Some things come in a hurry, while others fly away; Even those things that have just come have some of them already dead. Movement and change are constantly renewing the world, just as the continuous course of time is constantly renewing the years.

- Marcus Aurelius (the only philosopher-emperor in Western history)

After Hannibal took command of the Legion of the Order, he returned to Carthage with Sakarb and the Legion of the Legion of the Order; However, Hannibal did not let Sakab enter the city with the Legion of the Templars, but instead temporarily stationed them in the Carthaginian camp outside the city. Hannibal had intended to go directly to the front with the Legion of the Holy Order, but considering that there were still many things to arrange; Hannibal had no choice but to return to Carthage and deal with the Senate politicians.

Hannibal, who had returned to Carthage, had not yet gone to the senators of the Senate when the three representatives of the Senate appeared before Hannibal again; It can't be helped, who made Hannibal's return to the city too much. The movement of the five thousand Holy Order infantry in the Holy Order Legion is okay, but the movement of the five thousand Holy Order cavalry is the scene of ten thousand horses galloping; Naturally, the people of the Senate had already received the news.

Whatever the way Hannibal took command of the Legion so quickly, the result was good; Although the senators of the Senate were very annoyed by the differential treatment of the Holy Order, it was still a time for more strength to have more chances of victory. This powerful Legion of the Holy Order is better than not being able to get it in the hands of Hannibal, after all, the current Hannibal is the last hope of the Carthaginian kingdom.

The purpose of the three delegates was not to inquire about how Hannibal had obtained the Legion of the Order, but to inquire about what supplies Hannibal's Legion needed and what supplies the Senate needed in the rear on the next battlefield on the Western Front; The Senate's move was a slight relief from Hannibal's dislike of these politicians.

Hannibal then replied, "The new Legion of the Holy Order only needs the Senate to transport 10,000 more soldiers and 5,000 horses in the rear; However, the armies on the entire Western Front need more supplies to support the next battle, and the supplies and weapons provided now are far from enough.

First of all, the Amikas Corps on the Western Front had only fifteen thousand infantry, which simply could not meet my maneuver requirements; They needed at least 20,000 horses and 3,000 wagons to meet the target. Secondly, the total strength of the two cavalry regiments and the infantry regiment still reached 35,000 men; Coupled with the newly joined Legion of the Holy Order, this nearly 50,000-strong army needs more and better weapons and equipment.

For this aspect. I'm not very demanding; It was enough to be able to supply them with 10,000 bows and arrows and 300,000 arrows. However, there is one thing that the Senate must assure me; That is, the troops and weapons and equipment I lost on the battlefield must be replenished to me as quickly as possible, and it must not be delayed in the rear for more than three days!

Finally, there is the policy aspect of the kingdom, although I only retain my command and consulship. But I still need absolute control on the battlefield; This absolute control is not only control over the army, but also control over other areas. For example, I promised the Numidian that the Senate must approve of the matter, that the Senate must unconditionally support the measures I have formulated, and so on. ”

Hannibal's first two demands were perfectly reasonable, and the three delegates were undoubtedly unquestionable; But. This last one is not so easy to agree to. Originally, the senators had quite disagreed with the matter of giving power to Hannibal, but the situation in the Carthaginian kingdom was too critical, so the senators had no choice but to recall Hannibal and appoint him as the supreme commander and consul.

Unexpectedly, Hannibal only needed the false name of the consul and the supreme commander of the army; Hannibal, the other kingdom powers, returned to the Senate, which was a surprise for the senators. However, this does not mean that the senators can accept Hannibal's conditions; What if Hannibal was defeated at the front and surrendered to the kingdom of Numidia? Could it be that Carthage also surrendered directly?

Well, the possibility of such a thing happening is infinitely close to zero, so it is not considered; But what if Hannibal wanted to do something to the detriment of the Senate and strengthen himself? Like what. After Hannibal's victory, he promised that the generals who had surrendered in Numidia would remain in control of the army and join the Kingdom of Carthage; But what if the allegiance was to Hannibal himself, not the Kingdom of Carthage?

In short, the scope of this last demand of Hannibal is simply too broad; Don't say that these three deputies have no right to call the shots at all, and even if they do, they don't dare to agree to Hannibal easily. After the three delegates hesitated for a moment, the same delegate who had told Hannibal about the Legion of the Holy Order cautiously said to Hannibal:

"Your Excellency, the first two demands are within the purview of our Senate; All you have to do is give me a command; However, we have no right to call the shots on this last condition! And, even if we bring this point of your request back to the Senate for discussion. It's impossible for the patriarchs to pass! Although the abilities and character of His Excellency Hannibal are familiar to all of us, the Senate cannot agree to such a thing; I hope that His Excellency Hannibal will think twice! ”

The eye contact and hesitation between the three delegates had long been seen by Hannibal, who knew that this last request was unlikely to be agreed to by the Senate; However, Hannibal's purpose in doing all this was only to test it. The result doesn't matter. For Hannibal, as long as the war is won; Then the kingdom of Carthage would become the kingdom of Hannibal alone.

In fact, Hannibal didn't care about the so-called political power and kingdom power at all, Hannibal, who had lived in war since he was a child, understood a truth early under the teaching of his father, that is: everything depends on strength to speak! What is Strength? The army is the most powerful strength! As long as Hannibal could hold the military firmly in his hands, everything else was nothing more than a floating cloud.

