Chapter 355 Coincidence

After listening to Tijani's story, Ciel calmly replied: "Your father is right, you should think about it for him from his perspective."

Tijani looked at Ciel in disbelief: "Is he right? You actually...speak on his side?"

What a hell!

So what am I doing? A clown with both ends?

Charles analyzed: "You should have heard about the sharp rise in steel prices not long ago..."

"I know." Tijani interrupted Charles: "The shipyard needs steel, and fluctuations in steel prices will affect the shipyard's profits. Is this what you want to say?"

Charles didn't deny it.

"The focus of our argument has never been this." Tijani explained: "His vision should not be so short-sighted. He cannot see the future for the immediate benefits. He does not lack this money!"

"Do you think this is a matter of money?" Charles looked at Tijani with interest. He found that the young man in front of him didn't seem to understand the logical relationship behind the business.

"What else could it be?" Tijani became more and more excited as he talked: "The shipyard can even pass on these costs to the military. Steel is more expensive, and the warships built are of course more expensive. What has he lost? There is nothing thing!"

"Survive, General." Charles replied calmly: "If this continues for a long time, the Brest Shipyard will cease to exist, and all you and your father will have left is money."

"What?" Tijani still didn't understand.

What's more, if you have money, what else can't you do?

"Just answer one question." Charles said: "The performance of the same warship is not much different. If the price of Schneider Shipyard is one-third or more cheaper than that of Brest Shipyard, whose ship will you choose?"

Tijani was stunned, he understood what Ciel meant.

Of course the military will choose Schneider, and then there is no need for the Brest Shipyard to exist, because the ships it builds are always more expensive than others, with the same quality and performance.

In the end, Wells will lose everything, his voice, influence, power... He may still have money, but he can do nothing and can only be slaughtered.

"We have torpedoes." Tijani still held a glimmer of hope: "We have successfully improved the torpedo according to the method you mentioned. It is already being tested. It is currently confirmed that the range has been increased by two or three times, reaching three kilometers!"

Then Tijani added: "In addition, we also have landing craft and amphibious landing craft. We own their industrial property rights and stay ahead in technology..."

"It's useless, General." Charles reminded: "They all need steel, and they also need special steel. Moreover, even if the military is willing to continue to cooperate with the Brest Shipyard, the shipyard may be limited to these areas."

The Brest shipyard has been building warships for France for hundreds of years. It was born in 1624 during the reign of Louis XIV.

Now, it is possible that because of its support for Char, it will end its shipbuilding history and switch to the production of landing ships, landing craft, or torpedoes... This means that it will be kicked out of the warship arena.

Charles concluded: "They hold the lifeblood of the Brest Shipyard, General. Although I can give the shipyard a future, they can decide the life and death of the shipyard. If it were you, which one would you choose?"

Tijani was silent.

If you cannot survive, there will be no future, and the future will have no meaning.

But if there is no future, there is at least a glimmer of hope for survival.

Therefore, Wells could only hesitate between the two, preferring to survive without a future at the critical moment.

"One day," Charles said, "if you inherit the Brest shipyard, you will do the same, because you have this only choice and no other way."

"You mean we will become enemies in the future?" Tijani smiled and shook his head: "I would rather end it!"

"You don't understand, General." Charles said, "On that day, you will do this to help me."

Tijani was shocked at first, but after thinking about it for a while, he understood what he meant.

By ending the Braise Shipyard, you will actually lose all influence and become an outsider. After that, you will be unable to do anything for the charr, and you will even need the charr's protection.

This is the cruelty of the power struggle. It is more about "involuntarily" than the "freedom and ease" Tijani thought.

Gradually, Tijani began to understand Wells somewhat.

He leaned back in his chair and said in a frustrated tone: "So, we can only let this happen?"

Suddenly, Tijani sat up straight again and looked at Ciel with hope in her eyes: "You must have a way, otherwise you wouldn't be so calm!"

"What else can I do?" Charles raised the document in his hand: "I am trapped in the military camp and can't even go home, let alone take care of my business."

Tijani smiled bitterly: "Don't you think this is ironic? You are running around to save France all day long, while the capitalists are poaching you from behind under your protection, and you are going to accept your fate?"

"The provocation method is of no use to me, General." Charles smiled and once again turned his attention to the precautions of the gas mask.

"I think we should do some testing," Schaal said. "We need to know how long the gas mask is effective under poisonous gas. This may be useful on the battlefield in the future."

After a pause, Charles added: "There is also the concentration of the poisonous gas. The effective time of different concentrations should be different. Only after knowing this can we formulate targeted countermeasures."

But Tijani did not answer. He stared blankly at the map of France hanging on the wall, shaking the pencil in his hand, as if thinking about something.

"Hey, are you listening, General?" Charles reminded: "This is about a lot of lives!"

"Other people's lives have nothing to do with us, Ciel." Tijani replied slowly: "You have saved enough, it's time to think about yourself."

Then he said: "If you don't want to, then let me think!"

"Okay." Charles asked, "What did you think of?"

"Steel!" Tijani replied: "You said that is the lifeblood of the shipyard."

"Yes."

"So, if we solve the steel problem, will we take the lifeline into our own hands?"

"The point is how do you solve the steel problem." Charles asked: "Buy a steel plant? From the Schneider or Wendell family?"

During this period, no one would be stupid enough to sell the steel plant. If they did, it would be at an unrealistically high price. The point is that it also has iron ore.

Tijani pencil drew a small circle towards the German-controlled area on the map: "You seem to have forgotten something, Mr. Charles, 68% of France's steel industry is concentrated in the northeast, and it is now in the hands of the Germans!"

Ciel smiled slightly, Tijani had made progress, and their ideas coincided!