Imperial Elite

Chapter 69 The organization has made a decision: you go see the Tsar!

When Joe received the notification that the Citizens had taken the bait in Winston, he didn't expect them to act so quickly.

人是昨天揍的，意向合同是今天签的，这就是花旗效率吗？爱了爱了！

Then Joe realized something: he hadn't expected the Citizens to be so fast. All his preparations were just some conceptual designs he'd come up with with the garage crew.

Although Citibank may seem foolish and rich, they are not idiots. Relying solely on these conceptual design sketches is clearly not enough.

So Joe quickly took the garage crew, the current concept design drawings, and Ms. Catherine straight to his old friend Rolls-Royce.

We're going to put performance and reliability aside for now and just make a presentable sample to fool Citibank.

Rolls-Royce would naturally not refuse Joe if there were new orders.

But when it came to deciding on the chassis for this armored personnel carrier, Joe encountered a problem.

Originally, in the initial plan, this armored personnel carrier was supposed to use the Hound tank chassis for versatility, just like the self-propelled artillery project approved by the Army also used the Hound tank chassis.

Using a single chassis can effectively reduce the workload of frontline and support staff.

Joe's idea is good, but there's a small problem here.

Rolls-Royce executives reminded Joe that while it was theoretically possible to do so, the Hound tank was already in short supply. If only a small number of chassis were transferred to produce self-propelled artillery, it would be fine, but if some chassis were moved to build armored vehicles, then the delivery of the Hound tank would be very problematic.

Of course, Rolls-Royce didn't just raise questions. After indicating that the production of the Hound tank might be affected, Rolls-Royce also said that since you're going to build an armored personnel carrier, no matter how armored it is, it's still a vehicle first and foremost. So why not just build a vehicle? After all, besides aircraft engines and tanks, we also build other types of vehicles.

Our original business was actually manufacturing ultra-luxury cars, so we have some experience in that area.

Upon hearing Rolls-Royce's statement, Joe hesitated.

The production and delivery of the Hound tank were affected by the armored personnel carrier project, which would not be acceptable to either the wartime cabinet officials or even to myself.

But if we're going to use wheeled vehicles...

Given the current battlefield environment on the western front, the mobility of wheeled vehicles does seem to be somewhat problematic.

However, after thinking about it for a while, Joe felt that wheeled vehicles might not be a bad idea.

After all, off-road enthusiasts who go up mountains and down rivers drive wheeled vehicles, not tracked vehicles. Wheeled vehicles seem to be able to make do with off-roading, and they are better than tracked vehicles.

Wheeled vehicles also have a significant advantage: they are lightweight, inexpensive, and can run faster.

These armored personnel carriers were originally meant to carry infantry and charge deep into the enemy's rear lines after the tank units had created an opening.

With their mobility and basic vehicle-mounted firepower, they made it impossible for those who could defeat them to catch up, and impossible for those who could catch up to defeat them.

If it is equipped with elite infantry, it can also take on the tasks of protecting the tank's flanks and conducting armed reconnaissance.

So if there are no tracked vehicles, it's not impossible to use wheeled vehicles to keep up with the Teutonic motorized vehicles.

After all, there is no martial art that cannot be broken except for speed.

However, after deciding to use a wheeled chassis, Joe and Rolls-Royce still had a host of problems to solve.

First of all, how many wheels does this vehicle have?
Secondly, this thing needs to have off-road capabilities, so what kind of differential should it use?

Those who frequently go off-road know that although off-road vehicles all look like expensive boxy vehicles and are basically similar, there is a hierarchy of disdain among these boxy vehicles.

Whether your car has four-wheel drive, what kind of four-wheel drive it is, how many differential locks it has, and what type of differential locks it has, all of these can affect the position of these boxy cars in the hierarchy of contempt.

Before the journey, Joe didn't have much extra money to afford off-road vehicles due to the nature of his work, but that didn't prevent him from having some knowledge about them.

