Chapter 970
Of course, it was not that there was no noise in the meeting hall. The Hanoverian senators repeatedly mentioned that Margo, the military commander, was afraid of the enemy and avoided war. Before the main force of Diónia had landed, he led the army to retreat in a panic, handing over all the previous gains to the enemy. He deserved to be severely reprimanded.
In addition, there was a senator who cautiously suggested, "From the current signs, Diónia may have pacified Rome and Sammonae in the north, and is concentrating on dealing with us, Carthage. The scale of the war will continue to expand, and the consumption of national power will also increase. If this continues, Carthage will not be able to support it. It is better to … negotiate peace with Diónia."
This kind of proposal did not cause too much of a stir in the meeting hall, because the knowledgeable people in the Senate realized that Carthage had reached the most critical moment. Just as Esiaroba said, "This war with Diónia is related to the future fate of Carthage. We must do our best to win this war! Even if we want to negotiate peace, we must use war to force the other party to take the initiative to negotiate. Only in this way, Carthage will not lose his own interests! "
The next day, Esyaruba personally rushed to Utica and met with Morbar. He told him about the predicament that Carthage was currently facing, as well as the eagerness of the elders and the people for him to return and lead the navy out of its predicament to save Carthage.
Out of his love for Carthage and a strong sense of responsibility, the 70-year-old old man agreed to be the commander of the navy.
… …
Margo's baiting plan did not succeed. The main force of Diónia was entrenched in Minoa and the surrounding hills, while Lizaru's troops were still entrenched in Enna. Due to the previous bloody lesson in the small city of Paragonia, Margo did not take the initiative to launch an attack on the Diónia camp on the mountain. At the same time, considering the difficulty of supplying military food, he did not let Hasdrubal lead the army back to Kafaloytian. Therefore, although the army gathered in the western part of Sicily, it remained calm.
In the east, the battle was also calm, but the people in Syracuse were nervous. Although the two Diónia troops were busy building camps and building siege equipment, and did not launch an attack, the people in Syracuse knew that once the attack began, it would be very fierce.
On the navy's side, Carthage's new fleet in Sardinia received the Senate's order. Anobas did not dare to disobey. While the Dionysian fleet had not started cruising in the early hours of the morning, he led the fleet back to the south.
A day later, Midolades noticed this sign and immediately sent a clipper to inform Sicily of his speculation (that the Carthage fleet had given up defending the waters of Sardinia).
The Devers who received the news did not immediately let the Third Fleet give up on attacking Sardinia and go south to Sicily to strengthen the navy's strength. These days, new warships from Greece were constantly added to the Sicilian fleet, causing the number of warships in this fleet to soar to 300, and it was still increasing. It was fully capable of dealing with the challenge of the Carthage Navy alone.
Cykerian led the strengthened main force of the Sicilian fleet to re-station at the port of Serinus, and began a full blockade of the western part of Sicily.
… …
In Carthage, Anobas's mansion welcomed a guest.
Anobas, who had already closed the door to welcome guests, heard the name of the guest from the servant, but he immediately went out to welcome him respectfully.
After entering the living room, Morbar put his wooden staff aside and sat down on the main seat without any trace of politeness. He asked, "I heard that you will be questioned by the Senate tomorrow?"
"Yes, teacher." Anobas was overjoyed and replied respectfully.
"I've said before, don't call me teacher. Although I taught you how to command battles when you were the captain of the flagship, that is the inheritance that the Carthage Navy should have. I do the same for every flagship captain," Morbar said without any trace of politeness. "I won't go to the Senate to plead for you, and I don't have that much time. I'm here to ask you, what are the combat characteristics of the Dionysian fleet? After all, you have fought with them a few times, so you should have a deeper understanding of them. "
Although Anobas was a little disappointed, he did not show it on his face. Instead, he recounted the two naval battles that he personally commanded (of course, regarding the naval battle in Sardinia, in order to match the content of the battle report, he distorted the facts). In addition, he also talked about the naval battle of Thyedium and the ambush by the East Phoenician fleet. These were two naval battles that he did not participate in, but he had some understanding of.
Morbar listened very seriously and did not interrupt Anobas's narration from the beginning to the end. However, the wrinkles on his face became more and more obvious. In the end, his two sparse white eyebrows were almost knitted together. He stroked his beard and muttered to himself for a long time before saying, "From what you've said, the Diónia have adopted a brand new tactic."
