Augustus Road

It was already midwinter. At the north gate of Rome, on the Emilian Avenue facing the Rubicon River, Caesar and several of his followers led their horses and walked forward along the city wall. When they reached the boulevard outside the city, Caesar drank at the birds on the bare tree trunks. The birds all flew up in panic and circled in the dark blue sky, making Caesar laugh. .

Julius Caesar, in his first year in office, defeated the Senate and successfully won three provinces, four legions and a five-year governorship. However, when he went to the north bank of the Rubicon River to take over the legion and prepare to go to Gaul, there was no grand farewell banquet, which was incredible in Rome. Because for the Roman nobles, solemnity and etiquette are indispensable, even the simplest ones are needed, so whenever someone goes to a province to take up a new post, his relatives and friends in the city, his retainers and subordinates will go to this person's home and hold a farewell banquet, with fine wine and beautiful women, and wish the host to "shine" during his term as governor (either launching a successful war or scraping enough land). Once the host succeeds during his term, it will be a situation of prosperity for all, and his friends and retainers will have the opportunity to be promoted.

But Caesar was different. Before that, he temporarily summoned several followers in his house in the Subura district full of brothels and slums: Crassus the Younger, Caesar's nephews Dicias and Phedis, and his personally appointed lieutenants Labinus and Cicero, and of course a low-level attendant was also among them, that is, the emerging Lepidus.

While waiting for everyone to gather, Caesar knelt in front of his mother again, constantly asking her to bless her health, and asked her to pray in front of the wax statue of the ancestor that his daughter, the daughter who married Pompey, would also be healthy, so that he and Pompey's alliance would add new stability factors and equally healthy children as soon as possible.

"Just leave with peace of mind. Aren't you afraid that the five-year term of office is not enough for you to worry about? Why do you have to gossip here?" Ottlia patted her son's cheek and complained proudly.

At this moment, Lepidus, wearing a cloak, walked in from the gate and hugged Caesar's friends, including Ebro and Basatus. They were all Caesar's political helpers, responsible for staying in Rome to transmit intelligence and handle miscellaneous affairs, and of course, they would also assist Caesar's father-in-law.

"Little Leo and Corinna are fine. Once children grow up, their mothers have debts that they cannot repay." When Lepidus turned around and kissed the back of Ottolia's hand, Caesar's mother chattered with a smile. She had spent a lot of time asking about Lepidus's family affairs. In addition, she strongly requested Lepidus to bring his legal wife Julia from Sardinia Island as soon as possible. "A couple should act like a couple. There is no shortage of rumors in Rome. You should be careful."

Next, little Crassus also came up to Lepidus to reminisce about the past. "Several Lusitania legions are already at the foot of Mount Sutera, waiting for us to return. I believe everyone I will be glad to see you back. "

"So what? My old subordinates are now in the 10th Legion of Gaul or the 11th Legion of Illyria. Now my relationship with them is just about reminiscing about the past." Lepidus complained, and then Caesar pretended not to hear him and explained various matters to Labinus. This was the first time Lepidus met this Labinus, but according to Crassus, Labinus and Caesar were old friends. He was born a commoner, so he naturally had a sense of sympathy with Caesar, who also defended the interests of the commoner party. When Lepidus went to the East before, Caesar's most capable helper in Rome was Labinus.

However, unlike Apis, who was also born a commoner, Labinus was a slightly fat man without showing his expression, and he seemed quite friendly. Judging from the feeling of his conversation with Caesar, he was also very organized in doing things. Lepidus vaguely felt the existence of his opponent. Wow, wouldn't my dignified 12th Legion of Illyria also be controlled by this person? Speaking of this, Lepidus wished that a battlefield illiterate like Cicero could be the chief lieutenant general, so that sooner or later half of Caesar's six legions would be under his remote control.

Alas, why hasn't Cicero come yet?

Finally, when all the people gathered in the courtyard, Cicero still did not show up, and Caesar became a little unhappy, but he was a man of his word (provided that he made a promise with you), and he was still waiting there stubbornly until someone delivered a letter. After reading Cicero's letter, Caesar tore it up angrily and said briefly: "This guy who can only talk nonsense and is afraid of military life will not show up. He just said that his brother, who will serve in his place, will be sent to the port of Aquileia later." After speaking, Caesar probably felt that he had been a little too out of control just now, so he stood there for a while. In fact, he still hoped that Cicero could go from the bottom of his heart. He also needed people like Cicero as allies, but the other party's wavering and fickle attitude made his regret turn into resentment at this moment.

Finally, Caesar waved his hand and said that we should set off as soon as possible. Everyone then put on their armor and cloaks, took out their horses, and began to walk along the streets towards the Po River Valley in northern Italy, organizing various legions that were not stationed together along the way. If Caesar and his entourage did not have weapons and armor to prove their identities, the people along the road must have thought that they were academicians who were helping out for a walk. Except for Caesar who was slightly older (forty-two years old), the other entourages were all in their twenties. At the age of thirty, the young man took Caesar, who never thought of himself as a middle-aged man, chatting and laughing along the way, and seemed not to be involved in the legion's combat affairs at all.

But when the setting sun in front began to cover the hills, and the sheep began to go home in groups amidst the calls of the shepherds, everyone finally felt a little tired. Some of them were drinking and drinking water on the horses to relieve their fatigue, and they pulled the reins and lowered their hands. Some people were dozing off with their heads down. At this time, Caesar slowly walked alongside Lepidus and said to him in a sharp voice:

"I will treat you to a supper when you camp for the night, and then you will whip yourself back to Rome."

Lepidus chewed dried figs in his mouth and said: "Are you going to do something against Cicero?"

Caesar fiercely pulled off the cloak around his neck, exhaled heavily, and said, "Yes, because I have walked for such a long time and listened to so many jokes, I am still angry. This shows that Cicero was so wrong this time. In my philosophy, people must pay the price for making mistakes. "

"But I want reciprocal rewards. In my philosophy, people must get corresponding remuneration for doing things." (To be continued.)