Chapter 1258
After Lycomedes sat down, he said with a sigh, "It's really quite different! On the first day of the games held in Greece, the athletes and spectators would gather in front of the temple and pray to the gods with the priests. Then, the athletes would stand in front of the altar, and under the guidance of the priests, they would swear in the name of the gods … But now we're sitting in the arena, waiting for the games to begin! "
"Yes, that's what I'm confused about." Perópidas asked curiously, "Lycomedes, do you know what the people of Diónia will do next?"
"I met the chief general of Mersenia, Tisias, on the way here, and asked him the same question. If he doesn't know, how would I know?" Lycomedes said with a smile, "It's good that you don't know. This way, whatever Diónia does next will be a surprise!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire arena suddenly boiled over with cheers and shouts.
The two people who were talking still did not know what was going on. Ipamilonda, who had been silently observing the surroundings, said loudly in their ears, "The King of Devers has arrived!"
The spectator stand for the royal family was not far to their right. It was a 20-meter-long, 5-meter-high marble platform with gold-inlaid iron poles. Above it was a blue and white drapery, and it was surrounded by majestic palace guards.
At this moment, the Devers brought the two concubines, Cristoya and Aegnis, as well as all the children to the viewing platform.
The sharp-eyed citizens of Diónia immediately noticed this situation, and they all cheered and saluted their beloved King and Concubine.
The Devers, who wore a golden crown and black Libolton embroidered with gold and silver, smiled and raised their right hands, waving them gently to salute the audience.
The cheers in the arena became even more enthusiastic.
Suddenly, the audience opposite the royal viewing platform stood up, raised their arms above their heads, and then sat down again. Soon after, the audience on their right did the same …
"Human Wave! Human Wave! I want to play too! " The second son of Crotocatax, the six-year-old Creimedes, ran forward excitedly, but was quickly pulled back by Cristoya, who said softly, "Don't rush, let's play together later."
Sure enough, when the human wave reached the royal viewing platform, the Devers and their families all raised their hands, stood up from the soft couch, and then sat down again.
Although there were members of the royal family personally participating, there were many non-Diónia spectators, so the human wave became intermittent. The Diónia spectators continued patiently. The second round, the third round … Finally, all the spectators were roused, and the entire viewing platform rose and fell like rolling waves. It was a spectacular scene.
When the human wave was over, Perópidas still wanted to continue, he said repeatedly, "Not bad! This is a good surprise! "
While the VIPs in the audience were discussing the human wave, the Devers had already sat down on the couch, and said to Cristoya with a smile, "From the situation of the human wave just now, at least two-thirds of the spectators are not from Diónia. It seems that the Turií City Hall has seriously implemented the decision of the royal palace."
Cristoya rolled her eyes at him, "It's not just the City Hall, the Chamber of Commerce has also contributed a lot!"
"Don't be anxious, I'm not finished yet, I'll give you a lot of praise." The Devers's face was drooling, and he reached out to touch Cristoya's hand, but she slapped him hard, and warned, "This is a public place, don't mess around, it won't be good if the people see!"
The Devers said righteously, "What's wrong with that, to show the people our love, is to remind them to respect their own marriages, and love their wives! Don't you think so, Aegnis? "As he said this, he took the opportunity to hold Aegnis's hand.
Aegnis smiled slightly, but she struggled with all her strength, but she couldn't break free, and could only let her husband touch her.
Eunice, who was sitting in the back, made a face as she whispered to her siblings, "Father is really thick-skinned."
"Eunice, what are you talking about!" The Devers didn't turn around, but shouted as if he had seen it with his own eyes.
"Ah … nothing, I was just telling sister-in-law that the human wave just now was very fun." Eunice hurriedly winked at Dido, who was next to her, "Isn't that right, sister-in-law?"
Dido held back his laughter, "Yes."
"You're lying through your teeth, your daughter is like you!" Cristoya laughed and scolded.
The Devers coughed a few times, "If my daughter doesn't look like me, who else would she look like? Eunice, I'll give you a task, go tell the people in front that the opening ceremony can begin, don't let the audience wait too long. "
"This kind of occasion should be announced by Big Brother," Eunice said hesitantly.
