The fluffy cake is topped with a thick sugar filling made of pumpkin and starch sugar, coated with a layer of cream and garnished with slices of figs, cherries and peaches. Thin lines are drawn with dark brown caramel, and the staple food of the harvest festival in Ankara is served.

The tables were full of legionnaire families, and adults and children were savoring the delicious food provided by the legion at the harvest festival. The chicken thighs are fried golden brown, and the pork ribs are coated with a thick sauce, and the aroma of the roast is overflowing. Cherry soju is indispensable at this time, and for women and children, the Legion provides lemon soda according to the method of making it in the "Legion Cookbook".

The sweet drink with the aroma of lemon, after drinking it into his mouth, he only felt that bubbles suddenly burst out of nowhere, and the stimulation of the bubbles to his mouth when the bubbles burst made Patrick feel refreshed, and he drank it in one gulp, and after a while, a breath rushed up from his esophagus, making Patrick burp greatly. This is a bit unseemly for aristocratic etiquette, but the feeling of exhaling a breath from the inside out is too good. In particular, the lemon aroma is even more prominent, and it is really fragrant.

Seeing the crowds around and everyone's clothes very ordinary, Patrick felt that the scene was no less than a noble banquet. The atmosphere that filled the venue was rich, happy, and relieved. In Patrick's personal experience, the atmosphere of the harvest festival attended by the families of ordinary legionnaires was probably better than the atmosphere of the aristocratic banquet.

First there was a meal and a drink, and then the big guys appeared. Escorted by a number of legionnaires, four open-top floats pulled by three horses each appeared on the road that ran through the entire harvest festival venue. The populace was immediately agitated and rushed desperately to stop in front of the cordon formed by the legionnaires.

As the float moved slowly, Patrick saw that the first was a local leader, and the second was the Legion's Eastern General, the Undersecretary of Finance, and Sheila. The men in the three or four carriages, Patrick, had seen at the aristocratic banquet, and they were all nobles with heads and faces in the east. Amid the cheers of the people, the carriage went straight along the road to the main venue.

Patrick didn't want to join in the fun like ordinary people, so he sat down on a bench and soon listened to the cheers of the crowd in the main hall, presumably hearing news of something good for them. After that, I heard the people shouting, "The patriarch is re-elected!" "The patriarch was re-elected!"

The noise was loud and loud, and Patrick only felt restless in his heart. After being by Sheila's side for so long, Patrick felt that Sheila was no different from an ordinary 21-year-old aristocratic girl on weekdays. But when ordinary 21-year-old aristocratic girls avoid the difficult situation, male aristocrats are inevitably a little hesitant, but Sheila will not hesitate to rise to the challenge. So I saw Sheila in the fact that the male aristocracy could not obtain status.

The aristocracy was either discouraged or complained about the lack of food, and people like his mother, the Duchess of Balden, could only try to learn how to deal with it from the nobles who had made a breakthrough, and his mother did not even dare to expect the western aristocracy to solve the problem on their own. Sheila worked with a group of people who had never heard of her before to settle the food supply in the east, and the harvest festival consumed only a very small part of the agricultural products of the Ankara region. The entire eastern part of the country will not have to worry about going hungry until next summer's harvest.

The credit certainly deserves to be re-elected, but Patrick is not happy. It's just Sheila's personal success, and the more successful Sheila is, the bigger the gap between Patrick and Sheila.

After the harvest was over, Patrick thought that Sheila would stay here for a while, so he went to see Sheila and brought him back to Constantinople. I thought Sheila would let Patrick go back first, but I heard Sheila laugh and said, "I thought you were going to stay here for a while, but I didn't expect you to want to go back too." ”

"If you leave, what will happen here?" Patrick asked. He felt that he couldn't understand Sheila's thoughts.

"You give everyone some leeway. A lot of things are left to them in the end, so I'll leave it to them now. Sheila looked like she was in charge.

"You're not afraid ......," Patrick said, and he couldn't go on at the beginning, and he didn't like to be tedious himself. After thinking about it, Patrick still felt that Sheila was so bold, and he changed his mind, "Those people will definitely get a vote in the end." ”

"Why are they working so long to get a vote?" Sheila said, stretching widely. Looking at Sheila's lazy appearance, Patrick felt the urge to hug Sheila. At this time, Sheila completely revealed the appearance of a 21-year-old girl. It's just that this 21-year-old has a really different perspective on many things.

Looking at Patrick's expression, Sheila sighed, "Pat, you...... The way of life of your western aristocracy is still the same as before. You're just getting nervous when you get the cash. I think you still have to learn the way of life of the Great Song Dynasty. ”

Patrick understood what Sheila was talking about, and followed Sheila for more than three months, seeing Sheila dealing with various details and participating in various discussions every day. These discussions are not about temporary events, but about what happened and what was planned differently. It's not about who's right or wrong, Sheila et al. are only talking about whether this difference is a design problem or an accident. In the knowledge learned from the teacher, these discussions are very high-end, quite like the embodiment of Socratic ideals. The different parts of the whole thing are managed by relevant professionals, and the person who leads the operation of the whole thing is the wise man who has mastered the essential idea.

