Chapter 227 Landing in Asia Minor

"Mediterranean Overlord of Ancient Greece ()"

When Nickanebos learned that there was a change in the city, and the angry army led reinforcements to the gate, the Dionian army had already rushed into the city under the guidance of Memphis officials.

After a day of fierce fighting in the city, the rebels were routed, Niktanibos was captured, and the Dionian army entered the city of Memphis.

Immediately on the second day, Foreign Minister Tapirus, who was instructed by Davos and accompanied the army to Egypt, began to frequently meet with Memphis officials and priests of several temples in the city.

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At this time, it was mid-August, and the news that "the Holy Kingdom of Dionia had officially declared war on Persia and was forming a Greek coalition to attack Asia Minor" had reached Babylon, shocking Artaxerxes. The defeated and inactive Persian king had been in awe of the kingdom of Dionia in the far west, which was still victorious and expanding despite any obstacles, and could not help but say in public. A sentence: "It's finally here!..."

Then he stood up abruptly, and shouted: "Go and call Trebass!"

"Your Majesty, Lord Trebassus has been sent by you to conquer Egypt!" a minister reminded.

Artaxerxes just woke up from a dream, stood for a moment, and then asked, "Where is he now?"

"Also calling up troops in the Syrian area."

Artaxerxes sat down again, clenched his fists, pondered for a while, and said a little nervously: "...The order to attack Egypt is temporarily cancelled, let him come back first, and it is only necessary to guard against the invasion of Dionysian army. It is the most important event!... Send me all the secret agents to monitor the movements of mainland Greece at all times... At the same time, notify the governors of various regions to conduct military mobilization immediately, and the garrisoned troops in various regions will be assembled and stand by, waiting for my order!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

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Artaxerxes consciously: Although Dionia has officially declared war on Persia, it will take some time for the Greek coalition to complete the formation and invade the Persian territory.

But he did not expect that Leoticides had led the Tenth and Eleventh Army to Thessaly, and that the Dionysian commander, after learning about the enemy situation on the other side of the Aegean Sea, after repeated thought , resolutely decided: not to wait for the Greek army to converge before attacking Asia Minor, but to send a vanguard force to land in Asia Minor while the Persians have not yet completed their defense preparations, occupy a foothold, and make further landing operations for the subsequent army. provide assurance.

The commander of the Tenth Legion, Stephoros, was the adopted son of the famous Dionian army legend Amyntas, a friend of Patroclus, and an old subordinate of Leoticides. He had a deep understanding of his abilities. , therefore entrusted the task to him.

Steveros, who was in his prime and eager to make another contribution, took over this important task without hesitation, and after consulting with Leoticides, he targeted the landing on the beach in the Misia region of western Asia Minor.

The reason for choosing this place is very simple: from the port of Philae in Thessaly to the east, across the Aegean Sea, to the west of Asia Minor, the nearest straight line is Misia, which is also the westernmost region of Persia today. Natural Persian dominance is also the weakest here.

Since Misia is relatively close to the mainland of Greece, there are many colonial towns established by Greeks in this area. The Persian rule here has always been unstable. In the tide of rebellion against Persian rule in Asia Minor, Misia was also one of them. One, because Artaxerxes promulgated some decrees in favor of the Greek colonial city-states in Asia Minor during the war, such as: giving them more autonomy, paying less taxes, and having more freedom in religious beliefs ... Therefore, most of the Greek city-states in Asia Minor did not participate in the rebellion, nor did they give support to the rebels. On the contrary, they also cooperated with the Persian army in the attack.

But after the rebellion was quelled and the new governors of the western regions of Asia Minor took office, many of them did not implement these decrees announced by the Persian king. dissatisfaction of the city-state. This Persian nobleman from Susa obviously did not expect that the Greeks in his jurisdiction would dare to oppose his decision, and other local races, including Persians, also mostly watched with indifference, and few were willing to approach this outsider, leading to a For more than a few years, Theopumps' rule over Misia was still very weak, and the political situation in Misia was very disorderly.

