But before Ocriton's words were finished, Maltius said again: "Your Majesty, I have a few letters here, which I have sent along with the war report. ”

"Why didn't you say it earlier, show it to me!" Davers pretended to be angry and criticized, pretending to read the letters, and then said to Ocleton, who was looking, "This is Tounis, Leotini, Sikuli...... and other letters from the city-states asking for an alliance. ”

Ocriton shook his hands, took the letters, and after reading the first and second, he was no longer in the mood to read them any further. Of course, he could see that the letters were genuine, and that there was only one point: from the end of the text, there were many names written horizontally, and there were even handprints and graffiti.

He could imagine that among the leaders of a city-state riot, there were citizens of the upper class, whose handwriting was very elegant; There are also ordinary civilians, who are not very literate, and they write crookedly; There may also be freemen or slaves, who are illiterate and can only doodle with their hands. These mobs had just driven out the power of Dionysius, and they wrote in such a hurry, probably not only to get Dionia's military protection, but also to get Dionia's support in the subsequent city-state elections, so as to gain more benefits for the group they represented.

If a distraught Ocleton had taken the time to read through the letters, he would have found that there were no letters from Katanai.

Actually, there was, but Davers didn't take it out. In the letter written by Antrapolis, Catanay emphasized that the people and freemen of Catanay, and even a small number of slaves, had agreed to merge Cataneh into the Dionian League......

That's why Davers didn't take the letter out. In addition to this, there was also a letter from the city-state asking to join the alliance, and that was Naxos. Yes, the former exiles, having recaptured their homeland, decided to rebuild the city of Naxos and dedicate it to Dionia.

The cities of Cataneh and Naxos had been destroyed by Dionysius, so the people here knew better than the other Sicilian city-states that peace and tranquility were far more important than the seemingly freer but in fact dangerous independence, so they willingly chose to join Dionia, a coalition of Greek city-states capable of defeating the formidable and mighty Syracuse, so that they would not be displaced in the future.

Ocleton handed the letter back to Davers in a bit of a trance, and at the same time persuaded him with little confidence: "King Davers, even if Dionya defeats Syracuse and wins the final victory, your first task should be ...... It should be for Greater Greece to regain its former prosperity. The complex relationship between the various city-states in Sicily, as well as the contradictions between the local indigenous Sichaels and the Greeks, Dionys's hasty intervention on this island, which is completely unfamiliar to you, can easily be involved in the quagmire of conflict between the various city-states, which will drag down the development of Dionia......"

"Thank you, Lord Ocleton, for your concern and reminder." Davers smiled slightly and asked rhetorically: "In the army of Syracuse that invaded Great Greece, there are citizens from the city-states of Leotini, Tounis, Catanay, Sikuli, etc., what do you think will happen to Dionia if they refuse to join the alliance?" ”

Ocliton was stunned for a moment, and before he could answer, Henipolis next to him interjected: "They must suspect that Dionya still resents that they once assisted Syracuse in the invasion of Great Greece, and fears that we will retaliate against them, and out of panic, in order to defend against the threat that may come, they are likely to reunite with Syracuse." ”

"Yes, to make an alliance with a brand new tyrant without Dionysius is like pouring wine from a clay pot into another empty jar, in fact, the taste has not changed, and the result is still that Syracuse is still the leader of the Greek city-state of Sicily, is this what Carthage wants to see?!" Davers asked rhetorically.

Ocliton had to admit in his heart that this was very likely, and he said expectantly, "You guys...... You can tell these city-states that you have no intention of attacking them, and you can make a ...... with them Signing of an amicable agreement ......"

Davers chuckled, leaned back in his chair, and said slowly, "Lord Ocleton, did Carthage take the initiative to sign a treaty of friendship with the neighboring small Phoenician city-states?" ”

Ocliton was stunned for a moment, and then understood Davers's intention: the lion never cares about the feeling of cattle and sheep, and the big state has the majesty of its own big state, and it has always been the small state that takes the initiative to curry favor with the big gang to ensure its safety, and Dionia, who defeated Syracuse, is already a powerful state with a long reputation, and of course will not do such a stupid thing that loses its value.

