Tapyrus coughed lightly and said, "I have long heard that Rome is a powerful city-state with a long history and unique culture, and what I saw with my own eyes today is that the city of the seven hills is indeed as unique and magical as rumored!" ”

Listening to Tapilus's praise, Minuccius smiled heartily: "No matter how miraculous our Rome is, it can't compare to Dionia, I heard that you have only been founded for more than ten years, and you have defeated the enemies around you again and again to become the most powerful kingdom in southern Italy, which is really blessed by Mars!" ”

"Mars?"

"Oh, Mars is our Roman god of war!"

"No, we Dionyas are here today because we are fully blessed by the great Greek god Hades, because our king is his descendant!" Tapyrus said reverently. His devotion came from the heart, for it was in front of the temple of Hades, in the hymns of Hades, that King Davers proclaimed his freedom. Hades' protection of slaves was well known in the Dionian kingdom, and the slaves and the slave-born Dionian populace had a complete reverence for the Hades.

Minuccius smiled slightly awkwardly and pointed ahead: "The hill in front is Mount Esquiri, which was inhabited by the Sabines who first became Roman citizens......"

Minuccius led them to Mount Esquiri, where they saw an arch spanning both sides of the road.

"It's ——?!" The officer from the Ministry of Military Affairs pointed at it with some excitement.

"This is the Arc de Triomphe!" Minusius also introduced with some excitement: "All the generals who won major war victories for Rome, Rome will hold a triumphal ceremony for him, let him drive a four-horse chariot, lead the army, enter the city of Rome, go to the square through the triumphal arch, and accept the cheers of the Roman people and the praise of the Senate, which is the greatest glory that every Roman citizen desires!" Minuccius looked up at the Arc de Triomphe with a look of longing.

And the official of the Dionian military ministry and the other members of the envoy group looked at each other with indescribable surprise in their eyes: Dionya and Rome had many similarities in military systems, and seeing that this arch made of marble was mottled and worn out, at least a few decades old, who was learning from whom this time?

Minusius led the group of Ionian envoys with mixed emotions to the left, passed through the triumphal arch, and after walking for a short time, a square appeared in front of him.

Tapirus's brow furrowed again: this square seems to be a large area, but the square is surrounded by many houses, and some even burst into the square, so it does not show the grandeur of the square at all.

Ever since he stepped into the city of Rome, Tapirus has felt that the Romans are mixing public facilities with private residences, and the square that represents the heart of the city is unavoidable, which makes him feel a little unacceptable.

Minuccius apparently also saw the unhappy look on Tapilus's face, and out of not wanting to be underestimated by the Dionians, he exclaimed: "This square is an old square, about 150 years old, and is mainly used for people's leisure and gatherings. Rome also had a larger square, and to the west of this square, it was able to hold 100,000 people, which was used to raise troops and sometimes served as a place of voting for citizens' assemblies, and it was called Piazza Mars! ”

Mars Square?! Hearing this name, Tapirus remembered that the young man had said before, "Mars is the Roman god of war", which is similar to the Victory Square in Turiyi, which also shows the Romans' respect for military affairs.

Minuccius led the way through the square, greeting him from time to time and casting curious glances at Tapirus and his party.

The Roman Senate, just west of the square, was a tall temple-like building.

Minuccius asked them to wait at the foot of the front steps of the Senate, and then walked briskly into the Senate.

The Roman Senate would normally meet at sunrise every morning, except because other meetings were taking place or the celebrations of the gods, and the end of the meeting depended on how many things were to be discussed, but generally not beyond sunset, and it was already dusk, and the senators must have dispersed. However, since it was a time of war, the Senate had a rule that a military officer must be on duty until night to prevent an emergency from happening and to prepare in advance.

Minuccius walked into the guard room next to the meeting hall and found that the military and political officer who remained behind was someone he knew, so he shouted: "Paulus! ”

Paulus. Valerius. Portitus was asking the slave to light the candle, and when he heard the sound, he turned his head and asked in surprise, "Minus, why are you here?" What happened? ”

Minusius, as the prefect of the city guard, came to the Senate at this time, certainly not to talk to him.

