CHAPTER 560: AFTER MODIFICATION: CHAPTER 560 IT SEEMS I CHOSE THE RIGHT PERSON

Paris Government Building, third floor, Military Research Center.

A few assistants were feigning busyness amidst a pile of documents and materials. Fuxu sat at his desk, idly twirling a pencil in his hand, with a blank notebook in front of him.

He was organizing his words to "slander" Shire, so that everyone would think Fuxu was Shire’s "enemy."

However, Shire was nearly perfect.

In the recent battle, no one could have imagined he would use the River Somme to flank the German Army, ultimately achieving results with over a thousand casualties that the British and French Allies couldn’t achieve with tens of thousands of losses.

This made it impossible for Fuxu to say anything bad about him or find any faults.

Not strategic enough?

If this wasn’t perfect, what could be considered perfect!

Didn’t pursue the victory?

That was decided by the frontline mutiny; the soldiers needed time to rest and recuperate.

If there was any flaw, it was that he infuriated the British and thwarted their intentions to infiltrate and control the French Army.

A slight smile appeared unconsciously on Fuxu’s face.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Without waiting for Fuxu’s response, Clemenceau appeared at the door, holding a cane in one hand and a briefcase in the other, he calmly asked, "General, can we talk alone?"

"Of course." Fuxu rose to greet him, gesturing for the dilatory assistants to leave the room.

Once the irrelevant people were gone, Clemenceau closed the door, stepped forward and shook Fuxu’s hand: "Congratulations, General. I am here on behalf of the Parliament to inform you, you are now..."

Clemenceau took out the appointment from his bag and handed it to Fuxu: "You are now the Commander-in-Chief of the French Army, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Allies."

Fuxu’s eyes lit up, joy seemed to leap out of him, and he exuded a glowing radiance.

"Is that so?" Fuxu took the appointment excitedly: "Thank you very much, Your Excellency. This is such a surprise!"

In fact, Fuxu was not surprised at all.

Fuxu had, as Shire suggested, had contact with the British, although he was reluctant.

The Parliament had delayed the appointment until now because the British were waiting for the results of the Battle of the Somme.

If Shire had lost the Battle of the Somme, the British would have had a pretext to infiltrate the French military-political system under the guise of "deep cooperation."

At that point, they would have preferred the more controllable Petain as commander, even though they knew Petain supported Shire.

But now Shire had won, and it was a significant victory.

This stabilized the front, the army, and the French political situation, leaving no gap for the British to exploit.

So they had to, as before, erect an opponent for Shire within the French army: Fuxu.

This was another victory for Shire on a different battlefield, Fuxu thought, as Shire had played both the British and Parliament brilliantly.

Clemenceau remained calm. He wasn’t here just for this, otherwise, there would be no need for a "private talk."

Fuxu also understood this, inviting Clemenceau to sit on the sofa, and he made a cup of coffee for him.

Even after becoming Commander-in-Chief, Fuxu didn’t dare offend those who wielded power in Parliament.

Clemenceau accepted the coffee with a thank you, added a sugar cube and stirred it lightly, speaking casually but testingly: "You know, despite Shire’s repeated military achievements, many believe that he is too young to command an army of hundreds of thousands. What are your thoughts on this?"

It sounded like a simple statement but had deeper implications.

The underlying meaning was:

Shire is too powerful, and Parliament fears it can’t control him. Commanding two thousand troops is one thing, but having tens of thousands under his command makes Parliament uneasy. Now that the frontline mutiny is under preliminary control, it’s time to remove Shire from his Group Army command!

Long accustomed to political maneuvering, Fuxu of course understood the implication. He hesitated briefly, appearing to consider the question, and then responded:

"Your Excellency, I believe the key issue isn’t Shire’s age but his good reputation."

"He has just won a victory, a glorious victory."

"This is crucial for maintaining morale at the front. Especially now, we cannot act hastily."

This was a reminder to Clemenceau: Don’t dismantle the bridge too quickly after crossing it, the frontline mutiny has just stabilized, now removing Shire precipitously might provoke backlash.

Clemenceau nodded slightly, sharing this concern.

He took a sip of his coffee, looking worried but his tone remained calm:

"I also heard that soldiers from other units voluntarily joined the 6th Group Army at the River Somme."

"We commend the soldiers for their bravery."

"But we must also understand that soldiers should remain at their posts, otherwise gaps will inevitably appear in the defenses!"

What he was truly concerned about wasn’t the 6th Group Army or potential gaps in the defense, but the growing number of soldiers strengthening Shire’s forces under his banner.

And this was almost inevitable. If the 6th Group Army continued to fight at the River Somme and Shire managed to maintain low casualties, his forces would continue to grow.

"Of course, Your Excellency." Fuxu was confident in this: "I will handle this matter appropriately."

After a pause, Fuxu added: "Perhaps redeploying the 6th Group Army to Belgium would be a better option."

As he spoke, Fuxu carefully observed Clemenceau’s reaction.

Clemenceau responded with a thoughtful "Hmm," indeed it was a good idea.

Compared to other defensive lines, Belgium was a "isolated" place, mostly surrounded by Belgian civilians and the British Army.

"It can be considered." Clemenceau nodded slowly.

Fuxu’s lip twitched slightly. These officials, who only knew how to strategize from their offices, didn’t understand warfare. They only thought about how to prevent Shire from growing his forces, without realizing that this move would actually consolidate Shire’s position in Belgium. Even the British would be unable to shake him.

Evidently, Clemenceau hadn’t considered this point. Perhaps he thought Belgium was insignificant and didn’t believe Shire could cause any substantial trouble there.

Clemenceau was even quite pleased with Fuxu’s suggestion, his eyes showing some appreciation. It seemed he had made the right choice; Fuxu would indeed be a formidable opponent for Shire.

"There’s one more issue." Clemenceau placed his coffee cup on the table: "We hope that once you take office, you can thoroughly resolve the mutiny. Parliament does not wish to see such incidents again."

The other aspect of the mutiny was the lower military and civilian classes pressuring Parliament’s decisions, which Parliament did not want to happen, fearing it would undermine their control over the country.

"I understand, Your Excellency," Fuxu replied.

At the same time, he sighed inwardly, recognizing that Parliament was eager to begin the purge of the mutineers, which would undoubtedly stir up another storm within the military.