Chapter 32 The Plan for Grummentum and the Battle of Siletin

Protesilaus shrugged and stopped talking. ~~щww~suimеng~lā

"The technology of draining and filling swamps, depressions, and tidal flats is a mature technology that we Greeks often use. The Turii used to build dykes on the upper banks of the Koseni River during the rainy season. We can technically do what Lord Lass proposes." Kunogolata asked earnestly, "But to fill up such a large swamp area into farmland requires a lot of manpower and materials. Have you considered it?"

"Didn't you just say that there will be a large influx of free people in Dionia in the future! We can recruit a large number of them to do this project. For these free people who have made great contributions to the Dionysian Alliance, we not only want to Incentivize them to shorten the period of their citizens' expeditions, and consider giving them 'allotments' in the swampy area to encourage them to work harder! Also... Considering the mosquito breeding there, I hope Helpers can Send doctors to participate, help the sick at any time, and prevent the disease..." Scombras said incessantly, although he had not served as a city-state consul before, he had devoted himself to Kerry In the role of the chief executive of Misa, he uses his long life experience to think carefully about problems, so he is more thoughtful.

"Of course there is no problem with this." Helps said immediately: "We can help at any time!"

"Mercis, don't worry about that money!" Skombras turned to the financial officer again and said loudly: "As long as the swamp area is successfully transformed, how much farmland can be provided! How much land tax can you collect! And these It happens every year! Use your brain to think about it!"

Mersis raised his hand helplessly: "Master, don't think about it, I agree."

"Does anyone have any objections?" asked Corneros, the rotating speaker.

Everyone, including Davos, shook their heads, and Scambrace took care of it all by himself.

Next to stand up was Vespa: "My lords, I have received a message from Niutum, 'Potentia's army is approaching Grummentum, and Cincinnagar may be afraid of being forced by him. The tribes of the original Grummentum that had been annexed did not go out to fight. He stuck to the city of Grummentum, and at the same time sent people to Neutum, hoping to form an alliance with us and fight against Potentia together.”

"Cincinnager has a good idea." Davos smiled lightly: "What do you think about this?"

Vespa hesitated for a moment, then said: "I don't think it is necessary to form an alliance with Picocis, and previous events have proved that Cincinnag is completely untrustworthy. And the relationship between Potentia and Picocis In battle, no matter who wins, the strength of both sides will be weakened, which is very beneficial to us Dionia!"

Davos is very happy to see that Weisba can think like this,

This shows that he has become accustomed to the life of the Alliance, so he will consider the interests of the Alliance, so he said: "Lord Vespa is right! Of course, we will not refuse him forcefully, just say we Dionia Just after the war, you need to rest, and you can't start another war."

Vespa understands.

At this time, Hermon said: "Not only did Cincinnagar court us, but the tribes of the original Grummentum also quietly sent people to contact us, hoping to get our help and drive out the Pixis people. and the Potentians."

"Then what are they going to pay?" Davers asked.

"They said, 'Would like to make Grummentum an affiliation of our Dionia,'" Hermon replied.

"This condition seems to be considered." Protesilus was a little moved, and he answered.

Davos looked at him, then at the other elders who agreed, and said with a sneer: "These tribes once betrayed their great leader, Lusau, and later they clashed with Pixis, the Grummentum. Just want to use this sentence to let us Dionia and the two major forces of Lucaria - Potentia and Pixis go to war, is this possible! Now Crimesa, Asproustus Mu needs a large number of citizens and reserve citizens to settle down, and Dionia's army will be involved in a series of problems such as re-formation and division for a period of time, and there will not be enough soldiers to go to Lucaria. Besides, Bagul, how useful do you think our heavy infantry will be in the Lucaria Mountains?"

Bagul thought for a while, and said frankly: "We were able to capture Niutum because of a sneak attack, and we did not fight the Lucanian warriors head-on. However, the heavy infantry had to fight the Lucanian warriors in the mountains. I am afraid it is difficult to gain the upper hand in the battle. Just walking the mountain road can consume a lot of energy of the soldiers. What's more, we are unfamiliar with the terrain. On the narrow mountain road, the enemy does not need to fight us head-on, just push a few stones. It can cost us a lot, not to mention the difficulty of transporting food..."