After all, rich guys can just swipe their cards, while poor guys who have to look at the specs have to consider a lot more.

Therefore, regarding the issue of off-road driving, Joe proposed three solutions in one go.

The most mature technology is the combination of an open differential, a hard-connected transfer case, and a manual locking mechanism.

The advantage of this approach is that most of the components, including the differential, already have technological prototypes or very rough versions in use.

Moreover, the reason Joe remembered this solution was because the classic GAZ series vehicles from a certain unnamed country in another world, with the surname Su, used this solution in their early days, and its reliability was extremely high.

Although this solution is very mature, it has one small problem: the four-wheel drive off-road system is a purely manual system, requiring the driver to manually operate both the gearbox and the transmission system at the same time.

If the driver is too nervous or for other reasons and does not use this system correctly, the vehicle could break down in no time.

This makes Joe less inclined to adopt the system.

Besides this solution, Joe also has a solution for a spring-preloaded multi-plate clutch.

Compared to the previous solution, this solution is much more automated. As a milestone in mechanical limited-slip differentials, this device was widely used in military vehicles produced during inter-world wars. For example, armored vehicles from a certain German country that wishes to remain anonymous adopted this type of differential.

While this device isn't as reliable as the manual one mentioned earlier, it's still quite mature. The only problem is that, like a traditional skill from a certain German country, it has a short maintenance cycle and wears down tires at a rate that's practically consuming them.

So if possible, Joe still doesn't really want to use this system.

Joe's preferred choice is still the oldest and most classic car manufacturer, a certain Austrian automaker, which has swept all before in rally racing, boasting that you only need to step on the gas and leave the rest to QUATTRO's Torsen differential.

This differential is great. As long as the driver knows how to press the accelerator and has good tires, it can make the driver fly even on the worst roads.

Back then, Joe couldn't afford a car with this differential, but now he's using his position to enjoy himself while also contributing to the development of automobiles—a win-win situation.

After Joe finished explaining his three proposed technical routes, everyone from the garage crew to the Rolls-Royce executives and engineers looked at him as if he were an alien.

Only Ms. Catherine, who knew absolutely nothing about technology, sat to the side with her tea, looking utterly bored and sleepy.

Seeing the expressions on the Rolls engineers' faces, Joe knew that none of these three modes were currently in use, or even seen. Since no one had seen them... then these must all be Joe's original creations.

Torsen differentials should now belong to Harrison!
Now, Ms. Catherine, who was originally dozing off, could no longer doze off, because she now had to help Joe write the patent application documents.

Faced with the three technical routes proposed by Joe, in discussions with Rolls-Royce engineers and the garage team, the most mature technical route of open differential + transfer case hard connection + manual locking became the first to be eliminated.

After all, before manufacturing aircraft engines and tanks, Rolls-Royce was a company that manufactured ultra-luxury cars, so it still had some pursuit of technology.

Rolls-Royce felt that a four-wheel drive system that required drivers to learn how to use was not suitable.

The next question is whether to choose a spring-preloaded multi-plate clutch or a Harrison differential.

However, Joe had a slight disagreement with Rolls-Royce here. Joe naturally preferred the Harrison differential, after all, the parts of the rally king back then could make those armored personnel carriers run as fast as rabbits, and to put it another way...

As someone who likes to scout the environment on the front lines before launching a formal attack, Joe always faces the question of what vehicle he should take to the front lines.

Going in a tank would be too noisy and conspicuous, and Joe didn't want to touch bicycles or motorcycles, which were like meat wrapped in iron.

Therefore, Joe himself had an urgent need for high-speed off-road vehicles.

However, Rolls-Royce felt that this torque-sensing limited-slip differential, which relied on the self-locking principle of the turbine rod and was called the Harrison differential, looked great and seemed great in theory. It was almost visibly applicable to high-speed off-road vehicles, and could complete off-roading simply by applying throttle.

However, there is a small problem here. This thing requires a turbine rod, which obviously requires a high level of machining technology. In wartime, is it really possible to make such a thing?

