ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 664 The City of Seven Hills—Rome! (one)

Tapyrus disembarked at Ostia with the accompanying members of the envoy.

Soon, he was surprised to notice that the people who appeared most in this prosperous port were not the black-haired and black-eyed Latiums, but the Carthaginian merchants from the south of Dionia who were familiar to him. They were full of goods. Ships of goods docked here, and were then unloaded by port personnel first and transported to Rome in the east. Compared with merchants from other city-states at this port, the process was actually much faster and the process was orderly. The sequence has obviously been in operation for a long time.

In addition, Dionian merchants were also seen in the port area of ​​Tapirus.In the past ten years or so, the expansion of the Kingdom of Dionia, the rapid expansion of its territory, the increase in various resources, the transportation convenience provided by the construction of roads and bridges in the kingdom, coupled with various favorable regulations promulgated by the Ministry of Commerce The implementation of business development measures has led to the prosperity of business. Many merchants have sprung up in various cities, and have also attracted foreign businessmen to actively apply to join Dionia. This has made Dionia merchants' footprints all over the country. the entire western Mediterranean.Of course, areas such as Sardinia, Corsica, and southern Iberia, which are under the strict control of Carthage, must be excluded.

In the early years, some Dionian businessmen came to Rome to do business, and they also became an important source of information for the Dionian intelligence department to understand Rome.But compared with the Carthaginian merchants who had established close relations with Rome, they could not obtain more preferential treatment.

Rome is somewhat similar to Dionia. Neither is a seaport city. Both are located on the middle reaches of a large river.But the difference is that Rome is further away from the coast, more than 40 miles away. Therefore, it becomes very difficult for ships to go upstream and directly into the city of Rome. Therefore, it needs the port of Ostia to transfer goods.

Tapirus and his party left Ostia and headed north along the south bank of the Tiber River.

By about 3 p.m., they saw the city of Rome standing in front of them.

"...Rome was a city jointly established by the Latins and the Sabines 300 years ago. It is said that at that time it was full of tidal flats and swamps. Many powerful forces around it looked down upon this place, but this does not mean that As long as the Romans can develop silently and steadily, it is invaded by foreign enemies from time to time.

The Etruscans once ruled it, the Gauls destroyed its cities, and the Volscians, Aequians, Sabines, and even the Latin League of the same race as the Romans...all defeated it one after another. But the Romans gradually grew and developed amidst constant setbacks and wars. Until today, it has become the most powerful city-state in central Italy..."

When Tapirus heard these words from King Davos, he deeply felt the Dionian ruler's respect for Rome. At the same time, he also felt: There are so many people around him. For Rome, a hostile force, to be able to grow to this point, the Romans must be a tough, tenacious and brave race!
Tapirus observed the city of Rome becoming more and more clear with interest, while searching for information about it from his memory.

Rome is called the City of Seven Hills because there are seven hills in the city, all of which are concentrated at the bend of the Tiber River.Because of such a continuous river bend that first turns to the west, then to the east, and then to the west, it is easy to form depressions when floods occur during the rainy seasons in spring and summer. Therefore, the first Romans lived among these hills. superior……

But the Roman city that Tapyrus sees now is a new city. It was built on the ruins by the Romans after driving away the Gauls ten years ago. It is said that the Romans only took one year to build it. Well, can a big city be built in such a short time? !
As a result, Tapirus was surprised to find that the Roman city wall standing in front of him was not at all straight and smooth like the city wall of Turiine. Instead, it was curved, and the bricks and rocks were irregular and chaotic. They are pieced together, so the wall surface is rough, the gaps are large, and they even branch outwards.Of course, its city wall is high enough, and it can also be judged that its wall is thick enough, otherwise such a bad wall will not be able to support it...

Of course, this is just Tapirus's personal opinion. More professional people are hidden in his envoys. They will quietly and carefully observe the city from military, political, commercial, social... multiple aspects. Record the situation in Rome and the surrounding areas in detail, and after collecting the information, go back and report to King Davos.

In fact, what Tapyrus didn't know was that seven years ago, after Camillus drove out the Celts, the city of Rome was in ruins.The Roman people debated endlessly on the question of "whether to move this city that had already suffered misfortune due to the curse of the gods? Or to rebuild a new city on the ruins?" and finally had to hold a citizens' assembly to vote.

