The soldiers guarding the camp gate recognized Davos and Antonios and let them pass directly, but stopped Hilos and the others behind them. Davos had no time to pay attention to their shouts and followed Antonios, running north as fast as he could. After running for a while, they saw the group of people ahead.
Clearchus was walking and talking with Tissaphernes's envoy, the brother of the Persian Queen, Systas, who had come to greet him, when he suddenly heard shouts from behind: "Stop! Stop! This is a conspiracy! A Persian conspiracy!!…"
The five leaders, more than a dozen centurions, plus two hundred soldiers escorting them and preparing to go to the market to buy supplies, were all startled and immediately stopped and looked back.
Davos rushed to them, panting and shouting loudly in the face of many strange looks: "This is a conspiracy!… Tissaphernes is preparing… preparing to wipe you all out! Without leaders, we will fall into chaos and be completely annihilated!"
Several leaders subconsciously looked at the Persian envoy, Systas.
Systas pointed at Davos furiously and roared: "Who is he?! How dare he say such a thing! You requested the meeting, Tissaphernes responded to Clearchus's request and treated him warmly. Is this how you repay the Persian commander Tissaphernes?! This is not only an insult to him! It is an insult to our Great King!! You get back! I will report this matter to Tissaphernes and suggest that he report it to His Majesty and recommend that His Majesty cancel the agreement with you Greeks!"
The leaders hurriedly stopped his horse and apologized repeatedly.
Davos hadn't expected that this meeting was Clearchus's request. He didn't care about anything else and said urgently: "Even if we are going to meet, not all the leaders and captains should go to the Persian camp! Haven't we always been wary of the Persians?! Who knows if Tissaphernes's friendliness towards us these past ten days is just to paralyze us?! Have you forgotten his previous acts of betrayal?!"
As soon as Davos finished speaking, Menon jumped out and cursed angrily, venting his resentment of the past ten days: "Bold madman! Shameless liar! You not only deceive the soldiers in the camp, inciting them to oppose me! Now you want to destroy the peace between us and the Persians! Do you want to make it so that no one can go home?! Someone, seize him for me!!"
However, none of the soldiers listened to his orders. First, he only brought two centurions and no other followers; second, some of the soldiers recognized Davos as the "God-Favored One" who had been rumored in Menon's camp for a long time, and were whispering about it.
At first, the leaders were hesitant after hearing Davos's words, but Menon's scolding immediately made them dislike Davos. Although Menon's character was not good, the leaders knew that he was capable after being with him for a long time. An ordinary soldier daring to rebel against the commander was undoubtedly a major taboo for the leaders.
Clearchus had a different idea. He strangely thought that Menon had found a soldier to put on a play here, wanting to disrupt the meeting. Because this meeting had another purpose: Tissaphernes had promised him that he would publicly point out who was colluding with the Persian army and spreading rumors among the mercenaries.
Clearchus had always suspected Menon. Because from the beginning of the march into Persia, Menon had openly competed with him for the command of the Greek mercenaries, and now he had been staying with Arius, who was already close to Tissaphernes, secretly contacting Socrates and Achilles for secret talks, certainly to oppose him. This time, he must expose his villainous face in public, thereby consolidating his command. Because he firmly believed that only he had the ability to bring the army back to Greece intact. This was also why he endured humiliation and negotiated with Persia, even though he hated the Persians. He hated any villain who undermined the unity of the team.
So, he immediately went along with the flow and said: "Since Menon has said so, then take down this clown and send him back to the camp for detention, and we will interrogate him when we return!"
He looked around and said decisively: "Now I am going to negotiate with Tissaphernes! Those who trust me will come with me, and those who don't trust me can go back!" After speaking, several soldiers went over and pinned Davos down. Antonios stepped forward to stop them, but was also taken down.
Clearchus strode forward to the north. Proxenus and the others hesitated for a moment, then followed closely. Menon spat a mouthful of thick phlegm on Davos's face and cursed triumphantly: "You're dead when I get back!!", and then walked forward laughing. Most of the soldiers also followed their leaders forward, with only a few soldiers who had heard of Davos's "miracles" staying where they were.
