Chapter 1060
But what they did not know was that the main purpose of the Devers's enactment of this law was to accelerate the assimilation of some Diónia citizens, such as the Romans and a small number of Phoenician nobles who joined Diónia. At the same time, it also gave the people of Diónia a sense of "being unique" (in the countries and races of the Mediterranean, the people who gradually had surnames basically adopted their given names first and surnames second), which was more conducive to accelerating the formation of a new race of Diónia.
After the promulgation of the Surname Law, the citizens of Diónia basically followed the law, and there was no major turmoil in the territory. The decree didn't mention slaves. After all, many slaves didn't even have names, only nicknames. However, many slave owners still gave their slaves official names for convenience. Some of the kingdom's slaves also gave themselves official names in order to better develop in the kingdom after obtaining freedom in the future. They also registered with the slave camp management office.
Under such a general trend, if Gaius insisted on not changing, he would undoubtedly appear to be an anomaly and would attract special attention from the patrol team.
"Someone is looking for you outside the camp, go quickly." The tone of the soldier at the door eased.
"Thank … Thank you, sir!" Gaius hurriedly put on his clothes, turned over, and bowed to the soldier to express his gratitude. Then, he quickly ran to the camp gate.
The originally quiet dormitory suddenly became lively. "It's so strange that someone is looking for Gaius in the evening."
"What's so strange about that? Now we work in the stone mine during the day, and we can only find people in the camp in the evening."
"Gaius is so lucky. There are always people looking for him. It seems that he has a lot of relatives outside!"
"What's so strange about that? Because he used to be a Roman nobleman. Don't you Phoenicians have many relatives in the kingdom, unlike us Lusitanians … Sigh, our relatives don't even know if we are alive or dead …"
The dormitory suddenly fell silent.
After a while, someone comforted him. "In a few years, when you are free, you can go back to Iberia and bring your family to live with Diónia."
"Hmph! When I get my freedom, I won't stay here. I'll definitely return to the Iberia that I'm familiar with and stay far away from this hateful Kingdom of Diónia. Maybe one day, I'll even … Hmph! "
"What's the point of going back to that poor mountainous region of Iberia! They were often hungry, and there was no way to cure them when they got sick. There were often bloody battles between the tribes, and they didn't know when they would lose their lives in battle … In fact, living in this slave camp was much better than living in the Iberian tribes! After I regain my freedom, I will never return to Iberia. Living in Turií will definitely be better than living in a slave camp! "
"How dare you betray the tribe! I'll beat you to death right now! "
"Alright, stop fooling around! Do you want to attract the patrol team? "
…
The slave camp was like a small enclosed town in Diónia. It had a canteen, a shop, a hospital, and even an arena … All the necessary town facilities were basically complete. When they were free, the slaves could move freely in the camp as long as they didn't violate the rules, but they couldn't leave the camp. However, in order to reduce the resistance of the slaves, and to let them be more at ease in obtaining freedom through labor, the management office allowed outsiders to visit the slaves in the camp.
Especially after the Western Mediterranean War, the number of outsiders visiting the camp increased sharply. This was because a large number of new Roman and Phoenician citizens and a large number of Roman and Phoenician slaves were produced.
Gaius walked into the reception room next to the camp's gate. When he saw the familiar figure sitting there, he couldn't help but call out, "Rentulus Manlius."
The man who looked younger than Gaius turned around and glared at him. He warned in a deep voice, "Gaius, don't shout!"
Gaius, who was already full of anger, ignored Rentulus' warning. Instead, he said sarcastically, "Isn't that your name?! Or have you forgotten your true identity, the glory of your family, and are willing to follow the requirements of the people of Diónia and take a name that isn't from Rome at all?! "
In fact, Rentulus could totally refute, "Since you, Gaius, haven't forgotten the glory of your family, then do you dare to publicly announce that your name is Gaius Fibius Rabio?!"
