Chapter 174
Sybaris! Although it had now become a joke for the Greeks and a negative example for the city-states, it was undeniable that more than a hundred years ago, it was the largest city-state in Greece that spanned across the east and west coasts of the Apennines, ruled many cities, intimidated the Bruti, Lucaria, and other local races, and possessed amazing wealth. At that time, Syracuse was only a small city-state, and Tarantum and Crotone could only look up to it. The elders reminisced about the glory of Sybaris in the past and were intoxicated by the vision of the future. They cheered excitedly again, and some even shouted excitedly, "Fight across the Sinni River, capture Grumentum, and take back our Poseidonia!"
Since when did Poseidonia become ours? Devers laughed in his heart. He was happy to see such a situation happen.
At this time, Vesba stood up and asked with concern, "Lord Devers, how is the situation in Grumentum and the other Lucarians?"
"Because our attack was very successful, no one escaped. I guess the Lucarians in the north have not received the news yet. Sesta is seizing the time to stabilize the situation in Neutum. With the full help of Bagoule, a large number of Lucarians and slaves in Neutum are willing to become citizens of the Alliance. Sesta and Asistes are busy registering the surrendered Lucanians, distributing land, cattle, and other matters, while strengthening the city's defenses. In addition, Asistes is also building the Ra River Fortress and will return in two days. Even if the Lucarians in the north receive the news, they will not be able to attack Neutum for the time being. From the information we have received, we all know that Picossis has just fought with Grumentum. Due to the rebellion of some of the leaders, Akepiru's son, Lusau, who occupied the city of Grumentum, was defeated and led his people to flee to Potentia, and Potentia accepted him. Obviously, even if Picossis's Sinsinag occupies the city of Grumentum, he still has to be careful of Potentia's intervention, so Neutum is safe for now! "
The words of the Devers dispelled the worries of some of the elders, and the atmosphere became even more heated.
Cornelus said loudly, "My Lords, there is an important issue that the Senate urgently needs to discuss and resolve!"
Most of the elders were stunned. What kind of big problem could there be on this day of victory?
"Previously, we owned the cities of Amendolara and Turií, so we called it the Tua Alliance. It was simple and clear, and the people understood what it meant the moment they heard it. But now that there's Neutum, it wouldn't be right to call it the Tua Alliance! "Kornelus said seriously.
Cornelus's thoughtfulness made the elders realize that it was indeed inappropriate. This was tantamount to excluding Neutum. What would the people of Neutum think in the future? Moreover, judging from the development trend, Neutum would mainly be dominated by the Lucanians in the future. Now, a lot of effort and many bills had been made to include the Lucanians in the Alliance. This was a long-term plan that the Senate elders had gradually reached. Because a name issue could lead to discord and division, the Alliance's long-term efforts would be in vain! This was indeed an important issue that needed to be resolved immediately!
"Then we'll call it the Turií — Amendolara — Neutum Alliance!" Amyntas' answer was simple and clear, but some of the elders could not help but laugh.
"Oh, that's quite convenient. But what if we get the Grumentum next time? We'll continue to call it the Turií — Amendolara — Neutum — Grumentum Alliance?! If there's a next time … If this continues, it'll take a lot of time every time the official name of our alliance is mentioned! "Mercies ridiculed exaggeratedly.
Everyone burst into laughter.
Amyntas could not hide his embarrassment anymore. He said angrily, "Mercies, come up with a better name for me to see!"
"It's not difficult. Since we want to restore the glory of Sebaris and regain its amazing wealth …" At this point, it felt like Mercies was almost drooling. "Let's just call it the New Sebaris!"
As soon as this was said, Cunogorata shook his head in objection. "This name is not good! It will easily aggravate the relationship with Crotone, and it will also make the neighboring city-states feel uneasy! "
Ancitanos agreed. "That's right. When Sebaris was prosperous, there was competition with many city-states in Great Greece, and their relationship was not very good. Even the Campanian Alliance to the north of the Lucaria region (the Neapolitan Alliance) was hostile to Sebaris. We can't ruin our relationship with our neighbors because of a name! … "
As a scholar of history, Ancetanos' words naturally won the elders' attention and approval. Many of the elders had already thought of names that might cause dissatisfaction with the neighboring city-states, but they swallowed them back into their stomachs. For example, Antonio's "Great Greek Alliance". At this time, the elders realized that this name was not easy to come up with. Not only did it have to contain a certain meaning, but it also had to represent the cities in the alliance. At the same time, they had to consider the future development and the relationship with the neighboring city-states. Some of the elders pondered and muttered softly. Some even looked directly at the Devers …
"Isn't it easy to come up with a name? I'll say a name, and all of you will think it's good!" someone said confidently.
