If, not happy, if, not happy, then let it go. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

If you can't give it up or let it go, then it's painful.

- Plato (one of the greatest philosophers and thinkers of Western culture)

While Jugudah was preparing for the next war in the Sahara Kingdom, the situation in the whole world was changing dramatically; The situation in North Africa, in particular, is already closely linked to the contradictions between the House of Augustus and Hannibal.

When the Carthaginian Senate learned of Prince Adheba's dispatch of troops, they ordered Ahmet to lead his army to the border area of the Kingdom of New Numidia for defense, and made other corresponding arrangements.

First, the Carthaginian Senate, through the Senate, ordered Generals Amekas and Kelimis stationed in the province of Africa to immediately go to the forefront of the border between the province of Africa and the kingdom of New Numidia with their respective armies.

If Ahmet's army is unable to resist Adheba's army, or if something else happens in the territory of the kingdom of Neo-Numidia; Then Amikas and Kelimis would be tasked with encircling Africa.

Of course, their mission was not to defend the province of Africa; After all, in the city of Carthage, there are still 14,000 troops led by Vermina himself, which is the last reliance of the Carthaginian Senate and the entire Carthaginian city.

Therefore, another important task of Generals Amikas and Kellimis is to take the initiative to send troops at the right time; Set the outbreak of war outside of the Carthage Kingdom proper, not within the Carthaginian Kingdom proper!

In addition, General Abydos, who was stationed in the province of Baissasien, was ordered to lead his army to the junction of the province of Baissasien with the kingdoms of Novonumidian and Gaturia in order to prevent any possible invasion by any army.

Of course, at this time, the governor of Baissasien Province had become Hanno the Younger, and with Hanno the Younger and his family sitting in Tapsus, even if General Abydos led his army to the border area, it could ensure the stability of the entire Baisa Sien Province.

In addition to the troop movements in these two native provinces, the Carthaginian Senate also made new arrangements for the garrison of the newly occupied province of Tripoli; The armies of the brothers Himika and Himico were split in two, with the two brothers each leading 5,000 troops to garrison the eastern and western borders of the Tripoli region.

The 10,000 cavalry led by General Gisken were still stationed at the Great Leptis; His mission is to sit in the center, support General Shimika in the eastern border area, or General Shimiko in the western border area, and ensure the stability of Tripoli.

Finally, the Carthaginian Senate was the arrangement for the other so-called vassal kingdoms; In addition to Mauritania, which had already sent troops, and New Numidia, which had been ordered to resist, the Carthaginian Senate also ordered the three dependent kingdoms of Gaturia, Libya, and Cyrenaica to stand still and not to make any moves that would mislead the Carthaginian Kingdom.

As for the Saharan kingdom of Juchaved, the senate of the Carthaginian kingdom sent emissaries with great importance; The aim was to get Jugurdah to obey the orders of the Carthaginian kingdom. If there is any misdeeds in the Kingdom of Gaturia, Jugudah's mission is to lead an army against the Kingdom of Gaturia!

However, the Carthaginian Senate was not stupid, and naturally they could not really believe that Jugurdah would willingly obey their orders based on the words of themselves and others; Although Jugurdah had previously made it clear that the Saharan Kingdom was loyal to the Kingdom of Carthage, that was before Hannibal left the North African continent.

At a time when Hannibal had not left the North African continent, it was not only the Saharan kingdom of Jugurdah that made clear its allegiance to the Kingdom of Carthage; Whether it is the Kingdom of Caturia, the Kingdom of Libya, the Kingdom of Cyrenaica, or the Kingdom of Mauritania, which has not yet moved, who has not clearly expressed allegiance to the Kingdom of Carthage?

However, after Hannibal left the North African continent and lost Hannibal's suppression, how many kingdoms would continue to obey the orders of the Carthaginian Kingdom and continue to be loyal to the Carthaginian Kingdom? How could the elders of the Carthaginian Senate who were well versed in political intrigue and sophistication not know about this?

Therefore, the messengers they sent not only brought orders to Jugudah, but also favorable conditions that Jugurdah could not refuse; That is, as long as Jugurdah sends troops at the right time, the Kingdom of Gaturia will become the second province of the Sahara Kingdom after the war!

In fact, such a condition was indeed a temptation that Jugudah could not refuse; However, Juguda is not a fool either. If Adheba had succeeded in taking Ahmet's New Numidian Kingdom and Bahano's Gaturia Kingdom, Juguda would not have been able to send troops to Gaturia even if he died; Otherwise, there would be no second chance for the Saharan Kingdom.

