Some members of the jury had already arrived, discussing the trial in small groups.
Although it apparently was a spectacle arranged to satisfy the plebeians, many nobles attended.
The trial would become a platform for confrontation between Lepidus and Sulla's faction.
However, almost no one supported Lepidus, as Sulla's power was immense.
After massacring a large number of senators, Sulla increased their number from 300 to 600. The surviving senators were sympathetic to Sulla or were his men; those crowding into the Senate were almost all his subordinates.
Although Sulla had resigned, he still exercised unprecedented influence over the Senate.
The jury was composed entirely of senators; how could Lepidus possibly win?
Shortly afterward, Lepidus arrived with twelve armed guards.
Besides him, there were many other familiar faces.
"Isn't that one of Nasica Scipio's freed slaves? I remember him."
"And that tall guy, I remember that he is the son of an exiled senator."
"..."
The crowd murmured among themselves. It seemed that all the anti-Sulla forces had regrouped under Lepidus's banner, providing him with more support and a possible opportunity to become the new leader of the exiled faction.
Lepidus remained calm amid the murmurs, occasionally exchanging a few words with those around him.
Just then, a commotion broke out nearby and the crowd parted. Sulla, dressed in a toga, with hawk-like eyes and a lion's nose, walked toward them.
Sulla's appearance caused a moment of silence; although three years had passed, many still vividly remembered the massacre.
Behind Sulla, a group of legionaries marched in disciplined formation with sophisticated military equipment while protecting Septimus in the middle.
Then a large number of senators, nobles, and equestrians arrived—at least 100 senators—who expressed their support for Sulla and Septimus.
The appearance of a large group of senators caused a collective gasp; Sulla truly lived up to his reputation. Even after resigning as dictator for life, he still exercised unparalleled influence in Rome.
Sulla looked coldly at Lepidus, whose face revealed a hypocritical smile.
"I did not expect so many of them to come. Although they outnumber me, I believe that justice may be delayed, but it will never arrive late," Lepidus said with a righteous expression.
Sulla's face darkened, while the others began hurling insults.
"Lepidus, who do you think you are? If you had not sworn loyalty to Sulla back then, would you be in this position now?"
"Hypocrite! How many properties did you buy at bargain prices back then? Now you say that you want to return the properties of those Roman enemies? I have never seen such a hypocrite!"
"..."
Upon hearing the insults, Lepidus's face became gloomy.
The newspaper had exposed a variety of scandals about Lepidus, but the ones most remembered were related to the purchase of properties belonging to nobles who had fallen during the civil war.
The Roman upper class was accustomed to scandals, and the proliferation of related gossip was nothing new.
On the other hand, Lepidus's actions during the civil war became his Achilles' heel.
The crowd began heatedly insulting Lepidus.
Just at that moment, a freed slave stepped forward.
"Gentlemen, please do not slander the esteemed Consul Lepidus. He acquired our family's properties at bargain prices on behalf of my master. Here you have my master's personal letter."
He had barely finished speaking when another freed slave stepped forward.
"Furthermore, our master entrusted the property to the esteemed consul for safekeeping; this is a letter written by the master himself. Our master is willing to donate the property to the esteemed Consul Lepidus, at no cost whatsoever."
"..."
Upon hearing the words of the two men, everyone was left speechless. They had not expected Lepidus to have contacted the owners of those properties. They must have made many deals in secret, and now they were completely united under Lepidus's banner.
Thinking about this, the expressions of some became serious; they seemed to see dark clouds looming over Rome.
"Haha, interesting," Septimus said quietly with an expression of interest.
Cicero was nearby and showed an expression of disdain upon hearing the statements of the two men.
With the help of the clones infiltrated throughout Rome, Cicero had easily gathered evidence to support his arguments during the trial.
In another corner of the courtroom, a man in a toga looked at Cicero with jealousy.
The man's name was Hortensius, and he was also a well-known lawyer in the city of Rome.
Originally, he had thought that Septimus would come to ask him to be his defense lawyer; he had even been waiting for Septimus in order to do him a favor and gain his friendship.
He had not expected Septimus to contact Cicero instead. Was it because Cicero had defeated him in the last confrontation in the courtroom?
"Silence! Please remain silent! Now that everyone is here, let us officially begin the trial!"
At that moment, announced the unusually obese Chief Justice, Cassius Longinus.
The jurors took their places; the full jury was composed of 50 senators from the Roman Senate.
Septimus and the others took their seats.
"Now, let us hear the plaintiff's defense lawyer."
"Your Honor, Jury, and esteemed citizens of Rome, just a few weeks ago, something happened that shook Rome..."
A gaunt-looking lawyer stepped forward and began to speak eloquently, launching a strong accusation against the publications of the *Diario de Roma*.
Septimus showed interest in the trial.
This man was a very famous lawyer in Rome, but unfortunately, he was far inferior to Hortensius and Cicero.
After the lawyer finished speaking, the entire courtroom fell silent.
"The plaintiff's lawyer has finished speaking. Now, the defendant's lawyer, Cicero, will speak," said Cassius Longinus, giving Cicero an encouraging smile.
Cicero immediately stood up, facing the large crowd of Roman citizens and nobles in the cold wind, without showing any sign of panic.
After more than three years of study in Greece, he had matured considerably.
"Honorable citizens of Rome, honorable judges and jury, I believe that the plaintiff's lawyer is talking absolute nonsense. The *Diario de Roma* reports that Consul Lepidus acquired Roman properties at a low price. I have documents, including auction records and official property documents, which prove that Consul Lepidus acquired the properties at prices far below the normal prices..."
"I object, Consul Lepidus..." the plaintiff's lawyer began, but Longinus interrupted him before he could finish.
"Objection overruled. Please remain silent. The defense lawyer may continue speaking," Longinus said authoritatively.
Although his power was limited, he could still grant Septimus certain necessary favors.
Septimus looked at Lepidus and noticed that his expression had darkened.
"Thank you, Your Honor," Cicero said as he gave a slight bow and then said to Lepidus, "Your Honor, Consul Lepidus, did you not purchase a villa in the Palatine Mountains at an auction for 82,000 denarii?"
Lepidus remained silent for a moment and then calmly said, "Yes, I did."
"As far as I know, that villa usually sells for more than 300,000 denarii," Cicero said.
"I believe that Your Honor, Valerius Hortensius, can attest to this. He intended to purchase the villa for 300,000 denarii, but the owner of the villa, Caecius, refused him."
"I can attest to that," Hortensius said.
"I object. I believe that Hortensius's words cannot be taken as testimony because he is closely associated with Sulla's faction," the plaintiff's lawyer quickly said.
"Objection overruled. Plaintiff's lawyer, please continue," said Chief Justice Longinus.