Davos had no heart to argue with Menon at this moment. He was pressed to the ground and ate a mouthful of dirt. He struggled, cursing loudly in the direction where the leaders were leaving: "Clearchus, you idiot! Your stubbornness will not only harm yourself, but also the entire army! You will regret it! Oh right, you definitely won't have time to regret it by then!…"
However, his scolding did not bring Clearchus back. The figures of the leaders became further and further away, more and more blurred. Finally, Davos quieted down and sat down on the ground dejectedly. Before, he had thought that Clearchus was a "famous general" and should have a clear mind, but he didn't expect him to be so stubborn and unwilling to listen to any advice. In fact, Davos didn't know that most Spartan men were conservative and stubborn in character. Once they made up their minds, they would often not turn back until they hit a wall. The most famous example was before the Battle of Plataea in the Greco-Persian War, when the commander of the Greek Allied forces ordered the troops to retreat, but a Spartan general believed that retreating in front of the enemy was against Spartan tradition and refused to retreat after many persuasions, causing the Spartan army to lag behind the rest of the army, almost leading to the failure of the battle.
The advancing team continued to advance, and the soldiers escorting Davos pushed him back. Those soldiers who stayed behind instead came forward to introduce themselves and comfort Davos.
At this time, Antonios had time to ask: "Davos, are the leaders really in danger?"
"What good result will come from a sheep negotiating with a wolf!" Davos sighed. Such scams are countless in ancient and modern history. The reason why Tissaphernes's plan was able to succeed was mainly because Clearchus and the others had illusions about peace talks, and the trust of others in Clearchus outweighed their concern for their own safety. My influence is still not enough!
"What should we do?" Antonios panicked a little.
What to do? Of course, save ourselves!! Davos suddenly thought of Xenophon. Why did he boast in his book that he led the retreat? It turned out to be because of this - more than twenty mercenary leaders and captains were slaughtered, and the entire Greek mercenary leadership was facing a reshuffle!!
Thinking of this, he threw away his frustration and regained his spirits: "Quick! Let's go back quickly!"
… … … … … … … … … …
Along the way, Menon added fuel to the fire, telling Proxenus and the others about Davos's "bad deeds", successfully arousing their anger and secretly rejoicing: This time, I can finally completely get rid of this big trouble!
Before reaching the Persian camp, most of the soldiers who were going to the market to buy supplies said goodbye to the leaders.
Entering the Persian camp, the scene that Clearchus saw was no different from what he saw when he left here yesterday. There were even some Persian soldiers leisurely looking at them curiously, talking to each other about things like "Why are so many Greek barbarians coming to our camp?", which instead put Clearchus and the others at ease.
When they arrived at Tissaphernes's tent, Systas went in to report and came out to say: "The five leaders, please come in, the others wait outside the tent for now!"
Clearchus was the first to enter. The light inside the tent was dim. He narrowed his eyes slightly and found that there were many people in the tent. He was shocked and before he could react, he heard a loud shout: "Seize them!!"
From both sides, over twenty strong men rushed out, pinning Clearchus and the four leaders to the ground and immediately binding them with ropes.
The officers and soldiers waiting outside the gate were also surrounded by fully armed Persians, who wielded sharp blades, spears, and large shields, cutting down the unarmed Greeks one by one.
"Congratulations, Governor! Your plan has succeeded!"Wanton laughter echoed within the tent.
The candles were lit, restoring the light.
Clearchus saw Tissaphernes, Orontes, and Sisines in the center of the tent, laughing triumphantly, his eyes wide with anger: "Tissaphernes, you despicable and shameless villain! You deceived us with lies, slaughtered my soldiers, and violated the oath you swore to your supreme god Ahura Mazda when we signed the agreement! Are you not afraid of divine wrath?! Are you not afraid of your king being reviled by all?! Are you not afraid of disaster befalling your family?!..."
"Heh heh heh..." Tissaphernes said with a smile, took a glass of wine from a servant, sipped it slowly, walked to the mercenary leaders, and then slowly said: "Clearchus, let me tell you. Our great king returned to Persepolis the day after Cyrus the Younger died. Of course, he never issued any instructions to 'negotiate peace with you.' That was all a lie I made up to deceive you... As for whether the gods will punish me, you don't need to worry about that. I don't think they will!" He emphasized: "Mazda above will reward me for capturing and killing a group of barbarians who invaded Persian territory and slaughtered Persian citizens!... Oh, I'll also tell you something: those rumors were spread by my men!"
