Chapter 25 Cooperation (Part 2)
"Little Nicole doesn't need a father, and neither do the women of our Amazon tribe." Helenputina put on her visor, then rode her white horse back into the depths of the jungle.
Seeing the queen's attitude, Ella also shook her head, and had no choice but to follow her and leave with El Capa.
Follow the cavalry! This was the order given by Calabis after a successful surprise attack and the burning of the Takshile baggage camp. He also put on his trousers and lay on a relatively docile big mule. A cavalryman led the mule with a rope. Calabis led the battalion officer into a run and rode the donkey. At this moment, he realized how cute the slow trotting little donkey was. This poor makeshift harness and this furiously running animal were simply too cute. His whole body, especially his butt and thighs, were in great torture. No wonder most of the dismounted cavalry were bow-legged. He couldn't help but admire from the bottom of his heart the cavalry of this era who didn't even have stirrups.
At the intersection, this group of people suddenly divided into three teams and rushed out in scattered directions. The goal was to meet up with the main column of Hebrida. Each cavalry leader who led the team had a wooden board with a map hanging on his belt. They also all brought with them a tax collector who was responsible for guiding them. Before that, Calabis had marked the route of dispersal and retreat, and handed it over to the tax collector and the cavalry leader. The three teams had dispersion points, small assembly points, and then large assembly points. Then they rushed along the mountains. The main column led by Shanghai Breda.
Along the way, there were only sporadic Pontic cavalry squads, most of which were on raiding and patrolling missions. They were quickly dispersed and driven away. The cavalry leader of Calabis's team stopped them in front of a wasteland. He got off his horse and waved the flame flag behind him, and then the tax collector gasped. At this time, the sky became gloomy again, the sun disappeared, and the snowflakes gradually became denser and sharper. "Which way?" Riding on the mule horse, he was being led. The tax collector pointed weakly, then leaned on the saddle and remained motionless.
Snowflakes and ice particles swept across Karabis's face, and everyone's mounts spewed large clouds of smoke from their mouths. Their armors and helmets were covered with thick six-pointed ice crystals. As they continued to run forward, some people accidentally fell off their mules and horses, and their companions pushed them up again. It was not until they saw the gray mountains stretching across the snow that they breathed a sigh of relief.
Towards evening, the three groups of troops caught up with the main column of the Thirteenth Army one after another. The losses were very small. This was the result of the retreat route being marked in advance and the army commander's effective organization. In the wind and snow, the main column sent out security troops all around, and the remaining soldiers and military slaves were quickly building temporary camps using wooden fences that had been fixed in advance.
In the tent, under the dim firelight, Calabis and Arminius were wrapped in a blanket, their feet covered with melted snow. They looked at the brazier with dull eyes. They trembled for a long time and could not say a word. The complete story.
Seeing that some of them couldn't come up with words, Heibrida spoke directly: "Our advantage over Taksil has been established. We have burned all their grain and plundered their money. We have also stolen all their money." Now they are just a group of wretches on cattle - the next step is to block this Pontic cavalry team before Taxilus retreats from Khersones, and they have to march in the snow. "
Calabis's eyes were fixed on Highbrida, still "trembling" there. Finally, with great effort, he nodded, and then pointed to a group of tax collectors who were also trembling there. Understanding, he shouted to the group of tax collectors: "Our legion wants to collect your taxes." The tax collectors rubbed their ears, indicating that they did not understand the Roman slang of Hebrida. A soldier who was proficient in Greek spoke Hebrida's words were conveyed to them.
This group of people shook their heads wildly, expressing their resolute disobedience. One of them seemed to be the tax chief. He also winked at the Bosphorus clan chief who came to attend. The clan chief cleared his throat and said to the Romans. Explained: "The envoys from the city of Ponticabion have just arrived, and the Pontic army has crossed the strait with ships and approached the Acropolis. Therefore, we have to give up attacking Taksil and rush back to support the Acropolis."
Hearing this, Calabis trembled even more, but his eyes were obviously bloodshot, an angry bloodshot. He stood up tremblingly, holding up the gilded baton he had received at Ponticabion. , suddenly slapped the head of the tax collector who was winking. The other person covered the head of the club with his hand, and then crawled all over the ground.
Several centurions immediately blocked the exit of the camp, drew their fighting swords, and looked fierce. Seeing this, the Bosphorus clan leaders stretched out their hands to show that they had no intention of resisting the internal strife. "I have long said that we will defend the Acropolis with all our strength and dig trenches to prevent the Pontic people from breaking through the strait. Swish, Malcha didn't listen. As a result, he came to help you group of tax collectors. Our legion, Swish, has become a tax protection team. Although you contributed to drawing the map, these taxes, including the looting of Pontic's supply camp, now I declare that all belong to the Roman legions." In anger, the words Calabis spoke were like ice cubes, Can't be dissolved.
The tax collector who was beaten begged for mercy: "Everything will be done according to the arrangements of the allies!"
As a result, another stick hit him directly on the elbow, causing him to kneel on the ground in pain, twitching, "Your country is not an ally, it is a vassal state!" Calabis threw the gold-plated stick to the ground with a clang, He was about to start drafting a plan to the centurions, but he started to tremble with cold again. There were too many words that he just came up with, so he could only stamp his numb feet and signal Hebrida to dictate.
Hebrida made a gesture: "The city of Chersones is at the top of the southwest corner of the entire peninsula, which is a cape. From now on, we will mobilize and move the camp. We will blockade Takshile between the city and the cape at a rapid march speed, and surround and annihilate them! Now in the army, all taxes and money belong to the legion. Each soldier, including the soldiers in Bosporus, will be issued 100 drachmas, and the slaves who follow the army will be issued 20 drachmas. Carry all the artillery of the brigade, and no baggage may be abandoned."
Camp In the snowstorm, the soldiers opened the money box that should have belonged to the royal governor of Bosphorus, and shiny coins and treasures flowed out of it. All the battalions and servant troops divided the money according to the number of people and stuffed it into their luggage or backpacks one by one. Then the centurions of all the camp teams threw the soldiers' luggage filled with coins into the tents for centralized custody, and said, "Come back to get it when you are victorious in the battle. If you can't come back, use it as pension." This is the most effective way to prevent soldiers from escaping during the march.