Chapter 613 Why are you so skilled?
At night, at Claudius's mansion.
Snow-white marble columns line up like giants, holding up a triangular lintel carved with victory laurel wreaths. The arched dome wrapped in gold and bronze hangs high. The bright moonlight pours from the eye-shaped circular hole, casting moving spots of light on the ground inlaid with carnelian. The bronze brazier bracket extends from the porphyry wall, and the leaping flames cast shadows on the silver-plated mosaic murals. The scene of the battle of the gods is revived with the flow of light and shadow.
In the central courtyard stands a statue of the god Romulus wearing a laurel wreath. A spring from the aqueduct flows on a marble base, and the sound of water turns into an ethereal hymn in the echoing wall. Gilded bronze lamps hang down violet curtains, and the wind gently blows the load-bearing walls engraved with reliefs of gods and monsters. The air is filled with the rich aroma of myrrh, spices and wine, and the glory of the empire is eternally solidified in every piece of volcanic ash concrete brick.
As the hostess, Agrippina the Younger sat in a bath filled with flower petals, enjoying the careful and thoughtful service of her maids while tasting the new wine brewed this year.
The law is just a tool used by the empire to maintain stability, and the so-called fairness and justice are just excuses to deceive the lower class.
Can nobles with divine blood be the same as the lowly untouchables?
Those ant-like creatures still expected that she would be brought to court for trial? It was wishful thinking!
As the queen of the empire, how could a small law enforcement officer dare to detain her just because of the dissatisfaction of a group of untouchables?
Therefore, after being away from the crowd's sight, she and her servants were escorted to the mansion by someone sent by the law enforcement officer.
When she thought of the law enforcer who bowed and nodded to her like a hyena to apologize before they parted, Agrippina the Younger could not help but sneer with complacency.
However, due to the twitching of muscles, a burning pain came from the face.
hiss~~
Little Agrippina took a deep breath and covered her cheeks which were still not completely swollen. The scene of being beaten severely in the street during the day emerged in her mind, and a strong sense of humiliation surged in her heart.
Damn bitch, you dare to hit me in public!
A sinister look flashed across Agrippina the Younger's eyes. She wished she could gather all the men on the spot, capture the woman and torture her to vent her hatred.
However, thinking of the important information that the law enforcement officer reported to her before their separation, Agrippina the Younger hesitated again.
If it were in Rome, it would be no big deal to deal with a rootless outsider.
But that woman seemed to have some connection with Quirinus.
Although the God-Ancestor Romulus had retired, the Quirinus family did not have a strong presence, but they were after all the God-Blood family that founded Rome, and the heirs of the lineage of the God-Ancestor Romulus. If she wanted to challenge the other party's authority, she, as the queen, still had to weigh the consequences.
At this moment, a low voice came from outside the door:
"Sir, I have looked into everything you asked me to investigate."
Agrippina the Younger was shocked and asked:
"Who is she?"
"Just like you know, no record, no identity, no family, he is indeed a traveler from Greece."
"And the one who took her away?"
“It’s from Greece, too.”
The messenger outside the door paused and added,
"I heard that he used to teach at the Academy of Athens. Not long ago, he was invited by the temple to come to Rome to teach His Majesty Nero."
"It's him!"
Agrippina the Younger suddenly stood up from the pool, her eyes blazing with anger.
As a woman who always wanted to climb to a high position, she had an extraordinary desire for the throne of power in the Grand Palace.
And Nero is the key to open this door.
She thought that after being lucky enough to become the guardian of the Son of God, she would be able to continue to influence him as a "mother" and make him her puppet, and then she would gain control of the power of the entire empire and become an uncrowned monarch behind the scenes.
But unexpectedly, just a few days after she had gained her glory, her custody of Nero was suddenly taken away.
Instead, a teacher from Greece was responsible for educating and raising Nero.
Little Agrippina did not take it seriously at first, but as time went on, she found that Nero became more and more rebellious after being taught by that teacher, and did not take her, his "mother", seriously at all.
She was very annoyed and repeatedly asked her husband Claudius I and the Pantheon to continue raising and educating Nero.
However, not only was her request not granted, she was even forbidden to approach Nero.