However, he didn't because his father was Publius Manlius. Not only was he the first great noble of Rome to seek refuge with the Kingdom of Diónia, but he was also the first official of Rome to publicly change his surname after the Surname Law was announced. Many former nobles of Rome and current citizens of the Kingdom of Rome hated him to the core in private. They even called him the "culprit who caused the destruction of Rome". These rumors obviously had an impact on Rentulus. With a red face, he blurted out excitedly, "Gaius, you only dare to move your mouth. You have no idea what kind of huge risks the people who are really defending Rome are taking! One day, you will know if I have forgotten the glory of Rome and my family! "
Speaking of this, Rentulus raised his head, and a kind of determination and pride appeared on his face. Gaius, who was familiar with him, was stunned. He subconsciously asked softly, "Rentulus, what do you mean by this? What are you going to do?! "
Rentulus, however, ignored his question. He picked up a thick package, put it on the table, and said coldly, "Your sister sent another package from Rome to our house and asked us to deliver it to you. I see that you are very happy every time you receive the package. You didn't cut off contact with your brother-in-law Tolo just because he is an official of Diónia and also changed his surname."
"Who said I didn't scold them? But I still have to accept the things that I should accept." Gaius shamelessly smiled, dragged the package over, and immediately opened it.
"It's useless to look at it in such a hurry. It's just some food and clothes. There's nothing valuable. When we entered here, the guards had already searched through it." Rentulus' tone was still cold.
A satisfied expression appeared on Gaius' face, "That's great! It's all my favorite food in Rome! I haven't eaten them for a long time. I almost forgot what they taste like! "
Rentulus was a little absent-minded when he heard this.
At this time, he heard Gaius say, "Rentulus, our families are relatives, and we have played together since we were young. I still remember my father often praising you in front of me. He said, 'Don't be fooled by your younger age, but you have a strong mind. When you grow up, you will definitely have a better future than me. Maybe you will become a hero in Rome.' I have always remembered these words in my heart. I humiliated you with these words just now because I didn't want to hide what your father did. On the other hand, I was afraid that you would really surrender to Diónia and let down my father and my expectations of you … In short, I hope you can forgive me! "
Rentulus listened to Gaius' flattery, and the dissatisfaction in his heart quickly disappeared. He pretended to be angry and said, "My father is my father, and I am me. I will always be a true citizen of Rome!"
"Of course! Of course! We are a great race raised by the she-wolf. We will never surrender! Especially you, Rentulus. I firmly believe that you will become a hero of the great Rome! " After Gaius finished speaking with sincerity, he saw that the anger on Rentulus' face was quickly swept away and revealed a look of satisfaction. He hurriedly leaned forward and asked in a low voice, "What is the big matter you mentioned just now?"
The young Rentulus had already been unguarded by Gaius's words. He glanced around: there was no one else in the reception room except the two of them.
So, he also approached Gaius and whispered with a slightly boastful tone, "Like before, you must keep it a secret! I tell you … "
… …
Gaius sent Rentulus off. When he came out of the reception room, he was in a good mood and was checked again by the guards. Then, he walked back to the camp briskly.
He did not go back to the dormitory directly because once the food in the package was discovered by the slaves, it would soon be snatched away. So, he went to the villa area (the nickname for the place where slaves with families lived) and knocked on the door of Maximus' house.
"It's already so late. Instead of resting and recovering your strength, you're still walking around! Don't forget to go mining tomorrow! "Maximus opened the door and saw him, so he criticized him rudely.
Gaius ignored him and stretched his neck to look inside. He said, "Where are sister-in-law and the children?"
"It's Gaius. Come in and sit down!" A figure stood up in the corner with faint candlelight. Then, two short figures rushed out and shouted affectionately, "Uncle Gaius!"
"Good boy!" Gaius smiled kindly. He squatted down and took out a few things from the package. "Look, what did uncle bring you?"
"Ah, what a big bread!"
"And fish!"
"Remember, this is wheat bread from Rome and pickled fish from the Tiber River, and this — Sabine's cheese. Take it and eat it."
"Uncle Gaius is so nice!"
"Thank you, Uncle Gaius!"
"Your cousin, Cornia, sent you something again. She's really nice to you!" Maximus saw the package and the food and immediately guessed what was going on. In the past, the big clans in Rome often intermarried and were more familiar with each other.
"My sister is really nice to me, but Stolo actually became an official of Diónia. My uncle must have been blind to marry my sister to this commoner!" Gaius said hatefully. "However, I think he won't be a judge for long!"
"Did something happen?" Maximus immediately asked alertly.
Gaius did not answer directly. Instead, he said, "Brother, do you still have wine here? Tonight, let's have a small banquet with the salted fish and bread from our hometown. Let's have some fun! "
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