Chapter 685
The Devers stared at him. Through his intelligence, he knew that Ioannis was a merchant supported by Sostatus. He was a distributor of the Chamber of Commerce he established, so his expression and behavior were not a pretense.
So, he said calmly, "I can no longer protest to the Carthage because they have torn up the friendly agreement with our kingdom."
"What?!" Sostatus widened his eyes and asked anxiously, "Your Majesty, why would the Carthage do this?!"
"On the surface, they are protesting that our merchants are harming their monopoly of trade. They also want to abide by the alliance and help their ally, the Rome, to prohibit us from meddling in the affairs of Central Italy." The Devers said calmly, "Basically, the Carthage wants to take this opportunity to strike a blow to Diónia, so as to prevent the kingdom from expanding too quickly and affecting the survival of Carthage."
Sostatus was stunned when he heard this. He asked in a trembling voice, "That means … that means the war between Diónia and the Carthage … may break out?!"
The Devers nodded. "Very likely."
Sostatus suddenly stood up and rubbed his hands vigorously. He kept muttering something, looking very agitated.
"Do you feel that it is a pity? Because your caravan may no longer be able to trade with the Carthage, "the Devers asked curiously when they saw his strange behavior.
"No, Your Majesty!" Sostatus clenched his right fist excitedly and said loudly, "This is great! I have been looking forward to this day for a long time! The Carthage have monopolized the trade with the other Phoenician city-states, as well as the metal smelting and trade in the western Mediterranean Sea. They also control Africana, Sardinia, Corsica, and southern Iberia. They won't let us meddle in! We should have used force to break this monopoly long ago and taken all of these away! "
The Devers had thought that Sostatus was afraid of the coming war. They did not expect him to be happy about the possibility of war.
They had underestimated the greed of merchants! Dyves stroked his chin and asked, "If a war really breaks out, the powerful Carthage and the powerful Rome are not weak either. Sostatus, aren't you afraid that our Dionysia will be defeated?"
"Your Majesty!" Sostatus sat down again and said confidently, "All these years, I've been to many places to trade, but I've never seen any country or city-state stronger than Diónia! Not to mention, Your Majesty! With you around, Diónia will not fail! "
"You have a lot of confidence in me!" Devers smiled and then said with a solemn expression, "However, there is a reason why the people of Carthage dared to tear up the agreement and support Rome at this time. It is because of the drought that we lack food! Without food, we won't be able to send our troops to fight. We can only passively take a beating! Under such circumstances, even the most powerful commander will not be able to win the war! "
After hearing this, Sostatus fell into deep thought. After a while, he made up his mind and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, I am willing to send a fleet to Egypt or the Yoke Sea in the eastern Mediterranean to buy a large amount of food and donate it to the Kingdom for free to support the army! I am also willing to call on the other merchants in the Kingdom to do the same thing as me! But I hope … "Sostatus did not finish his sentence. He looked at Devers with anticipation.
Devers was overjoyed and understood the meaning behind Sostatus' words. He did not think that merchants like Sostatus who dared to take a gamble before the situation was clear were greedy. Instead, he admired their courage. He immediately made a promise, "Diónia will never forget these merchants who dared to donate their wealth and help the Kingdom in times of crisis. After victory, they will all receive the rewards they need!"
Sostatus smiled with satisfaction.
… …
Two days later.
His wife, Rita, saw Amyntas rushing to go out and said hurriedly, "Amyntas, you haven't had your porridge!"
"It's too late!" Amyntas stood on the porch and looked up at the sky that was starting to brighten. He took a big bite of the bread in his hand and shouted back into the house, "Stefos, hurry up!"
"Father, don't worry. It's useless for you to go so early. His Majesty, the senators, and the soldiers of the First Legion are probably not here yet, "Stefos, who was sitting at the dining table, said.
"I am the commander of the expedition. I have to set an example for the whole army. Hurry up, or I will beat you up! "Amyntas said impatiently.
Stefos stood up helplessly. This was his adoptive father's style. He was already used to it.
"Father, don't forget to bring me the spoils of war when you come back!" a young boy sitting at the dining table reminded him loudly.
Another younger child also shouted, "Father, brother, when I grow up, I want to fight with you and kill the bad guys!"
