"What is written in the letter?"

After the defeat of the Germanic army, Apis had been camping in the city of Lugdunum to allow his soldiers to recuperate and to send the disabled and wounded to the country. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info and at this time, Cicero, who had been living in Rome for a long time, also sent an important letter. The guards delivered the letter to Appis overnight, and no one knew its contents. Little Crassus inquired with concern after Appis had finished reading the letter.

“…… Not a good thing, my friend. Cicero wrote in Rome praising my achievements in the North, and declaring that I was the most selfless man in all of Rome, and that I had spent all my money against the enemies of the Republic, and that I had no interest in war. Praise me as a noble Roman. And, secretly encouraging the Roman nobles to join my side, and at his instigation, a group of young Roman nobles came to me from Rome with money. ”

Under the curious gaze of everyone, Apis put down the letter and spoke slowly.

"That's great news for us."

Levius answered.

"No, quite the opposite."

"Why?"

Crassus Jr. was puzzled......

"As far as I know, the war between Antony, Octavian, and Brutus in Greece is coming to an end, and I suppose that Antony has set his sights on Gaul, and Cicero's speech at this time, encouraging the Roman nobility to join me, will undoubtedly exacerbate Antony's dissatisfaction with him. Now, I only use the voice of public opinion to occupy Gaul and resist Germania, however, I am still inferior to Octavian and Antony in strength, and at this time, once Brutus's war in Greece is over, Antony will inevitably point the finger here, and Cicero, without protection, will undoubtedly be the first target of Antony, and he exposes his ......"

Appis sat down in a circle chair and said tiredly. As soon as the words fell, everyone present understood the entanglement of interests. Compared with the Germanic battlefields in the north, Rome will not be much more stable, and the seemingly peaceful imperial capital is an undercurrent of fierce tides.

"So what now? Those nobles are already on their way, and we can't send them back? ”

Livius asked anxiously.

"Then prepare to settle them."

Appis sighed helplessly.

A week later, after welcoming dozens of young Roman nobles at "Rongzhong", Apis, with everyone, including Maxim's legions, marched north, re-advancing the front to the south bank of the Rhine, where the Germans were torn apart after the siege of Lugdunum, and Leonie's voice was no longer powerful. In the old land of Mannheim, Apis easily routed the combined forces of the Aremen and Daniks, consolidating the eastern defenses. Then, with a large army westward along the Rhine, he again reached the territory of the Remy and Deliveli.

Here, Appis's legions met the Germanic Makoniman tribes and the Friesian tribes.

"You provide us with cavalry, and I give you food, land, and cattle and sheep. This is a bargain, not a slavery, friend, you know, I, Apis, am different from other Roman officials, I don't need you to be a vassal to me, I just need your promise not to rebel against Rome again. And I will fulfill my promise to give you the help you deserve. The land you want, after defeating the Fries, I will cede that land to you. ”

In the central town of Deliveli, Apis met with the leader of the Makoniman tribe and offered an olive branch of friendship. And this kind of cooperation is undoubtedly a huge advantage and temptation for the Germanic tribes who are in dire straits and have nowhere to live.

"Agreements? How can I trust you? ”

But the Makoniman chieftains, who were first cooperating with the Romans, were clearly not entirely trusted.

"Promise, this is my promise to you, that's all."

To the anxiety and distrust of the Makonian tribe, Apis just sat in his chair and replied unhurriedly. It does not show the haughty disdain of the Roman officials of the past, nor does it show any groveling. He just sat there calmly, waiting for the barbarian leader's next move.

"Promise? The promises of the Romans were never worthless, and many tribes were slaughtered after believing in your promises. How can I trust you so easily with your words? ”

"So what do you think we need to do to gain your trust?"

Faced with the barbarian leader's questioning, Apis continued to respond calmly.

"If you can send some of the young people to our tribe, I will make my people treat them well. Give them the best cattle and sheep. Nurture them. ”

"Do you want us to give you hostages? Rude brute! The Roman military camp here has always been only foreigners who provide hostages to Rome, and the Romans never give hostages to foreigners......"

The words of the leader of the Makonian tribe greatly annoyed the little Crassus, who was sitting on the sidelines, and after listening to the words of the barbarian leader, the grumpy Roman nobleman stood up and angrily reprimanded, and then was stopped by Apis in time.

"Chief, I think there is one thing you haven't figured out yet, that you are asking me now, not that I am going to compromise with you, and that without your help, my legion can crush your coalition forces, at most it will cost you some more time and money. At that time, you will no longer be like you are today, standing in a comfortable room and talking to us on an equal footing, and the vanquished are slaves to Rome. So, asking me for a hostage is an extremely stupid thing to do. You just have to believe in me, trust me, and then, after the war is over, I will give you the land, it's as simple as that. You know, you don't have a choice. ”

In contrast to Crassus's fury, Apis only lightly responded to the leader of the Makonian tribe. But such words are really lethal, he just sat coldly like that, but he had an inescapable sense of oppression, because what he said seemed to be all the truth...... This was the impression that the chief of the Makonian man had of Appis.

Two days later, according to the contract, the Makonian sent two thousand Germanic cavalry with excellent physical fitness, these cavalry were almost all naked tough guys, and the two of them rode the same war horse, even the war horse was unarmoured, these war horses were short and small, compared with the native war horses of Italy, the quality of the Germanic horses was obviously worrying. Then, under the astonishment of the crowd, Appis distributed all the Italian horses in the barracks to the Germanic people.

"You don't have to, Appis."

Of course, there are many opponents, including veteran veterans like Rabinus.

"No, on the contrary, it is necessary. This is one of my gestures to the tribe to make a friendly gesture, do not worry that these cavalry will escape, we are now superior to the two tribes, they want to resist, I will lead a large army to attack these barbarians head-on. The leader of the Makonian tribe would not be so stupid. The gift of these horses not only enhanced the combat effectiveness of these Germanic cavalry, but also increased my prestige and prestige. ”

Apis explained.