Chapter 125: New Roads

Heracleides had once went to the city of Amendolara to help build a courtyard for a family. In recent times, the name of Amendolara had frequently appeared in the mouths of the freeman in the port of Thurii, ‘All the mercenaries who had wiped out that Lucanian alliance and won high prestige have become a citizen of Amendolara. Their leader, Davos, had even become an archon, and they had also turned their slaves into freeman, and was even said that they will be given citizenship in the future’…these days, with the restart of the trade with Amendolara, many of the recent events in Amendolara had spreads among the freeman of Thurii, and there are even some magical things that the lowest people of Thurii have never dared to think of, but they extremely yearns for it! The freeman and even the slaves of Thurii were originally living an ordinary and peaceful life but it was like having a stone thrown into the water and stirred up the fishes.

This made Heracleides, who had lived for a long time, to unable to stop his excitement, ‘Since this is the invitation of Amendolara, then surely their won’t be a problem with their promise?!’

Therefore, Heracleides asked eagerly, “Can I take my son with me?! His talent in architecture is no worse than mine!”

“You may.”

In the envious gaze of others, he and his son packed their baggage in a hurry, and followed the man to Amendolara. When he saw Alexius, his first sentence made Heracleides excited, “I am Alexius, the aedile that is responsible for the construction, maintenance and supervision of all the city-state buildings. In the other Greek city-states, there is no such post, so you can see the great importance that Amendolara attach to architecture, and as long as you have the talent in this field, then you will be put in important position!”

Feeling that Amendolara attached great importance to architecture, the old heart of Heracleides began to ignite his enthusiasm for construction just like when he was young.

The first task of Heracleides was to design and build warehouses and inns, which were not difficult for him, and his plan was soon passed by the Council. Then he and his son led a dozen craftsmen and nearly a thousand Lucanian slaves to start the construction under the city of Amendolara.

Although Heracleides is a shrivelled and a thin old man, he is still very energetic and meticulous. He wandered around the construction sites every day to urge the construction speed and check the quality of the project. He will severely criticize them if he found that their work is slow, and immediately correct it if there is a mistake in their work, and he even give a demonstration in person. If there was any deviation in the measurement, he would immediately have them re-measure it until it was accurate. The craftsmen and slaves were both respectful and afraid of this old man.

Today, Alexius went to look for Heracleides and handed him a paper scroll and said, “This is the next construction task, it is to build a road from the river Siris to the city of Amendolara and then to the river Saraceno, so you should start preparing. And the archon asked the road to be built in the way he had drawn.”

“Your archon knows nothing!” Heracleides was unable to stop himself from saying that. As a craftsman who has been engaged in construction for many years, he has his own persistence and pride, and what he dislike the most is the ignorant trying to interfere with his work.

“You should look at the archon’s drawing first.” Alexius reminded him.

The ignorant bystander is the only archon for life of Amendolara! It is directly related to whether he and his son can become a citizen of the city-state! Heracleides suddenly remembered that and he was drench in cold sweat. After decades of suffering, he thought that as long as the design of the archon is not too out of line and him modifying it slightly, then he will do as he had requested.

At this moment, he and his son’s survival triumph over his high pride.

He unfolded the paper scroll and swept his gaze without a care. However, his gaze seemed to be stuck and could not be pulled out.

Alexius saw that he was seriously looking and so he smiled. He got up and looked around, the scattering dust around the construction site, the craftsmen and slaves were working in full swings. After two days’ absence, the whole construction site had greatly change…

This made him feel excited, “At this rate, could we finish it in half a year?!”

“Half a year?! Four months is enough! If those Lucanians were smarter, then three months would be enough!” Said Heracleides, without even looking up.

“It seems that you are not very satisfied with these slaves.” Laughed Alexius.

“They don’t know anything about construction. I don’t even know how many words I had spent and my voice has even become hoarse. I’m not satisfied with them, so can you give me another batch?!” Complained Heracleides.

“You know that it is impossible.”

“However, the Lucanians are not as frightening as I had thought. Maybe they are more afraid of you, and so they are so obedient!” Sighed Heracleides, those who have experienced war know what is the most important in troubled times.

“These Lucanians are not afraid of us, but the method of lord Davos works!” Exclaimed Alexius.

