ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 749 Trainee Judge Pleka

Pleca, who was returning to the city from the port court, seemed a little preoccupied. If he had followed his usual habits, he would have stopped at the port market he was passing by, because the market at dusk was always filled with a carnival atmosphere, with acrobatics, Dances, juggling, comic performances... various entertainment programs attract tourists to stop and watch, while the vendors display various exquisite and unique handicrafts, or various fragrant foods, and shout to each other to attract customers. ...The port market from dusk to evening is home to street performers and vendors. It is also a good place for the people of Turii to take a stroll after having dinner.

In the past, Pleka would stop here to listen to the singing of the bards, taste the sea fish fried in olive oil, and buy some herb porridge that smelled of mint or thyme... But today, He kept walking and finally squeezed out of the market.

In front of him were magnificent temples, from the original Temple of Hera, to the Temple of Hercules, the Temple of Apollo, and even Bruti's snow-capped mountain goddess Amara, Lucania's Protector God Asinu... This area is called the "Land of the Gods" by the people of Thurii. Even during the day, the temple is always bright and there are many believers (of course it cannot be compared with the Temple of Hades). At dusk, most of the believers dispersed, revealing the majesty and emptiness of the temple again.

The chants of the priests of the gods in the hall came out from between the thick stone walls and towering pillars, lingering in Pleka's ears, making him feel slightly calmer, but he did not slow down.Just when he passed the Temple of Hera, he stopped because he saw the pure white carriage and the fully armed palace guards parked in front of the temple. He knew that this was Princess Dionia and the God Hera. The chief priest of the temple, Agnes, is about to go home.

In order to show respect, he stayed where he was, and many people, like him, watched the beautiful and kind-hearted princess smiling and waving to them, then got in the car and left.

Going further north, you enter the outer city of Thurii.A foreign businessman who came to Turii for business once said something like this: “The inner city and outer city of Turii are like nobles and commoners. One embodies elegance and order, and the other shows excitement and vitality. The two are so harmonious, there is no conflict or contradiction..."

What this foreign businessman did not understand was that the formation of the inner city and the outer city of Turiyi was not caused by differences in status, but by the different times at which the people of the inner and outer cities joined the kingdom.

The residents of the inner city all joined the Dionian Alliance before the establishment of the kingdom, while the residents of the outer city mainly joined after the establishment of the kingdom. Precisely because the residents of the inner city joined the alliance during its infancy, they have more opportunities to participate in governance. Alliance, obtain military exploits, and win rewards. Therefore, most of the citizens in the inner city are either senators, officials of the kingdom, or army officers. Of course, they have also made huge sacrifices for the survival and development of Dionia. So far, 1/ 6 of the inner city citizens were killed or disabled.

There are also many senators among the citizens of the outer city. Most of them joined after the establishment of the kingdom. They come from southern Magna Greece, eastern Sicily, and Apulia. There are also many who have become senior officials and senior officials of the kingdom through their own efforts. Citizens with high-ranking officers, Pleka is one of them, make many citizens, preparatory citizens and freedmen who have just settled in the outer city not jealous of those big shots, but hope to become them through their own efforts.

In fact, the outer city is not chaotic. With the constraints of Dionia law and the strict management of the Inspection Department, people who want to develop in the kingdom generally will not violate the law and create obstacles for their future. Therefore, the outer city The order of the city is also better than that of many Greek city-states, but there are too many residents in the outer city and the members are complex. In addition to the citizens of the kingdom, free people, Greeks from other city-states, and other races from various places, it is more difficult to manage. It is inevitable that some contradictions and conflicts will arise. This is also a headache for being a judge in Thurii. The affairs are too complicated and trivial.

If in normal times, Pleka walks on the streets of the outer city, he likes to observe the people gathering and chatting on both sides of the road, to determine which are Dionian citizens and which are foreigners, what occupation they are engaged in, where they come from, and their personality characteristics How...this may be due to the judge's occupational disease.

In long-term observation, he has summed up some experience in recognizing people, but when the people of Dionysia and foreigners are together, they can tell them apart at a glance without thinking about them carefully.

