Chapter 576
Phoebidas's threatening words immediately made everyone nervous.
Stathicos asked cautiously, "What is your suggestion?"
"Give up the confrontation with Dionysius, and both sides sit together and negotiate! Of course, Dionysius has been too dictatorial these years, which has dissatisfied the people of Syracuse. So I suggest that Dionysius be removed from the position of full general, and re-implement the '20 generals system' (because there are many people in Syracuse, more generals are needed to manage the affairs of the city, and during the period of democracy, they implemented this system half the time). During the current period of war, let him temporarily be the chief general, to avoid greater war losses due to the change of generals midway. "
Phoebidas's suggestion made the generals fall silent.
Harolos asked loudly, "Is this your suggestion, or Dionysius's?!"
"It is the result of my discussion with him." Phoebidas lied without blinking.
Harolos warned the others loudly, "As a friend of more than ten years, with my understanding of him, even if he is forced by the current situation to agree to these suggestions made by the Sparta emissary, who knows if he will wait for the crisis to pass in the future to resume his tyrannical rule, and kill us who resist him today! We must not forget the painful lesson of five years ago! "
Harolos's words reminded everyone, and everyone's expression changed. Four years ago, after Dionysius defeated Carthage's army, he immediately arrested all the leaders of the riots on the charge of 'traitors', and executed them without trial. Their property was confiscated, and their families were reduced to slaves … This atrocity frightened the people of Syracuse, and no one dared to object to Dionysius's actions. In the next few years, everyone obediently became obedient people. If not for Dionysius's army suffering a crushing defeat outside, the defences within the city, and the leadership of Harolos and the others, how would the people dare to resist Dionysius again?
Harolos's words once again uncovered this painful memory, causing fear and anger to appear on the faces of the generals.
Phoebidas, however, did not know this. He pretended to be solemn and said, "I can make a vow in the name of Hercules, to assure you —"
"Damn you, Hercules! Screw your promise! " Someone cursed angrily, and then rushed in front of Phoebidas, pointing at him and gritting his teeth, roared, "So it's you! It's you! If it weren't for your promise, my brother and the others wouldn't have chosen to let Dionysius go. As a result, my brother was beheaded, my sister-in-law became a slave, and no one knows where she was sent. His two children were stabbed to death by evil mercenaries, and my parents — "
The more Kuzias spoke, the angrier he became. He stretched out his hands, wanting to grab Phoebidas's clothes, but Phoebidas took the opportunity to push him away, and Kuzias fell to the ground.
He wanted to rush over again, but was stopped by Stesikos, Tethetis, and the others. He could only curse angrily, "Damn Sparta! You killed my family, and by the goddess of vengeance, one day, she will bestow her punishment on Sparta! I hope I live to see the day when Sparta is destroyed and all Sparta people become slaves! "
Originally, Phoebidas did not care about Kuzias's screams. He had killed too many people in his life, and if he cared about such things, he would have had a mental breakdown. But Kuzias's last curse was too vicious, and it made him angry. "This is your attitude towards Sparta?!"
"Emissary Phoebidas." Harolis advised with a gentle expression, "Kuzias's family was one of the first immigrants to Syracuse, and they enjoyed a high reputation among the people. However, Dionysius killed his entire family and imprisoned him in the stone prison. If not for this successful resistance, he would have died silently in the stone prison … So, I hope you can understand his anger! And you have also seen the oath Dionysius made in front of everyone four years ago, and how easily he broke his promise in the end, harming the people of the city. Today, no matter how sweet his words are, the eyes of the people of Syracuse have been polished by the blood of their dead relatives, and they will not believe any of his promises! Dionysius will either be imprisoned by us and put on trial, or he will escape from Syracuse and never return. Other than that, he has no other choice! "
"As long as we catch him, we will put him on trial for treason, including his family, just like what he did to us!" Kuzias said through gritted teeth.
"That's right, we will not accept peace. Dionysius and his men must be punished!" Ferosanus also voiced his opinion loudly, and the other generals also expressed their agreement.