However, Cloto Catax understood the Devers' intentions, and said with a smile, "Eunice, you're the most popular member of the royal family in this arena, if you don't go, who else will? Moreover, your appearance will be a great encouragement to the women who are not from Diónia who are sitting in the audience for the first time. "
Hearing this, Eunice stood up and said mischievously, "Father, then I'll go, don't be jealous that I'm more popular than you when the time comes!"
"Cheeky, hurry up and go!" The Devers looked impatient, but he couldn't help but tease, "Arex, what's wrong with you, didn't you discipline your wife properly?"
Before Arex could reply, Eunice's almond-shaped eyes widened, "How dare he?!"
Avia finally couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Eunice gracefully walked out of the curtain and walked to the front of the royal stand, and as expected, there were even more enthusiastic cheers around.
In the main arena of Hades, Eunice was more popular than the King Devers, and this was not an empty statement. As a member of the royal family, Eunice, who loved sports, would come to this arena to watch rugby and soccer matches whenever she was free, cheering for the players with the audience. In addition, Christoya's Chamber of Commerce had once taken the lead in donating money to the reconstruction of Hades' main arena in her name. She had also taken the place of Dyvers and Clotocatax, who were too busy to leave, to present awards to the champion rugby and soccer teams. Therefore, many spectators and players called her the "Goddess of the Arena".
Among the enthusiastic cheers of the audience, there were indeed a few women from the native Greek city-states. More than half of them were the wives of ordinary commoners. Because of their family circumstances, they had to work hard in the market to buy and sell goods or farm. Therefore, their status and power at home were much higher than that of the women from noble families. However, even so, they couldn't go to the various sports venues to watch the exciting games, and the Games of Diónia gave them this opportunity. Therefore, they came with trepidation, and the eye-catching Princess of Diónia standing in the royal stand was undoubtedly the greatest encouragement to them.
There were also a few young Greek girls in the audience. As businessmen, their fathers brought them here to watch the games. Their purpose was to hook up with a rich husband and provide assistance to their future business development in the Kingdom of Diónia. When these young girls first sat in the audience, they were very reserved, lowering their heads and not daring to look around. However, when they saw the women of Diónia shouting and shouting, they gradually let go of themselves.
On the side of the royal stand, there was a lower platform, on which sat the five hosts of the arena. After receiving the order from Eunice, they immediately raised a red flag and waved it in the air. When the spectators of Diónia saw this, not only did they stop their clamor, they also persuaded the audience next to them to keep quiet.
After the entire arena quietened down a little, the five hosts picked up their copper-wrapped microphones and spoke in unison with the loud voices and tacit understanding that they had honed from hosting competitions for many years. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Hades Main Arena! By the order of the great King of Devers, we announce the official start of the Games of Diónia! "
"First of all, let's welcome the band!"
As the voice of the host sounded, the gate leading to the entrance of the arena opened. Nearly a hundred musicians with various musical instruments lined up neatly and entered the arena. They marched along the edge of the track, playing the "March of the Armies" as they marched.
Their entrance was immediately met with warm applause from the audience. Among them, the citizens of Diónia even clapped and hummed along with the familiar melody. The entire arena became lively again.
… …
Just as the band entered the arena, the king's stand also welcomed two distinguished guests: Plato and Xenophon.
Since the surrender of Athens and the end of the Greek War, Plato refused the invitation of the Devers to stay and returned to Athens to continue managing his Academy of Académie. Not only was he no longer reprimanded by the people of Athens, but the General Executive Committee also consulted him from time to time about the Kingdom of Diónia. He also occasionally wrote to the Devers to discuss political issues and had always kept in touch with the Devers.
After the conquest of Sparta, the Devers wrote several letters to invite Xenophon to teach at the Academy of Arts of Diónia, but he refused on the grounds that he was "working hard on his writing and did not want to be disturbed" and had been living in seclusion in Peloponnesus.
This time, the Devers invited them in the name of the Games, and the two of them gladly came. The reason was very simple: the two of them were not only sports enthusiasts but also participants. Plato was a good wrestler when he was young, and Xenophon was good at running when he was young. Later, after settling in Peloponnesus, because it was very close to the Olympia, the Olympia games were always held, and he also participated in horse racing. In fact, in this era, Greece advocated strength and beauty, so Greek celebrities liked sports. Otherwise, no matter how knowledgeable they were, if they were weak, they would be despised by the people.
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