Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War.

Chapter 77: The most boring episode among the Five Wise Emperors

As we all know, the Roman senators during this period were a privileged class, enjoying power above everyone else. The Senate had a total of 600 seats, and not all of them were interested in politics. Many dignitaries became senators more to enjoy the privileges rather than to participate in core politics.

That is why, unless it is a major discussion that concerns a lot of matters or is closely related to oneself, not everyone will attend every meeting of the Senate. It is considered good if one-third of the people can attend the regular meetings. Many of these people are there just to "live up the time", and only a small number of them actually actively speak, discuss and think.

Orville and Dia are now in the theater. As royal family members, they don't have to queue up for seats and go directly to the front row of the Senate VIP seats. There are many other people sitting in this row. They are all senators, that is, the core power holders in Rome in theory.

The Senate is now discussing the solution to the crucial Gallic issue, but even so it cannot stop some of the people from watching the show. Seeing this, Orville frowned slightly.

He wanted to go, but he couldn't go to the Senate to avoid suspicion. In his opinion, it was obviously a dereliction of duty for the core power holders to slack off like this. How many ambitious people wanted this seat in the Senate but couldn't get it? As a result, these people used such an important position to watch dramas, watch gladiators, enjoy the status of important guests in other provinces, and then eat and drink for free.
The corruption of the Senate and the city of Rome was also responsible for the decadence of the late Rome. It is not very obvious now, but in one or two hundred years it will be rotten to the point where it is beyond repair.

After all, Orville and Domitia were also watching the show, so they had no right to criticize these people. He, Domitia, and Belisarius found a good seat and sat down, waiting quietly without making a sound. His and Domitia's faces were still recognizable, so soon someone came over to greet them in person.

The leader was a middle-aged man who looked to be in his forties or fifties, with a kind face. Unlike Vespa's mercenary and smooth kindness, he was more like a gentle and well-educated old scholar.

"Marcus Coccus Nerva, I think this is the first time I meet you two. It is a great honor. I have been looking forward to meeting you two royal family members. I didn't expect to meet you here. It is really the fate arranged for us by Jupiter's blessing."

The other party spoke in a very elegant manner and in a very kind tone, which did not make people feel bad, but Orville did not let his guard down.

His identity, age, personality and name all match. This person is most likely the later emperor Nerva. If the history of this world develops in the same way as in the previous life, after Tia and Domitia die one after another, the Senate will nominate him as emperor.

He was already old at that time. After dealing with the chaotic situation, he began to prepare for the succession. He ruled for a year and a half. He adopted the throne to the young and energetic Trajan, the son of his comrade-in-arms Trajan the Elder, one of the future Five Good Emperors of Rome, and the "best leader" Trajan.

To be honest, Nerva is one of the Five Good Emperors of Rome. He did not have any political achievements after all, his reign was too short. His wisdom lies in that he pioneered the system of adopted sons for inheritance, and the subsequent emperors were all outstanding people selected in this way. Under the leadership of a suitable ruler, Rome fully utilized its national strength and ushered in the most glorious moment in its history.

It seems that Nerva is just a good guy who was dragged into the situation to take the blame, but Orville is not sure whether the assassination of Domitia in the future has anything to do with the Senate. After all, it was a representative member of the Senate who ascended the throne later, and Nerva, as the person who later proclaimed himself emperor, would inevitably arouse suspicion as long as he looked at this matter with a questioning eye.

Maybe the assassination of Domitia was Nerva's idea in the future, and thinking about things in a conspiracy theory way, maybe Tia's death in the future was also related to Nerva. We must be on guard against others. Orville knew this very well, so he was secretly very wary of him.

On the surface, Orville remained calm, stood up and shook hands with the other party. [Marcus Kirkeus Nerva - a steady and pragmatic politician]

Diplomacy: 21
Military: 13
Management: 15
Strategy: 23
Knowledge: 28
Judging from the panel data, Nerva is the person with the highest total attribute points that Orville has ever seen, with a total value of 100 points, which is higher than Vespa's total value of 93 or Tia's total value of 93.

A high total value does not necessarily mean stronger overall strength. The real world is not about comparing size, and human ability cannot be fully quantified.

A person with low military value may not necessarily lose a battle to a person with high military value; a person with high diplomacy value may be proficient in rhetoric or have a stunning appearance; a person with high knowledge value may be proficient in mechanics or poetry or law. There are many variables that affect these data, and attribute points can only be used as a reference and cannot determine everything.

But no matter what, people with high attribute points are generally not bad in ability, and it is obvious that Nerva is also a capable person.

"I am honored to meet you as well. I really didn't expect this. I thought you would be in the Senate. After all, your position is crucial and you can be said to be indispensable."

Nerva was not an ordinary senator. This year, he and Vespa served as consuls together and were members of Rome's real decision-making level. So Orville's words were more or less questionable. Now the Senate was in a meeting, and the content was determined to be very important. It would be a bit unreasonable for him, the consul, to be absent again.

Nerva was still smiling and gentle. "I know very well that I am not good at military affairs, and I have only a vague understanding of financial issues. The others know how to deal with it better than me. Even if I go to the meeting room, it will still add unnecessary pressure to them. It would be better if I just don't go. They can relax a little, and I can also entertain myself. It's good to have the best of both worlds."

Without him as consul, there would be no one who could check Vespa's power, and Vespa's plan would be easier to implement. From this point of view, Orville should not be dissatisfied, and it would be better if he had not attended during his tenure.

Orville laughed heartily: "That's true, you are more free and easy than I thought."

Nerva nodded to accept Orville's praise, and turned to look at Domitia: "Then I won't bother you two. It's almost time. Enjoying the drama is what we should do most now. It's rare for authentic top Greek actors to come and perform. It's not particularly common in the history of the Pompey Theater. We have to cherish it."

PS. For your convenience, here are Vespa's attribute points.

【外交：20军事：18管理：21谋略：17学识：17】

(End of this chapter)