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by whom least of all should have been unholy deeds, saying "O sweetest child, who your father was «you do not know at all, since he left you while you were still being reared by a wet-nurse «and measured out his own life. Moreover, «you have profited from none of his possessions. For in matters of proper2.7ty he was not very fortunate. But having been raised by me, though I am your «stepfather, you are of such an age that «it is your duty to defend me to the utmost when I am wronged, and «you have come to the rank of consul and are clothed in «so great a mass of wealth, that I for my part would be called father and mother and «all your kin, o noble one, and 2.8 «I would be so justly. For not by blood, but by deeds «are men indeed accustomed to measure their affection for one another. 2.9 It is time, therefore, for you not to overlook me, «on the one hand on the verge of the ruin of my house and deprived» of so great a quantity of money, and your mother on the other hand «binding upon herself so great a shame in the eyes of all 2.10 men. And consider that the sins» of women are not directed against their husbands only, but also «touch their children more, who indeed it will for the most part happen to bear a certain reputation, as being by nature 2.11 like in character to the women who bore them. And thus «consider this about me, that I love my wife «very much, and if it is permitted me to take vengeance on the destroyer «of my house, I will do her no harm; «but while Theodosius is alive, to allow this charge against her «I would not be able.» 2.12 Hearing these things, Photius agreed to assist in everything, but he feared that he might get some evil from it, not having much confidence in the uncertain mind of Belisarius, at least concerning his wife; for many other things troubled him, and also the affair of Macedonia. 2.13 Therefore both swore to each other all the most terrible oaths that exist and are named among Christians, never to betray one another, even up to the dangers that lead to death. 2.14 Now at the present it seemed to them inexpedient to undertake the deed, but when Antonina should arrive from Byzantium, and Theodosius should go to Ephesus, at that time Photius, being in Ephesus, should overcome Theodosius and the 2.15 money with no trouble. At that time, then, they themselves made the invasion into the Persian land with the whole army, and concerning John the Cappadocian it came to pass in Byzantium what has been related by me in the preceding books. 