Chapter 98 I am still too upright (4k)
The next day, the sky seemed to be bright but not bright yet, and the morning light was dim.
Dozens of vehicles pulled by hounds and golden-antlered deer drove majestically through the wide main road and approached the gate of Knossos. It is loaded with all kinds of prey, piled high, and looking from a distance, it looks like raised hills.
“It's the secretary! Quick, open the city gate!”
The city defense officer in charge of patrol saw the familiar figure on the chariot and immediately ordered the soldiers to turn the winch and open the passage into the city.
Lorne raised his head and glanced, and couldn't help but realize that the officer patrolling the city today was actually an acquaintance.
—When the waves set off by Poseidon swept over Crete, the city of Knossos was in chaos. It was he and the three priestesses of the temple who authenticated the identity of Anna in person, and later allocated manpower to assist in the defense. coastline.
Lorne waved to the figure at the top of the city, smiled and said: "Thank you very much."
Suddenly, the officer was a little flattered. He hurriedly beat his chest with his right fist and nodded respectfully in return: "You're welcome, Mr. Secretary."
Then, holding the bronze helmet he took off with one hand, he came to the city gate, looked at this strange motorcade, and asked diligently.
Compared with the more than 30,000 kilograms of prey he brought into the city, which was enough for the whole city to eat for half a month (more than 10,000 kilograms for Athena and more than 20,000 kilograms for Artemis), he just ate some casually. To order tribute is to be outrageously honest and virtuous.
If I remember correctly, the badge he wore before on his chest should be a silver one.
As for the newly brewed wine at the sacrificial site, he didn't touch it at all.
“This year's new wine?”
At present, they are directly dispatched by Ariadne, the chief priest.
But the man in front of me is already the uncrowned king of Knossos, and he has truly saved Crete. Who cares about every little detail?
Furthermore, past experience also told him that doing so is not necessarily a bad thing.
The sacrificial site is not only used to offer sacrifices to the gods, but also serves as a bridge between gods and humans, and between the upper and lower levels.
By the way, the gatekeeper is also an acquaintance—one of the three priestesses who originally verified Anna's identity.
"okay!"
So, am I still too upright?
Lorne shook his head and sighed at his excessive moral level while sliding several boxes of special cakes on the storage shelf into the open magic circle.
The officer touched the gold double-sided ax badge on his chest that represented the legion commander, and looked at the two men with even more enthusiasm and hospitality.
As expected, Artemis couldn't help but spit out the wine as soon as she picked up the cup and took a few sips.
At this time, Artemis on the side thought of the wonderful experience yesterday and couldn't help but lick her lips.
Watching several white-robed priestesses placing jars of newly brewed wine on the table for him and Artemis to taste, Lorne was even more confused about whether to laugh or cry.
Strictly speaking, though, it seems a bit presumptuous to place the sacred sacrificial site at the disposal of this scribe.
Although she is a goddess, she doesn't like the noisy feeling of being surrounded by stars. Hiding her identity will undoubtedly make her trip more lasting and relaxed.
Sure enough, no matter where we go, no matter what era we are in, human beings' “motivation” is still so simple and unpretentious.
Realizing where this enthusiasm came from, Lorne smiled slightly, but without refusing, he raised his hand and pointed to the side.
Lorne and Artemis looked at each other and nodded slightly.
Without it, no matter how fast you learn, it would be difficult to equal or surpass him in the art of brewing wine.
At this moment, after listening to Lorne's statement, the officer in front of the door suddenly showed a knowing smile.
"Sir, just leave the rough work of loading, unloading and transportation to my young men. Recently, a batch of new wine was brewed at the sacrificial site and I am going to use it to worship the gods, but I don't know the quality. Since you are here, I just want to invite you. Let the experts taste it.”
As the heirs and spokesmen of the gods, the royal family with the blood of the gods would often send the prey they caught to the sacrificial grounds, where they would be divided and processed by the priests before being distributed to the people to show their benevolence to the people and gather together People's hearts.
“Sir Secretary, is there anything I can do for you?”
Usually after a sacrifice is made, the remaining portion of the sacrifice is distributed to the people to represent a gift from the gods.
"Okay, sir, I will have people clear the public area of the sacrificial site and maintain order on the site. I will also send a message to the temple and ask them to send people to gather the people and distribute the prey."
