Chapter 773
"That's impossible!" The few laborers were shocked and shouted in unison.
The others seemed to have forgotten about the soldiers standing around them as well, and there was a commotion.
Martius hit the long shield with his short sword again, and the scene quickly returned to calm.
Adrius continued to speak loudly, "Because Priest Hades is a citizen of Diónia, my father decided to believe the words of his savior, so he brought us to Enona … It has been eight years now, and my father is now a citizen of Diónia. Not only does he own his own land in Enona, but he also holds a public office in the kingdom. I've studied in Enona School for four years at a very low cost, and learned to write in Greek. When I came of age, I was admitted to the public office in Enona, and I received a generous monthly salary. My younger brother is still studying in school … Now, our family is wealthy and respected, and we will never be bullied and starved again …"
After Adrius finished speaking, the scene fell into silence for a while. The laborers looked at the young messenger doubtfully. Although they were all Latin people with black hair and eyes, he had a well-proportioned body, fair skin, and a refined temperament. Obviously, they could not be compared to him, who worked hard at the docks every day and was covered with injuries and illnesses. They were indeed a little tempted.
Cloto Catax listened to Adrius's story and studied him carefully. He did not expect that this inconspicuous little official who had been following them just now would have such an extraordinary experience. This made him a little curious about him.
Seeing that the people had fallen into silence, the Devers struck while the iron was hot. They immediately pointed at the other messengers and said loudly, "Except for Adrius, who is a Latin, they are all Latin people, but they are also citizens of Diónia. Over the years, many of you Latin people have become citizens of Diónia. Why?
Because these Latin city-states are controlled by the nobles. They oppress the civilians and make it impossible for them to live. On the other hand, the Kingdom of Diónia treats all citizens equally. Every citizen is allocated land, and every citizen's land is protected by the law! Anyone! Whether they are rich or nobles, as long as they dare to plunder the wealth of the civilians, they will be severely punished by the court. Therefore, they live a peaceful life in the Kingdom of Diónia. This kind of peace with sufficient food and worry-free life is something that you can't enjoy in the current city-states! "
At this point, the few voice transmissions at the side nodded repeatedly with sincere expressions.
In fact, the Devers had exaggerated the number of Latin citizens in the Kingdom of Diónia. The real number was less than ten. Before the Devers set out for the expedition, they had specially asked the Minister of Household Records, Rafias, to search the kingdom carefully. They were mainly concentrated in Enona. The main reason was that the Latin region was not adjacent to the Kingdom of Diónia. In addition, the Latin city-state's maritime trade was not developed, and its ports were backward. Therefore, there was little communication with the outside world. Most of the Latin people were farmers, and the farmers had migrated to the South. In addition, the language and culture of Diónia and Latin were very different.
But now, the Devers saw that the laborers on the field were listening carefully. Each of them had a thoughtful look in their eyes. He knew that they were tempted.
At this moment, someone among the slaves shouted, "Can we also become citizens of Diónia?!"
When Adrius translated the other person's words to the Devers, he did not expect that the slaves would be the first to take action. He immediately said, "No matter where you come from or what race you are, as long as you are willing to become citizens of Diónia, are willing to abide by the laws of Diónia, and are willing to fulfill the obligations that the Kingdom of Diónia requires of its citizens, the Kingdom of Diónia welcomes you to join us and will give you all the rights that a citizen of Diónia should enjoy!"
When the Devers finished speaking, he waved his hand to the side.
Martius immediately asked the palace guards around him to take off their helmets. It was obvious that their hair color and facial features were very different. As a troop that had been in contact with the King of the Devers for a long time and had a special status, the palace guards were known for their complex racial composition in the Kingdom of Diónia. This was because they needed to publicly show that the ruler of the kingdom treated all races equally. Now, this practice had a very good effect in the land of the foreign races. Coupled with the slaves competing, the laborers became no longer reserved.
"How can I become a citizen of Diónia?" Several laborers asked almost in unison.
"This is my clerk, Henepolis. Next, he will explain in detail the procedures that you need to go through to become a citizen of Diónia. You can ask him any questions you have and he will answer them in detail, "the Devers said to them as he pointed to Henepolis, who was holding a wooden board and taking notes nervously.
