Another powerful state of Greece, Lijim, is far from Italy's "tiptoe", remaining neutral in the disputes of Greater Greece, and caring more about shipping trade than hegemony; Lockri now has a vendetta against Dionia, but it is still separated from Dionya by the Southern Italian Alliance, and a single crotone is enough for it, and Dioonia only needs a little reinforcement, and it can't bear it; As for Syracuse, the backer behind him, he was still entangled with Carthage for a short time, and he simply did not have the energy to pay attention to this land north of Sicily. Therefore, Davos wanted to turn southern Italy into the most stable stronghold of the Dionian League, and the only thing to consider was the Brutis.

The area where the Bruti people live is not coveted, but because of its presence, the territory of Dionya has changed from Asphorustum to Grummentum in an elongated "S" shape. Especially in the east, Asprarustum, Crimesa, the allied states of Castelón, Turii, and Amendolara are lined up along the coast to form a long and narrow corridor. For the Greeks, who loved the sea, this was commonplace, but for Davers, who had been influenced by more than 2,000 years of history, he felt deeply uneasy: such a territory was too flat, there was no depth, the coastline was too long, and in the event of a strong foreign invasion, any place was easy to become a target for the enemy's attack, and the Diolian army marched to the rescue in the narrow territory, which lengthened the army's supply lines, and became another very vulnerable target, which had already shown its disadvantages in the war with Crotone. Therefore, at the same time as the formation of the Dionian Navy, Davers set his sights on the mountains of Bruti.

Although the Bruti Mountains were not very convenient to communicate with the Dionian territory, if they had it, the Dionian territory in southern Italy would be united. The valley trail north of Aspraustum, the mountain trail north of the southern city of Turii, and the south bank of the Klati River could all be converted into a passage between Dioonia and Bruti, not to mention that the soldiers of Grumentum and Niutum could directly cross the west coast of the Bruti Mountains and reach Trina more quickly. Moreover, the Brutis were weak and disunited, making them easier targets to conquer.

Davos had planned to wait for the three new territories of Asprarustum, Crimesa, and Grummentum to stabilize before starting the plan against the Brutis. Some time ago, Davers also asked Yizam to send people to Bruti to find out the news, but he didn't expect that the Bruti people were heavily guarded, and Izzam's mountain scouts basically didn't know Bruty, so not only did they not get the news, but they lost a few people. Davers had no choice but to pause reconnaissance, but he did not expect Trina's messenger Sipros to bring him shocking news.

"The Bruti region is different from Lucania in that it is surrounded by Greek city-states." "Therefore, every year some Greeks or slaves flee to Dobruti for a series of reasons, such as crime and persecution by political enemies," said Sipros seriously: "Therefore, some Greeks or slaves flee to Dobruti every year, and gradually form a unique tribe there...... We in Trina had close ties with this tribe many years ago, and we secretly sold them some of the goods they desperately needed, and they passed on some news from the mountains to us. Relying on this tribe, Trina repeatedly prevented the invasion of the Brutis in advance.

And this time...... They contacted us several times in a hurry, for several days on end, because the union of the tribes of Bruti threatened their survival, so there should be no doubt about the truth of this news! Again, Cipros emphasized.

Davers was surprised: "What's the name of this tribe?" ”

"Ciro, which means 'Hiron'."

Davers nodded, no need to ask Sipros, he could guess that such a tribe of Greeks could survive in that mountainous area, it must have taken advantage of the tribal strife, and may even play the role of mercenaries or black market trade, and now that the Brutis have completed the integration, this tribe of aliens will lose the soil for survival.

Davers also had a question in his mind: "Why don't the Brutis form alliances like Lucaria, but concentrate power?" Wouldn't the other tribes be against it? ”

After hearing this, Sipros showed a wry smile, looked at Davers, and said, "I don't know much about the specific reason...... Maybe...... It stole it from its neighbors, and maybe it did. At least so far, there has been no major upheaval in the Bruti region. ”

Davers heard the ridicule in Sipros's words, and he was shocked in his heart: the previous Lucaria tribal alliance was loosely organized, each tribe had its own interests, and it was impossible to really concentrate all forces, and the danger to Dionia was much less. But if, like Dionia, power can be highly centralized, then it is worth Dionia's vigilance!