Last time, the Saharan Kingdom was allowed to exist by Hannibal because of two things; First, Zhuguda is a typical example of voluntary surrender and made great contributions in the later battles; Second, the Sahara Kingdom was too remote and barren for Hannibal to waste troops and gold for the sake of the Sahara.

However, such good fortune does not happen every time; If we take the wrong side again this time, the Saharan Kingdom will really be in danger of extinction. After all, the Sahara Kingdom is the poorest and most backward kingdom in North Africa; If the Saharan Kingdom fails again, there really will be no chance of a comeback!

As a king who loved his country and people deeply, it was impossible for Juguda to take risks with his country and people; Even if the Kingdom of Carthage had an absolute advantage, Jugurdah would not make a decision blindly until the situation was completely clear.

Juguda knows that what seems like chaos on the North African continent is not chaotic; Although the Kingdom of Carthage was at risk of being attacked on all sides, its great national and military power was unmatched by any other power.

Whether it is Adheba, who has tens of thousands of soldiers, or Ahmed, who is indestructible, or Bahano, Mutinis and others who have their own plans; Even if all these forces were combined, their military strength would be only equal to that of Carthage's. If you add Hannibal, the invincible god of war, the Kingdom of Carthage is an invincible existence!

Therefore, what really determines the situation in North Africa is not the competition between the major forces on the North African continent, but the decisive battle on Sicily! If the House of Augustus wins, the Kingdom of Carthage will not only lose its last overseas territories, but also its last patron saint, Hannibal, the god of war!

At that time, even if the Carthage Kingdom still has a large army itself, it is impossible for the Carthaginian Kingdom to rise again; All other forces on the North African continent will usher in the spring of their own development! There is no doubt that the Adheba forces will be the biggest beneficiary; Who made them allies of House Augustus!

But the victory of the Augustans is only one possibility of the outcome, and the other possibility is that Hannibal wins; If Hannibal had won the decisive battle of Sicily, the Kingdom of Carthage would soon have regained all the overseas territories of the Western Mediterranean and once again stood on top of the world!

If this is the case, then it is a matter of time before the Adheba forces, who dare to provoke the Kingdom of Carthage, fall into disappointment; When the kingdom of Carthage needs help, the kingdoms that choose to be indifferent will also face the wrath of Hannibal!

Don't think that the decisive battle in Sicily will destroy many of Hannibal's troops, even if Hannibal wins a crushing victory at the cost of nearly total annihilation, it will not change Hannibal's strength; As long as Hannibal is there, the native army of the Kingdom of Carthage can completely burst out with several times the current combat strength, and there is no problem at all in sweeping across the North African continent.

From this point of view, Jugurdah's choice of unwavering support for the Kingdom of Carthage seems like a good choice; But that's not the case. If Hannibal loses the decisive battle in Sicily, then the Kingdom of Carthage will certainly not choose to enter into a head-on conflict with other North African powers; Those cunning and unusually carthaginian patriarchs were not Hannibal, and they only saw profit in their eyes.

At that time, the Saharan kingdom, which had already sent troops to Gaturia, would face the powerful Adheba forces and their allies behind them, the House of Augustus; With two of the most barren desert provinces in North Africa fending off the mighty Adheba forces, Juguda didn't have to think about it to know what his outcome would be.

So, after much deliberation, Juguda decided to get involved in the chaos of North Africa; However, the Saharawi Kingdom acts only on its own behalf, and does not join either side at will.

After the news of Ahmed's defection before the army was heard, Juguda knew that his chance had come! So Jugurdah left Neput, the capital of the Sahara Kingdom, and rushed to the army camp that was stationed in the border area between the Sahara Kingdom and the Kingdom of Gaturia.

After arriving at the barracks, Jugurdah did not explain anything more to his generals, but immediately personally led an army of 10,000 and forty war elephants to cross the border with the Kingdom of Gaturia and march quickly towards Dimidi, the capital of the Kingdom of Gaturia!

From the border area of the Kingdom of Gaturia to the capital of the Kingdom of Gaturia, it is a full twelve days' journey, and there are eight large and small towns of the Kingdom of Gaturia; However, none of this affected Jukudah's rapid march.

Juguda divided his army in two, and he himself led five thousand javelin cavalry in desperation, and quickly marched towards Dimidi; The remaining 5,000 javelin infantry and 40 war elephants were commanded by the generals under the command of Juguda, who were responsible for taking all the towns of the Kingdom of Gaturia along the way. (To be continued.) )