Chapter 40 The sudden change of wind and clouds

"Are you crazy?" Maximus sneered, interrupted Arulinus, and put the wine bowl in his hand on the case: "We are the barbarians in their eyes. How can we be the emperors of the Romans?"

Arulinus was unmoved and raised his eyebrows: "Why not? The Seviru family is not an authentic Roman, and... Alexander is not a descendant of Seviru at all. He can be the emperor of Rome. Why can't we?

Maximus was speechless for a moment. It was a secret, but for a person like him, it was not a secret. Whether it's Alexander or his dead cousin Elagabas, outsiders say that they are all Caracalla's sons. In fact, they have nothing to do with Caracalla. Momia's mother, Julia? Is Mesa Queen Julia of Seviru? After the death of Domna's sister, Caracalla, the bloodline of the Severus family was actually broken. It was Julia who sacrificed the name of her daughter Soamias for the throne, saying that Elagabalus was the illegitimate son of Caracalla, which succeeded to the throne. Alexander's situation was the same, and Alexander's nominally They are also the adopted sons of Esgalbalus. In fact, they are just cousins.

But such a thing is a secret. Except for a limited number of people, everyone thinks that Alexander is really the blood of Caracalla, including people like Quintus. Otherwise, Alexander's mother and son would have been out of power long ago.

Of course, this has nothing to do with Maximus's support, but now that Maximus has become Alexander's enemy, he will naturally no longer cover up for Alexander. However, Maximus was still a little hesitant. Can he, as a barbarian, really be the emperor of Rome?

"The people of the Senate only have interests in their eyes, and the rest don't care." Arulinus saw Maximus' hesitation and smiled easily: "Alexander gave the benefits he took from Vietnam to his cronies for his own benefit, and who in the Senate got benefits except a few people who were closer to him? The people of the Senate can't wait to remove Alexander from power now. However, if Alexander really defeats the Sassanians and recapture Armenia, his achievements will subdue those soft-boned nobles. At that time, even if we disclose this secret, it will not have much effect.

Maximus nodded silently. The emperor of Rome did not pay attention to bloodline. Whoever holds real power can be the emperor. That's how the throne of the Severus family came from. Now, the real power is in the hands of his Maximus. Why can't he be emperor? Although he is of barbarian origin, now he also has the status of a Roman citizen. Who can say that he is not a Roman? Instead of waiting for Alexander to be deprived of his rights step by step, leaving sadly or even dying in vain, it is better to fight and maybe win.

Maximus' eyes lit up. He scratched his beard, scratched his rough face, and said worriedly, "Now we are fighting with the Sassanians. We have to turn against Alexander and defeat his 10,000 new army first. In case the Sasans rush out again, won't we clear the obstacles for the Sassanians?"

"Sassanid?" Arulinus smiled silently and smiled proudly: "He is not our enemy, but our friend."

Maximus's eyes flashed, pondered for a moment, and forced a smile, "When have you been with the Sassanians?"

"Just at the time of Aksum." Arulinus said proudly, drinking all the wine in the glass, but did not pay attention to the sharp light in Maximus's eyes.

... Alexander stood in front of the map. Escanomi pointed to the map for military analysis. He was very excited, with a pile of foam on the corners of his mouth, which made Alexander a little disgusted. However, Escanomi is very important to him now. He still suppressed his nausea and looked at Escanomi with a smile. Explanation.

Escanomi's meaning is very simple. Seize the opportunity of the Sassanid army to fight with Shapur. As long as you defeat Shapur's 20,000 people, this battle will be a complete victory. You can get a large number of trophy, so that the soldiers can get rich, and the morale will be greatly encouraged, and Alexander's throne will be really stable. At that time, even if Aldahir withdrew from Guishuang, there was nothing he could do about them in the short term. If it takes too long, and Aldahir gives up Guishuang and goes back to fight against Rome with all his strength, then the best outcome of this battle is also a draw. At that time, the morale that has just accumulated will be lost again, and Shapur may give up Guishuang and attack Rome. For Alexander, this is to provoke The fire is burning.

Alexander readily agreed, and then agreed on a candidate with Escanomi. In order to swallow up the battle alone, Escanomi proposed that the guards should be the task of defeating and lure the enemy. Maximus would first fight blood with the Sassanids, and then pretended to retreat. Escanomi led the new army to ambush the Sas in a dangerous place.

Alexander was so excited that he couldn't help but think that he would defeat the Sassanians after this battle. According to the agreement between him and his mother Momia, he could become the real Roman emperor. Escanomi is also very excited. As long as Alexander is in power, he will follow him, and his officials will be prosperous. It is waiting to enter the Senate.