Because of this understanding, Patrick felt even more lost. What he believes, what he identifies with, is what he can't do. Sheila, however, was able to apply these profound truths with ease.

"Hey, Pat. What did I say wrong with your expression? Sheila asked, surprised.

"No, no, it's my fault." Patrick said dejectedly.

"Haha." Sheila smiled, "Pat, I talked to your mother once before I came to the East, and we both thought you were a very nice person. But we all think you have a problem. ”

"Hmm." Patrick answered, and he wasn't angry. Because he has long felt that he does not have only one problem, but that there is a problem with everything.

"Pat, man's self-pursuit, man's work, man's life are different things. My father, like you, was a man of aspiration to learn, and you both wanted to understand the world and seek the truth. I, as my father's daughter, I can understand. Even if I don't understand it, I've seen it. Can you understand that I accept it all. So I have only one requirement for you, and that is that you learn to live. Life is about not caring who you think you are, don't care what you think you should do, you not only have to understand but also do it when you live, family members are not your accessories. ”

Imbued with the idea of symmetry in Greek philosophy, Patrick's spirits lifted and he immediately came to his senses. He hurriedly asked, "How do you talk about this?" ”

"Pat, my mother was able to make him understand that in many places, especially at home, my father was not the one to have the final say. Whether he is happy or not, he has to see if my mother is happy. I don't want to argue with you. So you'll have to figure it out for yourself. ”

"Huh?" Patrick couldn't figure it out at all. His brow furrowed, and his mind was filled with the teachings and subtle words of countless scholars and sages. Suddenly, Patrick himself understood. His eyes were round, and it was probably the first time he had seen life with his own wisdom, and Patrick felt only dizzy. He spoke, but stammered, "Miss Sheila, I'...... I...... I want to propose to you. No, it's not. I...... I...... I want to live with you. ”

Seeing that Patrick, who usually exudes a scholarly stupidity, can actually say stupid things about a young man in love, Sheila is happy and feels that Duchess Baldon's evaluation of his son is correct, "Man, you have to train them." Count on them to solve the problem, and the world is finished'.

Soon after returning to Constantinople from Ankara, news began to circulate among the Constantinople nobility that the senator Sheila and the only son of Duchess Barden were officially married. This news shook the entire upper echelons of Eastern Rome, and even Hela's brother Cicelius made a special trip back. His apparent reason was that his pregnant wife, who had been sent to the military garrison for two months, returned to her parents' home, but when he returned home, Cicelius immediately asked his sister if she was officially dating Patrick.

Sheila is no ordinary little aristocratic girl, and her brother Sicelius heard the news at the legion station, indicating that it is not her brother who cares, but people at a higher level who care. She readily told her brother that she was indeed dating Patrick. Patrick is 22 years old, and Sheila will turn 21 in a month. Although Sheila defected to the office because she didn't want to accept her mother's arranged marriage, this does not mean that Sheila herself is an unmarried. As a young girl, Sheila also has a big dream of starting her own family.

"Of course I'm behind you." Cicelius expressed his attitude. The reason why he came back this time was that he was worried about his mother's old ways and wanted to do something. The upper echelons of the legion were quite wary of this family affair, and the marriage of the most popular and well-known senators in Eastern Rome to the top three nobles in the west itself had a great influence on Eastern Roman politics. Since his sister was voluntary, Cicelius decided to resist the pressure.

Seeing her brother's resolute expression, Sheila smiled, "Brother, you don't have to worry. It's not like I didn't think that the upper echelons would have ideas, and I can withstand it. ”

Cicelius didn't want to discuss this, of course he wanted his sister to be happy, but it was natural to be wary of the bastard boy who pursued his sister, and he asked Sheila, "Is that kid really that good?" ”

"I think it should be like my father when he was younger." Sheila laughed.

Cicelius felt that his sister's evaluation of Patrick was too high, and he couldn't help but ask, "Is that kid here today?" ”

"It's already here."

"What about people?!"

"Talking to my father in the study."

In his study, Patrick was listening carefully to the current chairman of the Constitutional Commission, Maximi J. His Excellency J. Cleisius talks about his views on history.

"All true history is contemporary history, history is living history, chronicles are dead history; History is contemporary history, chronicles are the history of the past; History is primarily an action of thought, and chronicles is primarily an act of will. All history becomes chronicles when it is no longer contemplated, but merely recorded in abstract words, even though those words were once concrete and expressive ......"

Patrick subconsciously held his breath and listened intently to Lord Cresius's argument. Sheila or life, these things that Patrick was trying to understand and seek had long since flown out into the clouds, and his mind was quickly interpreting the words of Lord Cresius and turning them into a part of Patrick's own mental world. At this moment, Patrick didn't even feel himself, because he was already completely present in his spiritual world.

