Greece: Zeus made me the queen of heaven?

Chapter 376 Greek Tradition of Family Harmony

The gentle sun shines on the earth, and everything is flourishing with vitality.

The farmers in the manor stopped and the bard leaning under a tree by the roadside played his harp.

"When the Jerusalem artichokes bloom, in the sleepy summer, the cicadas sit on the trees, flapping their wings and screaming."

"At this time, the goats are fattest, the wine is sweetest, the women are most wanton, and the men are weakest."

The bard was singing a passage from the long poem, and a peasant woman nearby interrupted his singing.

"Don't sing these boring things. You are from the city, so you should talk about some interesting things in the city."

It is human nature to gossip, and farmers working on the estates do not understand these arts of poetry.

The bard paused and immediately stopped singing.

After all, whether the speech is good or not, and whether it can make these people happy, is related to whether he can get some fruit and water later.

Clearing his throat, he sang again.

"Achrisius, the king of Argos, the master of this rich land, the ruler with the blood of gods."

"Go and see him build a tower without doors in his palace of brass and clay."

"He locked his daughter up in this lonely tower, just because he received instructions from the oracle."

While the bard was singing, a traveler on horseback slowly walked towards him from the side of the road.

When passing by the bard, he seemed to hear what he was singing, so he reined in his horse and stopped beside the bard.

"Are you talking about what happened in Argos?"

The traveler on horseback was none other than Eros, who was out for a stroll on a secret mission.

On a dark and windy night, he first played a trick with Selene on the people of the earth, and then went to the Ocean Throne and Crete for a tour.

After accompanying Amphitrite, he went to Crete to visit Europa and Minos. He left only after confirming that Europa would ascend to heaven soon.

Then before coming here, I also went to Athens to follow the progress of the construction of the sanctuary.

After walking around in a big circle like this, Eros turned back to the business at hand.

The message Aphrodite gave was correct. The target was Danaë, the mother of Greek heroes, known as the cradle of demigod epics.

There may be some big problems with the time. The changing of the four seasons on earth is controlled by the goddesses of time, which does not match the time of Mount Olympus.

In addition, Eros had wandered around so many places, and when he leisurely came to the city of Argos, he didn't even know what time it was.

The young man riding on the horse was as handsome and dazzling as the sun in the sky, with a captivating smile on his face, but he surprisingly did not have any desires or impulses.

Some were simply filled with admiration and awe at the beauty, and after being stunned for a moment, they found that they could not remember the appearance of the young man in front of them at all.

Seeing his surprise, Eros took out a bag from his arms and threw it to him.

"Tell me, I am very interested in the princess imprisoned in the tower."

The bag opened, revealing the silver coins inside. They were all drachmas printed with owls, olive branches, and the head of Athena.

Athens had already begun to make coins, and relying on its excellent foundation and first-mover advantage, it had gained the main monetary power on this continent.

In other words, this is hard currency, unlike some coins that can only circulate within a city-state.

When the bard saw the glittering light of the silver coin, he instantly smiled and told Eros everything he had heard.

According to the king of Argos, the oracle predicted that the child born by his daughter would destroy the entire city of Argos. Caught in the conflict between the country and family affection, he chose to build a high tower to prevent anyone from contacting his daughter.

Of course, there is another rumor in the city of Argos.

That child would not destroy the city of Argos, but would only seize the throne from Acrisius.

Out of fear, Acrisius built a high tower and imprisoned his daughter to prevent the birth of the prophesied child.

In general, what the bard knew were just rumors, which were of no use to Eros.

What Eros mainly wanted to know from what he said was how long Danae had been imprisoned in the tower.

But fortunately, Eros didn't come too late. It's only been three years, and Danae is still fine.

If it had been any later, Acrisius might have been unable to resist and had to wipe out the entire clan.

Saying that you can't give up family ties is just a lie.

When Eros heard the rumors from the bards, he knew everything.

He deliberately tampered with the prophecy, turning it from a threat to his throne into one that would destroy the entire Argos.

Acrisius did not want to bear the infamy of killing his daughter, so he deliberately created this kind of public opinion.

When public opinion was high enough, he was "forced" to kill his daughter in accordance with people's wishes for the sake of all citizens.

However, under his deliberate control, the correct prophecy can still be delivered.

This shows that the priest still obeyed the oracle and spread the true content, so that Acrisius's plan did not come true.

After finding out what he wanted, Eros continued to ride slowly towards the city of Argos.

But Eros still felt a little emotional, as he and Acrisius should have met each other a few times.

He had seen it when he was archon of Inachus.

What was only a short time for Eros felt like several years to him.

The consul who was once a diligent and enlightened one has now become an evil dragon entrenched on the throne.

I wonder if Inachus had anticipated the current situation when he chose his successor.

But it was just a sigh, after all, this kind of thing is too common.

It is rare for a mortal to be able to maintain his youthful state as he grows older.

Not everyone is like Eros, who has the purest and simplest desires and goals, and maintains the impulse and passion of youth.

Of course, the more important reason is that it is unnecessary. The dragon slayer turning into an evil dragon is often not necessarily out of greed, but may also be due to old age.

The high spirits and vigor of those days can only be maintained by sitting on the throne now.

The older and weaker they are, the more they cannot let go of this last bit of power, just like many kings.

As for immortal life, naturally, there will be no such worries of aging and weakness.

The pony staggered along the road, and Eros' thoughts were constantly flying, gradually drifting away.

Sure enough, things between people are several times more complicated and exciting than the fights between goddesses.

　The first few lines are from Works and Days, and I was a bit bothered to realize that I hadn’t bought these ancient Greek poems.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)