Chapter 314
"Cheers!" Every customer in the restaurant downed their fine wine.
"Also, the Senate has issued a notice —" The patrol officer looked around and said solemnly, "Free citizens who have participated in Diónia's military training can register at the Victory Square immediately. The Ministry of Military Affairs is recruiting two thousand free citizens to Abyssinia to assist the Legion in battle —"
"Why didn't you say so earlier! There are only two thousand slots, I'm afraid they'll all be gone in a moment! "
"Hurry! Hurry! "The restaurant was instantly filled with complaints. After a moment of chaos, most of the customers in the restaurant had already left.
Dikboris and Dios looked at each other.
… … …
Meanwhile, the Victory Square was filled with people.
The Registry Department first had to confirm that the free citizens who came to register were indeed registered citizens. Then, the court personnel would check their files and confirm that they had no records of breaking the law while they were living in Diónia. Then, the Ministry of Military Affairs's training camp would select the young and fit free citizens who had performed diligently during their training. Only after all these were approved would the Registry Department confirm their names and notes on their files. This was to shorten the time it took for them to become probationary citizens in the future.
After this process was completed, there were more than a hundred civil servants in the Alliance, and all sorts of files piled up into a small hill. To prevent any accidents, thousands of Legion reserve soldiers were mobilized to maintain order.
In fact, there were more than ten thousand free citizens in the square, but they were able to maintain order. It was not because they were afraid of the soldiers, but because they knew that it did not matter even if they were not selected this time. There was no lack of opportunities to contribute in Diónia. For example, the temple that Amendola was building lacked manpower and was recruiting free citizens. The construction of the Crimissa – Asprustum Avenue was also recruiting free citizens … The Alliance only provided three meals a day for such large construction work, and the pay was extremely low. However, it could still help free citizens achieve their dream of becoming probationary citizens of Diónia.
However, if free citizens disrupted the public order of the Alliance and violated Diónia's laws, their path to becoming a Diónia citizen would become extremely difficult, and they might even be expelled from Diónia. Thus, even if they were not selected, these free citizens would at most curse a little and would not dare to do anything extreme. If anyone felt that the selection process was unfair, they could appeal to the notary office set up by the Ministry of Supervision on the other side of the square and request for a review.
Standing outside the Senate's conference hall and looking at the bustling scene in the Victory Square, Felicius suddenly said, "Actually, I think it's better to send the army's reserve troops to Bisnia to assist the Second Army. They've all gone through strict training and are not much different from the soldiers of the First Army. Compared to these free citizens, they're more capable and obedient."
Marij, who was beside him, asked, "If you send out all the citizen soldiers, Tuliyi will be empty. What if the enemy sneaks up on us or there's a big disturbance? What should we do?"
Felicius was at a loss for words. He hesitated and said, "Turí is surrounded by cities that belong to the Alliance. How could there be a sneak attack?"
"If we can sneak attack Abyssinia, why can't others sneak attack Turí?" Marigi was quibbling. In fact, he was thinking that Felicius was an idiot when it came to politics, apart from being an expert in military affairs. Lord Devers was leading the army outside, and there would always be soldiers guarding his home. Now that the members of the Senate were more complicated than before, if someone were to cause trouble, he could immediately suppress them.
At this moment, Mersius and Marigi were standing in the same trench, but his explanation came from a different angle.
"Send the reserve soldiers?!" he screamed. "You make it sound so easy! Felicius, you have to know how much effort the Devers and I have put in to prepare the rations for this war! Not only have the silver coins in the treasury been used up, but we have also owed huge debts to the citizens. However, this is only enough to supply the four legions for four months. The rations of a reserve soldier are the same as those of the legions, with at least three catties of grain and two salted fish a day. The rations of these free citizens are much simpler, and they only need to eat their fill. Felicius, use your brain. Don't only think about fighting all day long. If there is no food to eat when fighting, I think all of you will starve to death! "
Mersius and Felicius were old acquaintances. Felicius understood this fatty's personality and did not think much of it. Instead, he humbly expressed his acceptance.
Behind them, Antares was still shocked by the news of victory that he had heard in the morning.
"Antares, didn't you say that Ciudad Abyssinia has a geographical advantage and is almost impossible to capture? But how did the Consul capture it so quickly?" Euripides asked doubtfully.
