Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1238: Avia's Marriage

"If it weren't for your help, my lord, I wouldn't be where I am today!" Hesklaus hurriedly declared. "I am willing to serve you forever, my lord!"

"Ah, we help each other out. Nobody is serving anyone," Sostratus said plainly. "If there comes a day when you want to strike out on your own, no problem—just tell me directly. My father once told me, 'The more friends you have, the wider your path.' I've always kept that in mind and acted on it, which is why I have my current standing. Even if you go independent in the future, I'll still support you. We'll still be friends, and we can still help each other."

"I wouldn't dare! I wouldn't dare!" Hesklaus said repeatedly, though he took Sostratus's words to heart.

"Let's talk business." Sostratus's expression suddenly turned serious. "Because my pottery shop in the inner city is so well known, even His Majesty Davos knows about it. That's why he ordered a batch of pottery from me. The order I sent you seven days ago is exactly what he wants! You must use the best clay, the best potters, and the best vase painters to create the most exquisite pottery in the shortest time possible, just as I requested, and then deliver it to Thurii. If we can satisfy His Majesty... Think about it, we might become the dedicated pottery suppliers for the royal family. By then, the people of the entire kingdom and its allied states will surely take pride in owning our pottery! More importantly, once His Majesty is pleased, I'll mention that you are a Peleusian from his hometown. He will definitely look at you in a new light. Don't you agree?!"

Hesklaus's mouth fell open. He hadn't expected the previous order to be so crucial. He had already taken it seriously, but now it seemed that wasn't nearly enough. He immediately said, "I will hurry back to Athens tomorrow and personally supervise the workers to ensure they produce the finest of the fine!"

Sostratus nodded and reassured him, "You don't need to worry. The games aren't for another month, so there's plenty of time. I'll buy the tickets for the opening ceremony and the important matches when the time comes, so you won't have to stress about it. Just focus on getting this job done right! ...Oh, and this little guy—"

Sostratus patted Lyrias's head. "Don't make him travel back and forth. Leave him at my house; I'll have someone take good care of him!"

"Alright!" Hesklaus agreed without hesitation.

Lyrias looked up blankly at the two men. Focused on playing with his statue, he had no idea what was going on.

"Perfect timing." Sostratus waved him over. "This is Uncle Hesklaus, my business partner."

"Hello, Uncle Hesklaus!" the boy immediately stepped forward and greeted him politely.

Sostratus pointed to the boy and introduced him, "This is my second son, Sosicles."

Hesklaus felt a bit embarrassed because he hadn't prepared a gift for Sostratus's children.

Sostratus, of course, didn't mind. He pointed to Hesklaus's son and said, "This is your uncle's son, Lyrias. He's going to stay at our house for a while. As the little host, you are responsible for taking good care of him and making sure he has fun in Thurii. Understand?"

"Understood, Father." Sosicles stepped forward, quickly took Lyrias by the hand, and the two ran off into the inner courtyard together.

"My lord, this... is really too much trouble for you!" Hesklaus said, genuinely moved.

"I used to have three children, but one fell ill and died when he was young..." Sostratus chatted casually about his family. "I only have two sons left. Influenced by his uncle, my eldest doesn't want to go into business; he prefers to be a soldier. Right now, he serves as an officer in the Border Legion stationed in Thessaly. (There was once a riot in the Border Legion in the Po River Region. The Ministry of Military Affairs learned their lesson from that and mandated that all officers at or above the rank of squad leader in the Border Legions must be regular Daionian officers to ensure the entire legion's absolute loyalty to the kingdom.) Four years ago, I went to Thessaly mainly to visit him. As Hades would have it, his blessing allowed me to discover you, a very capable merchant—"

"You flatter me, my lord." Hesklaus felt a bit bashful. Naturally, he couldn't know that visiting his son was only one of the reasons Sostratus had gone to Thessaly all those years ago. The main purpose had been to open a commercial trade route between Thessaly and Daionia. Since Hylos was his brother-in-law, Sostratus enjoyed certain conveniences when doing business there. Running into a pottery merchant like Hesklaus had merely been a coincidence. While Hesklaus was indeed capable, Sostratus had valued his background far more at the time, simply because he was a Peleusian.

"...So I have to pin my hopes on Sosicles to inherit my family business in the future..." Sostratus continued as he led Hesklaus into the dining hall in the front yard. The hall was quite large and filled with tables, but only sparsely populated.