Seeing that she was getting further and further away from the throne of power, Agrippina the Younger naturally hated the culprit and always wanted to teach him a lesson and take back the right to raise and educate Nero, but she could never find an opportunity to do so.
I didn't expect that I didn't take the initiative to provoke the other party, but the other party came to me instead.
What a narrow road the enemies meet!
Agrippina the Younger gnashed her teeth in anger, but still remained calm and asked:
"What's with the emblem of Quirinus on his hand?"
"I heard that it was the Dionysus Temple that originally invited this teacher. In order to facilitate his movements in Rome, Lady Cassandra specially gave him her family emblem."
So that's what happened...
Agrippina the Younger was relieved and continued to ask with a twinkling look in her eyes:
"Where is he now?"
"In a private house in the city, with the stranger who hurt you."
"What are you doing?"
"It seems like he's drinking..."
Hearing the messenger's answer, Agrippina the Younger was both angry and excited.
After humiliating her, the queen of the Roman Empire, in public, he did not even think of escaping but stayed in the city drinking. He simply did not take her seriously!
But it's okay this way.
If these two idiots fled the city together out of cowardice, or retreated to Quirinus's residence and the Pantheon, it would be difficult for her to take action.
But now, no one can protect you!
Little Agrippina suppressed her excitement, and immediately stood up from the pool, waving her hand to summon several God Blood Guards who had just recovered from their injuries in the mansion:
"I just received a tip-off that a group of vicious bandits have sneaked into Rome with the intention of assassinating the queen. Go out immediately and help me catch the assassin!"
Several God-Blood Guards touched their aching arms and immediately understood.
The so-called assassin was naturally the little girl from Greece during the day.
The outcome was already determined from the moment she dared to attack Her Majesty the Queen in the street.
After all, Her Majesty the Queen has never been a kind and tolerant person. This time she was able to endure until the evening before her outburst, which was already considered an extraordinary favor.
only……
The leader of the Imperial Guards looked embarrassed and stepped forward to remind them:
"Sir, that woman is not easy to deal with. With just a few of us..."
"Don't we have two hundred-man teams in the palace? Bring them all! I don't believe that two Greek barbarians from outside can cause chaos in the city of Rome!"
The leader of the Royal Guards was shocked when he heard this:
"Those are all the Divine Blood Guards. If we mobilize them without your Majesty's order, I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain afterwards..."
"Whoever wants to explain, let him come to me!"
Agrippina the Younger glared at her subordinate and snorted coldly,
"I am the queen of the empire, and I was slapped in the face for no reason. I lost my status in public. I can't just let it go like this!"
Hearing the determination in the queen's tone, the few people were afraid of being hated by the hostess, so they naturally did not dare to say much. They could only summon the Divine Blood Guards in the mansion, escorted Agrippina the Younger onto the carriage, and went out to seek revenge.
~~
At the same time, in a residential area.
Astraea threw the twentieth empty wine jar on the ground, feeling the alcohol rising in her body, and her pretty face flushed.
She leaned back in her chair comfortably, rubbing her bulging belly, and couldn't help but exclaimed:
"After trying so many kinds of wine, the honey wine you brewed tastes the best."
"I have given the brewing method to Cassandra. If you want to drink it, just ask her for it later."
"You want me to sell my freedom just for a few sips of wine? No way!"
Astraea raised her chin and snorted, proud of her keen insight.
Loen smiled without saying anything and continued to turn the carving knife in his hand.
Astley came up curiously and asked:
"What are you doing?"
"I've got a present for you."
As Lorne spoke, he raised his hand and placed a finished wooden sculpture on the table.
This is an ancient Roman-style statue of the goddess of justice. Its appearance is a mixture of the images of the Greek goddesses Themis, Dike, and Astraea. The main body is a blindfolded sacred woman wearing a white robe and a golden crown. She holds a scale in her left hand on her knees, holds a sword in her right hand, leans on a staff with a snake wrapped around it, and a dog sits at her feet. On the desk are a scepter, some books and a skull.
Each of these elements has a unique symbolic meaning.
