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The vicinity of Grunium was peaceful from winter to spring, and the Carthaginians' abundant harvest in Campania last year made it possible to avoid having to hunt for food for a long time, thus reducing much friction with the Romans and the locals. This illusion of peace was uncomfortable for many Carthaginian veterans who had fought for many years, as if they had returned to the beautiful shores of Iberia many years ago. The beautiful Adriatic coastline east of Grunium became a favorite place for Carthaginian soldiers, and despite the strict discipline of the barracks, there were always many soldiers who went out on patrol or reconnaissance to linger between the harbor and the beach in the interval between the battle, and the officers usually turned a blind eye, and most of them were content with the current state, as if they had forgotten that they were still in an enemy country, and the Roman battalion was watching them not far away.
After the ambush in the valley of Forturus, the Romans once again joined forces and built a new fortified camp on the nearby high ground, and then the Carthaginians were tempted and challenged by all means, but they did not come out, and seemed to have given up the courage and confidence to fight again. When summer came, most of the Carthaginian officers and Gallic generals began to despise the Romans from the depths of their hearts, believing that a series of defeats had left them with no courage to attack, and the division of the Roman alliance in the southern Apennines was well underway, with messengers from the various city-states coming and going, and it seemed that it would not be long before the Greek city-states, which had already behaved a little detached from Rome, would fall into the arms of Carthage. Only Hannibal and Monwar were always on high alert, knowing that the Roman monster could not accept defeat so easily, and that it must be secretly sharpening its sharp teeth, ready to strike a fatal blow at them. However, since they had not received any more information from the Romans for a long time, they did not have a detailed understanding of what the enemy was planning, and from some scattered intelligence and scouts' reconnaissance, they could not come up with the final strategy of the other side. The wait became an ordeal, but the Twins were convinced that a great war was coming, but they did not know the timing and scale of it, and the Carthaginians lived happily on the battlefield in Grunium unaware of the impending catastrophe.
On a tree-lined path leading from Rome to Apriria, a fast horse galloped, dressed as a Roman soldier, but judging by its physical features, it was still possible to find a trace of difference from the Latins. A member of Monwar's best intelligence organization, the Shadows, had been on his way to the Carthaginian camp in Gruñum after receiving important information from inside the city outside the walls of Rome. After quietly bypassing several blockades and checkpoints set up by the Romans, the nearly 400-kilometer journey was finally coming to an end, with the destination of Grunium not far ahead. The knight hadn't really closed his eyes for three days and three nights, only paused for a moment while letting the horses eat and rest. Despite his tired face and bloodshot eyes, there was joy in his eyes that he was finally about to live up to his mission, and that Commander Hannibal and the head of intelligence, Monwar, would be alerted to the most important of all.
On the other side of the hill was the Carthaginian camp, and suddenly in front of him appeared several Roman scout cavalry, the Romans who were on routine patrol every day in the nearby Roman camp.
Damn it. The Carthaginian cursed in his heart, he did not expect to encounter an enemy at a distance close to his destination.
I hope I can get by. The informant pinned his hopes on the armor of the Roman soldier he had stolen.
The Roman cavalry had already spotted each other, but they were not overly suspicious when they saw from afar that they were already dressed in a square camp, and they just came towards him curiously. And the intelligence agent also deliberately slowed down the pace, hoping not to let the other party see any flaws in him.
What do you do? The Romans approached, looked each other up and down, and asked strangely.
Rome's urgent documents were to be sent to the consul Geminus. "The informant will not hurry up and say the countermeasures that have been thought of for a long time.
Then why don't you take the road in front to the Roman barracks, but take this path back to the mountains? The Roman scout wasn't an idiot either, and asked with a hint of skepticism.
I'm not familiar with the roads here, so I guess I made a mistake at the fork in the road. The agent replied in a hurry.
The Romans were skeptical, but they couldn't find the other party's suspicions for the time being, so they just kept looking at each other.
Dude, I have an urgent document, can you let me go, if it is late, everyone is responsible. The agent said in a deliberately aggravated tone.
Several scouts glanced at each other after hearing this, and were probably worried that it was really the messenger who delivered the urgent document, so one of them said:
Okay, but it's too close to the Punic camp to be safe, so we'll escort you to the barracks. With that, several cavalrymen surrounded each other in the middle.
The God of Baal is above, what should I do now? The informant was anxious, but with a grateful look on his face, he followed the Roman cavalry in a different direction and headed towards the Roman camp.
After crossing the hill, the majestic Roman military camp was already in front of everyone's eyes, and a few kilometers away was the Carthaginian military camp that the intelligence officers had been thinking about. As they approached the gate of the barracks, several Romans relaxed their vigilance, and as they were announcing the order to the sentry at the gate, the intelligence officer, who had deliberately left behind at the end of the line, suddenly turned his horse's head and galloped away in the direction of the Carthaginian camp, leaving only the Roman cavalry and the confused sentry on the watchtower.
In Rome and the Carthaginian camp ** is an open grassland, several Numidian cavalry are strolling there, just as they are commenting on the beautiful scenery nearby, suddenly found a horse rushing from the direction of the Roman camp, the Roman soldier on the horse is frantically waving the helmet in his hand and shouting at himself, and behind him are several Roman cavalry in the same dress are closely chasing.
