Rome Must Fall Chapter 12: About slaves

When the food was almost done, Hamilcar did not take it out immediately. Instead, he asked Maximus to kill Altonix, Enomui, Torquevaldo and other gladiators. A few prestigious people were called in and asked to go out and distribute the food.

"If we carry this food out ourselves, the brothers who are already so hungry will definitely rush in, and chaos will break out. However, Enomu will do it for them, and the brothers will not dare to **** it. In fact, in the army, it is generally A centurion led the slaves in the team to distribute food to the soldiers. We have just come out and have not yet set the rules. It will be fine in the future." Hamilcar patiently explained to Maximus .

Maximus couldn't help but ask: "I heard Spartacus say before, have you ever been in the Roman army?"

Hamilcar was silent for a moment and said in a low voice: "Yes, we were once recruited for coveting Roman money, but our entire tribe was killed because of this!"

Hearing Hamil Carson's cold voice, Maximus felt his hair stand on end. He did not dare to ask further, and instead asked: "If we follow the standards of the Roman army, do you want to give us such an army?" How many people will the team need to prepare a dinner?"

Hamilcar thought for a while and said: "Each ten-man team in the Roman legion has two slave soldiers, who are usually responsible for doing chores, and the food is mainly prepared by them. We have about 250 people, according to them According to the requirements, we need fifty people to prepare a meal, but the Roman legions have high requirements, and twenty of us to cook are enough."

Having said this, he looked at Maximus with relief: "I'm glad you can ask such a question. It shows that you are seriously thinking about our meal. Unlike those guys in the morning, I asked They help with the work, and they are all very reluctant. These guys can't do anything but kill people. You are very good!"

Maximus said modestly: "I just feel that no matter how brave we are, if we don't have enough to eat, we may not have the strength to defeat the enemy."

"You are right, the food supply of a team is very important! The Romans are indeed hateful, but the energy they invest in this aspect is unmatched by other forces."

Hamilcar sighed very much. It was rare for someone to listen to what he said, which made him interested. He immediately took Maximus and sat down at the door of the kitchen. He asked the slave to scoop up two bowls of mutton soup and tore into a large piece. As the two of them ate a piece of hot bread, he continued: "I just gave a general idea. How many people are actually needed to cook for an army depends on the actual situation. If there is no danger around, the kitchen, The food is ready. Just like us now, ten people can meet the needs of more than two hundred people, because we have enough time to prepare slowly. But if we are on the march or in enemy territory, The situation is completely different again..."

Maximus listened carefully to Hamilcar's explanation and understood many key points about logistics supply, such as "Why is it mainly wheat, not ready-made flour, that is used to transport military rations to the army? It is because it is easier to preserve. This is also the reason why slave soldiers in the Roman army often carried hand mills..."

Although Hamilcar was kind and didn't talk much at ordinary times, Maximus's request for advice scratched his itch. Once he opened his mouth, he couldn't stop until a gladiator came to call him and said: "Sparta Max has something to discuss with him." Then he stood up and said, "Maximus, I'll leave the matter here to you, is that okay?"

"No problem." Maximus responded readily. After Hamilcar left, he turned to look at the people in the kitchen. They had been busy for more than three hours in a row and were all sweating profusely. , and Altonix and the others no longer come to the kitchen to ask for food. It seems that the gladiators are almost full.

"Let's all take a break. Eat something first to regain your strength." As soon as Maximus finished speaking, the people in the kitchen immediately dropped the cooking utensils, grabbed the bread and started eating.

After the food was gone, hunger subsided, and they stopped gobbling, Maximus walked up to a slave. From his previous observations, this man was the one who worked the hardest: "Why didn't you just want to Come with us?"

The slave raised his head in confusion.

"You are a slave, being ordered by your master to work hard every day, like cattle and sheep. If you join us, not only will no one dare to order you anymore, but you will also have mutton soup to drink and bread to eat every day, so you will be much more free. Okay, why don't you want to?" Maximus asked with confusion.

The slave lowered his head and whispered for a long time: "...I don't want to be crucified by the Romans."

Maximus did not get angry and looked at the other slave next to him. This man was the slipperiest at work and had been warned several times by Hamilcar: "What about you?"

"I..." The slave rolled his eyes and replied: "The master treats me very well. I don't think I am a slave, why should I leave."

Maximus was dubious about his words.

At this time, the old man looked at Maximus and said seriously: "I used to be a slave. I grew up in Dionysius's house since I was a child. My master really treated me like a family member. Decades ago After that war, the Romans recognized the people of the entire Italy as Roman citizens, and Roman laws also applied to all Italian towns, including Naples. So the master paid for me to become a free citizen. After a few years, When I met the conditions, the owner applied to the city hall and made me a Roman citizen——"

Speaking of this, he straightened his chest: "Later, the master also let me serve as the supervisor of this farm, and the monthly salary was not low. Since then, I got married and had children, even grandchildren. And the two of them A——"

The old man pointed at the two freedmen: "I was also a slave before. With the permission of my master, I gained my freedom three years ago. And you guys, don't worry, work hard, and you will be like me in the future. ."

After what the old man said, the deepest memory of the original owner was also stirred up, and Maximus suddenly realized: Roman law did indeed have provisions that allowed slaves to gain freedom and become Roman citizens, but slaves had to save enough It is impossible to have enough money to redeem oneself without the permission of the owner. However, the Romans seem to be more tolerant and generous in this regard. One important reason for this is that the Romans have a long tradition of policyholders.

The benefactor provides political and daily protection to the patron, and the patron provides political support and military assistance to the patron~IndoMTL.com~The two are not a complete dependence and dependence relationship. Instead, they try to support each other and make progress together... The Romans implemented this ancient tradition by convention. No one dared to destroy it, and the entire society was relatively stable. When a slave became a citizen, he naturally formed a deeper relationship with the original owner. Since the Roman Civil War decades ago, when all Italians became Roman citizens, this special Roman tradition has become popular throughout Italy, and Naples is no exception.

The reason why the original owner of Maximus was willing to spend money and energy to train the original owner, a low-status domestic slave, was of course the same idea. It was a pity that his whole family was killed, which led to the original owner's fate. Field... If all the slaves in Italy were like the slaves on this farm, who had not suffered too much abuse, had a path to advancement, and had hope for the future, would they be willing to stay and not rise up in rebellion?

Thinking of this, Maximus felt uneasy: In this case, could Spartacus still start a slave uprising?

Countless thoughts were swirling in his heart, and Maximus's face was gloomy and uncertain. Seeing this, the old man thought that the thief was getting angry because he dissuaded the slaves from joining them, so he quickly said: "Actually, my master The reason why he takes such good care of us is because there are not many people here. He even often asks the little master to come here to help with the work, so everyone is important... But those big farms are different. Not only do they have a large area of ​​cultivated land, And they owned a lot of slaves, many of whom were new. In order to make the slaves work well, the owners of the large farms not only sent multiple overseers, but even thugs, who used whips and sticks to intimidate the slaves every day. Working honestly caused riots in the past few years..."