"You are willing, but it depends on Dionia's willingness!" Margo sneered, "Although I don't know much about Dionia, I also know that they hate breaking the agreement. Tarantum eventually had to become a ...... for Dionia Well, Liberty City, the Samonians are still at war with Dionia, and you Syracuse secretly occupied Camanlina and Pacinus while Dionya was fighting against our Carthage, and I don't think the Dioonians will easily forget this! Even if they are temporarily unable to deal with you because of our attack, they will retaliate against you in the future! ”

Teagenis's tone was choked, and he quickly defended: "Pacinus and Kamanlina are not allies of Dionia, nor have they signed any agreements with them, on the contrary, they have always been allies of Syracuse, and we have not occupied them, but only renewed their alliances with them. ”

Speaking of this, his tone hardened again: "I believe that Dionia can understand what we are doing, and even if we can't understand it for a while, we will try our best to become its allies, even if we accept some harsh conditions, because if Carthage wants to destroy Syracuse, of course we can only choose to survive!" ”

Margo's eyes were wide open, and his gaze was as sharp as a knife and spear.

Theagenis did not shy away from making eye contact with him.

The atmosphere inside the tent became tense.

After a long while, Marco spoke again: "Carthage and Syracuse have been at odds for decades, and their hatred is too deep for me to lead my army to attack Katanai and expose my back to you Syracuse. ”

Margo's words were very straightforward, but it was difficult for Theagenis to answer, and when he was considering his words, Margo said impatiently: "If Syracuse wants to reach an alliance agreement with my Carthage, it must do the following. First, to send an army to assist Carthage in the war against the Dionians; second, to send a navy to engage the Dionian navy and escort Carthaginian convoys; third, to open the port and allow Carthaginian ships to enter; Fourth, to allow the Carthaginian army to be stationed in the territory of Syracuse; Fifth, to provide material assistance to the Carthaginian army...... As long as Syracuse can do this, we in Carthage will be in Bar. In the presence of Hamon, an alliance will be made with you, and peace will be maintained for a long time after the war, and Kamanlina and Pacinus will be recognized as allies of Syracuse, and will not be violated in any way. ”

Although Margo's demands were harsh, which made Theagenis frown, he also sensed Margo's desire to form an alliance with Syracuse, so he bourezed up his spirits and began to negotiate with Margo.

Marco apparently did not have the patience to do so, and soon gave the task to Pomilka.

By the second day, the two sides had reached an alliance agreement, which stipulated that Syracuse must organize an army and attack Dioonia from the direction of Tounis; The Syracuse fleet had to strike at the right time to threaten the Ionian ships from Catana to the south coast so that they could not easily go to Selinus or the western seas, and when the Carthaginian fleet arrived, they had to cooperate with it; The Carthaginian army may build camps in Syracuse, but may not destroy, plunder, or even harm the people of Syracuse; When the Carthaginian army encountered supply difficulties, Syracuse was obliged to provide assistance to it, and Carthage would later double the compensation; Neither of the two sides of the alliance in a war shall have a private truce, or even negotiate peace, with the enemy; After the victory in the war, Carthage would allow Toannis, Leotinius, Camanlina, and Pacinus to become dependent allies of Syracuse......

Taiagenis's idea was that since a direct battle with Dionya could not be avoided, the Syracuse army chose to attack from the direction of Taunis, which was relatively safe to avoid being flanked and surrounded by the Dionian army due to its narrow coast. The acquisition of the two city-states of Tounis and Leontiny after the war not only expanded the sphere of influence of Syracuse, but also made Syracuse in the center of these city-states, with a buffer zone, and it became safer without facing the threat of other forces...... This agreement can basically be said to have achieved the purpose of his negotiations.

For Margo and Pomilca, the reason why they made some concessions in the negotiations was also to take into account: even if Carthage drove the Dioonians out of Sicily, the Dionian kingdom, which occupied the whole of southern Italy, was still strong and could come back at any time, while the Carthaginian city was far away in Africa, sometimes beyond the reach of the whip, and now there was a relatively strong Syracuse as an ally, in front, delaying the Dionian attack, which would give Carthage more time to prepare.

Before leaving, Theagenis suggested to Margo that it would be better for the Carthaginian army to march on the city of Syracuse.

Margo agreed.

Teagenis returned to the city of Syracuse with the draft alliance agreement, which really aroused the opposition of many council members, and some even criticized Theagenis: he said that he wanted to restore the former glory of Syracuse, but in fact he betrayed the interests of Syracuse to Carthage, which is treason!

