ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 66 Questioning and Explanation
At this time, Burx was being questioned by Generals Thuriy in the city hall.

The political system of Thurii is similar to that of Athens. In normal times, the city-state's administration adopts the "ten generals responsible system" (after all, it is a city established under the leadership of Athens), but unlike Athens, the generals are elected by the citizens' assembly. , because when it was first established, the main immigrants in Thurii came from ten regions in Greece, namely Arcadia, Achaia, Boeosia, Ionia, Athens, Dorian...etc., so the annual election The citizens of Thurii from these ten regions each elected a general, and the chief general has always been a descendant of Athens.

However, after the Peloponnesian War and the defeat of Athens, in order to prevent the retaliation of Sparta and the city-states in Magna Graecia that joined the Spartan League (such as Tarantum, Crotone, Syracuse, etc.) is a strong country).Driven by Kunogorata of the Acadian tribe, all the Athenian descendants in Thurii were expelled. So far, there were only "nine generals" left in Thurii, and the chief general was appointed by the council among the nine members of the ethnic group. A re-election was held among the elected generals. Kunogorata had served as chief general for four consecutive years. It was not until last year that Thurii was defeated due to the Lucanian invasion that the citizens' assembly voted for the majority of the votes they considered to be the general. Ferris, who has the most military talent.Although he lost his chief position, Kunogorata was still elected as one of the nine generals. After all, his reputation among the Arcadian community was too high.

Now, he was holding the employment agreement signed by Burkos and asked: "Burkos, as the person in charge of recruiting soldiers this time, you should know the price of mercenaries in the entire Greek region. What is the approximate price?"

"Usually about half a Dalek gold coin per month." Burkos answered truthfully.

"Very good, the situation is roughly the same as what I understand. I noticed that of the two employment agreements, the first did indeed have half a Dalek gold coin per month, but in the second agreement-" Kunogolata faced Looking at the other generals, he said loudly: "We are also more than 2000 mercenaries, but the fee you gave us is two Dalek gold coins per month!"

Hearing this, the generals made a sound of surprise.

Before Burkos could explain, Cunogorata held up the parchment with the agreement written on it, and continued: "Not only that, but you also signed them with a half-year employment period. According to the above regulations, regardless of whether the war ends , They have to be paid two Dalic gold coins every month! Think about it, if the Lucarians suspend the attack, according to this agreement, these mercenaries can get nearly two dollars for nothing in the past six months without making any effort. Fifteen thousand gold coins!"

"Oh my god, this is too much! Amid the surprised sounds from everyone again, another general Neances said angrily: "Last year, in order to prepare military supplies for Turui's army to attack the Lucarians, the treasury Three hundred talents of silver were taken out, and as a result...in order to compensate the families of the citizens who died in the war, another fifty talents were taken out; at the same time, in order to prevent the Lucanians from attacking the city, they rushed to make weapons and repair the city walls. , once summoned citizen soldiers, and spent another 150 talents; this year, 120 talents have been spent to purchase and supply food for Tarantum reinforcements and mercenaries, and to rebuild destroyed villages, farmland and other facilities. Even a special amount of silver is not enough!The war has not yet started, and the treasury is almost empty. We have discussed before whether to levy a special war tax on citizens. This is the wealth accumulated by Thurii over the years and the hard work of citizens to pay taxes!As a general in charge of the city-state’s finances and taxes, I cannot tolerate such a ridiculous agreement, and I will refuse to pay them!”

"Yes, we do not recognize this employment agreement!" Most generals then expressed their opposition.

At this time, the chief general Ferris spoke: "Kuno Gorata, the Lucanians are gathering troops in Laos. This news has been confirmed. We all know it, so there is no Lucanian." The possibility of people not attacking within half a year is because the army is gathering together and the food consumption is very huge. With the food production capacity of Lucania, it is impossible to support it for half a year. And if the gathering is canceled later, it will only Weaken the prestige of the leader of the tribal alliance. Unless there are special circumstances, the Lucanian attack will come soon! And at this critical time, we need more soldiers to help us resist the Lucanian attack. !”

