Rise of Rurik

Otto had no intention of disturbing the miscellaneous people in the village, or even spending the night here.

In order to be a landlord, Kehas has to serve these unofficial Ross people well. He complimented: "Chief, I invite you to live in my village. I will... present women to reward your soldiers .”

woman? To be honest, Otto suddenly became excited, and he thought about it again, this matter should not be done, at least not at the current juncture.

"Don't talk about this, I just want leather." He said, looking at the sun in the sky, "It's not too late. Let's go as soon as we get the leather, and let all the people you hid come back."

"Oh! You are so kind." Kehas realized that he would not encounter other disasters. He was actually prepared. If the Ross people made some rude demands, as a weak person with extremely poor strength, he was willing to lose some dignity in order to survive.

All the hides were kept in the hill forts, the forts on the mounds that the Rus had swiftly breached.

Otto brought a group of brothers this time, armed with swords and axes, and some empty sacks, intending to revisit the old place.

There was another group of soldiers led by Rurik, mainly mercenaries, whose role was to guard the returning ships.

Kejas himself was powerless, and Otto didn't have to be wary of this dying old guy, but those young people really needed to be wary. If there are young people in Kewen who are dazzled by anger and wait for an opportunity to destroy the ship, the return journey will become troublesome.

"Let's go, brothers." Otto greeted, followed by the excited soldiers.

Kehas coughed for a while, and spit out the old phlegm again. He was obviously suffering from some diseases, which made Otto think that this person was really going to die? No, he can't die? Kaihas is a tool man. If this person dies suddenly, who will pay the taxes in the future?

Otto asked pretending to be spoiled, "Are you really sick?"

"No, it's just a little cold." After that, Kehas coughed again.

"Then you are not dead. Listen, if you really die, you have to choose a successor for me before you die. If you don't do it, I will pick someone from the gray squirrel tribe."

Hearing this, Kaihas' face suddenly turned pale, and he shook his cane: "Don't do this! I choose! I will choose a puppy who is loyal to you."

"You're smart."

In fact, all the sons of Caihas are dead,

Either from disease, or from last year's war with the Rus. He became a complete loner, and even the last youngest daughter was taken as a slave by the Rus.

Who is the appropriate successor in this situation? There are not many men in the tribe, and even fewer are strong and promising. Since a large number of people in the tribe are distant relatives of himself, it is not wrong to choose a nephew to succeed him, but what will this successor think of the Ross people? At least, don't think of foolishly rebelling against them.

Otto was very familiar with the path to the mountain fort. After speaking, he took his brothers up the mountain.

"Come on Kehas, I hope you can walk."

"I'm leaving now!"

Kejas was indeed weak, and he was far from dying. He hurriedly led his people to catch up with the Ross army, and it was at this moment that he noticed a pair of boys and girls out of the corner of his eyes.

The two children were surrounded by a group of mercenaries and gathered near the Ross ship. A bonfire has been lit, and the group of people are warming up around it.

Needless to say, the boy, that beautiful golden ponytail had left a deep impression on Kehas as early as last year. That was Rurik, a beautiful and amazing boy.

As for that girl, Kay Haas is also very familiar.

She is the youngest daughter of the leader of the hostile gray squirrel tribe, Sebolava. Seeing the two children so close, it was like a stone was pressed on her heart. How could Kehas feel uncomfortable and indescribable.

Leaning on crutches, he exploded with strength and hurried to catch up with the team, not daring to ask Otto himself directly. Since the Finn mercenary who served as the interpreter was in the climbing team, he boldly approached: "My daughter, Lumi. She's okay."

"You? You actually asked me?" Yefro was surprised, "You should ask the leader."

"I dare not embarrass him."

"So you're embarrassing me?"

"Then... don't ask any more questions. Let's continue on our way." Kaihas was a little depressed. The last daughter was taken away by them. Now Lumi is still alive.

Seeing Kehas's frustrated face, Yefro felt a little bit sorry: "That girl is fine, she will be a priest."

"Huh? Is this true?"

"It's true."

