After the last ritual of worshipping the gods, a torrential rain finally patronized parched Rome. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

In the midst of the thunder, Octavian closed his eyes in emotion. Let the long-lost cool breeze blow all over the body. The pouring rain soaked through his clothes.

"Brother, what are you doing? Come back soon. ”

Octavia saw it from inside the house and shouted. Octavian, however, did not seem to hear it, and he remained alone on the balcony, letting the rain wet his body and hair.

"Oh, what are you doing, Octavian?!"

Octavia ran to the couch, grabbed a Penulla, and then stepped to the balcony and placed the cloak over Octavian's head. Only then did Octavian turn his face to his sister.

"Octavia, it was a timely rainstorm and he gave me the last hope and courage."

The rain slid down his face, and Octavian's young face was full of joy and pride.

"Okay, okay, but you have to go into the house."

Octavia said anxiously. She knew that Octavian was frail and sickly, and that he had rarely eaten during this time, and that if he was beaten by the wind and rain like this, he would probably lie in the hospital bed for a few more days.

……

The persistent rains finally arrived, and the drought in Italy and Sicily was lifted. And the one who is most dissatisfied with this is Anthony. It's like handing over the fat to people. At least, Sicily was supposed to belong to him, and now, there is nothing. Inside Alexander's lavish palace, Anthony was furious.

"I told you to attack Octavian a long time ago. In fact, in the current situation, Octavian is no longer our greatest threat, our biggest threat lies in the northern Apis. Northern Italy, Gaul, Sardinia, Near Spain, Germania, and Britain had all fallen to Appis, and the combined strength of these regions was no weaker than Octavian's. If Apis were to gain all of Italy, we would have a truly formidable enemy in the future. Antony, you must think clearly, take advantage of Octavian's weakness, preempt Appis, and occupy Rome! ”

Cleopatra stepped out from behind the curtain and said slowly. In his hand, he also held the young Caesarion. Her face was full of nobility, and at the same time, there was a strong desire to conquer.

"Yes, yes, I also want to take back Rome and conquer it. But wars need justification, do you understand? The lovely queen. ”

Anthony was bored and impatient, and he sat down at his lavish desk, sipping wine as if it were thirst-quenching water. At the same time, squinting at Cleopatra, he knew that this woman was dreaming of his position as the queen of Rome again, and the ignorant and ignorant face of little Caesar made Antony laugh at it.

"Reason, that's just an excuse. There can be many excuses, such as this drought. ”

Cleopatra paused and continued—

"You can tell the people of Rome that this drought was the punishment of Octavian by the gods, and that he was unworthy to rule Rome and had a bad character, so the gods of Rome punished him. You can even further slander him, saying that his inheritance of Caesar's estate and army was a conspiracy, a hoax. How could a young man who had no previous military achievements and no achievements be favored by Caesar for no reason? Octavian was only seventeen years old when he inherited Caesar's legacy, which is doubtful, isn't it? Reason, so easy to weave. ”

"Go on."

Antony looked at Cleopatra, his eyes fogging. He knew Cleopatra's ambitions, but the Legion was in his own hands, and Antony didn't care how ambitious she was. No matter how big your ambition is, you can only serve yourself.

"And, my son, Caesarion. He needed a name. I can no longer allow him to exist in this palace as an illegitimate child. He is eight years old and must be taken seriously, and if he is not guided, he will even forget his father, forget his bloodline. ”

Cleopatra said solemnly.

And Anthony just squatted down with a wicked smile, kneading little Caesar's immature face with his big rough hands, and asked, "Do you want to be the king of Rome?" ”

The boy looked confused and looked up at his mother. Cleopatra has no clear instructions, but her eyes reveal irresistible dignity.

Caesarion nodded sneeringly.

"Well, then, let's point our swords straight at Rome. That's our home in the future. ”

Antony smirked and put the dagger in Caesar's hand, making a stabbing motion that made Cleopatra worry for a while, it was an iron dagger after all, and Caesarion was only an eight-year-old child.

Three months later, Antony's fleet set off from Alexandria, Egypt, aiming for the Italian mainland. As a close partner, Cleopatra continued to sit in the rear for the Roman general during Antony's expeditions.

Antony's attack upset the otherwise peaceful "world order", and as the most powerful of the three lords of the east, Antony's attack caused Octavian to shift the focus of his legions and all work to the east. You know, Antony's military strength is almost twice that of Apis, and his economic strength is stronger than that of the entire Western world. Pompey's conquest of the East doubled Rome's revenues, still excluding Greece, Macedonia, and Thrace, which now include Antony's rule.

"Agrippa, the time has come for Rome's life and death, and the tests that Heaven has given us one after another, however, we have to tell him that we will not succumb to fate and let death roll back to his underworld. Brothers, with the Seventh Fleet, rushed to Creek Island to fight Anthony in a decisive battle. We can't let this beast get past our last line of defense. ”

In the beige Roman administration, Octavian spoke to Agrippa affectionately. This is indeed the moment when his true feelings are revealed, the situation is turbulent, the weak eat the strong, once you become weak, there will be countless strong people eyeing you. These are extremely dangerous times. The predicament that Apis encountered back then was now Octavian's.

"But the transfer of the Seventh Fleet, Carthage and Africa, Sicily, will once again be exposed to the threat of Appis."

Agrippa voiced doubts and concerns. It is also true that Octavian's naval power was exhausted in the previous bloody battle with Apis, and the Seventh Fleet was the newly formed fleet, the only force that could compete with Apis in the Western Mediterranean, and now withdrawn, the whole of Africa and Sicily would once again be exposed to the threat of Apis, and his fleet could roam freely and block the sea routes, including ports.

"Anthony is a hundred times more threatening than Apis, Agrippa, you must know that even if Apis tears up the contract and attacks again, he will not be able to defeat us overnight. Antony, on the other hand, had a large number of legions, and Egypt and the whole of the East could provide him with a steady stream of troops and money. ”

Octavian replied resentfully. His figure was still so emaciated, and his reverence and gratitude for Caesar became his last spiritual pillar and position.