The senators looked at each other, silent for a moment. The former mercenary senators were experts in land warfare but unskilled in naval battles. The Lucanian senators knew mountain warfare but feared the sea. Amendolara had no port and no warships, so its senators naturally had no experience with naval warfare. That left the Thurian senators…

Kunogelata looked around and said, “I recommend Enanilous. He was originally a naval commander of Thurii.”

Other Thurian senators expressed their agreement. Davos also recognized Enanilous’s talent in this area; otherwise, he wouldn’t have discussed establishing the navy with him beforehand. His only concern was that Enanilous’s family owned a shipyard, and Davos worried he might use his public office for private gain. But on second thought, how could the shrewd and stingy Mersis be easily fooled?

Compared to the abundance of talent in the army, there are still too few who understand naval warfare! Davos sighed inwardly.

Ultimately, Enanilous successfully became the naval commander of Theonia. He said with emotion, “With Theonia’s powerful hoplites, I no longer have to worry about our warships being burned in the harbor before they even set sail!” It seemed the destruction or capture of Thurii’s warships after Croton conquered the city still weighed heavily on his mind.

“Theonia’s army has already made a name for itself. What I can do is lead this soon-to-be-built navy to actively cooperate with the army and create greater victories for the defense of the Theonia City-State Alliance!” After Enanilous finished speaking, all the senators, including Amyntas and his group, smiled and applauded Enanilous’s appointment.

Polyexis watched Enanilous’s back, a hint of a sneer appearing on his face.

Davos’s second proposal concerned the construction of a highway connecting Castellum, Crimisa, and Asprostum. As soon as this proposal was presented, it received unanimous approval from all senators. The Theonia City-State Alliance had already enjoyed the benefits of building highways. Even if Davos hadn’t mentioned it, other senators would likely have made a similar proposal. by now, the Theonians’ mindset differed significantly from other Greeks. They no longer believed that convenient sea transport was enough for a city-state and that roads didn’t need much consideration. They not only cared about sea routes but also believed that building good roads was essential infrastructure for a city-state’s development.

However, Davos’s second proposal didn’t end there. He continued, “During our siege of Crimisa, messengers passed news between Thurii and Crimisa every day, traveling back and forth over a hundred li. Just the horses were exhausted, and sometimes important news couldn’t be delivered in time. I’ve been thinking about a problem: as the territory of the Theonia City-State Alliance gradually expands, border cities will only get further from the center, Thurii. How can we grasp the situation of other Theonian cities in a timely manner so that our Senate can respond promptly to emergencies?”

Davos’s question provoked thought among the group.

“We have frequent merchant ships coming and going; we can learn about other cities’ situations at any time,” Marigi suggested. “We could designate a type of small boat specifically for delivering letters. That would be fast and wouldn’t wear out horses.”

“There are several problems with delivering letters by sea. First, ships cannot sail during storms, especially in winter. Second, this only applies to port cities; inland cities like Niutum and Asprostum cannot receive deliveries. Third, during wartime, sending letters by ship is prone to interception because the sea is too vast to defend completely. Moreover, armies march and fight; they cannot always move along the coastline. So how can urgent orders and letters be delivered from ships to commanders in time?”

Davos pointed out the drawbacks of using ships to deliver messages. Marigi was momentarily speechless and said embarrassedly, “Lord Archon, I haven’t thought it through.”

“It seems we still have to rely on land routes. We are already building roads to connect the various cities of Theonia. Delivering letters by mule and horse should be faster and more convenient than before,” Cornelius said.

“You’re right. We should prioritize land routes, with sea routes as supplementary. I believe what we should do now is assign specialized public officials to be responsible for delivering letters, making it a daily city-state affair. Therefore, I propose the League establish a Postal Bureau,” Davos said confidently.

Postal Bureau?! Hearing this term from Davos, everyone felt it was unfamiliar. Clearly, Davos had coined it himself.

