In November of the sixteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, the province of Egypt.
Although the province of Egypt now has a governor-general and a group of nobles, Liu Bei has the final say on almost all affairs, big and small, throughout the province.
It is no exaggeration to say that, on the surface, the province of Egypt had become Liu Bei's private province.
Even the orders issued by the new emperor Kang Maode were first sent to Liu Bei's residence.
Upon receiving the order from Kang Maode to send troops, Liu Bei smiled slightly, knowing that his opportunity had arrived.
Now, including the two legions controlled by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, plus the two guard legions of his own caravan, he actually controls a total of four legions.
Through the letter from the Taiping Religion, Liu Bei learned that this campaign against the Gaul Province was far more complicated than it appeared on the surface.
Therefore, Liu Bei viewed this action as an opportunity to establish his autocratic rule in the Egyptian province.
Thinking of this, Liu Bei handed Kang Maode's edict to Guan Yu, who was standing to the side.
"Yun Chang, Yi De, take this order immediately and go to the governor. You two will lead 10,000 troops to attack the Gaul Province!"
Arrange ships for the Brotherhood to transport you across the Mediterranean!
In this battle, you two must fight bravely and let all the provinces see our might!
"yes!"
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei agreed, then got up and left Liu Bei's residence, heading towards the governor's mansion.
After Guan Yu and Zhang Fei left, Liu Bei invited a group of Egyptian nobles, including the Ailin family, to his residence.
After glancing at everyone, Liu Bei said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, you must have all heard about the new emperor's ascension to the throne, right?"
Liu Bei's father-in-law, the head of the Erin family, nodded: "This Commodus rose to power by force and openly killed several senators, attempting to undermine the Republic and turn Augustus's power into his own. He is truly ambitious!"
“Yes, Commodus has ordered an attack on the Gallic province, clearly intending to establish his authority. If he attacks Gaul today, he might attack us tomorrow!” a nobleman chimed in.
Liu Bei spoke up, saying, "What you all say is correct. Commodus, who has succeeded his father, will surely target the Senate and the provinces to seize power in Rome and the surrounding areas."
The conquest of the Gallic provinces was just the beginning for him!
"So, according to Brother Liu's opinion, should our Egyptian province send troops?" a nobleman asked.
Liu Bei smiled slightly: "Of course we must send troops! We must not only send troops, but we must fight with all our might!"
"Oh? Why is that?"
The nobles looked at Liu Bei with puzzled expressions, not quite understanding his intentions.
Liu Bei smiled slightly: "Although this campaign against Gaul Province is Commodus's way of consolidating his authority, it is also an opportunity for us."
If we gain the upper hand in the Egyptian province during this campaign, we can use that to support someone close to us in the Gaul province.
If managed properly, it might even be possible to break away from the Gallic province and make it an independent kingdom.
Once Gaul becomes independent, the Senate and the other provinces will surely follow suit. At that time, our province of Egypt will be able to completely break free from Roman rule, achieving not only independence but also exemption from the hefty annual tributes!
Upon hearing this, the nobles present also fell into deep thought.
After Octavian, with the end of the Republic, the Roman Empire, though nominally a unified entity, was in reality an alliance of provinces, more like a modern-day United States.
In each province, military and political power were entirely in the hands of the governor. The Roman emperor was merely a nominal overlord, at most only able to collect some taxes and tributes, and had no real power to intervene in local affairs.
Under this political system, the nobles, officials, and common people in the various provinces did not actually have much of a sense of belonging to Rome.
The only reason they were able to form an alliance was because they shared a common need for expansion.
Therefore, the nobles of the Egyptian province not only did not reject Liu Bei's proposal of independence, but were even somewhat tempted by it.
After all, their Egyptian ancestors had once been glorious, but later they groveled at the feet of the Romans and became a province under Roman rule.
Now that they have the opportunity to achieve independence and restore their ancestors' glory, everyone present naturally chose to support Liu Bei's approach.
Meanwhile, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei also arrived at the governor's mansion and requested permission to send troops.
The Egyptian governor, Pekni, looked at his two sons-in-law and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
He knew that although he had betrothed his two daughters to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, the two men always obeyed Liu Bei's every word.
Now, the two legions of the Egyptian province are completely under the control of the three brothers Liu, Guan, and Zhang.
Pecney, who originally only wanted to win over Liu Bei's group and consolidate his own position, had no choice but to change his role and choose to attach himself to Liu Bei's group, which had enormous financial and military strength.
Moreover, since the Peckney family has no direct male heirs, the sons born to Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and his two daughters will inevitably be the future heirs of the family.
For Peckney, the benefits of this political marriage have been maximized.
Although Liu Bei's group was no longer under his control, and he even had to act according to Liu Bei's wishes, there was nothing anyone could do about it. That's just how the world is—might makes right.
While Liu Bei was busy sending troops, Sun Jian also dispatched Gao Shun with 10,000 soldiers to the province of Egypt to propose a joint operation.
Liu Bei readily agreed to Sun Jian's suggestion.
At the end of December, under Liu Bei's personal leadership, hundreds of ships carrying 20,000 soldiers from the Egyptian and Arab provinces set sail along the Mediterranean Sea toward Rome.
Most of these ships were ocean-going vessels from the Han Dynasty. They were huge and could not only carry soldiers and cargo, but also carry crossbows for naval warfare.
After more than ten days at sea, the fleet led by Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Gao Shun landed at the western port of Rome.
Upon learning that the two provinces had sent a total of 20,000 troops, Commodus was overjoyed and personally went out of the city to welcome them.
In his view, the fact that these two provinces were able to send so many soldiers to respond to his orders clearly indicated that they recognized his status as the Roman emperor.
When Kang Maode saw Liu Bei, the leader of the team, he was overjoyed.
Because Kang Maode himself was close to the Han Dynasty, and when he was sent as an envoy to the Han Dynasty, he fought alongside the Han army.
Therefore, upon seeing that the leader was a Han Chinese, they naturally felt a sense of closeness to him.
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