Rise of Rurik

"The Rise of Rurik ()"

After a long expedition, the most difficult period has finally passed. The huge army relaxed, they occupied the whole of Visby, and finally they could put aside their worries, tension and rest.

Rurik gave the army a holiday, and after handing over the main captures to the duke, the soldiers began to search freely for the spoils.

The found clay pots, cloth and leather were all looted, and most of the warriors had changed into thick clothes, and their sackcloth pockets were stuffed with bottles and cans.

The best spoils are in Rurik's hands, and for some of these treasures, he has already taken out a small portion and rewarded them in public to the most heroic in battle.

The massive loot, almost all the gold and silver jewelry belonged to Rurik, and most of the leather and iron also belonged to him.

Rurik didn't want to give all of them to the soldiers. This was by no means his greed. Of course, there were also some soldiers who were chewing their tongues. The so-called Duke of his own almost ate all the captures.

But how can that be? Who dares to question the seed of God?

Most importantly, without the planning and command of the duke family, when will the great revenge of the Ross clan be avenged?

The wealth will eventually return to the hands of the Rus, but the way the wealth is returned is special.

Since that night Harald has offered a total of eight hundred pounds of silver, as well as a sheepskin, washed loose wool. His daughter Asraki is also officially a woman and officially a Russ.

Over the next two days, more than 2,000 pounds of silver coins were unearthed, and as many as 10,000 pounds of copper coins were unearthed.

Copper coins are not valuable, unless the currency value is relatively high when the currency is scarce, but unfortunately now its value is mainly reflected in the melting of bronze ware.

This is not an era of great abundance of commodities. After some inventory, Rurik basically figured out the category and order of magnitude of the goods he seized.

The silver coins reached ten thousand pounds, and the copper coins also reached ten thousand pounds.

Gold coins are always scarce, and now only a little over a hundred pounds.

The rough and finished amber weighs three hundred pounds. The ruby ​​comes in only a small packet.

The most numerous of the goods were ten thousand sheepskins and one thousand cowhide. There are also nearly 20,000 live sheep that have not been slaughtered, and nearly 1,000 cattle. Most importantly, Rurik found extremely rare horses!

It's a pity that it was completely different from what he imagined. The tall horse does not exist. Among the more than 100 horses that were seized, the shoulder height was only the chest of a strong man. Even Mongolian horses are inferior to European ponies (actually Gothic horses). The Lan people bought it from the Pomeranians with a lot of hands), but it is a treasure for pulling carts and carrying things.

Dairy products such as cheese, which are processed into huge clumps, are what Rurik instinctively resists because of their grayish-white color and stinky smell. The seizure of cheese was small, it was an energy-dense food, and it tasted tangy without added sugar, and kids like Carlotta had no complaints.

Now a huge problem is placed in front of Rurik and Ruth's army. The army completely defeated the enemy, and the materials seized far exceeded everyone's expectations. It is simply impossible to bring these money, materials and livestock and poultry to Roseburg!

There were too many sheep captured, and the ones that had not been slaughtered were six times the strength of the Rus' army.

It is a pity that there are only 30 cargo ships that the Russ Army can mobilize. How can the sheep be transported away in a short time? The temperature is getting colder day by day, does the army want to abandon these captures? Even if it was a surprise slaughter, the brothers' stomachs were so big that they could only digest part of it before they were evacuated from Gotland.

And this is just one of many problems.

Gotland's oats are fully mature, and wheat is an extremely shelf-stable food. If you don't consider the taste, the wheat that has been stored for three years can be very satisfying.

The army rested for two whole days, and Rurik gave another order to harvest wheat. Who will do the hard work of harvesting wheat? Naturally, the Slavs and Meralen mercenaries in the army.

Essentially they are farmers and have fields in their homeland. They have very sufficient wheat harvesting experience, but unfortunately the Rus people are extremely lacking in this aspect.

The Rus who immigrated to Novosibirsk had to learn how to farm with the immigrant Slavs.