Seeing the astonished expression on Clearchus's face, he happily drank the wine in his glass.
Proxenos spat at him fiercely, but he dodged it nimbly.
"Liar! Coward..." Proxenos cursed loudly.
Tissaphernes was not angry at all, but said triumphantly: "Liar?! Lying?! No, no, no! I prefer to call it wisdom! Unlike you Greek barbarians who only know how to be brave and fight fiercely, we Persians prefer to use our brains to find solutions, to exchange a smaller cost for a greater victory! Just like when I initially negotiated peace with you, to lull you into a false sense of security. Of course, I knew that you would still be vigilant, but once you get used to this peaceful and stable state, you don't want to go back to the previous tension and hostility. You want to work hard to maintain peace. Therefore, I deliberately sent soldiers to clash with the mercenaries, scolding, fighting... and then spreading rumors. You won't suspect me, who would you suspect?"
Tissaphernes's gaze swept over the captured leaders, and he said mockingly: "Let me guess, it's Menon, right?! You see, I know all about your internal dirty tricks! And I also know that Clearchus, you are a very responsible leader. The more intense the conflict between the two armies, the more worried you will be, and you will take the initiative to come to me for negotiations! Look, you not only came to my door, but also gave me a great gift!..."
"Kill me if you want to, stop talking nonsense!" Clearchus roared, his face flushed.
"Lord Tissaphernes, spare me! Please spare my life!!..." Menon struggled and pleaded: "Even if you make me your slave, as long as you spare me! I will persuade those foolish mercenaries to surrender to you! I can also conquer Asia Minor for you! I am willing to do anything for you, just to beg you to spare my life!!..."
"Anything?" Tissaphernes squinted his eyes, seemingly intrigued: "First, bark like a dog a few times."
"Woof woof woof!..." Menon really barked energetically.
"Look, this is the barbarian Greek!" The Persians in the tent were all overjoyed.
"Menon, shut your mouth!..." Clearchus and the others were ashamed and scolded Menon.
Menon turned a deaf ear, simply knelt on the ground, and looked at Tissaphernes flatteringly.
"Very good! Very good!!..." Tissaphernes clapped his hands with a smile and walked towards Menon.
Menon squatted on the ground with his hands tied behind his back, sticking out his tongue, and barking even more happily.
Tissaphernes walked up to him, gave him a sly smile, quickly drew his sword, and slashed down hard at Menon's neck.
Amidst the screams of the crowd, blood spurted out, and Menon's head, rolling on the ground, still had an expression of disbelief frozen on it.
"Fool! Do you think I don't know that you desperately attacked me in front of Cyrus the Younger, and even took the initiative to lead troops to attack my mansion!" Tissaphernes stepped on Menon's head with his left foot, his face covered with splatters of blood, he was as cold as a god of death.
The four leaders stared blankly at the headless corpse on the ground. Even Clearchus, who had always had grudges with Menon, had grief on his face, a sense of sorrow for the rabbit that died for the fox.
"Have this head tanned and sent to Persepolis immediately along with these four criminals, for His Majesty to judge personally!" Tissaphernes ordered.
After the four leaders were escorted out, Socrates regretted and lamented: "If only I had listened to that young man on the road!..."
Clearchus was expressionless and said nothing.
.........
"Lord, Ariaios requests an audience!"
"Let him in."
Ariaios walked into the tent, saw the shocking pool of blood on the ground, slowed his pace, and heard Tissaphernes say: "That's Menon's blood. I just chopped off his head with a sword!"
"Rashnu above (the god of judging good and evil in Persian mythology), this is the punishment he deserves!" Ariaios said hastily, seeing Tissaphernes's playful smile, he quickly added: "Governor, I have followed your orders and sent cavalry to ambush all the Greeks wandering outside the camp."
"Very good, I will report your achievements to His Majesty!" Tissaphernes understood that he needed to both deter and win over the troops of Cyrus the Younger. After all, that was nearly ten thousand soldiers, and he would still have to rely on these local Persian nobles when he returned to Asia Minor.
"Now that the main leaders of the Greek mercenaries have been captured, the foolish Greeks are probably panicking and don't know what to do. You and Sisines go to the Greek camp and try to persuade these Greeks to surrender..."