"There's an important thing." Minuccius didn't talk nonsense, and said directly: "There is a delegation of envoys from the Kingdom of Dioonia who came to Rome, saying that there is an important matter to discuss with the Senate. ”

"Dionia?!" Paulus was not a civilian military officer, he knew a lot about Dionia, and immediately said with a solemn face: "What did this Greek kingdom in southern Italy send an envoy to Rome for at this time?" ”

Minuccius no longer smiled as before, and said with the same serious expression: "I tried to ask them about their intentions on the way, but each time I was avoided by the messenger, so it can be seen that they have not come to establish friendly relations with us!" ”

Paulus was lost in thought, and after a moment he raised his eyebrows and said uncertainly: "The other day the Carthaginians reminded us that 'it is suspected that a Wolsey envoy has gone to Turiy. Will they ...... Is it for Wolsey? ”

Minuccius was taken aback: "Dionya wants to protect Wolsey?!" ”

"We can't make judgments rashly. Minusius, you take them to stay first, and I will now inform Pantius and the other senators to discuss the countermeasures urgently. Dionya, after all, is not weaker than Carthage, and we must be cautious! Paulus said in a deep voice.

…………………………………

Tapirus and his party were accommodated in a public inn under the jurisdiction of the Senate, near the Old Square, not far from the Senate.

The members of the emissaries had intended to wander around the city of Rome after dinner, but before leaving, Minuccius warned them not to go out at night! During the war, there was a curfew in the city at night to prevent chaos, and it would be bad to be caught by a Roman patrol.

Tapirus sensed the young man's sudden wariness of them.

After dinner, Tapilus and some of his entourage went up to the roof of the hotel.

Night had fallen on the city, but the noise had not ceased, the laughter of the Roman people, the crying of children, the sound of fights among men, the flutes of patrols, the barking of domestic dogs...... Even though this is the center of the city of Rome, these voices still come from all directions......

It's a messy but vibrant city. Tapyrus thought silently to himself.

"I'm afraid it's Capitoline Hill." The official from the Ministry of Military Affairs looked in the direction west of the Senate and said softly.

Under the cover of night, only the outline of a hill in the distance can be faintly seen.

Although Minuccius did not talk about this hill, Tapirus knew the importance of this mountain to Rome, because it was regarded by the Roman people as the residence of the gods, and most of the temples of Jupiter and other gods revered by the Romans were on that mountain, which was where the Roman Acropolis was located, so the Romans would still hold on to Capitoline Hill after the Celts occupied the Roman city, and actually held on for several months, until the victory came, which also shows the steepness of this mountain, which is probably the most concerned place of the Ministry of War. Is it possible for Dionia to go to war with Rome?

Tapirus looked at the attendant, then turned his gaze to the Senate in the night: he had to complete his mission first, either way.

………………………………

The next morning, Tapyrus was invited into the Roman Senate.

This is a circular venue, dark red wooden chairs like arena seats, from front to back, row by row, closely arranged, all sat Roman senators in white robes, densely packed with nearly 300 people, including two military and political officials (in recent years, due to the increasingly intensified contradictions between the Roman nobles and commoners, in order to protest against the aristocracy's monopoly on power, the commoners refused to elect consuls in the citizens' assembly, but the military situation around Rome was quite bad, In order to ensure the safety of Rome and the smooth implementation of internal affairs, the nobles and commoners consulted, and had to agree to elect six military tribunes each year, three from the nobility and three from the commoners), and four military and political officials also led the army to fight abroad.

Half of these Roman senators were gray-haired old men, and most of them were patriarchs from the major Roman clans. Of course, the other part was also a senator of aristocratic origin, who had previously held high positions in Rome, and because of their merits or political achievements, after recommendation and selection, they finally entered the Senate, and entered the Senate, which made it easier for them to hold the position of high officials in the city-state.

But none of the Roman senators were under 30 years of age, nor were they of commoner origin, but they were either of great ability, or of high morality, or very wealthy, or of great power, and now they all looked with a cautious eye on the man in the center of the room: Tapirus, the emissary of the kingdom of Dionia.