Those who died in battle were still uncollected, and their corpses were left to be eaten by ravens. The people who were busy harvesting had no time to take care of the dead. They drove the captured carriages to transport the bundles of wheat to Visby.

The wheat harvesting event is going on for three more days! In the past three days, the Rus army and those captured women and children, more than 3,000 people, have eaten 1,500 sheep in a very extravagant manner.

The reapers cleared the leveled land in Visby, made a batch of large flails with wooden sticks and hemp rope, and began to frantically beat bundles of Danish wheat ears to husk them.

These Slavs put in a lot of labor, and in return, they really ate mutton, and finally ate a meal of porridge made from new wheat.

It's almost September in the Julian calendar, and the rainy season is about to come. In the past, Gotland had only a small amount of rainy weather, and it came and went quickly, but in September, once a long rainy day came, it was a heavy blow to the army far away.

As early as Visby had just been conquered, the evacuation of the Rus began.

Gould carried all the gold and silver seized ashore, indeed only to show the duke and Rurik his exploits.

On the fourth day after the conquest, the seven thousand pounds of silver coins were all shipped to the Avrora, and almost all of the sheepskins and hides were on board.

A group of young warriors under Rurik's command, these 200 people, together with some indeed very old people, became the first batch of evacuees.

The fleet was already fully loaded, but fortunately there was no threatening force above the sea, and the armed cargo fleet headed straight for Roseburg.

They moved against the wind, and when they returned, it was a tailwind all night long. Gould has a heavy responsibility on his shoulders, and he has no slack in power.

The transport fleet would have to travel back and forth for ten days at the fastest, during which the Russ could only wait.

Time has quietly entered September, and the weather is increasingly unfavorable for the Rus. Everyone is not afraid of the cold, but is worried that the rain will make the whole world cold and wet.

People are still desperately slaughtering mutton, and they have rarely become extravagant. The mutton liver and tripe, once regarded as food, were directly discarded, and people were indulged in eating mutton, resulting in a large amount of ingredients becoming fish feed.

Eating meat in this way, the army opens its stomach to eat, and 10,000 sheep will soon be able to eat it.

The current control area of ​​the Rus people is generally too cold. Although the Novgorod and Novgorod regions are suitable for raising sheep, it is necessary to deploy strong manpower and material resources to reserve a large flock of sheep and cattle for the winter.

Do the Rus have so much manpower? Not at all. Ross's power is all concentrated in Visby, and the rest are old and weak.

In the end, the cattle, sheep and poultry were seized from the enemy, not the wealth cultivated by oneself, so it is not distressing to squander it.

There are also benefits to eating meat gluttonously, as thin people get stronger quickly and accumulate some fat. And the key sheepskin and wool, which are the most important treasures.

With so many furs seized, the Ross tribe will be busy all winter.

With this war of conquest, the Rus' power should be rooted in Gotland. But considering the reality, this area is too close to the Danes and too far from Rosberg. Winter is approaching, and people's breath and fog are clearly visible. It is obviously a coquettish idea to send people to stay behind Visby.

All Ross ships in Port Slitomo were transferred to Visby, where the army captured nearly a thousand ships.

Among them, the cargo ships have been incorporated into the northbound fleet to transport goods for the first time. Most of the remaining ships are small fishing boats with very few people, and there are only a hundred large long ships.

A large amount of cargo still needs to be transshipped, and the Slavic mercenaries, who must be packed into cargo ships, must return to their hometown of Novgorod in September.

"Damn. I'm not at all afraid of fighting or destroying. Now I try to bring back the personnel and captures as much as possible. It's so troublesome!" Rurik blamed himself for not being fully prepared.

After some scheduling, looking at the long ships waiting to cover the coast with empty space, and the arrival of the empty transport fleet in anticipation of returning, it was the final evacuation moment for the army.

It seems that all the Russ army has to do is sit down and eat new wheat porridge and nibble on mutton every day, and the unexpected happens suddenly.

