Saving one's life is probably the greatest fault, losing the foundation of one's entire life for the sake of one's life. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

- Juvenalis (the great satirist of Rome)

Moffett's heart-wrenching words were different to Hannibal's heart; Although Hannibal never wanted to engage Moffitt's army, it is undeniable that Hannibal still came in the name of being invited, and the purpose was also for the eighty war elephants under Moffitt, and Moffitt was Hannibal's most faithful believer, which undoubtedly made Hannibal feel guilty.

Unfortunately, before Hannibal could say anything, Moffett took Hannibal's horse and walked into the city; Along the way, Moffett led Hannibal's war horse in this way, and in the surprised eyes of all the people in the city, he led Hannibal on the war horse to the direction of the city lord's mansion.

This time, Moffett did not bring his own personal guard, and he, like Hannibal, walked alone on the street leading Hannibal's war horse; Hannibal could see from the eyes of the people on the street that they were not afraid of this so-called rebel army, nor were they afraid of Moffitt, the so-called rebel leader, but got along well with them.

Hannibal even saw two rebel soldiers in red armor on the street who offered to pay for food, but the merchants were unwilling to accept their money, and they forced the money into the merchants. Such a harmonious relationship between the military and the people was something Hannibal had never seen before.

Although Hannibal himself is known as the god of war of the Carthage Kingdom, he is also madly worshipped and sought after by the people of the Carthaginian Kingdom; But that was only for the worship and admiration of Hannibal alone, and Hannibal's army did not have such a deep affection for the people of Carthage.

In fact, the discipline of Hannibal's army was very good; But that's only relative. When he was in the Carthaginian kingdom's own land, Hannibal was always strict with his army, which directly led to the fact that his army was not notorious in the Carthaginian kingdom itself; However, it is just that there is no notoriety, and it is still far from the harmony between the military and the people.

Therefore, seeing such a rare harmony between the military and the people, Hannibal really believed everything Moffett said in his heart, and understood that Moffett really did what he said; At this time, Hannibal's heart was greatly shaken that he should not borrow the eighty war elephants from Moffett.

Yes, now Hannibal's idea is not to take in Moffett's army, but to borrow troops from Moffett; Because in Hannibal's opinion, Moffett's army was not the so-called rebel army at all, but the umbrella of the entire south of the kingdom of Cyrenaica. Once this umbrella is lost, who knows how the southern peoples of the Kingdom of Cyrenaica will be oppressed?

More importantly, after understanding Moffett's ambitions and the value of Moffett's army; Hannibal knew that Moffitt's army could not be absorbed by himself anyway. The reason is simple: could the trust that comes from Hannibal be more important than their own family and homeland, and their nation?

Thinking of this, Hannibal was very embarrassed to ask Moffett to borrow troops; After all, Moffett's army was able to deter the royal army of the Cyrenaica Kingdom all the time, and it did not dare to act rashly, relying on these eighty war elephants with strong combat effectiveness. If they do lend it, what do they have to do to protect themselves?

From the gate of the city to the city lord's mansion, Hannibal saw the right thing and thought more about it; However, Hannibal's face was still expressionless, while Moffett's face was always smiling. After coming to the City Lord's Mansion, Hannibal immediately jumped off the war horse, and Moffett also handed over the war horse to the guards in front of the City Lord's Mansion, and then the two walked into the City Lord's Mansion side by side.

After entering the Lord's Mansion, Moffett first asked the butler in the Lord's Mansion to take Hannibal to his study, and he himself confessed to Hannibal and went in the other direction. Hannibal didn't know what Moffett needed to do, and he didn't have such curiosity; He followed the butler into Moffett's study without saying a word.

Moffett's study, that is, the normal study, was nothing special; If there is anything special about it, it is that this study is too simple. In the entire study, except for a table and a chair, there were only four chairs left in a straight line, and there was not even a decent bookshelf, let alone any books.

In the study, there are no books, which is also a major feature of Moffett's study; However, Hannibal was not interested, he just sat in a random chair and quietly waited for Moffett's return. While Hannibal was sitting and waiting, there was a chaotic roar of war elephants outside the study, which disturbed Hannibal's mind once again.