"It's just... Will Maximus agree? In the past, the Guards had always been the main force. Escanomi was excited and said with some worry. Alexander disdained: "The Guard is my guard, not his Maximus Guard. Can he still disobey my orders?"

"Maximus has mastered the guard for many years, and many of his generals are his cronies. In addition to him, I'm afraid that even your majesty may not be able to command." Escanomi said sourly, "In my opinion, it's better to discuss it with him first, so that he won't oppose your majesty's opinion in front of everyone, which is not good."

Alexander was a little embarrassed, but it was also true. Most of the officers in the Guards were promoted by Maximus, who respected Maximus far more than the emperor. He asked someone to invite Maximus to say his plan again. Maximus was in his arms and agreed. He patted his chest and said that he must obey the emperor's order, which made Alexander a little overjoyed.

With the cooperation of Maximus, Alexander quickly set the time for the decisive battle. On that day, Maximus led 30,000 guards to fight with Shapur. Alexander and Escanomi lurked in a valley five miles behind with 10,000 new troops.

Standing on a small hill, Alexander was in high spirits. He was a little excited to think that he would become the real Roman emperor after this war.

After half an hour later, Maximus took the defeated army through the valley. Shapur chased after him. Escanomi led the army out, intercepted Shapur's back road, and prepared to fight back and forth with Maximus, and completely swallowed Shapur's 20,000 horses. Unexpectedly, he fought with Shapur for a long time, but he did not see the horse. The shadow of Csimus, although the 10,000 new army were heroic, they still failed to hold on to the end in front of twice as many Sassanian iron horses. Almost the whole army was destroyed. Escanomi died on the spot, and Alexander was also trapped in it. Seeing that there was no hope of breaking through, Alexander knew that he had been fooled by Maximus. He was ashamed. Draw your sword and cut yourself.

Shapur returned with a little victory and a great victory. Maximus announced that Alexander had taken the enemy's advance, damaging the Roman military power, and his death was not regrettable. Then he led the army back. After receiving the support of his generals, he crowned himself as the emperor of Rome. At the same time, he sent envoys to pressure the Senate to recognize their emperor. Share.

Disappearing and spreading to Rome, Rome was immediately in an uproar. The Senate was noisy and divided into two factions. Some insisted on reorganizing the new army, fighting against Maximus, and safeguarding the dignity of the empire. Some thought that only Maximus could not stop the attack of the Sassanids at present. If Maximus was forced, he might He will surrender to the Sassanids, and Rome will collapse soon.

Just as they quarreled, Momia, who was in grief and indignation, decisively summoned the Roman nobles who had relatives who died in the war and asked them to put pressure on the Senate together. At the same time, she united with the main war faction in the Senate and gave a speech to the Roman citizens on the square, denouncing Maximus for being ungrateful and with Sa The Shan people colluded in an attempt to subvert Rome. Although she did not know the truth, this statement was supported by the majority of the Romans. After all, the Sassanians did not take advantage of the victory to attack Rome. This matter seemed very strange. At the instigation of Momia, the Senate had to pass a resolution to reorganize the new army, fight against Maximus and defend Rome.

Maximus was furious and led his army to Rome, ready to seize the throne by force. The Romans were panicked. Momia decided to ask for help from Vietnam, and the messenger Quintus rushed to Axum.

When Sun Shao received the news, he was stunned. He reminded Alexander to guard against Maximus, but at that time, it was to prevent things from happening. Unexpectedly, Maximus was more ruthless than he thought. He actually killed Alexander with the Sassanians and became the emperor himself. It seems that the lack of bloodline of the Romans may not be all a good thing. If this happened in the Han Dynasty, I'm afraid Maximus would not be so bold. Whether it was Dong Zhuo or Cao Yan later, he did not dare to take the position in one step and claim the throne himself. And Maximus dared to be crowned emperor as a barbarian, which made Zhao Taizu, who was later dressed in a yellow robe, was much more courageous.

"Do you want me to help you?" Sun Shao scratched his head: "I only have sailors, and I don't have any powerful pawns and cavalry. Even if I want to help, I am powerless."

Quentus kowtowed repeatedly, but Sun Shao just sighed. The development of things was beyond his expectation. The original plan to contain the Sassans with Guishuang and Rome was all failed. Rome has fallen into the whirlpool of civil war. It is already precarious without Sassanid attacks. The Sasans can now free their hands to clean up the Guishuang people. It is estimated that the strength will not last long and will give in.

