Athens

A fleet of warships and sea ships was sailing on the sea, and Pei Ziyun stood on the deck of the battleship, looking out from afar.

"Prince Paris, I'm about to arrive in Athens. A captain came to report.

"Well, tell them to get ready to dock. ”

After speaking, he said to Gesne: "When you get to the shore, go and check, I heard that there are monsters wreaking havoc in Athens, and I don't know if it has been solved." ”

"Yes, Prince. ”

As soon as he finished speaking, he could already faintly see the outline of the port, looking at the sea and sky, and the silvery white sand sparkled in the reflection of the sun.

The fleet slowly landed in the harbor of Bairius, and at this time Pei Ziyun was wearing a white tunic with leather armor, leather bracers, leather hems, and a bronze belt around his waist, and a short sword hanging from the belt.

In the port of Barrius, a group of soldiers lined up, and a young man greeted him, and said enthusiastically: "Prince Paris, welcome from afar. ”

"The Great King has sent me to meet me, please get in the chariot. ”

Pei Ziyun looked at the young man and knew that the king he was talking about was Menas Thous, the grandson of Eric Theseus, who successfully drove out the hero Theseus (Theseus) and killed him, inherited the throne of his ancestors, and became the king of Athens.

Although the force is not very strong, it should not be underestimated!

Thinking so, he boarded the chariot, which was drawn by four horses, and the young man drove himself, and with a flick of the reins, the carriage started and headed for Athens.

Athens is one of the prosperous cities, facing the sea on three sides, with few plains and many mountains, which is inconvenient for the development of animal husbandry, but there is good shipping, so the sea is used for commercial trade, and most of it is traded with Asia Minor.

Pei Ziyun looked carefully, and saw the Acropolis at first sight.

Athens, which originally meant "city on the heights" or "city-state on a high hill", the Acropolis was the center of the city of Athens, built on a rocky hill at an altitude of 150 meters, where temples were built, and at the same time it was a fortress of refuge and defense in times of war.

"The Parthenon is on it!" Pei Ziyun glanced at it, then turned closer again, the farmland outside the city was divided into pieces, and there were drainage ditches between the ridges, and he couldn't help but nod his head lightly.

"Land rotation has been implemented, and water conservancy and irrigation are relatively perfect, but there is not much land. ”

"Even the richest Athenian citizens had an income of only 500 wheat buckets, and this was the focus of Solon's reforms in the future!"

Solon determined the citizenship rights according to property, the first class of more than 500 wheat buckets, called the "500 wheat bucket class", can serve as the consul and treasurer of the state, the second class of 300 wheat buckets or more, called the "knight rank", they can serve as the consul of the state, the third class has an annual income of more than 200 wheat buckets, called the "ox yoke class", they can only serve as low-level officials, the fourth rank: less than 200 wheat buckets, collectively called the "day servant class", they have no access to all official positions in the state.

This proves the scarcity of land, and the largest landlord is only 500 wheat buckets, one wheat bucket is equivalent to about 52.3 kilograms, which is in stark contrast to Troy, where the fertile and unusual land outside the city grows lush olives, grapes, and wheat. ”

"Commerce can build a country, but it can't be a hegemon. ”

"The location of Athens determines that it cannot really dominate, because its population and food are too dependent on foreign imports. ”

When I was thinking, I had already entered the city, which was paved with stone roads, and the Athenians walking along the way were all black-haired and black-eyed, and the blonde hair was not the original Greek species.

The men wore white robes and beards, while the women wore their hair in a bun and tied it with brightly colored ribbons, and those who had money embellished a jewel on their foreheads, and avoided and bowed when they saw the chariot.

Looking at it again, the square, the hall, the arena and the theater flashed one by one, Pei Ziyun couldn't help but admire: "It's really a great city." ”

"Thank you for the compliment, Prince Paris. The young man who was driving the car was very pleased to hear this, and pointed to it, and said, "Look, the palace has arrived." ”

Royal Palace, Athens

After getting off the chariot and entering, the palace has thick palace walls, gates and columns, and I saw that the top was covered with grapevines, and the two columns were separated from each other on the left and right, leading to many palace rooms and forests.

When Pei Ziyun was guided forward, he saw several palaces, among which there were several statues in front of the hall and a middle-aged man on the steps.

Pei Ziyun stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Thank you very much, King Menastheus, thank you for your warm welcome, please allow me to present a gift!"

The servant was offered at once, but not too heavy, slightly more important than usual—or Prince Paris's reputation would come out.

"Oh, you are Prince Paris, and in the past two months your fame has spread throughout Greece. Saying that, the middle-aged man gave Pei Ziyun a warm hug, and entered the hall hand in hand, there were not many people in the hall, and the king invited many people from Athens to participate in today's banquet.

The midday sun illuminated the frescoes, Zeus in the clouds, and the gods surrounded him, each holding a golden cup in his hand and drinking the wine from it.

Please take a seat, the servants serve delicious food and wine, and in the middle of the feast, a group of dancers are dancing merrily, and troubadours are singing beautiful poems.

Pei Ziyun felt the enthusiasm of King Menastheus, and the nobles whispered in the banquet, they admired Prince Paris.

"Do you understand the purpose of Prince Paris's trip?"

