It’s snowing in the northernmost city of Byzantium.
This winter is colder than usual.
The wheat outside the city of Byzantium was covered with a thick layer of snow, and the city was also decorated with white snow. Byzantium, which had become the capital of the Greek Empire, now showed a lively scene. Merchant ships from Athens, Delos Island, and Corinth transported local specialties to Byzantium. Many adventurers and merchants also came to this place, wanting to start a new life here. Having obtained the citizenship of the empire, they naturally came to the great capital to see the scenery here.
"I heard that all the Spartans ran away."
"Of course. In front of His Majesty Basilius, the Spartans would have been scared to death. Hahahaha."
When Ramachandon arrived in Byzantium by ship.
The sound of people discussing around him attracted his attention.
The cold wind in Byzantium made the thinly dressed Lamachus pull his robe and continue walking. Lamachus was not poor, he was an Athenian, the climate in Athens was not very cold, so people just wore robes to avoid the cold. But Byzantium was different, it was in the north, and the climate was still relatively cold.
"Are you Lamarcos?"
At this time, a man walked over quickly.
Then he said enthusiastically:
"You looked as cold as a prairie dog, so I knew you must be from Athens."
"Ah, it's Lord Thucydides."
Ramachos saluted hastily.
"haven't seen you for a long time."
"Okay, come with me, don't get cold."
Thucydides smiled bitterly and shook his head.
So, under the guidance of Thucydides, Lamachus was brought to a luxurious building. This is the landmark building of Byzantium, the Athens Mansion. Three years ago, Hilde ordered the construction of an Athens Mansion in Byzantium to receive celebrities from Athens. This place was once home to outstanding Athenian talents such as Socrates, Herodotus, and Alcibiades. And these talents eventually became guests of honor in the Byzantine Kingdom, especially Alcibiades, who is now the archon of the Greek Empire.
And more and more Athenians came here.
Athens has developed higher education, high-quality citizens, and many capable people.
In addition, two of the three major official positions in the empire are held by Athenians.
Therefore, many Athenians mustered up the courage to come to Byzantium for their careers, just to try their luck at the Athenian Palace. As for Lamachus, he was a general of Athens and came from a famous family. However, after Athens was captured, the troops were disbanded on the spot and reorganized. Lamachus did not intend to start from the level of centurion. After all, he was also a famous rookie general in Athens. But if he wanted to become an officer again, Lamachus had only one way, that is, to go to the Athenian Palace and have the opportunity to become a talent through the introduction of friends.
The person who received him was naturally Thucydides.
He was also one of the Athenian generals.
Certainly, compared to his fame in the Greek world.
Thucydides would become more famous in the future.
He is the author of "History of the Peloponnesian War", and the famous "Thucydides Trap" is also named after him. However, despite his fame, he was exiled because he was considered to have missed the opportunity to reinforce the enemy during the Battle of Amphipolis. The exiled Thucydides simply went directly to Byzantium and concentrated on studying the history of war in the Athenian Palace.
The Ninth Tune, Section 3: People Comparing with Each Other
Thucydides was not at all surprised by Athens' defeat.
He even felt that Athens was no match for Sparta.
Not to mention the Byzantine Empire.
However, after Athens was defeated, Hilde, as an Athenian, was very popular with the Athenians for her open attitude towards Athens. Many people came to the Athenian mansion in Byzantium, and many of them contacted Thucydides. Lamachus, Conon and Formio were the three most distinguished generals who came to Byzantium. They came here in the hope of getting a job in the Greek Empire, or they were moved by Hilde's ideas, so they came to Byzantium to support Hilde and serve the country as Greeks.
Of course, no matter what the purpose is, Hilde is based on talent. As long as you can contribute to the empire, no matter your background, you will be admitted on the basis of merit. Among them, Formio is a veteran Athenian naval general. He personally commanded the Battle of Patras, defeated the Spartan fleet, and saved the Athenians from the threat of the Spartans. Although he is not young, as an experienced naval general, he was given special care after entering the Athenian mansion. And Conon, who is younger than him, also went with him.
