Chapter 588
His slave reminded him that the governor of Naxos, Strompoli, had invited him to dinner tonight.
He hurriedly called a carriage and drove to Naxos as fast as he could.
Of course, there was a road between Mealor and Naxos. In just twenty minutes, Galadmos arrived at the governor's residence.
Under the guidance of the slave, Galadmos walked into the living room. There was a couch, a wooden chair, and a dining table. Candles were lit all around, illuminating the living room.
"My lord, I'm sorry I'm late!" Galadmos bowed to Strompoli, who came to greet him.
"You're quite early. Diocasis will arrive a little later." Strompoli welcomed him in and comforted him. "We didn't invite any outsiders tonight. It's just the three of us, so don't be too restrained. Treat this as your own home," he said.
"Okay," Galadmos responded.
"Do you like the couch or the wooden chair? Choose for yourself," Strompoli said as he sat down on the couch in the middle.
Seeing that Galadmos had chosen a wooden chair to sit on, he patted the pillow beside him and said, "It's been more than ten years since His Majesty and Herpes advocated that eating on wooden chairs is healthy, but I'm still used to the couch."
Galadmos quickly said, "The people of Mendolara often say, 'Only you, my lord, still uphold the traditions of Mendolara.'"
"Don't they always say that I'm too conservative?" Strompoli replied.
Galadmos hurriedly tried to explain.
He waved his hand and smiled. "I'm not as stupid as they say. As long as it's good, I still have to learn to accept it. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to manage a city hundreds of miles away from Mendolara today. Greece has changed so much in the past ten years. It's impossible for people not to adapt … "Strompoli recalled the past with a face full of emotion.
Galadmos listened attentively.
Strompoli was satisfied with his behavior. He gestured to the slave standing at the side and said, "Serve the dishes."
Galadmos was shocked. "My lord, aren't we going to wait for Diocasis?"
"He's not like you. He often comes to my place like his own home, so you don't have to worry about him at all."
It was said that Diocasis came to Naxos at the same time as Strompoli, a year earlier than Galadmos. As an inspector, Diocasis was under the direct command of Strompoli, and he was an important assistant to the governor in governing the city. (Inspector meant patrol and investigation, and it was a new public service after the establishment of the Kingdom of Dionia. Its predecessor was the Patrol Captain. Dives elevated this public service, which was originally at the bottom of the hierarchy, so that it could play a greater role in maintaining the city's security.) Naturally, Diocasis had a much closer relationship than Galadmos, who was an outsider.
The slaves brought out the prepared dishes one by one. There were dried fruits such as almonds, figs, pistachios, dates … There were fruits such as pomegranates, peaches, plums … There were meat dishes such as steaming pork soup, roasted mutton, cooked chicken … There were also grilled codfish, steamed oysters … Of course, there was also wine, beer and watermelon juice. After a while, the table was filled with food and drinks.
Galadmos was in a daze and could not help but say, "This is too sumptuous!"
"Tonight, let's eat and drink to our heart's content. I've specially invited the chef from Kristoya's restaurant to cook for us. I believe you will be satisfied!" Strompoli was lying on his side on the couch with a proud look on his face. "I believe that some of the food on this table is rare even in His Majesty's palace. After all, Naxos is closer to Africa." Strompoli laughed and gestured to the slaves standing at the door of the living room.
A slender, dark-skinned, good-looking slave girl came in and sat down next to Galadmos under Strompoli's instruction.
Galadmos was slightly nervous and subconsciously moved to the side.
Strompoli saw this scene and smiled. "I remember that you are not married, Galadmos, right?"
"Yes, my lord."
"It's time to find a wife! Strengthen your family's bloodline as soon as possible so that your parents can rest assured in Elysee! "Strompoli's words touched Galadmos.
"But don't look for one in Naxos, because your roots are in Amendolara. Try to find the daughter of an Amendolara or a Turií minister. That will be more helpful to your future! When I go back, I will look for one for you … "Strompoli said earnestly.
"Thank you for your teachings and help, my lord! I … "Galadmos was a little touched. He really felt that Strompoli was really thinking about him.
