After receiving Hamilcar's orders, the Iberian infantry, carrying rations and weapons, began to cross the mountain range southwards. Hamilcar, meanwhile, continued to attack Serodyerm, drawing the garrison's attention.
The Iberian infantry traversed the mountains, making a large detour, and appeared at dawn on the third day in the mountain pass to the rear of Serodyerm. The Serodyerm defense camp in the pass was unprepared, and quickly fell under the swift attack of the Iberian infantry. Then, the Iberians rapidly advanced towards the east side of Serodyerm.
The people of Serodyerm quickly learned the news that "the enemy has appeared in the rear" and were very alarmed. Because after receiving the warning from the Daonians, they had only concentrated manpower to reinforce the west wall in the limited time they had. As for the east wall, they only had time to make simple repairs. The wall was not only short and small, but there were no defensive facilities outside the city. However, they were hoping for the best, believing that this direction would not be attacked by the Carthaginians for the time being. After all, this was already within the sphere of influence of the friendly Daonian city-states, and reinforcements from the Daonians could arrive at any time. If the Carthaginians wanted to land here, they would be taking a great risk. As for the Carthaginians wanting to cross the mountains, those towering mountains were not so easy to cross, and the Carthaginians were not good at this. But they never expected that the thing they were most worried about would happen.
At this time, Hamilcar's army also launched a strong attack on the west wall of Serodyerm. The Serodyerm garrison immediately appeared to be short of troops. They sensed the urgency of the situation and hurriedly organized all the citizens who could fight to defend the city walls. At the same time, they sent people to the port to board fast ships and rush to Messina for help. In addition, they also arranged for the people in the city to begin to retreat towards the port.
In fact, Daonian fast ships patrolled and observed the battle situation on the sea near Serodyerm every day. When they saw the Carthaginian army appearing on the east side of Serodyerm, they realized that the situation was not good and immediately returned to Messina. Therefore, when the envoy from Serodyerm came to ask for help, Amicles, the chief administrator of Messina, had already organized a fleet and was preparing to set off for rescue.
Accompanying them was the Third Fleet. After the Carthaginians divided their army into two parts and attacked eastward from the north and south coasts at the same time, Secrian also had to divide the Sicilian fleet under his command into two parts. The First Fleet was in Catania, and the Third Fleet was in Messina. As the war progressed, most of the warships of the First Fleet later moved into the military port of Gela. This was done to be able to promptly prevent the Carthaginian fleet from assisting the army on both coasts, bypassing to land behind the friendly Daonian city-states, and also to protect the convoys transporting supplies or refugees in a timely manner. And this time, the dispatch of the Third Fleet was clearly for the latter purpose.
When the Daonian fleet arrived near the sea off Serodyerm, the defense of the east wall of Serodyerm had already been breached by the Iberian infantry. The citizen soldiers had to abandon the defense of the city wall, with some retreating to the citadel and some retreating to the port.
Fortunately, when Serodyerm was originally built, although the port was included within the city, it was separated by a city wall. The original purpose was to prevent the slaves and freemen in the port from freely entering and leaving the urban area,
and disrupting the order within the city. But now it played a crucial role.
The Serodyerm citizen soldiers had pre-arranged defenses on the port city wall, and also destroyed the stone steps leading to the city wall and blocked the entrances and exits of the port. After all, this city wall was mainly to prevent enemies in the port from entering the urban area. They only hoped to buy time for the people to escape from the port.
The ships originally docked in the port were filled with the people of Serodyerm, and one after another quickly sailed away. The Daonian fleet also quickly sailed into the port, continuing to pick up the terrified people staying on the docks. Some ships from Tyndaris, Caleacte, and Haluntium also came to the rescue. Although the scene was somewhat chaotic, and even ships collided and capsized, at this moment, all the Greek city-state sailors on the north coast were working together to rescue, with only one thought in their minds: to rescue the people of Serodyerm as soon as possible, to avoid being slaughtered by the Carthaginians.
Serodyerm was not a large city, and its population was not very large. Soon, the old, young, women, and children were all on board, and they began to load the citizen soldiers who had arrived at the docks...
The warships of the Third Fleet were lined up on the sea west of the port to prevent a sudden attack by the Carthaginian fleet. A fast ship sailed over to report to Flarios, the commander of the Third Fleet on the flagship: "The people of Serodyerm in the port are all on board."
Flarios nodded to show he understood. He couldn't muster much enthusiasm for this kind of low-risk escort mission. He had considered letting the fleet infantry on the Raven warships land at the port to help the people of Serodyerm defend the port, but after understanding the actual battle situation, he gave up the idea. He did not think that 4,000 fleet infantry could withstand the attack of 20,000 enemies who were about to break the city with only a flimsy city wall. It was not worth it to lose the fleet infantry that had been trained with great difficulty in this unimportant place.
"We'll return after the fleet has left," Flarios had just finished giving the order.
Suddenly, the lookout on the mast shouted loudly: "General, there are enemies ahead!"
Flarios felt a tightening in his heart, and looked up into the distance. Through the gaps between the many warships, he saw two yellow flags flying on the mast of the westernmost warship.
It's the Carthaginian fleet, about the same number of warships as us... Flarios immediately made a judgment based on the flag signals (raising a yellow flag means there is an enemy, one yellow flag means the enemy fleet is smaller than the Daonian side, two yellow flags mean the two sides are about equal in number, three yellow flags mean the enemy ship is more numerous than the Daonian fleet, and four yellow flags mean the enemy ship is far more numerous).
Flarios was immediately invigorated and immediately changed the order: "Sound the horns, raise the black flag!"
On the flagship, five buglers simultaneously blew the curved bronze horns, resounding throughout the sea, and a long black flag was raised high on the mast.
"Beneath the night, there must be stars." The Starfield was the most typical tactic of the Daonian Navy, maximizing the power of the Raven warships. It was precisely by relying on it that the newly established Daonian Navy defeated the powerful Syracuse Navy. But after ten years of development, due to the change in the composition of the fleet's warships, this tactic has undergone new changes, and he needs a major battle to verify its effectiveness.
After receiving the order, the captains and crew of all the warships immediately became excited: the deck operators began to lift the drawbridges placed on the deck to the foremast for placement; the helmsmen adjusted the direction of the warships and began to arrange the formation; the sailors began to swallow rations and lubricate the cushions; the infantry sitting in the bottom cabin aisles began to put on armor... Everyone was eager and impatiently waiting for the arrival of this naval battle.
… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …
This fleet coming from the west came from Iberia, and to be precise, it was under the command of Mago, the governor of Iberia.
The African coast is flat, but lacks tall and sturdy trees. Carthage, a famous maritime race, had long regarded the Iberian Peninsula as an important resource base, not only because of its rich gold and silver mines, but also because of its abundant timber resources. The vast majority of Carthaginian ship timber came from Iberia.
After Mago took office as governor of Iberia, he initially did not have the right to command the fleet. In fact, in the process of conquering southern Iberia, most of the time the fleet was not needed. But Mago considered that in the future, when the army was used to fight in other places, transporting troops by sea without the protection of the fleet would be a big problem. To transfer the Carthaginian fleet to Iberia would be obstructed by the Senate led by Hanno. Therefore, he decided to use the money and timber from Iberia to build a fleet of his own.
Several years later, an Iberian fleet consisting of 120 triremes, plus medium and small warships, totaling 180 warships, was established. Its commander was Adherbal of the Magonid family. Half of the sailors came from Phoenician city-states, and the rest came from Numidia and Mauritania. Not a single one was Carthaginian. This fleet quickly roamed the Iberian coast and near the Pillars of Hercules.
