"Brother, in your opinion, how long will it take us to break through this town?"

Things went exactly as Appis had predicted, and Octavian did not accept the "peace talks", and he continued to occupy Ancona and confront the Gallic legions. It seems that he swore to defend his name as the son of Caesar. Appis complied with his request and besieged the city of Ancona with a large army. However, because the town was a seaport city, the port was on the edge of the city, and it was protected by the city walls, and Octavian could rely on the sea to obtain a steady stream of supplies, which made the siege very difficult, because the soldiers in the city were only about 8,000, while the army outside the city numbered tens of thousands, and the daily rations consumed by the legions were several times that of the city. This was originally an army formed by usury, and the most taboo thing was a long delay.

"It's hard to say, Apis, maybe a month, maybe half a year, without the blockade of the navy, Octavian can rely on the sea to get a steady stream of supplies."

Crassus the Younger and Apis stood on a vantage point outside the city, overlooking the situation outside the city of Ancona, studying the siege strategy.

"This is exactly what I feared, although there were only a few thousand defenders in the city, they were all very loyal to Octavian, and the people who were able to fight their way through such a terrible siege were certainly not ordinary soldiers, but a group of Roman veterans who could fight well. Forcibly attacking the city, it is estimated that there will be serious casualties. ”

Appis said with a frown. In fact, everyone knew that the most important thing in this siege was the navy, and as long as Ancona was besieged by the sea for a month, the city would inevitably be defeated by running out of food. However, the Navy could not survive for a while. Appis's Mediterranean naval fleet was at this time in the vicinity of Sardinia and the port of Ostia. That is, the west coast of Italy.

Ancona is on the east coast of Italy, and if you want to block the port of Ancona, you must transfer the fleet from the west coast to the east coast, but you must pass through the Strait of Messina in Sicily, or bypass Sicily, enter the area of Brindisi, and then go north to Ancona. And Anthony announced a week ago that he had taken control of Sicily, that is, all ships passing through Sicily had to be approved by him.

Apis's extermination of Octavian was not a good thing for Antony, although Antony didn't like Octavian, but he would rather Octavian stay on Apis's territory for a long time, so that it would be equivalent to inserting a sharp knife in Apis's chest, and in the future, when he wanted to conquer northern Italy, it would be much easier. So, all the ships that passed through Sicily, Anthony intercepted it...... In order not to tear his face with Anthony, Apis had no choice but to order the fleet to return the same way.

Thus, the Ancona dilemma arises.

…………

"Take it, it's a handwritten letter from Turinus, and give it into the hands of Hadrum, the senator of the Roman Senate. Remember, be sure to put it in his hands, and burn it if someone tries to look at it. ”

At night, on the boat that sailed out of Ancona, Masinus handed over a top-secret document to his most trusted servant, and as the night fell, the ship and its people disappeared silently into the vast black sea.

A few days later, the quiet city of Rome was full of dark tides......

"This is a big deal, a very dangerous thing, and we have to unite more people."

In the back room, Hadrum spreads out the papyrus scrolls, and Octavian's handwritten letters shock the "father" of his homeland. At the same time, he also knows that this is the only chance to fight back. The stakes were so high that Hadrum did not dare to organize it alone, and decided to draw more allies, those who were still loyal to Octavian in Rome.

"But before I came, His Excellency Masinas repeatedly instructed that this matter should not be known to more people, and he asked me to tell you that the present Rome is no longer the Rome of the past, and that many people, including those who were originally on the side of Caesar, have also taken refuge in Appis, and it is better not to involve too many people in this matter. Although the more people involved, the higher the likelihood of success, but the greater the risk, because there is no guarantee that every participant is one of our people, and as long as one person denounces, the plan will be destroyed. ”

Hu Cong honestly conveyed the words of Octavian's assistant Masinas. This also made Hadrum's mood even more uneasy. The content of the letter was none other than Octavian's refutation of Apis's remarks that he wanted to destroy the republican system and want a dictatorship. Including references to Appis' Praetorian Guard and Cabinet. Octavian wanted to inform the people of these facts, so that all Romans would know the true face of Appis. What Hadrum wanted to do was to organize the people to go to Civic Square and read the letter publicly. Of course, the reading must be read in the name of the Senate. For this reason, how to organize the people, how to avoid Appis's Praetorian Guard, and how to assemble in secret became a factor that Hadrum needed to consider carefully at the moment.

"Well, leave this matter to me, tell Caesar that I will do my best to complete the task."

Hadrum was Octavian's eyeliner after cleaning up the Senate in his early days, and he was one of Octavian's most trusted men. After Apis entered the city, Octavian's former men became enemies of Apis. Hadrum knew that he could only survive if he remained loyal to Octavian, and that he could continue to live this life of double entitlement. Otherwise, many of the people who originally supported Apis would be promoted and stepped on their own corpses to ascend to the throne. This is a bloody battle.

After the messenger left, Hadrum stood in the antechamber, looking at the dark sky overhead, and his heart was extremely heavy.

Loyalty or betrayal? He hesitated for a long time, but in the end, he decided to remain loyal to Octavian. Because he saw the fate of the betrayer, the naval officer who had betrayed Apis and defected to Octavian, Bunodius, in the end, could neither be reused by Octavian nor forgiven by Apis, and when Apis entered the city of Rome, the humble naval commander tried to flee the city with what little property he had left, but was killed by the Gallic legions on the way. There is only one chance to choose a side...... In his most difficult time, if you take refuge in him, you will be able to gain his trust and support, and when you see that your backer is gone, you will not only lose the trust of the other party, but also lose your personal dignity. This was true of both Apis and Octavian.