When several leaders came excitedly to meet in Davos, they saw the tragic scene in the canyon, and their scalp tingled. Looking at Davos, they couldn't help but feel a little more awe. As Xenophon said: "... Davos... You... You are... Hades... The Blessed One!"
Davos was equally upset, and he kept comforting himself in his heart: This is war! This is war!
"What to do with these Persians?" he asked Kerethorpes, seeing the soldiers collecting the weapons and armor of the conscripts, suddenly reluctant.
Kerethorpes' answer was ruthless: "When their weapons and armor are collected, cut off their tendons and hamstrings, stab their thighs, and put them back to give Tisafonis a headache.
Davos was silent, of course he understood the intention of Kerethorpes: the mercenaries had no extra food, and no extra people to look after them, and Tisafonis had to send people to look after these wounded Persians. , the number of soldiers who attacked them naturally decreased.
"Davos, you did a great job!" Clethorpes looked around and said, "I think the Persians will be scared to see the sight here!"
When Davos led his troops out of the canyon, the soldiers along the way gave them the biggest cheers to the blood-soaked them, because they knew that it was the young leader who led a few people to block the large number of people. The way of the Persians made the mercenaries a perfect victory.
The young Davos won the recognition of the whole army with his practical actions.
… … … …
In the afternoon, the army of Tisafonis came to the canyon slowly.
When Tisafonis saw the tragic image in the canyon and the wounded soldiers lying on the ground, struggling and wailing, he threw his helmet to the ground angrily, and then sent a small number of his cronies to deal with the aftermath, and other troops were forbidden to enter canyons, but bypass the peaks and take other paths.
Arreus, who followed Thesavnes, remained silent. He did not see the body of Artauzus, but it must be among the countless corpses. In the past three days, the two generals who fought for power with him have both died in battle. At this moment, he does not have a trace of joy, but has a feeling that his lips are dead and his teeth are cold...
In this battle, more than 3,000 Persians were killed and more than 3,000 injured, and no one escaped; the casualties of the Greek mercenaries were negligible.
Perhaps, as Kerethorpes said, the Persians were so frightened that they didn't show up again for a few days. It made it easier for the Greek mercenaries to loot and march all the way to reach Larissa, a city by the Tigris River.
This is a magnificent big city. The lower part of its city wall is made of stone and the upper part is made of adobe. The wall is about thirty meters high, eight meters wide, and has a circumference of about ten miles. Such a towering city wall made the Greek mercenaries have no interest in attacking it at all. Compared with the cities they encountered before on the Tigris River, the city was sparsely populated, and the fields and cottages outside the city were mostly deserted, making it look a bit desolate. .
"Larissa, it is said that its former name was Kara, was originally a great city in the Assyrian period, and was later taken by the Media. The great King Cyrus defeated the Media, but he was unable to break through the city, and finally It was Mithras, the sun god, who blocked the light of the city of Kara with dark clouds, making the day and night as dark as the night. The residents of Kara city panicked, thinking that the god had abandoned them, so they abandoned the city and fled, and King Cyrus captured it. This city..." said Marigi.
Ever since Davos had learned from Kerethorpes the importance of "knowing the terrain" to a general, he had Marigi as his guide. As the adjutant of Hieronymus, Xenophon was entangled in all kinds of things, and it was no longer possible to talk and chat with Davos as easily as before. As a businessman, Marigi is not only familiar with the surrounding terrain, but also has a lot of historical anecdotes in the Mesopotamia, which added a lot of fun to Davos's tense and tired marching journey.
"Hey, you Persia have the sun god, and we also have Apollo. Who is more powerful?" Mattonis in the escort said suddenly.
Marigi, who was beside Davos, glanced back and said disdainfully: "Mithra is the master of nature, guaranteeing abundant vegetation, fertile land, and people living and working in peace and contentment, so he is worshipped by all things! Not a mere little god can do it. Compare!"
