Chapter 161: Join hands
Davos urgently called in Philesius, Kapus, Drakos, Hieronymus, Epiphanes and other high-ranking officers to discuss the countermeasure against the alliance with Laos.
After that, he asked for an urgent Senate meeting, and after the discussion, the proposal of Davos was approved.
That night. Alobamus was again taken to the house of Davos.
“Did you have a good rest, our distinguished guest from Laos?” Said Davos jokingly.
Looking around, Alobamus saw a few more people around Davos, and asked eagerly, “Milord, have you made a decision?”
“Yes, after our deliberation, our Senate has decided to accept Laos as an ally of Thua Union!” Said Davos with a smile.
“Great!” Alobamus could not hide his excitement. Before he came here, he had listened to Avinoges’ detailed introduction on how to negotiate with the Greeks and the procedures for signing a treaty. For such a major event, the Greeks would hold a meeting, and would need two to three days of repeated discussion until there would be a result. Therefore, he had urged Davos. Unexpectedly, it only took a half a day for the Thua Union to make a decision. This new force is indeed different.
“It’s just that I have heard that Nerulum has sent 800 soldiers to Laos. Can you and your brother take over Laos easily?” Davos asked with concern.
After the previous conversation, Alobamus was not surprised on why Davos knew Laos so well. So, he said with confidence, “There’s no problem. Not only do we have more than a thousand soldiers, but also the slaves in the port are descendants of Sybarites just like us, and they are willing to follow our command! We have lived in the city of Laos for generation, while the newly arrived Lucanians don’t even know how many streets there are in Laos. How can they be our opponent! It’s just that after we take over Laos, we will definitely be attack by Nerulum or even Grumentum, so we need your support!”
“That is to say, the risk in the process of taking over the city is not big. But after taking over Laos, it may lead to the retaliation from the Lucanians, right?” Asked Davos patiently.
Alobamus nodded involuntarily.
“Then I have a better way for you to capture Laos smoothly without the later risk!” Davos said with temptation.
“What should we do?” Asked Alobamus impatiently.
“Help us take down Nerulum first, which will cut off the passage for the Lucanians to go south to rescue Laos. By then, you won’t even have to attack Laos, because the Lucanians in the city will have to surrender once they lose their support.”
There’s a lot of truth in what Davos said. And Alobamus was greatly became interested, but said with concern, “Although Nerulum is not a city made of stone, it is still not easy to attack it. If we can’t take it down fast, in case our plan will be exposed, Grumentum will come to rescue.”
“We are not going to siege Nerulum.” Laughed Davos.
Alobamus was puzzled.
“How many warriors does Nerulum have?” Davos continued.
“They originally have nearly 6,000 warriors. But after getting defeated by you, they only have more than 2,000 left. Now, there are 800 warriors in Laos, so there are only more than a thousand warriors left in the city of Nerulum.” Alobamus answered truthfully.
“Besides those warriors, do they have others that can fight?” Asked Davos.
“Rest of their people are elderly, women and children. Nerulum only has a small area, and their land is barren. Hence, they couldn’t support too many tribes. The reason why they have so many warriors is because, we, Laos have given them a lot of food every year.” When Alobamus thought of the oppression and exploitation of Laos by Nerulum for so many years, his hatred rose.
Davos laughed, “My request is very simple, I only need you to help us open the gate of Nerulum, and the rest will be left to us.”
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Alobamus set out to return to Laos. Along with him were Asistes, the scribe of the Thua Union’s archon, and Izam, the leader of the mountain reconnaissance team. They took the agreement for Avinoges to sign it, and to also confirmed that the one signing it was Avinoges himself. Then they will further discuss the conquering of Nerulum and Laos.
Meanwhile, the high-ranking officers of the Union began to discuss on how to attack the city of Nerulum with the map left by Alobamus, and at the same time, they began to mobilize for war in secret. Although Alobamus said that there are only more than a thousand warriors in the city of Nerulum, Davos still decided to adopt the strategy of Lion fighting a Hare for the sake of insurance. Besides the first brigade, who will stay in Thua Union, the second, third and seventh brigades with rations enough for 5 days, will prepare for a surprise attack on Nerulum.
In addition, Davos was also preparing a banquet for two people.
“Chief Vespa, have a seat!”
“Milord, you are very kind. I am no longer the tribal chief, but just a prisoner of Thua Union.” Said Vespa in a dull tone.
