Chapter 878 The Roaring Roman Parliament
While the Western Regions were in turmoil, Rome was also undergoing earth-shaking changes.
Go back a while in time.
After Ganasis returned to Rome from the Han Dynasty, he felt more and more heavy-hearted. He felt that he could not explain himself clearly in the letter, so he went to Rome with his deputy. As the most powerful Duke of a border county, he was the first to be kicked out of the power struggle.
But as a duke, his political inclinations are enough to influence many people!
After Commodus' death, the Roman Empire was in turmoil. The four great dukes, the former Roman emperor Octavian, and Frederick I of the Holy Church, all kinds of forces were mixed together.
Octavian's weakness was also the reason why the chaos could not be stopped. Octavian's innate legitimacy was enough to make Rome surrender, but Octavian's immortal state was also the reason why the chaos could not be stopped.
There are no external enemies and no absolutely overwhelming strength inside, and no one is willing to give up the power in their hands.
Power and authority are the most terrible poisons in the world. Once you have enjoyed this poison, it will be difficult to turn back.
But Ganasis knew very well that the Roman upper echelons could not go on arguing like this any longer, and Rome absolutely could not continue to be in such chaos.
Rome had too many potential rivals. For example, the Parthian Empire, which had risen again at some point in time, was an opponent that had been fighting for hundreds of years. The Parthian Empire was like an indestructible cockroach and had indeed been pinned to the ground by a duke of a border county.
But at some unknown time, Parthia rose again.
There were not many battles between Parthia and Rome, but Parthia was also an empire-level opponent. Since when did Rome become trapped?
Especially after seeing the Han Dynasty, he was even more frightened. This empire had only been circulated in legends before, and no one knew whether it was powerful or not, but after seeing it with one's own eyes, it was enough to make people extremely fearful.
Rome was not completely unaware of the existence of the Han Dynasty. When Ganasis was reading the classics, he still found out about the envoys' journey to the Han Dynasty.
However, it was of no use. Although the envoy returned successfully , he did not bring back any important news. People at that time even doubted whether he had actually gone to the Han Dynasty. He only brought back some gifts, and no one from top to bottom took it seriously.
However, this time was different. He, the Duke of the Roman Border County, Ganasis, one of , had witnessed the prosperity and power of the Han Dynasty, as well as the prosperity of the trading market, which he could not ignore at all.
This information must be made known to all the upper echelons, especially the trade among the four countries. With the Han Dynasty and Kushan providing financial support behind the scenes, it is self-evident who Parthia and Great Britain will target after their rise.
The distant empire that has always been passed down in myths and legends has arrived. The emergence of the legendary country of silk and gold has made Rome face an unprecedented crisis. They are now facing a dilemma that is no less severe than the collapse of Rome in the past.
"Greetings, Duke Ganasis. How did you get back to Rome from Mesopotamia?"
After finishing his inspection of the Han Dynasty, Ganasis rushed back to Rome with his deputies as quickly as possible. The tribunes of the Roman capital were immediately shocked when they saw the Duke of the border county.
"There is an important matter to discuss with the parliament!" Ganasis said coldly.
If he previously thought that the division and wrangling in parliament would be beneficial to his expansion of power, then even for the sake of his own territory, he must now talk to parliament.
Once Parthia awakens, the first person to suffer will be Ganasis.
For both public and private reasons, he must clarify the situation with the Senate.
Then Ganasis ignored the tribune and reined in his horse and headed straight in one direction. Before meeting with the parliament, he needed to see someone.
He must have a true understanding of Octavian’s situation, as he was once the Roman Emperor. If Octavian’s situation allowed, he would side with Octavian without hesitation.
If Octavian's situation is really bad, then he will turn to Severus, who is the first duke of Rome and the person who can end the chaos in Rome the fastest. Although there are many frictions between him and Severus, and he is not happy with Severus being emperor, Rome needs an emperor now.
