Augustus Road

The courtyard of Crassus was very different from that of Luculas, the patron saint. Luculas felt like he wanted to spend all his money. Prima's extravagance was a typical example. It is said that in his dressing room, there were A full hundred Phoenician purple robes. But Crassus was different. When Calabis entered the garden of his home, he felt a kind of faint silence. The decoration and decoration of the building were very simple, but there was a kind of friendliness. This was also the case. Crassus would not He objected to anyone coming to his house to disturb a meal. Only if there is a conflict in business or defense, he will confront you tit for tat, and his methods will be ruthless and merciless. In this city, although Crassus seems very lazy, no one dares to mess with him.

In the courtyard, there are rows of rooms on both sides. People familiar with the matter said that this was the working place of Crassus's accountant. Dozens of high-level slaves served as them. They reviewed, purchased or sold various properties from morning to night every day. Of course, Also calculating competitors, this is another face of this courtyard.

Finally, Crassus, who was standing in the front hall, smiled when he saw Calabis. He had a pair of big, deeply sunken eyes, full of crow's feet, but unlike Caesar's, they were full of a kind of city government and philistine. He was definitely that kind of person. A character who is reluctant to spend money and is always thinking about how to seize more assets. "Young man, I'm sorry for underestimating you before. You are now fully qualified to sit at the same table with me and discuss any friendship and business matters."

Then, a very energetic young man came out and said excitedly to Crassus, "Father, when will Cicero come?" A dark cloud passed over Crassus's face, but he still smiled and said, "I know my son, you are an admirer of Cicero. This respected consul will be here soon, so please be patient."

After Calabis chose a very inconspicuous seat and sat down, the guests came one after another. Sure enough, there was Cicero, but the consul was obviously a little distracted by the attentiveness of the young Crassus. To put it bluntly, , he and Crassus have never had a good relationship, and it is difficult to come here tonight.

The food at the banquet was far less exquisite and luxurious than that of Luculas, the patron saint. Most of them were daily meat, seafood and beans. A group of knights and free people who recognized Calabis gathered around him and pestered him. It was tiresome to talk about various investments and businesses, but soon the focus of the banquet emerged-the fierce conflict between Cicero and Crassus.

"During your tenure as censor, you did not shoulder your due responsibilities, which is very different from Cato the Younger. You never counted the population, nor did you compile or change the list of senators, allowing conspirators like Catiline to Isn't it your mistake to continue to mingle among them?" Cicero was the first to be unable to bear it. He originally came here for the banquet to win over Crassus and unite him to fight Catiline resolutely. At this time, Catiline Lin, has publicly announced that he will run for consulship next year.

This was something Cicero could never tolerate, so during this period he never gave up attacking Catiline on any occasion, saying that he had signs of deliberate rebellion.

Although Crassus was angry in his heart, he still looked at his son's face and calmly enlightened Cicero: "Dear Consul, I also have an opinion. I advocate granting full citizenship rights to the mountainous Gaul region and enjoying the same rights as the Latin city-states." treatment."

"That's because wherever your business is, you need the Republic to pay for your business expansion."

"Yes, I forgive your offensive words. We can put this topic aside now - Catiline, he is the oldest noble descendant in Rome. It is impossible for him to betray the Republic. Maybe you are overly worried."

Cicero became furious. He used the loud voice that he usually used for speeches. Instead of talking to Crassus, he announced to the whole banquet in a high-profile manner: "I already know that the one whom Catiline instructed Juruste last time... You, Neruda, and Caesar are the sponsors behind this proposal that is intolerable to everyone! My dear Crassus, I advise you to draw a line with that villain as soon as possible!”

This very direct showdown made Crassus's face turn purple. He was having a seizure, and he couldn't bear it. He could only hold the wine glass and slurp: "Your Majesty the Consul, this is not your attitude to win friends. The Republic is not It operates according to your will.”

"But I should be used as a benchmark. How I treat the Republic, all nobles should do the same. I beg you, and Caesar, to get back on track as soon as possible." After dropping these words, Cicero left. .

It was already dusk outside, and strong winds mixed with unevenly hot and cold air were pushing into the banquet hall. The thunder became more and more intensive. The question hanging in Calabis's mind is still unresolved: Why did Crassus invite him to the banquet? I don't believe that at this moment, he is still interested in discussing business with me. Where is Caesar? It seems that he has never appeared in the high priest's residence in Jukora. Kaimes (who also moved to the high priest's residence) told him more than once that Caesar was also preoccupied during this time and had no intention of doing any specific work.

"Please forgive me, Your Excellency. I must know what I can do for you, otherwise I will feel uneasy at this sumptuous banquet." Calabis saw the opportunity and stepped forward to ask, at this moment Crassus was sitting on his couch, lost in thought.

"Oh, yes, yes." Crassus responded, then returned to his smile and asked earnestly: "Do you know a knight named Langis? I heard that he had been ordered by Catiline to go How much do you know about the assassination of the African appeals group representative?”

"Sorry, I don't know. I just heard about it." Karabis answered directly, suppressing the shock in his heart and trying to keep his expression calm.

"Well, you also know that he had a relationship with your mistress... Maybe you can ask Claudia for me. Regarding the whereabouts of Langjishi, he and I were involved in some debt issues. , It hasn’t been resolved yet.” Crassus also had a calm expression.

Everyone is acting.

"I should know some friends in business who are in contact with Langis. I will try my best to find out his whereabouts. Ha, it seems that the whole city of Rome is looking for this guy."

Crassus squinted his goldfish-like eyes, maintained a toasting posture towards Calabis, laughed dryly, and said, "That's not it!"

Soon, Calabis found an excuse to run away. He stepped out of Crassus' courtyard and took out the bunch of bronze keys from his bag. This was a relic of Langis. Maybe Cicero is looking for it now. Catiline Looking, Claudia is looking, Crassus and Caesar are looking.

The whirlwind rolled up on the ground, and the streets and buildings were all dyed with a thick hazy color, making it difficult for Calabis to move. In the small square in front of the Grand Hippodrome, he saw hundreds of Catiline's followers gathering. Speech, a corpse of a freeman with a nameplate hanging on it, with a rope around his neck and scars from sticks all over his body, was hung from the ceiling of the racecourse wall, with two bloody feet hanging in the wind Wobbly.

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