"Born as a freedman, after defeating numerous opponents in the arena, he escaped from his cage, joined the legions, and then worked under Caesar, and then returned to Rome with letters of peace, only to be ostracized, which led to the Roman Civil War. Afterwards, Apis followed Caesar back to Rome to conquer Greece and defeat Pompey. After the outbreak of the Second Civil War, he scattered his money and organized legions to resist the invasion of the Germanic barbarians, and eventually led the Roman legions to conquer the barbarians north of the Rhine, extending the borders of the republic to the Elbe River. This is your favorite and most revered Uncle Appis. And your brother-in-law, Octavian. Good at governing the country and manipulating politics, after the assassination of Caesar, he bravely stood up for justice and drove Antony out of Rome. Moreover, the borders of the republic remained stable for several years. Tretus, now you tell me, your uncle Octavidinus and your uncle Appis, which do you prefer? Or who do you admire more? ”

The civil war between Apis and Octavian had ended, and Rome seemed to be back to a state of relative peace. Trade between Gaul and Italy was opened up again, and Rome, like an old man who had gone through the weather, was lying on a warm bed, recovering his old spirit day by day. Octavia told the story of Appis and Octavian to Tretus in the courtyard, and then asked Teretus, who had just turned 10, which "hero" he preferred.

"Appis!"

As a result, young Tretus uttered Appis' name almost without even thinking about it.

"Why?"

Octavia asked, curious, that she wanted to know the world through the eyes of the children.

"Because Uncle Apis is brave and legendary. I also want to be like him, to fight land and sea, and to raise my sword to fight against all kinds of enemies. ”

Tretus replied excitedly. Octavia knew that for boys, killing and conquest would excite them more and stir up a natural sense of conquest in them. Governing the country is a topic in the adult world, and for a 10-year-old child, it is really not attractive, or he has no concept of politics and economy at all. Appis's life experience was a lot of conquest, a lot of killing, from a commoner, in fact, from a slave to a conqueror, the supreme commander of the legion, this experience is indeed more attractive to children. It's a pity that Octavian was the enemy of Apis.

"Tretus, my child, you are too young to understand the meaning of conquest and killing, and in some way it is more important to govern the country than to conquer the foreign peoples and conquer the enemy. A person who does not know how to govern the country and does not understand politics, no matter how many tribes he conquers and how many honors he wins, is worthless in the end. In the future, you must learn how to rule the people so that they will revere you and respect you. ”

Octavia crouched down, stroked Tretus' cheek, and said softly. Although at this time Tretus did not understand the meaning of what his mother said at all. He reached an age where he preferred to swing a sword and fight rather than read those boring books in his study.

"Octavia."

While Octavia was teaching Tretus, Apis and Tertilla suddenly arrived. Since the end of the Civil War, Apis has become a frequent visitor to the area, which can be regarded as a kind of care and compensation for Octavian's family.

"Appis. Oh, I didn't expect you to come so early. Come here, sit down. Yulia, go get the fruit and bread. ”

Seeing Appis coming, Octavia got up and beckoned his servants to bring out food and drink.

"Don't bother. I happened to pass by here, sit for a while and go. Octavia, your mother now? ”

"Still not getting better, all day in her own room, melancholy and haggard."

"I'm sorry......"

Appis whispered with "guilt" and concern.

"No, it's not your fault, Appis, we all know that you gave my brother a chance, and he didn't want to come back."

Octavia looked sad, but quickly relented.

"Don't talk about the past, I hear you've been renovating the Grand Theater of Pompeii lately? I can take Tretus there to the concert again, and the repertoire is still the same? We could have brought in some more actors from Athens and Corinth, and that might have helped Tretus to learn about the history of our country. ”

"It's not a problem, Rome is at peace, a peaceful and prosperous country where everyone wants to come and enjoy the civilization here. Octavia, if I heard me right, you were telling Teretus the story of me and Octavian, and Caesar? ”

Appis interrupted Octavia and shifted the subject.

"Well, yes. The little one loves your legendary experience. ”

"No, that's not a good sign. Theretus was too young to talk to him about what was going on in our adult world, and he didn't understand that men shouldn't just kill and conquer, there were so many things to do. Also, if you can avoid him from knowing this, try to avoid it. I still hope that you, your children, and your family will no longer be affected by war and politics. There are things that can be avoided and we should try to avoid them and protect our families. ”

As he spoke, Appis's tone grew serious.

"If this is his fate, then we can't completely protect him. It's like my mother always wanted to protect me. ”

Octavia was a little sad, after so many winds, frosts, rain and snow, she gradually understood that her background determines what a person will encounter in the future. Cutting him off from the world too much, being overprotective, and making him unable to see the darkness and violence of this world is sometimes not a good thing, and it will even hurt him (her) in the future.

"Well, if you insist, I can't say anything. By the way, I'm going to find a teacher for Teretus, Nevia, and Tiberius. If you don't have an opinion, I'm going to have the three of them go to class together. A good teacher is essential to the development of children, just as Aristotle taught Alexander. ”

Apis spoke.

"That's a good proposition. But did you tell Lilia? She may agree on the surface, but not necessarily in her heart. Apis, I know you're trying your best to close the wounds in our hearts, but sometimes, don't be misunderstood. ”

Octavia said, a former friendship looming in front of her eyes.

"I'll talk to her, and I hope you can communicate with her more."

Appis replied lightly.