Because the citizens of Dionia are physically strong and walk with ease, this is because they often eat meat and undergo military training for many years. Moreover, they are always neatly dressed when going out, and always wear leather sandals on their feet.On the one hand, they followed the doctor's warning to prevent unnecessary injuries and colds (many people in Greek city-states went barefoot); on the other hand, the boltons they wore could be decorated with various medals, which became their cause. An important asset that others respect and show off.In addition, they speak loudly, laugh heartily, and are optimistic by nature. It seems that no difficulty can stump them. This may be the magnanimity of citizens of a big country.Of course, their Greek language, which combines multiple ethnic cultures in the country, also makes it a bit difficult for tourists from other Greek city-states to understand...

Pleca's home is next to the Persephone Arena. It's almost March, and rugby matches in cities across the kingdom have begun. The festival for fans has arrived, but people living near the arena will inevitably be exposed to noise during the day. Because of the harassment, the residential land near the arena is not favored and the price is very low, but for Pleka, who has not been a citizen of Dionia for a long time, he has no more choices.

When he got near his home, he had to stop again and again to greet the neighbors who took the initiative to say hello to him.Until then, he put aside the troubles in his heart and savored the respect given to him by his neighbors: Yes, although he came from a very low background and was a domestic slave, through his own efforts, he fought his way up from the bottom and has become a Become a trainee judge of the kingdom. In the Kingdom of Dionia, which is governed by law, judges are undoubtedly one of the kingdom's public offices respected by ordinary people.

While passing through the alley, he heard several neighbors who were in the legion reserve talking happily about "the army is about to go north to attack Latium", and he accelerated his pace home.

"You're back!" His wife came up to him and took Pleka's satchel.

Pleka let out a "hmm" and walked into the courtyard.

"Master!" Two slaves, a man and a woman, greeted him respectfully.

Pleka nodded solemnly and walked towards the main house.The reason why the place where he lived was not built into a two-story building was because he did not have enough money when he got married. Later, he finally saved some money and planned to renovate the building. However, he happened to meet his wife who was pregnant. He was so busy with work that he had to He bought a female slave to take care of him, and then saved money to buy a male slave at the beginning of last year. He originally planned to let her take care of his own land, but he didn't expect that the drought delayed him for more than half a year and was almost useless.

"Where is the child?" Pleka asked with concern as he walked.

"Emila hugged him and went out to play all afternoon. He felt sleepy when he came back. He drank some rice porridge and is now sleeping soundly." The wife said, and then asked: "Oh, dinner has been prepared, now Just eat it while it’s hot?”

Pleka nodded.

His wife Kusnia was busy directing the slave girls to put dinner on the table.

Pleka lowered her head and saw that dinner was pumpkin and pea oatmeal, and she had cooked a large can of it, and her brows immediately furrowed.It's not that he is picky, but he has been eating this thing for a month and is really tired of it.

Seeing that her husband was a little dissatisfied, Kusnia hurriedly added: "There is still some goat milk and cheese at home. How about I go and bring it up?"

Pleka knew that the goat's milk and cheese were reserved for the children, so he waved his hand.

"How about I go to the market tomorrow to buy some wheat, grind it into flour, and make bread?" Kusnia said again.

"There will be another war soon. The price of wheat on the market is not cheap now. There is no need to spend that money. There are still so many beans and pumpkins in the cellar that have not been eaten. If you don't eat them quickly, they will spoil." Pleka As he spoke, he sighed inwardly: the drought for most of the year had almost depleted his savings. If it weren't for the vegetables harvested after replanting his own fields, he might have had to ask for a bank loan to buy grain.Now that we have something to eat, it’s already pretty good...

Thinking of this, he scooped up a large spoonful of sticky porridge and stuffed it into his mouth.

"I have good news for you. We have planted all the wheat in the field today!" Kusnia said loudly to make her husband happy.

As a citizen of Dionia, Pleka owns five acres of land. Compared with many old citizens, his land is too small, but it is not easy to take care of these acres of land. Obviously the male slave he purchased played a big role, which strengthened his decision.

"Kusnia, there is something I want to tell you." Pleka looked up at his wife and said solemnly: "I have decided to go to Latium with the army led by His Majesty!"

"You are just a reserve soldier. You have not even entered the legion reserve team. Will they let you go?!" Kusnia thought her husband wanted to go to the battle. She was not panicked, but just a little confused.

"I am not going to fight against foreigners, but His Majesty is calling on us idle public officials to voluntarily follow the army to Latium and participate in the management of the occupied areas. I decided to sign up."

(End of this chapter)