......................
Antonius hoped that the soldiers would escort Davos to Menon's camp, because once there, no one would dare to touch Davos again.
Davos refused. He complied with the soldiers' request and went to Clearchus's camp, because it was the vanguard and therefore located furthest north, close to the Persians, so he could get news as soon as possible. He asked Hilos to call Xenophon, and at the same time asked Antonius to return to Menon's camp to prepare for defense. Then he thought of something, pulled Matonis aside, and whispered something to him. Matonis looked at him in surprise, and finally nodded.
Watching Hilos and the others leave, Davos suppressed the tension in his heart and walked towards Clearchus's camp. The soldier escorting him couldn't help but ask: "Is Clearchus really in danger?"
Davos asked: "When Clearchus is not around, who is in charge of your camp?"
"Timason, the captain of the First Company."
"Then you better go and tell him to prepare for defense." As Davos was speaking, the guard of the camp pointed to the front and shouted in astonishment: "Look, Persian cavalry!!"
Davos and the soldiers collectively looked back and saw countless Persian cavalry galloping back and forth a hundred meters in front of the camp, stirring up sand and dust all over the sky. From time to time, screams came from the diffuse dust.
"This is..." The soldiers looked at Davos nervously.
Although the guess was confirmed, Davos did not feel a trace of joy: war was finally coming! He also felt tension in his heart.
"Quick! Quick, return to the camp!" He called the accompanying soldiers to quickly enter the camp and close the camp gate.
At this moment, a soldier emerged from the dust in front, clutching his bleeding abdomen with one hand, staggering over.
The guards and Davos quickly greeted him and helped him back to the camp.
"I... we were on the way to the market... Persian cavalry... suddenly rushed towards us... many brothers died... Achilles... go and notify Achilles... there's danger..." The wounded soldier said weakly.
Davos saw that his abdominal wound was huge, and even the intestines inside could be seen. He knew that there was little hope of survival, but he couldn't bear to give up. He said to the soldiers beside him, "Quickly send him to the medical camp of Menon's army. Just say that Davos sent him."
"Medical camp?"
"Oh, I know!" someone replied, so the soldiers carried the wounded soldier, preparing to pass through Clearchus's camp and head south. The others looked at Davos, at a loss.
Davos anxiously said to them, "Quickly notify the garrison officers of each camp, and tell them that the Persians have broken their promise and massacred the Greek soldiers. The leaders who went to the meeting have probably been captured by the Persians. Tell them to gather the soldiers and prepare for battle!"
The soldiers immediately ran towards their respective camps.
"Davos, what happened?!" At this moment, Xenophon arrived at the camp gate.
Davos quickly and briefly told him what had happened.
Xenophon looked dim, his eyes full of regret: "I also advised Proxenus before, but he didn't listen, and I didn't insist… Alas, in that case, Proxenus, I'm afraid…" Xenophon's trembling voice choked up a little.
Davos nodded silently.
Xenophon looked at the Persian cavalry galloping in front of him and said loudly, "We should immediately summon the entire army! Attack the Persian camp and rescue Proxenus and the others!"
"That's not a good idea!" Accompanied by the voice, a strong middle-aged man walked over: "Although the soldiers have fought with the Persians many times before, we have been living in peace with them during this time. Now you suddenly want to go to war with the Persians, it will be difficult for the soldiers to accept it for a while, let alone besiege the Persian camp."
"At least we should drive away the Persian cavalry in front, maybe we can still rescue some of the soldiers who went out!" Davos reminded.
The man glanced at him and asked, "Who are you?"
"Davos, a soldier from Menon's camp."
"What to do is the business of the officers, no need for a soldier to guide!" the man scolded angrily.
Davos wisely stopped talking.
"Xenophon, go back to your camp immediately and notify Agasias to bring troops over immediately," he ordered Xenophon again.
Xenophon responded and turned to go back. Davos immediately followed him and only learned from Xenophon that this man was Timasoon, Clearchus's adjutant.
The assembly speed of Clearchus's camp was very slow. The soldiers came out of the tents one by one slowly, chatting with each other while putting on their armor. Obviously, they didn't know the danger they were facing. Timasoon was so anxious that he went forward and beat and scolded them, and finally gathered about five hundred soldiers.
