Chapter 20 Volume Three I

①After the palaces were arrested and the captains and soldiers accompanying them were killed, these Greeks were naturally very confused and at a loss as to what to do.They pondered: They were at the king's gate; hostile tribes and cities on every side; no market was given to them; Rivers that could not be crossed; the Persians who followed Cyrus on this long march also betrayed them; they were thus left without a single cavalry support; it was obvious that if they won they could kill no one, and if they were defeated Then no one will live. Frustrated with these worries, they spent most of their nights without eating, lighting fires, and lying down without returning to camp at night, unable to sleep.They are grieving, missing their homeland and their parents and wives, thinking they will never be seen again.Such is the state of mind when they lie down to rest.

In the army was an Athenian named Xenophon.He was neither a general nor a captain nor a soldier. He joined the army on the long march this time because his old friend Proxinus sent an invitation letter to his home to invite him to go with him. Proxinus also promised that if he went, he would make Cyrus a friend of him.He said he thought Cyrus was worth more to him than the country of his birth.After reading Proxinus' letter, Xenophon and Socrates, the Athenian, discussed the trip.Socrates guessed that his friendship with Cyrus would prompt the Athenian government to sue him because Cyrus was thought to have actively helped the Lasidemonians in their war against Athens.He advised Xenophon to go to Delphi and ask the gods for advice on the trip.So Xenophon went to ask the god Apollo, and asked which of the gods to worship and pray to would be the best and successful in carrying out the journey he wanted, and with good luck, he could return home safely.The god Apollo told him the name of the god that he must worship.When Xenophon returned from Delphi, he told Socrates the oracle.After hearing this, Socrates accused him, because he did not first ask whether it is better to go or not, but decided to go, and then asked God how best to go.But he went on to say, "But since you have asked the question in this way, you have to pack your bags exactly as God instructed."

Therefore, Xenophon set sail after offering sacrifices to the designated gods according to the gods of Apollo.In Sardis he caught up with Proxinus and his party.At this moment they were about to begin the long march.He was introduced to Cyrus.Not only Proxinus urged him to stay with them, but Cyrus also joined in, offering to send Xenophon home as soon as the long march was over.It is said that the Long March was to crusade against the Pisidians.Thus Xenophon went on the march, not knowing its purpose--but not Proxinus deceived him, for he did not know that the march was against the king; any other Greek, except Cree Erkus, also don't know.But when they reached Silesia, everyone understood that this long march was to attack the king.At this time, although the Greeks were afraid of this journey and did not want to continue, most of them continued to march because of their relationship with each other and the front of Cyrus, and Xenophon was among them.

Now in trouble, he suffers like everyone else and can't sleep.But after falling asleep for a while, he had a dream: It seemed that a thunderclap hit his father's house, and the whole house was on fire, and he woke up with a start.On the one hand, it can be considered that this is an auspicious dream, because he seems to see the divine light of Zeus in the midst of distress and pain.But on the other hand he was terrified, because he dreamed of being born by Zeus the Great. Come, and Leihuo burned everything around him, fearing that he would not be able to escape the king's territory ① and might be surrounded by various difficulties.So, what does it mean to have such a dream, we can know from what happened after the dream—first, when he woke up, he had a thought in his mind: "Why am I lying here?

The night is deep, and the enemy may come to attack us when dawn breaks.If we fall into the hands of kings, how shall we avoid living to see the saddest spectacle, and suffer all the most terrible pains, and be insulted and killed?But when it comes to self-defense, no one prepares or thinks about it, and we lie here as if we might enjoy our leisure.And what about myself?Where am I looking forward to coming to the palace to do these things? When and how old do I have to wait?If I fall into the enemy's hands today, I will definitely not be able to survive. So he arose, and, as a first step, called together the captains of Proxinus.When they were assembled he said to them: "Gentlemen, I can't sleep, considering the plight we're in, and I think you can't sleep any longer. It's clear that the enemy won't attack openly until he thinks he's fully prepared. Ours. But there is absolutely no one on our side to contrive a strategy to ensure the best possible fight. But if we fall into the hands of the king, imagine what will be our fate? Not even his own brother , and is already dead, he will beheaded, amputated, and impaled for punishment. Well, for those of us who have no intercession, who are hunting him and intending to reduce him to slavery What kind of end can we expect from a person who can kill him if he can? Will he not torture us so cruelly that the world will be afraid to oppose him? Therefore, we must try our best not to fall into his power.

"For my part, during the truce I have been pitying ourselves and congratulating the king and his servants, for I have seen clearly what wonderful lands they have, their provisions, their hordes of servants, their cattle, their money, and their servants. Clothes. Whenever I think about the condition of our own soldiers, I see that we have no share in these good things unless we buy them. I know that only a few of us have money to buy them. I know that our oaths limit us except They cannot be fed in any other way than by purchase. So, with all this in mind, I have sometimes been more afraid of a truce than I am of a war. But now they have broken the truce. I think that puts an end to their Arrogance and our embarrassment. For whoever of the two parties is valiant and victorious will be rewarded with these good things. The judges of this contest are the gods, and the gods are very likely to be on our side, because the enemy We have broken our oath before the gods, but we have kept our oath to God in the face of abundant resources. So I think we can enter this contest with much greater confidence than our enemies. Besides, our bodies are stronger than theirs. More resistant to cold and heat and fatigue, and we, the gods of TOEFL, have better spirits and souls than them. These people are more easily killed than us, and if the gods, as before, let us win again.