"I... thought she could only be a slave."

Originally, it was inconvenient for Evro to answer this matter. After the team returned to Roseburg, Evro did not see the little girl named Lumi a few times. Because the priests always stayed in the longhouse, he only saw this little Kewen girl in a plain robe during the previous sacrifices.

Yeflo didn't want to disturb Otto, let alone Rurik.

He deliberately said: "Your daughter is very smart, she will be a good priest, and now she is a servant of the gods that the Ross people believe in. The Ross people pay attention to contracts. As long as you sincerely surrender, you can get security and even some rewards." .”

So far, Kehas didn't ask any more questions. He really wanted to see his daughter again in his lifetime, which might be a luxury in the end.

A large amount of leather and food are stored in the cold cellar in the mountain castle all year round. The cellar basically achieves a constant temperature and humidity throughout the year. It is a natural refrigerator. First, it stores the smoked fish from the Salmon Master tribe overwintering, and secondly, it stores leather that is exchanged for daily necessities by the Southern Finns.

So far, after being exploited by the Ross people, how much leather can the tribe bring to the south for trading?

The tribesmen of Cowen are good at catching squirrels with trip wires. They will spread traps widely, and what they harvest are often a large number of stiff corpses that died of physical exhaustion in the struggle. Compared with the gray squirrel tribe who were forced to immigrate and were good at shooting squirrels, the Salmon Lord tribe could only catch them in this way. Fortunately, the squirrel skins peeled off were all high-grade goods without holes.

Otto saw a huge number of squirrel skins again.

It is very easy to count 10,000 pieces of leather, because the local people obviously processed the leather first and did a little "packaging" for the convenience of drying in the sun.

They cut off the squirrel's head and all its paws, dissecting the hide with the utmost efficiency.

Such leather is first spread out to dry or dry, and finally strung together in groups of ten with hemp rope.

All squirrels are "Eurasian red squirrels" in terms of their species. The wild species usually weigh only 300 grams, and their thick and extremely soft and dense fur is brownish red. Hiding in the rotten wood piles in the Finnish forest is the best camouflage color.

Shooting these wary squirrels is a test of the skill of a bow hunter, and trapping them widely is the best way to catch them.

A live squirrel is very light, how much can the peeled fur weigh?

Last winter, the Ruth people in Thorgon brought back thousands of squirrel hides, which were weighed by a balance, and usually twelve long hides were enough to weigh one pound. Therefore, a string of leather does not even have a pound. The weight of as many as a thousand strings of squirrel skins is converted to a little over 300 kilograms. Measured by the Roman pound that the Ross people are used to, their total weight is only close to 1,000 pounds.

The Russ took the hides easily, and they saw that there were still a large amount of dried fish meat in the cellar that the Corvins usually piled up. After all, they are a tribe of salmon masters, obviously better at catching fish than squirrels.

Otto, who was standing in the mountain fortress, also learned about what Kaihas had done not long ago, which was to set up a large number of nets on the river channel, and caught a batch of salmon going upstream, which almost solved the food for the tribe to survive the winter. question.

All because of Lake Oulu, upstream of the river, which is a spawning ground for a large salmon population. The population of the salmon master tribe is small, and the amount of salmon needed to feed hundreds of people is not large, and the harm to the entire population is minimal.

However, Otto heard the news, and a thought came to his mind.

They are actually such efficient fishing? Are schools of fish popping out of nowhere? So why don't I set up large nets at the mouth of the river to catch fish wantonly? Oh, and the salmon tide is actually September.

Only in terms of food, according to the history that Otto knows, the long-term source of food for the Ross people is various catches, and grains and vegetables have long been a kind of addition to life.

Even if the people of Ross began to have the ability to obtain a large amount of wheat, fish meat was still an extremely important part of the diet of ordinary people. Even if it was shark meat with an extremely unusual taste, ordinary people would not want to discard it.

Otto recalled his son's idea of ​​establishing a settlement at the mouth of the river, and maybe he really had to think about it.