Before Davos and Xenophon had left Clearchus's camp, the officers from other camps had also arrived with a small number of soldiers. They were: Cleanor from Agias's camp, Xanthippus from Socrates's camp, Agasias from Proxenus's camp… The most people came from Menon's camp: Adjutant Philesius, Centurion Antonius, Cappus, etc., and of course, the Xilos squad was also among the soldiers. Their arrival gave Davos confidence.
After everyone converged, some officers still didn't know what had happened. Several centurions from Menon's camp, led by Antonius, demanded in unison that Davos be allowed to tell the situation, on the grounds that he had witnessed the entire process.
Some officers, led by Timasoon, were very surprised: Davos was just an ordinary young soldier, why did the officers of the Menon camp all show him so much respect?
Some people curiously looked at Davos, because some of the soldiers who went back to deliver the message had vigorously publicized: Davos, the favored one of the god from Menon's camp, prevented Clearchus and the others from going to the Persian camp for talks. The leaders did not listen to the "divine oracle" and suffered disaster as a result. Soon it became known to everyone.
So, facing the complex gazes of the crowd, Davos calmly and briefly explained the process.
The officers quickly reached a consensus: immediately drive away the Persian cavalry in front of the camp,
so that the soldiers who went out could return smoothly.
The soldiers began to form a formation, and Davos returned to the Xilos squad. At this time, Antonius shouted loudly at the front of the formation: "Davos, come forward!"
Davos was stunned.
Then, Cappus also started shouting.
"Go ahead," Xilos encouraged, gently pushing him. His teammates looked at him excitedly.
Davos understood. His heart beat faster, but he didn't decline. He struggled to squeeze forward, and the soldiers took the initiative to make way for him.
"Your position is here," Antonius pulled him to the left side of Philesius—this was the front of Menon's army, and said to him seriously: "We may have to negotiate with the Persians later, and we need your guidance!"
Antonius said to Philesius again: "Philesius, take good care of him for us!"
Philesius replied without hesitation: "Leave it to me with confidence!"
Standing in the position of the commander of the phalanx for the first time, Davos was both excited and a little unnatural. He turned his head to look at Philesius, who was also looking at him and gave him a gentle smile.
Previously, Davos had had several contacts with Philesius, and learned some things about him from Antonius and others. Davos had a preliminary impression of Philesius: this forty-five-year-old Thessalian was an expert in military affairs and didn't like to compete for fame and fortune. Thinking about it, one can understand that Menon, who had extremely strong control desires, would certainly not choose someone with the same ambition to be his adjutant. You must know that he often went out to make friends with Persian dignitaries and accept some employment tasks. Someone had to preside over and deal with the affairs in the military camp. Over time, there was a risk that the soldiers would only recognize the adjutant and not him. Therefore, the good-tempered Philesius was the adjutant he carefully selected. At this moment, it undoubtedly benefited Davos, because Philesius did not have any objection to the young him standing in the position of commander, and his attitude was also very friendly.
The Greek mercenaries lined up in front of the camp consisted of about seven hundred heavy infantry and two hundred light infantry. The heavy infantry were in the front and the light infantry were in the back. As the bugle sounded, the phalanx began to slowly advance. The Persian cavalry did not press forward, but retreated backward. The sound of fighting gradually subsided, and the dust and mist in front gradually dissipated. From time to time, Greek soldiers covered in dust ran back to the camp in a panic, but more were comrades in arms groaning and corpses on the ground. The soldiers' sadness and fear were increasing.
"The enemy is coming," Philesius said in a low voice.
A Persian team appeared in front of them, walking slowly towards them. Davos felt both nervous and excited: Could it be that his first battle was about to begin?
When the two armies were about two hundred meters apart, a team of cavalry rushed out from the opposite side and shouted in Greek in front of the Greek army: "Greeks on the opposite side, listen, let your generals and captains come forward and listen to me read out the king's decree!"
There was a commotion in the Greek phalanx, and the officers whispered to each other, but no one came forward. The tragic situation of the soldiers who had just been attacked had left too deep an impression on them, and the Persians' previous breach of promise was alarming.
The Persians shouted again, but the Greek army remained calm.
At this moment, a person walked out of the army, holding a bronze shield and a spear, walking forward unhurriedly.
"Who is that?! He's so brave!!"