Ganasis was under a lot of pressure. Only by seeing it with one's own eyes could one know how dangerous Rome's seemingly secure situation was. At a time when several other empires had united and were developing rapidly, Rome was still in the midst of civil strife.
It is conceivable that once the war breaks out, the first person to be hit will be Ganasi himself, and Rome must be unified.
For Rome, for the empire, and for himself.
"Ganasis?" Octavian looked at Ganasis with some joy. Apart from his followers, he still had a good impression of Ganasis.
After all, it was with the help of Ganasis that he was able to return to Rome. Although Ganasis's separatism had always made him feel uncomfortable, compared with others, Ganasis was already the best one.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Ganasis bowed slightly.
"You're welcome. What brings you back from Mesopotamia?" Octavian nodded and asked.
"Your Majesty, Rome needs a strong monarch. Rome is already on the edge of a cliff!" Ganasis went straight to the point.
"?" Octavian's pupils suddenly shrank. He didn't expect Ganasis to tell him such explosive news. He didn't believe that Ganasis would talk nonsense.
"Can you carry on the destiny of the country and return to the throne of emperor?" Ganasis bent slightly, but the questions he asked made Octavian furious.
But after all, Octavian had died once, so he had a very good mentality.
"What happened that makes you so...frightened?" After thinking for a while, Octavian guessed Ganasis's purpose.
Ganasis repeated to Octavian everything he had seen and heard along the way. Octavian's eyes became brighter and brighter as he listened, but in the end he became dejected.
The greatness of Rome was the will he inherited from Caesar and the source of his life. Now in this situation, he already understood why Ganasis came to see him.
"What are you going to do? Who do you support to take the throne?" Octavian asked softly.
Ganasis was very disappointed. Compared with Severus, he still hoped that Octavian would come to power. Unfortunately, Octavian's avoidance of the question had already said it all.
"Severus! I plan to support Severus to take the throne!" Ganasis replied in a resounding voice.
"Go and say hello to him for me!" Octavian was silent for a while, then said.
"For Rome!" Ganasis punched his chest.
"For Rome!" Octavian responded in kind.
"Maybe this is the right choice. What's past is past, right?"
…
Severus looked at Ganasis who pushed the door open with some confusion. His relationship with Ganasis was not very good. He had dealt with a lot of things behind the scenes when Ganasis was kicked out.
He even originally planned to use Ganasis, a guy who was neither strong nor weak among all the forces, as the first mover, and then become the Roman emperor with a great victory.
Then he personally led the army to conquer Parthia, overwhelmed the entire Rome with his absolute achievements and consolidated his position. He did not expect that Ganasis would come to him.
"What's the matter, Duke? Why did you come back all the way from Mesopotamia?" Severus was very curious about what Ganasis was going to do. He kept staring at him after he entered the room.
"Severus, His Majesty Octavian asked me to say hello to you on his behalf!" Ganasis' eyes changed several times before he finally made up his mind.
Severus' pupils trembled, and Ganassas' words basically confirmed that he would become the Roman emperor.
Octavian's recognition and decentralization, as well as the defection of the Duke of the Border County, were enough for him to become the new Roman emperor, and then he could forcibly suppress other forces and gain temporary imperial power.
"What happened that made you and that person make such a decision!"
Severus was not dazzled by the good thing that fell from the sky. He immediately thought of the meaning behind this action.
Ganasis repeated to Severus everything he had told David Wu before. Severus' eyes became brighter and brighter. For a Roman emperor who had just come to power, being surrounded by foreign powers was the best thing that could happen.
As long as there is a greater cause, the Romans will take the lead in fighting against foreign enemies. In this process, as long as they do not perform particularly badly, most of them will succeed in consolidating their power.
For a country, there is nothing more terrible than internal strife. The decline of an invincible empire is often not due to external enemies, but internal strife.
Even the Song Dynasty was like this. It had countless opportunities to turn the tables, but they were all lost due to internal strife. It was a shame.
"Call the senators of the Senate and let us conduct arbitration!" Severus made a prompt decision and said to the clerk.