"Bagul is right! When we were going through the mountains to Armenia in Persia, we often encountered similar difficulties. No matter how brave the heavy infantry was, it would not be effective at all." Alexis said immediately, and then the former hired The veterans of the army also agreed with Bagul's words.

The veterans with the most combat experience are not optimistic about fighting in the mountains, which makes Protesilaus a little ashamed, but he can recognize the mistake very well, and said embarrassedly: "It seems that the successive victories some time ago have made me a little bit ashamed. Proud."

The elders who agreed to accept the conditions of the Grummentum tribe also bowed their heads slightly ashamed. In Turii, Amendolara, war was a painful thing. However, since Davos, it seems that victory is easy, which makes everyone have an illusion: Dionysian soldiers are invincible! This made everyone start to get a little arrogant.

But Davos did not lose his prudence. He clearly remembered that when Rome began to conquer the Italian mainland, the biggest obstacle encountered was not the Greek city-states on the coast, nor the sturdy Gallic tribes in the north, but the Samo in the central mountains. The Nai people, when the Roman heavy infantry, who dominated the plains, attacked the Samone people in the mountains, could hardly move an inch. Davos certainly didn't want to repeat the mistakes of Rome.

"Aren't we going to attack Lucania? Lord Consul, don't forget that you promised us to occupy the Lucania area!" At this time, someone stood up and questioned Davos.

It's Polyxis! Kunogolata, Burkes and others all frowned, Kapus, Amintas and the others were even more hesitant, but Davos looked calm: "We don't attack the Lucania region, we don't. Indicates that we are about to give it up. Potentia and Pixis went to war, and undoubtedly the most affected were the small tribes scattered in the lands near Grummentum and the common people in the city. Hermon told me, flee to The Lucanians of Niutum say that both Pixis and Potentia are looting their cattle and their belongings, and are forcibly recruiting them as vanguards . . . ”

"Yes, Your Excellency Archon. These people came to Neutum and saw that the Lucanians who became citizens of Dionysus were very rich and envied! They are now eager for Grummentum to recover. Peace, so that they can continue to live a quiet life under the protection of powerful forces." Hermon said solemnly: "And the only one who can help them realize this good wish is our Dionia!"

"So please send people to do more activities near Grummentum. It's better to sneak into the city, so that these Lucanians who have been hurt by the war can understand this!" Davers asked. .

Hermon nodded yes.

"Bagule, after you go back, tell Sesta to gather all the Lucanian young people in Niutum, and you will conduct assault training according to the original Lucanian combat method. However, the organization of the troops is the most important. It's better to stick to the current form, because it will be more disciplined. In addition, it must be kept secret so that the enemy in the north cannot know."

Davos' words made Bagule excitedly say: "When will we attack?"

"Waiting for the opportunity." Davos spit out a sentence, then looked around the crowd, and said firmly: "I would rather let Portentia and Garraguso become Dionia's vassals than let Grummentum break away. Our control! The location of Grummentum City is very important, and it controls the upper passage to the north, east, and west of Italy, and must be mastered by Dionia himself!"

………………

Crotone's troops had just arrived at Siriting, and after gathering a small number of reinforcements sent by Trina and Siriting, they continued south. The Crotone fleet has been sailing southwards, and has already passed the Celestial Court and is approaching the sea near Colonia.

At this time, the clipper in the forefront of the reconnaissance sent back a message: The Lochry fleet is now on the sea ahead, and there are about o ships!

Crotone Admiral Askamas immediately ordered: the fleet slowed down the ships, lowered the sails, lined up the ships, and prepared to fight!

Soon, the warships that received the order gathered together to form a formation with the three-tiered oar warship in the center, and the other large and small warships were arranged on both sides, sailing as close to the coast as possible, because it was the east wind at this time, although it fell. The sails can still use the wind to save the sailors some effort, so the fleet tried their best to seize the upper wind position.

Before the formation was over, Locley's fleet appeared on the sea less than a mile away from them.

Askamas decisively ordered: speed up the ship, prepare to attack!

From west to east, Crotone's fleet is divided into five columns, each with ten ships, ready to rush into the enemy's defense line with extremely fast ships, and then use the advantage of more ships to achieve one-on-one Or two-on-one catch-and-fight (this was the usual naval tactic created by the Athenians to fight more and fight less).