“…… When the development of life is gradually needed, the dead history will be resurrected, and the history of the past will become the present. The Romans and ancient Greeks of the republican era lay in the tombs, but those of us who were alive awakened their minds because of our own needs. Much of the history, which we now regard as chronicles, the documents that are now silent to us, will in turn be illuminated by the light of the new life, and will speak again! ”

"Great, Your Excellency, what you said is great!" Patrick couldn't recognize the loud praise because of his strong approval, and then choked up and couldn't speak. With tears in his eyes, Patrick felt his mental world overlap with the real world, and then saw things that he had only vaguely felt but could not touch.

Maximi was equally agitated, and what he had just said was not only his own opinion, but also the common opinion of the republicans, led by His Excellency Tiberius. In the eyes of the republicans, Rome had sunk for too long. Greece and Rome all bloomed in the republican era, dazzling the people of today.

The reason why Tiberius insisted on the republican system was the result of the rational conclusion reached by Tiberius, as a historian, after reading a large number of books. Judging from the historical facts alone, from the Republic to the era of the Five Sages, the Roman Senate and the House of the People were still there. H.E. Tiberius believed that good leaders should be prioritized when there are good leaders. But good leaders are not common, and it is much easier to choose good elders. At this time, it was up to the Senate to continue to maintain the stability of Rome and even promote its progress.

After a moment of excitement, Patrick remembered the key point he wanted to ask for advice today, and said, "Your Excellency, I read the travelogue written by my teacher. It said that the Song Kingdom also had an evaluation of ancient Greek history, and he also specially translated it. Have you seen it? ”

"In the eyes of the ancient Greek democrats, the republicans were a bunch of rubbish who used the system to play parliamentary and citizen tricks. In the eyes of the republicans in ancient Greece, the democrats were a group of tyrants who seized power by inciting a mob. So Socrates thinks that the electoral system is the worst system, because the electoral system simply cannot solve the real problem. Is that it? Maximi asked.

Patrick nodded repeatedly, and several of his teachers joined the Eastern Roman delegation to the Great Song Dynasty with the support of his mother, and several of them even went to the Wa Kingdom farther away than the Great Song Dynasty. In addition to writing their own records of what they had seen, they also brought back many books of the Great Song Dynasty and began to translate them. The translation of those philosophical books was only at the beginning, and the Great Song Dynasty translated a lot of comments on ancient Greece and Rome. What's even more amazing is that many of the views were actually put forward by the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty. Patrick would love to hear from the Honourable Clysius, who is also a scholar.

Maximi didn't answer immediately, and he didn't understand these brief expositions of the Great Song Emperor. I went to consult His Excellency Tiberius, who did not see Maximi at that time, and asked Maximi to wait. A few days later, Tiberius sent for Maximi to go immediately, and when Maximi arrived, he saw a number of people. His Excellency Tiberius told the group about the history of ancient Greece during the period when Socrates was sentenced to death.

By that time, the republicans had turned the parliament into a circus by playing with citizenship. Since citizenship and voting are the basis of all legitimacy, what is wrong with voting for the banishment of a general you don't know, when you hear others often praise you for how good a general you don't know? If this is not the right thing, doesn't it mean that the citizenship system is wrong?

"Ladies and gentlemen, the civil system of Athens is different from the republic of our Rome." His Excellency Tiberius begins with his basic thesis, "Most of the Athenians at that time did not have citizenship. The history books say that the thirty tyrants killed more Athenians than the Spartan army. This is not right. At most, thirty tyrants killed many famous Athenian citizens, and the Spartans killed many more Athenians than thirty tyrants! ”

The scholars who attended this lecture were not very familiar with this part of history, and they may have read many books without thinking carefully about these key details. Lord Tiberius recounted the time when Athens lost the war with Sparta and the Spartans captured the city of Athens.

Some young Athenians were to implement universal suffrage so that the majority of those who would follow Athens would be eligible to become citizens. Although the 'republicans' claim to be democratic, it is the thirty tyrants who represent democracy. The establishment of democracy naturally offended the citizens who preceded it, most of whom voted in the war and did not participate in it. The Republicans and Democrats fought a brutal struggle. In the end, the democrats failed.

In addition to exterminating the democrats, the Republicans also carried out an even more brutal bloodbath against the democrats. As a relative of the Thirty Tyrants, Socrates was put on trial. This is similar to the Great Purge between the Marius and Sulla factions.

During the lecture, His Excellency Tiberius talked a lot, which was an eye-opener for the scholars. For Maximi, what shocked him the most was the private conversation with His Excellency Tiberius after class, and His Excellency Tiberius said with a wry smile: "Maximi, I always thought that the Senate was capable of electing the best senators to support Rome. But I didn't expect that Sheila, whom I strongly opposed, was the best patriarch. Now I don't even know if I'm right or wrong. ”