Chapter 171
Sesta agreed and expressed his gratitude for Dyvers' recommendation. The other elders had no objections either. The only one who had any objections was Antikris, who was in Amendolara. He had no choice but to continue serving the people as the fire chief.
At the same time, the Devers also made Asistes Sesta's clerk to assist Sesta in handling the affairs of Neutum and implementing policies against the Lucanians. In addition, they made Bagoule Neutum's special inspector to deal with all kinds of disputes and conflicts in the city, coordinate the relationship between the Lucanians and the Greeks … and so on.
After taking over Neutum, the first thing Sesta did was to screen the captives. He imprisoned the real Neutum people and their subordinates and families, while persuading the small tribes that were forced to join Neutum to surrender. He gave this task to Bagoule.
The second thing he did was to release the slaves. There were slaves in Neutum, and there were many of them. There were two main sources. One was the Greeks, who were plundered by the Lucanians. Most of them were Turií. As Neutum was close to the Turií, they would come east to harass them every year. Especially after defeating the Turií army last year, they followed the Lucarian coalition army deep into the Sybari Plain and captured many Turií people. The second was the Lucarians, mainly the tribes who were defeated by the coalition army led by Grumentum and were unwilling to submit to Neutum. These Lucanian slaves were handed over to Bagoule and Asistes to deal with.
These Greek slaves were summoned by Sesta outside the city gate. Looking at these once well-fed but now skinny Greeks, even the women were naked, and all of them looked dazed … Sesta was touched. He said emotionally, "Greeks, you have suffered. Today, Hades has sent us, the Tua Alliance, to rescue you and take revenge for you! "
After saying that, most of the slaves burst into tears.
At Sesta's order, the soldiers pushed Ramu and the nearly 700 naked captives into the room. They were then given spears and sabers to the Greek slaves. Sesta said loudly, "You can take revenge for those who bullied you!"
Asistes saw that something was wrong and quickly stopped Sesta. "Sir, you can't do that. You're violating the Senate's order!"
"So what?" Sesta pointed at the Greek slaves and said angrily, "Look at them! Any Greek who saw this would choose to do what I did! When the Archon slaughtered General Crotone in Turín, he told the Greeks that the Tua Alliance was not to be trifled with! Today, I will let the Lucanians know that the Greeks are not to be messed with! "
While he was speaking, a Greek slave who could not control his hatred howled and rushed forward with a spear in both hands, stabbing a captive to the ground.
With this as an example, the other slaves also rushed forward to assassinate the captives. The captives screamed in fear, knowing that a disaster was coming, and began to try to resist. The soldiers who surrounded them knocked them down with their round shields to stifle their attempts. Then, they let the slaves slaughter them …
The killing continued until the end, but it did not continue because the remaining captives were desperately protected by the Greek female slaves …
Sesta was puzzled. Asistes quickly went forward to ask about the situation. When he returned, he told Sesta with a sorrowful expression, "These women either gave birth after being raped by these captives, or they are still pregnant … Poor Greek women! … It's all because the Greek men are useless and can't protect them that they fall into such a miserable situation! … Sir, do you still want to continue killing? "
"Damn Lucanians!" Sesta cursed, then raised his hand and said coldly, "Stop!"
After the order was given, there were still slaves who were unwilling to give up and brandished their spears, threatening the female slaves who were standing in front of the Lucanians to leave. The soldiers immediately went forward to disarm them.
Sesta took a few steps forward, stepped on a corpse, and shouted to the Greek slaves, "Listen up! The new law passed by the Tua Alliance states that 'any slave who was previously a citizen of Turín or a Turín or a slave of Amendolara (because in the Greek city-states, the women of the city-state could not become citizens, but she belonged to the people of the city-state) will automatically become a citizen of the Tua Alliance and a member of the Tua Alliance! If a slave who is not a Turín or an Amendolara is willing to stay in the Tua Alliance, you can apply to become a Tua Alliance citizen after two years. After three years, if you meet the requirements, you can become an official citizen! 'Do you want to stay in Neutum or go back to Turín to live? "
Most of the male slaves said they wanted to go back to Turín, but most of the women were hesitant. Because the Greek city-states of this era had very strict requirements for women's chastity. Not only before marriage, but especially after marriage, housewives could only stay in the house and could not go out in public. They had to be as diligent and frugal as bees in managing the household. Even the design of the house took into account the possibility of the wife having an affair. Therefore, the bedroom of the traditional Greek couple was on the second floor, and the only opening of the staircase was at the door of the living room, so that the master and the slaves could see the housewife going in and out. To prevent husbands who got tired of their wives and stayed in the brothel for a long time, causing the resentment of the wives who stayed in the boudoir alone, some city-states even stipulated the number of times a citizen could have sex. For example, Solon of Athens had initiated the law of Athens, which stipulated that 'having sex three times a month is enough care for a chaste citizen's wife.'