Alas, it's a pity that I have a lot of painstaking efforts. At the thought of this, Sun Shao hated Maximus very much. It was this barbarian who beat his wishful thinking in one fell swoop.

"It's not that I don't help you, it's that I'm powerless." Sun Shao said to Quintus helplessly, "I only have 10,000 horses here now, and they are all pedestrians. Even if I rush to Rome, what's the use? Can you help you stop the traitor of Maximus?

Quentus just sobbed, couldn't kneel down, and finally held out a map: "If the king is willing to help, we are willing to open the Mediterranean to the king, and from then on, the Mediterranean will be free for the king's fleet."

Sun Shao's eyebrows jumped and said that the Roman was really anxious to open the Mediterranean. If he really accepted this condition, the Mediterranean would be his own in the future. Among other things, the islands in the sea are a lot of wealth.

"This..." Sun Shao hesitated a little. Although he was moved, he was very clear about the difficulties in front of him. With his current strength, he could not deal with the Sassanians at all. When he went to the sea, he was the boss, but when he went ashore, it was the world of the Sasans. It was not difficult to really help the Romans deal with Maximus. It seems too early to fight against the Sassanians.

"Your Majesty, this is a handwritten letter from the Empress Dowager Momia." When Quintus saw that Sun Shao was silent, he quickly took out a letter from his arms and handed it over. Before coming, Momia told him that if Sun Shao still refused to agree to the conditions for opening up the Mediterranean Sea, he would take out this letter and fight here. Quintus didn't know what Momia said in it. He was very doubtful whether it could work, but now, only the dead horse is used as a living horse doctor.

Sun Shao took the letter suspiciously. He opened it and took a look. His eyebrows couldn't help jumping. Then he stood up and took two steps to Quintus. He opened his eyes and wanted to ask something, but he didn't say anything. He looked at the letter in his hands. Finally, he gritted his teeth and made up his mind: "Okay, I'll help you. I'll do it immediately. I'm not sure if the fleet can enter the Mediterranean Sea and stop the Sassanids, but I'm sure to help you repel the traitor of Maximus. After you go back, tell your empress dowager not to panic. Maximus is self-reliant and unpopular. As long as you survive for a while and wait for his sharpness to be weak, you will have a chance to counterattack. Rome was established for 800 years, and it was not destroyed by a barbarian. Alexander unfortunately died early. I respect him and treat me as a friend. I will help him save Rome at all costs.

Quintus was ecstatic. He couldn't believe his eyes. Sun Shao had never been so excited about the sea power of the Mediterranean. How could he relax as soon as he saw Momia's handwritten letter? It seems that the Empress Dowager is a heroine, which is difficult for ordinary people to reach. After receiving Sun Shao's promise, he couldn't help but be happy and rushed back to Rome immediately.

Momia was rewarded with confidence. She announced the alliance with Vietnam to the Senate, which strengthened the confidence of the Senate. Hearing that the powerful and rich Yue would send a fleet to help them resist Maximus, the restless Senate slowly believed Momia's words. They immediately took action to speed up the formation of a new army, recruited Roman citizens into the army, pieced together more than 50,000 people, and handed them over to the old nobleman Goldian. Goldian is a noble. His father is a descendant of Gragu, and his mother is from the royal family of Tulazhi. He himself was the governor of Armenia and has rich political and combat experience. At this time, he was nearly eighty years old, but he was still in danger. With him as the highest general, the military spirit of the Romans slowly stabilized.

In order to inspire people, Momia ordered the news of the alliance with Vietnam to spread widely and further stabilize people's hearts. After hearing this, Ardahir gave up his plan to besiege the Guishuang people, signed an alliance under the city with the Guishuang people, and then rushed back to Taisifeng with a large army. After a short rest, he gathered 100,000 troops into Egypt and went straight to Axum.

When the news reached Aksum, Aksum suddenly became a mess. Not only did the Aksum people scare people panic, but even the Han merchants were a little nervous. Although Aksum had 10,000 elites of Yue, there were 100,000 Sassanid iron horses. There must be no hope for the field battle. Even the defense of the city was a huge disparity in strength. . Now it can be seen that it is false for the Sassanids to fight Rome, and it is true to fight against the Yue country. The Yue country is the richest, but the military strength is the weakest. After defeating the Yue country, the Sassanids can fully control the business road and completely turn the situation around. No one can resist their front.