"Yes, old … er, in my opinion, the Dionysian fleet likes to use gang jumping tactics as the main tactic, supplemented by collisions. The other city-states in the Mediterranean Sea, including our Carthage Navy, use collisions as the main tactic, supplemented by gang jumping tactics. They are the complete opposite of us. However, unlike ordinary gang jumping tactics, the so-called 'Raven Battleship' of the Diónia Navy uses a kind of strange wooden bridge that can be used flexibly and steadily to connect with the battleships that approach it from all directions, thus maximizing the use of gang jumping tactics … "
Hearing this, Morbar immediately pointed out, "Since the Diónia Navy has installed a wooden bridge on their battleships, it will inevitably increase the weight of the battleships and destroy their balance. The speed and agility of their battleships will also be reduced. Have you ever formulated an effective tactic to target these two points?"
Anobas was speechless for a moment. Then, he explained, "Although I have only personally fought with the Diónia Navy twice, they were both tactics that targeted the flaws of the Diónia battleships! Unfortunately, the first time, I wanted to make use of the wind and waves on the sea to aid our navy, but I didn't expect to cause a storm. The second time, I wanted to lead the Dionysian fleet far out to sea and defeat them through a pincer attack and the better control of our battleships, but in the end, I was seen through by the enemy … "
Morbar did not say anything.
Anobas calmed down and continued, "The Diónia Navy may have also realized the flaws of their fleet, so they have another type of battleship. It is narrower than the usual three-oared battleship, but faster and more agile. It can assist the Raven Battleship in battle and make up for its clumsiness … These are the tactical characteristics of the Diónia Navy, but what we should pay more attention to is that although some people in the Senate think that 'the Diónia Navy has only been established for more than ten years and is far from being comparable to our long tradition', I think that their fleet is well-trained and their ship operating skills are no weaker than ours. The cooperation between the battleships is also quite good. They usually use a seemingly messy offensive formation, which can cause chaos in the opponent's formation after battle, but they can cooperate and protect each other in a chaotic battle. This is something that cannot be achieved without a long period of training.
Also … I think that the Diónia Navy should have a complete set of communication signals when sailing on the sea, just like us, so they can quickly make adjustments when they are ambushed and unexpected …
In addition, what we should pay attention to is that the morale of the Dionysian fleet is very high. In the ambush of the Phoenician fleet and the naval battle with Sardinia, the Diónia Navy was at a disadvantage at the beginning, but they were able to turn defeat into victory in the end. This also has a lot to do with this … "
Anobas talked non-stop. He tried his best to describe all the powerful aspects of the Diónia Navy that he knew. Of course, he was also subtly explaining to Morbar that the reason he had not won during his tenure as the Navy Commander was not only because he was not lucky enough, but also because his opponents were too strong. He still hoped that the highly respected Morbar could speak up for him in the Senate.
Morbar listened to Anobas's narration with a solemn expression. He still did not speak. He picked up his wooden staff, got up, and walked out.
After all, Anobas had been by Morbar's side for a few years and knew his character. He did not try to persuade him to stay, but respectfully sent him out.
Morbar walked out of the door and stopped in his tracks. He said to Anobas seriously, "In Sardinia, it was a serious mistake for you to set up a circular formation to face the enemy! And it was even more wrong to lie about military intelligence! "
Anobas was greatly shocked. His hands and feet instantly turned cold. So this old guy had already found someone else to understand the details beforehand, but he still came here to talk about me!
"But if I were you, I might have also set up a circular formation at that time … Other than this, the tactics and strategies you implemented during your tenure as the Navy Commander are not too wrong …" Morbar's next words sounded in Anobas's ears like celestial music.
Morbar raised his wooden staff and knocked Anobas's shoulder hard. He warned him, "When you are questioned by the Senate tomorrow, tell everything honestly. I will also express my opinion. I believe that anyone with a bit of brains will be able to judge whether it is right or wrong rationally."
Anobas was overjoyed. He did not hesitate and immediately said, "Thank you, Teacher! I will definitely tell you the details of all the battles truthfully! "
In reality, Morbar did not appear in the Senate the next day. However, he wrote a letter and sent it to the meeting place. In the letter, he defended Anobas's failure from a military point of view. At the same time, he hoped that this defeated general could become his assistant and help him fight against the increasingly powerful Diónia Navy.
Morbar's prestige and Hanno's protection allowed Anobas to escape punishment from the Senate in the end.
Morbar, who did not show up at the meeting place, was dragging his aged body and leading his subordinates to travel between Carthage and the ports of the neighboring city-states. He was learning about the progress of the new warships and recruiting experienced sailors.
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