The merchant was led into Agamemnon's barracks by the soldiers.
The barracks were all made of stone, and there were some small rooms around it that could be used for rest and other purposes. In the middle was a large hall that could accommodate hundreds of people.
In the middle of the hall was a stone chair covered with a thick carpet. An oil lamp was lit on the stone table, giving off a faint light. Two soldiers stood on both sides of the table.
There were stone chairs in the hall for the heroes and princes of the camp to discuss matters in the hall.
When the merchant entered the hall, he sang loudly, "Great Commander Agamemnon, I am Torres, a citizen of Mykenia. Under your light, we have successfully brought our goods from Greece to Troy. I hope you will continue to protect us."
As the merchant spoke, he came in front of Agamemnon and knelt down to kiss the carpet at Agamemnon's feet. He was very respectful. Agamemnon saw the merchant's respect and felt relieved. He asked, "You are from Mykenia. Do you have news of my hometown?"
Although there would be messengers from Mykenia bringing news from Mykenia every once in a while, Agamemnon still hoped to learn more from the merchant.
The merchant said, "I have traveled to many cities and have seen changes and even riots because the princes and heroes have been away from home for too long."
"The city of Argos produces good horses. When I went to purchase them, I saw riots." The merchant, Torlesk, gave a few examples which made Agamemnon's face change. It was common for a king to have problems when he was away from home for a long time. Just as he was thinking about this problem, he heard another compliment. "Great Commander Agamemnon, your kingdom is very peaceful. Your queen is ruling, and your nephew, Aegis, lives in the palace, helping the queen to govern the kingdom."
"This is all because of your prestige and the protection of the great Zeus."
In fact, his nephew Aegis had slept with the queen and divided the power of the kingdom. However, God had decided that his queen and nephew would kill this commander. Thus, when Agamemnon heard this news, he was very happy and had no doubts. He even raised his hand to thank God, thinking that the hatred between the families had been resolved.
"Great Zeus, thank you very much for your kindness. I will be grateful to you."
Agamemnon also believed that after so many years, his wife would not resent him anymore. After all, their daughter was not dead.
"Torlesk, the news you brought is very important to me. I've decided to reward you with gold and bronze, and you will also gain a bit of my friendship." Agamemnon said.
"Dear Commander Agamemnon, thank you very much for your hospitality and generosity." The merchant Torlesk did not expect to gain Agamemnon's friendship by doing such an insignificant thing. He even received gold and bronze. Immediately, a servant carried two trays filled with gold and bronze and walked in.
"Torlesk, to thank you for the news you brought, these are all rewards for you."
The merchant took the gold and bronze and beamed with joy. This business was really worth it. Not only did he earn money from the goods, but he also received rewards.
"As expected, the bards in my hometown are very valuable. Every prince wants to hear news about his hometown and family."
"For this information, they are willing to pay in gold."
Pei Zi Yun's methods were all indirect, and the process was very 'natural'. Hence, the merchant Torlesk felt that it was very normal. This was a type of business.
Moreover, everything he said was the truth. At most, the bards had 'arranged' the information. Some emphasized, some were a little vague, and some were a little reversed. But all of it was the truth.
As long as it was the truth, it was normal to have some emphasis and reversals. Everyone only saw and heard one side of the story. Even a god would not be able to find any problems.
"Torlesk, it's been hard on you. If you have any grievances doing business here, you can look for me. I will consider your legitimate requests." Agamemnon said these purely out of politeness. He added the last sentence because he was afraid that if Torlesk really came looking for him, he would only consider legitimate requests.
As for what legitimate requests were, only Agamemnon had the right to explain.
"Do you have any other news?" Agamemnon asked. This sentence of his was also very skillful. The underlying meaning was that if there was no other news, the merchant could scram.
The merchant hesitated for a while and said, "Respected commander Agamemnon, I am extremely grateful for the gold that you have given me. You know, merchants have dealings with both Greece and Troy."
"Yes, I know this. Don't worry, I will not blame you. This is the duty of you merchants."
"Thank you very much, my great commander. But I need to tell you that I have heard a piece of news from Troy."
"What news?" Agamemnon was shocked, and immediately woke up.
"I heard that Penthesileia is dead, and she left behind a god-given weapon and armor. Paris will send it back to the Amazons and hand it over to Hippolyte. She is also the princess of the Amazons, and the daughter of the god of war, Ares."
"She is now preparing to sail secretly, and she is also bringing along the compensation from Troy – a large amount of gold and bronze."
"Is what you said true?" Agamemnon's heart skipped a beat, and he stood up.
"Of course it is true, my great commander." The merchant Torlesk said.
"I still have to verify the authenticity of this news. You should know that you cannot be careless in war. If this news is true, you will be rewarded when the time comes," Agamemnon said.