A few days later, more than 8,000 soldiers of the fully prepared Dionysian Tenth Corps boarded the troop carrier at the port of Philae. Under the escort of the Fourth Fleet, they sailed straight to the east. Two days later, they successfully landed in Mi The beaches of West Asia, at the same time, quickly captured the defenseless island of Tenidos not far from the landing beach.

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In September, the news that "King Davos will personally lead an army to attack Persia" has just been officially announced, and the palace's office has welcomed several guests.

Davos looked at these guests and asked in astonishment, "What good day is today for you to come and visit me?"

"Your Majesty!" Philisius, who had been retired for many years, replied respectfully: "We heard that you are going to lead an army to attack Persia in person, so everyone was very excited and made an appointment to come to see you together, I hope you can allow it We go with you to the land where we were born and died and fought side by side!"

"Yeah, Your Majesty! Over the years, I can't forget those comrades who died in Persia. We buried their bodies in a hurry because we were eager to escape, and we didn't even put a copper coin in our mouths... This time When I go to Persia, I must transport their bones back to their hometown and bury them well, so that their wandering souls can return to hell..." Alexis, who has always been calmer, also said emotionally.

"There are also Clearchus, Proxinus, Menon and the others. I heard that their heads were sent to Babylon and discarded in the garbage by the Persians. Even if they spend a lot of energy, they may not be able to find them. But... it is everyone's common wish to gather their corpses and bring them back to their hometown!" Immediately after, Hieronymus finished speaking earnestly, and Tormid, Agarcia and others immediately echoed loudly.

"Everyone's common wish?" Davos heard something from this.

"Your Majesty, we are asking you on behalf of most of the old mercenaries who are still alive and idle at home, hoping to follow you back to Persia!" Epithenes said loudly.

Davos looked at Philisius, Alexis, Hieronymus, Thormid, Marigi, Agarcia, Epithenes, Martius, Geogris... When these white-haired, wrinkled old men swept across their faces, they finally landed on Amintas.

The once outstanding and heroic General Dionia is now completely unable to stand, and can only slump in a wooden wheelchair, pushed into the palace by his confidant servants. Due to being unable to walk on the ground for a long time, his originally burly body became very puffy. When everyone was talking, he closed his eyes and snored.

Davos couldn't help but said softly, "Amintas."

"call……"

"Amintas!"

"Uh?……"

"Are you going to go to Persia too?"

Under the shoveling of the servants, Amintas finally woke up. He supported the armrest of the wooden chair with both hands, tried his best to sit up, and panted heavily: "Your Majesty...I will die...I will die before I go. On the way to Babylon!  …”

Davos looked around the crowd again and asked solemnly, "Do you think the same way?"

Philisius looked back at the others, and after receiving their nods, he replied with a serious expression: "Your Majesty, we have followed you and won countless victories in the past few decades. The only regret is that we were defeated by Persia in Persia. People are driven back like dogs, this time we want to follow you to make up for this regret, even if we die during the battle, it will be the glory of our entire life!"

"Your Majesty, I have one more request!" Epithenes shouted from behind: "If I really die on the way, please allow my servants to carry my body into Babylon, so that I can see Babylon with my own eyes. What is the sky garden that people boast about!"

Martius immediately complained to him in a low voice: "We have all negotiated in advance, you violated the agreement and suddenly made such a request to His Majesty, it is too much! What can you see when everyone is dead, hurry up to His Majesty? I apologize and take back your unreasonable request!"

"I'm happy, I don't think Your Majesty will blame me." Epithenes looked indifferent, so angry that Martius grabbed his clothes and wanted to beat him.

"Okay, okay." Davos waved his hand, looked at everyone, and said sternly: "I can allow you to go to Persia with me, but—you are all veterans who have followed me for many years and are familiar with Dionysus. The runner-up law, you should understand that this war against Persia will determine the ownership of the entire Mediterranean Sea, which is related to the rise and fall of the two countries, and cannot be ignored. Therefore, you must have the mentality of 'fighting instead of playing', and you must obey all orders. , obey the command! If someone can't do it, then it's best to quit now, otherwise someone violates the military law, and I will never show mercy!"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, we will fight for a lifetime, and we will never ruin our reputation at the end, and we will never let the younger generation look down on it!" Philisius, Alexis and others said in unison.