After Hanno learned about this, he was very fearful. So this time, when this fleet escorted Hasdrubal's army to Lilybaeum in Sicily, Hanno instructed the Carthaginian fleet commander Hanno Baal to incorporate it.
This was met with strong opposition from Adherbal, who said: "Lord Mago only agreed to let the army accept the command of Mont Adrano, and did not say that the fleet should also accept the command of the Carthaginian navy."
Hanno Baal retorted: "Since they are all Carthaginian troops, of course they must be under unified command. This is beneficial to the battle! Beneficial to Carthage!"
Adherbal refused to obey, and the two sides almost clashed.
Finally, the case was brought to the Senate, and the Senate had to send someone to discuss it with Mago again. Thus began another tedious negotiation. And the two fleets, one docked in Carthage and one docked in Lilybaeum, were in a stalemate. This is why Mont Adrano had not seen the Carthaginian fleet appear near the southern coast of Sicily to protect his troops.
At this moment, the Iberian fleet also spotted the enemy ahead. Adherbal quickly prepared his fleet for battle, adopting a single column formation. This formation focused on one-on-one engagements, demanding a high level of seamanship from each warship's crew, thus showcasing the Iberian fleet's high self-regard.
In fact, the trireme was originally invented by the Phoenicians, and they were also the first to use naval ramming tactics. However, centuries of maritime tradition were both Carthage's glory and its shackles. Even the crushing defeat of the powerful Syracusan navy by the emerging Daunian navy more than a decade ago did little to shake the Carthaginian fleet. On the contrary, most Carthaginian naval commanders and sailors believed that the Syracusans' poor seamanship led to their defeat, and that they would never make such foolish mistakes.
As for the Daunian navy, their tactics were constantly evolving. This can be seen in the formation of the Third Fleet, where the front half consisted of 100 staggered triremes equipped with corvus boarding bridges, while the rear half consisted of 50 regular triremes without corvus bridges arranged in a column. Flanking the "Star Array" were 50 loosely arranged small and medium-sized warships.
This formation was a result of continuous improvements made by the Daunian War Department and several senior naval commanders after summarizing the naval battles with Syracuse, taking into account the shortcomings of the corvus ships and the problems encountered during training. Each fleet adopted a mixed formation of corvus ships and regular triremes, with corvus ships accounting for roughly two-thirds of the trireme count and regular triremes accounting for one-third.
Furthermore, the navy also modified the structure of both types of triremes. The corvus ship primarily relied on locking onto enemy ships with the boarding bridge and winning through infantry combat. Therefore, its hull was longer and wider, ensuring a spacious lower deck where infantrymen would not feel cramped. After all, with the kingdom's expansion, fleet engagements were no longer guaranteed to occur immediately upon leaving port. Patrols could last a day or two without spotting the enemy. Maintaining a comfortable living environment for the sailors and infantry on board was crucial for preserving their combat effectiveness. The corvus ship also had some weight added to the stern to maintain balance and stability when the boarding bridge was deployed.
If the corvus ship sacrificed speed for comfort and safety, then the Daunian regular trireme compensated for the corvus ship's lack of speed. Therefore, its hull was narrow and short, shaped like a willow leaf, and even its mast was shorter. The crew size of each warship was also reduced to 150 men. The War Department gathered many well-known Daunian shipwrights to repeatedly modify and test this type of trireme, eventually finalizing its design. As a result, its top speed could reach 15 knots, and it was also highly maneuverable, earning it the nickname of "fast trireme" among Daunian sailors.
Generally, these fast triremes were positioned at the rear of the formation. After the sea battle began, they weaved through the gaps between the warships, protecting the corvus ships that were engaged in boarding actions, and ramming enemy ships that attempted to flank them. When the enemy fleet retreated, they would use their superior speed to pursue and maximize the victory.
This was an encounter battle.
Neither side avoided battle. On the contrary, the sailors were highly motivated. They quickly adjusted their warships and arranged their formations within a ten-mile radius according to their commanders' orders. Listening to the flutist's music, they chanted in unison, vigorously pushing their oars. As the oar frequency increased, the warships cut through the waves, their speed soaring as if they were taking flight.
The leading warships of both sides were about to collide…
Standing in the rear of the formation, Iberian naval commander Adherbal listened to the lookout's calls from the mast and clenched his fist in excitement. The first naval battle between Carthage and Daonia was about to begin, and he firmly believed that victory would belong to the Carthaginians, with their long maritime history!
"Boom! … Boom! …" One by one, the corvus bridges rotated and fell, smashing through the decks of enemy ships and connecting the two warships.
"Hades!!! …" Forty Daunian fleet infantrymen, bursting out of the warship's hold, charged across the boarding bridge with high morale, heading towards the enemy ship. These fleet-specific infantrymen were very different from the legion soldiers initially carried on the warships. Not only was their number reduced by ten, but they also wore leather helmets and leather armor, carried solid wooden long shields in their left hands, and wore leather sandals with crisscrossing grooves on the soles… These changes in weaponry and equipment, as well as the reduction in weight, made it easier for them to fight agilely on the warship and prevented them from slipping on the wet deck.
As the Daunian fleet infantrymen engaged in slaughter on one enemy ship after another, Adherbal's excited emotions vanished without a trace, replaced by an icy chill in his heart. In the end, he could only issue the order to retreat with a bitter taste in his mouth.
The first naval battle between Daonia and Carthage lasted only half an hour. The Daunian Third Fleet, at the cost of 5 warships sunk and six warships damaged, captured 18 Carthaginian triremes, sank 4, and achieved a great victory.
Hasdrubal, who had just captured the port, watched the entire naval battle from the lighthouse of Serodium, witnessing firsthand the Daunian fleet's unique tactics leading to the Iberian fleet's crushing defeat. This shocked him greatly, and also turned his joy of occupying the city of Serodium into nothing.
For the residents of Serodium, who were evacuating from the sea, the Daunian naval victory also boosted their confidence in returning to their homes.
The next day, Hasdrubal, still covered in dust from the campaign, received news that "the main Carthaginian force had been defeated on the southern coast." Although he was somewhat gloating, he also felt the danger of his own situation. The Daunians, without the threat from the south, were likely to turn their forces against his isolated army deep in enemy territory. However, it would take some time for the Daunians to move from the southern coast to the northern coast.
In the afternoon, he met with messengers from Panormus who had arrived in a hurry, finally allowing him to make up his mind. It turned out that the Daunian Third Fleet had sailed west early in the morning and landed on the coast near Panormus. Several thousand infantrymen from the warships landed and attacked the Iberian army's rear camp. Although they failed to capture the camp due to the vigilance and tenacious resistance of the garrison, they did cause some damage to the supplies.
Hasdrubal decided to lead his army to retreat back to Panormus, where he would stay for a while, waiting for the Carthaginian Senate to make a new decision, because he realized that the defeat of the main force led by Mago was likely to lead to a new political storm.
During the retreat, Hasdrubal ordered his soldiers to completely destroy the city of Serodium, so that they would not encounter any more trouble when attacking it again.
… … … … … … … … … … … … … … …
Venosia—a town located in the northwest corner of the Peucetian region. Legend has it that Diomedes, one of Homer's heroes, retired here after the Trojan War, seeking a peaceful life, and built this town and the temple of Aphrodite to appease the goddess of love's anger at the destruction of her beloved city of Troy. Therefore, this town is also known as the City of Aphrodite, which shows the blood and cultural connection between the Peucetians and the Greeks.
