Chapter 1222
According to Greek tradition, after a battle, the defeated party could also send people to clean up the battlefield and take away their dead compatriots so that they could be given a decent funeral. In the past, Diónia rarely followed this tradition because they were the victors most of the time. In order to maximize the results of the battle, they were also good at continuing to pursue after the victory. When the opponent ran away, they would not have the time to do anything else. Only during this period of time, when the Dionysian Army defended against the Greek Coalition's attack, this Greek military tradition was well carried out.
Tens of thousands of exhausted Greek Coalition soldiers began to slowly retreat to Leprion's camp.
Leprion was less than 20 miles away from the northern border of Messenia. This small city in the southern part of the Elis region was originally attached to Elis. Later, it was taken away by Sparta. After Elis joined the Greek Coalition, it was taken back by Sparta. When the Greek Coalition attacked Lagonia, they were frequently attacked by Diónia soldiers when they were camping. Therefore, after the army moved to Messenia, Iphicrates learned his lesson and stationed his army in Leprion, which was far away from the battlefield, mainly for safety reasons.
On the way back to the camp, many generals of the other cities came to Iphicrates to complain, saying things like, "Their soldiers suffered many casualties in today's battle …" and so on. Their words revealed the same meaning. They were not willing to carry out such a tragic siege again.
In fact, after the attack on the northern part of Lagonia, the armies of the other cities were hesitant to attack the defense camp of Diónia. If it wasn't for the fact that they had captured a Diónia camp some time ago and regained their confidence, as well as the fact that Iphicrates sent most of the Athens army into battle as an example and issued an all-out attack order today, the armies of the other cities would not have fought so hard.
However, it turned out that the small victory a few days ago was just an illusion. Not only did the defense of Diónia not weaken, but it had also strengthened. Although the Greek Coalition's siege ability had improved a little (they had learned a lot from the continuous battles against Diónia's camps), it was still not enough to break through the complex defense system of the Dionysian Army.
Iphicrates gave the same answer to the vague expressions of these generals: the Allied Forces would no longer attack the defensive encampment of Diónia!
Iphecrates' affirmative answer surprised the generals, but he didn't say anything else.
Returning to the military tent in Leprion's camp, Iphicrates had just taken off his armor when a guard outside the tent came in and reported, "General, General Ison requests an audience."
"Quickly invite him in."
Iazon strode into the tent, and before Iphicrates could speak, he said directly, "I heard that you announced to the public that you will give up on attacking the Diónia camp in Messenia. Is that true?!"
Looking at Iazon, Iphicrates calmly said, "General Iazon, I was about to send someone to look for you, but I didn't expect you to come first. Yes, I did say that, but- "
"That's a stupid decision!" Iazon looked straight at him and said in a firm tone, "We can't give up attacking just because we have suffered heavy losses today. We have suffered heavy casualties, but the Diónia army isn't much better. Before you withdrew your troops, my soldiers had already attacked the wooden wall several times. Although they were eventually driven down by the enemy, this shows that our attack is effective! As long as we maintain this offensive strength for the next few days, we will definitely be able to break through the Diónia's defense! "
At this point, Ison revealed a ferocious look. "Don't listen to the excuses of those city generals. You should continue to give the order to attack like you did today! If you really want to stop attacking the Diónia camp, then I'm sorry, I will no longer participate in the war between you and Diónia. I will lead the army back to Thessaly! "
In the face of Iazon's threat, Iphicrates blinked and smiled helplessly, "Respected General Iazon, of course, I know that as long as we continue to attack, we will definitely break through the Diónia camp. However, the reason why I made such a decision is not because I'm worried about the heavy casualties, but because —"
Iphicrates paused and said in a serious tone, "I just received a message from Athens. Four days ago, the Diónia navy suddenly blockaded Sarons Bay, making it impossible for our warships to leave the port. However, the fishermen on the north coast still found an unusual situation. A large number of Diónia ships carrying soldiers bypassed Uiberia Island and entered the Mariacos Bay —"
"The Diónia army is raiding my Thessaly!" Iazon's expression changed instantly. He glared at Iphicrates, "Why didn't you tell me such important news earlier?!"
"In such a large-scale war, any decision must be made carefully. After the council in Athens received the news, they tried their best to find out the truth. In the process, they even lost many ships. In the end, it was confirmed that the Dionysian Army had indeed landed in Thessaly. Only then did the General Executive Committee urgently send messengers on horseback, who came here day and night —"
"How many Dionysian Army soldiers have landed in Thessaly?!" Iazon interrupted him rudely and asked anxiously.
