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Chapter 30

"Yes, let's wait for Colissops to come, then we'll discuss it!" At the mention of Colissops, everyone's expression relaxed a little, which made Devers curious. He asked Xenophon in a low voice, "Who is Colissops?"

Xenophon said with a complicated expression, "I heard that Young Cyrus once had an agreement with Sparta. He fully supported Sparta in building a navy, and when Young Cyrus went to war, Sparta also needed to provide military assistance."

Devers immediately reacted and said in surprise, "You mean, Colissops was sent by Sparta?!"

"He's the censor of Sparta. I heard that he brought seven hundred heavy-armored infantrymen and joined Young Cyrus's team … At that time, he didn't know that Young Cyrus was plotting a rebellion. By the time he found out, it was already too late. So, he and his troops have been keeping a low profile in the mercenary army, but many high-ranking officers know his identity …" Xenophon said with some schadenfreude.

Devers knew why Xenophon had such an expression. It was because he was from Athens. They had heard about the censor of Sparta from Xenophon. Unlike other Greek city-states that also had censors, Sparta's censor system was unique because it had great power. The people below could supervise citizens, judge Piriaci, punish Helots, and enjoy the highest civil jurisdiction and some criminal jurisdiction. The people above could monitor the king's every move with vigilant eyes at all times. They had the right to sue the king and summon him for trial at any time. Moreover, the censor of Sparta could only be a civilian. Every autumn, citizens over the age of thirty would draw lots to elect five censors. When they took office, they would issue an order requiring every citizen to shave their upper lip and beard and abide by the laws of the state. This showed how much importance Sparta attached to the censors. According to Xenophon, it was because of this censor system in Sparta that the civilians held power that it was not regarded as a tyrannical country by the other city-states.

There was such an important figure hidden in the Greek mercenary army. He was probably the only general with official status in the mercenary army, and he was from Sparta. After defeating Athens, Sparta had become the overlord of all the Greek city-states. Even if the Greeks didn't follow Sparta's lead, they at least respected it. The previous Sparta soldier, Krilkus, was a deserter and was sentenced to death by the Sparta government. However, the one who was about to arrive was a real Sparta warrior, and he also brought 700 real Sparta warriors with him.

Devers were about to see the ancient Sparta warriors, who were popular all over the world in his previous life. Would they be wearing red underpants?

While waiting for Kelisthorpes, the temporary people in charge of the barracks did not stay idle. They invited the team officers of the barracks up to platoon jarls to participate in the discussion. There were nearly 200 people in total, and the big tent could not accommodate so many people, so they sat in a large circle in the open space of Kleerkus' camp. After everyone had arrived, it did not take long for Kelisthorpes to arrive as well.

Early in the morning, Kelisthorpes went to a nearby village to prepare supplies for his soldiers. The village was located south of the Greek mercenary camp, so it was not intercepted by the Persia cavalry. When the messenger found him, he was rushing back. He had already learned about what had happened along the way. When he arrived at the meeting hall, everyone consciously gave him a spacious seat. Without hesitation, he sat directly on the mud floor and began to look around. He did not see the main mercenary leaders … Thinking that Krilkus' life was still uncertain, he felt a little sad. Krilkus was a comrade of Sparta. In the war with Athens, Krilkus made a lot of contributions and was a valiant general of Sparta. However, because he could not adapt to peace, he refused to obey the orders of Sparta and was sentenced to death. When Chalisops saw Little Cyrus in the army, he pretended not to see him and did not send his men to arrest him. Firstly, he did not want to ruin the cooperation with Little Cyrus; secondly, he cherished the comradeship.

His eyes slowly swept across the faces and stopped when it fell on one person: it was a very young face. Among a large group of team officers whose average age was over 30, this young man should not be more than 20 years old, and he was sitting at the front of the team, so he was very conspicuous. What was even more strange was that several people around him were quite respectful to this young man. He looked at him with bright eyes and even smiled and nodded at him … Kelisthorpes was a little confused and hurriedly asked his adjutant in a low voice. The adjutant asked the others before coming to tell him.

The "Beloved" of the Menon Barracks? The "Oracle" that was sent out repeatedly was always fulfilled? Kelisthorpes frowned: the management of the mercenary army was really messy, allowing a childish young man to occupy a high position!

Although the people of Sparta claimed to be the descendants of Hercules, in fact, they did not have much respect for the gods. They believed more in their own strength. They were conservative and did not believe in the saying that young people were promising. Otherwise, there would not be a rule that "Sparta people could only leave the collective life after the age of 30, be independent, get married, and hold important positions …" Therefore, Kelisthorpes did not have a good first impression of the Devers.

In the eyes of the Devers, Kelisthorpes was quite different from the image of the Sparta warrior in their imagination: he was not tall and looked ordinary. If it were not for the few scars on his face and the sharp eyes that reminded others of his warrior identity, the Devers might have thought that he was just an ordinary old Greek farmer.

After the surroundings quieted down, Kelisthorpes began to speak, "I already know what happened. Do you have any suggestions?"

For a moment, there were many whispers in the hall, but no one stood up to speak. After all, to express an opinion in the face of more than 200 experienced generals required not only courage, but also a certain degree of eloquence and insight, which was not easy for the poor Greek mercenaries.

The Devers did not speak out, not because he was afraid, but because in the previous contact with the team officers in charge of the various barracks, he found that among this group of people, he was young and only an ordinary soldier. Too ostentatious behavior would easily cause disgust, so he decided to wait and see.

Finally, Xenophon stood up and said, "Dear team officers, the Persia people have broken their promise, killed or imprisoned our leaders and soldiers, and want us all to surrender our weapons. Now, our war with the Persia is inevitable! You have all seen, after the soldiers in the camp heard the news, most of them were confused, afraid, and even crying! If this situation does not change quickly, once the Persia people attack and they need to fight, they will not have the courage to wave their spears at the enemy, and we will be in danger of being wiped out!

Everyone, you are the team officers of the various barracks. Usually, your pay, your status, are higher than that of ordinary soldiers, and you are also stronger than them. Now, in the face of danger, the soldiers have pinned their hopes on you. You must show great courage and the determination to fight to the death with the Persia people. Only then will you be able to stabilize the soldiers' emotions and boost their confidence!

At the same time, we must immediately elect outstanding people to be the new generals of the barracks, to replace Krylkus and the others, to manage and restrain the soldiers of the barracks, to formulate a plan, to command the whole army to defeat the Persia people, and to lead us back to Greece smoothly! With the protection of Zeus, we will definitely be able to walk out of Persia!! … "

Xenophon's words aroused a great response from the crowd, and some even applauded. Xenophon looked at the indifferent Timason with a slightly smug expression, and then immediately moved his gaze away.

In fact, this was the only choice for the Greek mercenaries who were in a difficult situation at the moment. "Everyone, we don't have time to waste. Let's do as Xenophon said. Please return to your camps immediately and elect your new leaders. Then, let them come here for a military meeting to discuss and formulate a plan," Chalisthorpes immediately stood up and said in a firm and decisive tone.

He looked around at the crowd and continued to say loudly, "In the afternoon, here again, we will hold another meeting of the whole army!" With that, he turned and left without waiting for the team officers to respond.

As expected! Devers clenched their fists and followed Antonios and the others to stand up.