The white robe symbolizes flawless morality and incorruptibility; the blindfold, because justice relies purely on reason and not on misleading sensory impressions; the crown, because justice is extremely noble and comes first in glory; the scales or balances, are a metaphor for fair discretion, in which everyone gets what they are worth, no more and no less; the sword, which indicates severe punishment and no leniency, is like a mace with an axe inserted in it; the snake and the dog, respectively, represent hatred and friendship, neither of which is allowed to influence the judgment; the scepter has the function of asserting authority; the book contains the laws; the skull represents the fragility of human life, and justice represents eternity.
After listening to Loen's explanation, Astraea's beautiful eyes lit up and she held the gift in her hands reluctantly.
When the fingertips touched the back of the statue, a strange feeling of bumps and depressions was felt.
She couldn't help but turn the statue over and looked at the thin line of Latin letters on it with confusion:
"What does it say?"
"An old Roman legal proverb."
Lorne smiled, and under Astraea's curious gaze, he slowly spoke the original text.
"——To achieve justice, even if the sky collapses and the earth breaks!"
Astraea's heart was shocked, as if she could hear countless sonorous voices and see countless figures moving forward between the lines.
Justice is called justice because it can protect the rights of victims. When the weak are wronged, they always hope that justice will come to save them like a god descending from the earth, hoping that justice can wash away their grievances. However, in many cases, what they wait for is not the god who enforces the law impartially, but the evildoers who become even more vicious.
Justice cannot wait.
Only by pursuing it with actual actions can we keep this beautiful virtue around us and even in the entire human world.
This is the truth that Astraea gradually realized after so many years of chivalry.
Suppressing the feeling that was aroused in her heart, she looked at Luo En suspiciously:
"Why did you suddenly give me this and write such strange words on the back?"
"In order to achieve justice in her mind, your teacher Themis once gave up her throne and stripped herself of her godhood. What about you? As her disciple, how much are you willing to sacrifice for this?"
Lorne held up his chin and gazed at his old friend with a smile.
Astraea was silent for a moment, then snorted:
"Don't worry, I will not let my teacher down. In order to practice justice, I will definitely do what needs to be done and make the necessary sacrifices without hesitation."
"Including your freedom?"
"include!"
Astraea answered seriously, then glared at Lorne angrily.
She finally understood that this guy was afraid that she would go back on her word and would not admit her defeat, so he deliberately used words to bully her.
only……
Astraea wrinkled her nose and couldn't help muttering:
"The result of the bet hasn't come out yet, why do I feel like you have me in your hands?"
"Because the person we are waiting for has already left."
Lorne waved his hand across the wine bowl, causing ripples in the purple-red wine.
The interior reflected the image of Agrippina the Younger leading two teams of Divine Blood Guards out and rushing towards this place with great momentum.
"How dare they do this! What do they think of the law?"
Astraea slammed the table and stood up, her face flushed with anger.
Luo En couldn't help but shake his head and sigh:
"I didn't expect this city to have fallen to this level. The judiciary is non-existent. Where is the shadow of fairness and justice? How can we govern the country well with these parasites who bend the law for their own selfishness?"
"This is no longer just a violation of the law." Astraea gritted her teeth angrily.
"That's right, we must strike hard!"
Luo En slammed the table and said,
"So, I have decided to have you be canonized by the Pantheon in three days and serve as the Grand Judge of Rome. Since fairness is not evident and justice has been lost, it is up to you, the goddess of justice, to rectify the atmosphere of this country and practice justice!"
"Three days later? Isn't that too soon?"
"No, justice should be practiced sooner rather than later. Every second of hesitation is likely to result in one more innocent person suffering injustice."
"That's right, I agree to this!"
Astraea stood up suddenly, her blood boiling.
Luo En nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile:
"In three days, the statue in your hand will be used for the Pantheon. I plan to erect it in the Roman Forum and promote it as a landmark building for the court."
The statue is an extension of the deity's will and a manifestation of divine power.
This sculpture in your hand perfectly matches the duties and power of the goddess of justice, both in terms of its appearance design and the meaning of its various elements.
Once this is used as a benchmark and promoted in different cities, the divine power of the goddess of justice as the object of worship will be greatly enhanced.
But why did he even prepare this thing?
Is everything arranged so skillfully?
"Hey, are you hiding something from me?"
Astraea sniffed and vaguely smelled a conspiracy from someone.
(End of this chapter)
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