Rise of Rurik

The girls twisted and turned around on the beds they had chosen, not caring about the futons being soiled by their dirty burlap clothes.

They are simply enjoying this unparalleled comfort.

"Well. It's really more comfortable than my bed."

"You stupid, this is not our clerk. This will be your own bed in the future."

"Huh? Really?"

...

They were still chatting, and Rurik was still watching silently, and by the way, let's take a look at their gestures.

The girls are absolutely standard Slavs, it must be because the usual food is really bad, all the girls are stretched flat, and their extremely slender legs fully explain what it means to be thin.

And their feet are dirty one by one, one can imagine what their past lives were like.

In fact, in their hometown in Novgorod, ordinary peasant families, such as White Tree Manor, only more than half of the people lived in houses with wooden floors. People far from the river built wooden houses without even digging the foundations!

Only in terms of structure, this kind of simple house has a greater similarity with the longhouse of the Rus.

However, all the inhabitants of Novgorod believe that laying the floor is wrong.

The poor farmers did not use nails. They used handed down woodworking techniques and stone chisels to make parts of various shapes, and finally put them together into wooden beds. Because of the limitations of processing tools, don't expect how flat the wooden bed is.

This is completely different from the Rus.

Although there are no planers, the Rus have been using two-handed iron scrapers, and shipbuilders can be very skilled in making large quantities of flat planks and blocks.

The girls were lying on absolutely flat beds, not the fluffy reeds that smelled like grass.

Other girls stretched out the folded quilt and burrowed into it naturally, and suddenly a small head appeared mischievously.

They acted coquettishly around the bed like kittens, and their slightly dirty smiles were filled with joy.

Kamne, who was ordered to watch, didn't know how good "One to Place" really was.

Seeing the joy of his fellow clansmen, he also wanted to enjoy it.

Rurik, he is now deliberately making them torment.

Dirty beds? It doesn't matter.

Some dirt and dust.

Besides, this group of kids may have surprisingly low standards for what is clean.

Rurik was noticing the little faces of the children.

"Not bad. It's dirty and disheveled. You all have brown-yellow-blonde hair after all. Your chins are all pointed, but your arms and legs are too thin."

It was dusty, and the old clothes were terrible, and the bare feet and dirty calves.

Nothing can erase the fact that they are beautiful.

They, everyone is a potential stock.

Rurik pondered again why a large number of young men from the tribe were willing to go to Novgorod to find a wife this year.

Haha, maybe it's because the girls over there are smaller than the girls from my own clan.

It has to be said that the men of the Ross tribe often have strong muscles when they grow up. Obviously, this is not entirely the result of a lot of physical labor. Because the women of the tribe also have great power.

It's just that such a strange woman is not so cute.

The coquettish playfulness should end here!

Rurik clapped his hands and ordered, "All of you have chosen the bed, and now all of you are standing beside the bed."

They got out of bed still, waiting for the master's new order.

Rurik walked over, holding the hilt of his sword, and inspected the girls alone.

He turned around, cleared his throat, and decided to announce his big move.

"My servants! You may have names of your own, but as my servants you will have new names."

As soon as this statement came out, the girls all opened their eyes wide.

A bold girl suddenly said, "Master, I have my own name. My name is Almata."

"You?" Rurik felt a little interesting, and walked over.

"What's your name?"

"I... my name is Almata."

Rurik did not understand the exact meaning of the name, but it actually means "fragrance". This word is really suitable to describe a girl.

The girl named Almata gave Rurik a good start to his "Name Project".

Because this girl's name starts with "A".

"Okay, Almata, forget your old name now. Now, kneel down for me," Rurik said commandingly, then suddenly drew his sword.

This move scared the girl to her knees on the spot.

The back of the sword rested on the girl's thin shoulder. The other girls didn't know what happened, and their curiosity made them look sideways, and there was a trace of worry in their hearts.

On the other hand, Parla and Rumia fully understood what was going to happen next—probably the "Canonization of Rurik".

Rurik imitated the "Western European aristocratic canonization ceremony" in his impression, and this set of interests may have originated in the twelfth century.

He estimates that the current ninth century does not exist.

If not, this set of etiquette should develop naturally. Who is the inventor of etiquette? Great Rurik!

The sharp blade almost touched the little girl's neck. The girl didn't know what was going to happen, she just obeyed the king's orders.

Rurik leaned over and said solemnly: "You, your name is Almata. From now on you will have a new name. I, Rurik, your master! I named you Anna."