"According to our judgment, it should not be less than 30,000."
Without another word, Iazon strode out of the military tent with an anxious look on his face.
Iphicrates also hurriedly called for his adjutant. "Quickly send someone to inform the generals of the various cities. Just say … 'Due to traces of the Dionysian Army found in Thessaly's territory, the Thessaly army is rushing back to provide reinforcements. Tell them not to be nervous and to control their own soldiers' …"
After hearing this, the adjutant also felt nervous and hurriedly said, "I will do it immediately."
"Also —" Iphicrates said solemnly, "Personally go to the barracks of Thessaly and tell Iazon that I suggest that he lead his army directly north, pass through the Ellis region, and take a ship from the port of Cape Rion or Patre to the Corinth Bay … This route will save a lot of time."
As he said this, he took out a few letters from his pocket. "These are the letters I wrote in the name of Athens to Ellis, Patre, and Cape Rion. I hope that they can help the people of Thessaly. Pass these letters to Iazon. "
After sending off the adjutant, Iphicrates also walked out of the military tent. Through the thin darkness of the night, he looked in the direction of the barracks of Thessaly. There were horses neighing and people shouting, and it was a complete mess.
In fact, Iphicrates lied to Iazon. In the letter sent to him by the General Executive Committee of Athens, not only did they ask him to increase the intensity of the attack on Diónia, but they also strictly ordered him to hide this news from the people of Thessaly. Only in another letter written to him by Callistratus, who was on good terms with him, did Callistratus tactfully mention that he could make the decision that best suited the interests of Athens according to the situation on the battlefield.
During the period of confrontation and battle with the Dionysian Army, Iphicrates had already experienced the strong ability of the Dionysian Army in defensive operations. The armies of the Greek Alliance, on the other hand, had obviously not experienced such a strong siege, and they dared not to suffer too many casualties. Therefore, in previous battles, they had always put in some effort, but not too much effort. This included the army of Athens. After receiving the order from Athens, Iphicrates finally issued a death order today and launched a fierce attack. However, the result was still disappointing. Not only did they fail to defeat the enemy, but the rapidly increasing number of casualties not only caused the generals of the Greek Alliance to retreat, but also shocked him.
If he continued to launch a fierce attack as Iazon said, he was afraid that the Greek Alliance would be torn apart before they could break through the defense line of Diónia, and he might also be impeached by the General Assembly of Athens. Moreover, even if the Greek Alliance paid a heavy price and finally defeated the Dionysian Army in Messenia, the Kingdom of Diónia would send new troops to Greece, just like how they sent another army to Thessaly. At that time, the Greek Alliance, which had already suffered heavy losses, would not be able to resist the Dionysian Army's invasion!
Iphicrates had already realized that the war with Diónia could not end with just one or two victories. If they wanted to fight against the powerful Dionysian Army for a long time, they must win over Thessaly's people. During the time they fought side by side, Iphicrates discovered that not only did Thessaly's army account for half of the Greek Alliance, but its combat power was also the strongest. In particular, the nearly 10,000 mercenaries were not only brave in battle, but also well-disciplined. As the commander of Thessaly's army, although Iazon had some conflicts with Iphicrates because he did not become the commander of the Greek Alliance, he treated every battle seriously and had a strong command ability.
As an enemy, Thessaly's army was undoubtedly terrifying. However, as an ally against a strong enemy, Thessaly's army was undoubtedly the best helper. Therefore, Iphicrates decided to disobey the order of the General Executive Committee. After delaying for a day, he personally told Iazon the news that Thessaly had been attacked by the Dionysian Army. Even if the General Executive Committee pursued this matter in the future, he could falsely say that "Iazon received the news from Thessaly's messenger." After all, it was impossible for Athens to completely block all the roads leading from Thessaly to Peloponnesus.
However, he still planned to send his trusted servant back to Athens and secretly reveal this matter to his good friend Callistratus. He believed that with Callistratus's foresight, he would definitely support him, because all this was for the sake of Athens!
Just as Iphicrates was standing outside the tent, lost in his thoughts, his adjutant had already rushed back to report to him, "General, I have handed the letter to Iazon. He expressed his gratitude and said that after he drove away the Dionysian Army in Thessaly's territory and stabilized the rear, he would definitely lead his army back to fight against the Diónia together with the Greek Alliance …"
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