Ocriton felt a fever in his face, and listened to Davers say, "In addition, the strength of Syracuse is far greater than that of the other city-states of Sicily, and even more so of the city-states attached to Carthage. Regardless of the form of government and who governs Syracuse, over time it will naturally attract the surrounding city-states to it, and by that time the Syracuse will still be a threat to Greater Greece and Carthage! So, Catanay, Leotini...... These city-states demanded an alliance with Dionya, which was the region closest to Greater Greece on the eastern coast of Sicily, out of Syracuse's sphere of influence, called the Southern Barrier of Greater Greece, and if Syracuse wanted to invade Greater Greece, it would have to conquer the area to the north of it, so that the war would be fought there without any more destruction of Greater Greece! Therefore, we Dionya will agree to their demands no matter what, and form a solid alliance with them! ”

Ocleton listened to Davers's firm words, and suddenly realized a question: "Doesn't Dionya have plans to destroy Syracuse?" ”

"Destroy Syracuse?" As if hearing a joke, Davers said, "What even Carthage could not do, how could Ionia, scarred now!" We are only doing what we can to weaken Syracuse for the security of Greater Greece. ”

Listening to Davers's answer, Ocleton was both a little moved and a little regretful, and he was a little uneasy about Dionia's insistence on accepting those Sicilian city-states: this was the first time in hundreds of years that a foreign force had set foot in Sicily! The Athenian invasion during the Peloponnesian War does not count, after all, it was too far away, while Greater Greece was different, separated only a few miles by the straits......

"Lord Ocleton, do you know what kind of geometry is the most stable?" Davers asked suddenly.

Geometry, a science once developed to calculate the area of the land, has been highly regarded by Greek scholars who like to delve into the natural sciences in recent years, and some Athenian scholars have declared that geometry is the foundation of all learning!

"What?" Coming back to his senses, Ocleton didn't expect Davers to ask an inconsequential question, and he was stunned again.

"It's a triangle." Davers said bluntly: "Why are Carthage and Syracuse at war in Sicily? Because you are the only two powerful forces in Sicily. ”

Davos stretched out two fingers: "As long as they run together, there will inevitably be a war because of a conflict of interest, and there is no room for maneuver." But if Ionia is added—" Davers held up another finger and stretched it into a triangle: "The three sides will hold each other back, and a long peace will be reached!" Because one side wants to wage war against the other, it has to take into account the threat of a third party against it. ”

Ocliton stared at his fingers, and after half a ring, he said hesitantly: "It is also possible that two forces will unite and attack one force." ”

Davers smiled: "This war has made Dionya and Syracuse enemies, and it is impossible to unite to attack Carthage, do you think it is right?" ”

Ocriton didn't speak, but he was thinking in his heart: Syracuse's burning of Crotone, the slaughter of Siritin, and the destruction of Dionia's territory really made the Great Greeks hate them! That's why Dionya sold part of the captured citizens of Syracuse to us Carthage, and if the people of Syracuse knew about it, they would definitely not be able to spare Dionia......

"Will Carthage join forces with Syracuse to attack Dionia?"

Ocleton shook his head: Decades of war have made the hatred between the two city-states too deep.

"Dionyas wanted to join forces with you Carthage to destroy Syracuse, but the current situation is not possible. And in a few decades, there may be two forces that can unite, but the distribution of interests is always uneven, and there will always be a third party to find a flaw to break this union, so that the peace of Sicily can be guaranteed for a longer time, and this guarantee is also in your Carthaginian interests, right, Lord Occliton. Davers said softly.

From the bottom of his heart, Ocliton felt that there was some truth in what Davers said, but such an important matter was beyond the scope of his mission, so he was silent.

But Davers clearly didn't intend to leave it at that: "Heney, go get the map." ”

Henipolis laid the map of Sicily on the wooden table, and Davers picked up the pen and said, "I consider Palermus and the west of Selinus to be your Carthaginian sphere of influence. ”

As he spoke, he "cut" a large western corner of Sicily, and then he added: "Syracuse goes south to the north of Kamanlina and belongs to Syracuse's sphere of influence. ”

He stretched out his pen and stroked, "cut" a small southeast corner, and finally he said: "Tauromegnan, Naxos, Sikuli, Catanay, Leotini, Taunis are attached to Dionia." As he spoke, he carefully drew a narrow strip against the east coast of Sicily.