"Great commander Agamemnon, thank you very much for your generosity. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave." With that, the merchant slowly retreated.
Seeing the merchant leave, a thought appeared in Agamemnon's mind. Troy wants to send the god-given weapon and armor, as well as a large amount of gold and bronze to the Amazon. I can stop them myself.
Not only will I obtain wealth and weapons, I can also prove my merits to the entire allied army.
Agamemnon stood up, and the more he thought about it, the more excited he became. He felt that this plan was feasible. After all, Achilles was so arrogant because he thought that without him, the Greek allied army would not be able to achieve victory.
Now, he could let him understand that the Greek allied army could still achieve victory without him.
Paris traveling alone might be an opportunity, Agamemnon thought. Of course, the prerequisite is that I have to verify if this news is true, and if Paris is traveling alone.
Agamemnon's first reaction was to ask for Carcas' opinion on this matter. After all, he was a prophet and could predict the good and bad of this matter, so that it would be convenient for him to seek benefits and avoid harm.
But on second thought, Agamemnon thought about how Carcas had spoken from Achilles' point of view, and had even spoken ill of him at the meeting of princes. He snorted coldly.
This time, he believed that without Carcas and Achilles, he would definitely be able to complete the task outstandingly. Otherwise, everyone would feel that without them, the Greek allied army could not do anything.
This time, he wanted to make it clear to everyone that the Greek allied army could lose anyone but Agamemnon.
Only I, Agamemnon, am the only person who cannot be replaced.
Thinking of this, Agamemnon called for the messenger. "Go and summon some heroes and princes to the hall for a discussion."
As he said that, he reported a string of names.
Not long after, the heroes and princes whose names were called arrived one after another in Agamemnon's barracks. Among them were the sons of Diocles, Chrysostom and Orchicorus, the son of Hercules, Trepalemos, the half-brother of Ajax, and eight other heroes.
Odysseus was also among them. These heroes were all heroes that Agamemnon thought highly of, and at the same time, they supported Agamemnon more.
Seeing that everyone had arrived and were seated in the chairs below, Agamemnon said, "Listen, princes and heroes, you have to win this battle to prevent Achilles from being too arrogant."
After saying this, he did not say anything else and watched the reactions of the princes and heroes.
In fact, these heroes and princes were also not used to Achilles' overbearingness. It was only because Achilles was powerful that they did not show it.
Hearing Agamemnon's words, Trepalemos, the son of Hercules, immediately responded, "Great commander, you said that we have to win this battle. What should we do?"
Agamemnon looked at him approvingly and felt that he had cooperated well. He immediately said, "I recently received news that the Prince of Troy, Paris, will be transporting the weapons and armor bestowed by the Amazon Queen Pentecilla, as well as a batch of gold and bronze to the Amazon."
"Perhaps he wants to continue befriending the Amazon."
"Does the commander mean that we should rob these things?" Chrysostom, the son of Diocles, asked.
"That's right. As long as we know the exact time and location of the voyage, we can set up an ambush along the way. We will definitely be able to rob these things and kill the hateful Paris."
"Is this news reliable, great commander?" Orchicorus asked.
"Of course it is. I also intend to send someone to investigate and verify the exact time and location of the voyage, as well as the strength of the ships. If there are only one or two ships, with our current strength, we can still successfully rob and kill them without Achilles."
"If there are a lot of ships, then it might be a trap. We can then adapt to the situation."
Everyone listened and nodded in agreement. Troy currently did not have a particularly powerful hero. The only one that could be considered powerful was Hector. However, other than Achilles, there were others that could deal with him. Diomedes, Ajax the Little, and Ajax the Great could all do it.
"Commander Agamemnon, have you consulted the prophet Calchas about this matter?" Odysseus asked cautiously. He had always been cautious, but after hearing Agamemnon's plan, he suddenly felt that he should consult Calchas about his opinion.
Agamemnon's eyes turned cold and said bluntly, "Odysseus, we don't need to consult the prophet Calchas every time we attack. Furthermore, this matter is basically in the bag, so there is no need to trouble him."
During the previous meeting of the princes, Calchas had offended Agamemnon greatly and was suspected of defecting to Achilles. These were all things that Agamemnon could not tolerate.
Odysseus had touched on Agamemnon's sore spot, so it would be strange if Agamemnon had a good expression.
"If that is the case, I have no objections to the commander's plan." The cunning Odysseus immediately expressed his support for Agamemnon's decision and did not want to offend him.
Agamemnon heard this and his expression became better, "Since everyone is supporting me, then after I confirm the information about Troy, we will do it this time. We will win this battle and make the arrogant Achilles stop underestimating us."
Saying this, he was decisive.
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