CHAPTER 544: AFTER MODIFICATION: CHAPTER 544 WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE LOAN?

Namur Castle, Shire was discussing the battle plan for Leuven with Tijani over the map.

Once Namur was taken, Leuven would be surrounded on three sides by the French Army, with Shire’s armored units, mechanized units, and air force, in conjunction with the Belgian First Special Reconnaissance Army, capturing Leuven would be just around the corner.

In fact, it was not about whether they could take it, but how many German Army they could surround and capture.

This was one of the reasons why Shire insisted on the difficult attack on Namur despite knowing its terrain was unsuitable for tank warfare.

This tactic in Go is known as "eating," which is a highly efficient move.

If the German Army commanders were smart enough, they should voluntarily abandon Leuven and shrink their defenses.

(In the above image, circled in red from top to bottom, are Antwerp, the capital Brussels, and Namur. Leuven is right in the middle of the three, in a state of being surrounded and pinched. If the protagonist attacked Leuven first instead of Namur, Leuven would be even harder to take due to other reinforcements, and eventually, they would still have to face the "problem" of Namur.)

Tijani looked at the map and smiled, "Once we take Leuven, the British will once again be relegated to the second line."

To the northeast of Antwerp lies the neutral country of Holland.

Once Leuven is secured, Antwerp will be basically in a "corner" without facing the enemy.

Shire smiled lightly, "Is Leuven all you see, General?"

"What do you mean?" Tijani asked, puzzled. He glanced at Shire and then turned his gaze back to the map, "Is there a better direction to attack than Leuven?"

He pondered for a moment, then showed a look of surprise as his gaze shifted to the important town of Liege Fortress, "You wouldn’t, plan to attack Liege Fortress directly, would you?"

"No." Shire shook his head, "Liege Fortress is full of castles and complex terrain, it’s almost impossible to capture in a short time."

The Germans had even repaired the forts there, and the large-caliber artillery within the forts posed a significant threat to any attacking unit, including Shire’s armored units.

"What do you mean then..."

Shire pointed to a spot on the map, "Hasselt, General, we can avoid the defensive circle of Liege Fortress."

(Note: Hasselt is "Hasselt" on the map)

Tijani was momentarily stunned when he found the position on the map, "Hasselt? It’s impossible to surround..."

In the next second, he figured it out and looked at Shire with a face full of shock, "You mean, use the Dutch border to surround the Germans?"

Shire nodded.

At this moment, the German Army around Leuven was roughly in a triangular area, with the French Army from Antwerp to Namur forming the southern defense line, the Dutch border to the north, and only Liege Fortress to the east as an exit.

Once the French Army pierced through to Hasselt, they would block this exit, and then tens of thousands of German Army would be surrounded again.

However, this plan had a flaw. For their self-preservation, Holland was likely to allow the surrounded German Army to cross the border.

This problem needed to be resolved before the attack commenced.

At this moment, a signal soldier brought a telegram, "General, We have achieved a decisive victory at the River Somme."

Tijani took the telegram and, after reading it, let out a disdainful "Ha," and handed the telegram to Shire with a look of contempt, "40,000 casualties to advance one kilometer on a plain, and they call this a ’decisive’ victory?"

Shire glanced at the telegram and also found it hard to understand, "Perhaps what he means is that since they won the first time using this tactic, they can win again the same way the second time?"

Tijani laughed,

"I thought the same."

"They always think the Germans will stick to their old tactics."

"40,000 casualties in one day! And they call this a victory?"

A look of anguish crossed his face.

Following Shire for so long, Tijani had only seen minor casualties of hundreds, with casualties of over a thousand only occurring in the battle when they were surrounded by the enemy at the Dardanelles Strait.

Therefore, it was hard for him to imagine what a scene of 40,000 casualties in one day would look like.

At this moment, another piece of intelligence was brought up, "General, the Germans have proposed ’peace talks’.

Tijani hurriedly snatched up the telegram. After reading it, his eyes sparkled with excitement, "There are going to be negotiations! Major General, the war is going to end!"

"Don’t get your hopes up too high." A trace of helplessness flashed in Shire’s eyes.

"I don’t think so." Tijani said excitedly, "As long as someone is willing to negotiate, reaching an agreement is just a matter of time. At the very least, the intensity of the war will greatly reduce."

After all, when people know negotiations are underway and are looking forward to the day an agreement is reached, there will be few who are truly willing to risk their lives.

"You’re thinking too much." Shire leaned back in his chair, "You’re overlooking the Americans."

"The Americans?" Tijani looked at Shire puzzled, "What do they have to do with this? They aren’t even in the war!"

Shire shook his head slightly and, while signing a document, replied, "The Americans have given a lot of loans to the British, General."

The British had received all materials from the United States using a "robbing Peter to pay Paul" method: borrowing money from the American government, and then using the loans to buy American supplies, including a large number of bullets and shells.

(Note: 40% of the ammunition used by the Allies came from the United States, and final loan amounts exceeded 10 billion US Dollars.)

However, Tijani still didn’t understand, and he looked at Shire with a face full of confusion.

Shire could only add, "Think about it, General. If there is peace now, who do you think will foot the bill for these loans, the British? The Germans? Or the French?"

Tijani began to ponder.

It definitely wouldn’t be the French; this had nothing to do with them.

The Germans wouldn’t either, since they hadn’t been defeated and were negotiating for peace from a position of strength.

Logically, it should be the British who took out the loans and directly benefited from them.

However, the British, besieged by the Germans, were so impoverished that they couldn’t possibly repay the loans.

Most importantly, the British were the world’s foremost power. Although they were in decline, they still held significant influence and possessed numerous colonial armies. Even if they defaulted, what could the United States do? Would they go to war with Britain?

Thinking of this, Tijani suddenly realized,

"If there is ’peace’ now, no one would take responsibility for these loans, and they would become bad debts."

"So the Americans hope that this war continues."

"Only...only by ultimately defeating Germany and obtaining a large amount of reparation from them could they possibly cover these loans."

Shire nodded,

"Correct, General."

"Therefore, the American financial consortiums will use their control over materials to influence British and French public opinion as much as possible."

"They will make everyone believe that these so-called ’negotiations’ are just a German ploy, a delaying tactic."

Tijani felt as if he had fallen into an icehouse, the little hope he had just seen was extinguished in an instant.

Indeed, the Americans could easily do what Shire described!