"If you write fast, you can never write well; Write well first, and soon you will be able to write quickly. -- Quintilian, the most famous orator of ancient Rome

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But how could a mother forget the flesh and bones that had fallen from her belly? Attia's heart had been shattered from the moment the ship left the shores of Italy, and she had "died", even though her husband would later enjoy greater glory and wealth.

And when Turinus stepped off the deck of the ship, he saw where he went, not so much the island of Malta, but a headland on the island that could not escape even the wind, with pale yellow rocks shivering under the roar of the waves, dotted with gray-green vegetation, and white clouds that seemed to fall on the headland, and then deepened in color as they went up, and soon turned to leaden gray. When the ship docked at a sunken sandy beach, Turinus made footprints on it, accompanied by heavily armed soldiers and centurions.

"It's hard work, and you're still here." Turinus said with a cloak.

"It's not hard, we'll do it every five years. Here, the annual salary and allowance are as much as a lot, and it is better than going to a dangerous battlefield. The centurion who took the lead was expressionless.

When Turinus heard this, bitterness and despair flooded in his heart, and he was killed once every five years, which meant that this was indeed a lifetime imprisonment. Then, in his sandals, he stepped on the stairway by the edge of the cliff, winding up the limestone everywhere. It wasn't until the top that he finally saw his house, a building also made of limestone. Deeply connected to the surroundings. There is a curtain hanging at the doorway. Turinus stood there, looking around, and on the empty sea, not a single fishing boat could be found, not even a deck, but on the upper hill was a military camp, in which about fifty men were stationed. There is a separate spring for drinking.

There were also fifty other men, on the side of the headland that connected him to the land, with a naturally formed, narrow stone beam in the middle, supported by stone pillars above the surging Gulf Stream, and these fifty men, also at the end of the road, had a small ramparted bridgehead, eyeing the place where Turinus lived.

And Fonteus, who was commissioned by Li Bida, lives there, and even if he has to perform his duties conscientiously, he tries to avoid face-to-face contact with the subject of surveillance. So I lived in that bridgehead, every market day. Ten soldiers will be given a day off to go to the Maltese market towns to exchange goods and have some fun.

"The high priest's rule is that every market day should be given to the people over there, find a more beautiful woman to come, so that his life will not be so 'bitter', but every time it must be different." On the stone platform of the bunker, Fonteus said to the clerk of the hundred, "Also, if he needs books, wine, and meat, don't refuse, satisfy him with all your might, but don't give him iron." ”

As the sun went down, Turinus wandered around his "room" for a while, for there was no kitchen, for his food was supplied by the soldiers there, and against a stone wall, there were oil lamps and many clay pots, water, grain, and cured meat, and tables, chairs, couches, and cupboards, not too big or small, and if he wanted to defecate, there was also a separate place, which was relatively clean—two servants sat behind the curtains, one blind and in charge of daily life, and the other deaf and dumb, and in charge of hard work.

These are also the only two characters that Turinus comes into contact with in his daily life.

He was a little depressed, because he thought that he might spend time here until he died, so he went to the outside side, and at last he saw a column of ships with sails, and his heart swelled with comfort, because here, ships represent hope, but the ships soon lit up their lights and shimmered towards the headland, which was from Corfu, and the small patrol fleet placed by Li Bida sent a special signal to confirm the situation.

Sure enough, in a few moments, a signal bonfire was lit at the bridgehead there, and in a few moments the oars of the boats, with their lonely sound on the sea, slowly disappeared—and Turinus's heart was empty.

"I need some books to relieve boredom, I need a hook pen, I need a messenger." This was the thought of Turinus as he sat in his room.

A few days later, when Turinus addressed these demands to the soldiers, Fonteius quickly spread them to a higher level, and soon a reply came: "Don't send new books, just send Varro historical and naturalist books, most of them, let him spend his time slowly, and the messenger can give him, but he must live in your quarters, and he is not allowed to come into contact with Turinus on weekdays." ”

Turinus then began to snuggle up in his room and write letters, comforting his poor mother, and then frantically writing to Corinna, describing his experience of philosophy, naturalism, and the local landscape, as well as his longing for the warmth and fertility of the Apennines.

At first, Corinna would reply, but gradually she became more and more lazy to cope, Turinus's life was monotonous, but her life was colorful, and more realistic beauty awaited her - first kiss, first caresse, first love, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah

In less than three months, Turinus lost hope, and he sighed, "I don't have to send letters to Corinna in the future, I write one every month and put it in the box." But I still write and send letters to my mother on time. ”

When the blind servant heard this, he nodded, and fumbled for folding the letters that Turinus had separated, and put them into the chest on the cupboard.

Soon Turinus joined the drills in the barracks - and whenever the trumpet sounded, he also jogged around the headland, for he himself said that he had to fight against weakness and sickness, and at first the soldiers would stand on the towers and watch him, but as time went on, he became accustomed to it. He read more and more, and even began to write, but every evening he would sit on the edge of the cliff and watch the patrolling fleet come and go before returning to rest, which soon became an ironclad habit.

"His body is generally healthy, although there are some minor defects, but it does not prevent him from continuing to be healthy." The medic would report to Fonteus in this way after a routine check-up, and then receive an additional reward of ten Sethes.

"He was very polite, and by no means as rude as you big-headed soldiers on the couch, and when he was done, he would invite me and the two servants to sit across from him, and he would read us poems or anthologies. And at the end of each time, he would take some extra silver and copper coins out of the jar and give them to me as a token of gratitude for my patience in listening. The prostitute, wrapped in a red status cloak, also reported to Fonteius about Turinus's movements after finishing her work.

"You said he was going to give you all the coins? You know, he sent the money from Rome. Fonteus asked.

The prostitute laughed and said to Fonteus, "Is this strange? What else does he need money for. ”

yes, what else does he need money for? Fonteus also scolded himself for being stupid. (To be continued......)