"What did you say?! How dare you insult Apollo!!" Matonis angrily wanted to go up to beat Marigi, but was held back by Hiros.
Marighi was so frightened that he ducked behind Davos, but Davos snapped at him: "Matonis' question did not offend you, but you insulted our Greek gods! If you don't apologize immediately, I won't stop them from taking revenge on you with anger!" Is this Persian's inadvertent sense of superiority giving him a bit of a headache, and it's time to teach him a lesson.
Marigi looked back and saw the fire of anger in the eyes of the soldiers, and he knew that if it wasn't for Davos, he would have been torn to shreds. As a businessman, it is his nature to master contingency. He quickly bowed his head, apologized sincerely, and even gave himself a slap in the face.
Seeing that Marigi was forgiven, Davos asked the question he had been wondering before: "Why does this city look so desolate?"
Marigi covered his flushed cheeks with one hand, and said vaguely, "Because the inhabitants here are mainly Medes." After he finished speaking, he remained silent.
Davos thought about it carefully, and suddenly realized: "The Persian royal court doesn't pay attention to this area, because it is the core area of Media and Assyria in the past. They are afraid that their old fire will rekindle and even take a suppressive policy, right?"
Davers saw Marigi looking at him in surprise, knowing that he had guessed the main point, and couldn't help saying proudly: "Let me guess what methods are used. For example, people here are often sent to join the army to fight? The higher the levy. Tax?… "
"Leader Davos, if you are really what you mean by God's favor, you are indeed completely different from your subordinates who only have muscles and no brains!" Marigi looked up at Davos on the horse in admiration, because he suffered a loss just now. , he whispered: "If you are a Persian and a Persian official, it is estimated that you can develop very well!"
Davos smiled and said, "Although Persia is a big country, unfortunately I don't like it."
"Because you're Greek?"
Davos didn't answer, he looked at Larissa not far away, dazed: Is he a Greek? Apart from this body, his soul, his thoughts, he still thinks he is a Chinese from the bottom of his heart, and the Greek tradition and culture cannot assimilate a newcomer in the 21st century, or even have any influence on him, just realistic Helplessness and sincere friendship made him identify with this group. Don't look at his usual "What are we in Greece..." That is all to fool these Greeks, to boost morale, to highlight his status as a leader, in one word - for survival! Therefore, if Persia is superior to Greece, and an olive branch is extended to him, he will join the past without any hesitation, but he despises Persia, because the political system of most Greek city-states is more like a country in the 21st century, and even Athens is more than a country in the 21st century. Modern society is more democratic, which has a natural intimacy for modern people who advocate freedom...
… … … … …
The next day they marched to Mespora.
"This is Nineveh, the former capital of the Assyrian kingdom. It is said that Medea, the wife of the last Median king, took refuge in this city after our Persians took the Median kingdom. Great Cyrus the Great He led an army to besiege the city, but because it was the last castle of the Medes, it was not captured for a long time. Bahram, the god of war among the gods, saw that there were too many casualties among the Persians, so he let out a thunderous sound that shook the whole city, and was finally captured. Overcome..." Marigi continued to serve as guide and "narrator."
"Hehe, the gods of the Persians are really good, and they help in the battle." Matonis taunted behind him. With yesterday's lesson, Marigi ignored him.
Davos looked at the city, which was also located on the banks of the Tigris River, right away. The capital of the former Assyrian kingdom is about 17 meters high just at the base of the city wall. Kara is already a majestic city, but it seems to be only one-third of Nineveh's size. The strength and prosperity of the Assyrian kingdom, which was established by military affairs, swept the western kingdoms! At this time, the capital was barren and dilapidated. The wild grass and countless thorns on the city walls were swaying in the river wind, as if to tell the desolation of its present.
A sense of the vicissitudes of history came to his mind, which reminded Davos of the ancient famous sentence "I haven't seen the ancients before, but I haven't seen the newcomers later. No matter how powerful a country is, there will be times when it will perish!"