Now, a large number of Greek women who had been slaves for a long time had given birth, and some were pregnant … How would they be treated by their families and the outside world when they returned to Turín?! None of the female slaves dared to think about it or face it …
At this moment, the Asistes stood up and said loudly, "The Tua Alliance's lifetime governor, Lord Devers, has proposed and passed a law in the Senate. 'Any Lucanian who marries a Tua Alliance woman will automatically become a Tua Alliance citizen. After two years, he will become an official citizen and enjoy the right to the Alliance's allotment of land and two years of tax exemption. Any Greek man who marries a Lucanian woman in the Tua Alliance and is willing to become a Tua Alliance citizen will automatically obtain the status of a Tua Alliance citizen. After two years, he will become an official citizen and enjoy the right to the Alliance's allotment of land and two years of tax exemption. '"
"… Is this true?" The female slaves could not believe their ears. One of them mustered up the courage to ask.
"Of course it's true! Any couple who marries according to the law can immediately go to the city hall in Neutum … No, the great leader's mansion to register! "Sesta said loudly with certainty.
The Greek female slaves were like rain after a long drought. They were so excited that they shed tears. They knew that as long as this law was in place, as long as Neutum remained in the hands of the Tua Alliance, they could live proudly on this land! Lord Consul Devers was really a good person who cared for them!
The Greek male slaves who were not originally Turií citizens hesitated for a moment before making a decision. Compared to the long time it would take to become an official citizen in Turií, marrying a Lucanian woman and enjoying many benefits immediately seemed more attractive!
Asistes could guess that this law would soon be announced in Turií and Amendola. By then, who knew how many free men would come to Neutum to marry a Lucanian woman!
He looked at the corpses piled up into a hill and the blood flowing like a river at the execution ground. At least the large number of widows in Neutum would have someone to take care of them.
… …
The bloody scene Sesta created outside the city gate shocked all the Lucanians in the city. The families who lost their loved ones cried in fear.
Even in the evening, when Bagul invited Csima, Urazza, and the other Lucanians they knew, they were still trembling with fear.
"Sit down! Sit down! We're all old friends, so sit down! " Bagoule subconsciously imitated the Devers' expression and tone when they served him, but the guests did not seem to be relaxed.
"Csima, why haven't I seen Abinu?" Bagoule glanced at the crowd and asked.
"Abinu … He had a quarrel with Udrell's son, Tamalu, and was killed by them!" Csima said sadly.
"Damn Udrell! Damn those big tribes who bully us! Where's this Tamalu now?! "Bagoule roared angrily.
"He's dead! When we went to Turií, he died in the hands of the Greeks, just like his father, Udrell! "Uraza glanced at the Asistes beside Bagoule and said gloatingly.
"Sigh, it's a pity that I can't avenge him myself! But that's fine. Abinu can serve the mountain god with peace of mind! "Bagoule sighed and regained his composure.
At that moment, one of the guests said, "Udrell and Ramu bullied us, but won't the Greeks bully us? Won't they slaughter us like they did to Ramu and the others? "
"Yeah! Yeah! Today, the Greeks killed more than 500 Lucanians who surrendered outside the city! "
"Soon, they'll slaughter us like cattle and sheep!"
…
The guests were in an uproar, venting their dissatisfaction with the Greeks.
The Asistes finally realized the impact of the massacre outside the city. He stood up and said, "The Tua Alliance will never bully you! We — "
"How can a Greek who can speak Lucanian join a Lucanian gathering?!" A voice from the guests interrupted the Asistes.
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