Alexander's injuries on his feet had healed, and although the frostbite and the piercing itch of the healing had made him sleep well late at night, at least it was much better than it had been at the beginning.

Alexander was supposed to set out the day after the attack, but the messenger he had sent back to deliver the letter brought back two letters from Caesar and Ulliu, and he had to stay in the village for the time being.

In the letter, Caesar mentions recent events in Rome, and although the Pope's beloved son is full of great self-confidence, Alexander can still see that life in Rome does not seem to be easy.

This suspicion was confirmed by the letter that Ullius had brought him, at least he told him that the Romans were now in a hurry to keep warm and eat a bite of fresh vegetables.

"Some vendors have started to raise the price of fresh vegetables very high, because there are many things in the market, so they can set their own prices at will, in addition to vegetables and eggs and some goods that are not usually needed, but now they have become scarf-in-demand because of their scarcity, such as wood, no one will deliberately prepare too much wood at home, but now people have to look everywhere for things that can be burned for heating in order to survive the long winter, and some families have begun to cut down trees in some remote places in the city by themselves, Or go farther outside the city to cut wood, but because the road is very difficult, and there were some accidents," wrote Ulliu, "and in addition to the livestock that could be eaten, because of the lack of animal fat for making candles, many nobles' banquets had to be stopped, and at night the Roman lights became less and more robberies, and people began to become uneasy, and in the middle of the night they did not dare to go out casually, and it is said that in order to set an example of mercy, several children of His Majesty the Pope have taken the lead in announcing the temporary suspension of extravagant activities, Miss Lucrezia even donated a batch of things that she didn't usually use in her palace to help the poor, but it didn't seem to be of much use, Rome was too big, and there were too many people in Rome, and the only hope for everyone now was to get through Rome and the outside world as soon as possible......"

Ulliu's letter was much more frank than Caesar's, and the unabashed description of the letter made Alexander quickly understand what was happening in Rome, and it also made it clear to him that Caesar was anxious to restore Rome to the outside world.

Food, though a much-needed thing in Rome, was not a priority, and what really worried Caesar was the heating problem that needed to be solved as the winter got colder.

Obviously, although wood is still used extensively for heating or lighting, the coal mines in the Sanroni area are now very important to Caesar, or Caesar fears that if Rome loses contact with these places for a long time, something may happen to him that may catch him off guard.

Alexander, who was more aware of the troubles that a city might have with constant traffic than Caesar, could imagine the uneasiness that the Romans would soon find as the trees in and around their city became scarcer and harder to come by, and then all sorts of bad things could follow.

"We're going to build the bridge here as soon as possible," Alexander decided, after reading the letter, "at least we can't leave until it's done." ”

On Alexander's orders, Carlo immediately took a few men to some nearby places to recruit workers, and he did not just go to Tempura, but also to some farther places to find workers, and soon the small village by the river became lively.

For these people who suddenly arrived, the people in the village were wary at first, although some of them still knew each other, but because they didn't know their intentions, the villagers were very careful.

But soon they heard that these people had been called to build the bridge, which made the villagers both curious and a little excited.

Not only did it mean that they would soon be able to get in touch with Rome, but more importantly, they would have to live in the village during the time the bridge was being built, which would at least allow the villagers to earn a lot of money in the winter.

The panic caused by the execution of the village chief has not disappeared, not only the Bohemians, but even the Agri are cruel and terrible in their eyes, which at least makes the Agri feel proud.

However, the village was too small for Alexander's army to fully inhabit, so he had to order the rest of the army to camp in the woods, which was somewhat sheltered, except for some of them.

The village was filled with a sudden mass of workers in the next two days, and even though Tempra was the closest to it, it was impossible for them to live there.

"Let the workers set up makeshift camps in the woods, they need a place to live," Alexander decided, and he ordered increased vigilance, "We need to be careful of enemy attacks, this matter cannot end here." ”

Unbeknownst to Alexander, the enemy had already infiltrated the workers who were building the bridge, and the short man, in addition to being the first to arrive here, was soon followed by a small but shrewd group of men.

These people, along with the real workers, were assigned to the woods to build a few makeshift houses to live in.

Not far from them, Alexander's army was also stationed in this wood.

The losses in a battle were not small, but it did bring the Agri and the Bohemians closer together, who had been somewhat estranged.

In the past, the Bohemians looked down on these Agri mud-legged people who had just put down their farming tools and took up arms, although they did not feel much sorry for the Agri because of Nashan, but they were always arrogant in front of these farmers, and they always appeared in a condescending posture.

And the Agri apparently did not look down on the Bohemians who were like barbarians in their eyes.

This contradiction, though not obvious, had some effect in battle, such as the battle on the banks of the Bracciano River, where the Bohemians showed their perfect charge and arrogance in attacking the enemy quickly, so that they could not form a perfect cooperation with the Agri, so that although they successfully attacked the enemy's back, they still allowed most of the enemy to flee calmly, which led to the enemy being able to quickly organize a second attack.

The price of blood taught the Bohemians and the Agri a hard lesson, making them pay the price for the pride and frivolity of their first arrival in Rome, but the brutal experience of fighting side by side also changed their relationship a lot.