However, at this time, this town favored by the goddess of love was once again suffering from the ravages of war. It was surrounded by the Samnites, and the few citizen soldiers were stubbornly resisting the enemy's all-out attacks from all sides.
"Go and urge the tribal leaders to continue to step up their offensive and capture this town before dusk!" Lesgauk, gazing at the battle situation on the city wall in front, impatiently issued orders loudly.
"Yes, Great Chieftain!" The personal guard accepted the order and left.
Kontrouk, the great chieftain of the Caraceni beside him, glanced at him and comforted him, saying: "It's useless for you to urge them again. Don't worry, I think the enemy can't hold on anymore. We will definitely be able to take this town before dark."
"I'm just… a little worried about the Daunians. We must seize the time to plunder more people and materials, and have more bargaining chips to threaten the Daunians!…" Lesgauk hurriedly explained.
"There's nothing to be afraid of the Daunians!" Kontrouk saw through the fear in Lesgauk's heart at a glance. He said loudly with some disdain: "The failures you have suffered in the past when fighting them were all due to their tricks. You must know that we have never been defeated in frontal combat, and we have never been defeated in past battles with the Greeks! As the great chieftain of the Hirpini, you can be cautious, but you must not lose the courage and ferocity that the descendants of Vosani should have!"
As a veteran great chieftain, Kontrouk, relying on his status as an elder and many years of combat experience, continued to teach Lesgauk: "What's more, you have already used a trick to transfer the main force of the Daunians to the north of the Daunian region. It will be difficult for them to get here in two or three days. Even if there are enemy reinforcements coming these two days, they are troops temporarily assembled by the Daunians in the Peucetian and Messapian regions. Their strength will not be too great, and their combat effectiveness will not be strong. We can just defeat them and boost the morale of our warriors… especially the courage and morale of the Hirpini, Cautini, and Pentri warriors!" In the heart of this Samnite veteran chieftain, the tribal warriors who had been defeated repeatedly were not qualified Samnite warriors. Only the Caraceni warriors were the best.
Lesgauk stopped talking.
At this time, the scout hurried over: "Great Chieftain, Daunian reinforcements have been discovered in the south!"
..............
The Samnites had been in the Venoza area for more than a day, so it was normal for Daonian reinforcements to appear at this time. Leskus anxiously asked, "How many people are there?"
The scout said with shame and anger: "The Daonians are using cavalry as their vanguard, advancing very quickly, and they are also searching for and driving us away. Several of my teammates... died under their spears, so... we... don't know how many enemies are behind us, but these cavalry are all wearing plain clothes, and the colors and styles are different."
Pucheti and Messapi were rich in cavalry, which Leskus certainly knew and envied, but since they were not wearing unified black uniforms, it seemed that this was a temporary force assembled in the Pucheti area. It was impossible to assemble a large army in such a short time.
With this judgment, he turned to look at Kontruk.
Kontruk tugged at his beard and said without hesitation: "Our 4,000 warriors who have been resting can finally go to the battlefield to kill the enemy! These brave young men will easily defeat them!"
The personal guard who received the order immediately went to inform the troops who had not participated in the siege, but were specifically used to intercept reinforcements.
And Leskus's roar rang out again: "Go and urge the leaders of each tribe to increase the intensity of the siege, and be sure to capture Venoza before the Daonian reinforcements arrive again!"
More than ten minutes later, Leskus saw a simple Samnite flag raised on the city wall in front of him, and was overjoyed.
At this moment, the scout ran over in a panic: "Great Chief! Great Chief! It's not good! Many, many Daonian soldiers in black armor have come from the south! Our army that went to intercept them is too small and can't hold them back!"
"This is impossible! There can't be a regular Daonian army here!!" Leskus roared in disbelief.
Answering Leskus's question was the increasingly noisy sound from the south: "The Daonian army is coming! Run away!!..."
Behind the Samnite rout fleeing in panic was a surging black tide, accompanied by the "rumbling" of footsteps and earth-shattering shouts, aggressively pressing towards Venoza.
"Quick!... Retreat!... Retreat!!..." Kontruk had long lost the toughness he had shown earlier, his face was also pale, and his voice suddenly became hoarse.
.................
Adoris had already thrown away the cumbersome long shield and spear.
He was only holding a short sword, so he ran quickly, rushing to the front of the team. After participating in the previous Daunian War, he was considered a veteran. He no longer felt uncomfortable seeing corpses and blood, only the excitement of defeating the enemy. His only regret was that the Samnites who were blocking them were too weak. After only one round of javelin fire between the two sides, before they even started fighting, the Samnites chose to retreat.
In fact, this was related to the Daonian army's intimidating charge, because this reinforcement was a huge force of more than 16,000 people composed of the Second and Fourth Legions, plus about 1,000 reserve cavalry from the Second and Fourth Cavalry Legions, which was completely impossible for the 4,000 Samnite warriors responsible for intercepting reinforcements to resist.
Synthia's judgment was correct, even staying in the Second Legion could get him a fight. Adoris now only hated that he was running too slowly to catch up with these enemies who were fleeing like rabbits, completely forgetting that he was a squad leader, and his primary task at this time was to gather his soldiers, maintain the squad formation, and prevent them from scattering.
He was trying hard to catch up in front, but he didn't see how worried the platoon leader behind him was, fearing that he would have an accident in the battle, and kept urging the other squads to catch up with Adoris as soon as possible, and not let him encounter the enemy alone.
After a while, they saw the reserve cavalry rushing into the rout from the front side, immediately disrupting the Samnites' still orderly retreat formation. As the cavalry wantonly rammed and stabbed with their spears, the routed soldiers fled in all directions, and some even crashed towards the Daonian troops' pursuit direction like headless flies.
Adoris was overjoyed and strode forward, thrusting out his short sword with force.
With a scream, one fell down first. Then he punched out with his left fist, hitting another Samnite rout in the face, immediately knocking him to the ground.
Burning with fighting spirit, he continued to meet the third rout with his short sword, but his left foot was grabbed by the fallen Samnite warrior, and he couldn't move.
Just as he bent down to use his short sword to deal with the enemy on the ground, the enemy in front was holding a spear and charging towards him fiercely.
At that moment, his mind went blank and he felt the aura of the underworld.
But the enemy's roar stopped abruptly, and a javelin that flew in pierced deeply into his unprotected chest.
Afterwards, the platoon leader arrived at Adoris's side and angrily reprimanded: "Before the enemy is truly defeated, no soldier or team officer may leave the main force without permission... This is the regulation of the Military Law! Adoris, you disobeyed my orders, abandoned your subordinates, and advanced alone, violating military law. After this battle is over, go back and accept the judgment and punishment of the military judge!"
The platoon leader finished speaking in one breath, feeling a little uneasy in his heart, but he didn't expect that Adoris, after being luckily saved, had calmed down with a cold sweat all over him, and he answered respectfully: "Yes!"
The platoon leader breathed a sigh of relief, patted him hard on the shoulder, and said: "Lead your soldiers and continue fighting, chasing the enemy!"
"Yes!" Adoris and his comrades pounced on the panicked enemy like wolves among sheep.
This was just a corner of the battlefield.
From the perspective of the entire battlefield, a part of the Daonian army was chasing the Samnite warriors who had retreated earlier, another part of the Daonian army was quickly rushing towards the Samnites who were retreating from the city of Venoza, and another part of the soldiers was following the reserve cavalry, fiercely chasing the Samnites who had retreated earlier.
