Father of France

Chapter 31 Warrant Officers and Brigadier Generals

"It's heartbreaking to say, but it's the truth. We really should get back what the Germans owe us."

De Gaulle recalled that Henri Frey had also made a similar suggestion, but the Secretary-General of the Prime Minister's Office was a typical civil servant who was not an expert in the defense industry. He believed that when acquiring the valuable assets of a defeated nation, the military must be involved.

The root cause of war, in essence, is the looting of people, money, and women. De Gaulle was also a soldier, and he understood this underlying logic. Of course, he would not stop the basic needs of soldiers. Therefore, he agreed to the previous law on the protection of military marriages. Regardless of who proposed it, the protection of French soldiers was real.

Paris had only been liberated for a month, and de Gaulle's most relied-upon force was the army. The various parties in the provisional government were merely there to deal with the French Communist Party.

“Mr. Mitterrand, it’s all a misunderstanding.” At the Bastille, Corman apologized to Mitterrand with a broad smile. “I sincerely apologize for the trouble my comrade has caused you. Fortunately, no harm has been done, and I promise that nothing like this will ever happen again.”

Mitterrand looked haggard, his mind a blur, as if he didn't even know he was alive. Looking at the ever-smiling warrant officer in front of him, he said angrily, "I'm going to file a complaint against you for using vigilante justice."

"That's a serious statement. The Judicial Purification Committee is responsible for eliminating French traitors, and its work is all about defending France. It's definitely not vigilante justice."

Koeman's smile faded, replaced by a serious expression. He said with certainty, "Furthermore, after observation, you have no external injuries. So how can you talk about vigilante justice? If some misunderstanding has led Mr. Mitterrand to misunderstand the work of the Judicial Purification Committee, I suggest you file a complaint with the Prime Minister's Office Secretary."

Koeman once again embodied the image of holding a big stick and smiling. He had already apologized on behalf of his comrades. If Mitterrand still wouldn't let it go, he would be in deep trouble.

Koeman does have a bias towards some historical figures, but Mitterrand is a man, and Koeman's bias towards him is not strong.

Moreover, Mitterrand had already confessed and submitted to the law in front of the cameras during the previous interrogation. Now, Coman is a figure who has corrected the wrongs, and Mitterrand should be grateful to him.

However, Mitterrand pleaded guilty and admitted to having illicit dealings with the Germans. Koeman will not destroy the film; he will definitely keep it, as he might need it later.

"Take Mr. Mitterrand for a medical examination." Koeman swiftly summoned a prison guard. He was a pure soldier who respected evidence and would never allow any gaps in the established chain of evidence, also to prevent Mitterrand from turning around and accusing him after his release.

What is there for Mitterrand to complain about? Now the four major parties and some smaller parties all support the purge of traitors. Anyone who does not cooperate is going against the tide of history.

After Mitterrand left looking dejected, Martin emerged from the shadows and asked with a chuckle, "There are plenty of people like that, do they deserve such respect?"

"We're casting a wide net; we can't let any fish slip through," Coman said calmly. "Prepare a public apology immediately for arresting the wrong person. Who doesn't make mistakes? Especially our motherland."

After finishing his speech, Koeman asked about the time and decided to go see the tainted witness that Alan had found. He didn't even have a watch on his wrist anymore, so he would have to find an opportunity to steal one from Germany.

Now that Admiral Dragon has arrived in Paris, Corman should go home to visit. It's not appropriate to always live outside the city when you're in the same city. Besides, with Paris being such a makeshift place, it's not a bad thing to have access to more sources of information. When he gets home, his younger brother is doing his homework and Ms. Adile is just sitting there; neither of them is worth paying attention to.

General Dracon finally returned from the Paris City Hall, somewhat bewildered by the political exchange between de Gaulle and the French Communist Party. In his mind, it was a simple matter: tell the French Communist Party to hand over the army—what was so difficult about that? Corman, however, immediately understood. During his brief post-war leadership of less than two years, de Gaulle had already attempted to end parliamentarism, though unsuccessfully.

De Gaulle was certainly great for France, but who could claim to be completely selfless? Why are politicians always treated like saints?
During the year or so from 1944 until his resignation, de Gaulle's main achievement was strengthening the army to prevent it from being overthrown by the French Communist Party, and he succeeded in doing so.

Another point was the establishment of a presidential system, which failed.

De Gaulle, as the liberator of France, had enormous prestige, but he was also a soldier and no match for these political parties in terms of political collusion. The key point was that De Gaulle had not yet realized this; he thought he could.

De Gaulle positioned the French Communist Party as a target and spent more than a year gradually disarming it, while simultaneously preparing for the presidential system of the envisioned Fourth Republic.

But after he finally stripped the French Communist Party of its armed forces step by step, the four major parties in France in the early postwar period became no different from each other. The French Communist Party was no longer special, so it was the same as the other three major parties. In the struggle between parliamentary system and presidential system, de Gaulle overestimated his influence and had to announce his withdrawal from politics in protest.

De Gaulle had to pay the price for his political blunders.

Instead of taking a hard line against the French Communist Party immediately, de Gaulle is using political means such as legislation to operate. This suggests that de Gaulle believes he can defeat these political parties, establish a presidential system, and let the French Communist Party serve as a target for a period of time to divert the attention of other parties.

Koeman didn't need to explain too clearly to General Dragon. In any case, the fragmentation of French politics did not diminish the authority of the military; on the contrary, it led to the further expansion of the military's power during the long Algerian War. He summarized it in one sentence: "The general probably deliberately kept the French Communist Party around to divert the attention of other parties. As for why he did this, I don't know."

"General de Gaulle has ordered the army to draft a plan to seize Germany's defense industry." After hearing this, General Dragon recalled his conversation with de Gaulle at the city hall earlier that day.

“Leave this matter to me to draft.” Koeman was not polite. He was a warrant officer, but he was not opposed to the work of a brigadier general. “Actually, it’s not just one country eyeing Germany’s defense industry. The United States certainly has a similar plan, but it doesn’t matter. I believe Father knows the character of Americans.”

Admiral Dragon immediately adopted a mysterious air, as if he truly understood, but in reality he knew nothing at all. However, the British had said that the Americans were the Italians on our side.

Montgomery's continued dissatisfaction with Eisenhower stemmed from the fact that British military personnel, represented by him, believed the American military was ineffective.

What Koeman said was different from what Dragon thought. Koeman was talking about the lack of respect for scientific research talent in the United States. To put it bluntly, there is a problem with the public's perception in the United States. The United States does not respect ordinary scientific research talent. What does the United States respect? It respects scientific research talent like Einstein.

In the 21st century, this manifests as a tendency in the United States to look down on ordinary STEM talents, while placing great importance on top-tier scientific researchers who have already proven their abilities.

In the context of studying abroad and domestic education, top students are seen as bookworms who are easy to bully, but they are also admired by geniuses who study as easily as drinking water and manage all kinds of social activities without missing a beat. They want both of these qualities.

(End of this chapter)