"Sigh, there are not many real Amendolarans! And there are only two of you in Naxos … I still remember when we were imprisoned in the temple of Zeus by the Lucanians, your father Aeschus finally collapsed because of hunger and disease. I was by his side at that time … "Strompoli murmured as he recalled the past.
Galadmos' eyes were a little red.
"How can I not care about you!" Strompoli's words were emotional, but unfortunately, the atmosphere was suddenly ruined by a sudden voice from outside the door. "You didn't wait for me, you have already started eating and drinking!"
Accompanied by this shout, a burly young man walked into the living room.
"Sit down, Diocasis. We're just waiting for you." Strompoli did not care about the young man's impolite tone just now. He waved to the slaves to hurry up and serve him the dishes.
"Hey, Gala." Diocasis waved to Galadmos and sat down opposite him.
Galadmos nodded to greet him. The two were more familiar with each other because not only was their age not far apart, but they were also classmates in the Turií school. However, Galadmos was outstanding, and Diocasis was a naughty student, so the two rarely communicated. They only had more contact after they became adults, especially after they came to work in Naxos.
Diocasis was different from Galadmos. When the Devers occupied Amendarra, he still had his mother. In the end, his mother, like other widows of Amendarra, remarried. His adoptive father was Dracos, but Diocasis did not have a good relationship with Dracos. He did not acknowledge him as his adoptive father, and Dracos was busy training soldiers and fighting, so he almost did not care about him.
Until the end of the Southern Italian War (the people of Syracuse called the war ten years ago the "Great Greek War", but the people of Diónia believed that the war was not only fought against Syracuse, but also against Sammonae and Tarantum, so it was called the "Southern Italian War"), Dracos died a heroic death and became a hero of Diónia. A statue was erected on the Hall of Valhalla. The King, the Devers, and the former mercenary elders had always taken care of Dracos's family, which was unacceptable to Diocasis. In the end, he found an opportunity to work in Naxos, just to get away from Dracos's comrades.
"Sir, I remember that someone just gave you two Numibian slaves. You can't be biased!" Diocasis shouted to Strompoli as soon as he sat down.
"I knew you would say that. I won't leave you out of it," Strompoli said with a smile.
Then another slave entered the hall and sat next to Diocasis.
He immediately put his arm around the slave's waist and asked for her name.
Strompoli coughed softly and asked, "What happened in the city? Why did you come so late? "
"Prospero's inspector came to me in the afternoon. He said that a registered free citizen reported to him that his 13-year-old daughter was missing, and he hoped that I could support him. I just went to understand the situation, and I rushed back here. I'm going to send people to search tomorrow. "
After Diocasis finished speaking, Strompoli nodded and did not pay much attention to it. When the new Naxos was first built, it was full of exiles, free citizens, aliens, and even the remnants of Campanian mercenaries. So, there were often fights, murders, and disappearances. It was only in the past few years that things had settled down. He believed that with Diocasis's ability, he would be able to handle it.
"Sir, this is not a simple matter. I'm afraid it has something to do with the Laodisian Family," Diocasis glanced at Galardmos and said in a deep voice.
Strompoli was stunned. He put down the wine glass that he was about to raise and waved his hand to dismiss the two slaves immediately. Then, he asked seriously, "Oh, what evidence did you find?!"
Galardmos's heart skipped a beat, and he also pricked up his ears.
"The free citizen was recently hired by the Laodisian Family to guard the wheat fields. According to his wife, 'yesterday, his daughter went to deliver food to him, but she never came back.' And the free citizen said, 'He didn't see his daughter at all.' Diocasis grabbed a plum, took a bite, and continued, "Sir, you have to know that Paphogris was driven back to Naxos by his father because he caused trouble in Turií. There are often rumors of him 'abusing female slaves' in Naxos. I suspect that this matter has something to do with him!"
While Strompoli was still muttering to himself, Galadmos could not help but associate the disappearance of the girl with the suspicious things he had encountered in the afternoon. He immediately interrupted, "Sir, today I went to the Laodisian family's fields to check …"
After listening to Galardmos's narration, Diocasis shouted, "Look, even Gala is suspicious! Sir, you have to give me an order. I'll bring people to search Paphogris's house tomorrow! "
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