Dancing With the Wolf

Just as Davos was preparing for his war hospital, the Persian envoy came to the Greek camp. The envoy this time was none other than the Persian general that the leaders were most familiar with, Tissaphernes, the governor of Asia Minor, who had brought the hope that the Greeks could return home safely, and was willing to convey to the Persian king that the leaders did not want to fight and only wanted to go home.

The leaders gladly received him.

After Tissaphernes left, the mercenary leaders, seeing that there was hope for a peaceful resolution, eagerly waited for him to come again.

After waiting anxiously for two days, Tissaphernes once again came to the Greek camp and read the latest decree of the Persian king to the leaders: The king has accepted the apology of the mercenaries, and although many ministers opposed it, he still decided to let Tissaphernes lead the Greek mercenaries back to Greece, and agreed to provide a market for the Greeks on the way to solve their food supply. At the same time, the Greeks must abide by the local order along the way and must not destroy or rob…

Of course, the leaders couldn't ask for more. They soon reached an agreement with Tissaphernes, and both sides made an oath in the name of God. Then, Tissaphernes told the leaders to wait patiently, because he wanted to report to the king and make arrangements for the return of the army.

Not long after Tissaphernes left, the news spread throughout the camp, and the soldiers cheered.

Davos still did not relax his vigilance. Although the last time he heard the words of Xenophon, it made him realize that the actual situation of Persia is quite different from his speculation based on Chinese history.

Just yesterday, Xenophon came to visit again, and after a few days of buffering, he finally adjusted his mood and wanted to talk to Davos about the democratic system of the city-state. However, Davos did not want to continue pestering him on this issue, and instead cleverly led the topic to the local customs of the Greek city-states.

Most of the time, it was Xenophon who was talking non-stop, and Davos listened carefully. During this time, Davos asked Tissaphernes, and so Xenophon said some things about Tissaphernes that he had heard from Proxenus, which made Davos remember it deeply.

When Tissaphernes became the governor of Asia Minor, it was the time of the Peloponnesian War. Tissaphernes chose to ally with Sparta because he wanted to use the power of Sparta to attack Athens and restore Persian rule over the Greek city-states on the coast of Eonia. What Sparta got in return was that he wanted to fund Sparta in building a huge fleet that was enough to fight Athens. As a result, it wasn't long before he stopped the financial support promised by Sparta, which made the Spartans protest Darius II, the Persian king at that time. Only then did Darius appoint his second son, Cyrus the Younger, as the military commander of the whole of western Persia, to fully support Sparta against Athens.

Tissaphernes was relieved of his military power, but he didn't seem to care. He got along well with Cyrus the Younger and soon became a friend of Cyrus the Younger. When Artaxerxes, the new king, ascended the throne and Cyrus the Younger went to the capital to participate in his elder brother's inauguration ceremony, Tissaphernes informed the new king that Cyrus the Younger wanted to rebel, which led to Cyrus the Younger being arrested. The queen repeatedly pleaded for his release.

After Tissaphernes returned to Asia Minor, he began to go against Cyrus the Younger everywhere. Therefore, when Cyrus the Younger started his rebellion, the first person he wanted to capture was him, but he had already fled and then appeared in the king's crusade army. When the left wing of the king's army was destroyed by the Greek hoplites, Tissaphernes dared to lead his cavalry to bypass the hoplites and attack the rear of the Greek army. Although he failed, his courage and decision in a group of defeated soldiers naturally made him stand out, so he could represent the king and negotiate with the Greek army as an envoy of Persia, which was a compliment from the king.

What Davos heard about Tissaphernes was what Xenophon heard from Proxenus, while Proxenus mostly got the information from Cyrus the Younger. No matter how good or bad he is to Tissaphernes, the truth is the truth. Therefore, after analysis, Davos thought that Tissaphernes was a typical politician, and was used to being two-faced, good at judging the situation, and daring to seize the opportunity. It would be very difficult for such a person to expect him to keep his promise!