Just when the voting was about to begin, a centurion who had become a hero in the previous battle came to the stage with the flag bearer and suddenly shouted: "Stop, put up the flag, this place is the best The location to build the city!”

His words immediately gained support from many former comrades-in-arms.Immediately, Camillus and several other respected senators quickly announced with a pious attitude: This is a divine sign!
And the citizens, who were in fact tired and anxious about the long debate, were led by their trusted senators for a quick turn of mood, and everyone cheered and demanded that Rome be rebuilt here .

In order not to waste the enthusiasm of the people who were finally instigated, resulting in another accident, the construction of the city was carried out quickly. Since there was basically no normal planning and construction division, the construction process was completely arbitrary or convenient, so whether it was the city wall , or private buildings were all very badly constructed, but the speed was ensured. The city of Rome was rebuilt within a year. One can imagine the effect.

If it weren't for the "Celtic occupation of Rome" event that gave the Romans a painful memory, coupled with years of wars, in recent years, the Romans would have repeatedly repaired their city defenses during the slack season to ensure that the city the safety of the people.Otherwise, when Tapirus came to Rome five years ago, he would have seen the city wall in even worse condition.

There was already a long queue in front of the city gate entering the city from the west of Rome, and Tapirus and his party did not stand in front of the city guards until dusk.

The Roman city guard looked at Tapirus standing in front of him and the followers behind him in surprise: "Are you the envoy from Dionia?"

After listening to his entourage's translation, Tapirus said calmly and loudly: "Yes, I came to Rome to discuss important matters on the order of King Dionia!"

The city guard no longer hesitated and said to another soldier next to him: "Go and call Minucius!"

After a while, he saw a young man in full military uniform with a red cap on the top of his helmet coming out of the city. After hearing the city guard's narration, he was also surprised: Dionia, that is the same as Carthage. An equally powerful kingdom!For what purpose did its messengers come to Rome? !

With this doubt, Minusius stepped forward and said in fluent Greek: "I am the chief of the city guard of Rome, Minusius. Are you an envoy from the Kingdom of Dionia?"

"I am Dionia's diplomat, Tapirus. With the important mission of the kingdom, I came to discuss with the Roman Senate." Tapirus saluted.

"Rome welcomes you, the distinguished envoy of the Kingdom of Dionia!" Minucius smiled and said apologetically: "I'm sorry to keep you waiting. During this time, we citizens of Rome are fighting against the invading Volcanoes. While fighting in the west, another force went to quell the rebellion in Tusculam. In order to prevent the enemy from sneak attacks, the Senate stipulated that 'only Roman citizens are allowed to enter and exit the city gates.'"

Tapirus understood.

Minucius led them into the city gates.

After entering the city of Rome, Tapirus discovered that his previous judgment was correct. Not only were the city walls crooked, but the high and low houses, large and small, were also the poor result of hastily building a large city within a year. .These residential buildings, which have definitely not been fully planned, are growing like weeds on the ground, making the streets narrow and crooked. Garbage is piled up indiscriminately, sewage flows across the ground, and the air is filled with a strange odor. If you are not careful, you may step on feces and urine. …

Minucius saw that Tapirus and others were frowning, and some even covered their noses. How could he not understand what the problem was.

He explained with a slightly red face: "More than ten years ago, the Celts invaded our city. When we drove them away, we found that most of our Roman city was destroyed by them. When rebuilding the city, However, we encountered the betrayal of allies and the invasion of enemies. Our main energy was spent on how to repel the enemies. Therefore, we did not have enough time and wealth to rebuild various urban areas, so we had to let the people solve their own problems, so it became like this...

A few years ago, the Senate made a resolution to widen the roads in various neighborhoods, but with the wars that happen every year, we really can't spare the time... Even during this period, we can't spare enough. Manpower comes to remove the garbage in the city..."

Tapirus expressed understanding on the surface, but disagreed in his heart. He believed that such a bad environment in the city reflected the Romans' incompetence in urban planning and their indifference to people's lives.If there were so many overly spaced and crooked houses in Thurii, officials from the Department of Buildings would have sent people to forcibly demolish them long ago, because it would make the urban area unsafe and cause house collapses and fires... …etc.Those houses that overcrowd the streets will not only be demolished by the Roads Bureau officials under the Ministry of Construction, but their owners will also be severely fined because they infringe on public interests...

　Thanks to Yijian68 and yyaJy2304 for the reward!Your support is my biggest motivation for writing! !

　　
　
(End of this chapter)