Chapter 589
"Why?!" Diocasis said anxiously, "My lord, if we don't conduct a surprise inspection and give Paphogris enough time to prepare, it will be very difficult to catch him!"
"Why?! Because he is Laodisian's son, and his brother-in-law is Antonios. You have been in Naxos for a few years, and you know how influential Laodisian is here. You are only guessing, and you have no proof. If the search fails, the reputation of Laodisian and his son will be greatly damaged. Do you know how much damage it will do to the reputation of Laodisian and his son? When that happens, you and I will have to face Laodisian's wrath and revenge! "Strompoli said solemnly.
"I am a veteran senator, and I will be leaving Naxos soon, so Laodisian will not dare to do anything to me. However, you and Galadmos will be staying here for another two to three years. (Due to the rapid expansion of the Kingdom of Diónia, the frequent change of government officials is not conducive to the stability of the region. Therefore, the Senate has passed a bill to amend the law. The term of office of the city governor is three years, and the term of office of the lower-level officials is five years.) Last year, Galadmos was suppressed and ostracized because of the tax issue. You know that. If you anger Laodisian this time, it will be very difficult for you to live here in the future! As an elder, I would rather that you don't care about this case. I don't want you to get hurt! "
Strompoli's words were sincere, but Diocasis did not appreciate it. He shouted, "This is the land of the Kingdom of Diónia, and His Majesty the Devers has the final say. How can we allow Laodisian to do as he pleases? I don't believe that he dares to do anything to me! "
"You really want to investigate?"
"Yes, my lord. I must investigate this matter! It doesn't matter if it has anything to do with the Laodisian family! "Diocasis said firmly.
Strompoli looked to the other side and said, "Galadmos, what do you think?"
"My lord, I support Diocasis!" Galadmos paused for a moment and said, "I will also do my best to help him. After all, I am very familiar with the village."
"It's good to be young!" Strompoli looked at the two of them and sighed.
"Sir, when you were a senior judge, you were famous for being strict and not caring about personal feelings. I didn't expect that now …" Diocasis used his words to mock him.
"When it comes to being strict, I'm not as strict as Scombras. Unfortunately, he has gone to the Elysee …" Strompoli said with a sigh, "Sicily is different from Greece. There aren't many free Diónia citizens here. Most of them are exiles from Sicily. They are too easy to group up with. After the Southern Italian war, His Majesty put most of his energy into governing and unifying the land of Southern Italy. In order to ensure the stability of Sicily, the Senate absorbed many Sicilian exiled leaders … "
Strompoli swirled the wine glass in his hand, and his eyes glowed with a faint light. "Unless His Majesty has made up his mind, he won't be able to reorganize Sicily's territory. I don't want to stop you from investigating this matter, but I hope that you will act secretly and collect conclusive evidence. Don't let Laodisian's people have anything on you so that I can report this matter directly to His Majesty. "
Diocasis' eyes lit up. "I understand, my lord!"
"Even if this matter fails, it doesn't matter." Strompoli encouraged the two of them. "You are citizens from Amendolara and have the 'Founder of Amendolara Silver Buckle'. You have the support of Amendolara and many elders in the military. No one dares to provoke you because most of the mercenaries under the Devers married Amendolara women. These elders in the military have a deep relationship with the original citizens of Amendolara."
"Don't worry, I will definitely find out the truth!" Diocasis said confidently.
"My lord, are you going to retire soon?!" Galadmos finally had a chance to ask.
"Yes, it will be three years in September. With my age, I'm afraid I won't have the chance to hold a post in the future! " Stroking his white beard, Strompoli sighed and said, "According to the information I've received, my successor is likely to be His Excellency Asistes or His Excellency Lesperatus."
"According to the law a few years ago, isn't it stated that 'an elder cannot be the governor of the city where he was born'?" Galadmos asked doubtfully.
"You remember wrong. Lord Lesi Peratus is a Katanai, but the Sicilians have always liked to hang out with each other. Besides, Asistes' uncle is Antonios. No matter who becomes the governor of Naxos, they will take care of the Laodisian Family. That's why I didn't want you to make a big deal out of this matter just now, lest it will be detrimental to your future development!" Strompoli reminded.