When Davos told Xenophon about this concern, Xenophon sighed and said, "Proxenus and the others are very clear that they won't let down their guard against Tissaphernes, but if we don't give up fighting the Persian king, we may not be able to go home. Just the Euphrates and Tigris rivers can cause us a lot of trouble, and we won't be able to cross such a wide river in front of the enemy. The other big problem is that we don't have enough food. Once we" collect" food, the scattered soldiers will easily be attacked by the enemy…

You see, the Persian king has such a huge advantage. If he wants to destroy us, then there is no need for him to give us food and let Tissaphernes swear on behalf of God. Because once he breaks his promise in the future, not only will he be ridiculed by the Persians and Greeks, but he will also be abandoned by the gods of Persia. Does he want to become a king without faith as soon as he ascended the throne? Therefore, we can only trust them, and only by working with them can we ensure our safe return home!"

Davos could see that Xenophon's words were more like convincing himself, and he also sighed secretly, 'The Greek mercenaries are in a weak position, so even if the other party gave them "poison", they had to swallow it.'

…

As the days passed, Davos' field hospital had begun to take shape. The twelve wounded were carefully cared for and treated, and seven of them had a clear improvement.

For the rest of the time, Davos learned Greek from Xenophon and entrusted Mersisch, who had gone out to buy, to bring back a few linen cloths, cut them into thin strips, and began experimenting on how to tie his legs. At the same time, he pulled his teammates to practice with him and learn fighting skills, so that his consciousness and physical memory can be unified.

Due to the recovery of Asistes and the admonition of Menon, his relationship with Antonios became intimate. He visited Antonios many times and asked him about the formation and commanding experience of the hoplites… To understand the usage of the long-handled reverse sword, he also learned from the light shield soldiers and deeply understood the characteristics of this unit.

The success of the field hospital had made Davos'reputation as "God's Favored" to be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and his modesty and learning had also won the favor of everyone. As his footsteps spread throughout the whole Menon camp, almost everyone knew him.

As time passed day by day, the Persians did not appear, and their uneasiness and suspicion gradually enveloped the whole Greek camp. Davos used his busy days to dilute the worries in his heart and was unable to change the plight of the Greek mercenaries, so he could only change himself as much as possible and enrich himself.

…

After more than 20 days of long waiting, Tissaphernes finally led his army, and together with him was the governor of Ameria, Orontes, and his army.

The Greek mercenary leaders, who had been waiting anxiously for a long time, led their troops and embarked on the return journey with them without any doubt.

But at the beginning of the march, the situation changed. The army of Ariaeus, who was originally warm and intimate with the Greek mercenaries, began to walk together with the Persian army, not only marching together but also camping together. In the past 20 days, the Persians had not been idle. They kept sending the relatives and friends of Ariaeus and the other officers to the camp of Ariaeus and made a promise not to pursue their crime, which finally convinced the officers of Cyrus the Younger.

This undoubtedly increased the suspicion of the Greek mercenaries. They followed far behind the Persian troops and acted alone, with their guides. When they set up camp at dusk, the Greek troops and the Persians were 5 kilometers away from each other, and they set up sentry posts as if they were dealing with the enemy.

Tissaphernes did fulfil his promise and provided the market for the Greeks every day. Of course, the mercenaries had to pay for it themselves.

Meno had also wanted to give less food to Hielos'squad to take revenge on Davos, but he was opposed by Mersis. Previously, Mersis was very reluctant to let Davos take away two Egyptian slaves.

Unexpectedly, not long after, Davos gave him a Chinese massage with a trained Egyptian slave. As a result, he became addicted and went to the hospital every day to ask for a massage, and even shamelessly said that it was to pay off his debt to the slaves that he owed him. He was still hoping that after he returned to Greece, he would let Davos teach him this unique method to buy * *, and his brothel would be crowded. Therefore, not only will he not offend Davos, but he will also try to satisfy most of his requirements.