Chapter 543
This piece of good news allowed Alexis to have nothing to worry about.
At this time, the Campanian Alliance from the north sent a messenger.
Sammonae, Potentia, and Diónia had such a huge war, but as the enemy of Sammonae, the city-state of Campania had been watching silently. Only when the outcome of the war was decided and Diónia's army was approaching Campania did they finally send out a messenger.
The city-state that the messenger came from was only separated from Enona by the small Sorrento Peninsula. It was only about 40 miles away, next to Mount Vesuvius. It was Pompeii.
The messenger came to see if the Diónia had any intention of threatening Campania.
Alexis told him without hesitation: The Diónia were only fighting back against the Sammonae's invasion, and had the desire to be friendly with the Greek city-states of Campania. They had absolutely no intention of invading.
The messenger from Pompeii returned happily, and at the same time, he brought with him a small request from Alexis: she hoped that they could exchange the spoils of war of Sammonae for grain.
… …
Mikallesus was a citizen of Syracuse. As a native who had lived here for generations, he owned ten acres of land, two fishing boats, and a shop in the city's market to sell fish. If it were not for the high war taxes that Dionysius collected every year in the past few years, his family would be quite well-off.
When the news of Syracuse's army's victory in Magna Graecia came again and again and was announced in Apollo Square, the people cheered with mixed feelings. He always felt a little regretful, because when the citizens were mobilized in the square, Lady Luck did not favor him. He was not chosen, and lost a good opportunity to plunder the spoils of war in Magna Graecia to improve his living conditions in recent years. In his opinion, any opposing force would be vulnerable under the attack of such a large force of Syracuse.
However, the situation had changed in the past few days. After the bad news of the navy of Syracuse suffering two crushing defeats and almost losing all their warships, the excited citizens of Syracuse were doused with a can of cold water.
The unheard-of Dionysian fleet defeated the Diónia navy that dominated the Ionian Sea? The people of Syracuse couldn't believe their ears. They cursed Admiral Leptinus, angrily believing that it was his foolish command that led to their defeat! Back then, after the naval battle with Carthage's people failed, they should have replaced this defeated general!
Because of this, some people shifted the blame for the failure to Dionysius. They believed that it was because of Dionysius's nepotism that his mediocre younger brother was not replaced!
Compared to the indignation of the people in the city, the scene at the port was completely different. After all, more than 400 warships required a large number of sailors. More than half of these sailors were from their allies in Sicily, while the other half were from the poor and freedmen of Syracuse. Syracuse's navy was full of sailors. Regardless of whether the warships were sunk or captured, the sailors would not have a good ending.
When the bad news arrived, it affected almost every household in the port and the bay. Out of concern for the safety of their loved ones, the poor and lowly citizens cried in sorrow, but they were even more resentful towards Dionysius who oppressed them. Over the past few months, there had been dissatisfaction towards Dionysius circulating in the port and the city. For example, "The reason why we are so poor is because those outsiders (referring to Dionysius's mercenaries) have taken away our land and occupied the public offices of the city that should have belonged to us!"
"No matter how many drachmas we earn, we can't keep up with the rate at which Dionysius collects taxes!"
"Dionysius likes the mercenaries more than the citizens of Syracuse. He shouldn't be the general of Syracuse, he should be the leader of the mercenaries!"
…
However, over the past few days, a new rumor quickly spread through the port. "The people of Diónia only hate the tyrannical Dionysius. As long as his dictatorship is overthrown, Syracuse and Diónia will be able to reach a peace treaty. The 14000 Syracuse sailors imprisoned in Diónia will be able to return home safely! … "
This rumor was so convincing that many people in the harbor believed it without a doubt. Thus, it quickly spread throughout the entire bay, and it was said that it had even spread to the neighboring cities.
When Mikallesus heard this rumor, he was shocked. This was an open request to overthrow Dionysius! Perhaps the people of Diónia were behind this!
If even he could see it, the intelligence department that Hipparinus was in charge of would not be indifferent. Not only did they increase the number of patrols in the port, but they also sent many spies to roam the entire bay area to interrogate the people … This method further increased the disgust and anger of the people in the port towards the upper echelons of the city. They looked at the patrolling soldiers with undisguised anger, causing the soldiers to tremble in fear. They always patrolled in groups of more than 20 people, not daring to wander around alone to avoid getting themselves killed.
