Chapter 28 Father and Son (Part 1)
"Mars, the god of war, is waving his spear fiercely." - Divination received by the residents of Falory before Hannibal invaded Italy
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In early autumn, the originally tranquil cloud sky of Ophelenu Manor was broken by the sounds of horse hooves and bands. Several beetles lay on the branches of the elm trees, excitedly echoing the fading autumn sounds. A few years ago, Yulia hired craftsmen to expand the backyard, adding stables, gardens and wooden towers, forming a unique style of half leisure and half security. This style made Lepidus, who has been immersed in Greek aesthetics for many years, dumbfounded. , often laughed at his wife in private, but Yulia remained unmoved.
The hostess first arrived at the manor in a carriage in advance, and then she appointed Habaruka as the master of ceremonies, and took all the male and female slaves into action - fishing out plump fresh fish from the pond, collecting beehives and Taking out honey, snails, fruits and vegetables from the jar, "Do you need to go to Port Calaris to buy some lobsters and oysters from Africa?" the Carthage slave asked his mistress.
"It's not necessary. Even if you ride a mule or horse, it will take a day and a night's journey." After saying that, Yulia went to the restaurant with dignity and took down the account book from the wall shelf, which she had always kept. Regarding the income and expenditure details of this small estate, although Lepida repeatedly told her not to worry about these trivial matters, or to ask Habaruka to help her manage it, or to directly hire a financial agent slave, Yulia still insisted on doing it herself, " Ofelenu is my sustenance now.”
"Hmm. Calculate the forage. It's still in season. Then hosting a banquet will cost us at least two hundred and fifty silver dinars. This is not cost-effective, Habaruka." The mistress is using calculation chips. After squinting his eyes and making detailed calculations, he smoothed his flaxen hair and said with certainty, while Habaruka could only stand aside and be submissive.
"The high priest's manor is really unique!" Then the honor guard team arrived here. At the gate, Angandinus made a "sincere" comment when he dismounted, which made Lepidus hey and was speechless.
At around sunset, Leo and his group also disembarked from Kalaris Port. They did not dare to stay any longer and came to the manor under the protection of the guards under the protection of the guards. After the son dismounted, he kissed Mama Yulia. The look on his face also looked very tired - but his father had no intention of letting anyone rest, "Hold a banquet immediately."
On the main table in the center of the restaurant, there were snails, thyme, plums mixed with olive oil, and some meat dishes such as sausages and roast chicken. Lepida's staff and generals who were accustomed to eating delicacies just held their noses and mouths and chatted. Take out some and taste it. Anyway, everyone knows that the theme of this banquet is not at all about satisfying appetite and visual and auditory entertainment.
After greetings, toasts, and jokes were made, musicians from the Sardinian countryside also came on stage to perform poor art. Seeing that many of his staff began to yawn, Lepidus turned the cup in his hand and said calmly, " Do you have any clues about the battle at Lilibi?"
At this moment, everyone immediately turned all their attention to Trureas, who was sitting in the corner. The other party also stood up hurriedly, hunched his back, and said that he was definitely forced by his subordinate centurion, and that he was the mastermind. The perpetrator was actually someone else, and he used his own tricks to cooperate with Lord Leo to completely defeat this dangerous attack.
"Well... General Trureas, I am absolutely assured of your loyalty. I have been by your side for a long time. After obtaining your permission, I quietly installed another set of confidential teams - this point Even the two centurions you rely on most don’t know that this is the secret to your ability to notify Leo in time after the mutiny. They thought that everything would be fine if they seized your original seal and documents - so "General, don't worry at all. I will also entrust you with the conquest of Britain in the future. When it is completed, you will be the governor-general of the entire province of Britain. Sit down, please sit down." Lepidah smiled and raised his cup. Several slave girls next to him immediately continued to pour wine for Telureas. Then the high priest turned his attention to his son who was silent and said, "Leo, now it's your turn to express your opinion."
"Yes, father." Leo's voice was very soft, "The only breakthrough is with the captured centurion Syphax."
"That's true, my dear wife." Lepidus took Yulia's arm beside him, "Although I know that you are the most kind-hearted mistress and never punish the slaves around you, but you have to tell me , After all, there is still such a thing as a small prison in the Ofilenu Manor, because maybe I need it urgently now. "
Yulia kissed her husband and said that there was a dungeon, but there was a shortage of torture instruments inside, only a few sticks - they were almost useless on weekdays. Even if a servant made a mistake, he would only be sent to it for a few days. .
"Okay." The high priest looked very helpless. It seemed that the banquet was about to end. All the guests also wanted to leave early to avoid the topic from continuing to be embarrassing without limit. Yulia also stood up and left. When he arrived at Leo's side, he kissed his son's forehead and told him not to continue working on official duties at night and to rest peacefully.
"Wait a minute, Leo - within a radius of ten miles of Ofilenu, there are several similar households. You go and borrow torture tools." At this time, the high priest sitting on the seat said slowly, "Also, we They all come with the guards, and we can also ask the guards to help make some equipment. Our time is very tight, there is no need to take everything back to the complicated place of Rome to solve it, don’t you think so, Leo? "
When the high priest said such words, all the guests froze in their steps. Everyone could only smile and continue to sit back in their original seats, because it seemed that the show was not over yet.
"As you command, Father." Leo paused twice, but he could only get rid of his mother's worried gaze, steeled himself, walked out of the manor's dining room with several followers, and left on horses and mules.
After watching his son leave, Lepidus snapped his fingers and asked the musicians and dancers to continue with a smile, "Dear guests, the performance here is really full of local flavor, so you, you people, must show great enthusiasm , to make up for the shortcomings in skills.”
About two hours later, Leo came back with a very tired expression, and then his followers laid out a variety of horrific torture instruments on the table in the center of the restaurant, "Father, I think this is enough."
"Well, yes, okay - everyone, in order not to affect your wonderful sleep, you will not be allowed to enjoy the drama below. Finally, let me drink a full glass of wine together!"
"Oh, to King Numa, to Bacchus, to the Muses!" At this time, the guests were relieved again and quickly raised their wine glasses and shouted. (To be continued...)