While Eder was torn between a hard and a hard time, the war in Europe continued.

On the Western Front, in order to support the French army fighting hard at Verdun, the British launched an attack on the Germans along the Somme. In preparation for this campaign, the British and French forces gathered a total of 32 infantry divisions and 6 cavalry divisions, 2,189 artillery pieces, 1,160 mortars, and about 300 aircraft. Its main purpose was to break through the German positions, to turn them from positional warfare to a war of movement, and to relieve the pressure on France in the Battle of Verdun.

The biggest impression of this battle for Eder was that there were more deaths, Maxim killed 60,000 British soldiers in one day, and the debut of tanks on the battlefield. Britain spent no less time developing tanks than Romania. After the outbreak of World War I, Lieutenant Colonel Swinton, who was serving in the British Expeditionary Force, proposed. It was necessary to create an armored vehicle capable of opening roads, climbing over trenches, and destroying and suppressing machine-gun fire on a battlefield covered with barbed wire, thereby speeding up the course of the war. However, the British Army at that time had no interest in this, but Churchill, who was the Secretary of the Navy at the time, immediately ordered the formation of a "Land Battleship Committee" to personally lead the development of "Land Battleships."

In August 1915, the world's second tank was created in the UK. Unlike the Romanians, which had Eder guidelines, the British-produced Mark I tanks did not excel. It seems that it is more of an emergency production, which is also related to the positioning of the new weapons produced by the United Kingdom.

At that time, the Mark I tank had a diamond-shaped outline, rigid suspension, protruding gun mounts on both sides of the hull, two tracks around the hull from the top, and a pair of steering wheels protruding from the rear. The tank has a crew of 8 people, and there are two types, "male" and "female". The "male" was armed with 2 57-mm Hotchkiss 6-pounder rapids guns and 4 Hazikaith machine guns, while the "female" was armed with only 6 Vickers machine guns.

This tank, which seemed so rudimentary to Eder, still shocked the Germans. The Germans were terrified when a dozen massive steel monsters rumbled and roared, their tracks clanged, breaking through the barbed wire, flattening bunkers, and firing at the enemy with machine guns and artillery, and the soldiers abandoned their positions in a panic, some hiding in shelters, some fleeing.

The British infantry, supported by tanks, dispersed the attack on a 10-kilometer-wide frontal and advanced four to five kilometers in five hours, a result that previously required thousands of tons of artillery shells and tens of thousands of casualties. The British troops captured the lost bunker without suffering many casualties, capturing the lost machine guns and artillery. One tank captured a village without firing a single shot, while another captured a trench and captured more than 300 German soldiers.

When the German command received a report from the front, it was taken aback. They were very interested in the ability to climb over trenches on the battlefield (in fact, they relied on wood to fill in the trenches, but still the tanks were not able to climb over them). ), ignoring machine-gun fire. Intrigued by the new weapons that could be moved, the priority was to find a solution, and a staff officer mentioned an indication. This weapon was already available in the Romanian army, and the military sent a telegram to the Government in the hope that it would soon be able to obtain the new Romanian weapon. Even if you can't get the physical object, at least you have to have a drawing.

So the German government naturally entrusted this task to Ambassador Baslober, an old friend of Eder, who was now watching a secret diplomatic telegram from Berlin.

"Hey, it's not a good task."

After reading the telegram, Ambassador Baslober sighed to himself.

As an ambassador to Romania for several years, Baslober thought he had some knowledge of Romanian politics. He has also heard some rumors about Prime Minister Blettianu's recent frequent contact with the Entente, so he thinks that Romania has already begun to choose a team. It's just that after his analysis of Romania was sent back home, it was lost in the sea.

But even if it is not easy, Ambassador Baslober believes that he must do his part for the country. So after reading the telegram, Ambassador Baslober called an embassy staff.

"Go and help me get my car ready, I'm going to go out."

After instructing the staff, Ambassador Baslober began to think about where to open the gap. It was not an easy task to obtain the weapons drawings of the neutral countries, and the previous firing coordinator, Ambassador Baslober believed afterwards, had been deliberately given to them by Romania. Otherwise, there is no way to explain why Eder agreed so easily, and at that time he almost thought that Romania would have to choose a side first.

Unfortunately, in hindsight, he overthought it, and Romania maintained its neutrality.

When Ambassador Baslober thought of the Berlin request, Counselor Masno hurried over.

"Our people have just seen again that Minister Wentil Bretianu went to the British Embassy. This is the third time this week, and there must be something in the Romanian government talking to the Entente. ”

Faced with Counsellor Masno's affirmative words, Ambassador Baslober had to put aside his thoughts about Berlin's demands. He asked rhetorically. "Is this true?"

"Of course, the military attache of our embassy, Major Hubbartz, saw it for himself this time."

Counselor Masno's affirmative words made Ambassador Baslober think as he walked back and forth in the room. A cousin who is also a minister or prime minister frequently visits the embassy of the Entente must have his own unknown reason. Ask the Romanian side directly, this is absolutely not okay, and Romania will not tell the truth. I got the news through my Romanian friends, and the problem was that I didn't have enough reliable friends at the top of the government.

Ambassador Baslober thought of several options in his mind, but he vetoed them.

Counselor Masno couldn't help but suggest as he watched Ambassador Baslober walk back and forth in thought. "Why don't we start with the Allied embassies?"

Ambassador Baslober asked when he heard Counsellor Masno's words. "Do you have any good candidates?"

Counsellor Masno knew that it was Ambassador Baslober who asked him if he had a suitable candidate for the bribe. Now thinking of getting information about contacts between Romania and the Entente, through the Romanian side is unlikely at the moment. Because the Romanian officials are very high-level, and their embassy can't afford to pay the price. However, it is much easier to buy the staff of the Allied embassy, after all, its level is much lower, so it is much easier to bribe.

Ambassador Baslober just casually asked, but he didn't expect that Counselor Masno really gave him a candidate. "At the moment I have a candidate."

"Who?"

"Counsellor of the Russian Embassy, Antizi Danton." ()

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