"The people of Dodona asked Zeus and Dioone if a harsh winter had fallen because of the impurity of a certain man." -- Divination in an ancient Greek temple in the fourth century B.C

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In the small room of the high priest's mansion, Caesar and Calabis sat face to face, the candle flame shone on Caesar's face, his face seemed to be a little sallow, and he was restlessly turning the ring on his finger, Pompey had divorced his wife, because of her adultery with himself, but who wanted to blink an eye Pepea almost cuckolded herself, but what made Caesar even more difficult was that if Pepea had an affair with Claudius, then forget it, the Romans were just chasing after the wind and shadows for secret adultery, but now Claudius bastard, It was simply a blatant defilement of the mansion and authority of the Julius family and the high priest and chief legal officer, so that he really could not sit idly by.

"What's more, my mother insisted on going to court, and she insisted on disposing of Claudius."

"Yes, now all the decent people in Rome want Claudius to be punished." Calabis exhaled and said to Caesar, "Actually, my patron tuna also wants Claudius to be finished, but they are them, we are us, and Your Excellency must be cautious at this moment and turn disadvantages into advantages." ”

"Tell me what you think, Calabis."

"Your Excellency, there is a story in our country of Seris, a kingdom with a bear as a totem, their king tried his best to destroy and subdue many of the surrounding tribes, and once when a triumphal banquet was held, suddenly a night wind blew and blew out all the lights on the banquet. Wait until the servants have turned the lamp back on. The beautiful concubine of the King of Bear. Give him the horsehair on the helmet, and say that a cowardly general just now tried to offend her by taking advantage of the chaos and darkness, but she pulled the horsehair off the helmet, and she begged the bear king to find out the lewd general on the spot with tears. But King Bear announced on the spot that everyone attending the banquet would take off their horsehair from their helmets and drink to their heart's content. Afterward. When the bear king was in danger of being killed in a fierce battle against the barbarians, a brave general rushed in and rescued the bear king, and when the bear king expressed his gratitude to him, he said, "I am the one who was robbed of his horsehair by your concubine at the banquet!" ”

After hearing this story, Caesar thought for a long time before he said to Calabis: "You mean that I am the king of the bear, and Claudius is the prostitute general?" ”

"That's right, Your Excellency, you have been going to Far Spain to take up the post of Governor for a long time, and you are still burdened with considerable debts that have not been paid off. There is only one year of term time available to reverse the situation, so if we have a career in Lusitania. It would not be good to be held hostage by the Senate, Pompey or Cicero. Calabis poured Caesar a glass of wine and suggested.

"I traded Pepeia and the family's reputation for Claudius' gratitude and assistance, what do you mean?"

"Yes, let Claudius make a mess in the city of Rome, he is no different from you in terms of political positions, he is disgusted by the old guys in purple robes in the Temple of Concorde, he can completely become your combat agent in the city of Rome, and fight Pompey, Cicero and even Cato the Younger, and Your Excellency can rest assured that you will go on expeditions in Lusitania, collect taxes, pay off debts, and do not pave the way for future consulship elections." Calabis then said in distress, "It's just Pepea"

"I have sent someone to the Pisso family to propose marriage, and the other party has a rich dowry. As for Pepea," Caesar sighed, poured his drink into his stomach, and then his eyes became indifferent, "for Caesar's wife cannot be doubted, even a little. ”

This sentence was tantamount to approving Calabis's suggestion, and also announcing the "death sentence" of Pepea's marriage, Calabis felt relieved, he took out the vellum paper and pen and ink, and recounted the relevant matters as he wrote, and then assured Caesar: I will take care of the affairs of the city of Rome, and when it is properly handled, I will naturally come to Lusitania to meet you. But now that your Excellency has gone to Far Spain, has it been properly raised?

Caesar's face was embarrassed, and Calabis understood, saying that you should go directly with the men and horses that the Senate gave you the right to compose, and after I have dealt with this place, I will take the soldiers and supplies recruited later, and cross the sea by boat to meet you.

"The Senate has promised me that this trip will give me the Tenth Legion as a team, plus the right to organize two auxiliary legions in Far Spain, but I will settle the money and food myself. This was Pompey's ploy, and most of the backbone non-commissioned officers of that legion were his men. ”

"It's okay, I've let Kaimax go to Port Brindisi to operate, anyway, Pompey has disbanded the legion on the spot, I let Kaimax transfer flowers and trees - it's still the number of the Tenth Legion, but the centurions are all replaced by the Thirteenth Legion and the Seventh Legion, please rest assured." Calabis replied with a quick writing on the vellum.

In gratitude, Caesar's soft hand put on the back of Calabis's hand, making his whole body numb, although he instinctively resisted, but still forced a smile, Caesar said--This act of yours betrayed the Lord in a way, and I betrayed the mother, and now we are all people on the same ship, "I remember that the 10th Brigade of the Thirteenth Legion was recruited by you, and I will leave its backbone to you when I leave, and you can find a way to fill the vacant places at once, and then come to Far Spain." Don't worry about weapons and money, just look for Crassus, he has a full arsenal of weapons workshops in Etrunia. ”

It was not until the morning star disappeared that Calabis came out of the high priest's residence, and by this time the small merchants and vendors in the various streets were already carrying their goods back and forth in the fog and smoke, and the citizens of the various districts had enjoyed their breakfast early, and they made a great noise and hurried to the Champ de Mars.

Today was the day arranged by the Senate, the day when the triumphant general Pompey delivered his speech to all the citizens of the city, which was very important to Pompey, and completely determined whether he could continue to win the support and support of the people after the Mithridates War. Calabis thought about it, and with the crowd, he walked to the second floor of the public clubhouse by the square of the god of war, rented the next seat, and spent fifty dinars on him, where the view was very good, and he could clearly see Pompey, surrounded by senators, knights, and citizens, wearing a crown of laurel leaves, well-dressed, with a confident smile, with the bronze bow as a podium, looking down on everyone.

As the crowd grew, Pompey cleared his throat and began his heart-wrenching speech, which he apparently took as an encouragement to the soldiers and centurions on the battlefield.

As he listened, Calabis by the windowsill began to sneer, and Pompey chattered and chattered over and over how he had exterminated the pirates, how he had exterminated Mithridates. Ubert's army, how he faced all kinds of crises on the battlefield, how he used the art of command to save the day, how he attacked the enemy's cities, how many prisoners he captured, how much wealth he captured for the republic.

As a result, the reaction of the people below turned from indifference to impatience, and the whispers became louder and louder. (To be continued......)