In the evening, Calabis weighed down his heavy money bag, which contained nearly two hundred silver coins, and then slowly wiped the chalk from the wooden plank, and then carefully inspected the storehouse with a lamp, and was about to exchange the keys for the temple, and when he was finished, he suddenly remembered: "Hey, didn't that Milou say that after a fair-fair, let me go and see the plaster cast of the stone tablet of the dead veteran?" ”

Walking to the so-called veteran's house in the Evindini Hill, Calabis found that the apartment was not much better than the house of Highbrida, which was called the "island" in the city of Rome. In the eyes of the senate or the dignitaries, those who lived here, whether citizens or freemen, belonged to the "mob" who could rise up at any time, and their dwellings were cramped and dark, with no braziers, very small windows, no drinking pipes, and the walls were all mud and improvised and in danger of collapsing and catching fire. When Calabis entered the ground floor of the apartment, he saw that it was a small workshop, and when he entered, several slaves were cutting stones with frame saws, while Milou and several others, sitting in the stones, were beating with a flat chisel or a flat hammer, and when they saw Calabis coming, Milou did not say much, but he seemed very enthusiastic, patted the thick powder off his hands, and showed him the model of the tombstone in plaster.

The plaster is very finely made, a tombstone with a small dome, and in front of it is a statue of Dionysus with laughter, which is so lifelike that Calabis is full of praise, "Very good, very good, will the stone carvings be so beautiful by then?" ”

"It can only be more exquisite, pious and serene liliang that only stone can embody!" A stocky companion beside Milou said confidently.

Milou introduced: "This guy is also my comrade when he served in the Legion, his name is Pope, he was the best craftsman and engineer in the Legion at that time, and Setuuris was their masterpiece in Oscar, Spain. ”

"This is Tagus, a Spaniard, and the best swordsman in the Legion." Milou introduced a man with a scar next to him and said.

Calabis nodded admiringly, and asked why you didn't stay in Spain and come to Rome since Sethouris was later killed by a traitor, why did you bother to come to Rome now that you are a rebel, with no retirement salary or land, and you can only rely on your old connections to live in this veteran's home.

"Because the traitor Papina, who killed the one-eyed dragon general, was later appointed by Sulla as the official of Spain, and constantly sent people to hunt us down, and Spain couldn't stay." Milou wiped his face with his big hand and said angrily.

"Are you ready to take revenge on that Papina?"

"Revenge, weishenme does not take revenge! That guy didn't dare to come back to Rome now, and he had raised a large group of sword slaves in Spain to protect him, and I was afraid that I would not be able to slay him in my lifetime, and I swore before the goddess of revenge that I could not die in Rome without doing anything. Milou said loudly, and Pop and Tagus nodded in agreement.

But those men soon fell silent again, yes, like them, nested in this small workshop, accumulating a few Sethres every day, not to mention going to Spain for revenge, it is enough to maintain daily life, it is really a penny to suffocate heroes.

At this moment, Calabis suddenly had a flash of inspiration and asked, "Do you know how to dig tunnels?" ”

Milou thought it strange to hear this question from the mouth of Calabis, but they quickly said, "No one can compare with the soldiers of our legion in building military roads and tunnels." ”

"Okay, okay, I'll come to you after three market days, when the funeral monument is erected!" Calabis shouted excitedly and ran away with a puff of smoke.

During this time, although Lucuras told Kelly to tell the freedmen in Rome who were under his protection that they did not have to come to his mansion every morning to say goodbye, Calabis insisted on getting up early every day, standing in the courtyard, waiting for Lucuras or Marcus to come out to give a lecture, and then go to work in the temple of the Vesta, which was also the bond between the freedmen and the patron. Lucuras at first, that is, with concern, inquired about the work of the lower Calabis, and the Gan San Treasurer was not used to it, "Yes. Calabis replied.

"Well, listen, you're there, not only the knights, but also the senators, the outgoing archons, and even the chief priests, who are always silent outside, no matter what you see, which is why the temple is willing to hire foreign freemen." Lucuras admonished, then he looked at Marcus, who was not very happy, and finally asked: "The contractors Claudia found in the name of Crassus and Caesar said that it was an impossible task for the Villa Prima to dig tunnels to attract seawater, and they all suggested that I should make a marble step road up the hill, and turn it to the foot of the hill and the seashore, and dig a fish farm there—but Marcos did not like such a design at all." ”

"Yes, I don't want to go over the mountains and see sea fish and crocodiles, I want the pond to be in the courtyard." Marcos said distressedly.

"Calabis, if you inquire, as long as there is a contractor who can complete this task, a tunnel project, I am willing to pay the price of 100,000 drachmas." Lucuras said.

There was a loud gurgling sound in Calabis's throat.

"In addition, I have agreed with Tylangnon that I will build a library in the middle of the new villa, made of pure white marble, surrounded on all sides by an open structure, and that I will buy books from Greece and Alexandria to enrich it, and I will spend my last years writing in this study. As long as the tunnel project can be completed, I will also contract the construction of this library at a cost of 100,000 drachmas. Lucuras added.

Calabis then let out a loud grunt in his throat, and at last he mustered up his confidence and said to his patron, "If I have the chance, I will try." ”

When these words were spoken, the whole scene fell silent, and Lucuras, Marcos, and Kelly all stopped and stared at Calabis as if he were on his back, but Zuihou still made up his mind and shouted, "I'm willing to try!" ”

Luculas consulted Marcus for advice, and Marcus said that I would like to let Marcobis try, so the Lord nodded to Marcobis: "Dear Marcabis, I am willing to give you this opportunity, in fact, I don't like to let unfamiliar people handle my affairs now, after all, the lesson of Demetrius is ahead, but if you can make Marcus happy, then it will work." If I can, I can consider giving you two trust ventures in the future. ”

Hearing the words of the patron, Calabis felt that the ground under his feet was spinning, yes, the opportunity is coming, but it depends on whether you can grasp it.

Yes, you must grasp it, in Rome, a place where you can go back and forth between heaven and hell in an instant, create your own contacts and resources, even if you are a free people, then you have to be a free people of the first class.