Rome must fall.

Chapter 68 Lukelians

Maximus tapped his head with his finger: "Are you right?!"

"Yes..." This time, the recruits did not respond in unison, because some of them were lost in thought.

After Maximus left, Tierkes pushed Tinibazus who was in a daze: "You can do it, boy, now the leader will remember you!"

Tilks said something to his mind, Tinibazus changed the topic without changing his expression: "Captain, I used to be a street performer, a soldier, a slave, and Leader Maximus and I are all the big guys I have met before. It’s all very different.”

"Of course it is different!" Tierkes said sincerely: "Leader Maximus knows a lot of things, just like those high-ranking scholars, but he is very willing to teach us!"

Then his face darkened: "Young boy, since you said you want to study, I will be there to supervise you, so that you will not be expelled midway and embarrass our team."

"Captain, what do you mean?" Tinibazus heard the meaning of his words.

"You think you are the only one who is smart? I have been studying with Volenus for a long time!" Tierkes said with a proud look on his face.

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The rebels first defeated the forward troops of the Roman legions north of the city of Calatea, and then annihilated their main force on the banks of the Volturno River. Not long after the Roman legion commander Valerius arrived at Cales with a hundred cavalry and a baggage team, he learned the news from the defeated troops. He was shocked and worried that the rebels would continue to advance north and surround them. He hurriedly retreated north with the remaining troops.

After the rebels rested for a night on the banks of the Volturno River, several leaders discussed and decided not to venture further north. Instead, they escorted the loot and prisoners back to Vesuvius in a show of glory.

The people in the towns passing by also learned about the defeat of the Roman legions and spread the news quickly.

The rebel army returned to the camp, and all the personnel in the baggage camp rejoiced. Although Maximus had been very confident after going out on his own to stabilize the morale of the army, everyone was somewhat uneasy. It was not until the army returned in triumph that everyone was completely Relax.

This victory greatly inspired the confidence of the rebel army and civilians and eliminated their fear of the Romans.

This was bad news for the Campanians, because it meant that the slave rebellion would continue, and it also led to a terrible consequence.

Campania was a wealthy region under Roman rule, but it was not without its poor people. Precisely because its land was too fertile, it attracted the covetousness of many Roman dignitaries. The plunder and annexation of its land had not stopped for a long time. (Sura's manor and villa are here), which also resulted in many landless poor people who lost their homes. Many of them went to Rome to seek opportunities, and some people lived in various towns in Campania to rely on charity. Eating bread and doing menial labor to survive, they longed to change their situation and regain their glory as citizens.

The slave revolt caused by the gladiators has been raging in Vesuvius for almost half a year. All Campanians know the news. The reason why the poor did not go to seek refuge is not because they don't want to, but because they are more mature than the slaves. Knowing the strength of the Roman army, he was not optimistic about the prospects of the rebels and believed that they would be wiped out soon.

However, first the 3000 Roman soldiers led by Grabo suffered a disastrous defeat, and now an entire Roman legion was almost completely annihilated. The rebel army's consecutive victories shocked the poor who were originally not optimistic about it, so poor people from Campania began to come one after another. The camp took refuge...

On this day, the rebel army held a meeting of military commanders. After all the leaders arrived, Spartacus said: "I have called you here today because there is one thing that needs to be discussed with you. Dozens of Lucelia came The poor want to join us, but they made a special request." "There are actually people in Lucelia who are willing to join us?" Cross was a little surprised.

The reason why Cross was surprised was because the rebels had stayed here for so long and had a deeper understanding of the surrounding situation. The city of Lucelia is located south of the edge of Vesuvius, very close to Pompeii. Unlike most towns in Campania, it is a Roman colonial city, a town built by real Romans who moved here. Moreover, the history of Lucelia was only ten years old. It was one of the eight colonial cities built under the supervision of the dictator Sulla. Almost all the residents in the city were Roman veterans who followed Sulla in the war. They enjoyed the enjoyment of Sulla. How could they, who had been given political benefits, rebel against Rome, where Sulla's party was still in power?

Not only Cross was surprised, but several other leaders were also confused.

"The thing is like this..." Hamilka explained.

It turned out that more than half of the land allocated to the residents of Lucelia was Pompeii's land, which was forcibly divided by Sulla. Because the dictator at that time purged the popular faction, he executed many people throughout Italy and used his bloody methods. The fear of the Pompeii people did not dare to make any objections, but the unwilling Pompeii people hated the Lucelia people. While they deliberately made friends with Sulla's men, they quietly caused trouble for the Lucelia people.

Although the Lucelians were allocated fertile land, their hands that were used to holding swords and shields were no longer used to holding hoes. These Roman veterans had no experience in farming. It was already difficult to survive in the face of competition from large farms, let alone Some people deliberately targeted them, and over the past few years, some Lukelia people were heavily in debt due to poor management.

The creditors were all Pompeian nobles. When Sulla was still alive, they behaved very generously, did not press for debts, and were even willing to continue borrowing. But as soon as Sulla died, they immediately turned against each other and came to collect debts. If the money could not be paid, they would take away the land by force. The Lucelia people came to reason and were beaten out by the guards they arranged... During this period, something happened In many conflicts, the Lucelia people were the losers, and the officials sent by the Roman Senate to investigate the matter also favored the Pompeii people.

If before the Civil War of the Italian League, the Lucianos still had some privileges as Roman citizens, now all Italians are Roman citizens, and the political status of both parties is equal. The Lucianos do not have any advantage, and it is Roman law that debts must be repaid. The iron law was that when the Gracchi brothers wanted to relieve the debts of the common people, they met with strong opposition from the senators, let alone now.

The Luccalians who lost their land finally chose to go to Rome for help. After all, they were followers of Sulla. According to Roman tradition, Sulla was their patron. Although Sulla died, he had a successor.

Lucius Licinius Lucullus was Sulla's main successor in the military field. During his campaigns in Asia Minor, a small number of these Lucianians were even under his direct command.

But this man was a refined egoist who had strict demands on soldiers and seldom distributed the spoils to soldiers. He was not keen on political affairs and had little interest in receiving Sulla's political legacy, so Lucenia When people come to ask for help, he always does it perfunctorily.

Another important general under Sulla was Pompey. The young Pompey did care about his subordinates and was very ambitious, but he was not Sulla's old subordinate. He had not fought in Asia Minor, but led his army to land at Sulla. He joined in Italy and was not familiar with these veterans. He had a group of subordinates and was busy with the campaign in Iberia. He made it clear that he was helpless to the Lucelia people's request for help.

As for other senators who had close contact with Sulla, they hid from the Lucianos. Later, they asked their comrades in Rome to find out the news: It turned out that the Pompeii had attached themselves to the younger Sulla (nephew of the dictator Sulla). , the reason why they dared to seize the land of the Lukelia people was because of his support.

The Luccalians who lost their land were desperate, and some simply wandered around Rome, while others returned to Campania with hatred and lived off the aid of their comrades.

Later, the rebel army appeared and defeated the Roman army twice. This news rekindled their hope, so they came to visit...

……

(End of this chapter)