Augustus Road

In the whistling sea breeze, Lepidus felt a little dizzy when he heard this string of names.

"It doesn't matter, people will call you Lepidus in the future." Julia gathered her smock and said on the hurried sedan chair, "Say hello to your other women and children, and - Ophelenus welcomes you at any time, because you are also the owner there, Lepidus."

When Habaluka was about to leave with the hostess, Julia said with a mocking tone: "Phoenician, your ambition is only that manor, follow your master and use your talents to serve him."

At this time, the half moon was dragging and swaying a light blue light band for several miles on the rolling waves on the seashore. Lepidus looked at the ring of King Numa on his finger, and Julia did not take it back, "Am I now picking up my name again?"

In the past twenty years, he always thought that the name was just a code name, but now he doesn't think so. He is full of awe and ambition for the name.

Lepidus, no, the new Lepidus, reappeared in this world.

The recruitment of the 13th Legion was successful in Sardinia Island. With the assistance of Julia and the reputation of the Lepidus family, Lepidus had at least six battalions of actual military strength. Their fleet off the island met with Pope's advance fleet at Sacsinius Island and adjusted the supplies. Then they sailed cautiously along the coast of Pitiuse in North Africa, braving the mild rain in early winter, and entered the Strait of Iberukum. When Lepidus saw the magnificent "Hercules Pillars" (i.e. the Rock of Gibraltar) standing in the ocean, it was like a blue-gray giant beast lying in the sea and looking down. He understood that the destination had been reached. The conquest of Lusitania was both Caesar's glory and in his hands.

Now we just need to cross the strait and drop anchor in the port of Cadiz. There are the Blastodes who have naturalized as Romans. They are descendants of the Carthaginians. Unlike the other Celtic barbarians in Iberia, they already have cities and developed culture and trade industries.

Seventy years ago, the Iberian peoples fought a bloody war with the Roman legions for eight years. Now they are divided into two provinces, Far and Near Spain. The former's territories are concentrated on the south coast and southeast corner of Spain, adjacent to the mysterious and brave Lusitanians. As of today, the danger is much greater than that of the latter.

Lusitania is the ancestral land of the Portuguese people in terms of geography, but as for the ethnicity at that time, Lepidus did not know where these people came from. Even his "History of the Iberian War" was vague. Sometimes he said that these people might have come from Helvetia (Switzerland), crossed the Pyrenees Mountains, and entered this coastal area to reproduce, and sometimes he said that these people were native people who had close ties and intermarriage with the Celts in Spain. Well, I'm used to it. I can't demand people of this era with the accuracy of today. "History of the Iberian War" even said that the Lusitanians could travel to the island of the Britons (now Britain) in half a day by boat with favorable winds. It seems that it can only be regarded as a fallacy.

The gambler Julius Caesar drew the poorest lot when he took office as a provincial governor for the first time in his life. Compared with Neruda going to Macedonia or other elders rushing to the lucrative eastern provinces, he must have had no one to compete with him beforehand. But Lusitania was still a completely autonomous place at that time, and it was not under the jurisdiction of the Far Spanish province. So as soon as Caesar took office, he successfully ignited a war of some size on the grounds that the local barbarians violated the Old Gracchus Law (the father of the Gracchus brothers, who signed detailed laws with the local barbarian kingdoms when he went to Spain, drawing clear boundaries between them and the Roman colonial cities, making Spain peaceful for twenty years. This law was also a weapon in the hands of the governors of Spain, both near and far, who used it to either quell or provoke wars).

War was now the only way for Caesar to pay off his debts and make a fortune.

The fleet was warmly welcomed by the people in Cadiz, a port city built on limestone. The local municipal secretary dispatched sufficient manpower to help the fleet unload various supplies and gave away a lot of dried fish and olive oil. The police and vendors cheered in an attempt to attract business, but Lepidus still ordered everyone to leave as soon as possible and rush to the camp in Tuditania in the northeast of the city. After completing the war preparations in the camp, they would go to support Caesar. This kind of work must be kept away from cities that make people lose their fighting spirit, especially those policemen from Africa, who can squeeze the strongest recruits into dry firewood, emptying their energy and money, and then easily causing changes in the military camp.

After leaving the city, Pope came to apply for the marching formation. Lepidus didn't even think about it and arranged a long column with a width of twelve Roman feet that was convenient for fast marching, with baggage and military slaves in the rear, so that it would only take half a day to reach Tuditania.

When all the recruits, encouraged and rebuked by the centurions, formed a long snake formation and marched towards their destination in a cloud of dust, about 150 stadia away from the city of Cadiz, the scout cavalry in front suddenly rushed down from a hill and reported to Lepidus and several centurions that a large number of cavalry had appeared on the other side of the Guadalquivir River!

A huge question mark appeared in front of everyone. You know, as long as you cross the Guadalquivir River and walk eastward for one or two days, you can reach the Italian city of Gaia where Caesar is. But where did so many cavalry come from? Lepidus rode on an owl, with his followers holding flags, and ordered along the marching team: Everyone stop to rest, the scattered soldiers in front formed a cordon, and Pope and several soldiers stood nervously on a high ground on the river bank.

On the other side of the river, there was indeed a large number of people and horses gathered, with strange flags. Some of them had long hair, some wore simple semicircular helmets from the Carthaginian era, and colorful wreaths were tied to their bridles. Most of them only had a Spanish broadsword in their hands, plus a small round shield, and a few held two or three light javelins. So, this group of no less than 1,500 cavalry, are they the hostile barbarians of Lusitania, or are they Caesar's mercenaries who came to support him?

"It would be great if Tagus was here. He knows the tribes and customs here very well." Pope wiped the sweat off his neck with the corner of his cloak and said.

"Don't be so lucky. The big team in front won't move for now. Let the ones behind catch up and seize the position on the river beach first." Li Bi Da gave a command gesture to the flag officer and the bugler. (To be continued.)