Chapter 5 Secret Agreement (Part 1)

"May there be but one master and one king in the world." - "The Iliad"

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But then he thought about it, maybe what Julia did was not a big mistake. In this situation, Caesar couldn't work hard and couldn't help himself at all. Now he was short of money to recruit volunteers, and Crassus was hesitating. , saying that his money is also preparing for the expedition to Parthia, which implies that I have no way to spend the money.

Now these bastards are standing by and watching as long as I pay.

So the whole situation is now a gamble, and I don't hesitate to lose everything. As long as I can invest in the success of Ptolemy XII's restoration and occupy the wealthy land of Egypt, I won't have to look up to these two people in the future.

Lepidus could only reluctantly nod and said to Yulia, "Okay, good job..."

"Actually, you feel sorry for me, right? You should ask me how many talents I sold, a full five hundred."

It was clear at once that the Ostia river port of Lepidus, plus the Etrunian farm and so on, seemed to have disappeared. It was so sad and painful.

Seeing Lepidus' expression, Yulia actually smiled with a hint of mischief, "You must think that I have sold off all your properties, but in fact I still keep the river port and farm, and the Five Hundred Towers. I asked Pharaoh for half of the rent."

According to Julia's explanation, the two thousand talents you gave to Ptolemy the flute player each month were spent on that guy's banquets, concerts, rewards for slaves and sword fighting slaves, and were taken away to Naples. The renovation of the luxurious palace cost eight to ten talents. The flute player neither recruited soldiers nor worked in politics. He was completely passive and squandering, and he was a worthless glutton. , so she tried her best to snatch 250 talents from the "tiger's mouth" through the pharaoh's daughter, and then collected her husband's villa properties, land deeds, and idle investments in various places, and finally collected 500 talents. , "It's probably enough to support three thousand men for one year."

After saying that, Yulia exhaled, took off the cloak covering her body, and continued, "I grew up in the Ofilenu Manor. I know that the fields and docks can never be discarded easily, so I just sold them. All the villas in your name are dispensable."

By the small lake next to the village of Russell, Lepidus bought a small farm of ten yogurts for 50,000 sesterces to provide accommodation for Julia, Poti and the children. "It's still customary here." "?" When the slaves were carrying the bronze stove, couch and sculptures inside, Lepidus stood at the entrance and asked his wife and daughters.

"It's good. Anyway, I'm not used to the lifestyle in Rome, where a chemist's store can fit in a lady's cosmetic jar." Julia didn't have much of a reaction, so she asked the servant to make her very neat. The leather boxes (just two) were transported inside, and then they walked to the stove to check whether the pots, vegetables and meat were sufficient. Bodie hurriedly looked at the man next to him, and Lepidus winked at her. Di then stepped forward and begged Yulia to leave here, because this was her responsibility.

Without saying much, Julia walked to the garden and started playing with Leo and Corinna. It seemed that the children of Lepidus had a good impression of Julia, and they circled around her sitting on the small chair. But there is no sense of life.

At this time, Caesar's nephew Pedis came in a hurry. He leaned against the doorpost and waved to Lepidus. Then he said that the matter must be discussed privately between the two, so he walked to the corner of the courtyard wall. Pedis Si first pushed the tablet to Lepidus, and then said mysteriously: "Caesar asked you to stop going to Egypt and use your assets to recruit the Thirteenth Legion first, because Rabinus got reliable information from Besancon that the troops on the northeastern border of Gaul The Belgians formed a tribal alliance that could number a hundred thousand warriors and prepared to invade south when the snow melted. So..."

Perhaps, even in modern society, Mr. Li Bida will encounter such a situation when he enters the workplace after graduating from college. When you are smug and ready to run the project you think you like the most, your boss... Crushing your dreams down like sandcastles with the utmost coldness, and then ordering you to stop building beautiful sandcastles and dig an ugly trench instead.

Wage war against the mindless barbarians, use the new tactics of legions and ballistae to defeat them, carry out racial genocide for everyone, and then accumulate a large amount of money from slave trade and plunder to bribe the entire city of Rome - Lepidus Slowly getting tired of this process, he now began to hope that he could use it outside Rome, in the rough and beautiful Eubernia of Asia Minor, or in the fertile and prosperous Delta of Egypt, or even on the ruins of Carthage in Africa. Building a world of your own with your own money is probably the ultimate dream of men in all times and countries.

Before, he followed Caesar and Crassus in order to pursue more opportunities and power, but now he feels that it is time to build his own kingdom of reading power. I am not from this era. I used to be a swordsman. The days of being forced to work as slaves to survive are gone forever. Now that we have the power, we have to change the world.

So he stood in front of Peidis, his attitude and expression changing.

Pedis also understood his difficulties, so he cleared his throat and said, "Look at the writing board in your hand."

Lepidus took it and took a look. The dense documents engraved on it were about guardians. Then he saw a ring seal in the lower left corner, which read "Vilitre's Picture, Gaius Oda" "Wei", it looks like a knight's ring.

A feeling of déjà vu reverberated fiercely in Lepidus' heart, Gaius Octavian? knight? guardian?

"Well, this is my uncle's request. This glorious knight named Gaius Octavian is actually the husband of my sister Atia. He once defeated the Catiline Party in the province of Macedonia, probably before. You also served in the same legion, and he died just last year. He was planning to return to the city to serve as a procurator, with a bright future," Pedis said uncertainly, "He also has a posthumous son named Turinus (Octavian). Later he claimed that he was born in Turin, and his name Turinus came from his hometown). He was only four years old this year. My sister Atia wrote to me begging my uncle to find a reliable guardian for Turinus. Do you understand, Lepidus?"

Turinus... Yes, if Lepidus's guess is not wrong, this little boy who is still called Turinus will be... the holy Augustus, the great "Comrade August".

Want me to be the guardian of these two girls? Lepida was stunned, and then Peidis added mysteriously, "Even if Atiya remarries, you can still continue to be the guardian. You even have the right to review their family's assets, and you can review the person who remarries. Selection. Also, I heard that you have a lovely daughter, and Caesar hopes that she will marry Turinus." (To be continued.)