Henepolis quickly put away the wooden board and said seriously, "Your Majesty, I will make them satisfied."
Finally, the Devers faced the crowd and asked loudly, "Who among you has stayed in the city of Rome and is very familiar with every street and corner in the city? Moreover, you also have some understanding of the various nobles in Rome? I would like to invite him to be my advisor. Of course, there will be a reward. If he is willing to become a citizen of Diónia, this will help him shorten the number of years he has to become a citizen. "
As soon as the voice messenger finished speaking, many people immediately raised their hands.
After some questioning, the Devers chose a slave named Valkries because he was once a citizen of Rome.
When the Devers first came in, the slaves and laborers were filled with fear, but when he left, these people looked at him respectfully as he left.
The Devers looked back at the scene of the people surrounding Henepolis and asking him questions anxiously in the open space illuminated by the torches. He felt that this was a good start because in his plan, he did not just want to turn these people into citizens of Diónia. He wanted them to become the spark that would ignite the land filled with Latin city-states.
Of course, this was a long process. Time was running out, and he still had many things to do that night.
The Devers strode back to the city and coincidentally met the advisor Tormid who rushed over. "Your Majesty, Amyntas' war report has arrived."
"What's the situation?"
"The Roman army suffered a great defeat. Amyntas led the entire army to pursue them, especially the two cavalry legions. They desperately drove the Roman army to the south and drove the Roman army to the south of Lavinium. They took the opportunity to seize this small city. Along the way, many Roman soldiers were captured. Amyntas said that he did not have time to count them. He was worried that these captives would drag them down tomorrow's military operation, so he used the old method we used in Persia. "Tormid's voice was much softer when he said the last sentence.
The Devers glanced at Cloto Catax beside him and said calmly, "Let the messenger go back and tell Amyntas, 'He won this battle beautifully and cleanly! But tonight, let the soldiers have a good rest and recover their strength. Also, find a way to solve the problem of the soldiers' rations. He must ensure that he can lead the energetic soldiers to depart at dawn tomorrow and meet us in Rome. It's best if he is not late. '"
"Yes!"
Cloto Catax asked curiously, "Father, what is the old method used in Persia?"
Tormid looked at the Prince of Diónia, who had just become an adult and still looked childish. He did not say a word.
The Devers hesitated for a moment and said in a deep voice, "It is to cut the hands and feet of the captives so that they cannot move, and then abandon them on the battlefield. When we were fleeing in Persia, we passed by some of the affiliated city-states of Persia and were constantly attacked by them. We used this method to deal with the captives we defeated. This way, we don't have to kill the captives to completely anger the enemy, and we can force the enemy to divert their attention to take care of these wounded soldiers."
"But … isn't this a little too cruel?" Cloto Catax could not bear to do it. Facing the serious eyes of the Devers, he plucked up his courage and said, "They have all surrendered. We should ensure their safety. This will help us win the favor of these Roman people and conquer this land faster. It should be good for us, father!"
The Devers was rebuked, but he was not angry. Instead, he smiled. "Clotho, I'm very happy that you have your own opinion! But you have to understand that now the Roman people are our enemies. Even if we have just won two battles, our army far away from the kingdom is still in danger. At any time, we may be defeated by the attack of Rome and its allies who outnumber our army. We may die in this strange land or become the enemy's slave. So, our primary goal now is to do everything possible to ensure that we can continue to win and ensure that our soldiers can reduce the casualties, even if it is cruel. Unless we have an absolute advantage, we will not consider the problem you just mentioned … "
Dyvers patiently taught his son. Seeing that he was deep in thought, he patted his son's shoulder encouragingly. He then turned to Tolmid and asked, "Have the soldiers' accommodations been arranged?"
"It's all arranged. There are a lot of warehouses in the city. We have simply modified them. It's much better than living in tents. In addition, we have gathered all the people of Ostia together. In addition to the accommodation for the officers and soldiers, there are still some leftovers — "
"Then arrange for the slaves and laborers to live there. After all, some of them will go with us tomorrow and need a good rest. Besides, we can let them enjoy the benefits of joining the Kingdom of Diónia in advance."
"Yes, I will arrange it in a while."
"How is the food situation?"
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