Davers sat back in his chair, looked at Cypros, and said with a straight face: "Trina sent you to tell me the news, do you have any suggestions?" ”

The last time Sipros had learned Davers's style of speaking, he stopped going around in circles, and said frankly: "The Council of Trina hopes that Dionya can take the lead and lead the Southern Italian Alliance to take the initiative to attack the Brutis, and destroy this tribal alliance of the Brutis before it becomes a real threat, and restore peace to the people of the Great Greek city-state!" ”

"...... of the South Italy Alliance," Davers muttered quietly, touched his chin, and muttered for a while before he said: "Starting a war is a big deal, especially against such a big force as the entire Brutis!" What's more, Dionya had just ended the war not long ago, so it would probably take a while for the Senate to make a decision on this issue......"

Sipros nodded in understanding.

"In that case, Sipros, you should first stay in Turiyi for a while, and get a good feel for the life of the Dionians. At the same time, it is also convenient for us to discuss the attack on Bruti with you at any time. ”

When Davos extended the invitation, Sipros immediately agreed, and he smiled: "Turiy is a city completely different from other Greek city-states!" I love the architecture, the cleanliness, and most importantly, the food that you won't find anywhere else! ”

Davers laughed until he saw off Cipros, and he didn't ask what Sipros had said in Cristória's restaurant, 'What are the flaws in Dionia's political system?' Because he didn't want anyone to know that Davers was in Turiy, because no one liked the feeling of being watched all the time.

In fact, Davers's approach is not the first of its kind. As early as 70 years ago, the successor of the tyrant Glenn of Syracuse, Hieron, had implemented a "spy system", which aroused great resentment among the people. Davers, who cares about reputation, certainly wouldn't be stupid enough to expose these dark sides, but he doesn't need to ask, he knows very well what is the biggest problem with the government that Dionia is running now.

After the Dionian Senate deliberately did not hold a citizens' assembly, ordinary citizens were denied the opportunity to participate in politics. If in Persia, this is not a problem at all. But this is in Greece, where the enthusiasm of Greek citizens to participate in politics is well known among the Mediterranean countries and city-states, and even the most conservative oligarchy Sparta allows its citizens to express their opinions on the laws and proposals made, not by voting, of course, but by the strength of the voice to support "yes or no". The reason why the political situation in Dionya is still stable is that the population of these Greek cities in the Dionian League has been greatly reduced after the damage of the war, and the remaining people are still busy repairing their homes, and the fear of war makes them yearn for strong protection, and the army under the command of Davers can give them a great sense of security; The majority of the former freedmen have always been marginalized in the city-states, busy with their livelihoods, and at the same time have no right to participate in the affairs of the city-states, so they have not developed the habit of participating in politics, and their enthusiasm for politics is not high; And not to mention the citizens of Lucaria, who used to have the final say in the tribe by the elders and chiefs, and now in the alliance, there is a senate that decides everything, and they do not have any discomfort.

Davers knew that such stability would not last forever, and that when the coalition became stronger and the people were richer, they would be more demanding. But Davers is not worried about this, and he has already taken measures to deal with it. For now, let the people of Dioonia continue to familiarize themselves with the existing system until they get used to it......

………………………

At the end of July, Dionysius led the army of Syracuse to begin an all-out assault on Motia, the core of Carthage in Sicily.

The causeway they had built from the coast had already connected the small island of Morthea in the bay, and the siege equipment could be transported directly to the city, and a fierce siege began: the Motians killed and wounded the Syracuse soldiers with bows and arrows, javelins, and throwing burning asphalt; The Syracuse used dozens of ballistas to bombard the walls of Modia, forcing the defenders to stand on top of them......

After several days of fierce fighting, the battering rams used by the Syracuse men drove a large gap in the walls of Motia, and the large army of Syracuse poured in, and the walls of Motia were lost.

Dionysius was extremely excited, believing that victory was in hand, and who knew that the bloody battle had just begun.

Since the Carthaginian reinforcements had been defeated by ballistas in the bay, the inhabitants of Morthea had already realized that they would be fighting alone. The Motias knew that decades of conflict and war between Carthage and the Greeks in Sicily had accumulated countless hatreds, and that there was no way out of surrender, so they decided to fight to the death.