The relationship between national heritage and military strength is never the same thing, just like China during the First Sino-Japanese War; On the country's heritage and potential. Who else in the world can compete with China except Germany, Britain, France, Russia, and the United States? But what about the result? The tiny Japanese army defeated China's naval and land forces one after another, and finally signed the "Treaty of Shimonoseki" that humiliated the country.

After all, wasn't it because China's military strength was too weak at that time? Why is China's heritage so deep that it can't beat Japan, which has less than one-tenth of China's heritage? The key is that although Japan's heritage is insufficient, it has transformed its heritage into military strength as much as possible; And China is obsessed with its own **** fantasy of the kingdom in the storage of swords and guns, and the horses are put in Nanshan.

Hannibal did not know the example between China and Japan, but he understood the role of military power; In terms of substance, the ten Carthages were no match for the Romans, so why did the Romans retreat and suffer heavy losses under Hannibal's attack? Isn't it because the quantity and quality of the army are not good enough. All Hannibal wanted was military power!

The reason why Hannibal returned the power of the Carthaginian kingdom to the Senate was only to win the support of the senators; Running between the battlefield and the rear without skill, he has to guard against the hidden arrows of the elders all the time. It is better to give them back these inconsequential powers; In this way, he can concentrate on the battle, and he can also avoid the lag of the patriarchs.

Wait until the war is over. Hannibal controlled the entire Carthage lands of tens of thousands of elite armies who had been slaughtered in battle; At that time, could the senators of the Senate still be able to rely on the scepter in their hands to block the swords of the army? General Vermina, loyal to the Senate, was also in charge of part of the army, but after three months of fighting, how much was left?

Hannibal did not embarrass the three delegates, and graciously withdrew his last demand; Then Hannibal took his leave to the three deputies in the name of military urgency. Deal with these things. Hannibal, who had nothing to worry about in Carthage, went out of the city and set out with Sakab and the Legions of the Templars to the front of the Western Front; There are still 35,000 troops waiting for Hannibal's command!

The combat effectiveness of an elite army is definitely not determined by appearance and weapons and equipment, and the ability of generals and the quality of soldiers are also indispensable factors; In order to test the combat effectiveness of the Legion of the Holy Order, Hannibal decided to complete the five-day journey between the city of Carthage and the front line in three days. This means that the cavalry of the Holy Order will march for twelve hours tomorrow at a normal pace, while the infantry of the Holy Order will need to march for fifteen hours a day at a fast pace!

Such a speed of march was almost impossible for an ordinary army, which here did not refer to the newly recruited legions of Carthage and Numidia, but to the regular legions of relatively modest combat effectiveness; For example, the standard Roman legions that fought Hannibal on the battlefield. Because a march of this intensity only takes one day, and a regiment of recruits runs away directly!

Even Hannibal's elite could only hold out on to a march of this level for three days at most; Three days later. The officers and men of the whole army will lie on the ground exhausted, and they will not be able to fight again for at least five days. This is something that Hannibal personally experienced, so he took it to the test of this so-called elite army; It turned out to be a surprise to Hannibal!

After three days of rapid marching, the 10,000 soldiers of the entire Holy Order Legion not only did not complain, but were filled with a positive attitude of defending their homes and the country; Many of the Templar infantry were humming a Carthaginian rural tune while running to the front with weapons in hand. On the first day, Hannibal thought that the soldiers of the Legion had not seen a day's march; That's why they are so fearless.

On the second day, the 10,000 soldiers still maintained the high posture of the first day; Even the patrol cavalry at night was in high spirits and patrolled all night, and Hannibal inevitably felt that this result might have something to do with the fact that these soldiers came from poor peasant families, and were used to running since childhood. However, on the third day, it was still such a marching posture that finally shocked Hannibal.

When the 10,000-strong army marched for three days to the Carthaginian camp on the Western Front; Because the tent of the Holy Order Legion was not prepared in advance. These soldiers who had just stopped the rapid march immediately threw themselves into the affairs of building military tents with full of energy. Hannibal really didn't understand why the soldiers of the Templars didn't know to be tired. Aren't they tired?

Five thousand cavalry is enough, after all, they march on war horses; Why are these 5,000 infantry so enduring? Puzzled, Hannibal had no choice but to call their regimental commander Sakab to his side and ask him personally. When Sakaber learned of Hannibal's shock, he looked at Hannibal in surprise. Explains:

"Although every soldier of our Holy Order Legion is the child of an ordinary peasant family, because of its proximity to the coast and self-sufficiency, the food is relatively good; The regiment commander has three meals a day, and each meal is a combination of meat and vegetables, which lays a foundation for the excellent physique of the soldiers. After that, the daily routine training of our regiment consisted of rapid marches and mutual training among hundreds.

Every month, we also conduct a combat training within the legion and a five-day rapid march; The rapid march was a rapid march of fifteen hours a day without infantry cavalry. No breaks for five consecutive days. We have to train for a long time to have this effect; One of the least commissioned officers in our regiment has also undergone this training for three years! ”

This result was really unexpected by Hannibal, that is, a peasant who put down his farming tools could become an ordinary warrior with no weak combat effectiveness after a whole year of training; What's more, it is an elite division that has been trained for several years. It was only after learning about these things that Hannibal really felt like he had picked up a treasure for the first time! (To be continued.) )