I was a tycoon in World War I: Starting to save France

Chapter 986 Has the war ended?
Paris Place is not in Paris; it is in Berlin, Germany.

This square, located at the western end of Unter den Linden in the heart of Berlin, originally had only a hasty and simplified name: Square.

But in 1814, after defeating Napoleon, Prussian and allied forces occupied Paris, and to celebrate this victory, the Prussians renamed the place "Place de Paris".

(The image above shows Prussian troops celebrating in front of the Brandenburg Gate at Place Paris after the Franco-Prussian War in 1871.)

(The image above shows the modern Place de Paris and Brandenburg Gate.)
Etzberger was treated like a hero here after returning to Germany.

Everyone knows that Etzberger led the Armistice Commission to reject the British and American demands for $130 billion and $100 billion in reparations, respectively.

More importantly, he also reached a ceasefire agreement with the Shire at a low cost of $20 billion.

Prior to this, everyone, including Prime Minister Albert, assumed that France would demand the largest amount of reparations and that Charles would be the most difficult to deal with.

Because Germany had absolutely no grounds for refusal: either annihilate the country or pay money!
Germans generally believe it will be worth tens of billions of dollars, because Germany is worth that much.

No one expected that the final result would only be $20 billion.

This made the Germans cheer loudly as if they had won a battle, and everyone had a smile on their face as they escorted Etzberger through the Brandenburg Gate.

The cheers gradually subsided.

Etzberger shouted to the public: "Do you know how arrogant the British are in our presence?"

He spoke with his head held high and eyes lowered, adopting a disdainful British tone: "Germans, you must pay $130 billion in war reparations, and another $100 billion to the United States. Otherwise, war awaits you!"

The German soldiers and civilians in the audience burst into laughter, amused by Etzberger's lifelike portrayal.

Etzberger regained his voice and expression:
Do you know how we answered them?

“I said, bring it on, British and Americans.”

"We have never been afraid of you on the battlefield. You have never defeated Germany, so don't even think about taking a penny from me!"

The soldiers and civilians below cheered in support.
To hell with the British and Americans!

"They are our defeated adversaries, yet they hope to extract huge sums of money from us."

"Tell them that if they're willing to pay Germany $100 billion, we won't crush them!"

……

Etzberger raised his hand to quiet the soldiers and civilians, his playful expression turning into one of emotion and seriousness.

He said it very directly: "I have met Charles, gentlemen. He is a respectable opponent and a friend worth making."

The soldiers and civilians nodded in agreement, sharing the sentiment.

Etzberger believed that in order for the military and civilians to accept Charles's conditions as a matter of course, they should be made to recognize Charles's "greatness".

So he spoke "from the bottom of his heart" about his feelings, listing all of Charles's excellent qualities:

“Ciel is a very easy-going person. If you meet him, I guarantee you will never believe he is Ciel.”

"Because he looks no different from an ordinary person."

"I mean, he's different from the British and Americans; he's completely down-to-earth, even though he should be!"

The soldiers and civilians nodded in agreement.

Yes, Charles was the general who defeated Germany; it would be abnormal for him to be so approachable.

Then Etzberger's voice turned deep:

"Charles is the wisest man I have ever met."

"It's not just about military wisdom, but also about politics and thinking."

“He knew that the fault of this war was not ours, unlike others who were blinded by hatred.”

The soldiers and civilians nodded in agreement, deeply moved. Yes, the vast majority of French people wanted to completely defeat Germany.

If Charles does this, he will undoubtedly gain greater prestige and support.

But he didn't do that; he chose to forgive.

Etzberger's voice rose: "Charles is the kindest man I've ever met. He's even willing to provide us with ammunition produced in the Ruhr region, on the condition that we need ammunition and weapons to protect ourselves!"

The soldiers and civilians gasped in surprise.

This is something they are unaware of; all their attention is focused on the compensation.

Germany does need the arms from the Ruhr region, otherwise it would be beaten by these clowns, Britain and the United States, and forced to pay huge reparations.

Etzberger waved his hand and shouted again:
You might not believe it.

"He even agreed to our and France's mutual release of prisoners, all of them."

"Although we only have 300,000 or so French prisoners of war, the French have more than a million German prisoners of war!"

The soldiers and civilians could hardly believe what they were hearing.

Exchanging over 300,000 prisoners for over a million is unfair, as everyone knows.

Moreover, Charles didn't need an "exchange" at all; he could have easily used force to coerce Germany into releasing the prisoners.

Etzberger regained its composure:
"Do you know what I'm thinking of?"

"I am reminded of the lenient policy we adopted towards Austria when we defeated it."

"At that time we did not demand Austrian land."

The soldiers and civilians answered loudly, "Yes."

Charles didn't have that either; the Lorraine and Alsace he wanted back were originally French territories.

"We did not demand huge reparations, but only asked Austria to pay a small amount of military expenses as compensation."

"Yes." The soldiers and civilians nodded in agreement.

Charles also refused, asking for only $20 billion, which was reasonable and within Germany's ability to pay.

"We have preserved Austria's international standing and given it sufficient respect."

"Yes!" the soldiers and civilians responded loudly.

This is the most important thing: Charles allowed the German people to live with dignity.

Finally, Etzberger said, "Now, do you know who to support and who to oppose?"

The square instantly erupted in cheers, with people shouting at the top of their lungs:

"We support Charles."

"God punishes the British and Americans; they are all liars."

"They are despicable warmongers who participate in wars for money!"

……

Etzberger was adept at winning hearts and minds. He brought along two French generals and introduced them to the soldiers and civilians: "Gentlemen, these are Major General Pollezac and Lieutenant General Roufie. Out of trust in Charles, we have decided to immediately release all French prisoners of war. Including them!"

Etzberger shook hands with both French generals: "Congratulations, generals. You are released. You are free to leave Germany and return to France whenever you wish. Of course, we will provide you with vehicles and guards!"

The two French generals were somewhat bewildered. They didn't know what was happening and stared blankly at the German soldiers and civilians below applauding and cheering at them.

Has the war ended?

(End of this chapter)