These Samnites of course included the two tribal leaders, who were leading their troops to retreat towards the mountains in the northwest. They knew that as long as they escaped into the mountains, they would be safe, just like in the previous Asculum battle.
But before long, they couldn't help but stop, because a formation of thousands of people composed of cavalry, light infantry, and light infantry was lying across their front.
"We have been fooled by the Daonians, they have already set up an encirclement here!" At this moment, Leskus's confidence was greatly shaken, and he only felt weak all over, his mind full of the scene of that disastrous defeat more than ten years ago.
On the other hand, Kontruk was old and strong, and instead of being discouraged by this predicament, he burst out with fighting spirit: "Descendants of Savoni, fight the Daonians!"
The Samnite warriors in a critical situation roared and charged forward.
The Daonian soldiers in front shouted the name of Hades and also charged bravely.
Just as the two sides were fighting together, the pursuing Daonian army quickly arrived and joined the battle.
The Samnite army, caught in a pincer attack, collapsed completely…
.................
"...Your Majesty, news from Venoza—" the messenger Aristilas rushed into the military conference room of the palace.
"What's the situation?" As Davos asked, Hilos, Philius, Hilonimus and other ministers of the Ministry of Military Affairs focused their attention on Aristilas.
"A few days ago, the Samnites gathered nearly 20,000 warriors and raided the Venoza area. Yesterday, just as they were attacking the city of Venoza with all their strength, the Second Legion and the Fourth Legion arrived in time and launched a raid from the south of Venoza. At the same time, the Second Cavalry Legion and the light infantry and light infantry battalions of the Ninth and Tenth Legions also crossed the Ofanto River and circled around the mountains on the rear side of the Samnites, cutting off their return route. The Samnite army was completely defeated. According to the battle report, this raid killed and wounded about 2,500 Samnites and captured more than 6,000 people, while we only suffered nearly a thousand casualties..." Aristilas, who had always been calm, trembled a little when repeating the battle report.
After he finished speaking, he respectfully handed the battle report to Davos.
"This is another glorious victory!" Philius exclaimed excitedly: "Your Majesty, it is because of your wisdom and decisiveness that you firmly supported Alexius's bold speculation that we have such a great victory!"
"This victory is mainly due to Alexius's correct judgment!" Davos said modestly.
It turned out that after Alexius achieved the victory in the Battle of Asculum, when writing the battle report to Davos, he also mentioned that: Since the Daunian region was prepared, the Samnites would likely shift their raid target and raid the Venoza area in northwestern Pucheti. He would organize the reserve troops in the Pucheti area to enter the city of Venoza for defense. At the same time, he would be ready at any time. Once there was an abnormal situation, he would immediately send troops to reinforce them and launch a pincer attack, repeating the victory of Asculum.
After carefully reading Alexius's plan, Davos, after careful consideration, put forward a further idea: that he should not send troops to Venoza in advance, so as not to alarm the enemy. At the same time, he would allow the Second Legion and the Fourth Legion to quickly gather and secretly enter Silvium, the central town of Pucheti, while the troops in the Daunian region would not move towards the Venoza area, in order to confuse the enemy.
This plan, after being improved by the Ministry of Military Affairs, was fully implemented.
In fact, the cunning Samnites had also sent nearly 10,000 warriors into the northwestern border of the Daunian region the day before yesterday in order to attract the Daonian army to move north and away from the Pucheti region. Alexius led the main force north as he wished, so that the Samnites finally made up their minds and sent troops to invade Venoza on a large scale the day before yesterday, and were caught by the Daonian army who had been prepared.
"Your Majesty, the war report states that the Samnite warriors appearing in this battle belong to the Hirpini and Caraceni tribes. Adding to the Pentri, who were defeated at Asculum not long ago, and the Caudini, whose prisoners were just returned, the four major tribes of Samnium probably no longer have the ability to launch large-scale invasions!" Minister of War, Hiolos, said joyfully after carefully reading the war report.
"It seems we can withdraw the Second and Fourth Legions, and we don't need to keep so many troops in the Daunian region. Withdrawing a few legions will alleviate the pressure on logistics," suggested Alpoenus, the acting quartermaster.
"Don't be too careless. We must be wary of the Samnites launching sneak attacks on other areas, plundering our people, and threatening to exchange them for the Samnite warriors we captured!" Chief of Staff, Philius, cautiously reminded.
"That is indeed possible. However, the regions and cities bordering Samnium have already increased their vigilance, and it won't be so easy for the Samnites to succeed again." Deputy Chief of Staff, Tolmidius, then raised another issue: "However, the soldiers of each legion are eager to fight and earn merit, gaining honor and rewards. Which legion should stay? Which legion should leave? This is a troublesome question."
"Withdraw the Second and Fourth Legions, reduce the troops in the Daunian region... these suggestions can be told to Alexius. Let him worry about it. I believe he won't relax his vigilance against the Samnites just because of one or two victories," Davos said nonchalantly.
"Your Majesty, the Samnites may seek peace talks with us again because of this defeat," Philius reminded.
"We will not negotiate with a race that has repeatedly violated alliances and maliciously broken treaties! If the Samnites really want to negotiate, I already have arrangements for that." Davos said sternly, then changed the subject: "However... if Carthage requests peace talks, that is something we can seriously consider."
Philius quickly asked, "Your Majesty, will the Carthaginians negotiate?"
Davos pondered and said, "Carthage is not like Samnium. Their national strength is strong, and the failure of one or two battles will not have a significant impact on them. However, the power struggle between the Magonid and Hanno families in Carthage... Order Prossous to lead the Eighth Legion and other troops to continue advancing cautiously westward while taking advantage of the enemy's defeat, attacking Carthaginian sub-states and Phoenician city-states, inflicting greater losses on the Carthaginians, and increasing the pressure on their Senate.
At the same time... order Secilian to concentrate all the warships under his command and advance to the western end of Sicily, find the main Carthaginian navy, and completely annihilate it, thereby cutting off Carthage's maritime connection with Sicily! If these plans can be realized, I want to see if the Carthaginians still have the confidence to fight us."
"Your Majesty, we will convey your instructions immediately. I believe Secilian has been eagerly waiting to receive this order," Tolmidius replied jokingly.
Davos laughed and said, "Even if the Carthaginians are unwilling to negotiate, we have Prossous on land in Sicily and Secilian at sea. We don't need to worry too much about the war in Sicily."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Hiolos praised sincerely: "Secilian's ability to command the fleet is beyond doubt, but Prossous's command talent displayed in the Battle of Minoah was truly surprising! The conflict by the river was sudden, but he was able to use his quick wit to lure the Carthaginian Sacred Band to pursue the routed soldiers, forcing the Carthaginians to commit a large force to protect the Sacred Band. He used the special terrain to limit the Carthaginians' ability to take advantage of their superior numbers, while also fully utilizing the advantages of our legion with the checkerboard formation, greatly suppressing the Sacred Band's performance, and ultimately winning a great victory with fewer troops... Your Majesty, your firm decision to choose Prossous as the commander in Sicily was indeed a wise decision!"
"The stupidity of the Carthaginian commander was also a major reason why Prossous was able to achieve such a victory," said Hieronimus, the military training officer, suddenly.
Davos glanced at him, his heart twitching: It seems that even the diligent and steadfast Hieronimus is jealous of Prossous's talent.