"That's Davos from our camp! The favored one of Hades, the god of the underworld!"
"Is it true?"
"Oh, he's so young!!"
… …
The soldiers from each camp were curiously discussing. While the officers were still hesitating, Philesius chased after him, as he had promised Antonius and the others to ensure Davos's safety. Then Xenophon also walked out of the army. The young Davos dared to go forward, so how could he lag behind.
"This is too reckless!" Timasoon cursed, to cover up his embarrassment, and strode forward. Subsequently, Xanthippus, Cleanor, Agasias and more than a dozen other officers also stepped forward.
The reason why Davos did this was not because he was not afraid of the Persian cavalry's attack, but because he knew that when the mercenary army was facing a disaster and the soldiers were panicking, only those who dared to take risks and dare to take responsibility could be supported by the soldiers, and even forget his youth and lack of experience.
He didn't walk fast, always observing the sides with the corner of his eye. Seeing that the other officers had caught up, he breathed a slight sigh of relief, and then realized that his hands holding the weapon were full of sweat.
As they approached the Persian cavalry, Pheryllus told Davos that the leading Persians were Ariaeus, Artauzus, and Mithradates, the three most trusted subordinates of Cyrus the Younger during his lifetime. Another Persian in the center was Sisythras, whom Davos recognized as the previous Persian envoy.
The company officers stopped about twenty meters from the Persian cavalry.
"Please come closer!" Ariaeus pointed to the front of his horse.
The officers didn't move.
Sisythras couldn't help but mock, "Are all Greeks so timid?"
"Because the Persians have repeatedly broken their promises, we no longer dare to trust them!" Xenophon retorted.
"Yes, Persians are shameless villains who can even deceive the gods!" Clearchus angrily cursed, his words resonating with the other officers, and a chorus of curses erupted.
"Please be quiet! Listen carefully to the Great King's command!" Ariaeus shouted.
"That's your Great King, not ours. If you have something to say, say it. If not, we'll go back!" Davos also shouted.
"We Greeks are free, unlike the Persians who are all slaves to your king!" Timasion roared, half proud and half mocking.
Ariaeus was so angry that his nose twitched. He turned to look at Sisythras, who nodded at him, and he reluctantly unfolded the papyrus in his hand and read aloud: "To all you Greeks, I, Artaxerxes, Lord of the Persians, King of Kings, declare that Clearchus has violated his oath and broken the truce. The gods have already punished him. Proxenus, Menon, Agias, and Socrates, the four leaders, are receiving high honors from my satrap Tissaphernes for reporting his conspiracy! To prevent such terrible betrayals from happening again on the journey, and for safety—"
Ariaeus raised his voice and said solemnly, "I demand that all Greek soldiers surrender your weapons, because the money to buy these weapons came from the rebel Cyrus the Younger, and his wealth came from the Persian treasury, which originally belonged to me! Surrender your weapons, and I swear to the supreme god Mazda that I will guarantee your safe passage to Ionia!"
"Hahaha!!..." Davos burst out laughing: "The wolf tricked the deer into being friends, and then ate them. Having tasted the benefits, the wolf wants to trick all the deer into breaking off their antlers so that the wolf can enjoy their meat without worry! Hahaha... How stupid would someone have to be to fall for such a trick again, or has your king gone mad?!"
"Audacious!" Ariaeus pointed at Davos angrily: "Insulting the Great King is punishable by burning at the stake!"
"Enough, Ariaeus, you shameless villain! And you, the closest comrades of Cyrus the Younger, don't you feel ashamed before the gods!" Clearchus pointed at Ariaeus, Artauzus, and Mithradates, and rebuked them: "You once swore an oath with us before the gods to be allies and resist the Persian king, but now you betray us and cooperate with Tissaphernes, that inhuman scoundrel, not only deceiving Clearchus and the others, but also attempting to sell out the rest of us! Even in hell, Cyrus the Younger would curse you for your actions!"
Ariaeus shrank his neck unnaturally and subconsciously glanced at Sisythras beside him. Sisythras looked indifferent, forcing him to say again: "The Great King sincerely wants to send you home safely, because the rebel—Cyrus the Younger—has received the most just punishment, and you were only deceived by him! The Great King is merciful and does not want the land of Persia to suffer unnecessary wars! However, after Proxenus and the others reported it, Clearchus began plotting against Lord Tissaphernes and the Persian army more than ten days ago, and spread rumors everywhere, trying to alienate the relationship between the Greeks and the Persians. We had no choice but to take action against him!"
