"Stop playing dice until it affects your land, and cherish what you have now!" - Rig Veda

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The Spanish prisoners of war resting in their tents could not help but be frightened, for rumors had been rumored for a long time, and perhaps now was the time to implement them—the high priest would either slaughter them all to the gods, or ask them to fight each other with swords and bleed to death in front of the temple of the city of Cadiz, and in any case their end would be very tragic.

A few brave and courageous people took the lead in coming out, and it was easy to see that the entire camp was surrounded by water, towers and cavalry teams were set up on all the main roads, and all the weapons of all were confiscated before, and even the pack horses were sent to the camp where the military slaves were concentrated, "No way, let's go out first!" ”

"The high priest commands that you build a sheltered passage along this camp to the foot of the hill and between the streams on the north, within five days, and build defensive walls on both sides." The chief centurion of the Leus infantry regiment, an Italian named Vlacus, stood beside the twelve thousand prisoners of war and shouted, "The daily allowance is five cesths, and there is a supply of alcohol!" ”

After saying this, the prisoners of war immediately became agitated, if they wanted to kill us, then why should they give us the pay for their labor, and even give us wine? A few bold people even asked, "Rong Yu, what kind of wine do you have?" ”

Flaccus snorted twice from his nostrils, "This time the High Priest brings love to you all, there is the native Iberian mead, and the ale brought by Cyrene. Transgalic Celtic sour beer. There are also Italian wines. The choice is yours. Of course, the best ones were also able to drink chilled cherry wine, which was rarely drunk by the high priest himself. ”

The prisoners exchanged views and opinions, but Flaccus quickly raised the whip in his hand and whipped it at the stake, "Don't make noise. It is for this reason that you were completely defeated by us at the Tumr River. Now according to your original formation, use the materials and tools provided to work with the slaves! Then, the north side of the camp was busy, with Flaccus leading the patrol team and closely supervising the work back and forth, and the military slaves sent in to cooperate were also carrying light weapons, which obviously also had a deterrent effect.

The anxious work was carried out until dusk. Everyone was exhausted and sat on the edge of the trench that had been dug. But many of the more sober people still covered their noses, their fingers trembling uneasily, and watched to see if there would be executioners and soldiers who would execute them in the small camps that surrounded them.

Turn-up came the scale-bearers who paid the salaries and drinks, and sure enough, five small silver coins each, and a large glass of wine, "Mead, sour beer, ale—yes, that's all, the high priest is not lying!" The prisoners of war, who had gathered around the vehicle first, excitedly discerned with their fingers in the twilight, and several of the old ones grabbed their arms and secretly signaled not to drink casually, but a half-naked fellow named Odax shouted, "What are you afraid of, I'd rather be killed when you're drunk." Then he rushed up, picked up a glass of sour beer and drank it, and then said that it was refreshing.

"Odax, the High Priest wants to receive you." At this time, the chief centurion Flacus, with the guards, suddenly stood next to the wine cart, "Others, continue to drink." ”

Odax of Nahan, handcuffed and shackled, slowly came to the commander's tent, where the high priest sat at a table with a bronze statue of the god antlers, famous throughout Spain. In the niches on either side of him were statues of various ancestors, from the family of King Numa, from the family of Leus, among them there was a statue of a young child with a spear in his hand, a ring and tassel around his neck, his armor was decorated with lotus patterns from Egypt, and his Scythian hair was braided, and beside this young man stood two slightly larger statuettes of young heroes with swords and shields.

Seeing this scene, Odax couldn't help but be in awe and fear, and the sour beer he had just poured down also sweated secretly.

"This is Rex, the god of war. Leus's three children, they killed dragons when they were very young, but don't be nervous, your name is Odax, and you are a young nobleman in Ursho City, aren't you? Seeing the other party coming in, Li Bida kindly explained the origin of the statue, and began to inquire about the origin of Odax.

The young nobleman of Urshaw replied in the affirmative, and then when he saw the high priest nodding, he asked his attendant to hand him a fine silver kettle, "Inside is chilled cherry wine, which I have sent to you as promised, for Centurion Flaccus has reported to me, and you are the best in the construction of the road today." ”

Holding the body of the pot in his hand, Odax felt a burst of refreshing coolness seeping from the inside to his body, and then to his throat, and the greedy saliva was churning again, he just took this mouthful, just satisfied the appetite, so Odax sat on the circle chair opposite Li Bida in a big way, and drank a whole pot of chilled cherry wine under the sword of the guards, and said that it was more comfortable than climbing the snow-capped mountains and glaciers of Nevada, in such a hot weather.

"Very well, then I will give you a jug of this drink every day, and ten standard silver drachmas, and you will set a good example for everyone." With that, the attendant gave Odax another money bag, and without waiting for him to ask anything, he sent him out of the camp.

Then, many prisoners of war surrounded Odax, looked at the money bag in his hand, and immediately asked this and that with curiosity and urgency, but the other party also did not feel his head, some people said that the high priest would not kill us, but others angrily pointed out that it was a fraud, and that the gods of justice would punish him.

By the next day, when the work was over, each prisoner of war had received five small silver coins and a hearty glass of wine, and that there were plenty of wheat cakes and bean porridge for them, and that the chilled cherry wine had been received not only by Odax, but by three.

By the third day, ten men had already received it, and the panic in everyone's hearts had almost completely subsided, and everyone was vying to do the work well so that they could receive their reward, and at the end of the day a neat passage was finished.

But this time it wasn't drinks and coins that came, but murderous centurions and armed slaves, "Everyone, stand up to me on the wall facing the corridor!" ”

In the shaking torches, all the prisoners of war stood in horror according to the majestic order, many of them began to tremble in their legs and stomachs, and some of them began to cry in a low voice, I didn't expect it, I didn't expect it, if I had known that I would be executed after eating three days of good wine, it would be better to work less actively, and complete the construction according to the five-day process, so that I could drink and eat more for two days, wouldn't it? (To be continued......)