Shire received the news from Fuxu.

It wasn't Wei Gang who sent it; it was an official telegram sent openly by Fuxu to Shire, heavily laden with formal language:

"Given that part of our army's ammunition comes from Britain, it has been decided that the supply of troops stationed in the Belgian defense zone will be handed over to the British."

On the surface, there seems to be nothing unreasonable about this.

England and France are Allies, so it's normal to provide supplies to allied troops.

Additionally, the materials transported from the United States are landed in Antwerp and then forwarded to the Belgian front line, following the principle of proximity.

However, it's clear to those with insight that there is a major problem within this arrangement.

When Tijani saw the telegram, he exclaimed, "Ha! This is fantastic, Parliament has handed us over to the British, and they now hold our life and death power!"

"Whatever the British want us to do in the future, we'll have to do."

"Otherwise, we will starve and freeze or hold rifles without bullets against the Germans!"

Shire ignored him, continuing to read the newspaper.

A passenger ship "Lusitania" full of British and American tourists was sunk by a German submarine, and 1,198 passengers and crew sank into the sea, including at least 124 American passengers.

(The picture above is the "Lusitania" passenger ship, which was called the ship that changed the history of World War I because the United States used its sinking as an excuse to join the war a year later)

This event stirred up a storm of public opinion in Britain, the United States, and Germany. Britain and the United States strongly condemned Germany for sinking a civilian ship, calling it murder and piracy.

Germany argued that the ship carried a large amount of military supplies, which explained why it sank in just 18 minutes after being torpedoed, an unusual occurrence, and declared that it had become a tool of war, no longer a "civilian ship."

(Note: It was later discovered that the "Lusitania" indeed carried munitions and contraband)

But, of course, Britain and the United States would never admit this. They used their control over the media to launch a wave of attacks against the German Army.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Tijani waved the telegram at Shire.

"What can I say?" Shire countered.

"I get it!" Tijani guessed, "Your submarine hunting plan will soon begin, and we will seize the initiative in supplies, so you are not worried about this."

Shire smiled and shook his head, "No, General, it's not time yet."

"Not time yet?" Tijani looked puzzled.

With the 6th Army and the 1st Armored Army about to fall into a supply crisis, this should be urgent, yet Shire said it's not time?

At this moment, a guard came in and reported, "General, General Winter is here, he wants to see you."

Shire folded the newspaper and stood up, "It seems you're not the only one anxious," he said to Tijani.

Tijani didn't understand initially, but when General Winter entered, he suddenly realized that the British also wanted to launch a submarine hunting war, or more accurately, the Royal Navy did.

Sure enough, after congratulating Shire on his promotion to Vice Admiral, General Winter immediately turned the topic to submarines.

"The situation is much more severe than we thought." General Winter handed over a document taken from his briefcase to Shire, "In October, we lost 181 ships, in November it increased to 259. This month is not yet over, and we have already lost 325 ships, with total tonnage losses reaching 500,000 tons in one month."

General Winter and Tijani both directed their gazes on Shire, as if to say, shouldn't we take action now?

But Shire repeated, "We should wait still."

"But what are we waiting for?" General Winter couldn't understand.

He continued, "There's something I think you need to know, the 'Minister of the Navy' has returned home to take up the position of 'Minister of Military Supplies.'"

(Note: Historically, Churchill assumed the role of 'Minister of Military Supplies' in July 1917, in charge of anti-submarine warfare)

The underlying message was clear: if the submarine problem is not resolved or even worsens, the 'Minister of Military Supplies' might soon be removed from his position.

Shire replied decisively, "The destroyers are not ready, General, they need more time."

General Winter was helpless, as this was a problem for the French Navy, and he wasn't aware of the progress.

Tijani looked at Shire with surprise, as he knew this wasn't the truth.

...

Berlin Wilhelm Street, German Army General Staff Headquarters.

Fajin Han was meeting Vice Admiral Nicholas and Colonel Erwin (recently promoted to Colonel) in the conference room.

Fajin Han greeted the two men politely, shaking hands and inviting them to sit.

"Although we lost Namur," Fajin Han sweeping his gaze across the two men, resting his eyes on Colonel Erwin for a moment, "I reviewed the entire command process and I believe you performed well in battle, especially the final retreat, which preserved our strength and prevented a complete breakthrough in our lines."

The final retreat order was suggested by Colonel Erwin, and Fajin Han thought the young officer named Erwin might have more talent than his superiors.

"Thank you for your recognition, General," Nicholas replied.

Fajin Han walked a few steps, trying to liven up the atmosphere, "I heard Colonel Erwin has studied Shire's tactics?"

Colonel Erwin hurriedly stood up straight, "I just don't want to die at Shire's hands, General."

Fajin Han gave Erwin a surprised look, stepped forward, and patted his shoulder, seemingly satisfied with his answer.

"So," Fajin Han asked, "do you have any insights? That is, can you guess Shire's next move?"

Fajin Han laughed unintentionally; guessing Shire's next step was almost impossible.

"Report, General," Colonel Erwin answered seriously, "I may not predict Shire's next move, but I might guess what he must do."

Fajin Han responded with an intrigued "Oh" and looked at Erwin, "What must he do?"

Colonel Erwin glanced at the map on the wall.

Fajin Han understood, nodding slightly in approval.

Confidently, Colonel Erwin moved to the map, pointing as he spoke, "Shire's forces are concentrated in Belgium, and recently the Allies handed over Belgium's supplies to the British."

"A crucial point is that both the British and the French Parliament want to undermine Shire and his troops."

"So I judge that Shire's units may likely face a supply shortage, including gasoline needed for the armored units."

Fajin Han's eyes lit up instantly recognizing this was an opportunity, an excellent chance for an offensive!

"So, what's your plan?" Fajin Han asked.

Erwin pointed to Antwerp on the map, "The British have made Antwerp the central port for supplies."

"If we can surround Antwerp swiftly and simultaneously intensify the naval submarine blockade, the enemy on the Western Front might face a severe supply shortage!"

Fajin Han and Vice Admiral Nicholas exchanged looks; they saw the shock in each other's eyes, realizing this plan involved the entire Western Front!