Lorne glanced at the upright figure, his eyes lingering on the gold double-sided ax badge on his chest for a few seconds.
“Miss Cynthia went into the mountains yesterday and caught some game. She couldn't eat it all, so she wanted to distribute it to the residents of Knossos for free.”
Listening to the introduction to her by a certain guide, Artemis, who was driving the car, smiled and nodded, showing a hint of vague satisfaction.
Speaking of which, does this count as personal gain and abuse of power?
But after thinking about it, he didn't dwell too much on this issue.
“Okay, take me to see it.”
Looking at the officer who had "I want to make progress so much" written all over his face, Lorne, who was warmly invited, was a little bit dumbfounded.
As the future **** of wine, Lorne can analyze the reason with his innate divinity even if he just glances at it.
Not to mention drinking a few bottles of godly wine, old King Minos now wants to pack the entire island of Crete, including his baby daughter, and give it to him so that he can take over and resist the attack from Oceanos. The pressure of the sea.
Soon, under the leadership of this native Minoan, the two of them entered the storage room of the sacrificial site from the main entrance, and the journey was smooth.
The officer immediately agreed with a smile on his face. After handing over the scene to his deputy, he took the initiative to lead the way, not caring about his identity as the commander of the regiment.
"very sour!"
Seeing this situation, Lorne didn't know what the hunting goddess was thinking at the moment, so she immediately waved her hand,
well…
“There is no way. The storage equipment is not well sealed. To prevent spoilage, we need to use some immature grapes to make new wine.”
Immediately, in order to honor the busy priestesses around him in front of the gods, he chuckled and comforted Artemis, who was in charge of tasting.
“However, if it comes into contact with the air more and oxidizes for a period of time, it will get better. It may also have a nutty aroma and a sweetness similar to honey.”
"real?"
The Hunting Goddess was doubtful. After seeing Lorne nodding his assurance, she tasted another one out of curiosity.
However, it was just a mouthful, and Artemis couldn't help but spurt it out.
“Why does it smell like herbs?”
Hearing Artemis's complaint, Lorne was also speechless, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Historically, the wines of ancient Greece were not fermented or refined in oak barrels.
To add flavor to the wine, winemakers will use certain herbs or plant juices to increase the complexity of the wine.
Therefore, the ancient Greeks believed that the wine brewed in this way was a drink beneficial to health, and often combined it with medicinal materials, tree sap, olive oil or plant roots to make medicines to treat diseases such as dysmenorrhea or depression. .
But obviously, the goddess of hunting, who is free from illness and disaster, cannot get used to this artificially added strange taste.
Forget it, inventions and creations always take many detours. After all, wine is just a new product now. Even if you contribute the brewing process you know for free, it cannot stop the curiosity of ordinary people to try it boldly.
As the future **** of wine, Lorne comforted himself while excusing the group of priestesses who had no merit but hard work.
Facing the eager gazes around her, the Hunting Goddess reluctantly cheered up. After tasting a few more new brews, she finally couldn't bear it anymore, dropped her wine glass, and dragged Lorne out of the door to escape.
“The new products they made are simply inedible!”
Outside the door, Artemis stood in the corner, criticizing unceremoniously, then rinsed her mouth with honey water, and looked at the guide beside her with emotion.
“Forget it, from now on I'll just drink wine made by you.”
Lorne looked at the Qianqiansu hand that fell on his shoulder out of approval, his eyes twinkling faintly.
you sure? Aren't you afraid of waking up with a sore butt?
Just as one person and one **** were hiding in the shade and thinking, groups of figures approached from outside the sacrificial site.
Artemis, who had some psychological shadow about wine tasting, couldn't help but feel a sudden thought, and subconsciously wanted to drag the guide beside her and run away.
However, before the Hunting Goddess could move, a voice that could be old, young, rich, or crisp stopped the two of them.
“Sir Secretary? And...Miss Cynthia, right? My Goddess, thank you for sending so many prey, I finally don't have to worry about surviving the winter.”
“My family received a piece of pork, which weighs about a hundred pounds. Now I can replenish the health of the children.”
"I saw the giant python that was entrenched at the southern foot of Mount Crete and was causing trouble inside. The city organized manpower to attack it several times, but failed. Even my brother died there, and I also lost one because of it. My arm, now I can actually see the day it was eradicated and still eat its flesh, it's really a relief!”
