Chapter 577: Thoughts
Oedites's cold reception in Ravenna was inseparable from his usual style of doing things, but he represented the will of Attila the Hun after all, and his expulsion meant that Attila was not welcome in Rome.
Rome and the Huns lost their only chance for dialogue in one morning, so the problem that could not be solved by diplomacy could only be solved by longbows and swords.
The shadow of war hung over the entire Roman territory, especially over the courtiers and the Senate. After Oedites left, these old nobles' faces were filled with sorrow. They never smiled all day, as if everyone had suffered from depression at this moment.
The officers spent the whole day discussing around the map, wondering whether Attila would go straight to Ravenna from Dalmatia or cause chaos and quarrels in Gaul.
While the Western Roman court was at a loss as to what to do, in the Eastern Roman palace, everything did not seem as tense as imagined.
"I originally thought that you, Liginia, were simple-minded, just a bee flapping its wings to break free from a solid spider web." Luca reached out and stroked Liginia's chin, but Liginia's smile revealed an evil charm. "And now, I accidentally stripped off your beautiful coat, revealing your hideous true face. To be honest, Liginia, you really, really scared me!"
Liginiya just sat there and let Luca do whatever he wanted without resistance. She seemed to enjoy the feeling, like a frog being boiled in warm water. She would not resist until she actually felt the pain from burning her skin or even taking her own life.
"Do you think I'm doing this just for myself? Great Caesar!" Liginia was not afraid of Luca at all. She raised her head and stared at him. That look made Luca's heart flutter. He couldn't tell what it felt like. "It's all because of my passionate love for you. It's so honest and true. If it were the male god in heaven, I'm afraid he would be moved by me."
"It's a pity that I'm not a god and can't understand your enthusiasm."
"You are a god who has fallen to earth. Believe me, Luca." Liginia looked at Luca seriously and continued, "Anyone who can become Augustus, whether chosen by God or sworn in blood, cannot be a mortal, because mortals only care about taking care of the fields that are only a few steps away, and then count on their fingers what kind of food the wife will prepare today and whether it is delicious. Day after day, the value of life is just to keep themselves from starving to death. You are not, Caesar!"
"What a strange woman." Luca said, shaking her chin to one side. "Well, I assume that all this is because you can't stand your incompetent and rude husband and have no choice but to do this. But you are so brave that I am surprised. I even feel that even if the regent queen Placidia were alive, she would not do something as crazy as you."
"That's because she has never experienced the same despair as me." Liginia pouted her lips and retorted unconvincedly, "Caesar, I confessed my feelings to you a long time ago and swore that my love for you would always be the same, but you were as cold as the murals on the walls of the church. No matter how you confide in him, it would not move him. So I long for you to understand my love for you, but you have never paid any attention to me except escaping. I have also tried to forget you, but every time the good news came, the whole palace only talked about you. Whenever I heard your name from others, I couldn't help but think of you, Caesar, I tried very hard to forget you, but I was powerless. Although I am Augusta of the Western Roman Empire, and my whole body exudes a noble atmosphere as people say, I still have love, and such feelings will not become dull and calm because of my efforts to suppress my heart and become more and more intense with the passage of time, but like wine stored in a barrel, it will become more and more intense with the passage of time."
Listening to Li Jinia's somewhat excited, sobbing and soothing voice, although Lu Jia thought he had long been disgusted with the temptation brought by Li Jinia's pitiful appearance, he had to admit that he was indeed moved by Li Jinia's words.
Maybe you will laugh at Luca's childishness, saying that he has no moral integrity, but he was moved by such a simple speech. But I want to ask: If a woman looked at me with tears in her eyes and said "I love you, the feelings are so pure, all because of my selfishness", wouldn't she be surprised and her heart would not be moved? Maybe readers who have been influenced by oriental education since childhood are not interested in such explicit words, because they are used to women's restraint and shyness, so when faced with such passive words, they would think that this is a bad intention.
But this is the norm in Luca's environment. Men and women are never shy about expressing their love for the opposite sex, and they always hope that the two lovers can speak frankly.
Luca thought he had been prepared for anything, but he was still caught off guard and his mind went blank.
"I have to admit that you are really fearless." Luga sighed and slowly sat down in the seat opposite Likinia.
"Yes, yes, Caesar, I love you no matter what you say to me." Liginia repeatedly emphasized her love for Luca, and continued to explain: "You should understand my good intentions. If it weren't for this letter I wrote, Caesar, you would not want to inherit everything from my father. You are always worried. You are obviously capable but you are unwilling to accomplish a great cause. I don't understand what you are afraid of. I thought you would take positive action because of the news of my father's death, but you didn't. In my opinion, your current status is far less valuable than the land in Iberia that is dispensable to you."
"I don't want to waste time on this..." Luka said halfway, but after thinking about it secretly, he waved his hand and said, "Forget it, this is not the problem you are considering."
"I have to admit, Liginia, you are a smart woman." Luca couldn't help but admire Liginia. "If you have enough opportunities, you will definitely become a regent queen feared by the world."
"But such a smart woman is eager to get your love at this moment." Likinia burst into laughter, and her smile was charming.
"I really want to drive you back to your ex-husband whom you hate, and make you suffer as if you were in hell." Luga stretched out his hand. Likinia obediently stretched her neck and put her face in Luga's hand for him to play with. She stared at Luga with her big watery eyes and asked Luga with a little expectation in her eyes: "Will you really do this? Aren't you afraid that I will hate you for this?"
"Oh, of course, so I changed my mind." Luca smiled meaningfully, "You are like a sharp knife that can stab my heart at any time. If you are not in my hand, I will always toss and turn. So, I plan to hold the handle of the knife tightly to prevent the sharp blade from hurting myself."
The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!
(End of this chapter)