[{"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-570":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},1335538,1779,"Chapter 570 570: The Inventor of the Mortar","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-570",570,"\u003Cp>While Charles and Mathieu were deep in technical discussion, a secretary walked into the R&D office and approached Charles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"General, Mr. Deoka would like you to come to his office. Someone wishes to meet with you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alright,\" Charles replied. \"I'll be right there.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was puzzled. Who could warrant a meeting arranged through Deoka?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A friend? A journalist? Some industrialist?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles didn't think too much of it. After a few quick instructions to Mathieu, he followed the secretary out toward the administrative building.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the office, Charles found a man in his fifties—well-dressed in a suit and tie, clearly someone of means. He was engaged in quiet conversation with Deoka, but stood quickly upon Charles's arrival, visibly excited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You—you must be General Charles. It's an honor to meet you, General!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles looked toward Deoka with a questioning expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Deoka stood and introduced him:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is Mr. Stokes, owner of the British Scott Machinery Company. Most of our tractor components come from his firm.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ah, a business partner. Charles smiled politely and shook the man's hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The honor is mine, Mr. Stokes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something about the name tickled Charles's memory. He was sure he'd heard it before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They all sat down. Deoka picked up a blueprint from the coffee table and grinned at Charles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Would you believe it? Stokes came up with a mortar design nearly identical to yours—but you beat him to it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles blinked and took the drawing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Indeed—it was a mortar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next second, the realization hit him: Stokes? As in Stokes, the historical inventor of the modern mortar?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(Note: Sir Wilfred Stokes was the real-life designer of the modern trench mortar, developed during WWI. He wasn't originally a weapons expert, but a mechanical engineer.)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes leaned forward, his voice slightly nervous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I designed this last year, but I made some errors—mainly because I wasn't familiar with military requirements. I used powdered black powder instead of granulated propellant. Later, I learned it needed to combust instantly—not burn slowly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(Note: Powdered black powder burns incompletely and inconsistently due to lack of airflow between particles. Granulated powder allows for immediate combustion and a clean explosive force.)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes shook his head and looked at Charles with frustration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When I finally got it working and presented it to the military, do you know what they told me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"'Sorry, Mr. Stokes, Charles beat you to it. His mortars are already in field use. Haven't you heard? He's even won battles with them!'\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I couldn't believe it. What are the odds?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He laughed, but there was a note of awkwardness. Then, more seriously, he added:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But please don't misunderstand me. I'm not here to challenge your intellectual property.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You were first. Your design is more advanced. You deserve all credit. I just wanted to express… my admiration.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I understand, Mr. Stokes. And thank you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked back down at the blueprint, genuinely impressed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is excellent work. I believe, had you known more about military specs—or been in the army—you might have beaten me to it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes relaxed and smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you, General. That means a great deal to me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles paused, then suddenly asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why don't we collaborate, Mr. Stokes?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes was startled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Collaborate? On what?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tractors? They were already working together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mortars? Charles's models were fully developed and already in production. What did he mean?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Artillery,\" Charles said, lifting the blueprint. \"You clearly have a sharp mind, an engineer's creativity. And right now, we need people like you—especially in wartime.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes looked flustered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"General, I think you misunderstand me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'm not an artillery designer. In fact, I barely know anything about artillery. I'm just a mechanical engineer. I'd be honored to work with you, but…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles interrupted him with a slight smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's exactly what I need, Mr. Stokes. Most artillery problems are mechanical in nature.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes tilted his head, uncertain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For example?\" he asked, clearly wanting specifics—something to prove he could still contribute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Take the breech block,\" Charles replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We need to shorten it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes was confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Shorten the breech block? The military wants that?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Charles explained calmly. \"Not for traditional field guns. But if we want to mount artillery inside tank turrets…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stokes's eyes lit up. He leaned forward sharply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh! Yes, I see what you mean now!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You're right, General—this is a huge need. All future tanks will have to face this issue. And that means there's a huge opportunity!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My God—we're going to make a fortune. This is a fantastic project, General. Truly!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Charles had arrived at the \"Char B1\" design precisely because of this issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this period, there were no purpose-built tank guns. Existing artillery had breech blocks that were too long to fit inside compact turrets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To make it work, you'd need an absurdly large turret. That meant more armor, more weight, more power—and before long, you'd need two engines just to move the thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a domino effect: heavier turret → bigger gun → heavier engine → doubled complexity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That's what had led to monstrosities like the Char 2C.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only realistic solution was to mount the main gun in the hull, like the B1. You'd lose some mobility and angle, but it solved the space issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So,\" Charles asked, \"do we have a deal?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Absolutely!\" Stokes stood and shook his hand vigorously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you, General, for giving me this chance.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(Image Note: In a tank with vertical breech travel, a shortened breech block is necessary to allow loading and firing inside tight turret space. In WWI, the lack of dedicated tank guns forced designers to choose between small-caliber rotating turrets or fixed large-caliber guns. The Char B1's layout—turret with a small gun, hull with a 75mm—was the best compromise.)\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 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com\u002FFranklin1\u003C\u002Fp>",976,"2026-06-05T20:02:33.312Z",1,"novelbin.me","5112ed58e281ee0689594666aa82ea50c913b52053a6742a9f00cec4dd6e6731","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-571","i-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-chapter-569",622,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-became-a-tycoon-during-world-war-i-saving-fran-cover.jpg"]