"Now, perhaps others have these thoughts in their hearts. Let us, by the gods of heaven and earth, not wait for others to be called to this noble cause. Let us take the lead ourselves, and call forth courage in the rest. Be of the highest order. to be a more competent general than the generals. As for myself, if you decide to do this, I will follow you. If I am sent to lead, I will not use my youth as an excuse to refuse. I think I am on the right track. Young and strong enough to withstand danger without harm." After Xenophon spoke above, the officers all made him the leader and got rid of a man named Apollonides.This Apollonides, who spoke the Boeotian dialect, considered it nonsense to think that any security could be obtained without as far as possible persuading the king to his consent.At the same time he began to enumerate the difficulties of the situation.But Xenophon interrupted him, saying: "You strange man, you have eyes and yet do not see, and ears but do not remember.

You must have been present with these other officers when you laid down your arms.But when we did not lay down our arms, but armed ourselves, and went to camp beside them, he tried everything—messenger, truce, supplies—to at last obtain a truce.However, when our generals and captains just follow the method you advocate now and rely on this physical combat to talk with them, what will be the result?Aren't they being beaten, tortured, and humiliated at this moment, and they can't even die?These helpless people, I think they want to die!Knowing this, how can you say that people who advocate self-defense are talking nonsense?Could it be that you still suggest that we go on the road of trying to persuade again?Gentlemen, I think we should not only refuse this man to be with us, but remove him as captain, put him on a pack, and treat him like that animal.This man is not only a stain on his native country, but also a disgrace to all Greece, because for a Greek he is such a scum. "

At this moment Agatha, a Stenphalian, interrupted: "This fellow belongs neither to Boeotia nor to any part of Greece at all, for I noticed that both ears were pierced, like a The people of Lydia." Actually, that's what happened.He was therefore driven away, and the rest went separately to visit the divisions of the Greek army.All the generals who survived were invited to join; for those who lost their generals, they invited their lieutenants to come; if there was only one captain left, the captain came.When everyone gathered, they sat down in front of the camp, and there were hundreds of generals and captains in total.It was nearly midnight.Hieronymus, the supreme captain of Proxinus, said: "Generals and captains, in view of the current situation, we think it is best to be together and invite you to participate so that we can discuss some good ideas." Xenophon, please repeat what you just told us."

Then Xenophon said: "We all know this, that the king and Tisaphernes have taken many of our people, and are evidently plotting to crush the rest of us as much as possible. So, as I see it, we Do your best not to fall into the hands of these Bosses but rather to subdue them. So you who are present have a good chance of showing your skills. All the soldiers are watching you. If they see you weak and incompetent, they will all but if you are not only preparing yourselves against the enemy but calling the rest to rise and do the same, I am sure they will follow your lead. But perhaps it is best that you outwit them, for you are generals , lieutenants, and captains. You outcompete them in pay and status when you care, so you should be expected to outdo ordinary soldiers in a state of war now, and give them advice and strength when needed.

"Currently, I think that you must first serve the army, and assign generals and captains to fill the vacancies as soon as possible. Because no useful and good things can be done without a leader. This is generally the case, and of course it does not only refer to war. It seems that discipline To ensure safety, lack of discipline is always the source of failure. Next, when the required leaders are assigned, you must also gather the rest of the soldiers together and encourage them in time. Perhaps you have seen it yourself. Now the situation is that they Going back to camp and going to sentry was very listless. If they are always like this, what is the use of them if there is a situation during the day or night and they are needed.But if we shift their minds so that they think not only of the dilemma they are facing, but also of what to do, they will be much more emotional.I believe you understand that in war it is not numbers or strength that determine victory, but which side of the army, by God above, has the stronger spirit.This is generally speaking invincible.Gentlemen, I have noticed another fact in my personal experience, that those who are eager to save their lives as much as possible in battle are the very ones who lose their lives in disgrace; And those who see clearly the truth that people are inevitably mortal, and thus dare to make heroic sacrifices, are more able to live longer and live happily.Take, then, the lesson that best suits the crisis we are facing.We must be warriors ourselves, and make our fellowmen brave too. After saying this, Xenophon stopped. Then Cherisophus said: "Xenophon, I have only heard that you are an Athenian, and now I admire your words and deeds. I hope we can have many people like you, which will be very helpful to the whole army. It's all a blessing." He continued, "Gentlemen, let us not waste time. Go back, and whoever is in need, choose your leaders at once; and when they are chosen, come to the center of the camp and bring the chosen people with you. Then we shall hold a general assembly of the army." He went on, "We must have the herald Tormid to attend the meeting." He rose immediately so that he could carry out the business as soon as possible.So the commanding palace was chosen, and Timasson the Daldanian replaced Clearchus, Xanticris the Achaean instead of Socrates, and Crianno the Arcadian instead of Achias. , Felicius the Achaean replaced Menon, Xenophon the Athenian replaced Proxinus.