"Thank you for Your Highness's generosity! If the Army's budget is a little more generous in the future, we may purchase even more motorcycles." Moltke the Younger forced a smile onto his face. But no matter how one looked at it, it was a smile that never reached his eyes.
Oscar nodded and said nothing more. He knew Moltke the Younger was merely speaking polite words. Getting the Army to buy products from his companies would likely be extremely difficult, especially while Moltke the Younger remained in the position of Chief of Staff.
What had begun as an event to sell motorcycles to the Army had ended up becoming an event to donate a large number of motorcycles to the Army, leaving Oscar rather speechless. Still, being able to spend fifty million marks to make most of the Army's senior officers change their opinion of him meant the money had not been wasted. Many times, even spending money might not produce such results.
Once Oscar had reached an agreement with the Army, the event came to an end. Moltke the Younger was the first to take his leave. Yet the instant he turned around, the false smile vanished completely from his face, replaced by a dark and gloomy expression.
"It seems Prince Oskar truly is an ambitious man. He is currying favor with the military at any cost, clearly because he wants the military's support to shake Crown Prince Wilhelm's position as Crown Prince! Crown Prince Wilhelm's seat may look as steady as Mount Tai, but under Prince Oskar's assault, can it truly remain secure forever?" Moltke the Younger thought to himself.
But Moltke the Younger soon concluded that Crown Prince Wilhelm's position looked stable only on the surface; in truth, it was already tottering on the brink of collapse.