[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran":3,"chapter-i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-451":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","I Became a Tycoon During World War I: Saving France from the Start",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1335396,1779,"Chapter 451: The FN Armory","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-451",451,"\u003Cp>In Antwerp, the atmosphere at Albert I's estate was calm and peaceful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After several days of renovations, the estate had been transformed from its previous chaotic and dilapidated state into a warm and tidy place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was lunchtime, and Albert I, along with Colonel Eden, was eating and discussing matters with great enthusiasm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The meal was simple—some bread, a bit of leafy vegetables, and the only real meat being a few pieces of fried chicken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I plan to save all the money for the defense system,\" Albert I said. \"That is the most important thing at the moment.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The topic of their conversation was the defense system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We've already recaptured two key points,\" Albert I said, chewing on some hard bread, and he asked Colonel Eden, \"What can we do now?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Technically, yes, Your Majesty,\" Colonel Eden replied. \"According to Charles' defense philosophy, these key points are mainly used to store fuel and ammunition. Gent, being a major rear base, should be the most important 'ammunition and fuel' warehouse.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I nodded in agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Liège fortress was too far forward; it would be the first target for the Germans to attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then Albert I had a thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What if it's France?\" Albert I asked, looking up at Colonel Eden, lowering his voice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though France was an ally, they couldn't let their guard down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Gent was on the French side—if they stored fuel and ammunition there, wouldn't they be exposing a weakness to them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your Majesty,\" Colonel Eden said, raising his eyebrows in a somewhat resigned manner, \"France has Charles, and he's only eighteen.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I immediately understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any defense or preparation would be useless in front of Charles, especially since this defense system was designed by Charles himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mm,\" Albert I nodded heavily. \"Let's keep it in Gent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Defending against France seemed pointless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So, we can strengthen Gent's fortifications and structures,\" Colonel Eden suggested. \"Additionally, we should build several large warehouses, preferably underground, to avoid them being destroyed by enemy aircraft or artillery.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He added, \"The army's development must keep up as well. Charles' defense system has very high demands on the military.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Albert I agreed. \"They need to be able to break through the enemy's lines and maneuver quickly, just like Charles' forces. Only then can we link all the key points together as a cohesive whole.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, Albert I felt a slight unease. He always had this urge to connect the key points with trenches, fortifications, or bunkers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had asked Colonel Eden about this before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Colonel Eden had responded:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That might not be a good idea, Your Majesty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We don't have enough troops to defend such a long line.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The result is that the defense lines we build may be exploited by the enemy, and it would be our armored and mechanized forces that would suffer.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I thought about it and agreed. The five key points were connected by eight edges, and the total length was over 500 kilometers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Belgium's population, the standing army could only number in the tens of thousands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few tens of thousands of troops defending a 500-kilometer-long line would only average a few hundred soldiers per kilometer, barely enough for one or two infantry companies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If armored and mechanized units were included, the numbers would be even more stretched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps Charles had thought of this, which was why he suggested a mobile defense with armored and mechanized units!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I sighed to himself. Though not very knowledgeable about military affairs, he always felt that placing something on the defense line would bring him a sense of security.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Otherwise, with nothing there, enemy tanks could easily break through and wreak havoc, which didn't feel secure at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Albert I was lost in thought, a guard stepped forward to report: \"Your Majesty, Mr. Boyata is outside.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let him in,\" Albert I ordered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Colonel Eden looked at Albert I with some nervousness. \"The owner of the FN Armory?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Albert I nodded calmly. \"I've asked him to come for a discussion.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Should I step out?\" Colonel Eden asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were still things he didn't know.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No,\" Albert I shook his head. \"There's nothing you shouldn't know.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, an elderly man in his sixties entered the dining room, walking steadily. His face was wrinkled, but his eyes were sharp, indicating he had taken good care of himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I stood to greet him and introduced him to Colonel Eden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The food on the table was quickly cleared away and replaced with coffee. The three of them began to drink and talk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Congratulations, Your Majesty,\" Boyata said with a smile. \"We've recaptured a third of the land. With Charles' help, reclaiming the rest of the country is only a matter of time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's good for you too, Mr. Boyata,\" Albert I met Boyata's gaze. \"This means your branch in Gent is back under FN, now only the main factory in Liège is left.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boyata chuckled. \"Yes, thanks to Charles. If I get the chance, I'd like to thank him in person!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course, you will have the chance,\" Albert I replied, picking up his coffee cup. \"He's in Antwerp. If you wish, I can take you to meet him now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boyata laughed lightly. \"Your Majesty didn't bring me here just to introduce me to Charles, did you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this point, Boyata wasn't sure what his relationship with Charles was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Originally, FN had almost monopolized Belgian arms production. Though it only produced rifles and pistols so far, it was moving towards developing machine guns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when Charles appeared, he began to encroach on FN's market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Friend or foe?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they were enemies, FN's main factory was counting on Charles to recapture it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they were friends, they were destined to become fierce competitors in the future!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I've heard your company is developing a light machine gun,\" Albert I asked. \"How's the progress?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's not really development,\" Boyata admitted. \"We've imported the 'Chauchat' machine gun from France and are working on improving it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Albert I took a sip of coffee, his voice smooth as he spoke. \"Are you doing this to compete with Charles' 'Saint-Étienne 2'?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boyata's expression changed, and he quickly denied it. \"No, no. I'm not thinking like that. I just want to keep up with the development of firearms. You know, the light machine gun is a new weapon. It's different from both rifles and heavy machine guns, and we don't want to fall too far behind in this area.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Colonel Eden, who had been silent up to this point, suddenly understood. He looked at Boyata, who was hurriedly explaining, and immediately realized why Albert I had brought him here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com\u002FFranklin1\u003C\u002Fp>",1139,"2026-06-05T20:02:22.001Z",1,"novelbin.me","906d9a669979ea417ce9cf9bec55b94ed8c1be6b31dc62e8f400f144399d4df0","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-452","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-350",622,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-cover.jpg"]