After Mark Reuss left, Gaby explained some things that the gladiators needed to pay attention to. After that, he left in a hurry to discuss with Mark Reuss about the opening battle.
Bach performed well in the final assessment, allowing Gaby to successfully pass. He even got praised by Mark Reuss. However, Gaby was not too happy about it. Instead, he frowned slightly.
He had been in charge of Bach's training, so he knew Bach's true strength very well. He always felt that it was not a good thing to push Bach to the front stage now. According to Gaby's original plan, Bach would have to undergo at least six months of special training before he could become the face of the Victor Arena. It was not a good thing to push him to the front stage too early. However, Mark Reuss obviously did not have that much patience, especially after he saw Bach's excellent performance today. All he could think about was how to turn Bach into a new cash cow as soon as possible.
Gaby did not know how he could convince Mark Reuss.
…
After the people in charge left, only a group of gladiators who had just passed the training were left on the training ground. The atmosphere suddenly became lively.
Although they still could not get rid of their slave status after becoming an official gladiator, their treatment was much better than before.
First of all, the previous cruel training was gone. Although the official gladiators had to train constantly to improve their combat skills, the intensity of the training would not be as terrifying as before. Otherwise, considering the maintenance and rehabilitation methods of this era, the gladiators would be crippled by the school after a few rounds of training.
Other than that, the living conditions of the gladiators were much better now. Previously, a dozen gladiators would squeeze into a room, but the official gladiators would have four gladiators in a room. Their snoring at night was much quieter. Other than that, there were also free massages and baths. Among them, the free gladiators could leave the school at any time.
They did not even need to participate in school training. As long as they could fight on time, they would be fine. Take Griff for example. According to him, his wife had just given birth to a son for him. He did not even drink much alcohol before he left the school and rushed home to get his child. In fact, other than Habitus, who was a prodigal son, many free gladiators trained in school and went home to sleep at night.
The slaves, on the other hand, did not have such good treatment. However, it was said that after performing in the Victor Arena for more than a year, as long as they asked Gaby for permission, they could go out for a breather from time to time.
In addition, Gaby also promised them that as long as they could win a certain number of battles, they would regain their status as free men. Of course, the social status of the freed slaves was still a little lower than that of normal Roman citizens, but it was higher than that of foreigners in Rome.
This was undoubtedly what moved people the most. Although gladiators were more dignified compared to other slaves, and many young ladies idolized them, no one wanted to be a slave forever. Their life and death would be decided by others, and they would be sold around like goods.
Zhang Heng and Varro returned to their new residence without drinking too much. When they opened the door, they immediately saw what Mark Reuss was talking about.
They saw four female slaves sitting quietly in the room. They had nothing on them, but there was no shame on their young faces. Instead, they puffed out their chests generously, as if sending a silent invitation to the two of them.
However, Zhang Heng and Varro did not react much when they saw them.
After going through so many rounds of quests, it was difficult for Zhang Heng to be attracted to pure physical stimulation. It was not that he rejected this kind of thing, but it was difficult for him to get much pleasure from sleeping with someone he had no feelings for.
Varro was a married man, and there were many slaves in his family. He was no stranger to this kind of thing, but his mind was not on it now. So he turned to Zhang Heng and said, "I plan to take a bath in the school's bathroom. We haven't had a good bath for so many days. I feel like I'm going to stink. What about you?"
"I'll go with you," Zhang Heng nodded.
Other than Caesar and gladiators, the ancient Romans were probably most famous for their unusual obsession with taking a bath.
Since the wealthy merchant Gaius invented the first set of hot baths in the early 1st century BC, taking a bath had become popular throughout the Roman Empire at an unimaginable speed. It had become a part of the Romans' daily life. Men, women, children, nobles, and slaves could not refuse a hot bath.
However, even in the domus of the rich, it was rare to build a separate bathroom. The ancient Romans were more accustomed to taking a bath in public baths.
There were hundreds of large and small baths in the entire city of Rome. Among them, the largest and most famous one, the Trajan Bathhouse, could accommodate 3,000 people at the same time. And the entrance fee for these baths was very cheap. Take the Trajan Bathhouse as an example, one only needed to pay one Guadelante (16 Guadelante equals 1 Sestertius) to enter. With this amount of money, one could not even get half a bowl of thick vegetable soup outside. According to Varro, the Trajan Bathhouse was like a small city. People who entered it for the first time might even get lost.
However, Zhang Heng would not have the chance to see it for the time being. He and Varro were now going to the gladiator school's own baths. It was specially built for the gladiators, and it was not open to the public.
From afar, they could see the smoke column at the top of the baths. In terms of architectural scale, it was naturally not as good as the public baths outside. However, it had all the necessary amenities. For example, there was a large pool directly opposite the door. It provided cold water, and one could swim in it. Along the porch around the small swimming pool, there was a small courtyard. It was a place similar to a gym. Two pairs of gladiators were wrestling inside, and the rest of the people were standing on the side watching. Other than that, there was also a man slamming a flour bag. It was a bit like how boxers in the future would practice with sandbags.
Zhang Heng and Varro did not pay much attention to the gladiators. They went straight through the courtyard and arrived at their destination. The three rooms at the back of the small courtyard symbolized a hot bath, a warm bath, and a cold bath.
Varro quickly took off his clothes, leaving only a belt wrapped around his waist. It made him look a bit like Tarzan. Varro put his clothes in the cabinet next to him, then turned his head and said to Zhang Heng, "Come on, my oriental friend. I bet you will fall in love with the feeling next."
"You'd better not say such confusing words to me when you're dressed like this," Zhang Heng said as he took off his clothes.
The two walked into the smallest hot bath on the left side one after another. As soon as they opened the door, Zhang Heng felt a wave of heat. Other than that, he could also see white steam rising from the water. The stone pillars of the bathroom were looming in the steam. The latest chapter of "My Day Has 48 Hours."
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