“The main function of the Postal Bureau is to receive letters and packages from the people of Theonia and then deliver these items to the recipients…” Davos gestured with his hands, explaining patiently. “We will set up a Postal Bureau in every city, staffed with public officials who receive and deliver letters every day. At the same time, we will set up relay stations every forty or fifty li along the highways, also staffed with public officials. Relay stations will have simple inns and keep horses. When messengers arrive at a relay station, they can go in to rest, drink and eat, and then continue their journey… This way, while the Postal Bureau serves the public during peacetime, news from other cities will be gathered daily and sent to the Senate through it, allowing us to know what is happening within Theonia’s territory. In wartime, military messengers can use our highway system to replenish food and water at various relay stations, switch horses, and quickly transmit military orders…”

“This is truly a brilliant idea! Truly worthy of the Favored of God!” Kunogelata couldn’t help but praise. “If the… Postal Bureau is established, it will not only facilitate the army and the people but also strengthen the connection between the people of various cities. The cities of the Theonia City-State Alliance will become closer! I think… in the future, we can also establish Postal Bureaus in our allied states to strengthen our interactions with them.” As expected of a seasoned former Archon, Kunogelata immediately saw the bright prospects establishing a Postal Bureau would bring to the Theonia City-State Alliance.

“I hope the Postal Bureau can be established as soon as possible! Once I get to Crimisa, I won’t have to miss my children too much!” Scombras said happily.

“I heard you usually scold them for being disobedient and say you don’t want to live with them?” Stromboli asked, feigning surprise.

Scombras tossed his head. “Guys without kids wouldn’t understand. Don’t talk nonsense.”

This remark almost caused Stromboli to quarrel with him, but the others laughed and mediated.

Mersis stood up with a bitter face. “Lord Archon, building Postal Bureaus, building relay stations… the cost of these buildings, the salaries of civil servants, the cost of raising horses—how much money will the treasury have to spend again?!”

Without waiting for Davos to explain, Marigi jumped in. “Mersis, don’t you understand? Should the Postal Bureau charge for delivering letters and packages for the public? Relay stations have inns; should travelers be charged for staying there? I really don’t know how you became the Treasurer!”

Marigi seized the opportunity to mock Mersis.

Mersis didn’t mind at this moment; instead, he eagerly asked Davos, “Is there a fee for sending a letter? How much?”

Davos nodded. “Establishing the Postal Bureau is mainly to transmit news and facilitate the public, so it shouldn’t be too expensive. I think one obol per letter is sufficient. As for delivering packages, pricing should depend on size and weight. I’ll leave that for Marigi and the future head of the Postal Bureau to discuss.”

“One obol per letter—I think the public will be very happy to accept this price. I fear the Postal Bureau will become very busy in the future!” Cornelius laughed. “Because after we distribute land this time, many citizens’ ‘allotments’ will be in different cities. They will need this Postal Bureau to send messages to strengthen land management.”

Cornelius’s words resonated with many senators. Not only ordinary citizens, but their allocated lands were also in similar situations. Therefore, they all expressed agreement with Davos’s proposal.

While Mersis was silently calculating the Postal Bureau’s revenue and finding it considerable, he immediately asked, “Will the Postal Bureau’s earnings be turned over to the treasury?”

“After deducting the salaries of public officials and various costs, the remaining earnings naturally go to the treasury.” Davos’s words made Mersis beam with joy. “In addition, I propose establishing a Road Bureau, which will be responsible for the planning, construction, maintenance, and management of roadside facilities for all League roads.”

This proposal from Davos also received the senators’ approval. They enjoyed the benefits of the highways, and they also knew that a highway required lasting professional maintenance after construction; otherwise, it would become dilapidated within a few years.

“Will there be a toll for using the highway in the future?” Mersis looked at Davos hopefully.

“Free,” Davos uttered a single word.

“Building an intercity highway costs at least 30 talents (this doesn’t include the cost of land, because road land is planned before land is distributed to citizens and belongs to the League, so it costs nothing; otherwise, counting the price of buying land, the cost would multiply several times over). Subsequent maintenance costs are also constant expenses. Can’t we charge even a little money?” Mersis pleaded.

“Roads are different from postal services. If we charge tolls, most people might choose not to use the highways we build. This won’t affect their travel much, but it would mean the roads we worked hard to build to serve the public would end up being used by only a few. This contradicts our original purpose for building highways,” Davos explained seriously.

“Lord Davos is right! The people of our Theonia City-State Alliance can enjoy comfortable, flat highways! They can enjoy highly skilled but low-cost medical care! They can enjoy convenient and fast… um… postal services! Our citizens can be allocated land just by serving in the military! Our citizens can hold public office and receive salaries just by passing a test!… Theonia has created so much welfare for the people. May I ask if Athens, the most prosperous of the Greek city-states, can do these things?!” Praexinas said passionately.