What's going on? One of the Numidians asked his companions curiously, and the others looked at each other, but by reflex they were ready for battle.
When the distance was close enough to hear both sides, the man running in front shouted in Phoenician that he was a Carthaginian scout. He didn't know if the Numidians could understand it or not, but now it was a chance to be caught by the Romans, and it would be the most unlucky thing if they were killed by mistake by their own people.
He seems to speak Phoenician. A pointy-eared Numidian said with some hesitation. Being on the same African continent, most Numidians are not unfamiliar with Carthage's native language.
Hell, he's calling for help, it's his own people, go and save him. A Numidian, who looked like a squad leader, finally heard the other party's voice clearly, and immediately urged his war horse to lead his men to meet him.
Several Romans who were chasing saw the Numidian cavalry rushing from the opposite side, and immediately turned their horses in fright and fled, since they came into contact with the cavalry led by Monwar, almost all the Roman cavalry had a natural fear of the Carthaginian cavalry, and would not easily engage them unless they had to. When the Numidians approached the desperate Carthaginian informants, they fell from their horses in exhaustion. The person who looked like the squad leader hurriedly dismounted to check his situation, and the intelligence officer barely opened his eyes, and said in a weak and trembling tone after confirming that the other party was his own person
Important information from Rome, quick, take me to Merlecut. ”
A quarter of an hour later, an emergency meeting was held in the camp of the Carthaginian commander.
The situation is urgent, and we may need to prepare to evacuate this place immediately. Meng Hua said to the generals who came in a hurry.
What happened? Why so suddenly. "Everyone was taken aback.
The Shadows have just worked hard to deliver the latest news, and the Romans are about to launch a powerful offensive beyond our imagination. Hannibal stood up and added, "Now let Monwar analyze the current situation in detail." ”
Monhua walked up to the map hanging in the Great Tent**, pointed to the location of Rome and said: "Just a quarter of an hour ago, our patrols outside the camp rescued an intelligence officer who called himself 'Shadow' from the hands of the Roman pursuers, and according to our confirmation, he was the person whose 'Shadow' was located outside the city of Rome and was responsible for receiving and transmitting information. According to him, our intelligence network has been dealt a serious blow to the recent intensification of counter-espionage activities by the Romans, including the capture and execution of 25 insiders and one spy officer. After Meng Hua finished speaking, all the generals looked at each other, no wonder they had not received news about Rome for a long time, it turned out that this happened.
Meng Hua then pointed his finger in the direction of Apulia and said
Now, judging by the news that has come out of the Shadows, the Romans have formed several new legions at the beginning of the new year. Four of these new legions will soon be sent to Apulia, and their purpose is to encircle and destroy us with the Roman forces that are watching over us, and each legion will be expanded to more than 10,000 men, and the total number of Roman troops against us will be 8The scale is more than 70,000 people. Moreover, the Adriatic Sea will be blocked by the Romans, and Claudius' fleet has set sail for us. ”
Is this information accurate? How could the Romans have recruited and armed such a huge army so quickly? Little Hanno was a little unconvinced of the number.
The information should be infallible, and the previous information of the 'Shadow' was extremely accurate. The Romans had a huge population and strategic goods in the Apennines, not to mention that the entire western Mediterranean was basically their territorial waters. "Monwar is confident that his men can't go wrong.
Then we can move to the north and get contact and reinforcements in the direction of Shannan Gaul through the Flaminian Boulevard. Ducalius immediately made a suggestion.
According to intelligence, the former consul Lucius. Pustúmius. Albinus had been granted two legions, the first of which was to go north to suppress the rebellion in southern Gaul, and to further block our road in that direction. Contact with the Gauls had been severed. Meng Hua said something that worried everyone.
Therefore, to sum up, we can only immediately move the whole army to the south, taking advantage of the fact that the main forces of the other side have not yet arrived, and jump out of the encirclement of the Romans. Hannibal looked at everyone's worried faces and said calmly.
At the southern end is the sea, and there is not much room for strategic maneuver, so what if the huge army of the Romans pursues it? Margo looked at the map south of Grunium with some concern and said, "Could it be that they are going to retreat to Sicily?"
Rest assured, my dear brother, if the Romans, who are not afraid of death, intend to fight us, we will choose their burial place somewhere in the south. Hannibal deliberately comforted everyone in a relaxed tone.
Now go back and mobilize your troops, and prepare for evacuation before the Roman reinforcements arrive, and at dawn tomorrow the whole army will advance in the direction of the Ophidus River (Ovanato). "After Monhua gave the task, everyone rushed out of the tent as fast as they could, and now time was of the essence, and it was necessary to successfully escape this place that was about to become a death trap before the Romans arrived.
The originally quiet camp soon became in turmoil, and Hannibal and Monhua stood side by side in front of the map, and their eyes were focused on a place called Cannae, about 60 miles south of Grunium, which, according to the reconnaissance in the previous paragraph, was suitable for large-scale legionary battles, and a decisive battle that would make the name of Cannae famous all over the world.