Augustus Road

Secretly, Vercingetorius also sent a spy who knew the inside story into the city and advised all the Albisci, "No one can save this dead city now. We are all descendants of Gaul. Why should we be Romans and Greeks?" Now that Pompey and Caesar are fighting, all we have to do is work together secretly to take the opportunity to drive the foreign forces out of Gaul, so don't make unnecessary sacrifices and surrender for the time being. Otherwise, not only you, but also the entire city of Masseria will be turned into powder."

But this secret letter failed to alleviate the Albissi people's impulse at all. This group of brave and bearded men quickly selected 4,000 elites, and after receiving the approval of Domijius, they opened the city gate. , but charged towards the blockade.

Triari was the commander, and when he appeared in front of the blockade on horseback with a banner, many soldiers and centurions of Lepidus' legions who recognized him stood on the tower and shouted, "Behold, Pompey." Let the villain who killed the tribune come to command the army. If he is the real silverfish that harms the republic, there is no excuse. "

But Li Bida gave a special order, "The task of resisting this charge will be assigned to the Sixth Army. Remember that you are the only legion with a regular number, but I never think this means anything. It is a battle-proven number. Not the other way around! I and the two legions will be stationed fifteen miles behind you. If you can't hold on any longer, send a herald and I will definitely come to rescue you." "Don't let it go. This shame comes, guys. "Even though Angandinus has always been known for his mediocrity, he and all the centurions were inspired by Lepidus' order, four thousand young soldiers with armor and shields. With great pride and ambition, fighting teams were lined up along the blockade. All the military slaves really gave up their strength, shouting slogans, and fired most of the ballistas, scorpion crossbows, and stick throwers on the second blockade line. Direct disassembly. Transported to the first blockade line and placed there. In this way, the defensive firepower more than doubled, and the remaining more than a thousand lightly-armed skirmishers all boarded the towers and earthen platforms. Stand ready.

For a legion like them, the first battle is the most important thing, and Lepidus promised Angandinus: "As long as the blockade is secured, your Sixth Legion will have its own nickname of 'Maselia' from now on. "

Four thousand furious Albisi warriors were in the open grassland outside the city. They lined up in a primitive and dense formation, in the form of a phalanx, and rushed towards the blockade. Angandinus could not believe his eyes. The only explanation was: the Albisci had probably never had any contact with Rome before. The army has fought, so think about it. They are probably employed by Masseria, and usually act as bodyguards for sea voyages, or fight against enemies in more remote and wild places. The cavalry artillery detachments attached to each legion that Lepidus had specially reserved for the Sixth Legion were all concentrated and faced the direction of the Albissi formation. Aim quietly and focus.

There was silence in the positions before and after the blockade, while the Albisci marched more and more hastily and densely, until only two furlongs, one furlong, and one stadia were left facing the Roman camp.

A row of dozens of pounds of stone bullets flew straight towards the heads, arms and broken legs of the barbarian warriors in the front row, roaring through the entire depth. Many people could still stare and see their own bodies. * were easily torn apart and shot through. At that time, because death came so quickly, most people died without feeling fear at all.

Row after row of stone bullets and spear arrows were shot out quickly, and then passed through dripping with blood and flesh. The dead bodies on the ground suddenly fell to the ground, and the seriously injured ones were still carrying their stumps and intestines as they moved forward. Moving forward, the four thousand Albissi men, whose preset stationary cavalry firepower suddenly erupted, turned into a group of corpses in the wilderness in just half a day. In the open space behind them, they looked like thick Like straw, there were countless javelins and spears standing there, with many bloody craters. The entire battlefield turned into deathly silence, leaving only the blood blown by the wind.

Even the Sixth Army had not seen that all the projected firepower would be so powerful when concentrated and fired together! Half of the four thousand barbarian warriors were wiped out in an instant, and the rest all fled in all directions. The wine they drank before the battle must have been awakened by the smell of viscera and blood. All the young soldiers stayed quietly behind the blockade. They were originally waiting for a close encounter, but now they vaguely realized that serving under General Lepidus may not require bravery during the semester, but strict discipline and proficiency. operations and orderly collaboration.

Dumijus, who was watching the battle on the tower, was also stunned by this scene, but Triali was obviously much more adaptable, and he just carefully suggested: "There will be thousands less mouths to eat rice and food, because we will never have to pay rations and military pay to the dead guys." . Then I will take the opportunity to act!"

Sure enough, at nightfall, when the Sixth Army was still cleaning up the corpses in front of the position, Triali led 400 cavalry and 2,000 infantry and suddenly attacked a cavalry camp on the street outside the city. Lepidus' cavalry More than a hundred people were killed, and the streets leading to the south-west, and the bridge over the River Renus, fell into the hands of Triari. However, Lepidus, who returned to the blockade the next day, still gave adequate rewards to the generals and soldiers of the Sixth Army and praised their composure and courage. When he learned that Triali's sneak attack was successful, Lepidus remained unmoved. Asked: "Isn't little Cato not here yet?" It seems that he cares about this person far more than he cares about the simple results of the battle.

For nearly a month, Lepidus was waiting. He did not change his subordinates or attack the city. Dumijus also kept his head down and did his own thing. Apart from a small-scale cavalry battle in front of the opposing line, both sides seemed to be accumulating strength and waiting for the next round of competition.

"Did I get fooled by Cato? Even if he went around the earth, he should have reached Masseria by now!" Sometimes, Lepidus would sit in the tent like this, cross his legs, and mutter to Sabo next to him.

But Cato the Younger did not lie to him. When he felt slack, Cato the Younger suddenly came. Only then did Lepidus know that this man was also a strategist - Cato's claim that he would not go to Sicily was a lie. He was actually in Sicily during this period. Taking advantage of the fact that Lepidus and Caesar were not paying attention there, he recruited ships and strong men in the coastal towns of Sicily. Cato the Younger did a good job. Before Curio's advance, he took advantage of this time gap and took 2,000 newly recruited elite soldiers, boarded dozens of large and small ships, and carried a large amount of food. He entered the city of Masseria in a mighty manner under Lepidus's eyes.

The citizens cheered and welcomed Cato as the greatest hero.

"Damn it, the blockade on land alone will definitely not be able to trap Masseria to death!" Lepidus thought.