Chapter 4 The End (Part 1)
"All young men who are satisfied are knights on horseback." - Ezekiel
On the high ground near the harbor of Stola, a group of Roman officers and lieutenants held various glorious flags and scepters, surrounding Pompey, who was wearing a wide-brimmed purple robe. The great Pompey, a lock of curly hair on his forehead swayed in the wind. A group of ships with sails appeared on the edge of the sea and sky, "Everyone, I hope that this Pontic general and princess who came to surrender can bring us news that Mithridates Eubert is still alive."
"I heard that the legion commanded by Crassus and Lucullus was besieged in the Acropolis by Mithridates before, and I don't know if it was destroyed." Next to Pompey, Demetrius of Galilee looked at his white fingers and said casually, "General, the King of Petra has surrendered. We should be able to tie a laurel leaf ring on the legion's emblem now. As long as our powerful fleet appears in the Cimmerian Sea in three days, everything will be fine. Everything will be settled, and you will enjoy the second great triumph. "
"Also, the 6,000 talents of the Pontic emperor. With this money, I don't have to face those annoying guys in the Senate. Before returning to Rome, I will directly integrate most of it into the legion fund to serve as a reward for soldiers and purchase of places for retired soldiers. From then on, my position will remain unchanged. You have to understand that it is a tough job for me to lead a group of centurions and soldiers who may be dissatisfied with the military pay at any time. Tuna Luculas didn't know how to deal with it, so he was finished. "
Demetrius smiled like a flower, "Don't worry, Your Excellency, I have already dealt with the details. "
Pompey nodded with satisfaction and said, "I am too focused on the military formation. The negotiations between the various kingdoms and free cities in Asia Minor should be very annoying to you, right?"
"It's okay, it's much easier than dealing with various relationships like balls of thread in Rome. "The answer of the Galilean Jew made Pompey laugh happily. At this time, the ship from the opposite side had already landed. The general and the princess took a small boat to land, looking haggard and humble. They approached the greatest general of Rome under the supervision of the legion centurion, "Tell me the current situation of Ponticabiae in the most concise language." This was Pompey's request to Menander.
"My Bronze Shield Army has been completely lost, great triumphant general, this is the most fundamental reason why I came to surrender to you. I was defeated by the rebellious Achaeans and the advance team of the 13th Legion." Menander did not hide his failure.
"You have a division of Bronze Shield Army, but you were defeated by the advance team that had just been upgraded to a legion in Rome. Oh my God, I don't know whether I should be proud or sad. But what I am more concerned about is, what about Mithridates Eubert?" Pompey continued to ask.
"General, he won't last long. He has serious injuries and is already on his last legs. All his sons are dead. Now his military treasury has been transported by Stratonice on the ship and is respectfully presented to you! Sooner or later he will die in a mutiny or in pain, or commit suicide with a sword as a king would do." After Menander finished speaking, Stratonice handed a bunch of keys to Pompey. The triumphant general expressed his gratitude to the two of them in a very graceful manner, but he added, "You two have made an extremely wise choice, but I still hope to explain these to the Senate. The things are all spoils of my legion. "
As he said this, the step on the ship was lowered, and groups of strong sailors and military slaves carried the heavy boxes in the cabin to the open space on the shore. Demetrius took the key from Pompey, walked down and opened the boxes one by one. Under the onlookers, he lifted the sealed iron can in the first box high and smashed it on the ground. With a crisp sound of breaking, the yellow gold and the white silver rolled and scattered in front of all the officers and soldiers of the legion. Everyone hit their shields with swords and cheered.
"By the way, what are you two interested in, Sinope, Ponticabia, or the governor of the entire Bosporus Kingdom?" Seeing this scene, Pompey asked Menander and Stratonice kindly and generously.
Amid the cheers, Demetrius also felt great joy. To increase the excitement, he picked up another jar from the third or fourth box and smashed it under his feet again. This time, he was not greeted with more enthusiastic cheers, but with the surprise of the whole group: Demetrius looked down, sweat seeping out of his nose and philtrum. The jar only contained a mess of iron, copper, stone and other things.
All the officers around Pompey, including Murilla and Seckelius who had followed Tuna in the war before, shouted loudly. The whole scene was very funny. Seeing this scene, Pompey's smile and the curls on his forehead stiffened again. Then he turned his eyes to Menander and Stratonice who were dumbfounded, "I think you two owe me a reasonable explanation for this matter."
"Sir, I count every day. Maybe this is the only jar!" Stratonice's voice was crying.
"Dear lady, which one do you think is more in line with Eubert's style: stuffing a can of iron into a hundred cans of gold and silver, or stuffing a can of gold and silver into a hundred cans of iron? It's hard to imagine that you are still his bedmate. We have all been deceived by him." Pompey's tone calmed down at this moment. "But I haven't lost yet. We must act quickly. The people behind the Thirteenth Legion should also act."
In the city of Ponticabion, soldiers in all the military camps raised their swords and ran through the streets, lighting fires and robbing. The centurions of the new model army who had served as officers in the Roman legions had extremely powerful He has a strong ability to instigate soldiers to rebel. "After Mithridates extracts the taxes from this city, he will drive us to invade Italy along Dacia and Thrace. Maybe other Greeks can deceive you, but I He just ran away from Pompey's troops. Don't fool everyone - Mithridates once mobilized 160,000 troops, but was completely wiped out by the Romans in Greece and Asia Minor. Now it's up to us to go there. Attacking the city of Rome is simply a wild dream. I joined the New Model Army in Pontus just for the generous salary. I believe everyone is the same. There is no need to die here, since the king of Pontus has put so much gold and silver. In the treasury of the Bronze Shield Army, now that the Bronze Shield Army has been defeated, we can only use force to claim our share!"
At this time, some tax collectors and eunuchs wearing round hats walked out of Mithridates' palace. They were crying and fighting. As soon as they walked out, they were surrounded by angry soldiers who grabbed them. , shouted and asked what they wanted.
"The emperor has two daughters, who are married to the kings of Parthia and Cyprus, and Otepili, who is still the royal wife of the king of Armenia. We are responsible for inviting reinforcements." The eunuch explained in a daze. (To be continued.)