Just when a group of people were standing in the mountain castle, a small group of bold tribal people sneaked into the village from their hiding places. Those were some women with children. When they saw a small group of Ross people wandering by the lake, they were too timid to approach them.

Naturally, Rurik also saw them. He had no idea about these women and children, because he was thinking about another thing, which was "the art of governance".

The sun is still hanging in the blue sky, but it has a tendency to sink.

Do you want to stay overnight in this village? Rurik knew that his father had no such plan. He understands what the old man thinks, the so-called after nightfall, who knows if there will be a bold Kewen people to launch a sneak attack? With so many people dead, are all Kewen people willing to kneel down?

Rurik can believe that Kaihas is willing to submit. He believes that this guy will not act rashly because his daughter Lumi is being held hostage, and other Kewen people will not know. The night will blind the eyes of the Ross people, and the fatigue will weaken the strength of the Ross people. It is not a good choice to stay here overnight.

As for the place to spend the night, there are many small and soothing meadows on both sides of the Oulu River, surrounded by inexhaustible pine trees in the forest, which is a good place for camping.

But the Ross people must rule here for a long time. Otto completed the conquest by force. Of course, military deterrence cannot make the conquered completely surrender. They need to eat some carrots to feel at ease. Rurik felt it was necessary to give them some rewards, especially material rewards.

His blue eyes naturally saw the three bags of wheat in the cabin that were used as food for the journey.

Every soldier and mercenary carried some wheat cakes with them, this was solid food that never left their hands, so that soldiers would not starve to death in a short time in a crisis situation.

Three packs of wheat was really too much, and Rurik didn't doubt that his clansmen would open their stomachs and eat them up in the only camp in the open.

Rurik made up his mind that if he saw and accepted the 10,000 leathers, he could give Kaihas a little wheat as a gift.

They finally came back, and the sack full of leather was carried by the Ross warrior. When they were thrown into the cabin, Rurik persuaded his father to inspect the goods first.

"Huh? Are you still worried about their deception?" Otto asked in surprise.

"Nothing, I just want to touch the leather."

The tied sack was opened, and the delicate and soft squirrel skin felt so refreshing that Rurik felt crisp all over.

Without him, the squirrel skin is thin and delicate, but the biggest disadvantage is that it is too small. It is usually processed into such things as gloves, boot pads, and even the lining of hard leather clothing and leather armor, it is not a mainstream leather. It is an excellent auxiliary leather, but once a large quantity is obtained, the leather is washed, cut, and stitched together to form a soft blanket, which is very comfortable to sleep in.

"Have you seen enough?" Seeing that his son was very serious, Otto couldn't help continuing to say excitedly: "Look, this place can provide us with a lot of squirrel skins, and we can make a lot of money by transporting them to Mälaren!"

Rurik felt that his father was showing off, but his words seemed very low.

Rurik deliberately sighed: "I just don't know if they can keep the tribute of 10,000 copies a year."

"Of course they can, they know the price of betrayal."

"So they are all smart people?" Rurik stuffed his pockets, picked up the light sack and threw it directly into the cabin, and then directly ordered Efro to jump into the boat and take out a sack full of wheat.

"You... this is?"

"Father, in my opinion, we need to give them some rewards. I've changed my mind. Those rewards that are going to the Iron Squirrel Tribe should also be given to these people."

"Huh? Why?"

"This is called a strategy. We have won all the Cowen people, and now the Cowen people in Ailonburg are making a lot of iron for us. According to my agreement with them, I will exchange wheat for more iron. That's why I Bring some wheat."

Otto shook his head resentfully: "I thought you had something to show mercy."

"Kindness? There is no kindness without a reason. I only hope to use this method to encourage them to continue to make. Dad, you forgot that we once promised the people here that we would exchange ironware for a batch of their squirrel skins. We forgot to bring them. I’m afraid it’s not really necessary to carry it.”

"Of course we can't give them iron!" Otto said bluntly, "We must always maintain the advantage of iron."

"Yes! Compared to forcing them to pay tribute, in my opinion, we can gain more through trading."