"I don't know either. The messenger who came back to report did not tell us the details of the capture of Abyssinia." Antares' mind was still replaying the thrilling scene when he walked on the riverside path. He said helplessly, "Abyssinia does have natural defenses and is difficult to capture, but our Consul is the Blessed of Hades. With the protection of Hades, perhaps no matter how big the difficulty is, it will not be a problem for him. When he returns victorious, you can ask him in detail. "
"It seems that the Consul is indeed very good at commanding the citizens to fight. Euripides, why don't we apply to him and join these few legions of Diónia?" Preades suggested.
"I've already asked around. The unique legion system created by the Consul is very different from the ordinary military system of the city-states. Every promotion in the army has a strict assessment. Even if you and I are senators of the Senate, we are completely unfamiliar with the tactics and the use of military formations of the Legion of Dionysia. We have to start training again from the boot camp …" Euripides was rather angry when he said this. He was a noble of Crimissa, and now he was a senator of the Senate of Diónia. According to Felicius, who was a mercenary in the Ministry of Military Affairs, he actually had to sweat and train with the poor freedmen. How ridiculous!
"Let's train then. Don't tell me we can't compete with the freedmen!" Preades was indifferent.
Listening to the argument between the two, Antares was a little emotional. It seemed that he was not the only one who had accepted the fact of becoming a citizen of Diónia. Preades and Euripides were the same. Although he had been the chief general of Crimissa for a few years, a small tribe of Bruti that came down from the mountains to plunder was enough to give him and the people of the city a headache. But in Diónia, sitting in the Senate, a discussion could decide the life and death of the entire Bruti race! It really was like the old saying, "The higher you stand, the more scenery you see. When you get used to eating delicious food, you naturally won't be interested in hard coarse bread."
On the other side of the platform, Cunogorata and Cornelus were discussing another issue.
"After occupying Abyssinia, it seems that the day of our conquest of the Bruti will come soon!" In the past two years, Cornelus had also watched Diónia grow from being weak to becoming strong, and he could not help but sigh.
Cunogorata's consideration was more far-reaching. "After defeating the Bruti, how to deal with them is also a big problem!"
Cornelus thought for a moment and said with uncertainty, "They will probably deal with the Bruti the same way they dealt with the Lucanians!
Cunogorata pondered for a moment and said, "The Bruti are still different from the Lucanians …" He stopped here and could not help but shake his head. How far will the war go? What kind of agreement will they sign? It was still too early to think about these things, and it was impossible to predict them. However, if the Bruti region was conquered, Turií would be completely safe from then on!
… …
On the Sicilian island of Mortia, the war continued in the same way day after day. The Morians were all soldiers. Despite suffering heavy casualties, they did not surrender. Syracuse's attack was advancing bit by bit. Despite paying a heavy price, they were still unable to occupy the entire city.
As time passed, Dionysius became more and more anxious. He even executed two of his guards for a small reason.
Finally, he realized that attacking Mortia by force was not a good idea. After accepting the proposal of the former mercenary leader, Masias, he decided to organize a suicide squad and quietly crawl into the area guarded by the Morians in the dark.
Fortunately, his adventure was successful. The suicide squad opened the city gate and allowed the Syracuse troops to rush into the city. After a short but fierce battle, the resistance of the Morians was finally crushed.
At this moment, the Greek soldiers did not want to snatch the spoils of war. Too many of their comrades had died in the previous battle. They only wanted revenge. Moreover, they still remembered the atrocities committed by General Hannibal of Carthage (not the Hannibal of Rome. In Carthage, there were many generals named Hannibal at different times, and this one was more famous. He was the patriarch of the Magonid family) in Himera. They decided to be as cruel and merciless as the people of Carthage treated the Greek cities, and so the massacre began.
After a day of massacre, Dionysius finally stopped this behavior. It was not because he was merciful, but because he believed that the dead came before the captives. So the victors turned the fun of the massacre to robbery. They looted everything of value in the city of Carthage and sold all the captives as slaves.
Dionysius left a team of men to guard the empty city full of corpses and another team to continue besieging Segesta. He led the army back to Syracuse. At this time, the remaining Carthaginian forces in Sicily were only a few coastal cities in the northwest corner, such as Eryx, Sorus, Panomus, and so on. It was not that he did not want to completely wipe out the remaining Carthaginians in Sicily, but the rations he prepared for the army were almost finished. It was already October, and winter was coming. He decided to return to the city for the winter and come back next spring to solve the problem of Segesta.
Comments