When the food was served, I saw four or five waiters rushing back and forth, and in a short time, the large and small plates were full of food that Luga did not usually see. Except for some grapes and other fruits, the others were all roasted meat that was charred on the outside and tender on the inside, which was a delicacy that Lujia and all the guests from the Western Empire had never eaten. No one dared to do anything without the permission of Theodosius II, but he had not eaten all morning, and his stomach had already begun to growl.

"Don't be formal, guests of the Western Empire!"

As soon as Theodosius II spoke, the scene could no longer be controlled, and Andrew grabbed the largest piece of meat in his hand and put it in his mouth, and no one showed the proper etiquette at Augustus' table.

Soon, the cups and plates were in disarray, and the meal was very satisfying to Luga and Andrew.

"Have you eaten enough?" Theodosius II asked with a smile.

"Eat your fill, Caesar!" For the two titles of Your Excellency and Caesar, Luga is still a little difficult to say, but it is more because of his restraint, after all, it is Augustus, and Luga feels that what he does is not in line with etiquette. And he is also desperately speculating about the heart of Theodosius II, but it is a bit of a fool's dream to be able to analyze the psychology of a Caesar with a few words and a sumptuous lunch.

"Then let's get down to business!" Theodosius II was the first to speak, it seems that he is not a procrastinator, after all, the emperor's decision is not decisive enough, it will be a disaster for the empire.

"Listen up! Caesar! Finally on the right track, Lu Jia breathed a long sigh of relief, and he also sat up straight, and his whole spirit was highly concentrated, listening carefully.

"Let's talk about your Augustus, of course, my nephew, Valentinian!" Theodosius II smiled, his smile giving a chilling feeling, as if he had kept smiling because of something. Luga held his breath to see what he had brought to the table.

I saw Theodosius II unhurriedly take out a piece of parchment from his bosom, hold it up in front of him and show it to us, and then said slowly: "If you have such a question, the others should avoid it first, and leave me with Luga and Mr. Andrew." So saying, he looked back at the guard who had spoken to him on the roof, and said, "You can stay too." The guard nodded, and saw the soldiers on both sides of the table turn and exit the hall with the same steps, and enter the rooms on either side, of course, what was in the room was unknown.

Several of the guards around him did not get up for a long time, they were all looking at Luga, it seemed that they were more willing to follow Luga's orders than Augustus of the Eastern Empire. Lu Jia nodded at them, and the guards got up and exited the main hall, and waited in the garden outside the palace.

It was only when there were only four of us left in the room that Theodosius spoke.

"Tell me about it." Theodosius pointed to the guard beside him, "Marcus, my old fellow, and my most trusted close guard!" After the two sides exchanged salutes, Theodosius II began to look impatient.

"Of course, I was very surprised by your arrival, but what I didn't expect was that Valentinian, my nephew, would recommend and send me a close guard at this time." Theodosius II leaned on his animal-skinned seat and threw the parchment between his fingers on the table.

What does that mean?

This action aroused Luga's suspicions, and he had to realize pessimistically that with the way he was now, he could not understand what Theodosius was trying to say. Whether it's dissatisfaction or curiosity, I think there are a lot of clues from his actions. At least the parchment must be very problematic.

"Our Caesar Valentinian thinks that we are of great use to the empire, but he can't give us a role to play under his hands, so he repaired a letter to Caesar, hoping to cultivate." Luca spoke very reservedly, and he presented the letter in his hands to Marcus, who then handed the still damp parchment to Theodosius II.

"Looks like you've had a really hard time on the road." Theodosius rubbed the damp paper, and as he spoke, he opened the parchment and glanced at it cursoryly. I couldn't help but snort coldly, put down the parchment, and said to us: "My nephew, he is really aggrieved! ”

"Yes, it's just that Valentinian III is still young, and there are some things that he can't control." Luga was defending Valentinian III, at least allowing the young nephew to give a good image of the uncle he had never met. At least the words will be easier to say in the future, after all, they are relatives, as the saying goes, helping relatives is not helping, although you are Augustus, there will always be some selfishness.