"How did you see that?"

Rurik felt that Otto should be very clear about this kind of thing, "Well, people only have the greatest enthusiasm and courage when they feel that they are fighting for themselves. Besides, I learned at the Mälaren market that a picture of a squirrel The price of hides is usually maintained at one silver coin. There is also the price of wheat. In a good harvest year, one silver coin can buy seventeen pounds of wheat. Actually, the grain price in Mälaren this year is eight pounds. In my opinion, one pound of wheat can be exchanged for ten pounds for them. A piece of squirrel hide, and other leathers are clearly marked. Will they eat fish, squirrel and mushrooms forever? They must be hungry for wheat."

Of course Otto knew the power of trade. He had experienced many battles and was old, and his mind became a little stubborn. He really looked down on this group of scientific and cultural people. Allowing them to pay tribute and save their lives is a reward for them. Is it still necessary to trade? Are they worthy? Or did the son discover the potential of this group of people?

Rurik's explanation really made Otto vigilant: "Wonderful, is this a hundred times the profit?"

"After taking our food, I am afraid they will appreciate our generosity and work harder to catch squirrels. I am even worried that they will catch all the local squirrels within a few years."

For many things in the future, Otto's biggest thought is that his son will grow up early, and those girls who were raised will grow up smoothly and give birth to children. As long as you see your grandchildren, it means that the future of the Ross tribe is bright! Otto thought so.

Otto waved his hand: "You can do whatever you want, after all, you will inherit the entire tribe."

Rurik nodded understandingly.

Kehas didn't understand the large bag of wheat, and what he didn't understand was that it was not Otto who gave the wheat, but the beautiful Rurik.

Isn't this a precious reward?

Due to geographical reasons, it is extremely rare for the Kewen people to eat wheat. They can only exchange a batch from the southern Fen people at a high price, so they regard oats as a treasure.

Rurik fully possesses the language ability to chat and laugh with the Kewen people, he said proudly: "This is the reward for you, you have done a good job!"

"Oh, honorable... Rurik, thank your father for me."

"No! You should thank me!" Rurik stomped his feet vigorously, "This is my personal reward to you. Now, maybe we should make a second rule. From now on, you will provide 8,000 yuan a year as usual. In addition to the tribute of a squirrel skin, I will reward you with a pound of wheat for every ten more you provide. Don't worry, we Ross people have a lot of wheat, how about you? Do you have a lot of leather?"

"Ah?! I..." Kaihas looked flattered.

"Can you do it?"

"I can!"

"Well, we've made a deal. You keep the wheat, and you may get more next autumn."

The delicacy of wheat is really unforgettable once eaten. Kehas dreams of eating wheat every day. It is not limited by the environment. Who would be willing to eat fish every day?

Seeing that Rurik was so kind, he couldn't help but boldly ask the question he was most concerned about: "My... my Lumi, my daughter. Is she okay..."

"She? Of course she's fine, and she eats wheat every day. That child even got fat." Suddenly, Rurik had an idea, "You catch squirrels for me, as long as you make me happy, I'll kill you bring back your daughter. Oh, if you still knew your daughter."

"Huh? Is she really eating wheat every day?"

Rurik felt that Kaihas' surprised look was boring, "Of course, those loyal servants, both men and women, eat wheat every day. This is my reward for loyal servants. Kaihas, do you have hunting dogs? ?Would you abuse your hound?"

"Oh! You are... kind."

What Rurik expounded was a fact, especially for children like the girl Lumi who were destined to be trained as priests, the standard of food has always been good on weekdays. A large amount of wheat enters Roseburg, and a considerable part of it will enter the mouths of the children raised by Rurik. Grain, fat, meat and some vegetables are indispensable.

Rurik did not specify the food standard, but only mentioned that "Lumi drank wheat porridge almost every day", which already shocked an old father's heart.

So what did Kehas think?

At least this Rurik is a more benevolent conqueror than Otto. As the Finn Yeflo said, Rurik is a man who values ​​contracts, so he must cherish this hard-won contract.