Before Hannibal could recover from his thoughts, Moffett returned to his study; Looking at Hannibal who was lost in thought, Moffett chuckled and asked Hannibal, "General Hannibal, are you thinking about the eighty war elephants under my command?" They are now in a special farm near the City Lord's Mansion, would you like to check them out? ”

Moffett's inquiry woke Hannibal from his contemplation, and Hannibal, who was told by Moffett about the matter, was not embarrassed, but praised sincerely: "General Moffett, I am very touched that you can have the ambition to defend the nation at such an age; It's your luck to have these eighty war elephants, and you should put them to good use! ”

At this time, Hannibal had given up on borrowing troops from Moffett; He really can't bear to weaken Moffett's strength again when the strength of Moffett's army is not strong, this is simply helping the royal family of the Cyrenaica Kingdom in disguise, and it is also weakening the umbrella of the southern tribes of the Cyrenaica Kingdom in disguise, this kind of thing Hannibal really can't do.

Unfortunately, things always turned out to be different from what Hannibal had expected; This time, it's still the same. After Hannibal said this, Moffett just smiled and shook his head, then stared into Hannibal's eyes, and said very seriously:

"General Hannibal, the war between the Kingdom of Carthage and the Kingdom of Numidia on the North African continent is over once and for all; Although the Kingdom of Carthage won the victory on the North African continent, during the war it was deprived of almost all of its overseas territories by the Augustans of the Roman Republic, all of which were taken down by the former Hannibals.

So, when the war in North Africa is over, your army will surely fight a fateful Armageddon with the Augustans of the Roman Republic. If nothing else, the decisive battle should be held on the island of Sicily; This time, for the first time, the number of troops under your command will surpass the number of Roman troops, but there will be a considerable gap in quality.

In order to better improve the combat effectiveness of your army, you will definitely do everything you can think of to enhance the combat effectiveness of your army. General Hannibal, you are a genius cavalry commander, and you are also the god of cavalry and war on the battlefield; So, the best way to get a big boost in your army in the short term is to get a strong cavalry unit.

Needless to say, the most powerful cavalry unit in human warfare should be the war elephant unit; The eighty war elephants under my command should be the largest war elephant force on the entire North African continent at this time. General Hannibal, you have traveled thousands of miles across the sea to the kingdom of Cyrenaica for the sake of the eighty war elephants under my command? ”

Moffett's analysis can be described as penetrating; Hearing this, Hannibal nodded frequently in his heart, but on the surface, Hannibal was still silent. After all, Moffett said what Hannibal was thinking, so what could Hannibal say?

Moffett ignored Hannibal's silence, he continued to say to himself: "General Hannibal, the reason why you didn't mention the matter of borrowing troops just now is definitely because you don't want to weaken our army, and you can't bear to see our nation once again brutally ruled by the Cyrenaica royal family in the north.

If you can do this, you have proved that you are the god of war Hannibal that I worship and admire in my heart; So, when I was leaving, I had already given the order. By this time, the entire eighty war elephants had been assembled; As soon as you give the order of General Hannibal, these war elephants will leave with you immediately!

Do not think that without these eighty war elephants, our army will not be able to defend itself against the royal armies of the north; If we really only rely on eighty war elephants, we will not escape defeat sooner or later. After all, war elephants are going to die of old age sooner or later; But our nation still has to continue to survive.

The self-improvement of a nation never depends on a special army, nor does it depend on a mere eighty war elephants; I will lead my nation to fight for a better future, and I believe that my nation can do it! If it weren't for the fact that the situation in our south could not be separated from me and my army, I would definitely lead my army to help you on the battlefield, and I would like to be able to fight side by side with you! ”

If the performance of Moffett and his army made Hannibal give up his intention to borrow troops; Then, at this moment, Hannibal's heart had no other emotion except being moved. Hannibal, who had always been reticent, suddenly stood up and said to Moffett:

"General Moffett, I have borrowed your eighty war elephants; Half a year at most, and I will return these war elephants to you. Once the war in Sicily is over, I will personally help you southern tribes to establish an eighth kingdom on the North African continent; When the time comes, I will give you a crown with my own hands! ”

With that, Hannibal walked out of Moffett's study without looking back; After that, Hannibal left the city with eighty war elephants. Hannibal, with his own Order's infantry and borrowed war elephant troops, boarded the transport ship again; After nearly twenty days of sailing, Hannibal finally returned to Sicily! (To be continued.) )