2.16 And there this one thing has been passed over by me in silence through fear, that Antonina did not deceive John and his daughter for no reason, but after she had bound them with a multitude of oaths, than which nothing seems to be more fearsome among Christians, that she was using no 2.17 deceitful intention towards them. And having accomplished these things and trusting much more still in the friendship of the empress, she sends Theodosius to Ephesus, and she herself, suspecting no opposition, is conveyed to the East. 2.18 And just as Belisarius had taken the fortress of Sisauranon, she is announced by someone to be coming along the road. And he, holding all other things of no account, led the army back. 2.19 For it happened, as has been related by me before, that some other things also occurred in the camp, which urged him to the retreat. This, 2.20 however, led him back here much more quickly. But as I said at the beginning of this account, it did not seem to me without danger at that time to state all the causes of what had been 2.21 done. And from this, an accusation arose against Belisarius from all the Romans, that he had considered the most critical affairs of the state of less importance than the matters 2.22 concerning his own house. For from the beginning, being gripped by his wife's affair, he by no means wished to be very far from Roman territory, so that as soon as he should learn that his wife had come from Byzantium, he might turn back at once and be able to catch and 2.23 punish her. Therefore he ordered Arethas and his men to cross the Tigris river, who indeed returned home having accomplished nothing worthy of mention, but he himself was eager not to be left even a day's journey from the Roman borders. 2.24 For the fortress of Sisauranon, for one going through the city of Nisibis, is more than a day's journey for a lightly-equipped man from the Roman borders

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ὑφ' ὧν ἥκιστα χρῆν ἀνόσια ἔργα «Ὦ παῖ» λέγων «γλυκύτατε, πατέρα μὲν τὸν σὸν ὅστις ποτὲ ἦν «οὐδαμῆ οἶσθα, ἐπεί σε ὑπὸ τιτθοῦ τρεφόμενον ἔτι «καταλιπὼν ξυνεμετρήσατο τὸν ἑαυτοῦ βίον. οὐ μὴν «οὐδέ του τῶν αὐτοῦ ὤνησαι. ἦν γὰρ τὰ ἐς τὴν οὐ2.7 «σίαν οὐ λίαν εὐδαίμων. ὑπ' ἐμοὶ δὲ καίπερ ὄντι «πατρωῷ τραφεὶς, τήν τε ἡλικίαν τηλικόσδε εἶ, ὡς «σὸν εἶναι ἀμύνειν ἀδικουμένῳ μοι ἐς τὰ μάλιστα, ἔς «τε ὑπάτων ἀξίωμα ἥκεις καὶ πλούτου περιβέβλησαι «τοσόνδε χρῆμα, ὥστε πατήρ τε καὶ μήτηρ καὶ τὸ «ξυγγενὲς ἅπαν ἔγωγε καλοίμην ἂν, ὦ γενναῖε, καὶ 2.8 «εἴην δικαίως. οὐχ αἵματι γὰρ, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἔργοις «εἰώθασι δῆτα σταθμᾶσθαι τὴν ἐς ἀλλήλους στοργὴν 2.9 «ἄνθρωποι. ὥρα σοι τοίνυν μὴ περιιδεῖν ἐμὲ μὲν «πρὸς τῇ τῆς οἰκίας διαφθορᾷ καὶ χρημάτων ἐστερη»μένον τοσούτων τὸ πλῆθος, τὴν δὲ μητέρα τὴν σὴν «αἶσχος ἀναδουμένην οὕτω δὴ μέγα πρὸς πάντων 2.10 «ἀνθρώπων. ἐνθυμοῦ τε ὡς αἱ τῶν γυναικῶν ἁμαρ»τάδες οὐκ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἄνδρας ἵενται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ «παίδων ἅπτονται μᾶλλον, οὕς γε καὶ δόξαν τινὰ «φέρεσθαι ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον συμβήσεται, ὡς φύσει 2.11 «τὸν τρόπον ταῖς γειναμέναις ἐοίκασιν. οὑτωσί τε «λογίζου περὶ ἐμοῦ, ὡς ἐγὼ τὴν γυναῖκα τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ «πάνυ μὲν φιλῶ, καὶ ἤν μοι τίσασθαι τὸν διαφθορέα «τῆς οἰκίας ἐξῇ, οὐδὲν αὐτὴν ἐργάσομαι φαῦλον, «περιόντος δὲ Θεοδοσίου ταύτῃ τὸ ἔγκλημα ἐπιχωρεῖν «οὐκ ἂν δυναίμην.» 