Galadmos and Diocasis looked at each other.
"Alright, let's not talk about this matter anymore. This evening, which I had planned as a farewell party for myself and for you, was almost spoiled by you, Diocassis. " Strompoli raised the glass in his hand and said loudly, "Children, come, let's drink to tonight's party!"
… …
That night, in order to thank Strompoli for taking care of them for the past few years, the Diocasis Family and Galadmos frequently toasted each other. In the end, they returned home drunk.
At noon the next day, a hungover Diocasis rushed to the city hall, only to receive the news that the freedman had canceled the report and explained that he and his wife were busy working and had forgotten that his daughter had been taken to Katanai by relatives yesterday afternoon.
At dusk, the number of customers in Christoyah's restaurant in Naxos gradually increased.
A middle-aged man with a scar on his face walked in and went straight to the waiter at the counter. "I have an appointment with Diocasis, may I ask —"
"Please follow me." The waiter took him to the second floor and pushed open the door to a room. Diocasis was sitting alone in it.
As soon as he saw the man, Diocasis said with dissatisfaction, "Captain Selisses, how are you going to manage your soldiers if you're so late?"
Selisses was too lazy to argue with him, so he sat down directly opposite him and asked, "Why did you invite me to dinner?"
Diocasis did not answer immediately. He turned to look at the waiter and said, "Hurry up and serve all the dishes I ordered. I'm starving. Selisses, what do you want to drink? "
"Beer, of course."
"Two more cans of beer. Close the door when you go out."
"Okay, your wine and dishes will be delivered right away." The waiter went out and closed the door.
Selisses looked at Diocasis and asked again, "What's the matter that made you call me in such a hurry?"
Diocasis put his right elbow on the table and asked in a deep voice, "Lord Protector, don't you know what happened in Prospero in the past two days?"
Selisses was the Protector elected by the citizens of Prospero. According to the Law of Diónia, the Protector was elected once every two years. One Protector would be elected from each Depor district. A city could only have ten Protectors at most. Therefore, in large cities like Turín and Crotone, the number of Depors was far more than ten. There were even as many as twenty to thirty Depors. Twenty citizens would be randomly selected from each Depor district. After the first round of voting, ten Protectors would be elected. Naxos was not a large city, and it had only been established for less than ten years. There were only seven Depor districts.
Ten years ago, Selisses was an exiled soldier. He fought alongside the First Legion and earned military merits in the battle to repel the allied forces of Syracuse. Later, after the Catania Plains belonged to the Kingdom of Diónia, the Devers ordered the Ministry of Military Affairs to establish the Eighth Legion in Sicily. Selisses, who had combat experience and military merits, naturally became a low-ranking officer in the Eighth Legion.
After ten years, he had already become a captain, but he never had the intention to develop his career in local politics. In the past few years, he had directly applied to run for the Protector election, completely cutting off his future in politics. It was precisely because of his prestige in Prospero and his excellent qualifications for the election (the hero of Naxos's recovery, the scar on his face, the captain of the Eighth Legion, paid his taxes on time, and had no record of breaking any laws) that he was elected as the Protector of Prospero twice in a row.
At this moment, he carefully thought about it. Diocasis was the city's patrol officer, and his job was to maintain public order and arrest criminals. The reason he came looking for him in such a hurry was most likely because of this. After all, the two of them had worked together many times in the past because of breaking the law in the city. And what happened in Prospero in the past two days …
He asked with uncertainty, "Are you referring to the matter of the freedman losing his daughter?"
"It seems that you are quite competent as a Protector," Diocasis teased.
"I heard that the freedman has found his daughter," Selisses added.
Diocasis knocked his fist on the dining table and said in a deep voice, "Bullshit! He said that his daughter went to Catanai with her uncle, but I have asked his neighbors carefully. None of them saw any guests enter his house, and none of them saw his daughter go to the port. On the contrary, I went to Christos' bank and found out that he had deposited a thousand silver drachmas this morning … "
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