Fortunately, the Vietnamese have ships, and they can still run if they can't fight. As long as they run to the sea, no matter how powerful the Sassanian iron riders are, they can't catch up with the sea. If they want to attack Yue from the land, they can be across Guishuang and Tianzhu. No matter how powerful Ardashir is, can they be stronger than Alexander in those years? When he hits Tianzhu, I guess there will be nothing he can do.

For a moment, the Han merchants in Aksum City withdrew one after another. As soon as King Varag of Aksum heard this, he was immediately worried. If Sun Shao ran away, what else would he do to ask Shapur for credit? He immediately rushed to the palace, knelt in front of Sun Shao with a snot and tears, and asked him not to abandon Axum in any case. If he left, the city of Axum would not be able to stop the attack of the Sassanids. At that time, the cruel Sassanids would definitely slaughter the city, and the innocent Axums would fall into a tragic hell.

"The Axum people are also the people of the king. Please protect them." Varage kowtowed his head.

Sun Shao's expression was very complicated. He thought about it, and finally reluctantly agreed. Wallag was afraid that Sun Shao would repent, so he immediately asked Sun Shao to appease the people in the city and announce his coexistence and death with them. Sun Shao couldn't stand his plea and agreed, and only then Wallag left the palace with satisfaction.

In June of the 16th year of the Republic, the forerunner of Ardahir rushed to the outside of Aksum city under the leadership of Prince Alpha. First, he cut off the connection between Aksum City and the sea. Half a month later, Ardahir personally led a large army to Aksum and looked at the war flag of the King of Yue flying on the head of the city. Aldahir Finally, he smiled with satisfaction.

After more than half a year of planning and thousands of miles, I finally caught the real prey. Ardahir couldn't suppress his excitement and couldn't help roaring up to the sky. This abominable king of Yue did not stay in his own land and ran thousands of miles away to cause trouble. If he hadn't made trouble in it, neither Guishuang nor Rome could have suppressed the rise of Sassan, but he had created a four-nation alliance to unite Guishuang and Rome to attack the Sassanids. Thanks to Ahura's blessing, early A year ago, Shapur buried the dark chess and destroyed the most powerful Rome, and now he has trapped Sun Shao in Axum City. Thinking of Varag in the city, Aldahir couldn't help turning his head and looking at Shapur. The father and son smiled with a comacle.

Alpha saw it in his eyes and inadvertently curled his lips. Shapur killed the Roman emperor Alexander in the first battle. He made great contributions and his status was even more unshakable. He was already a self-evident deputy commander of the 100,000 troops, under the name of one person and above ten thousand people.

"Father, I don't have Shapur's strategy, but only bravery. I am willing to be the vanguard of the siege. I will be the first to climb to the city and capture the king of Yue and kneel in front of my father's horse." Alpha patted his chest and said angrily.

Aldahir is in a good mood, and his eyes looking at Alpha are also very eagerly. He can understand Alpha's current mood, but he also knows that this son's bravery can be used to shake the morale of Yue people before the battle, which is not a good thing.

"Alpha, I give you the opportunity to show your courage, let the Yue people see how heroic Ahura's descendants are, let them know how unwise it is to fight with us, and open the city and surrender as soon as possible. Go ahead, don't let me down."

Alpha was overjoyed, bent over and gave a salute, and turned away. After a while, he rode a tall horse and two close-fitting pawns to a place about a hundred steps away from the city wall and raised the machete in his hand high.

The Sassan army behind them burst into a tide of shouts, like turbulent waves rushing towards the city.

"What is this stupid bird going to do?" Sun Shao supported the city wall and looked at the Sassanids demonstrating under the city, which was ironic. Do Sassanians still advocate this kind of competitive one-on-one challenge to determine the winner by personal martial arts? If that's the case, why send 100,000 troops, and just send the best one to fight.

"This is Prince Alpha of Sassan, who is said to be the most brave of Ardashier's sons." Wallag explained with a smile: "He must want to use his bravery to improve morale and undermine our confidence. However, he made a mistake this time. There are countless warriors under the king's account. How can he be afraid that he is a Sassanian?

Sun Shao glanced at him, patted him on the shoulder, and laughed: "Those who know me, Varage. You're really right. I'm not afraid of this. Since he rushed to die, I might as well do it, so that the people in the city can be at ease and know that we have enough ability to defend Axum City.

"What the king said is very true." Wallag said with a flattering smile.

Sun Shao turned around and hooked his finger at Tu Hu: "You are also a prince. Go to meet this prince and see which prince is more awesome."

Tu Hu bowed his body with no expression on his face: "Come on."

(to be continued)