Chapter 715: You Haven't Declared War Already… Have You?
Today, Paris was in a state of unprecedented celebration.
People sang and danced in the streets, circling around to the sound of accordions, singing as they danced. Hundreds, even thousands, gathered together, and the festivities continued well into dusk with no sign of dispersing.
The crowds were so thick that cars on the roads could only inch forward like snails—but the drivers didn't mind. Many stuck their arms out the windows to join in the street revelry.
In one of these taxis sat a woman in a lavish ruffled dress, accompanied by two plainclothes guards with sharp eyes, vigilantly observing their surroundings.
(Image above: Queen Marie of Romania, wife of King Ferdinand I. During WWI, she played a key role in diplomatic efforts to secure Romanian interests.)
"What's going on today?" the woman asked, her curious eyes drifting toward the wild crowd outside the car window. In fluent French, she asked the driver, "Is it a national holiday in France?"
The woman was Queen Marie of Romania. Her visit to Paris had one goal: to win the support of the Entente powers for Romania's bid to reclaim Transylvania.
"No, madam," the driver answered, turning his head with proud enthusiasm.
"You haven't heard? Today is the day Charles defeated the Germans. It's a great victory for us!"
"Good heavens! He broke through from the Meuse to Verdun and split the German defensive line in two."
"Germany has collapsed. Charles gave them the lesson they deserved!"
...
The driver rattled on excitedly, steering the car at a crawl while singing the praises of Charles:
"There's no one else like him—can you believe he's only 19 years old?"
"He's a great capitalist with a conscience! He took control of supplies back from the greedy capitalists, so we no longer go hungry."
"What a perfect man! Just imagine—he could have taken all of France's wealth for himself."
"But he didn't! He gave us hope! He is the hope of France!"
...
Queen Marie fell silent, watching the jubilant people through the car window. She seemed lost in thought.
She suddenly felt that she might be walking the wrong path.
If the people of France had such unwavering faith in Charles—and if this was a republic, at least nominally ruled by the will of its people—then any attempt to gain the support of the Entente must begin with Charles.
Moved by this realization, Queen Marie exclaimed, "What a great man... He must have a noble soul. I can't wait to meet him."
"He's still at the front, madam," the driver said with a laugh. "Seeing him won't be easy."
"As it should be. I'm sure many people want to meet him," Marie replied with a hopeful glint in her eye.
"Of course!" The driver nodded toward the street ahead. "You see why there are so many people on this road? It's because up ahead is the city's defense headquarters."
"The city's what?"
"City defense headquarters," the driver repeated, unaware that he was giving away sensitive information to someone fishing for it. "That's where Charles used to serve. General Gallieni is there. Charles often visits him!"
"Oh!" Marie feigned sudden understanding. "They must be very close, Charles and General Gallieni?"
"Absolutely!" the driver nodded firmly. "If anyone stands with Charles, it's General Gallieni. He's also a man worthy of respect. We're lucky to have him in France!"
Marie gave a satisfied nod. "Stop the car right up ahead."
She casually pulled out a thick stack of francs and handed them to the driver. "A small token of my thanks."
...
City Defense Headquarters
Gallieni had been stationed there since the afternoon.
He should have been at City Hall, fulfilling his duties as Minister of War. But he disliked the political atmosphere.
"There's no sense of the battlefield there," Gallieni told Lieutenant Colonel Fernand. "Only the backstabbing of politicians. I'm more at home here, especially when we're winning at the front."
At that moment, Gallieni was poring over battlefield telegrams with Fernand, analyzing Charles's movements under the lamp light.
As he pointed and demonstrated the maneuvers, he couldn't help but praise them aloud: "My word, every move is unexpected—that's why he won so easily!"
Just then, a guard stepped in. "General, a visitor requests to see you. She claims to be Queen Marie of Romania."
"Queen Marie?" Gallieni was momentarily stunned.
He had met her once three years ago during a visit to Romania. But surely she wouldn't remember him.
What was she doing here?
The next second, he realized exactly why she had come.
"Let her in," Gallieni said quickly, his tone urgent.
Queen Marie ascended the steps with a graceful smile. When she saw Gallieni, she lit up as if greeting an old friend: "It's been so long, General! We last met three years ago in Bucharest, I believe?"
A flash of surprise crossed Gallieni's eyes. He hadn't expected her to have such a sharp memory.
"Your Majesty," Gallieni bowed politely. When he straightened, he spoke bluntly: "If you've come regarding Romania's declaration of war, I must ask you to reconsider."
Queen Marie shrugged. "May I ask why?"
Gallieni led her to a large table covered with maps and telegrams. Spreading the documents out, he pointed at the map and said:
"Everyone believes Charles pierced through to Verdun with ease and claimed victory.
But no one knows just how dangerous it was along the way."
"At Mézières, he nearly got trapped under bombardment—but he invented an amphibious tank and got out of it."
"Then at Trucqueville, he ran low on artillery. There was a real chance of a brutal clash with Germany's 1st Tank Division."
"But he solved it with another new invention—incendiary bombs."
Gallieni paused and turned to stare at Queen Marie.
The meaning in his eyes was clear: You understand what I'm getting at, don't you?
Marie's face changed slightly. "You're saying... the Germans aren't as weak as they seem?"
"Exactly." Gallieni nodded. "They seem weak only because Charles is too strong. But if anyone else dares challenge them… you know what the result would be."
Queen Marie's breath quickened. Her eyes showed a flicker of panic.
She understood: Gallieni's mention of "others" referred specifically to Romania.
It was a veiled warning.
"But..." Queen Marie hesitated.
Gallieni caught the hesitation in her face and narrowed his eyes. "You haven't... already declared war, have you?"
Queen Marie gave a slight nod. "Yes. We were worried you might stop us again like last time, so we decided to declare war first—then come seek the Entente's support."
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