Although Joe really wanted the QUATTRO, being the kind of person who listens to advice, he decided to follow Rolls-Royce's suggestion to use a spring-loaded multi-plate clutch on the armored personnel carrier and then create an eight-wheeled armored personnel carrier with a turret weighing around six tons.

Of course, since this is a completely new vehicle being manufactured from scratch, the power system will no longer be the same as that of the Royal Fist series tanks. Rolls-Royce plans to use the gearbox and suspension system that they developed before the war, combined with the aircraft engines that are currently being produced, to create a heavy off-road vehicle.

Of course, since this thing used the differential design provided by Joe, although Joe had to ask the War Department for money for things produced during the war, if Rolls-Royce wanted to use this system after the war, they would have to pay Joe.

However, Rolls-Royce clearly felt that the business cooperation model of simply paying money was too inefficient. What engineer could pull out three different differential combination schemes from his crotch all at once?
Joe's enlistment in the army was a complete loss to the Bonitania industrial sector; Joe was an industrial gem!

So the head of Rolls-Royce simply asked Joe if he would be willing to work as a consultant for Rolls-Royce.

The so-called consultant is someone who only asks questions when there's something to do, so this job doesn't prevent Joe from continuing to shine in the military. It just means that whenever Joe has a good idea, he can prioritize Rolls-Royce.

Joe certainly wouldn't refuse this proposal. In fact, when it was decided that the armored personnel carrier would adopt a wheeled layout, Joe was already thinking about a problem.

That is, for a mechanized force, in addition to tanks and armored personnel carriers crawling all over the place, shouldn't there be some other transport vehicles?

It's like the Willys Jeep that was used extensively in the second exchange of opinions by a certain unnamed American country.

Although he hadn't ridden in a car many times while on the front lines, the few times he was fortunate enough to do so, the maneuverability of those cars left a deep impression on him.

So Rolls-Royce is offering consultant positions, hoping to cooperate more deeply. Perhaps I could mention my idea of ​​driving a high-speed car around the front lines?

After all, they've already built heavy-duty off-road vehicles, so making a small car with high ground clearance shouldn't be too difficult, right? It's just a matter of raising the suspension height a bit and then installing a differential.

After all, most cars nowadays have a non-load-bearing structure, meaning the body and chassis are not integrated, so it should be relatively easy to modify them.

Upon hearing that Joe had this need, the head of Rollo immediately patted his chest and said that it was no problem at all.

Building these kinds of small cars is their job, so Joe wanting a custom car with high ground clearance is not a problem.

So Joe confidently handed the project over to Rolls-Royce, while he and the garage crew returned to their base to prepare for continuing to work on improved versions of the Hound tank.

Joe's friend, who had just completed another counter-insurgency mission and casually gave Titan a small bayonet shock, expressed his envy of Joe's ability to freely design and modify equipment.

Since the flow of time between the two worlds is almost certain to be unbalanced, when things are going faster, Joe is still fighting in the Somme, while his good brother has already been fighting in the hive for several years.

At one point, Joe spent seven days in Paris, and his good friend hadn't even finished a single piece of bread.

Regarding this strange flow of time, Joe and his good friend felt that it was something that couldn't be pondered too closely, and even if they did, it wouldn't be of any use, since this thing was simply too far beyond their comprehension.

However, the fact that he couldn't dwell on this didn't mean that Joe's good friend couldn't complain to him about just how difficult those red-robed members of the Cult of Mechanics were to deal with.

It's already good enough that they can deliver supplies to me; wanting to upgrade my equipment is just wishful thinking.

Joe couldn't offer any help with his best friend's complaints. After all, given the vast technological gap between them, like that between a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a Paramecium, there was really nothing Joe could do to assist his friend in this regard.

Compared to not being able to modify equipment, the good brother doesn't have much to complain about now. After taking down those Titans who wanted to occupy this imperial world, and then smashing the planetary governor who wanted to betray them to death with a gun butt and putting the planet under military control.