"I heard that it was for Hesione, the sister of King Priam of Troy, to be redeemed. ”

Last time, though, Salamis refused. ”

"This time I brought the fleet, obviously I have second-hand preparations, does Troy want to grab it back this time?"

"It was only natural to take it back, because it was Hercules who captured the city of Troy in the first place, robbed Hesione, and gave her to Telamon as his wife—all robbed. ”

At this point in time, no one thinks this is wrong, this thing is all too common in this era, and some people say: "Hercules is a great hero, Prince Paris can compare to it?"

"Prince Paris is not bad, he killed the Kraken and the Two-Headed Lizard, outwhelmed the Amazons, and this time he went to Greece and won the competition in several city-states. ”

Moreover, with Hercules dead, King Eurystheus of Argos could take revenge on his descendants, who are now said to have fled from McKenny to Trachis, hoping to be protected by King Keyux. ”

Pei Ziyun listened to these words and understood that the descendants of Hercules would participate in the Battle of Troy, so he smiled, stood up and said, "King Menastheus, I am grateful for your hospitality, and I want to present you with a song." ”

As he spoke, with a wave of his hand, the servant took the delicate harp and adjusted the strings.

Prince Paris has been playing the piano well, the sound of the piano is beautiful, and it can make the sea wheel intoxicated, and now he is even more refined, Pei Ziyun smiled and pressed the strings.

Suddenly, the music flowed out, and at the beginning it played a different emotion, making people return to their youth under the guidance.

The boy had a dream and embarked on a journey.

Laughter, tears, hypocrisy, pain, all kinds of trials and setbacks, and the joy of success, all of them are deeply attracted by the timbre of Prince Paris's fingertips.

Prince Paris's timbre changes magnificently, and it seems to unfold the vast sea, the rolling mountains, the ancient temples, the verdant olive groves, the heroes and monsters fighting, the philosophers debating with each other, the bards singing melodiously, and the nobles hunting.

If it weren't for the King's Hall, many people would have jumped up and down, and this is exactly what they used to be.

There is no sadness in the melody, but it is soon replaced by passion, as if the hero is facing the ordeal and never rests until he sails into a beautiful field and finds rest.

"Is this the Élysée Paradise?" said King Menastheus, wiping away his tears, and said gently, "Prince Paris, your music has fascinated me, even if it is Olufei, and whatever you want, as long as it is reasonable, I will agree." ”

Pei Ziyun bowed: "King Menastheus, thank you very much, come to this great Athens, feel the glory of the gods, and enter your palace, and be satisfied with such a warm reception from you, what more can you ask for?"

"But with your permission, I ask that I be allowed to procure bulls and offer sacrifices to the patron saint of Athens. ”

Menastheus happily agreed, and said, "Prince Paris, you make respectful sacrifices to the gods everywhere you go, and your piety is already known in Greece, how can I stop you from this legitimate desire?"

"Then I thank you again, King Menastheus. After saying that, Pei Ziyun offered his farewell, and Menastheus readily agreed.

Pei Ziyun got up and left, pausing in front of a column carved with Athena and Artemis, surrounded by the Nymphs, holding a fruit basket containing grapes, peaches, and figs.

Pei Ziyun was thoughtful, he actually gave him a chance just now, but King Menaeus didn't talk about the monster, could it have been resolved?

Whether it is solved or not, there is an important thing to do when you go to Athens, which is to sacrifice Athena, the patron god of Athens, and see how this god reacts.

"Who would have thought that such a passionate Menas Thois was also a member of the siege of Troy?" Pei Ziyun thought secretly, at this time, a very young nobleman stepped forward: "Prince Paris, I will take you to the residence, which is where the envoy and the prince live. ”

The embassy district, there is no mistake in this word, there were similar areas in ancient Greece, where the average Gentile came to the city and naturally found his own way out, but there was a special service area for envoys and distinguished guests, which was responsible for providing accommodation for outsiders, and finding seats for them in the process of citizens' assemblies or theaters if necessary, which was the embryonic form of later embassies and consulates.

"Moreover, not to live in the palace, but in the embassy district, Menastheus's enthusiasm is actually limited, maybe, he smelled something, right?"

This era city is actually very small, and soon arrived at a mansion, which is equipped with bronze and marble statues, and the ceiling and floor decoration are simple and exquisite, Pei Ziyun is still very satisfied, and instructed Gesnie, who came up: "Gesnie, I have obtained the king's permission to sacrifice Athena, you go and buy a high-quality bull and come back." ”

And the nobleman who accompanied him was very young, looked like a young man, and had grown his beard according to the custom of the Greeks, and then said with a smile: "Prince Paris, I have thirty cows, and you can choose any one of them, so why buy them?"

"Thank you for your generosity, but if I hadn't come to buy it, how could I show my sincerity to the great Athena?"

"By the way, what's your name?"

"Demofeng!" The young nobleman thought for a while, nodded yes, Pei Ziyun watched him leave, his expression gradually turned cold, and there was a hint of inexplicability.

"Demophon, the son of Theseus, did not participate in the war, but gathered strength in Athens, and when Menastheus returned, he officially staged a coup d'état, exiled the king, and re-ascended the throne. ”

"This person is very attentive!"