Of course, this is also related to Prossous's qualifications. He was neither from the Persian mercenaries nor from the native citizens of Thurii-Amendolara. As a former freedman, being able to become a legion commander at a young age and independently achieve such a brilliant victory did make these veteran generals who had followed Davos to Magna Graecia feel uneasy.
However, Davos would never abandon the promotion and use of Prossous because of their unease and jealousy. On the contrary, he would value him even more. After all, Davos was very clear: The grand goals he had established in his heart determined that he could not rely on himself alone to defeat the powerful forces in the Mediterranean. He needed to know how to recognize and appoint talented people to obtain more outstanding subordinates to build a vast kingdom. At the same time, he also needed more excellent generals from different backgrounds to change the situation in which the Daonian army was mainly controlled by former mercenary generals.
Davos suppressed these thoughts in his heart and said slowly: "Sicily has Prossous and Secilian, and Daonia has Alexius. I don't need to worry about these places anymore, but the situation in the Latin region is not optimistic!"
At the mention of Latium, Hiolos, Philius, and the others all looked grave.
Now, the Roman army has already captured Signia and Anagnia, and is stepping up its fierce attack on Ferentinum. Although the Hernici and Volsci reinforcements are stubbornly defending, judging from the current situation, the fall of Ferentinum is only a matter of time. As long as Ferentinum is captured, the destruction of the Hernici is imminent, and the Volsci reinforcements trapped in Ferentinum will also be unable to escape their doom. By then, the Volsci, whose strength has been severely damaged and who do not have enough soldiers, will be unable to resist the Romans' two-pronged attack. In the end, the Romans will completely control the entire Latin region... Therefore, during this period, envoys from the Hernici and Volsci have been constantly coming to the palace to see King Davos, requesting him to send troops to support them.
"Your Majesty, Amyntas only has one legion, and he relies on it to defend the Volscian region. He dare not leave without authorization to help the Hernici," Philius defended his old friend.
"This is not Amyntas's fault. He has already done his best." Davos waved his hand, walked to the map in the middle of the meeting room, stared at the flat area in the center of the Italian peninsula, and said in a deep voice: "I believe we all understand that the kingdom's greatest threat now is not Carthage, which is slow to act and has constant internal conflicts, nor the Samnites, who are weak and can only create small troubles, nor Sparta, which is across the Adriatic Sea and has its own troubles, but Rome! A Rome with a unified understanding internally, strong citizens, and concentrating all its strength to achieve its goals! If we don't eliminate it now, it will be a big trouble for the kingdom in the future!"
Davos tapped the Roman icon on the map forcefully with his finger, saying word by word with a firm tone: "Therefore, I have decided to personally lead the Second Legion, Third Legion, Fourth Legion, Fifth Legion, Sixth Legion, and Second Cavalry Legion to the Latin region to join forces with the First Legion and First Cavalry Legion to completely eliminate Rome—this powerful enemy to the north of the kingdom!"
Hiolos, Philius, Hieronimus... The ministers of the Ministry of War looked at each other with solemn expressions, knowing that what Davos said was very important. For a time, no one dared to express agreement or disagreement. Instead, Alpoenus, the acting quartermaster, cautiously asked: "Your Majesty, such a large army going to Latium to fight, the Ministry of War may not be able to provide so much military grain..."
Davos explained calmly: "The Egyptian Pharaoh's second batch of grain aid was transported to the port two days ago and is stored in the Thurii pier warehouse, untouched. A large amount of grain donated by Thurii merchants has already filled the granaries, and the grain donated by the Rhegium merchants from the Euxine Sea is already on its way back, and it is said that its quantity is no less than that donated by the Thurii merchants. Moreover, I asked Burkos, and the beans, lentils, and other legumes, as well as carrots, radishes, pumpkins, lettuce, and other vegetables replanted by the people of the kingdom have yielded a lot of harvest, which can fill part of the food gap..."
"Even so, since some of this grain has to be used to supply the Sicilian army and the Daunian army, the remaining amount is probably only enough to supply Your Majesty's army for one or two months," Alpoenus reminded earnestly.
Davos had already planned for this, and he said calmly: "One month is enough. The Latins will provide the food that follows."
The people in the room looked at each other again. Of course, they understood what Davos meant. The Greek mercenaries often did this when they were fleeing in Persia.
"Your Majesty," Philius finally asked, "You have taken away so many legions. What if the Carthaginians reorganize a large army, select shrewd commanders, and attack Sicily again?"
"Judging from the current situation in Carthage, it may not be a matter of one or two months for their Senate to reach a unified understanding again and send a large army to Sicily, and Daonia's intelligence department will also stir up an atmosphere of peace talks in Carthage, disrupting the Carthaginians' order..." Davos said here, and everyone else looked at Aristilas, who was standing outside the door, in unison.
"If things don't go as I expect, and the Carthaginians resolutely reinforce Sicily again, and Prossos's troops are outnumbered, then we can send the Seventh Legion, or even Alexis's Tenth Legion, to Sicily to strengthen our forces there. The Samnites have suffered repeated heavy blows and their strength is no longer a threat. There's no need for Alexis to keep too many troops there." Davos looked around at everyone and said with a serious expression: "Now Daonia is at war with three forces. Although we can handle them all, we cannot divide our forces equally. That would only prolong the war and increase the drain on our national strength. We should take advantage of the fact that our opponents haven't yet exerted their full strength, and concentrate our forces to eliminate one of them first. Only then can we alleviate the current situation and free up our hands to deal with the other enemies!"
Davos paused for a moment, and seeing that everyone was deep in thought, he continued: "But who should be the first target we concentrate our forces on eliminating? Of course, it can't be Carthage. It's a powerful nation with vast territory, and the war with it cannot be ended in a short time;
Although the Samnites are currently the weakest of the three forces, their homes are also in the mountains. Up until now, we've been luring them to fight on the plains, trying to avoid fighting in the mountains, because that's where they excel. We can't completely conquer them without destroying their lairs. And the current situation requires us to be cautious and temporarily avoid attacking the Samnite mountains, which we are unfamiliar with;
Finally, that leaves Rome—" Davos pointed to the map again: "Although Rome's strength is not weak, its power is mainly concentrated in the northern Latium region, which is a relatively flat river plain, favorable for our operations. The coastal area of Latium is mostly flat beaches, and Rome's navy is not strong, which is favorable for our troops to land and for the transport of supplies and grain by our fleets. For decades, Rome has been expanding in all directions, making enemies with many surrounding forces, which is favorable for us to unite them and jointly crusade against Rome..."
After Davos finished speaking, the ministers of the Military Affairs Department had already been persuaded by him. Hilos immediately stated: "Your Majesty, after we return, we will begin preparing for the expedition to Rome."
"Be quick!" Davos emphasized, reminding them: "We must take advantage of the fact that Rome has not yet eliminated the Hernici, and its main forces are still in the east. We must gather a large army and use swift offensives to annihilate its scattered forces in the west, seize its Latin allies, weaken its power, and finally directly attack Rome and fight a decisive battle! I aim to eliminate its power within half a year and bring Rome and its surrounding Latin city-states under the rule of the kingdom… Alas, you must know that after such a large-scale war, there will be more than 100,000 soldiers who need to be rewarded for their military merits, especially those new recruits who have just come of age and have not yet received fiefs. But now, apart from the Daonia region, which still has some unallocated land, there is no land left in other regions, so the Latium region…"
Hilos and the others immediately understood Davos's meaning. Whether for personal or public reasons, this further strengthened their determination to support Davos's leadership of the northern expedition.