2.12 Ταῦτα ἀκούσας ὁ Φώτιος ὑπηρετήσειν μὲν ὡμολόγει ἐς ἅπαντα, δεδιέναι δὲ μή τι λάβοι ἐνθένδε κακὸν, τὸ θαρσεῖν ἐπὶ τῷ ἀβεβαίῳ τῆς Βελισαρίου γνώμης τά γε ἐς τὴν γυναῖκα οὐ σφόδρα ἔχων· ἄλλα τε γὰρ αὐτὸν πολλὰ καὶ τὸ Μακεδονίας δυσωπεῖν 2.13 πάθος. διὸ δὴ ἄμφω ἅπαντας ἀλλήλοιν ὠμοσάτην ὅσοι δὴ ἐν Χριστιανοῖς δεινότατοι ὅρκοι εἰσί τε καὶ ὀνομάζονται, μήποτε ἀλλήλω καταπροήσεσθαι ἄχρι τῶν 2.14 ἐς τὸν ὄλεθρον φερόντων κινδύνων. ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ παρόντι τῷ ἔργῳ ἐγχειρεῖν ἔδοξε σφίσιν ἀξύμφορον εἶναι, ὁπηνίκα δὲἈντωνίνα ἐκ Βυζαντίου ἀφίκηται, ἐς δὲ τὴνἜφεσον Θεοδόσιος ἴοι, τηνικάδε τοῦ χρόνου Φώτιον ἐν τῇἘφέσῳ γενόμενον Θεοδόσιόν τε καὶ τὰ 2.15 χρήματα οὐδενὶ πόνῳ χειρώσασθαι. τότε μὲν οὖν αὐτοί τε τὴν ἐσβολὴν παντὶ τῷ στρατῷ ἐς τὴν Περσίδα πεποίηνται χώραν, ἀμφί τεἸωάννῃ τῷ Καππαδόκῃ ἐν Βυζαντίῳ ξυνηνέχθη γενέσθαι ἅπερ μοι ἐν 2.16 τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις δεδήλωται. ἔνθα δὴ τοῦτό μοι τῷ δέει σεσιώπηται μόνον, ὅτι γε οὐκ εἰκῆ τόν τεἸωάννην καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ παῖδα ἡἈντωνίνα ἐξηπατήκει, ἀλλ' ὅρκων αὐτοὺς πλήθει, ὧνπερ οὐδὲν φοβερώτερον ἔν γε Χριστιανοῖς εἶναι δοκεῖ, πιστωσαμένη, μηδεμιᾷ 2.17 δολερᾷ γνώμῃ ἐς αὐτοὺς χρῆσθαι. ταῦτά τε διαπεπραγμένη καὶ πολλῷ ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐπὶ τῇ τῆς βασιλίδος θαρροῦσα φιλίᾳ Θεοδόσιον μὲν ἐςἜφεσον στέλλει, αὐτὴ δὲ μηδὲν ὑποτοπάζουσα ἐναντίωμα ἐπὶ τὴν ἕω 2.18 κομίζεται. ἄρτι δὲ Βελισαρίῳ τὸ Σισαυράνων φρούριον ἑλόντι ὁδῷ ἰοῦσα πρός του ἀγγέλλεται. καὶ ὃς τἄλλα πάντα ἐν οὐδενὶ λόγῳ πεποιημένος ὀπίσω ὑπῆγε 2.19 τὸ στράτευμα. ξυνηνέχθη γὰρ, ᾗπέρ μοι τὰ πρότερα δεδιήγηται, καὶ ἕτερα ἄττα ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ γενέσθαι, ἅπερ αὐτὸν ἐς τὴν ἀναχώρησιν ὥρμα. τοῦτο 2.20 μέντοι πολλῷ ἔτι θᾶσσον ἐνταῦθα ἀνῆγεν. ἀλλ' ὅπερ τοῦδε τοῦ λόγου ἀρχόμενος εἶπον, οὔ μοι ἀκίνδυνον τηνικάδε τοῦ χρόνου ἔδοξεν εἶναι τὰς αἰτίας τῶν πε2.21 πραγμένων ἁπάσας εἰπεῖν. ἔγκλημά τε ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο Βελισαρίῳ πρὸς πάντωνῬωμαίων, ὅτι δὴ τῆς πολιτείας τὰ καιριώτατα αὐτὸς περὶ ἐλάσσονος πραγ2.22 μάτων τῶν κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν πεποίηται. ἀρχὴν μὲν γὰρ τῷ τῆς γυναικὸς πάθει ἐχόμενος, ὡς ἀπωτάτω γενέσθαι τῆς γῆςῬωμαίων οὐδαμῆ ἤθελεν, ὅπως ἐπειδὰν τάχιστα πύθηται τὴν γυναῖκα ἐκ Βυζαντίου ἥκειν, ἀναστρέψας αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα καταλαβεῖν τε καὶ τί2.23 σασθαι οἷός τε εἴη. διὸ δὴ τοὺς μὲν ἀμφὶἈρέθαν Τίγριν ποταμὸν διαβαίνειν ἐκέλευσεν, οἵ γε οὐδὲν ὅ τι καὶ λόγου ἄξιον διαπεπραγμένοι ἐπ' οἴκου ἀπεκομίσθησαν, αὐτὸς δὲ οὐδὲ ἡμέρας ὁδῷ ἀπολελεῖφθαι 2.24 ὅρων τῶνῬωμαίων ἐν σπουδῇ εἶχε. φρούριον γὰρ τὸ Σισαυράνων διὰ μὲν πόλεως Νισίβιδος ἰόντι πλέον ἢ ὁδῷ ἡμέρας εὐζώνῳ ἀνδρὶ τῶνῬωμαϊκῶν ὁρίων