48 Hours a Day

Zhang Heng had heard some tragic stories about Roman slaves before.

In fact, the age of the black sails was also when the black slave trade was flourishing, when Zhang Heng led the Cold Crow attack on many slave ships, saw the boat full of black slaves crammed underneath the cabin, people next to people, like livestock to be slaughtered, the cabin was full of urine and sweat smells.

With the help of Laeri, Zhang Heng would normally pick the most powerful fighters out of these blacks after the hijacking, absorb them into the pirates, and the rest of them would be placed on small islands. Building a hidden supply point based on these people played an important role in the circumference and battle of Zhang Heng leaving Nassau and the Royal Navy, and Zhang Heng even received the title of liberator of a new continent. He did not expect that he would one day become a slave.

And it was slavery in the second century AD, and this is a real slavery society, and the social pyramid structure in Rome is basically aristocracy, civilians, foreigners and slaves.

Slaves at the bottom cannot even be described in a sense as human beings, but rather as instruments of production or entertainment, as is now the case in the gladiator performances taking place over their heads, where gladiators kill each other in exchange for their own blood and lives for the compliments of the audience.

“What are you thinking?” Zhang Heng vs. Varo Road.

“What?” The latter stunned, then reacted, "Oh, I was wondering whenever it was our turn to perform on it. ”

“Will we too?” Zhang Heng had some accidents. The work of the two of them now is basically just a mess in the arena, especially Varo. The latter's body is not too thin, but he has very little guts. He can't even feed the beast. If he walks to the arena, Zhang Heng suspects that he won't last even three seconds.

“Of course not right now, we won't do anything right now, it's just ugly up there, nobody wants to see our lousy performance, but...” Varo lowered his voice, "I got a message... there will be a batch of Germanic barbarians coming by tomorrow, and we will be training with them at the gladiator's school. ”

When Varo finished looking at Zhang Heng, he did not see the panic he was expecting from the latter's face, so he stunned and added, "You… have nothing to say? ”

“What am I going to say?” Zhang Hengyang raised his eyebrows.

“We are about to be sent to a gladiator training camp, where people say they would rather die than live, they would torture us, they would flog us constantly, many would die in training, and then those who survive would have to take the exam, and those who pass the exam would become gladiators and die in the performance. ”

“If you're so worried about your life, don't pass the final exam.” Zhang Hengdao.

“That's the problem. Slaves who don't pass are said to be sold to mines or villages to make up for their losses. Do you know how people treat slaves there? They make you work all the time, all the time, just like animals, until the day you die, you'll never be free.” Valo despaired, “it shouldn't be like this, the eagle bean promised me. ”

“Who's the chickpeas? ”

“A slave trader, I was a little in love with him, and after I became a slave, he told me that I would be bought away by the nobles of the city, that I would run a business, that if my buyers invested a sum of money in me, I could make them produce more money, so that when I set up the business, I would be a free man again," Varo held his fists in both hands, full of unwillingness and pain, "Why did this happen and why did I get sold here? I don't belong here...”

“Maybe it's because you're in good shape?” Zhang Hengdao, “were you a businessman before, wearing armor would look more like a soldier. ”

“But I never learned to fight," Valodore said, “this is ridiculous, knowing that I can bring more wealth with my ability to do business, but they want me to go to the gladiator's school to be tortured, and it's a waste. ”

“Well, if all you're saying is true, maybe you should talk to the owner here.” Zhang Heng suggested.

“I tried, I told the supervisor about my situation and asked him to tell the owner here.” Varrodo.

“And then what? ”

“Then… to this day there has been no sound.” Valo dropped the rag in his hand and hesitated, "Perhaps I should go straight to the master. What do you think? ”

Zhang Heng was not in a hurry to answer this question, but asked, "You said you were a businessman before, why were you sold? ”

“Forget it," Varo sighed, “I had been selling antiques since my father, my family made a lot of money from this, but then I was obsessed, and I heard a friend say that the linen business on the Egyptian side was good, and I negotiated with a nobleman over there to grow linen, and he left the land and I paid for it, woven it and sold it to Rome, and as a result, my friend was just robbed on the road, people and money were gone, and worse, I had a contract with the other side, and if he didn't get the money, I had to pay him a lot of money for breach of contract, and I tried my best, but I didn't get enough money, so I not only lost all my property, but also became a slave myself. ”

“Well, that's a sad story.” Zhang Hengdao.

At this time, there was another deafening thrill, and it was supposed to be the gladiator show that went to the right place and mobilized the audience on the stands.

And Varo made up his mind at this time, “Tomorrow, when the Germanic barbarians are escorted, everyone will be gathered, and then the owner will show up, and I can ask him to do business at that time, and if it goes well, I can get out of here. ”

“Well, good luck with that.” Zhang Hengdao.

“Sorry, I can't help you.” Varo was somewhat embarrassed, he had just described the gladiator school as horrible, but he was about to jump out of the mud, but he left Zhang Heng there, although the two of them had not had much sympathy, just met for half a day, not even a friend, not even an acquaintance.

But after that conversation before, it did bring the relationship a little closer, but Varo is now also a mud bodhisattva crossing the river, he can't protect himself, and he can't care less about Zhang Heng's companion.

“It's okay, just remember to tell me the day you're free.” Zhang Hengdao, after listening to Varo's story, did not like the success of the other party's action tomorrow, but he also knew that Varo had just seen hope today, and that it was difficult for anyone to convince him to give up the idea of escaping from the gladiator's school.