“That is only for the time being. When you become a citizen of Thua Union, you will still be the chief of this tribe!” Said Davos, to comfort him, as well as making a promise.
Vespa’s heart moved.
Then Davos also said to Bagul, who was holding himself back, “Haha, the camp’s most famous rugby quarterback, did building a road made you stronger? Am I right, Andrea?”
Andrea, who was following behind Cheiristoya, blushed and bowed her head.
“Milord Archon!” Bagul said with a smile.
“Sit down! Sit down!” After Davos had asked his guests to sit down, he then said in a loud voice, “There are no outsiders here today. Chief Vespa and Bagul, you are all my old friends! This is my wife, Cheiristoya.”
Cheiristoya nodded and smiled to the two.
“And there is no need for me to introduce this person.” Davos pointed to Andrea and said with a smile, “I am still waiting to attend your wedding!”
Andrea and Bagul have their faced flushed red, and Vespa could only show his helplessness. Although he doesn’t like Bagul marrying to a Greek woman, in the present situation, marrying a Greek woman is of great help to their tribe.
“And so today, we don’t need to pay attention to etiquette. You can sit and eat however you like! I have prepared some novel food here, which has not been release in the restaurant, and you are the first to taste it. I hope that you would enjoy it!” The words of Davos aroused everyone’s curiosity. Even Vespa, who did not go out very much, knew that Cheiristoya’s restaurant is very famous in the Union.
Davos himself took the lead in setting an example. He moved a wooden chair to sit in front of the dining table instead of lying on the couch. He had long been dissatisfied with the sitting posture in Greek banquet, which is not good for digestion and health. Davos inviting Cheiristoya and Andrea to the banquet is also against the tradition of the Greek, and because he did not treat them as outsiders, Vespa and Bagul felt that Davos was bold and generous.
The slaves first served some fruits and snacks to each person, and then placed a jar of wine and a jar of golden liquid.
Bagul drank it with curiosity, and suddenly a cold feeling flowed through his entire body, and he could not stop himself from asking, “What is this drink? It’s so good!”
“It’s an Egyptian alcohol called beer.” Andrea, who was learning modern sales talk, explained to her lover, “According to his lord’s request, after the slaves have carefully brewed it, this drink will be better.”
“Huh, this is better than some soft wine. This alcohol is what men should drink!” Bagul took another gulp and then spoke out loud.
Vespa took a sip due to getting influence by his son, and then took a few more sips in silence.
When Davos saw this, he looked at Cheiristoya with a smile and said, “How can you just drink beer without good food?”
Cheiristoya immediately signaled Azune.
Azune then ordered the servants to bring an iron object to each person’s part of the table, which was as tall as the wooden table. On top of it was a pot containing water and some spices. The servants began to light the wood and put it into the cavity under the pot.
They watched it with curiosity and the slaves then brought two plates to each person.
“Is this mutton?” Vespa looked at the thin, red and white slices of meat on the plate and said with doubt.
“This is mutton. This is beef.” Davos pointed to them and said, “I call this kind of food beef and mutton hotpot.” While the water in the pot is boiling, Davos took a piece of beef and put it in the pot. The beef rolled in the boiling water and soon turned white, Davos then scooped it up with a wooden ladle that have holes in it, put it in a plate with dipping sauce, dipped it a few times, then took it and put it into his mouth with a look of intoxication.
After trying it, they all looked surprised. Bagul even said, “I have never eaten such a delicious beef. How do you make this?”
“Skin the slaughtered sheep or cow, after that, remove the bone and blood, then put it in the cellar, then send some people to the mountains to collect a lot of ice and put them into the cellar. Seal it up, and after a day, take out the frozen beef and mutton, then you can cut it thinly, with a knife, then put it in boiling water and wait for it to be cook…” Davos explained it patiently.
“And what is this thing?” Bagul continued to ask, pointing to the small plate.
“It’s a dipping sauce to regulate the flavor of the beef and mutton. This dipping sauce are made from shrimp, shellfish…uhm…there are also sea grass and so on. Afterwards, you will chopped it, mix it and then ferment it, then add a bit of spices, but you will need to ask my chef on how to make it.”
“This kind of food looks simple. But I didn’t expect it to be so troublesome!” Bagul could only sigh and had to give up his plan to try making it in his home in the future.
Davos smiled, then he turned to Andrea and asked, “Our great merchant, do you think this will be popular in our restaurant?”