Chapter 749
While Mikris and his people were grateful to the Devers, they also analyzed why the Devers would lend a helping hand. In addition to showing that the king treated all the people of Diónia equally and had no intention of deliberately excluding the Turií citizens, it might also be related to the fact that Liguim was only a free city of Diónia. Even if Alcibidus' sister, Aegnis, was the princess of Diónia, Liguim was not fully integrated into the Kingdom of Diónia. The shrewd king of the Devers would not make such a mistake and let the Liguim completely occupy the majority of the shipbuilding industry in the Kingdom of Diónia, and even monopolize the manufacture of warships for the safety of the kingdom's coast. Because even the orders for the weapons and armor needed by the legion were not only given to Dios by the Ministry of Military Affairs, but also to several weapon manufacturers.
After understanding this, Mikris actively cooperated with the Ministry of Military Affairs to improve the warships they manufactured. The fast triple-oared warships used by the navy were the first to be manufactured by their shipyard.
But now Liguim was also fully integrated into Diónia … Mikris felt a headache when he thought of this. But he quickly cheered up because according to his observations over the years, the king of the Devers was fair and did not show too much favoritism just because Alcibidus was his relative. Coupled with his good relationship with the Ministry of Military Affairs over the years, he believed that he would also be treated fairly by the king of the Devers in the Latin region.
At worst, it would be a fair competition! Mikris was not afraid of this. With the advantage of being a citizen of Diónia and a former Turií, he had a lot of cooperation with the Diónia Academy. He often provided places and conditions for inspired scholars to experiment, and some of the things they invented also helped him improve the technology and efficiency of shipbuilding. He also created some special new ships, such as the fast triple-oared warship, and the iron ship that was now being tested …
At this moment, a servant came in and reported to Sostatus, "Master, Agumus is here."
"Quick, let him in!" Sostatus said quickly.
Everyone hurriedly looked out of the hall.
"Everyone, I'm sorry I'm late!" Accompanied by the rough and slightly stiff Greek accent, a tall and strong middle-aged man strode into the hall.
Agumus, formerly known as Agumu, was a Bruti. He first engaged in the business of medicinal herbs because after the Bruti merged into the Diónia Alliance, the tribe entrusted him to sell the medicinal herbs they dug up from the Cosenza Plateau to the Turií market in exchange for food and daily necessities that the tribe urgently needed. Through his integrity and intelligence, as well as his cooperation with the Diónia School of Medicine, he had worked tirelessly to open up business channels. Now, he had settled down in Turií and became the largest medicinal herb merchant in the Kingdom of Diónia. He had even changed his name to Agmus to show that he had completely integrated into the main culture of the kingdom.
"You don't have to apologize, Argus. You didn't arrive on time today, so we thought you must have something important to attend to."
"That's right!" The others also took the initiative to excuse him. After all, Agumus had always been early in the past gatherings.
"No matter what the reason is, I'm late. I'll host the banquet tonight as an apology!" Agumus said straightforwardly.
"Agumus, no one is competing with you. You'll have to pay for the banquet tonight!" Sebanus said loudly. The crowd burst into laughter.
As a foreigner, Agumus was able to blend into the circle of the Turií Merchant Guild because of his generosity and willingness to help others. If the merchants or their relatives were sick, as long as he knew about it, he would quickly deliver good and fresh medicinal herbs according to the doctor's prescription. Therefore, he was very popular.
"I've long been looking forward to hosting another banquet for everyone." Agumus smiled and said, "The reason I'm late is that Sir Alpines from the Ministry of Military Affairs found me. He hopes that I can provide sufficient medicinal herbs for the army going north. I'm afraid today's gathering is about His Majesty the Devers allowing us, the Turií merchants, to follow the army."
"Since you already know, it saves me the trouble of repeating it again," Sostatus said with a smile.
"Agumus, you're really good at making medicinal herbs! With the medical skills of our kingdom, no other medicinal herb merchant can compete with you when your medicinal herbs reach Lijim! "Sebanus said loudly in envy.
"No one can compete, but no one will buy either." Agumus shrugged and said seriously, "I'm afraid it'll take time for the people there to receive treatment from the Diónia doctors and take the medicine prescribed by them …"
While they were talking, the servant came in again and whispered something in Sostatus' ear. Sostatus frowned and said, "Everyone, Inepias is here!"
