"Appis. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ”

The Spanish Roman legion barracks at sunset are filled with the sounds of chickens and mice slaughtering and cooking. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of the crowd, Apis wanted to go into Octavia's tent again and discuss with her the content of tomorrow's meeting with Sextus. But on the way, he was stopped by Octavian.

The young boy did not blame Appis for frequenting his sister's tent, but warmly invited him to join them at the campfire.

Octavian, dressed in light linen clothes, was where the noble heirs of the family of Gaius stripped off their magnificent robes and sat down with the lowliest soldiers. Apis guessed that Caesar had Octavian go with the army in order to cultivate Octavian's hard-working spirit and understand the bottom of the army, after all, Caesar valued the young boy so much. It's just that Apis knew that Octavian's performance on the battlefield would not be outstanding, and it could even be said that he would be embarrassed. The great Emperor Augustus was not really good at military command, and was a clumsy general in this regard.

"Hello, Appis."

Sitting around the fire were children who looked to be about Octavian's age. Although Apis was still very young, among the group, Apis still felt that he was much more mature than all of them, and in fact, he was four or five years older than them.

"Let me introduce you to you, friend. These are my best friends, Dumas, Taylor, Agrippa. ”

Although these people are commoners, they have an aristocratic temperament, perhaps with a certain degree of education, which makes these people not look marketable, but rather approachable and polite. Apis finally understood why the historical Octavian could be so close to his civilian partner Agrippa, they were only different in status, but their level of knowledge and cultural quality were comparable, so the level of knowledge was not so deep between the two people, on the contrary, Agrippa was good at military affairs, which just made up for Octavian's shortcomings. At this time, Agrippa, a civilian general who was famous in Roman history, naturally appeared in this crowd, but now he is still a child, and he is probably not much different in age from Octavian.

"Agrippa, I'm already the target of those Roman aristocratic women *** at your age, you haven't touched a girl yet, have you? Or rather, don't have a wife yet? I guess I can arrange it for you if necessary? ”

In the crowd, Apiste sat next to Agrippa, paying attention to the genius boy's every move, in the bloody Colosseum of Rome, every step was bloody and dangerous, Apis knew that he had to make as many allies as possible, even if he was unwilling to fight for the throne in the future, he could retreat under the protection of these allies, instead of being forced to go to the Colosseum like Cicero and Pompey.

"Oh, thank you. Your Excellency Apis, but I don't want to marry so early, you know, I'm just an ordinary Roman citizen now, if it weren't for Octavian's trust, I wouldn't even have the opportunity to step on this platform, it's my honor to have your attention, but I don't think I'm qualified enough to be worthy of the people around you. ”

Agrippa pondered this question for a while, and then expressed his meaning in a hurry. Perhaps, the real Agrippa is not so weak and steelless, but in the current environment, Agrippa still knows that he should not have any intersections with any Roman officers, and it is better to be a simple military servant.

"Well, little friend, you can come to me anytime if you need to, I think, you will soon become a real man, don't let your first time be left to those filthy military slaves. In fact, I used to be a commoner, and there is nothing to be ashamed of. Roman law has long opened up the rule that commoners can intermarry with nobles, as long as we get enough merit, friend. ”

Seeing Agrippa's tactful refusal, Apis knew that he couldn't ask any more questions, Octavian was beside him, the shrewd boy would not miss a single detail, and Apis knew that he had to remain as a simple friend as much as possible. In the political circle of Rome, there were no absolutely innocent friends, nor absolutely opposing enemies. Everything is only to use and be used, to be united and to be all.

"Appis, I hear that after you captured the city of New Carthage, you once released a game called the pots in the city, and it was very popular with the people? Is it? ”

The conversation took place in a relaxed and pleasant environment, and Octavian duly threw out another topic, focusing everyone's attention again. It can be said that in the conversation of the aristocracy, nothing is absolute gossip, even if they seem to be gossiping many times, but everyone has their own purpose in mind, and the topic of their gossip is to lead to another topic of their own concern, like Octavian Turinus at this time.

"Yes, it's very simple, but it's a very tempting game, I stuff some of the prize money into an invisible clay pot, and then sell it to every commoner or nobleman who comes to buy it, not every clay pot has a bonus, but some of the clay pots have a very generous bonus, and the commoners only need to spend a small copper plate to buy such a clay ear pot, and they can pour it out when they go back to see if there is something they want in it, it's like betting on luck, but for ordinary civilians, But it has a great attraction, how many civilians always hope that they can get rich overnight, and it can satisfy the wishes of these people. Of course, there are also people who are too crazy in their pursuit and spend all their wages, in which case, we will generally dissuade him from buying, and if he does not listen, he will no longer sell pottery ear jars to him. In this way, unsettling turmoil can be reduced. ”

Apis was chattering in the crowd, and Octavian loved to hear his friend describe these deeds, which were always imaginative and wonderful, and attracted the boy to stop and listen carefully.

Appis knew that the first lottery industry in history was actually invented by Emperor Augustus, and Octavian used this entertainment to raise money from all classes of society and then to improve the infrastructure of Rome. He was an outstanding statesman, but here Apis had arranged this kind of activity in advance.

"It's a great way to raise money, and many of the big foundations in Rome need to be maintained and renovated, and Caesar is struggling with where that money will come from, and I think the same can be done in Rome."

Octavian's words quickly aroused the approval of his friends. In this group of brilliant talents, Turinus is like a leader, always summarizing the words of others and making judgments. According to modern management, it is what a manager should do. Instead of pointing fingers at everyone's work, assign each of them tasks, then test their results and make a summary. It is no wonder that Octavian is not good in military affairs, but it is first-class in management.

"What about you? Agrippa, what do you think? If Rome needed to be renovated or rebuilt, what kind of public buildings do you think would need to be renovated or built first? Big bathhouse? The Colosseum? Or is it a theater and a library? ”

Consciously or unconsciously, Appis continued to focus on Agrippa, a handsome boy. Even Octavian focused his gaze and listened to his friends describe their claims. They are often like this together.

"General, I think that if Rome needs to be rebuilt, the first thing it needs to build is not those entertainment places, not libraries, bathhouses and other buildings, if this money must be spent on urban construction, I think Rome needs a large temple first. It will be a concentration of Roman gods, this building will be the most magnificent and huge god in Rome, it must be spectacular on the outside, but there can be a trace of mystery on the inside, so that the citizens who come to worship can feel the greatness and mystery of the Roman gods, and make them more devout to believe in our gods. ”

"That's right! The first thing a country needs to solve is the problem of people's faith, and only pious faith will prevent people from doing things that are contrary to the truth and goodness, in other words, the society will be more stable. ”

As soon as Agrippa's words fell, Octavian happily continued, and what Agrippa did not dare to say was directly finished by his own friends.

Appis suddenly felt an inexplicable excitement. Pantheon! Yes, this is one of the greatest masterpieces of the ancient Romans, until 2,000 years later, it still stands magnificently on the land of the first Rome in Italy, its perfect design, curved dome, the perfect fusion of light and shadow and architecture, so that countless people who come to visit are amazed, Agrippa may not know now that he is about to complete such a great work of art in the future. And Appis already had a faint sense from his words that this mission had to be accomplished by the boy. His gaze was so reverent, like Octavian's sharpness. (To be continued.) )