Teagenis used Sparta as an example to defend himself, claiming that Sparta and Persia had been enemies for decades, but in the Corinthian War, Sparta was able to put aside their hatred and form an alliance with Persia, and now they have become the overlord of Greece itself, and Syracuse can do the same.

The Carthaginians finally agreed to sign this agreement, not only to listen to the arguments of Theagenis, but more importantly, because of the approach of the Carthaginian army, but they added an additional clause to the agreement: the Carthaginian army could only enter the territory of Syracuse after the autumn harvest.

In fact, it was already September at this time, and there were only a few days before the harvest was over, and Margo agreed to this additional request, so he first aimed his attack on Hena.

………………………………………

In the Dionian kingdom, where the war was still going on, especially in Greater Greece, the people did not seem to be overshadowed by worry and anxiety, on the contrary, with the arrival of September, the fields turned golden, and the joy on their faces never stopped, and last year's drought made everyone deeply aware of the threat of hunger, so this year's harvest is even more cherished for them.

From Catania in the south to Lucenia in the north, families of all ages, young and old, can be seen singing cheerful songs and harvesting their wheat fields. Of course, officials from the agricultural departments of the cities can also be seen urging the kingdom slaves to help families who lack labor because of the male master's expedition to war.

While the people of Dioonia were working in the fields, the incense of the temples of Demeter was at its peak, and the people who came to worship from morning to night every day were in an endless stream to thank the goddess of the earth for her protection.

September is not only a good harvest of wheat fields, but also a lot of fruits, especially the olives, which are extremely important to the Greeks, so many hills are also lively, and people beat the olive trees with long wooden poles, and the olives fall like raindrops, and then they are picked up in wooden baskets, sent to the oil mill, or put out to dry in the sun......

At this time, the sacrifice to Athena will also increase.

The joy of the people naturally affected the senators of the kingdom, and since the outbreak of the drought and the outbreak of war, the food problems that had plagued them were finally alleviated, which greatly relieved them, so the atmosphere in today's Senate meeting was relatively relaxed.

"The letter received today from His Majesty has already told us that our army has occupied Antium and that the war in Latin will probably end within a month." With a smile on his face, the rotating chairman of the central hall said, "Also, you have all heard that Your Majesty does not agree with our proposal to suspend this year's rugby competition due to the war, and asks for it to be held as usual, do you have any opinions?" ”

After a whispered discussion, Cornerus stood up: "We originally made this proposal because we considered that the kingdom had to deal with three wars at the same time, a large number of citizens were drawn to fight, and the officials of the various cities were also working intensively for these wars, and the Kingdom Football Finals was a grand celebration, which not only required the coordination of various departments and a lot of energy for this, but also required strict defense and good order.

In the current situation, everyone is worried that our officials will not have more energy to organize this celebration, and may even attract troubles from hostile countries, and the chaos at the Hades celebration more than 10 years ago is a lesson! ”

"Mistress Cornerus is right, and that's what we're thinking." Some of the patriarchs immediately responded.

Cornerus coughed lightly twice and continued: "But Your Majesty thinks more long-term, the war has been going on for almost a year, and the war with Carthage will continue, and if you are in a state of war for a long time, the people will become more and more anxious and fearful, and eventually become war-weary, which will have a great impact on our efforts to achieve the final victory, so at this critical time, a grand celebration can show them the belief that the kingdom will win, and dispel their concerns, Let them be even more enthusiastic after the joy to support this war that will determine the hegemony of the Western Mediterranean! So I support His Majesty's decision! ”

Watching Cornerus sit down tremblingly, some of the elders scolded in their hearts: Slippery old fellow!

At this time, Plesinus, the priest of the scepter, stood up and said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty's decision is absolutely correct! When you made this proposal before, I didn't agree, and now I solemnly say it again, the Kingdom Rugby Finals is not an ordinary game, since Hades became the protector of the Kingdom of Dionia, the rugby game has become the most important part of the Hades celebration, and to please this great god, all these years have never stopped, the kingdom has never been defeated in the war, and it is the result of His Majesty's wisdom and Hades' protection, if the game is suddenly stopped this time, once it angers Hades, Who will bear the consequences?! ”

The Mediterranean hegemon of ancient Greece

The Mediterranean hegemon of ancient Greece