Phoebidas's face was gloomy as he looked at the agitated generals in front of him and said coldly, "If that's the case, you and Sparta will —"
"Emissary Phoebidas!" Harolis interrupted the threatening words he was about to say in time, "You have been fighting with Dionysius in Greece, so you do not know the recent situation of Sparta on the Peloponnesus peninsula. The people of Athens and Corinth fought together, causing your Sparta allies to suffer heavy losses. The people of Athens even broke into Arcadia, and it is said that your King Agesilaus has just returned to Sparta and is preparing to gather a new army to defend against the attack of the anti- Sparta alliance … "
Not only did Sparta and Syracuse have close military ties, they also relied on Syracuse for trade, such as food. Also, Sparta often relied on Syracuse's merchant ships throughout the Mediterranean Sea to collect information for them. For example, the news of the Persia's fleet being led by the general of Athens, Kelon, and the attack on Sparta's fleet was told to Sparta by the merchants of Syracuse, who were doing business in Asia Minor. Similarly, things that happened in Sparta's territory were often reported back to Syracuse by these merchants, which was why Harolis had a better understanding of the war on Peloponnesus.
Phoebidas was shocked, and he could no longer maintain the cold arrogance on his face. "I hope what you said is true?!"
"Syracuse is not far from Sparta, it can be reached in two days by boat. You will know if it's true or not when you go back. We can provide you with a boat," Ferosanus said with a hint of schadenfreude.
Harolis hurriedly said, "Envoy Phoebidas, Syracuse and Sparta have always been allies, and we should help each other. However, ever since Dionysius became the overlord, because of his selfish desires, Sparta has often provided more help than Syracuse … Now, we have the upper hand, and Dionysius is at a disadvantage. If Sparta continues to support Dionysius, the situation in Syracuse will take a long time to stabilize. But if you support us, Syracuse will soon return to stability and prosperity, and we will continue to maintain our alliance with Sparta, and provide aid to Sparta at any time! "
Harolis' last few words were spoken with sincerity, and it moved Phoebidas. He stared at Harolis for a long time, and asked hesitantly, "What you said … is it true?"
Harolis and the other generals around him looked at each other, and then turned to face him. He said solemnly, "This is the decision we have made after our discussion. We can renew our alliance with Sparta!"
Phoebidas looked around, and the coldness in his eyes quickly disappeared …
… …
Dionysius had finally waited for Phoebidas's return on Ortygia Island, but what he got was the terrible news that "the rebels refused to negotiate, and insisted on expelling him from Syracuse". Although this was one of the worst-case scenarios that Dionysius had imagined, he could not help but lose his temper.
Then, he wanted to continue to understand the situation in Syracuse and the leader of the rebels from Phoebidas, but Phoebidas was obviously not in the mood. He directly asked Dionysius to immediately send him back to Sparta.
Of course, Dionysius, who now relied more on Sparta as an ally, could not refuse, but he felt a sense of crisis from Phoebidas's sudden change in attitude. As someone who was good at manipulating power, of course, he knew that the situation in Syracuse was very unfavorable to his side, so he could not help but wonder: Would the snobbish Sparta abandon him and choose the rebels?
Thinking of this, he could not sit still. The people of Sparta were deep in the war, and they might not be able to send troops to support him, but the prestige of Sparta could help him to intimidate and stabilize the situation in the city, as well as dispel the other city-states' worries. If Sparta abandoned him, it would push him, who was already isolated and helpless, into the abyss …
Therefore, the cornered Dionysius did not talk to his two wives and children in detail about his departure. Instead, he locked himself in the palace alone, thinking hard about how to get out of this predicament. Soon, he called the mercenary leader, Mejiklis, and the chief of intelligence, Hipparinus, for a secret meeting.
… …
Late at night, the people in the main city of Syracuse had fallen asleep. The sentries on the newly built walls of the isthmus had also relaxed their vigilance due to the peaceful days on Ortygia Island. Most of the sentries could not resist the drowsiness and fell into a deep sleep.
Dionysius personally led all the mercenaries out of Ortygia Island.
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