CHAPTER 396: CHAPTER 396: SHIRE’S BIRTHDAY

"Artillery?" Tijani chuckled, "What a joke, it’s clearly a tank..."

Before he finished speaking, Tijani understood Shire’s intention, and the smile froze on his face.

If it’s not suitable to be used as a tank, why not use it as artillery?

Shire continued, "The artillery can follow behind the troops, General, with a range of 8 kilometers. That means it can advance 8 kilometers behind the offensive line."

Tijani nodded slowly, "In this way, its poor mobility will not become a big problem."

Only when the Saint Chamond charges like a tank will it get stuck in a small crater. If it advances from 8 kilometers behind, there will be plenty of time to avoid it.

Shire nodded and added, "We can also remove its machine guns."

Tijani exclaimed, "Removing four machine guns and four gunners would not only reduce weight but also free up a lot of space!"

"Yes, General," said Shire, "Stop fixating on its flaws and think about the advantages of using it as artillery!"

With Shire’s reminder, Tijani really began to compare the Saint Chamond with artillery.

The comparison quickly yielded results, and Tijani gazed at Shire in a daze, saying in an uncertain tone:

"The Saint Chamond is self-propelled and doesn’t need to frequently set up or dismantle its artillery, which means it can transfer more swiftly."

Shire nodded, "The Saint Chamond can fire on the move; for artillery soldiers, this means ’safety.’

"It has armor, so even if shells explode nearby, it’s hard to harm the crew."

Shire agreed.

Artillery accuracy in this era was not high, especially for long-range artillery beyond visual range. Direct hits were rare, relying mainly on shrapnel or blast wounds, and the Saint Chamond’s armor could block most dangers.

"It can also carry more shells, providing continuous and stable fire support for allies."

This was determined by the internal space and load capacity of the Saint Chamond.

Finally, Shire concluded, "We have always been at a disadvantage in artillery, General. The Germans’ 105mm artillery holds a decisive numerical advantage, which we cannot change in the short term. So..."

"So we need this armored artillery," Tijani suddenly realized, "Although its range and power are not as good as the Germans’ 105mm artillery, it can potentially defeat it. Because the Saint Chamond has armor and speed advantages, as long as it isn’t directly hit by enemy artillery, it has a chance to approach the Germans’ 105mm artillery."

Shire was somewhat surprised that Tijani could understand the Saint Chamond’s advantages so quickly. He originally thought Tijani, a wealthy young man, wouldn’t be dedicated to improving his professional abilities. Now it seemed Tijani was indeed sincere about his "Art of War."

Looking at the thoughtful Tijani, Shire asked, "Now, do you still plan to swap the Shire A1 for the Saint Chamond?"

Tijani smiled awkwardly and replied, "You’re right, no swap."

Although Tijani still wasn’t sure if it was feasible, it was worth trying a new tactic, and Tijani never rejected new tactics.

But Tijani added, "Brigadier, should we also supplement some more Shire A1s?"

Shire looked at Tijani incredulously.

He didn’t look like it—this guy had a bit of the British Secretary of State for Defense’s demeanor. Was he the Minister’s long-lost illegitimate son?

...

June 12th was Shire’s birthday.

As an active-duty brigadier, he shouldn’t have a birthday, let alone a holiday.

Every soldier in the unit has a birthday; if everyone took the day off on their birthday, the unit would be in chaos.

But Gallieni specially approved Shire’s leave in the afternoon.

"There’s no other reason, Brigadier," Gallieni explained, "It has nothing to do with your birthday; it’s because you brought Italy into the Allies. This is a remarkable achievement. They even gave you a medal. Pick it up when you pass by the headquarters."

"Yes, General," Shire replied.

He was somewhat surprised. How did the old man know about his birthday? Although it could be found in the data, Gallieni had tens of thousands of subordinates and was probably already numb to the "birthday" number!

The medal was a War Merit Cross, just established two months ago. Only ten people had received it so far, and Shire was fortunate to be one of them.

(The above picture shows the French War Merit Cross from World War I, awarded to individuals or teams for bravery in combat. If a team received the medal, it would be awarded to the unit’s commander.)

Brownie was the 11th recipient of the medal, receiving it as the commander of the 1st Tank Brigade, in recognition of the unit’s outstanding performance at Combray.

Shire casually put the medal in his pocket and got into a car back to Davaz. In his eyes, a medal was perhaps worth less than a day’s leave.

...

When Shire arrived home, it was just getting dark. The town’s lights were starting to flicker on, the hustle and bustle gradually fading, with only the occasional sound of dogs barking in the distance.

Due to a prior phone call, Camille had already prepared a table of dishes, baked a cake, and prepared candles. Dejoka had also returned early.

But the focus was not on these.

There were two additional people at the dinner table, a middle-aged woman, and, who seemed to be her daughter.

Shire cast a questioning glance at Dejoka, who shrugged and sneaked a glance at Camille, bringing dishes out of the kitchen.

Then Shire understood, it was Camille’s idea.

"This is Eliza." Camille introduced with a plate of baked snails, smiling, "She is Aunt Lina’s daughter. You must have met before."

Snails were a dish Shire was rather averse to, so Camille rarely prepared them. Today was special for their guest.

"Hello, Shire." Eliza greeted him gracefully, standing to shake his hand, "You might not remember, we were middle school classmates."

"Were we?" Shire indeed didn’t remember.

This young woman wasn’t nervous at all facing him in military uniform, which bore brigadier stars, two stars.

She definitely didn’t recognize them, Shire thought.

"Of course." Eliza laughed heartily, "You were 14 at the time, and Mr. Louis always made you stand as punishment."

Mr. Louis was Shire’s math teacher, who always disciplined students who didn’t complete their homework in this way.

Camille widened her eyes at Shire, "How come I never heard about this?"

Shire looked resigned, "Mom, this was my last secret!"

The table instantly burst into laughter.

Shire glanced awkwardly at Eliza.

He thought of Lucia. Many in Paris knew she was Shire’s "girlfriend," but it was clear the news hadn’t reached Davaz Town.