And Ramachandon was an army general.
Although he did not achieve any brilliant results in battle, he was still a trustworthy general in Athens.
"Excuse me……"
Lamarcos was a little nervous.
"Now, does His Majesty Basilius still need me?"
"It depends on your own plan."
Thucydides explains.
"At present, the newly established imperial government needs a large number of bureaucrats and officers. As a general, you are exactly what His Majesty needs. However, it depends on whether you plan to go to the battlefield and fight the enemy with real weapons, or to stay in a corner and serve as a garrison general in a province. The latter is likely to succeed. But the former will be a bit difficult."
"why?"
“Because the competition is fierce.”
Thucydides smiled bitterly and said:
"Currently, the Byzantine Kingdom has a total of nine standing legions, each with a legion commander, or general. So far, I have not heard that His Majesty intends to replace these legion commanders. The legion commander of the Second Legion has been changed, but a Byzantine has been chosen. However, you have not lost your chance. His Majesty is preparing four new legions, with troops coming from Attica, Achaia, Epirus, Thessaly, Laconia, and Messenia. You are an Athenian, so it is very likely that you will command a legion composed mainly of Athenians."
"Really?"
Hearing Thucydides' words.
Lamarcos was overjoyed.
However, he paused for a moment, then looked at Thucydides.
"Then Lord Thucydides, are you unwilling to go?"
"I will stay here and lead the way for you. The Athenians need a chance."
"That really troubles Lord Thucydides."
With Thucydides here to provide support, the Athenians' chances of success would be much greater.
When they arrived at the Athenian palace, Thucydides briefly told Lamachus the situation, so that he could have a general understanding of the situation of the Greek Empire. Now, Lamachus knew a lot about the Greek Empire.
The new system of the Greek Empire was divided into a bureaucratic system and a military officer system.
Only after leaving the military service could an officer become an administrative official, and officials could not lead troops. This was the rule of the Greek Empire. Unlike many places where the army was led by consuls, or generals served as consuls, this distinction was particularly clear in the Greek Empire. So, Alcibiades originally had military power, but now that he became the consul of the Greek Empire, he naturally lost his military power and would no longer have the opportunity to lead troops.
This is the current situation.
The bureaucracy, at least two-thirds of it, was Byzantine.
The Byzantine Academy trained a group of mature bureaucrats, and they were all loyal people. Two-thirds of the provincial governors, three-quarters of the provincial assistants, and three-quarters of the inspectors were almost all Byzantines. Among them, Athenians accounted for about one-fifteenth, and the rest were Ionians and Ionians. Therefore, although on the surface, Athenians occupied two seats among the three major bureaucrats, in fact, the overall proportion was very low.
And in the military general system.
The Athenians' advantage was again very low.
Only a quarter of the generals came from Byzantium.
But the Thracians made up a quarter.
The Thracians, who were regarded as barbarians by the Athenians, became the general's main force. Among the nine legions, three legions were led by Thracians, and Sitalces became a model among Thracian soldiers. The Thracians who were first liberated by Hilde were grateful to Hilde. Similarly, their long military tradition also enabled them to serve as excellent officers.
The generals of the Second and First Legions were Byzantines.
Occupies two seats.
There were four generals left, a Bosporan, an Ionian, a Samoyed, and a Scythian.
The Athenians had no generals so far. Although there was Amyntas among the Athenians, he had been appointed as the Grand Inspector and became a civil official. Among the military generals, the only one who could be called the backbone was Rhodes, who was still serving as the admiral of the naval fleet. The others were gone.
Although Hilde has been working hard to make everyone forget about race and origin.
But in reality, people still use this seat label in private.
The Athenians had their pride.
Even though it is now part of the Greek Empire, Athens wants to be the best.
It was normal that they could not compete with Byzantium, as Byzantium was the capital and the core of the Greek Empire. However, if they could not even compete with Thrace, then where would the Athenians stand? Therefore, after accepting the fact of being ruled, the Athenians became extremely enthusiastic. They hoped that they could become the backbone officials in the Greek Empire and make achievements. At the same time, Athens would become the most glorious city in the eyes of His Majesty Basilius.