Amyntas' attitude towards them was much better. He grinned and said, "Crocas, how can I forget what I said! When I come back, I will bring you a cart full of spoils of war! "
"Felcas, be a good boy and listen to your mother at home. When you grow up, your father will definitely take you to the battlefield to kill the enemy!"
… …
In a mansion on the outskirts of the southern city of Turís, Patroclus had already finished his breakfast and spent some time with Cynthia. When the sky was bright, he stood up reluctantly and said, "Cynthia, it's time for me to go!"
Although Cynthia was also extremely reluctant, she was not an ordinary woman after all. After going forward and giving Patroclus a loving hug, she said with concern, "Be careful and come home as soon as possible!"
Patroclus smiled confidently and said, "Don't worry, the First Legion will eliminate the enemy as soon as possible and come home as soon as possible! I still want to see the birth of the child with my own eyes! "
Patroclus caressed his wife's obviously protruding belly with a gentle expression. "You have to take good care of yourself while I'm away!"
"Okay." Cynthia nodded gently.
"I'm leaving!" Patroclus said loudly, as if he was reminding himself.
"Oh! Don't forget to bring the helmet that my brother gave you. You'll receive the blessing of the Hades! " Cynthia reminded him loudly. 'The Devers are the descendants of the Hades'. This was no longer a rumor, but an irrefutable fact of the kingdom. It was deeply ingrained in the hearts of every citizen, including the royal family. Cynthia firmly believed in this. Therefore, she believed that the helmet given by the son of the Devers, Cloto Catax, who also had the bloodline of the Hades, must carry the blessing of the Hades.
"How could I forget! That's a helmet given by the descendant of the Hades, the future king! " Patroclus laughed. It was indeed a good helmet, but the silver surface was too conspicuous, so he painted it black.
Cynthia leaned against the courtyard door, her heart filled with longing and worry as she watched her husband leave with the slaves carrying his armor and weapons. At this moment, she deeply understood the feelings that Christonia and Aegnis felt every time they saw their father off to war …
… … …
It is not good weather for an army to assemble for battle in drizzly weather, because it hinders the march. However, the continuous drizzle made the citizens and soldiers of Diónia happy. It meant that the bitter drought was finally over. Therefore, the First Legion and the citizens who came to see them off outside the city of Turií allowed the drizzle to wet their cheeks, but their expressions were more relaxed.
The Devers did not say much to Amyntas, who was dressed in armor. They encouraged him with their usual words, "Amyntas, I await the news of your victory!"
"Don't worry, Your Majesty!" Amyntas saluted the Devers confidently, then turned to face the 9,000 soldiers (including the First Legion), and waved his right arm with force, "Brothers of the First Legion and the First Legion!"
"Victory!"
"Victory!"
"Victory!"
The soldiers' roars resounded throughout the Bari Plains.
The Devers stood straight and listened to the loud cheers with a solemn expression, but their hearts were filled with excitement. 'The First Legion's morale is high! … Let's hope that we can return victorious in our first battle against the Rome! '
"Move out!" Amyntas gave the order.
The bugle sounded.
The soldiers in straw raincoats, with weapons and armor on their shoulders, lined up in a long line and marched towards the port.
Wolsey was in the north. Why did they have to go to the port? Because the soldiers at the western mountain pass fortress of Turií reported that because of the continuous rain over the past few days, not only were the roads slippery, but silt and trees fell from the mountains from time to time, blocking the roads.
Therefore, the Ministry of Military Affairs decided to let the expeditionary troops not go through the mountains in the west. Instead, they would take a boat to Siletina, then to Triene, and then take a boat north to Wolsey. The whole journey might take even less time.
The Devers looked at the imposing soldiers marching towards the port, and his expression gradually turned solemn. He knew that this might be the beginning of a large-scale war …
… …..
Tapirus felt very aggrieved. He had been trapped in the hotel for eight or nine days in a row. The people of Rome blocked the entrance every day, protesting and cursing. The soldiers of Rome guarded the entrance, saying that it was to protect their safety, but in fact, it was to restrict them from going out. And for such a long time, they did not see a single official from Rome come to tell them about the progress of the discussion on whether the Senate of Rome should stop the war with the Wolsey.
At this time, Tapirus already understood that the people of Rome were obviously stalling, they had no intention of stopping the war at all.
This despicable act of toying with the Diónia emissaries and ignoring the dignity of the Kingdom of Diónia made him very angry.
Comments