"Your Majesty, your expedition to the Latium region is a matter of great importance. I'm afraid the Senate may not approve this resolution," Philius reminded him. Indeed, the last time Davos personally led an expedition was ten years ago, in the battle against the Messapians—Peucetians allied forces. That battle laid the foundation for the Daonian kingdom's final conquest of the entire Apulia region. Ten years have passed, and I'm afraid the senators have become accustomed to Davos sitting in the palace and the Senate. Moreover, he is now the king, with a noble status, and personally taking risks would also make the senators worried, not to mention the huge consumption of food…
Davos smiled and said nonchalantly: "That's why I persuaded you first, so I have a lot of votes in favor."
Hilos, Philius, and the others also laughed. In the Daonian Senate, senators from military backgrounds do occupy a significant proportion.
"Next, I will also talk to the five rotating chairmen first. As for the other senators… I think they will eventually not refuse, because once Rome is conquered, it will provide many administrative positions for them to fill their time." Davos was very confident in persuading the Senate.
At this time, Tormid raised a question: "Your Majesty, the Third Legion is defending against the Cautini in Campania. If we transfer it away, what if the Cautini invade the Campanian League again?"
"Isn't that just right?" Davos replied calmly: "Since the Cautini exchanged their warriors back, there has been no movement. If we can lure them out, we can also put our minds at ease. Moreover, in the current situation, we can't rely solely on ourselves to protect the Campanian League. It's time for the Campanians to share some of our burdens."
After discussing the northern expedition for a while, Hilos and the others bid farewell and left. Next, the Military Affairs Department would be extremely busy, because a series of complicated matters, such as mobilizing soldiers, assembling legions, dispatching fleets, and collecting military rations, had to be completed as soon as possible.
… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …
Ever since Adoris moved out of King Davos's residence on the grounds that he was "grown up and able to support himself," his room had been vacant. But these past few days, he had moved back in, not because he missed his adoptive parents, but because he was injured.
In the Battle of Venosa, he violated military law. After the battle, the platoon leader, who was conscientious, reported his performance to the legion. The Second Legion Commander, Matonis, felt embarrassed after reading it. He originally wanted to suppress the matter, but thinking that he might not be able to hide it from Davos, he simply sought an audience with the king and explained the situation.
After listening, Davos was very angry and said without hesitation: "We cannot disregard military law just because he is my child. If we spare him, what will the other soldiers think?! Will they still strictly execute orders and obey your commands?!"
In fact, Davos wanted to use this severe punishment to make Adoris remember firmly that in battle, he must obey orders and cooperate closely with his comrades, instead of just focusing on killing enemies and doing some reckless actions, which was also for his safety.
So, Matonis had no choice but to announce: According to military law, Adoris would be subjected to caning.
Twenty strokes of the cane were delivered firmly, causing Adoris's buttocks to be bruised and lacerated, making it difficult for him to even walk.
After hearing about it, Christoia felt extremely distressed. Regardless of whether Adoris agreed or not, she forced him to move back to the residence to facilitate care and treatment.
Adoris couldn't resist his adoptive mother, so he had to obediently return to his original residence.
"Dong! Dong! Dong!"
"Come in." Seeing that it was Croto Catakes who had entered the room, Adoris breathed a sigh of relief and said listlessly, without hurrying to cover his swollen buttocks with the quilt, "Croto, it's you."
"Big brother, who did you think it was? Aedui?" Croto Cataks smiled slyly.
"Nonsense! What do you know?!" Adoris glared at him.
"I know quite a lot." Croto winked mischievously: "You and Senator Torex's daughter, Aedui, are getting along well. Mother has already come forward and talked to Torex, and has set your marriage with Aedui for April, but now it may be postponed to the end of the year. Yesterday, she even came to see you specifically. I think she might be worried that you might be beaten up and unable to have children with her…"
Back then, Agnes's brother wanted to marry Davos, but Christoia used her connections to constantly arrange blind dates for Adoris. As a result, Adoris took a fancy to Torex's gentle and beautiful daughter. Torex used to be the leader of a large tribe in Peucezia. His family has a considerable influence in the Peucezia region. After becoming a Daonian senator, he has always seemed relatively low-key. Whether for the political purpose of co-opting the Peucetians, or hoping to have a virtuous daughter-in-law, Davos and his wife were quite satisfied, so the marriage was quickly settled.
"Damn Croto!" Adoris pressed his hands on the bed and pushed himself up, wanting to teach his brother a lesson. Who knew that he immediately clutched his buttocks and cried out, "Ouch, ouch."
"Big brother, are you okay?" Croto hurried over and asked with concern.
Adoris took the opportunity to grab him and gently knocked him on the head twice, scolding: "Croto, you've become bad now. Be careful I go to Mother to complain."
"Big brother, I'm afraid of you. Can't I leave now? But then you shouldn't expect to hear good news." Saying that, Croto walked out.
"Wait a minute, Croto! What good news?! My dear brother, for my sake of being injured, quickly tell me, what exactly is the good news?!"…
Seeing Adoris's pleading eyes, Croto turned back and sat down, saying with a slightly smug expression: "Big brother, Father is preparing to personally lead a massive army composed of the First Legion, Second Legion, Third Legion, Fourth Legion, Fifth Legion, Sixth Legion, and the First and Second Cavalry Legions, north to the Latium region to fight against Rome!"
"Really?!" Adoris immediately became excited upon hearing this.
"Of course it's true! This morning, Father's decision has already been approved in the Senate. I believe it won't be long before the army sets off!" Croto said with equal excitement.
"Great! Finally, there's a war to fight again!" Adoris clenched his fists excitedly.
Croto looked at Adoris, who was half-propped up and carefully sitting on the edge of the bed, and couldn't help but remind him: "Big brother, I'm afraid your injuries won't be healed by the time the army sets off."
"It will definitely be fine by then. It's almost healed now. If you don't believe me, look!" Adoris stood up and took a few steps to prove that what he said was true.
Croto Catakes held back a laugh and said, "Big brother, it's no use telling me. The key is to get Father and Mother to agree."
Adoris felt a little frustrated. He knew that his poor performance in the last battle had made Davos and Christoia worried, so he had no choice but to ask his younger brother for help: "Klotok, you know that Father and Mother love you the most. You have to help me plead with them and let me participate in this expedition…"
Although Croto Catakes was four years younger than Adoris and had only recently come of age, he had been taken by Davos and personally taught for the past two years, and his political sense was much stronger than Adoris'. He knew very well that unless Adoris' injury was serious, his father would never leave him behind on an expedition. Otherwise, it would give some people the wrong impression that Adoris was relying on his father's relationship to deliberately "use his injury as an excuse" not to participate in such an important war, which would have a great impact on Adoris' future development.
However, Croto Catakes pretended to be embarrassed and said, "Big brother, you also know Father's temper…"
"Klotok, you must help me! As long as you can persuade Father to let me follow the army to Latium, I will definitely do my best to help you with anything in the future!" Adoris pleaded.
"Well… alright, I'll give it a try." Seeing Adoris, who usually liked to lecture him as an older brother, begging him like this, Croto Catakes felt a sense of relief in his heart.
… … … … … … … … … … … … … …
In Thurii, in the mansion of Sostratos, inherited from his father Kunogoratas, more than twenty people were gathered in the hall. They were all well-known merchants in the Thurii region.
At this moment, everyone's face showed excitement, and their eyes eagerly looked at Sostratos, who was sitting in the center.
Someone couldn't wait to shout, "Sostratos, everyone is basically here! What are we waiting for! Tell us quickly, what good thing do you want to discuss with us?!"