"Anna?" The girl repeated weakly.

"Yes! Anna, your name is Anna." After that, Rurik put away his sword and suddenly pulled out his dagger, and roughly engraved the words "ANNA" on the wooden pillar of the bed.

After finishing the chiseling, Rurik turned around and ordered the newly named servant Anna, who had turned into a duck and sat down, to say: "Remember your name, Anna. From now on, everyone will call you Anna. Now stand up. "

"Yes." The girl nodded weakly, but she was very happy. She didn't know what "Anna" meant, it sounded comfortable and she said it smoothly.

In this way, Rurik gave names to ten girls in turn, and the rituals invented by him were carried out one by one.

The second girl, was named Bella ().

The third is Cicia.

Diana, Ekaterina (Eka), Fenna, Greta, Hellena, Iria, Juria ).

Ten girls were given names one after the other.

Rurik's principle of giving names is very regular, basically according to the English alphabet, starting with A and going back one by one.

The ten girls are of course exactly J.

The eleventh letter is K. Coincidentally, Kamne, the only boy, is exactly this "K".

More coincidentally, the twelfth letter is L, and Rumia, the head maid appointed by Rurik, is this "L".

Rurik estimated that he would not have more servants for the time being. Even if there were, these children who were probably the first to "join" would be logically reused for him in the future.

Named alphabetically, ending with a feminine vowel "a". Even on the specific girl's name, Rurik was given it with a slap of his head.

So much so that, after careful consideration, it is a name, some of which are owned by the Slavs themselves, some by the Germans, and even female names that existed in ancient Greece.

After all, this is a hodgepodge, but it only comes from the name, Rurik pondered, the Europeans in this time and space may be more concerned about the pronunciation of the name. Instead of being like the East, not only pursuing a comfortable speech, but also requiring a person's name to have an elegant connotation.

Rurik wrote in their beds one by one, first in Roman letters, then in Rune letters.

The girls who got the name were all very happy, and even started calling each other their companions' new names and laughing at each other.

But it's a bit difficult to remember everyone's names at once, and to be able to pair up with their little faces.

The giving of names is not completely over.

The ancient Slavs did not have surnames. Not only the Slavs, but also the Rus tribe themselves, did not have a clear concept of surnames.

If there was a surname, it would be "Ross".

The Koros tribe has a population of up to 4,000 people. Could it be that all the members are surnamed Ross? Maybe it's also possible.

But of course the noble leader's family should have a more noble surname, and the servants should also have their own surname, so as to make a clear distinction from ordinary people.

What are the names given to the servants? Simple!

There is indeed a word for "servant" in the Old Norse language spoken by the Rus, and Rurik is speaking of it now.

In this situation, Rurik faced a vote of maids, and what he thought of was another word that was more appropriate - sister shaking.

Since it's a maid, is there a more appropriate word than "maid"?

"My servants, you now have names of your own, and you need a second name, your identity name. Now, I give you all the maidlova identity name! I, Rurik , I am your master, and my status is like your father. So..."

Saying that, Rurik pointed directly to the first named Ana.

"Anna, now you are completely different from ordinary people. Your full name is Anna Lurykovina Medlova. Do you understand?"

Of course Anna understood, and she was even a little moved.

Although this girl was only seven years old, Rurik had been giving orders in the Slavic language he had learned from his sister-in-law. How could she not understand?

And to say the name is really logical.

The first word is his name Anna, the middle is the woman who belongs to the master Rurik, and the last word is his exact identity. And these words, tailored for women, are feminine words.

People live in the world, and they are born to find a clear position for themselves.

The name given by Rurik can be regarded as allowing the girls to find their new position. They are young and thin, but definitely not stupid. Forced to help their parents work for a living at a young age, they learn too early about the hardships of life.

And they, too, became the first group of girls with clear, fully Slavic names.

Ah, they are Slavs themselves.

This naming system of course also applies to Rumia, the head maid.

The remaining issues remain thorny.

Just putting the letters on the wooden pillars of the bed, and expecting that Parla, who will actually take up the post of "dorm manager", instantly recognizes them is unrealistic.

Rurik ordered the girls to remain at the bedside. He called Parla to his side again and said, "You have seen the words I carved. These are the names of the girls, and you must remember them."

"Yes! I know those letters, and some, like letters too?"