Alexander, of course, would like to see such an outcome.

Compared with others, the Agri people as his original territory had a different meaning to Alexander, and with several battles he had also found that although they could not be compared with those mercenaries or armies who were experienced in fighting all year round, but perhaps because of their poverty, compared with the rich northerners, the southern Italians represented by the Agri were more able to endure hardships and be willing to obey orders, which made Alexander secretly decide that if he could, his army would be dominated by southern Italians in the future. At least for the time being.

"Also, Carlo, I need you to recommend to me some soldiers whom you think are reliable," Alexander instructed, "there is no need for many of them, a dozen is enough, I need them to be not only skilled in muskets but also good at close combat, these people will be my personal guards, so I must be loyal and reliable." ”

"If that's the case, I'd recommend myself." Listening to Alexander's request, Carlo immediately replied.

"I just need some guards who can protect me in times of danger, but it would be a waste for you to do this," Alexander smiled lightly, "You still command all the Agri, and when you return to Rome you will continue to study with Nashan, I need you to be a good cavalry officer, not a guard, you know that I have high hopes for you." ”

Eventually, Carlo recommended an Agri named Paul Busako to Alexander.

According to Carlo, this Paolo Busako was a "true Agri" and an experienced hunter, which meant that he was not only a man of great ability, but also a skilled use of firearms.

In fact, Alexander hesitated a little when a man stood in front of him as if he had been filed, albeit with a file.

The man's limbs also seemed to have been filed, and he looked hard, two completely different people from Caro, and what really made Alexander suspicious was that he had little impression of this man.

He had some impression of all the people who had followed him out of Agri, and Alexander doubted that there was anything else that would make an impression other than his peculiar appearance.

"Paul's family has always been the best in Agri, but they have not been hunters since his father's generation," Carlo explains to Paul Busako, "because his father once lost a hand when he was hunting by a wild animal, but Paul learned all the things they are capable of, and you can trust him." ”

Alexander nodded slightly, of course he would not fully trust this man named Paul Busako because of Carlo's words, but looking at his strong arms and the knuckles of his fingers that had grown from years of drawing the bow, Alexander decided to use this man.

Paul Busacko was a man of few words, and immediately after his appointment to Alexandria, he began to select men among the Agri.

And most importantly, it has to be the Agri!

While it is important to have a good skill in the use of weapons, or to be able to reload muskets quickly so that you can shoot more than anyone else, the premise of all this is that you must first be an Agri.

Paolo Busako was asked to do so, and he did.

As Alexander said, what he needed was a team of guards who could protect him, and for these guards, loyalty was the most important condition.

And the Agri undoubtedly possess more of these qualities.

"I want to know how you're going to protect me."

Looking at Paul Busako, who was looking at the dozen or so Agrians picked out in the distance, Alexander asked.

The new captain of the guard thought about it seriously and said, "I can shoot if I am far away, my swordsmanship is not bad if I am close, and I can assure you that if they want to hurt you, they must first step on my corpse." ”

Alexander looked at the captain of the guard in front of him, he didn't believe what this person said, but he still shook his head: "You are wrong, your duty is not to give me my life, but to ensure that I can live, so you should consider how to protect me." ”

Paul Busako looked at Alexander in a daze, then nodded without saying a word.

While Alexander was thinking about his personal safety, a group of workers stood busy at work by the wreckage of the wooden bridge by the river.

Although the weather was cold, the workers immediately became active when they heard that they would be paid more if they could repair the bridge as soon as possible.

The promise that he could get an extra florin a day earlier made many people rush to work with torches even when it got dark, and the wooden bridge, which was supposed to take a week to be repaired, Alexander hoped to be ready for use in three days.

"Then we need to find more men," said a town carpenter who had been temporarily appointed as an overseer, and said to Alexander, "at least a few dozen people are needed now, but my lord, we don't have so many people now, unless we go further afield to recruit people." ”

"Further afield?"

Alexander frowned slightly, in this kind of weather, it is difficult to get some men from distant villages and towns to go out to work, and it is not so easy to recruit dozens of people at once.

"Maybe there's someone who can do it," Carlo suddenly remembered the short man he had seen before, who was the first person willing to build the bridge, and more importantly, Caro remembered that he had said that he had some companions, "There was a homeless man who had been recruited to do the work and said that he still had some friends, maybe those people could help." ”

"Then let the man go to his men to help," Alexander ordered with some anxiety, "we must not be delayed here, and as soon as arrangements are made we will leave here tomorrow for the coal mines of Sanroni." ”

When Carlo told him to find more men, a strange smile quickly flashed on the short man's face, but he quickly lowered his eyebrows and agreed, and even tried to discuss with Cairo if he could give a florin in advance, so that his hungry homeless friends could have a full meal first, because then they could come with the obedient ones as soon as possible.

Carlo generously gave the short man 2 florins, and told him to bring them all over as soon as possible.

After agreeing, he looked at Carlo who turned to leave, and glanced at a few locals next to him who were a little angry at this scene, and the short man threw the short shovel in his hand and went on the road with a smile.