"Feris, you don't rule out accidents. For example, everyone thought that the Lucanians would attack the city after their victory. As a result, a plague broke out and they were forced to retreat..." Kunogolata retorted: "Whether the enemy attacks or not is not the key. The key is that this agreement makes the mercenaries the winners no matter what situation they are in, while Tulii always suffers. This is the problem! The person in charge you recommended Burkos, I don't think he did his best in this mission! Look at the treatment he gave to those mercenaries, not only the salary, but also this... Look...'The mercenaries led by Davos The soldiers are only responsible for defending Turiyi and repelling the Lucarian attack on Turiyi. If there are other tasks, they must be discussed and decided by the two parties separately...'" Kunogolata read the employment agreement aloud. Terms, and then sneered at Burkos and said: "Are you sure you are recruiting only mercenaries, not Spartans?! We spend money, we are the masters, and now these mercenaries have become VIPs, and everything is... We need to ask for their consent! I now seriously suspect that Burkos has a private transaction with this mercenary, and I request that a financial officer be sent to investigate it!"

"That's enough, Kunogorata!" Ferris finally couldn't help it and shouted loudly: "Although Burkos was recommended by me, it was decided by all the generals after discussion. Don't forget that you were the second one to agree. ! It shows that his ability has been recognized by everyone. In such a short period of time, he traveled here and there and worked tirelessly. He quickly recruited more than 4000 soldiers for Turiyi and solved the soldier source of Turiyi at once. The shortage problem has made the citizens feel at ease and ensured the safety of the city-state! He should have been rewarded by the city-state and thanked by the citizens, but he has to accept your humiliation here. Is this how Tuliyi treats a man who Is this the way citizens who contribute to the city-state should behave! If so, which citizen will volunteer to do things for Tuliyi in the future!!" Ferris's words caused the city hall to fall into silence for a while.

Burkos took advantage of the situation and said: "I didn't expect that the city-state's finances would be so difficult! However, the reason why I signed this agreement and recruited these soldiers was because the situation was urgent at the time, and on the other hand because they were worthy of me! Although they are not Spartans, they are not weaker than Spartans!"

This sentence immediately attracted everyone's attention.Neonsis obviously didn't believe it and said sarcastically: "Everyone knows that the Spartans were trained as warriors since they were young, so they are so scary when they grow up. Is there another city-state in the world that adopts a similar system? ? Oh... By the way, there are also the Persian undead guards mentioned in the "History" written by Herodotus, are they Persians?"

Burkos looked at Neonsis coldly: "These soldiers really have something to do with the Persians!"

"Oh?!" Ferris asked with interest, "Does this mercenary have any special origins?"

Seeing that the generals' eyes were focused on him, Burkos glanced at Polyxes, who had remained silent, and said calmly: "After receiving the mission assigned by the generals, I set out by boat that day. As a result, While passing through the Adriatic Sea, I encountered two pirate ships and was almost captured by them. Thanks to Poseidon's protection, a strong wind blew. Risking the ship being overturned, I escaped and sailed all the way to Crete. , before going ashore to rest and repair the ship, I originally wanted to recruit some archers there. The locals told me, 'It is okay to recruit a few people, but if you need a large number, you must obtain Sparta's permission, because Crete now belongs to Sparta. Alliance.' He also told me that most mercenaries are now gathered in Asia Minor and suggested that I go there to recruit, but it would be best to obtain Sparta's recruitment permission. After thinking carefully, I decided to go to Sparta."

Several generals became nervous unconsciously. Although they expelled the citizens of Thurii who were descendants of Athens in order to eliminate the revenge of the Spartan alliance city-states, turning the main ten tribes in Thurii into nine, they did not You know, what is Sparta's attitude towards Thurii.

(End of this chapter)