"Yes, tell us quickly! Is it that His Majesty is going to reward us for donating grain free of charge?!" Another person also shouted.
The merchants echoed each other.
Hearing this, Sostratos looked at Theos on his left hand side.
Theos was one of the leading merchants in the Dionian Kingdom.
He owned three iron workshops in the Lucanian region, one copper workshop in Thurii, two weapon workshops each in Thurii and Amendolara, as well as weapon shops and ironware shops all over the cities of the kingdom. The excellent weapons and armor he manufactured were mostly taken over by the Ministry of Military Affairs and the vast number of citizen soldiers. Moreover, he was also the designated supplier of surgical instruments for the kingdom's hospitals, and the ironware he produced for daily use was also very popular among the people. In addition, his works were indispensable in the ironware casting of large-scale public works. Therefore, he had been received and commended by King Davos many times, and he also had close contacts with officials from the Ministry of Military Affairs and the Ministry of Construction. He also frequently donated to the public buildings to be built by the kingdom.
He not only enjoyed high prestige among the merchants of the kingdom, but also enjoyed great respect among the people. Therefore, he had been elected as the speaker of the Thurii local council many times. But in fact, Theos himself was not very enthusiastic about politics. He was more obsessed with his own business, keen on how to improve the furnace temperature, improve the ironmaking process, improve the quality of ironware, design sharper and more practical weapons, create better defensive armor… He knew that in the Dionian Kingdom, which advocated military affairs and technology, as long as he always maintained advanced technology, he would always be valued by the king and his ministers. To this end, he not only hired good metallurgists and casters at high salaries, but also donated to the Dionian Academy many times, cooperating with scholars, providing experimental funding, and sharing technical patents.
Therefore, facing Sostratos' inquiring gaze, Theos shook his head and gestured with his hand to indicate that he should proceed.
Sostratos had no choice but to turn his head to Dikepolis on his right hand side.
Speaking of which, Dikepolis was the earliest merchant to come to Dionia to do business, and also the earliest merchant to decide to stay and become a citizen. Dikepolis was enthusiastic and good at socializing. Many foreign merchants came to Thurii under his persuasion and eventually became Dionian citizens, including Theos, of course.
But in fact, Dikepolis was not a very powerful merchant at first. He was an ordinary merchant who made pottery and sold pottery.
Pottery was a daily necessity widely used by the Mediterranean people and the most common handicraft in the Greek city-states. This was because most Greek city-states did not have fertile land and could not produce abundant food. Wine and olive oil became their specialties, and the containers for holding these two liquid commodities inevitably became another focus of development for the city-states. Therefore, many Greek city-states had merchants who made pottery, but the most famous pottery came from Athens. Using the high-quality clay of Attica, the Athenians, after long-term exploration, created black pottery bottles with red decorative paintings, which were not only of excellent quality, but also had exquisite and creative bottle painting patterns, becoming the leader in this industry.
Secondly, there was the black pottery made by Corinth, and they also pioneered the painting of exquisite bottle paintings on pottery. At the same time, they highly organized the entire pottery industry. At one time, the pottery they produced accounted for most of the pottery sales in the Mediterranean, until it was defeated by the later Athenian pottery industry a hundred years later.
Born in Crete, Dikepolis did not have any technical advantages in pottery making, but relying on his vision and decisiveness, he moved all his belongings to the industrial area of Amendolara when the Dionian League was just established and Thurii was being rebuilt, and began to sell the cheap pottery he produced to the ordinary Dionian people who were rebuilding their homes, gradually gaining some fame.
After that, with the establishment of the kingdom, the expansion of the territory, the increase in population, and the expansion of the market, his pottery sales also experienced an explosive growth. At the same time, the low-interest loans from Christoia Bank also gave him the confidence to expand and upgrade the pottery workshop. He not only established pottery workshops in several places in the kingdom with high-quality clay, but also hired excellent pottery craftsmen from mainland Greece at high salaries. The turbulent situation and frequent wars in mainland Greece at that time also provided a good opportunity for him to poach talents. Since then, the pottery he sold began to involve high-end products.
More importantly, Dikepolis improved his management and organization model of the pottery industry and the entire process flow. Of course, this was not his invention.
First, let's talk about the management and organization model of handicrafts. Before the establishment of Dionia, the Greek city-states were all cities, and the industries of the city-state merchants were mostly concentrated in one city. Due to the small land and large population and limited resources, even if the merchants had more wealth, the scale of his industry could not be very large. Of course, it was also easier to manage. Even in the economically prosperous Athens, large factories could not be seen.
But in Dionia, such a kingdom that can be said to be vast in territory and populous to the Greek world, coupled with a large number of freemen willing to settle here, provided fertile ground for the establishment of large factories. And the chain management model of Christoia Bank and Christoia Restaurant, which are all over the cities of the kingdom, has given the kingdom's merchants great inspiration, allowing them to break the conservative business thinking that industries are only fixed in one city in the past, so that they dare to carry out industrial layout on the vast territory and carry out effective management through a pyramid-style hierarchical responsibility system.
Let's talk about the detailed division of labor in the process flow. The pottery industry is already a highly organized industry among Greek handicrafts, but it still cannot get rid of the traditional family workshop-like tradition. From digging clay, transporting clay, shaping, lighting the fire, firing pottery, painting screens, engraving… A pottery craftsman has to participate in most of the processes, which undoubtedly makes the output efficiency of pottery low. At the beginning, in order to enable Dionia's weapons and armor to meet the needs of the army as soon as possible, Davos taught Theos and other kingdom weapon merchants the method of finely dividing the production process, which greatly increased the output of weapons, and this method was quickly absorbed by other kingdom merchants.
Dikepolis, of course, also carried out a precise division of labor in his pottery workshop. Each process was handled by a dedicated person, which greatly improved the quality and output of pottery, and the price was correspondingly reduced, so that Dikepolis' pottery was more popular among the people of the kingdom, occupying more than half of the domestic pottery sales. Except for a small amount of high-end pottery from Athens, pottery from other city-states was completely unable to compete with Dikepolis in the kingdom. He had become a veritable Dionian pottery merchant.
Of course, Dikepolis, like other industry merchants in Thurii, was busy completing the industrial upgrading while also busy occupying the expanding market of the kingdom. External sales relied more on marketing merchants headed by Sostratos. This was also one of the reasons why Dikepolis, who was wealthy and widely connected, was willing to let Sostratos serve as the president of the Thurii Chamber of Commerce and himself to be second in command. Of course, the more important reason was that Sostratos' father, Kunogoratas, was a confidant of King Davos. Even though he had passed away, Sostratos could still rely on his father's favor to enter and exit the palace and the Ministry of Commerce from time to time, and get some business information in advance, so as to win some preferential treatment for the Chamber of Commerce, such as this time.
Therefore, Dikepolis said with a smile: "Sostratos, don't be polite. You are the president, and besides, this good thing was obtained through your joint efforts, of course, it should be announced by you!"
Since the two most important Thurii merchants had chosen to yield, Sostratos did not decline. When he stood up, the other merchants stopped their whispers, their faces filled with respect, listening attentively to him. This respect was not only due to his background but also to his own abilities, even though he was the youngest of these merchants.
"Gentlemen, I will keep it short, so as not to delay your time making money," Sostratos said, eliciting laughter from around the room.