Such a big event is enough to open the Roman Senate, and may even call for the opening of a public assembly that has not been opened for many years. Of course, this is just a procedure, and it is only held to confirm his authority.
Of course, if a people's assembly is held, the leaders of other forces must also come back. Internal strife may be internal strife, but the empire has not completely fallen apart.
With Penilence as the middleman, they didn't have to worry about any other problems.
By then, if Ganassas and Octavian openly support him, he would be able to make the final decision and overwhelm all opposing voices with absolute momentum.
As for what happened later, it depended on the political game and mutual compromise between him and others, but at least he became the Roman emperor first and was far ahead.
No one knew what happened in the Roman Parliament that day, but the roar almost resounded throughout the city of Rome.
"Bang!" Severus hit the stone platform with his fist. The dull sound drowned out all the noises of the grass.
"For Rome!" Severus glanced at the crowd coldly. Before this, Severus' words and actions had never been so decisive, and his vision had never been so sharp.
"What Rome needs now is a unified voice. Who supports me?" Severus' eyes were sharp, and his monarchic talent was reflected throughout the venue.
"For the sake of Rome, I, Duke Ganasi of Border County, support Severus to become the Roman emperor!" Ganasi stood up without hesitation.
"What belongs to the past belongs to the past, and what belongs to the future belongs to the future. I, Gaius Octavian Augustus, support Severus to become the Roman emperor." After Canases, Octavian also expressed his wish.
The senators present were shocked. You have to know that Octavian's status in Rome was even higher than Caesar. If Caesar was the founder, then Octavian was the executor of Rome's glory, laying a solid foundation for the prosperity of the early empire.
Now Octavian's public support for Severus has two meanings. One is that Octavian's physical condition is indeed unable to support the empire as rumored, and the other is that Severus is really going to become the Roman emperor.
Niger, Albinus and Philip were all shocked. Severus now had the support of Canases and Octavian, which was the worst news for them.
Ganassas and Octavian spoke not as individuals, but as representatives of the forces behind them. In this way, nearly half of the senators of the Roman Empire had already stood on the side of Severus. Unless the three of them quickly decided on a leader, everything would be over.
"If you were to become the Roman emperor, what would you do?" Penelence asked, knocking on the stone platform in front of him.
"March west! March north! Fight all the way to the Han Empire! Conquer the legendary land of gold and silk!" Severus answered without hesitation.
Penilence's eyes lit up, and he asked back.
"The Han Empire is so far away, how can you reach it?"
"Seven hundred years ago, when we were in the Roman Peninsula, we never thought of informing the entire Mediterranean, nor did we think of a Hundred Years' War with Parthia, let alone annihilating the British Empire in the north. But now!"
Severus' eyes were sharp and he stared at Penilence without giving in.
"If we stop now, the Han Empire, Parthia, and Great Britain will march towards us. What should we do? Should we kneel down and beg for mercy?"
Severus looked at everyone majestically. At this moment he had no hesitation at all. For the sake of Rome, he had to be crowned emperor.
"The future will be opened by me, Septimius Severus!"
At this moment, Severus' monarch talent seemed to have undergone a qualitative change. The monarch talent that originally only blessed a general number of people suddenly covered everyone. Even the Duke of the border counties such as Nigel also felt the blessing.
"Your Majesty Severus, would you like to use me?" Penilence straightened up, and his figure was still upright at this moment.
Although he had neglected his command for several years due to government affairs, he was still the strongest legion commander in the Roman Empire.
"You are still the commander of the Guards, okay?" Severus was overjoyed when faced with Penelunus' question, and directly offered him a position equivalent to the Roman vice emperor to recruit him.
"I, Penilence, am willing to serve Your Majesty!" Penilence bowed and saluted.
At this point, six-tenths of the power of the Roman senators had surrendered to Severus. Even if the other dukes wanted to, they were powerless to turn the situation around and could only compromise in silence.
Severus was officially crowned emperor.
