Shire a telegram, "General, the Queen of Romania sent a telegram; the Germans are amassing troops on the battle line."

Shire took the telegram and saw it contained some rather sweet words from the Queen, "Dear Vice Admiral," "I know you won’t abandon me," "I am your most steadfast supporter and admirer."

Shire felt a bit embarrassed, afraid Tijani would see it, and casually crumpled it into a ball.

Soon, another staff officer delivered another telegram, "General, Italian Chief of Staff General Cadorna sent a telegram; the Germans are increasing their forces at the Piave River, General Cadorna is certain they will forcibly cross the river."

Tijani glanced at the map:

"Increasing forces in both the Italy and Romania directions?"

"If they relieve the pressure from these two directions, the resources the Germans could obtain are another story."

"The only thing left would be the Western Front!"

Shire affirmed, "That’s what I’m waiting for."

It’s time for the "International League" to play its role, Shire needed a victory to establish the "International League’s" prestige!