Augustus Road

"Happiness comes from character." - Stoic teachings

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"Everyone, in theory, you people who go to the battlefield do not receive food, salary or even pension. You only exchange for second-class citizenship through service. But I am different. I will still give you food and salary, and those who have performed meritorious services can enjoy more benefits. In this way, even if you don't settle in the land after you retire, you can still accumulate some assets, get married and have children. But I need your loyalty and blood in return. You all swore to King Numa, don't forget the oath." Then Lepidus took the child. Hortensius called to him and awarded him a gold chain to hang in front of his breastplate, "Now we are temporarily shrinking our organization into an auxiliary brigade. Although this one is under age, forget it, he will be a senior centurion immediately. As a concurrent battalion officer, you can have a bad temper and take the lead on the battlefield, but you, little Hortensius, cannot beat or punish soldiers at will. You must act in accordance with the regulations of the legion." Next, Lepidah raised his hands and said, "I am now. As the temporary treasurer of the Far Spanish Province, I have the power to exercise justice and recruit soldiers within the scope of my exercise. I hereby decide that this auxiliary brigade will establish a committee composed of ten people. This committee will be responsible for resolving conflicts between soldiers and superiors. It can be reported to This financial officer proposes salary issues and other plans for the distribution of spoils, but the ten-man committee will not participate in any combat affairs. During the battle, everything must be obeyed by myself or the senior centurion. "

It turns out that while Caesar was chasing ducks, in order for Lepidus to do things easily, he gave him the position of "Provincial Temporary Financial Officer". This financial officer is nominally in charge of money, but he can also manage the civil and military affairs within his scope of authority. He is regarded as the lower-level auxiliary officer of the Governor.

Hearing the order from the Financial Officer, all the auxiliary soldiers were shocked. Most of their previous identities were slaves. What are slaves? Their work and life are based on obeying the master's orders. Now Lepidah has granted them his own To manage their own rights, a separate committee treasury must be separated so that they have the qualifications to handle part of the loot. Some auxiliary soldiers couldn't help but cheered. They all asked what kind of tasks the financial officer needed them to perform.

"After a market day, in addition to sending a few people to stay in Italy to collect supplies for the winter camp, the entire brigade followed me north to Osier to carry out the task of recruiting soldiers." Lepidah deliberately simplified this task. Naturally, we understand what it means to cross Osier and go deep into the Vitoni Mountains to recruit troops. Now that we are ready in Italy, we should not be afraid of delaying time and sharpen our swords before chopping wood.

The next day, Lepidus asked Sabocaimus to lead him to see the conditions of various blacksmiths in the city. Sabocaimus expressed his gratitude to him seriously and said that his mother liked the Celtic bench very much. It is suggested that such low-level matters should not be personally concerned by a financial officer. "No, my dear Sabo, I have to see if these swords and helmets are simple and durable, because it is directly related to whether my soldiers can come back alive on the battlefield."

On the shelves of the iron shop, Lepidus saw that the blacksmiths had already put out many finished products that had been made in advance. Compared with the richly decorated Roman style, these Celtic swords and helmets were simple and concise. Smooth curves, Lepidus lifted the bronze round helmet and looked inside and outside. It was clear on the outside, and there was leather lining on the inside. There were small rivets on the top to fix the feathers. Although the double-edged long sword with a wooden handle was heavy, But when I hold it in my hand, I feel that the force is very balanced. This design and forging skills are definitely not something that the workers of the Three-Legged Cat can master, but now I can only count on the recruits to use this thing to chop, and it feels like a waste of natural resources. .

These descendants of Celts or Iberians are not bad. Not only are their skills excellent, but their workmanship and prices are also relatively generous. The robberies of the Roman and Greek worlds have not yet penetrated here.

Lepidus put down his sword and dagger with satisfaction. At this moment, he suddenly saw several men working on something similar to a car in the corner of the iron shop. Surrounded by crucibles and small molds, Lepidus stood up with great interest. When asked in advance, Sabokemus acted as a translator. After getting acquainted with each other, the gang proudly pointed to the vehicle and said that it was given to the tribal priests of Osir City for the harvest ceremony. The front wheels were made of ash wood, and the rear wheels were made of ash wood. It is made of elm and maple wood, and the key parts on the outside are covered with large and small precise iron or bronze hoops and copper chains to fix objects. By then, this small four-wheeled vehicle will not only have to drive smoothly, but also carry a person on it. Holding a bronze sculpture of the goddess in a large bronze vat, the priests had to stand around, kill a stag, and put its meat and blood into the vat for sacrifice.

Lepidus admired the design of this vehicle very much, and then asked: "What is the name of this four-wheeled vehicle?"

Those guys said, "This kind of car has axles, spokes, and a yoke that can be turned. It is pulled by two batches of Iberian horses. A skilled driver can drive it up and down steep slopes. If there is a request, we will Bronze hinges for speeding up and slowing down can also be added, but the price is not cheap. They are usually used for tribal sacrifices or noble burials. Most of the warriors on the battlefield drive simple and crude wooden chariots. "Hearing this. Then, Lepidus felt that the solid-wheeled carts pulled by oxen in Rome, or the light carriages with suspended seats, were really weak compared to this Celtic carriage. An idea suddenly came to his mind, A bold idea.

"I can reserve four of these cars, two four-wheeled ones and two two-wheeled ones, but they don't need fancy carvings and wrappings, as long as they have basic functions. Two thousand dinars for each one? Okay. , Okay... finish it as soon as possible, and we can gather all the craftsmen in the city to process it. I also have an idea that I want to discuss with you." Then Lepidah continued to translate at Sabokamus. With an increasingly surprised look on his face, he told the waiter and craftsman his request, which made them puzzled. But since the customer had made such a request, what else could he say?

Lepidus' footsteps were hurried, and Sabo was also following behind. In the Kuria Chamber, several slaves could no longer slow down their work. They were all writing letters under the leadership of Habaruka. They were busy coming and going, and there was a row of mail. The postman stood on the spot, waiting to dispatch these letters at any time.

"Is this a tax document for His Excellency the Governor?" Sabokemus walked in and asked.

The interim financial officer nodded, then took a sample from Habaruka, looked at it for a while, and added: "Don't forget to write down the additional amounts, that is, the tax rules will remain unchanged for one year."

Seeing the curious expression of Sabocaimus, Lepidus sent the sample over. The other party looked at it and couldn't help but said: "The citizens of the province are obliged to pay tenths, and the Roman colonial city does not need to pay coin tax. It can use war preparation supplies." Instead. My God, Lord Treasurer, does Governor Caesar know if you do this?" (To be continued.)