Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

Most countries in the ancient world were basically able to ensure self-sufficiency in food, because land could only support so many people. The situation in Greece was quite special, because it was a maritime civilization, and trade accounted for a relatively large proportion of production and life. .

During the Hellenistic era, the Greeks successfully conquered a large number of vassals and colonies for themselves, and these areas continued to provide blood to the Greek mainland. Over the past few hundred years, the Greek mainland had gathered a population that exceeded the carrying capacity of the local land, relying on trade Only then can we support so many people.

Now these places that supply blood to Greece are busy being drained by the Romans. Of course, not many resources will be tilted to Greece. The downward trend of the economy is obvious, so Mithridates can gain an unexpected large number of supporters, because The locals were indeed unhappy with the Romans.

This dissatisfaction is still growing. This is a time bomb. If this continues, it will explode at some point. Of course, Orville is pessimistic about their results. He does not have a strong enough army or a large enough population. The base, and it was so close to Rome itself, it was very difficult to resist such a powerful country.

This was probably the case for Orville, who was always thinking about some things that were not there, but for Cleopatra, these days were quite lively.

It can be seen that their family has a good status in Greece, and she is also quite good at making friends, so she is indispensable for various entertainment and social activities here.

Cleopatra thought this was normal, and of course she couldn't help but complain. After all, this was really tiring.

——

On the third day, Orville and Cleopatra had probably settled the matters at hand. The two of them took the time to visit various buildings in Athens.

As the pearl of the Aegean civilization, Athens is undoubtedly a very unique and magnificent city. Although it is declining, it is still one of the trading ports in the eastern Mediterranean, with a huge population of hundreds of thousands and various facilities. Although it looks a bit old, you can still see the glorious atmosphere of the past.

Orville and Cleopatra were traveling around the city in a carriage, so they had time to chat.

"So have you accomplished anything here?"

The carriage was designed to be spacious enough for the two of them to sit face to face, but it was not very spacious. Orville and the other person were very close to each other, and they could smell the special perfume on the other person's body.

Cleopatra nodded and admitted: "There are some. I have reached an agreement with the locals. Some poor people will be thrown to me as garbage. I will provide them with a way to make a living. It's a win-win situation. Egypt will last for a long time." There are no large influxes of Greeks.”

Just like the Vikings went out to rob and explore and the Greeks opened up colonies all over the world in the past, after the population exceeded the carrying capacity under normal circumstances, they would find ways to let some people leave. Otherwise, these people would have to be eliminated in wars or internal strife. After consuming it, in contrast, there is still a chance to go out and have a try.

Egypt is not a bad place. There must be many people who want to leave if they can no longer survive in the country. If they can go to places like Egypt, Syria, and Marseille, they will never want to go to the Kingdom of Bosporus (now Kerry). (near Mia), Iberia, or some other more remote place.

"I thought you would resist the immigration of more Greeks. After all, isn't your plan to bridge the conflict between the two groups and allow the Greeks and Egyptians to become one in Egypt itself?"

"Of course that's true. I also admit that this will hinder my plan." Cleopatra spread her hands, "But I can't let these people starve to death, right? Our emperor won't care about this. As a successor, I should take on this responsibility. Besides, these people do have some uses, and if you make good use of them, you may not lose much."

"Okay." Orville did not refute the other party. The fact is that the situation is indeed similar. Emperors of all dynasties have been partial, favoring the homeland and ignoring the provinces. The difference between the provinces and the homeland itself shows that this country is far from a country that treats everyone equally.

He tilted his head and carefully observed the scenery outside the window without further delving into the topic. Cleopatra crossed her arms and glanced at him from time to time.

Orville's observation ability was still good. This was obviously a sign that there was something on his mind, so he simply asked: "If you have any ideas, you can share them with me directly. Even if you criticize your son for your father, I won't have a big problem with it. My I’m afraid my tolerance and understanding are stronger than you think, and my mind is not that narrow-minded.”

This seemed to give Cleopatra a little confidence. After taking a deep breath, she said word by word: "I have an idea, you might as well listen to it."

"Of course, I'm listening now."

"Where do you think the future of Egypt as a country will go after your reforms?"

"It will become more like a normal country, but to be honest, it will be normal under the control of the Romans. This is a sure thing, and the Romans are not charitable."

"Then we might as well go one step further and merge the two into one."

This time it was Orville's turn to be surprised. He looked at Cleopatra with a strange look in his eyes: "If this comes from my mouth or the mouth of any senator, I won't be surprised. . But you are the king of Egypt, does it do you any good to unite the two countries?”

"As long as you don't care about the interests of the family, this matter doesn't matter to me. The wealth and power I have are enough for me to do most of the things I want to do. As for what happens after I die, I don't care at all."

"Then how do you want to make this happen?"

Cleopatra looked straight at Orville, with a rare possessiveness and aggression in her eyes: "Marriage, marriage between you and me."

Orville frowned slightly when he heard this: "You know, I have been married to Tia for a long time. Roman law clearly stipulates monogamy, which cannot be shaken."

He and Tia are also two outliers in the Roman Empire society. Among the nobles of the empire, only a very small number of people do not have affairs or mistresses. Most people acquiesce to this situation, and can even be said to enjoy it. On the contrary, Orville and Tia have always abided by the law and moral norms, and nothing has happened. They can be said to be typical people who keep themselves clean.

For this reason, Orville has a good impression of Cleopatra, but he will never want to marry her, and he is not even interested in being a mistress or lover with her.