"Sophistry!" Theodosius II directly interrupted Luga, who looked very angry, "You are not telling the truth, Aurius. Luga! ”

It turned out that he knew me, and Luga was surprised and a little uneasy, whether this guy thought that their group was a factor of instability, and the problem must have come from the parchment that was lying quietly on the table.

"Caesar, I don't know what you mean!"

"Valentinian, he is indeed only eighteen years old now, and now, even if he is my age, I don't know what he will achieve! He is now nothing more than a puppet, a puppet with a crown on his head and fine clothes and food! Aetius, on the other hand, was the true imperial vassal who stood behind Valentinian. As she spoke, Theodosius II picked up the parchment that was lying on the table and handed it to Marcus, who took it and passed it into Luga's hand.

"Check it out!" Theodosius II said, "This is what your Caesar sent before he arrived, and the whole thing is full of crying, that he was oppressed by Aetius, and now there is a close guard under Aetius, like a sharp claw, tightly clasping his neck, so that he is now powerless." I don't know why, Aurius. Luga! Theodosius II looked at me coldly, "Why on earth did Aetius attack such a child who knew nothing?" ”

"Because he took advantage of the absence of Aetius to lead an army to try to put down the rebellion of Bagouda in Belgian Gaul!"

"Ba Gouda?" Theodosius II's expression looked very surprised: "Belgian Gaul? He repeated it and laughed out loud. Really! Theodosius II laughed and said, "Honorius of the Western Empire is an idiot, his sister is also an idiot, and the child born is an idiot!" When I think of my uncle at this time, do you still expect me to kill them like my grandfather did? Naive! As soon as the words fell, he was replaced by a wry smile from Theodosius, who seemed to be talking to himself, and as if to say to us: "The fall of Berniface means that the entire Western Empire has no one who can compete with Aetius, so he has become the real controller of the Empire, which is obvious to all, that is, he is the Augustus of the Western Empire!" ”

"No one has the power to go against him, not even me." Theodosius II looked very disappointed, "Aetius has the Huns behind him, not to mention that he will recruit Visigoths if necessary, we are not his opponents at all!" I'm afraid that nephew of mine has been deprived of the last bit of military power by this time. What, then, can compete with Aetius? ”

Theodosius II's words were reasonable, Luga couldn't help but secretly comfort himself in his heart, fortunately he retreated bravely from the rapids, otherwise he would really become the sword of Aetius, in fact, after listening to Theodosius II's words, Luga realized that he still underestimated the strength of Aetius too much, and also made him understand that if he escaped, then the situation would only get worse.

"Then Caesar," Luga asked as he stood up, his gaze determined and resolute, "are you just allowing that barbarian to squander the few remaining treasury of the Western Empire and trample on the dignity of your family?" You must know that I am here on the orders of Augustus of the Western Empire, not for refuge! ”

Probably the aura calmed Theodosius II, he stared at the young man in his twenties in front of him with wide eyes, he seemed to see infinite possibilities in this young man, at least the moment he took the case, he should know this young man's loyalty to the empire.

"The Eastern and Western Empires both belonged to Rome, and although there were two Augustus, they still could not cut off the connection between the empires." Luga said, "Isn't Caesar willing to be the second Mark? Aurelius? ”

It seems that the situation is getting more and more interesting! Theodosius looked at the young man standing across from him, stroked the gold ring on his finger, and opened his mouth to ask, "So, what are you going to do?" ”

"Follow you, fulfill the mission given by Valentinian, follow Caesar to fight your troops, learn the skills of commanding legions, and then, go back, protect the rights and interests of the Flavis family in the Western Empire, contain and defeat Aetius, and if possible, reunite the Eastern and Western Empires!"

"Ha, interesting! Interesting! Theodosius laughed, and Luga knew that although he was very naïve, at least he could use it to let Theodosius II see him as a person!