With his good brother, who had lost half of his armored regiment, he was now practically the de facto governor of the planet, able to transform the entire planet with a single order.

Although his good friend doesn't know how many more days he can enjoy this kind of life that he can't wait to think about, he says he's going to enjoy himself while the Ministry of the Interior hasn't appointed a new planetary governor yet.

Now it was Qiao's turn to be envious of his good brother. After all, although theoretically they were both regimental commanders, there was indeed a gap between his own regimental commander and his good brother's regimental commander.

Thinking about how great his good brother was doing, Joe, feeling a mix of envy and jealousy, started beating up the American armored soldiers who were undergoing training, all under the guise of training.

Although these American armored soldiers had generally received formal military education in military academies in the New World before becoming armored troops—how formal that education was, of course, questionable—as a group of rookies still fresh in their boots, they were at a disadvantage when facing the veterans of the Brittany Guards Armored Training Regiment, who had fought in the Battle of Paris and some even participated in the First Battle of the Somme.

While he might not be able to take on seventeen people at once like Joe, he could easily crush a five-car platoon from the United States with a single bicycle.

As he continued beating them, Joe began to notice that these Americans might have some masochistic tendencies. He wondered why, after being beaten, these guys not only didn't get angry, but also acted as if to say, "Teacher Joe taught us well! We've learned something new! We can definitely apply it to the Teutons in the future!"

However, perhaps because Joe had successfully sold the armored personnel carrier project to the Americans, the Army finally granted him a mechanized infantry battalion.

This allowed Joe's Guards Armored Training Regiment to become a large regiment with three tank battalions, one mechanized infantry battalion, a self-propelled artillery company directly under the regimental headquarters, and a maintenance company.

With such a large expansion at once, the Army Department naturally couldn't possibly use all new recruits to appease Joe.

So some veterans from other armored units were also crammed into Joe's unit.

Seemingly stunned by the bloody Battle of Paris, even though the noblemen in the armored training company all said that Joe was an open-minded man and they were doing quite well there.

However, those listless noblemen naturally declined the offer to send the Imperial Guard Armored Training Regiment to the front lines of combat.

Those low-spirited nobles didn't come; those who did were naturally very spirited nobles, like Cecil, the tank commander before Joe, who received his medals while lying down and was then incorporated into the Guards Armored Training Regiment as a platoon leader.

No one knows what grudge this guy has against the Americans, but he's always one of the people who beats the Americans the hardest during training and exercises.

With the situation on the eastern front visibly deteriorating, almost everyone believed that if the Lucias were not given any hope, they might not survive the winter.

After capturing Kiev and Minsk, the Teutons also captured Tallinn, and now their advance is aimed at St. Petersburg.

If St. Petersburg falls, the Russian left-wing government will inevitably collapse. At that point, even a Gallic idiot could guess that the Teutons would launch a large-scale offensive on the western front, attempting to end the war before the Americans fully intervene.

Therefore, the Army Department began to accelerate the replenishment of the Guards Armored Training Regiment, and soon Joe's Guards Armored Training Regiment was fully replenished in terms of personnel.

Now we're just waiting for tanks to be replenished during our training breaks.

Since the US was also procuring Hound tanks, and Joe firmly rejected any tank additions other than the Royal Fist MK-3 and Hound tanks.

Furthermore, the armored personnel carriers of that mechanized infantry battalion are still basically in a spare parts state.

Therefore, the Guards Panzer Training Regiment currently only has one tank battalion capable of carrying out missions.

This led the wartime cabinet to completely abandon its plan to send Joe with troops to support the Lucias.

Since the left-wing government was clearly not aligned with the Buntanian Empire, although the left-wing government was currently the main target of the Teutons' attacks, the Buntanians still reached an agreement with the military government, which was originally the Third Army of Lucia.