Rurik immediately understood, and said, "You mean the Roman alphabet? Our rune alphabet is devolved, and what I engraved is the Roman alphabet, which is the script used by the Romans."

"Ah! Rurik, do you still know Roman writing?" Parla looked surprised, only Rurik's slanted eyes were exchanged.

"What? Do you doubt my ability?"

"No, I'm just curious. Did God give you such knowledge?"

"Of course." Rurik said without hesitation: "The high priest has a treasure, and it is a book from the Romans. I can read the contents. I actually know many things. Our ancestors got inspiration from the Romans. , invented our own writing. Maybe one day we will have intimate communication with the Romans, maybe we need to fully understand their writing now. Let's start with my servants!"

Rurik gave Parla a brief introduction, that each rune letter corresponds to a Roman letter, which is not a coincidence, but that the original creator of the text designed it this way.

Rurik actually didn't like the rune alphabet, and he used the Roman alphabet himself. As for the so-called "intimate communication with the Romans" that seemed to be outrageous just now, think about it carefully, this is not nonsense.

It was impossible for Parla to recognize the names of the girls based on their appearance in a short period of time.

At this point, Rurik also lacked confidence in himself.

Therefore, some auxiliary means are needed at this time, such as the roster.

The technology of papermaking, Rurik felt that he could reproduce it, in theory, there was not much technical obstacle. For example, after soaking the bark, beat it frantically, and finally beat it until only pure fibers are left. After that, you can use a screen made of fine linen to make paper that can at least be used.

The ideal is so, Rurik doesn't have enough energy to try it immediately.

In the era of no paper, bamboo pieces and wooden boards were both suitable for writing.

Ah, processing wood and bamboo into pure fibers, that is paper. For the time being, Rurik used clean boards as excellent writing material.

Of course, it is most appropriate to say that it is chiseling rather than writing.

All the beds in this longhouse are neatly arranged, and the girls naturally choose to gather together, so that the beds they occupy are highly uniform.

Rurik ordered Parla: "Go to my other party's log house and find a suitable board. Go and get a cowhide and some hemp rope."

"Cow leather and hemp rope?!" Parla was highly alert: "It's in the cubicle of my workshop, take you as property? Is it okay?"

"Don't talk nonsense, go get it, I'll wait for you here." Rurik urged impatiently.

Rurik does have a chalet for storage, which is really part of the soap workshop. There is nothing of value stored in it, but all the equipment related to soap production and the raw materials for making equipment.

Parla ran away in a hurry, quickly caught the thin rolled up cowhide, carried a slightly dirty wooden board to the left and right, and returned to the longhouse.

"Rurik, I'm back. This cowhide... Aren't we going to use it for insulation gloves?"

"I'll talk about the gloves later, you put down the cowhide first. Just today, you'll use this cowhide to make something useful for me."

Parla needed thick leather gloves to keep her hands from burning, but she couldn't resist Rurik's request, so she had to comply.

As for the planks, she quickly understood Rurik's ingenuity.

The dagger began a new chisel on the plank, and Rurik chiseled out the squares representing the girls' beds, carving out a matrix.

In the box that clearly had a girl's bed, he engraved the girl's initials. It was the double-marked initials of Rune and Roman, which just matched the definite names on the wooden pillars of the bed.

With this treasure, Paral excitedly held up the plank: "Oh, my Rurik, you are so wise. You let me manage them well. With this plank, I will do my best."

Although Rurik hadn't made his decision particularly clear, because he had passed his breath with Parla before the maid arrived.

From the moment she saw these servants, Parla fully understood that she would shoulder the heavy responsibility of taking care of and managing their daily lives, and at the same time, they would also help herself with her work, and her current job was to make soap. Although there is still a language barrier between himself and them, seeing that Rurik can already speak the language of the Novgorods and communicate smoothly with the girls, he must learn it by himself, and he can learn it quickly.

Yes, times have changed.

There are more and more women from Novgorod in the huge Rosburg nowadays.

Rurik nodded with satisfaction: "You can tell them apart very well. Now it's only you, Parla. You have to do me a favor."

"What is it?" Palla asked enthusiastically.

"Cowhide." Rurik pointed to the leather circled on the ground: "You will make a pair of simple leather shoes for each of my servants. Well, just wrap your feet."

"Are you serious?" Parla looked surprised.

Rurik didn't change his face: "Of course it's true. You do it quickly, and when it's done, we have to go to dinner. Look at these thin girls like saplings, they must eat early."