So, Athens Mansion is really bustling.
And here comes Lamarcos.
Just had a few words with Thucydides.
It was noticed by other people.
When everyone noticed that General Ramakos had arrived, they all came forward to greet him.
"Lord Ramachos!"
"You are here! There must be one more Athenian general!"
"Yeah, those guys in Ephesus are too much. We can't lose to them!"
Seeing everyone's competitive attitude, Thucydides smiled helplessly.
The 4th Section of the 9th Tune: The Dreamy Visitor
"This is……"
"Well, this is the situation. The Ephesus Palace is about a few hundred steps away from the Athens Palace. Those guys have recently been elected as two deputy governors. I heard that one of them is now a hot candidate for governor. He is very happy every day. He has not been elected governor yet, but the people in the Ephesus Palace are eager to decorate the palace with lights and colors. On the other side is the Miletus Palace, because Hippodamus is in the Miletus Palace, and now he is the municipal official of Byzantium, so it is also very lively."
"Hippodamus?"
Lamarcos was a little surprised to hear the name.
"He also came to Byzantium."
"It's been here a long time ago."
The name Hippodamus was well-known in Athens.
He was a famous architect and planner. The famous Piraeus Port in Athens was designed by Hippodamos. After he completed the Piraeus Port, he came to Byzantium. A lot of the planning work of the new Byzantine City was done by Hippodamos. It was also because of this that the Miletus Mansion, which was composed of former Milesians, became lively. Although many Milesians have now become Byzantines, after all, Miletus was destroyed by the Persians, and it was Hilde who went to Persia in person to "redeem" these Milesians.
Plus Hilde's mother.
Aspasia.
The Milesians.
After hearing this, Lamarcos felt a little strange.
This place is like a big world, and all the famous places in the Greek world are competing here. And every Greek with a dream will come here to pursue his dream. Even if the pursuit of dreams is full of hardships, it cannot stop people with enthusiasm. Because there are countless successful people who have become famous, inspiring other talented people to come here to shine.
“It’s really amazing.”
"Right."
Thucydides nodded with a smile.
“So, Byzantium is a very interesting city.”
"Indeed."
"In addition, there are Persian mansions, Bosporus mansions, Macedonia mansions, Khanacanassus mansions, Egyptian mansions... and a series of mansions. When you walk on the street, the people you meet may be from distant countries. Your Majesty never restricts a person by nationality or origin. Even if you are a barbarian from Scythia, you can become a great general of the empire like Tomyris."
"Um……"
When in Athens.
Lamarcos will feel that his world is already very big.
But when I came here.
When you see people from all over the world coming here for their dreams, you will find that Athens is just a small part of the world. The more vast Persia and Egypt also have a place here, and the Athenians get together to discuss their dreams and their own governance ideas. The successful people help their younger generations and compete with each other to see who has more generals and bureaucrats.
Only the talented are promoted.
This is what is now the Greek Empire.
"Oh, it would be better if you were a civil servant."
"what happened?"
"You may not be very clear on the ship, but His Majesty has promulgated a new system, which has suddenly created a large number of civil service positions. So, you can see that the Athens Palace is so busy now, in fact, it is paying attention to this matter. This is a rare opportunity in ten years. Although it may not be easy to be a governor, it is also a good thing if you can be selected as a treasurer, inspector, or even a municipal official."
"Um……"
What Thucydides says is very interesting.
However, Lamarcos only wanted to lead the troops into battle.
He was a general and had no interest in politics.
However, after coming all the way here, Lamachus didn't know what to do next, so Thucydides arranged for him to stay in the Athens Palace. People in the Athens Palace were supported by the empire as staff members, and were provided with 15 drachmas per month. Although these salaries were not high, the Athens Palace provided accommodation and food, so this money was considered pocket money. Anyone who was considered a talent by the Athens Palace could stay here for a year. If they were not hired, they could continue to study, and they had to leave after a year.
So, on the first day, Lamarcos received his first living expenses.