As long as the Lucia military government doesn't withdraw from the war, it's fine. Even if it doesn't tie down the Teutons, it's at least to prevent the Sultanate and the Osmarca Empire from releasing more troops to the western front.

Even this time, the Bonitania Empire did not recognize the Lucia Left-wing Government, but instead recognized the Lucia Military Government as the legitimate government of Lucia, and stated that even if the Lucia Military Government was able to take over the City of World Desire, the Bonitania Empire would still recognize the Lucia Military Government's control over the City of World Desire.

Even though the fighting capabilities displayed by the Sultanate and the Osmagorian Empire were undeniable, Bonitania could no longer afford any unexpected events, except for the windfall.

In order to bolster the military government's confidence, the Britannian Empire was even willing to help the military government establish an armored force and provide them with at least a battalion of tanks as well as a production license for the Royal Fist tank.

Seeing that Joe's Guards Armored Training Regiment is getting along well with the Americans, chatting and laughing together every day, the wartime cabinet decided that it doesn't matter if you try to force one duck or a whole flock of ducks. If the Lucia military government sends people to receive armored training, then Joe, you can train a few more people. That shouldn't be a problem, right?

No problem, of course no problem. As long as the wartime cabinet isn’t crazy enough to send him to Russia to fight the Teutons, Joe thinks it’s just training some Russians to drive tanks, that’s a minor issue!

However, before the armored trainees sent by the Lucia military government arrived in Bunitania, an unexpected visitor arrived first.

To be precise, it wasn't just one uninvited guest, but a group of uninvited guests.

Because the left-wing government of Lucia was visibly at odds with the old nobles of Lucia, and because as a country with a serf system, the nobles of Lucia were generally quite primitive and barbaric.

Whether serfs in Russia were considered human beings or merely talking farm implements has always been a highly controversial issue in Russia.

In addition, the vast land area led to a lack of entertainment, so many of the nobles in Lucia found amusement in these serfs and satisfied their entertainment desires by having them.

For example, having ballet dancers selected from serfs wear spiked shoes and collars with knife points pointing at their necks to practice ballet, in order to help them develop a more elegant figure, was just a routine practice.

So now that the left-wing government has come to power, these nobles, who foresaw that their future life in Lucia would not be easy, did not hesitate to take their gold and silver and run away.

If it had just been some nobles who had fled, it wouldn't have been a big deal.

After all, so many things have happened in the Old World over the years, and it's not uncommon for nobles to flee to other countries for various reasons.

People get to know each other at social gatherings, exchange existing resources, and see if they can work on some projects together, and that's how the matter ends.

After all, this is how it has been for the past few hundred years.

If you take me in today, and I run into trouble tomorrow, it won't be a problem for you to take me in again.

However, the problem is that among this group of nobles, there is one family that is excessively wealthy.

The Tsar and his family, who had already abdicated, arrived in London together on the cruise ship from the Lake Country.

If it were just the Tsar's family, it would be one thing, but the Tsar's family also brought a whole company of women's death battalion as their guard, which made Buntania feel that this matter was difficult to handle.

After all, he had just recognized the Russian military government and was preparing to cooperate with it to ensure that the eastern front would not completely collapse.

The abdicated Tsar and his family, along with their guards, rushed to his place shortly afterward.

Out of courtesy, Bunitania could not refuse the Tsar's family's request for protection, since the late Empress Victoria was so powerful that she had marital ties with the royal families of the entire Old World and was known as the grandmother of the Old World.

Refusing to let one's relatives come to seek refuge is indeed politically problematic.

But if you don't refuse...

Wouldn't that send a less-than-ideal signal to the Lucia military government, which had just reached an agreement?
So now, the customs officials of Buntania, apart from demanding that the female soldiers disarm, neither allowed the Tsar to enter nor expelled him, but simply asked him to wait on the ship.

And so we waited for three days.

This kind of thing originally had nothing to do with Joe.

After all, Joe wasn't even a general, let alone a nobleman; in diplomatic situations involving royalty, he was a nobody.

