Chapter 80
"That's because there's only a small pier here!" Burcos was so angry that his chest heaved up and down. He had noticed it earlier, but when he was almost done with the market, he finally understood. The variety of goods sold here was not what the mercenaries needed, but what the merchants and the surrounding residents needed. No matter how wide the Krati River was, it was not as wide as the sea. When there were too many merchant ships, they needed to wait for a long time to enter the port of Turií. But now, the mercenaries had directly built a market near the coast. Once the ships arrived at the pier on the coast, they could unload their cargo. To enter the market, one only needed an Opol (having one was equivalent to not having one), and there was no need to pay taxes. As for the buyers, Tulij was not far from here. There were a large number of sailors, fishermen, and so on. They were mainly free people, not citizens of Tulij. They were willing to take a few more steps to buy goods that were cheaper than in the Tulij market (because they did not have to pay taxes, so it was cheaper). Moreover, there were merchants from various cities who were attracted by the exotic atmosphere of the mercenaries selling goods.
Seeing Marigi lowering his head and accepting the criticism, Burkos was indignant, but he did not want to say more. "Well, I'll tell Dyvers about it! You can't make the decision, you're just a slave of Persia. "
Marigi trembled when he heard this. He almost cursed, "You're the slave of Persia! Your whole family are slaves of Persia! You Greek barbarian, are you blind? I used to be a merchant for the royal family of Persia! "
Fortunately, he managed to hold it in. He did not want to say more and fell behind Burcos and the rest.
As they approached the west gate of the market, Burcos noticed that there was an area separated by a mud wall that was half the height of a person. There was a large wooden hut inside, and compared to the noisy stalls in front, it was quieter. There was a long queue at the entrance …
"This is …" Burcos asked doubtfully.
Although Marigi was cursing in his heart, he had to explain for the sake of publicity. "This is a clinic. Our military doctors have been learning from the Devers for a long time. Their medical skills are superb. Many Turií citizens who have been sick for a long time have improved after their treatment, so they are very popular now. Often at dusk, when the market is about to close, the patients are still unwilling to leave. "
"So powerful?!" Burcos was a little surprised. Moras whispered in his ear, "Master, you can come here to have a look at the old lady's illness. Maybe they really have a way to cure her."
Burcos looked at the "long line" in front of the shack and nodded. He suddenly thought of something and asked, "You said that these doctors learned their medical skills from Devers? Devers can treat illnesses?! "
"Of course! The leader is blessed by Hades, so of course he knows the secret of the disease that can bring death to people, "Marigi said proudly.
Burcos was noncommittal. After leaving the market and bidding farewell to Marigi, Moras asked, "Master, are there really people in this world who are good at commanding battles, good at doing business, and can cure illnesses?"
"Devers, aren't they? He is also a God's Chosen of Hades, "Burcos said indifferently.
A few hundred meters to the west, the camp of the Devers came into view. Rather than calling it a camp, it would be more accurate to call it a barracks. There was a trench three meters wide and three meters deep, a three-meter-high wall of earth, and a two-meter-high wooden fence for protection. Behind the wooden wall, sentries could be seen patrolling, so it could be deduced that there was a walkway in the wooden wall. There were many watchtowers inside the wall, which were six meters high, overlooking the trench and the blind spots under the wooden wall. There was a wooden door in the middle of the wooden wall, and a simple gate tower was built on top of it …
Burcos and Moras carefully walked along the straight road in front of the camp, because there were a few big wooden signs by the side of the road. "Trap, please take the main road!"
Moras observed the faint metallic luster reflected in the weeds that were half a man's height, and guessed what traps there might be. He sighed and said, "Master, the defensive facilities of our Turís don't seem to be as complicated as this."
Burcos was a little gloomy. He had been worried about one problem: the mercenaries had built this place like a city, what would the people of Crotone think?
The guards at the camp gate asked for the purpose of their visit, and immediately sent someone in to report.
Not long after, Asistes came out and led the two in.
The weeds and rubble in the camp had been cleared away, and the ground was flat and clean. Behind the wooden wall, there was indeed a wooden walkway, so that the wooden wall beyond the walkway was just enough to block the chest area of the soldiers, and there were several wide wooden ladders that could be used to go up the walkway. The tents were set up in an orderly manner, and there was a very wide space between the tents and the wooden wall. There was a wide passageway between the tents and the wooden wall, and there was actually a circular wooden fence built in the middle of the camp.
Seeing that Burcos was puzzled, Asistes explained, "Inside is usually the supply camp, the medical camp, and the encampment of the leaders and officers. When the battle starts, once the outer perimeter is breached by the enemy, we can retreat inside and continue to defend. "
"This is the most complicated and well-thought-out military camp I've ever seen!" Even though he had some opinions about the mercenaries, Burcos could not help but sigh at this moment.
Asistes smiled contentedly and said, "The Devers leader said that this is only the most basic construction of the camp. We don't need anything more complicated yet. He said, 'There is no such thing as victory without defeat in war. A strong camp can provide protection for the soldiers in the event of defeat, reduce casualties, and boost morale. So no matter how hard it is, we must be patient and careful to build it well. Sweat more in peacetime, and you will bleed less in wartime … '"
"Sweat more in peacetime, and you will bleed less in wartime …" Burcos murmured these two sentences. He suddenly realized that he was about to meet a mercenary leader who had a lot of experience in war. The Turís generals did not discuss this with the Devers, but made a plan in advance, and asked him to follow it. Was this appropriate?
At this moment, Moras asked doubtfully, "Why? Why are there only a few soldiers in the camp? "
"Our brothers are participating in a tug of war competition in the back."
"Tug of war?" Both of them were curious when they heard this unfamiliar term.
In fact, there were already loud shouts coming from the front. Asistes simply led the two of them around the circular wooden fence in the center and walked forward into a wide field. What appeared in front of them was a dense crowd of people. Thousands of soldiers formed five or six large circles. Each of the soldiers was flushed with excitement, and they clenched their fists and shouted toward the circle.
"First Company Second Team, Go!"
"Fifth Company Fourth Team, Go!"
"Go! Go! Try harder! "
"Oh oh, we won!!"
…
Burcos had only seen such a lively and exciting scene in sports. He had not seen it in action yet, but just listening to the shouts was enough to make his blood boil.
Asistes could tell what the two of them were thinking. He deliberately squeezed into a circle and let the two of them in to watch, while he went to call the leader.
On the ground in the center of the circle was a rope that was at least 40 meters long. It was probably made up of several ship cables and was as thick as a fist.
At this moment, someone in the center shouted, "Next round, Second Company Third Team VS Seventh Company First Team. Both sides, please enter!"
Soon, more than a hundred strong men entered the circle. After the person confirmed the number of people and names, he said, "Both sides, please get ready."
Thus, both sides picked up the ropes.
Only then did Burcos realize that there was a red rope tied to the center of the rope. There was a heavy object hanging from the end of the rope that pointed to a white line on the ground. There were also white lines on both sides of this white line.
The person that Burcos thought was similar to a sports referee loudly announced, "Begin!"
The hundred strong men on both sides pulled the ropes with all their might. The cheers and cheers from the surroundings also sounded like a tsunami …
The red rope swayed left and right continuously … After a stalemate for a period of time, it moved significantly to the left … and the cheers reached their peak.
Finally, the red rope reached the white line on the left.
The referee waved his hand to signal, "The match is over!"
Cheers and sighs sounded at the same time …
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