The quiet opposition of the people in the port against the city gradually began to show. The most obvious was the decrease in the work efficiency of the port workers. The speed at which the merchant ships unloaded slowed down, and the goods piled up at the port. It took a long time to move them into the warehouse. As a result, the goods piled up more and more, almost causing the port to be blocked. However, the merchants did not dare to get angry, because it was likely to anger the poor people who worked with resentment, resulting in a conflict. In the end, they would still be the ones to suffer.
Of course, Mikalesus did not have to worry about this. He traveled between the port and the market all year round. He was a humble person and had a good relationship with the fishermen in the port.
His fishing boat was handed over to the fishermen he hired, and they went out to sea early in the morning. When he drove to the port in the morning, the fishing boat had already returned to the fishing dock.
The fishing dock was built in the most remote location on the outermost periphery of the port. This was for the sake of the port's cleanliness. As the dock stank too much, flies, mosquitoes, and insects often gathered on the dead fish and prawns.
Of course, Mikalesus did not feel disgusted. On the contrary, walking on the dock and looking at the baskets of fresh fish that were unloaded on both sides of the road, he felt a sense of satisfaction.
"Tethys, how's today's harvest?!" He waved at his anchored fishing boat from afar.
Tethys was a very experienced old fisherman. Not only was he skilled in controlling the boat and fishing, but he was also good at determining the presence of schools of fish. Mikalesus had paid him nearly double the salary to hire him.
At this moment, Tethys was sitting at the bow of the boat, enjoying the warm sunlight. He said in a calm tone, "It's only spring, and the sea is still cold. Schools of fish don't come out much, and without the protection of Poseidon, how can there be any good catches?"
Mikalesus looked down at the two baskets of fish on the shore. One basket was half full of mackerel and codfish, and the other basket was full of prawns and squid.
Mikalesus was already quite satisfied with this harvest. Of course, he knew that Tethys had high expectations of himself, so Mikalesus joked, "Since there's still time and the weather is getting warmer, why don't you go out to sea and cast a few more nets?"
Tethys poked at the mud stains on his fingers and reminded him, "I can go out to sea again, but will you be able to sell them all in time? You'll be punished by Poseidon if you waste them! "
As there were no refrigerators in this era, freshly caught fish had to be sold on the same day. Otherwise, they would be thrown away the next day because they would rot. Although the Greeks liked to live by the sea, their staple food was still grains, and the fish was only a supplement. In recent years, the tax on Syracuse had increased, and the purchasing power of ordinary citizens had decreased. This naturally affected the sale of fish. Not to mention casting a few more nets, it would be a problem if the two baskets of fish could be sold out before the market closed in the evening. When that time came, they might have to bring the leftovers home to make fish porridge for the slaves, or feed the pigs and dogs.
Mikalesus sighed and did not speak. He turned around and ordered the slaves to carry the baskets onto the carriage.
At this moment, another fisherman on the fishing boat shouted, "Hey, Mikalesus, have you heard? Dionysius's army has been defeated by the Diónia!"
"How is that possible?! Where did you get the news?! "Mikalesus was shocked and could not believe it.
"Why not?! If our navy can lose to the Diónia, of course our army can lose to them too! " Not only did the fisherman not feel sad for the city's defeat, he even had a strange look of schadenfreude on his face, "Now the news has spread throughout the port. Some merchants from Great Hellenic have confirmed it too. I heard that Syracuse suffered a terrible defeat in this battle. It's time for the people in the city to cry! "
"It doesn't matter if it's the people in the city or the people in the port. Syracuse's defeat isn't a good thing for us," Tethys said calmly.
"We've lost. Dionysius should stop the war and negotiate with Great Hellenic," the fisherman said with anticipation, "If there's no more war, there'll be no more war taxes!"
"I'm afraid that Dionysius will continue the war! Not only will the tax burden increase, but … people like you and I might even be conscripted as sailors. "Tethys finally showed a hint of worry on his face.
"I won't die for Dionysius! It's time to end this war! "the fisherman yelled.
Mikalesus was not in the mood to listen to what they were saying. He walked back with heavy steps. He did not feel happy at all that he did not participate in the expedition and escaped the disaster. The news of 'Syracuse's army's defeat in Great Hellenic' weighed heavily on his heart. It reminded him of the huge storm that arose in Syracuse when Carthage's army arrived a few years ago …
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