"After we purchased the grain at a great price and shipped it to the port, His Majesty summoned me and expressed his gratitude for our generous donation. At the same time, he also said that because of this grain, he had the opportunity to personally lead the army to conquer Rome in central Italy. He hopes that we, the Thurii merchants who donated the grain, can follow his army on the expedition—"
"What?! We've already donated so much grain, and now you want us to go on the expedition and continue to provide military supplies to the army!" Wine merchant Kalmandes exclaimed, interrupting Sostratos.
"Shut up, Kalmandes!" Sostratos glared at him, warning, "Whether out of stupidity or for some other reason, do not insult the great King Davos again, or get out of here!"
"That's right, the great King Davos is not to be blasphemed!" Theos loudly emphasized from the side, drawing agreement from the crowd.
Most of the merchants in the Daonian Kingdom greatly respected King Davos, not only because the bank established by his wife, Christoia, had greatly promoted the kingdom's commerce, but also because his invention of new business management models and the refined division of labor in factories was an unprecedented innovation for Daonian commerce. Therefore, some merchants even believed that Davos was not only a descendant of Hades but also favored by Hermes.
"Kalmandes certainly did not disrespect His Majesty Davos. He is just worried about endless donations for the army's expedition," shipbuilding merchant Mikres defended his friend.
Mikres was the cousin of Enanilous, and Kalmandes was the son of Orifis. Both families were famous in the original Thurii and had close ties through marriage. Back then, because of the Polixes case, Enanilous and Orifis were implicated and imprisoned, but their families and industries were not greatly affected, only their political status plummeted, inevitably causing discomfort. In fact, Enanilous and Orifis had been released a few years ago after serving their sentences, but because of the scandal's impact, they were no longer suitable to show their faces in public for the sake of their families.
"It seems you two are really stupid!" Slave trader Seberus stood up. He was the one who had urged Sostratos to speak earlier.
This merchant was burly and loved to be sarcastic, but everyone was still willing to be close to him because he could always provide satisfactory slaves.
The great demand for slaves in the Daonian Kingdom enabled Seberus, who had abundant sources of slaves, to make a fortune.
At this moment, he laughed loudly, "Don't you understand? This is the reward King Davos gives us for our donated grain! Since the establishment of Daonia, when has the army's expedition required our merchants to follow? Never before! Now it does! This means that we can obtain the prisoners captured by the powerful royal army in a timely manner and at the most favorable prices! We can also obtain the spoils of war obtained by the army at the most favorable prices! We can obtain shops in the towns occupied by the army at preferential prices and occupy the market first!…"
Seberus's impassioned words made everyone's eyes light up, and some even excitedly shouted, "Long live His Majesty Davos!"
Kalmandes couldn't help but mutter in a low voice, "Don't be too happy, this expedition may not be victorious."
It happened to be heard by Phrasius, the wool textile merchant next to him.
Phrasius was originally a cloth merchant from Euboea. After doing business in Thurii, he discovered that Daonian wool was not only of superior quality but also inexpensive and produced in large quantities (because of the two excellent pastures in Lucania and Bruttium). Therefore, he chose to settle down and become a Daonian citizen. He began to switch to wool textiles. Through loans from Christoia's bank, abandoning the traditional model of family workshops, and implementing refined division of labor management in large factories, his clothing factory quickly expanded. The wool carpets, gorgeous wool robes, and wool waistcoats produced were all very popular among the Daonian people and were sold to other inland city-states, making him a great merchant.
Therefore, after hearing Kalmandes's words, he immediately retorted loudly, "Under the leadership of His Majesty Davos, when has our legion ever been defeated! Expecting the royal army to be defeated is not an attitude that a Daonian citizen should have!"
Faced with the dissatisfied gazes of others, Kalmandes hurriedly explained, "I… I hope the army will not be too careless, because I heard… I heard that Rome is a very powerful city-state…"
"I heard that the army going to Rome this time has a total of the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Legions, as well as the First and Second Cavalry Legions!" Sostratos interrupted him and said loudly, "This is an army of nearly 60,000 people! Gentlemen, I remember that even the Battle of Croton and the later Battle of Brundisium (that is, the battle with the Messapian Allied Forces during Davos's conquest of the Apulia region) never mobilized so many soldiers! No matter how powerful Rome is, how can it resist our Daonian army!"
"Sostratos is right, this will be another great victory! No wonder Seberus you are so excited, it turns out you already knew this news. This time you will get a lot of cheap Latin slaves and make a fortune! What are you other people still hesitating about?!…" With the help of Dicopolis, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became lively.
The merchants expressed their willingness to personally follow King Davos's army to Latium to open up new trading strongholds for their industries in central Italy.
In the noisy voices, Phrasius's question made everyone's eyes turn to Sostratos again, "Chairman, are only these merchants from Thurii following the army to Latium?"
"Of course not," Sostratos's face showed a hint of helplessness. "There are also merchants from Regium… because they also donated a large amount of grain to the kingdom free of charge."
"Alas…" Everyone sighed in frustration.
At this time, Theos spoke, "You don't need to worry, Latium has a vast area and many city-states. Even if there are more merchants from Regium, there will still be enough profit for us to earn. Moreover, the Regium merchants are very different from us. Most of their merchants are engaged in transshipment trade, warehousing, and hotel services (this is determined by the special geographical location of Regium, which has barren land, a narrow area, and happens to control the most important commercial sea route in the Mediterranean), while we rely on real goods to earn profits. There is no major conflict of interest between the two parties. On the contrary, we can strengthen cooperation…"
"Theos is right. I heard that the coastal city-states in the Latium region have backward economies and sluggish trade, and the ports are small and poor. It is just right to hand them over to these Regium people who are best at managing ports to expand and manage. My men and slaves can also live in their hotels, and it will be much easier for them to be responsible for transportation…" Seberus's words dispelled a lot of the gloom on the merchants' faces.
In fact, the addition of Regium merchants did not have a great impact on most Thurii merchants, but there was competition for a small number of people. For example, the transportation of fleets and transshipment trade were in direct competition with Sostratos's main business.
However, Sostratos had a big heart and was very confident. Moreover, he had actually set his sights on the fleet transshipment trade of Regium merchants long ago, wanting to strengthen and improve his fleet and expand his external marketing channels through poaching and acquisitions. It's just that Regium used to be a free city, and the Regium merchants were a monolithic group, making it difficult to approach them. Now that the city has been completely incorporated into the kingdom, and there is this opportunity for an expedition to facilitate his approach to the Regium merchants, he believes that there will be a great harvest.
But for shipbuilding merchant Mikres, the addition of Regium merchants would be a great pressure, because he was facing the competition from Alcebides, King Davos's relative by marriage.
Back then, when Mikres's cousin Enanilous served as the commander of the Daonian navy, Alcebides's shipyard settled in Thurii at Davos's invitation. Due to Enanilous's mismanagement, the quality of both warships and ordinary ships produced by the family shipyard declined, so Alcebides's shipyard snatched a lot of shares. In addition, his subsequent downfall made the shipwrights and laborers of the family shipyard panic, and as a result, many were poached by competitors.
By the time Mikres took over, the efficiency of his shipyard was not as good as before. Fortunately, he made up his mind to strictly manage the shipyard and actively improve the technology, which greatly improved the quality of the ships and recovered some shipbuilding shares, but it was still far from being able to compete with Alcebides's shipyard. At this time, the Ministry of Military Affairs also began to give Mikres orders to build warships, and told him bluntly that this was the king's intention. In this way, others believed that Enanilous's family had been forgiven by King Davos, and they began to actively contact Mikres, which greatly increased the sales of his manufactured ships, allowing this family with decades of shipbuilding history in Thurii to regain its vitality.