Everyone saw that it was Plesinas.
"Hurry up and say it!" Under the urging of the elders, Plesinas slowly said word by word, "Let's call it the City Alliance of Diónia!"
While the uncultured elders like Amyntas were still pondering the meaning of the name, many of the elders once again looked at the Devers meaningfully.
The Devers were a little surprised. He had indeed neglected the problem of the alliance's name before. When everyone was thinking of a name, he was also thinking about it, but he did not expect Plesinas to repeatedly surprise him. The meaning of the name Devers was "Son of God." Some people in the alliance thought that the name of the consul was bestowed by the gods. Otherwise, how would his parents know that their child would become the one favored by Hades in the future, or even be his blood descendant? "Dior" referred to God, and the name "Diónia" meant the land of God. Therefore, the two names "Diónia" and "Devers" were deeply related.
Before the Devers could say anything, Marigi had already shouted, "Good name! Good name! The Greeks had a tradition of naming the city-states after the gods. For example, the Poseidonia you mentioned earlier, and the well-known Athens … Our alliance has been blessed by Hades many times. That's why we were able to win against the many, defeat the strong, and develop so quickly in a short period of time! In order to thank Hades, the symbol of our alliance is Hades, and the flag of our army is Hades. We also want to build a temple for him, but that's not enough! The people of the entire alliance should be blessed by him, so the name Diónia is just right! I believe that with it, our alliance will develop even faster! … "
It might seem strange to outsiders to let a Persia person talk about the Greek gods and the grace of God, but the senators present listened very seriously, and some of them had already nodded in agreement. As the troops were out on an expedition, there were not many former mercenary senators who firmly supported the Devers. Without these people making a ruckus, the scene was a little quiet.
The Devers looked around at the crowd, and his eyes fell on Cornelus and Cunogorata. "My two city governors, what do you think of this name?"
Cornelus lowered his head and said, "I have no objections."
Cunogorata glanced at Pryzinas, then looked at the Devers and said, "I completely agree. This is a good name!"
"Then let's call it the Diónia City-State Alliance!" The Devers calmly made the final decision.
… …
At the end of the meeting, the Devers and the senators walked out together. They did not deliberately talk to Pryzinas the whole time.
Outside the door, all the senators were stunned. In front of the Senate of Amendolan was a dense crowd of people, stretching all the way to the foot of the mountain. Among them were wives who had lost their husbands to the Lucarians, elderly people who had lost their children, children who had lost their fathers, thousands of Turís who had a phobia because of the Lucarians, and Amendolans who were worried about the situation at the frontline (almost all the families of the soldiers were in Amendolan). At this moment, they were all standing quietly. When they saw the Devers coming out, someone shouted first, followed by a tsunami of cheers. "Victory, Tua Alliance!"
"Victory, Senate!"
"Victory, Lord Devers!"
"Thank you! Thank you … "
Everyone was cheering to their heart's content, their eyes shining with tears of excitement. It was the release of years of humiliation! It was a kind of pleasure from settling a grudge! It was the joy of no longer having to be afraid!
The Tua Alliance led by the Devers had seized Niutum, solving many years of trouble for the Turís in one fell swoop. The sincere gratitude of the people infected all the senators of the Senate. At this moment, they felt the pride and pride of being senators of the Tua Alliance's Senate. Just as the Devers said, we will lead the people to create a prosperous and powerful City-State Alliance of Diónia! Let the Diónians proudly claim to be citizens of Diónia no matter which city-state they were in, and no foreigners would dare to invade them!
Naturally, Tratus saw this spectacular and touching scene. No matter how emotional he was, the message sent back to the Crotone City Hall was still short: The Tua Alliance had seized Niutum, and Laos had become their ally.
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