"The Parthians have captured three towns on the Syrian border in two weeks, and now panic has begun to spread on the borders of the republic. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info"

In Antony's private residence in Skopje, Dortius is giving Antony a detailed account of the invasion of the east in recent weeks. The Parthians had always been the Romans' fierce rivals, and now, since the defeat of Crassus, the flames of war have been rekindled.

"How many troops do we have there?"

Antony sat on a chaise longue in the living room, impatiently questioning Dortius. At this moment, the main force of his legion was fighting bitterly with Octavian's three veteran legions in Brindisi. And at such a critical moment, the news of the Parthian invasion came. No matter how powerful a hunter is, he can't fight two wolves at the same time. However, the wolf may have joined the melee because of the fierce battle.

"There were only fifteen brigades, and they were scattered across the towns. Jerusalem had two full legion brigades, and the defenders of the other towns were originally used to provide security for the area. ”

In the face of Antony's irritability, Dortius answered the situation at the front with trepidation. This first-hand information is also the worst information.

"These soldiers simply could not resist the armies of the Parthians. Damn it! At this time, troops were sent to invade Syria. It was one of the richest provinces in the east in terms of taxes. ”

Anthony was grumpy.

"I think they may have seen this moment to attack Syria and occupy that fertile land while we were fighting bitterly with Octavian."

Dortius stood in front of Antony and said respectfully. It should be said that there is no need to analyze, everyone knows that this is the case. The Parthians were so peaceful and friendly during Caesar's reign in Rome, and after Caesar's assassination and the division of Rome, the Parthians began to move in the East again. They peered at the value of trade on the shores of the Mediterranean, just as hunters peered at their plump prey.

"Not possibly, for sure. These Parthians were a weak people, and when the lions roared, the foxes hid in the jungle. And now, these weak mongrels, wild beasts, are once again invading our territory. ”

Anthony slapped his hand impatiently on the corner of the table, shaking the entire wooden table slightly. He is like a proud lion who will never bow to any force, but he has been mercilessly beaten by reality. You know, the Parthians were not Brutus, their tactics were not so simple, and the pace of Rome's eastward expansion could be said to have been stopped by this powerful and stubborn kingdom.

"We have no choice but to withdraw our troops from Italy. Anthony. ”

After a moment of silence, Dortius rationally reminded Antony.

"Yes, we must withdraw our troops. My anger was like the lava of the Suvis volcano, and Octavian's hairy boy must one day understand that Rome was mine. ”

Grumpy Anthony roared loudly.

……

"Venerable Queen, do you really intend to help Rome against the Parthians? The Romans were not fuel-efficient lamps, their armies would enslave us when they entered our cities, and they would control the economy of Egypt. ”

Just as Antony decided to return to the East, in the Kingdom of Egypt along the Nile, Queen Cleopatra once again made another major decision that would determine the fate of Egypt. She held a non-venomous young green snake in her hand, and her wise eyes radiated a terrifying and cold light. The Chancellor, Petri, fell to his knees, looking nervous and melancholy. He did not understand why the queen would once again leave the fate of Egypt in the hands of a reckless and even somewhat rude Roman general.

"I know, Petri, that you are a loyal minister, a rare talent in the royal family of Ptolemy. That's why I'm going to tell you the truth of the matter. Petri, you must know that Rome is still a lion even in the midst of civil war, and we can only survive in this chaotic era by relying on its strength. The Parthians invaded, and their target in the short term was by no means Rome, which was far away on the west coast of the ocean, but us. Rome was invaded in the east, we offered to help them, and when Antony himself came to the battlefield and asked us to help with reinforcements, the result was the same, but the nature was different, in the most critical moment of Rome, we gave them help and reinforcements, the Romans, Antony must be grateful to us, and at that time, in the fight against Parthia, we will be an alliance with him, not a subordinate relationship. On the surface, we were all fighting with the Romans, but if we had announced our support for the Romans in advance and helped them hold some important towns, Antony would have owed me a great favor, and the Romans valued their reputation and glory, and they had no reason to point the finger at us again. ”

Sitting on the ornate throne, Cleopatra stroked the little snake and spoke in an elegant and slow tone. Like the Queen's pet, the young cyan snake struggled to escape the Queen's grasp, but was always in Cleopatra's hands. And the minister Petri knew that the next target of the Egyptian queen was the Roman legion general Mark Antony, who was far away in Greece but was high above.

Half a month later, two Roman legions marched into the gates of Damascus with anxious steps. Here, the defenders had been isolated for almost a month. The walls of the city have even been damaged in many places, and the broken places have been repaired and filled in repeatedly.

"General, if you had been three days late, the city would have been conquered by barbarians from foreign lands (the Romans regarded all peoples other than Rome and Greece as barbarians), there is a piece of news that you could not believe, and I could not believe at first, but it did happen, and the Egyptians came to our aid, and they brought grain and grain in baskets to our walls by pulley, and this grain allowed us to spend this long fifteen days. Even the rations of every old man and young child in the city were guaranteed, and it was because of this that panic did not spread in the city. ”

When Dortius entered the city, the commander of the city, Macunillas, excitedly reported the situation in the past half a month to the commander of the Roman legions, Antony's lieutenant. The news was unexpected by Dortius, and along the way, Antony's iron-fisted men were worried about the situation on the front line, and if Damascus fell, the whole of Syria could be said to have no room for recovery. However, the Egyptians, who had always regarded the Romans as their fierce enemies, provided food and weapons to support the city when it was under siege by foreign races, which really surprised Dortius and the defenders. To do this, he had to quickly write to Anthony to inform him of the dramatic scene that was taking place at the front.