"Come, let me introduce you," Sostratus said with a smile. "This is Hesklaus from Thessaly! This is Ischalas from Messenia! This is Ionidas from New Sparta! And this is Andocides from the Arcadian League! ..."

After Sostratus finished his introductions, the four men quickly realized what they all had in common: they were all from regions and allied states that had joined Daionia after the Greek War, and they were all newcomers to the vast trade network established by Sostratus. No wonder they had arrived so early. An immediate sense of kinship sparked between them.

Just as everyone was shaking hands and exchanging greetings, Sostratus's trusted servant hurried in and whispered a few words into his master's ear. Sostratus immediately excused himself and strode briskly toward the courtyard gate.

By then, his steward had already respectfully ushered in an elderly man with a thin frame but a hale and hearty spirit.

"Lord Theos, I never expected you to be the first honored guest to arrive!" Sostratus beamed, his chubby face practically blooming with a smile. "Welcome, welcome! Your presence brings light to my humble home!"

"We are merchants, so the most important thing is to be punctual and keep our word," Theos said earnestly. "If we agree to arrive at dusk, we should arrive at dusk. Anyone who is late should be penalized with a drink later tonight!"

"Since Lord Theos has given the order, I will definitely carry it out!" Sostratus said with a grin. "Tonight, the banquet won't end until we drink the latecomers under the table! However, Lord Theos, shouldn't you also be penalized with a drink?"

"I came so early, why should I be penalized?" Theos feigned confusion.

"Your son, Axicus, married Princess Avia. That's a momentous occasion!" Sostratus said with a look of mock indignation. "Yet you quietly held the wedding and didn't even host a banquet to invite us to celebrate. You've even been hiding away recently, refusing to see anyone. Is it because you're a relative of His Majesty now and feel that your status is so high you can look down on your old brothers?!"

"Don't speak nonsense! I made it clear to you all last time. It's not that I didn't want to celebrate, but Princess Consort Agnes and Princess Avia didn't want to make a big fuss over the marriage. His Majesty specifically instructed me to handle it this way. I'm quite frustrated about it myself. After the two of them participated in the Marriage Festival, they hid straight away in the Royal Palace. When the wedding was held on King's Hill, only our family was allowed to go up. Even now, many of my relatives are still complaining about me!"

"Hahaha..." Sostratus laughed heartily. "I've heard that both Princess Consort Agnes and Princess Avia deeply love their peace and quiet, so it's not surprising they made such arrangements. However, Princess Avia is beautiful and virtuous, and countless young talents in the kingdom wanted to marry her. In the end, your son succeeded. That perfectly proves how outstanding Axicus is!"

Theos felt quite proud, but he spoke with modesty. "He's not all that outstanding. He just happened to be struck by Eros's golden arrow. Princess Avia is the director of the zoo, and Axicus also loves animals. As you know, the iron cages holding the animals in the zoo were all produced by my Iron Workshop. Every time they needed to build cages, Axicus would personally lead men to survey the site and handle the production... Things went on like that for a long time. When Axicus suddenly told me he was going to marry Avia, I was shocked. I had absolutely no idea how the two of them ended up together!"

"Alright, Lord Theos, stop being so smug! Tonight's banquet will serve as a celebration from us old friends. You're not going home until you're drunk!"

"Deal!" Theos nodded decisively. "But you have to get drunk with me!"

"Why is that?"

"Because you also have a joyous occasion to celebrate!" Theos blinked playfully. "Don't think I don't know—your younger brother Dicaeocrates has already become a Legion Commander!"

"How is that a joyous occasion?" Sostratus brushed it off. "There are dozens of Legion Commanders in the entire kingdom. My brother only becoming a Legion Commander at his age is nothing to brag about."

"Being a Legion Commander might be nothing, but a Legion Commander who becomes a Senator is quite something," Theos said unhurriedly.

"He only just became a Legion Commander. It's impossible for him to be elected as a Senator in the short term. There are many Legion Commanders lined up ahead of him..." Sostratus didn't hold much hope for this. Although the power of Senators was no longer what it once was, the position remained noble and prestigious. They still possessed the authority to elect Ministers of State and Regional Administrators, as well as to listen to and evaluate the performance reports of local officials... They were also the main force behind amending and enacting laws during the Kingdom Assembly at the beginning of each year. Therefore, whether they were administrative officials or military generals, everyone still harbored a deep desire to enter the Senate.

As Sostratus was speaking, he suddenly realized something. He looked at Theos's mysterious smile and asked in a low voice, "Do you have some inside information?"