"Since you say that Proxenus and the others exposed Clearchus and received your rewards,
then please let them come here, so that we can naturally resolve the suspicion between us, and as leaders, they can also offer better suggestions for the reconciliation between us!" Xenophon was still making efforts to rescue Proxenus.
"That's right, let our leaders come here, and we will believe you!!" The officers clamored loudly.
"Uh... Proxenus and the others are attending a banquet hosted by Lord Tissaphernes... They're already drunk... So..." Ariaeus said hesitantly. Sisythras was already a little impatient. He shouted loudly: "The Great King has ordered that you immediately surrender your weapons in order to guarantee your safe return home, otherwise we will no longer provide you with any assistance!"
"Ares be my witness, Greek warriors will never discard their weapons and be slaughtered!" Timasion struck his bronze shield with his spear and roared.
"Whoever wants to take our weapons, we will fight him to the death!" Clearchus shouted angrily.
"Proxenus and the others can't come, not because they're drunk, but because you've already murdered them, right?!" Xenophon also said sadly. He made the outcome so serious because he wanted to force Ariaeus and the others to tell the truth, but he didn't expect it to arouse the anger of the officers.
"The Persians want to kill us all!"
"Avenge the leaders!"
…
The enraged officers surrounded Ariaeus and the others. Seeing that the situation was not good, Sisythras turned his horse around and ran, followed by Ariaeus and the others. After running for a while, Sisythras looked back and saw that he had distanced himself from the Greeks. Remembering that he was a noble Persian aristocrat and a relative of the royal family, he was ashamed and angry that he had been scared away by a group of Greek barbarians, so he shouted sharply: "Greeks, you have missed the best opportunity, and you will soon regret it!!"
"We'll see who regrets it then!" Xenophon replied sternly.
Watching the Persian cavalry leave, everyone was worried. It was certain that the mercenary leaders would not have a good end, and the Persians had already torn off their masks. What should they do now?
Surrender to the Persians? Even Cyrus the Younger, the Persian king's own brother, had been cruelly beheaded and his hands cut off. Most of the officers did not think that their fate after surrendering would be any better! They would either be killed or become slaves. The officers could not accept this choice, nor would they.
Apart from that, they could only choose to fight the Persians again in this unfamiliar land! Now, led by the Persians, they were on a marching route they had never taken before, tens of thousands of miles away from their homeland. Without the help of the Persians, they could only grope forward, not knowing how many hostile races and towns they would face, and they also had to guard against attacks from the Persian army. The most distressing thing was that the Persians could not defeat them in direct combat, but they could not catch up with the Persians either, and once they failed, the entire army could be wiped out. Because of these difficulties, everyone was depressed and didn't know what to do. When they left the camp, the soldiers were still somewhat spirited, but when they returned to the camp, everyone sighed and looked worried.
Back in the camp, when the officers in charge of each company gathered again, Davos naturally followed Pheryllus and participated in the discussion. Of course, as a newcomer, he rarely spoke, and observed the officers more. In the heated debates, they easily exposed their personalities: the hot-tempered Timasion, the shrewd Clearchus, the cautious Xanthippus, Agias who had a good relationship with the other officers...
Xenophon was much more active. He not only had heated arguments with others many times, but also excitedly shouted: "Everyone, Clearchus and the others have been captured by the Persians. We must immediately elect new leaders for each company to replace them, and then convene a general assembly of the entire army to re-establish the soldiers' determination to fight the Persians and the confidence that we must rely on ourselves to return home. Otherwise, if we let this chaos continue, we will be finished before the Persians attack!"
Davos thought that Xenophon was right. Although he was just starting out in military affairs, he had been a village official and a Supervisor of a high-tech development zone in his previous life, and he had managed far more than these ten thousand soldiers. Therefore, he knew the importance of unified thinking and boosting confidence for a group.
Timasion seemed to be somewhat disgusted with Xenophon's excessive publicity. He didn't look at Xenophon at all, and turned to say to the others: "Don't worry, Chirisophus will be back soon!"