Aside from occasionally chatting with officers in bars after training about what the Tsar wanted to do there and which of the Tsar's two princesses was prettier.

As for why Joe was able to spend time with the officers after training instead of dealing with the documents, it was because of the reliable Ms. Catherine, who was frantically typing away on her typewriter in the office.

All Joe had to do was pack a dinner for Ms. Catherine after he had built up relationships with the officers, then check the documents she had written and sign them.

Compared to the days when I was almost overwhelmed by documents, having Ms. Catherine's help was pure bliss.

Of course, Ms. Catherine initially said she could handle so many documents on her own, but now she's also saying that she hopes Joe can hire one or two more secretaries if possible.

With the development of new equipment and the arrival of the Lucia military government, Ms. Catherine felt that her workload would definitely increase dramatically.

Joe patted his chest and said he would definitely meet Ms. Catherine's request. After all, if Ms. Catherine ran away because she couldn't handle the workload, wouldn't he have to do all the work himself?

However, when Joe confidently assured her that he would find a few more secretaries as soon as possible, Ms. Catherine's gaze held a complex emotion, which puzzled Joe.

He had already agreed to hire a few more secretaries for her, so why was Ms. Catherine looking at him like that?

So he started thinking about where he should go and how to find a few more capable secretaries like Ms. Catherine. He had absolutely no idea about the Tsar's visit.

Then, on the third night, in the bar next to the military camp, Joe patted George on the shoulder and said, "Being brave is good, being brave is right, but being too brave on the battlefield can kill you. If you keep being this brave, you'll die on the battlefield sooner or later. Tone yourself down."

A secretary from Downing Street pushed open the bar door, found Joe, and said that the Prime Minister wanted to see him.

This wasn't the first time Joe had been invited to Downing Street by the Prime Minister. As long as he wasn't asked to lead a team to fight the Teutons on the Eastern Front, Joe didn't think going to Downing Street was a big deal.

Everyone there is so talented, and they all speak so nicely. I love it there.

Then when Joe arrived at 10 Downing Street and learned that the Prime Minister intended for him to serve as a special envoy to meet the abdicated Tsar's family, Joe had only one reaction.

"what?!"

After his initial surprise, Joe told the Prime Minister, "I don't understand Lucia, I have no diplomatic experience, and I don't even have a noble title. How could this happen to me? Why don't you find someone else? My training is quite demanding."

The Prime Minister seemed to have anticipated Joe's refusal.

The Prime Minister, holding Joe's arm, said, "Joe, of course we know what you're saying, but you have some advantages that we value. First, you're not a government member, just a soldier, so whatever you say, we can deny it. Second, you have some reputation in Bonitania and even the entire Old World, so in terms of rank, it's enough to show our respect. Finally, if we just report on this meeting, the Teutons will definitely worry that we're doing something on the Eastern Front. That way, you don't have to go to the Eastern Front, but you can still achieve some of the effects of going there. What do you think?"

As long as he wasn't sent to the Eastern Front, Joe figured he might as well go see the Tsar. He'd even met the Emperor of Bunitania, so what was a mere abdicated Tsar?

"So what should I talk to this Tsar about?"

Hearing that Joe did not object, the Prime Minister patted Joe on the shoulder.

"I knew you were reliable."

"As for what to talk about..."

The Prime Minister shrugged.

"You don't need to talk about anything. Once you go in and see the Tsar, you can leave simply by chatting with him about the weather."

"what?"

Joe looked at the Prime Minister with some confusion.

"If we don't need to talk about anything, why should I even go see him?"

Seeing Joe's confused expression, the Prime Minister thought for a moment and then explained to Joe.

"Joe, this is what happened..."

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The prototype of the differential in almost all of our civilian off-road vehicles today can be traced back to the differential designed by Joe Harrison during the war.

It's fair to say that without Joe Harrison, there would be no modern civilian off-road vehicle.

————————A Century of Automobile Development

(End of this chapter)