Chapter 65 65
Before leaving the pavilion, Ilithyia suddenly took out a small leather scroll tube from her bosom and quickly stuffed it into Marcus's hand.
"Keep this safe."
"What is it?"
"A copy of the correspondence between Gracchus and a centurion from the northern legions,"
Ilithyia said quickly in a low voice. "It clearly records the source, quantity, and price of that batch of military equipment. I hid the original in a place he will never find. This is a copy. At the critical moment… it can be useful."
Marcus tucked the scroll tube into his bosom, keeping it close to his body.
"Thank you."
"No need to thank me,"
Ilithyia gave him one last look, her eyes complex. "Remember what you promised me. Bring him down… and take me away from here."
"I keep my word."
The two said nothing more and left the garden one after the other.
Ilithyia returned to the main hall and knelt in front of the statue again, as if she had never left. Marcus quietly slipped out through the side door, his figure soon disappearing into the crisscrossing alleys of Capua.
On the way back to the training ground, Marcus found a quiet corner, took out the small scroll tube, unrolled it, and quickly scanned it a few times.
It was indeed Gracchus's handwriting — or rather, a copy so skillfully imitated that it was almost indistinguishable from the real thing. It clearly recorded the time, quantity, price, and secret signals of the military equipment transaction. Ironclad evidence.
With this, plus the actual military equipment in the pottery workshop, it was enough to nail Gracchus to the crime of treason.
But Marcus carefully put the scroll away again.
It was not the time yet.
He had to wait.
Wait for the chaotic scene during the tariff proposal vote.
Wait for Gracchus and Valerius to fight each other until both were injured.
Only then… could he, the oriole hiding in the dark, come out to pick the fruit.
Just as he stepped into the door of the training ground office and before he could sit down, a crisp "ding!" suddenly sounded in his mind!
[Ding! Detected that the host has had intimate relations with the high-potential female character "Ilithyia" and successfully impregnated her!]
[Congratulations to the host for achieving the "Many Children, Many Blessings" achievement!]
[Reward obtained: Political Intrigue Mastery (Intermediate), 1x Core Secret Memory Fragment of Gracchus's Faction!]
[Additional reward: System Points x500!]
A massive flow of information instantly surged into Marcus's mind!
The complicated rules of Senate proceedings, the intertwined marriage networks among nobles, the deals behind provincial official appointments and removals, and even some extremely secretive political black curtains… all appeared clearly as if they had originally belonged to him.
At the same time, a sudden and vivid memory fragment exploded in his consciousness!
It was Gracchus's deepest hidden secret: how to frame political enemies to destroy their families, how to cleverly embezzle provincial taxes, how to collude with Mediterranean privateers to smuggle luxury goods, and even… after becoming governor, how to secretly contact a certain provincial governor with heavy troops, planning to seize the opportunity to launch a rebellion and carve out the Italian peninsula!
Marcus suddenly grabbed the edge of the table to steady himself. A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on his back!
Gracchus's ambition… was actually this big!
This had already gone beyond ordinary power struggles. This was a conspiracy to shake the foundation of Rome!
And he himself, without realizing it, had already stood on the edge of this huge whirlpool!
The training ground at night was so quiet you could hear mice gnawing on wood.
Marcus sat in the office, staring at the sheepskin paper copy on the table and the secrets that had just been stuffed into his mind.
Political Intrigue Mastery… this thing was not knowledge, it was instinct.
Now, looking at that copy, more than a dozen ways to use it automatically popped up in his mind — give it to Sextus?
Too early.
Keep it to blackmail Gracchus?
Too dangerous.
Make several copies and spread them?
That would require ensuring he wasn't silenced first.
And there was also Gracchus's rebellion plan.
"Crazy."
Marcus cursed in a low voice.
Carve out a territory? Join forces with other governors to oppose Rome? With just this bit of military strength in Capua?
Gracchus was either mad, or there was someone behind him.
That centurion from the northern legions… probably wasn't just selling military equipment.
He stood up, walked to the washbasin, and buried his entire face in the cold water.
Ice-cold and piercing.
Marcus wiped his face dry and walked back to the table.
He stuffed the sheepskin paper copy into the secret compartment in the corner of the wall — one he had dug himself, only palm-sized, hidden behind a brick.
Then he spread out a new sheet of sheepskin paper and began to write.
It was not a plan, but a list.
The core members of Gracchus's faction, dug out from the memory fragments.
Five senators, three merchants, two retired officers, and one… high priest of the temple.
On Valerius's side, Scarface was investigating. Waiting for news.
Sextus… this old man needed to be won over.
Mira as an inside agent in Gracchus's mansion.
Lucretia's intelligence network.
And Ilithyia, who had just conceived his child — she was now the most dangerous chess piece, and also the most useful.
Writing them down one by one, Marcus realized that his "chessboard" was already quite large.
But it was still not enough.
Far from enough.
While he was writing, there was a light sound from outside — not the sound from the training ground, but from beyond the wall.
He immediately blew out the oil lamp, moved to the window, and looked out through a crack.
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