In the midst of the chatter, faces filled with joy, gratitude, curiosity, or enthusiasm crowded in front of the two people, expressing their sincere gratitude.
Although we are in the age of gods with many kinds of beasts and abundant products, for most ordinary people, meat is still a relatively scarce good thing.
More than 30,000 kilograms of food was transported to the city of Knossos and distributed to them for free. For these ordinary people, it was like being hit on the head by a happy pie.
The clerk, who was already a familiar face in the city, raised his hand slightly to stop the excited crowd, and pointed out the real hero with a smile.
"It has nothing to do with me. This is all Cynthia's credit. If you want to thank her, just thank her."
Suddenly, the crowd who had received the gifts flocked to the beautiful girl in hunting clothes.
“Thank you, Miss Cynthia, you are such a good person!”
“There is meat to eat, thank you sister Cynthia!”
“You are such a good girl to have caught so many prey!”
Some of them praised without hesitation, with sincere gratitude in their eyes; some took out red dates, dried fruits, garlands, copper coins and other things they owned, and placed them at the feet of the huntress as a gift. Trivial feedback.
Facing such a noisy and chaotic situation, Artemis, who was surrounded in the middle, was at a loss for a moment.
For this hunting god, hunting is just a hobby to vent his energy.
Distributing prey is just because it is difficult to handle so many harvests, so it is done casually.
However, I didn't expect that something that happened with just a raise of hands would gain these humans a level of enthusiasm and gratitude far beyond formal sacrifices and miracles from the gods.
The reason for this was somewhat unclear to Artemis.
But fortunately, the noise didn't seem to be that annoying to her.
Just when the hunting **** was about to be drowned in the enthusiastic crowd, a lazy but clear voice echoed in everyone's ears.
“Everyone, I heard that after the prey is roughly divided, you can still get some leftovers such as offal and fur, but the quantity is limited. If you go too late, it will be gone..."
"besides?"
“The fur is just enough to keep out the cold in the winter!”
"Hurry up!"
In an instant, everyone who heard the news turned around and rushed towards the sacrificial site as if they had been given blood.
The area around Artemis suddenly cleared out of people, and it became clean again.
After successfully getting rid of the group of enthusiastic grandparents and neighbors, Lorne stepped forward and asked with concern.
“Are you okay, Goddess? How do you feel?”
Artemis raised her head and looked at the new fiery red sunrise in the sky, looking at the smiling faces on the sacrificial ground, and the corners of her lips could not help but curl up.
"not bad…"
Lorne saw the subtle expression changes on the goddess of hunting's face, and a faint smile appeared on her face.
“Okay, the things are almost finished being divided, and we should leave. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll have to fish for you again.”
Hearing this, Artemis thought of the enthusiastic residents who had overwhelmed her just now. Her expression changed and she quickly followed a guide, subconsciously asking: "Where are we going?"
Lorne replied matter-of-factly: "Of course I'm going home."
Immediately, he glanced back at the hunting goddess behind him and showed a warm smile: "You have been busy all day, haven't you had a meal yet? I happened to have the city defense army leave some good ingredients and send them to Lord Hestia. at home…"
After a brief pause, Lorne stretched and smiled even more.
“Wait a minute, I will personally cook and use these rare ingredients to make a sumptuous meal to comfort you for your hard work on this hunting trip.”
"good!"
Hearing this considerate and comfortable post-game arrangement, Artemis was overjoyed and immediately nodded happily, then licked her lips and subconsciously asked.
“Is there any wine?”
“Yes! There should be a few bottles of the wine we brewed before in the lower level of the cellar, so you can drink it to your heart's content!”
This time, the Hunting Goddess was even happier, and even her steps were extremely light.
However, just after walking a few steps, Artemis vaguely remembered something, and the happy expression on her face couldn't help but froze slightly.
When she was in the storage room of the sacrificial site, a certain clerk who was first invited to try the drink, except for urging her to drink more, seemed to have never touched a drop of wine himself from beginning to end?
…This guy!
Looking at the figure who had gone away in front of her, Artemis's face darkened in hindsight.
But in the end, she gritted her teeth and chose to keep up quickly.
—As things stand, let's eat first.
(End of this chapter)
Chapter end
Report
|
Donate
Oh o, this user has not set a donation button.
|