"Inepias is always late. I wonder how he became a famous stone merchant in Turií?!" Sebanus said with dissatisfaction.
"It's because his family has been engaged in stone quarrying and carving for a long time. They have many experienced stonemasons and skilled carvers. They also took advantage of the rapid expansion of the kingdom and the construction of public works in various cities to easily amass a lot of wealth. Otherwise, he …" someone said in disdain.
As the president, Sostatus couldn't casually judge the other members of the Merchant Guild. He changed the topic and said in a serious tone, "Leocrate came with Inepias!"
"Why is he here?!" Dikboris looked surprised.
"I'm afraid it's because we're going to war with His Majesty," Dios answered uncertainly.
"This is the reward that His Majesty the Devers has given to us Turií merchants. The Crotone merchants have not contributed anything to the kingdom, yet they want to get benefits. What a delusion!" Forsyas said angrily.
His words also caused the other merchants to be angry.
Mikris asked doubtfully, "This should be a secret. How did he know about it?"
"Inepias must have told him!" Sebanus pointed out.
"Inepias won't know what we're discussing today," Calmades defended the stone merchant because they were all old Turií.
"Secret?! Then how did Agumus know?! "Sebanus retorted.
"In any case, today is an important meeting of our Merchant Guild. It's not suitable for an outsider to participate," Dikboris looked at Sostatus and suggested seriously.
Sostatus nodded.
… …
"I'm so sorry! My master said that he's now discussing something very important with a guest. He doesn't have extra time to meet you today. " Outside Sostatus's mansion, his servant was speaking politely, but he had an unapproachable expression on his face.
Inepias immediately shrugged and said helplessly, "It seems that they don't want to see you at this time. I can't do anything about it."
However, Leocrat didn't seem depressed as he calmly said, "As for the stone and statues that you want to supply to the Coliseum Coliseum that my chamber of commerce donated to build, my promise is still valid."
Inepias looked delighted.
Leocrate suppressed the unwillingness in his heart and turned to leave.
As the chairman of the Merchant Guild in Clotho, Leocrate knew that the King of Devers allowing merchants to follow the army to the Latin region would provide a huge business opportunity, but it was obvious that the Turií merchants were unwilling to share it with others. However, since the Turií merchants could obtain such an opportunity by donating food, the Crotone Merchant Guild could do the same …
With this in mind, Leocrate stopped and looked back at Sostatus' mansion. Another key problem occurred to him. The overall financial resources of the Crotone merchants, who had suffered the crisis of the destruction of their city, were far from comparable to the Turií Merchant Guild located in the heart of the kingdom. They might not be able to donate such a huge amount of food to the kingdom. Perhaps … perhaps I should contact the Cyril Merchant Guild and the Triene Merchant Guild … to raise funds and donate a much larger amount of food than the Turií Merchant Guild to obtain permission to go to the Latin region! But this must be done immediately because the day of the army's departure was not far away! …
Thinking of this, Leocrat became anxious and actually started to run.
… …
As the herald and chief intelligence officer of the Devers, Aristiras was the Devers' most trusted confidant. Many powerful elders dared not belittle him, but he usually kept a low profile. The mansion he lived in was not big, and it was no different from the houses of ordinary citizens. It was a square courtyard with a pond and garden in the middle. The main building faced the north. On one side was the servants' bungalow, on the other side was Aristiras' study and living room, and on the south was the courtyard gate … It was very simple.
The only commendable thing about the courtyard was that it was located at the foot of the south of the King's Hill. Not only could he rush to the palace or the king's mansion in a short period of time, he could also report important information to the Devers in a timely manner. There were also palace guards patrolling the area all day long. It was a great guarantee of safety.
However, Aristiras's younger brother, Andraporis, obviously did not think so. "Big Brother, your place is too shabby. If others see it, they won't believe that this is the place where an important minister of the kingdom lives. You don't have to suffer like this!"
"I'm just a herald, not an important minister of the kingdom. Why do I have to live so luxuriously? Besides, if I get tired of living here, I can stay in the villa for a while, "Aristiras said disapprovingly.
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