Speaking of Davos, Heracleides turned his gaze back to the drawing then pointed to the patterns on the paper and said seriously, “The road construction drawing of the archon is more complex than your usual road, but if you think about it carefully, it is very reasonable. First, tamp the earthen road, then lay a layer of sand, then lay a layer of gravel on the sand, and finally pave a more tightly assembled stone slab. There are ditches on both sides of the road, and a soil wall is built outside the ditch…I can just imagined that if such a road is built, it will not only prevent water and sand, the road itself will be strong and resilient, and won’t be easy damaged by loaded carriage. I have never seen such a road before. What a wonderful design! If this is what your archon thinks, then he is a great master of road architecture!” This time, Heracleides said it from the bottom of his heart.

Alexius was already used to the fact that Davos repeatedly created miracles. Now that Heracleides had approved of his drawing, he was relieved and said, “So you agree to build the road according the drawing?”

“Of course! I also want to see what kind of road will be built with this method look like sooner!” The wrinkled old man said excitedly. But then, he pointed to a part on the paper and asked in doubt, “We all know that the mortar used for construction is made of limestone mixed with water to decomposed it and add sand. However, the drawing emphasized that the mortar used to splice the cracks of the stone slab should not only use limestone mixed with water and sand, but also add a certain amount of pozzolanic ash. The archon call this mortar…ce…ment, does this really work?” 

“The citizens of Amendolara all knows that lord Davos, the archon, is the favored of Hades, and so this must be the revelation of Hades. I believe that you will understand the magic of this kind of thing after you try it.” Said Alexius solemnly.

“You are right. How would I know if I don’t try it!” Heracleides became interested, “I remember that Sicily and its nearby islands have many volcanoes. Back in ancient times, this place was said to be the place where Hephaestus, the God of Fire, forged his magical weapons. Hmm, we can send a ship to load a ship full of pozzolanic ash back, which should not cost much.”

“Heracleides!” Alexius suddenly became serious, “According to you and your son’s previous performance, lord Davos has suggested a proposal, and with the approval of the council of Amendolara, you and Heracleides the Younger, have become a preparatory citizen of Amendolara. During this two-year inspection period, if you perform well and continue to contribute to Amendolara, then you and your son will be an official citizen of Amendolara. Congratulations!”

Heracleides was taken aback, he tried to open his dry lips, but no words could come out, and in the blink of an eye, tears fell out.

Alexius was touched by it, and his tone became softer, “As a preparatory citizen of Amendolara, you must know that the archon, lord Davos, has repeatedly told me, ‘The method of making cement is the highest secret of the city of Amendolara!’ Except for you and your son, you are not allowed to tell it to anyone else. If it gets leak, the council will send the inspector to investigate your responsibility, and you may be severely punished. I hope that you can find a way to use and protect its secrets!”

Heracleides immediately became nervous, and he hurriedly crammed the drawings into his arms…

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

The 18 years old Arsinis, was training in the military camp for the second time, and as a young adult, this is also the second time in his life to participate in the military training. In the past, he only learned how to hold a shield and wield a spear under the guidance of his father. Other times, he was either learning language or exercising in the arena with his other friends, but since the war between Thurii and the Lucanians, his life has changed dramatically. His father died in the battle, and his mother died in imprisonment, and the 18 year old Arsinis inherited the property of his family.

According to the 《City-state Military Service Act》 issued by Davos after he became the archon for life, all adult citizens of the city-state must attend the military camp training every six days during the busy farming season, and once every three days during leisure time after the autumn harvest and before the spring sowing. Arsinis couldn’t wait to learn combat skills, so that he would be able to gallop on the battlefield as soon as possible and defeat the Lucanians to avenge his parents. But the first training, was beyond his imagination of a military camp. In addition to the rugby game that the archon had taught at the end, which was very interesting, the rest of the time was not only arduous but also boring.

The second training was still the same as the last one. The recruits will first put on the Corinthian helmets, linen armor, bronze greaves, round shields, spears and kopis on their waists. Then they will walk 5 kilometers wearing the full gear, and they had to walk slowly and had to withstand the instructor’s stick. Last time, he saw several freeman recruits being beaten by their instructors. Although their equipment weighed nearly 20kg, Arsinis didn’t feel that it is too heavy due to his innate traits and acquired training.

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