Some of the Rus did their thing, rowing into the waters off Visby to hunt whales.

As a result, a huge fleet came upwind from the south.

Is it the enemy? Is it the Danes who got the news and called for their lives?

The fishing boats tried to evacuate, breaking news of the major enemy attack.

Of course, the incoming fleet was indeed eager for a battle, and a longship headed it revealed its identity.

The battle still happened, and the fleet quickly took control of the Ross fishing boat. Seeing that the opponent actually withdrew for a while and then did not resist the whole process, a young man wearing a golden crown cried out in confusion.

Carrying a steel sword with a gilt hilt and bejeweled, the man pointed at the unafraid captured enemy: "You Gotlanders? Are you willing to surrender?"

One person made a straightforward statement: "I recognize your coat of arms, and I also recognize your face. It is Karl, the eldest son of King Olegen."

"What? My name has been passed on to Gotland." Carl nodded. "I'll spare you, since you're sensible. Now kneel down and be my slave."

"No! You made a mistake." After one person finished speaking, the others laughed.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Karl, you actually wear your father's crown? King Orekin has passed on to you. We are not Gotland, we are Rus."

Then, someone untied the captured sheepskin coat, revealing the blue and white Russ uniform inside.

Don't you know Karl, the totem coat of arms of the Rus? He exclaimed the wonder of the world, and learned even more shocking news.

"Is the news reliable? Are you liars? You conquered Gotland? You conquered Visby?"

The great victory of revenge is the pride of every Ruth warrior. "Then bring the army to Visby, and our lord the duke will welcome the great king Olegin."

What annoys Carl is that these Ross fishermen don't show any respect for themselves. He doesn't care that much now, because of Carl, who just had a terrible failure.

The coalition of various Swedish tribes has ended the expedition of Silver Fort. They have gone all the way north, passed the Kalmar Strait, and are now rushing towards Lake Mälaren with all their strength.

There was no joy after the victory on their faces, every fighter was panting from the long rowing, and everyone began to feel apprehensive as they entered the sea where the Gotlanders were active.

Can't think of Gotland changing hands? The Rus defeated the entire Gotland? Occupy Visby at least?

Carl can't think of that much, his allies, every soldier, everyone urgently needs a resting place, and urgently needs very critical supplies! Presumably the Rus will fulfill their alliance obligations and give everyone food and fresh water.

The news of the Rus occupying Visby was like a gift from Odin.

After the news spread, no one was worried about whether there was any fraud. The Swedish army's fleet adjusted its direction and headed straight for Visby.

Of course, this seemed to the Rus as if the enemy's Danish reinforcements had launched a counterattack.

The relaxed Rus people were tense again, and the elite warriors were still gathering quickly.

Bows, crossbows, and torsion slingshots are aimed at the approaching fleet. Soldiers lined up, the first platoon formed a blue-and-white human wall, and the long hairs of the Slavic flag team formed a dangerous moving forest.

"It seems that God has brought me new opportunities for meritorious deeds." Otto clenched the hilt of his sword and asked his stern-faced son, "Are you sure of winning?"

"Of course, our arrows are invincible in the world. Our soldiers have eaten mutton for so many days, and they are full of strength."

"Then let them land and annihilate on the beachhead?"

"right!"

Otto patted his son's head vigorously, but the situation became more and more bizarre.

"No!" he roared suddenly. "It's the Melarens! Their coat of arms! And the Yermalens! The Uppsalas, and the Unkras... stop!"

At the most critical moment, Otto ordered his son Rurik not to issue a shooting order. Unexpectedly, Carl on the boat was almost pierced by thousands of arrows!

The flagship of the Mellarens ran aground for the first time, and Karl jumped off with mixed emotions.

He tried hard to straighten his golden crown and tried to show himself heroic, but it was a pity that the soldiers behind him, looking at their images and the soldiers of the Rusian Army who were close by, were all born and underground.

A large number of coalition soldiers, their hair is fluffy, their mail and leather armor are mostly damaged, and many people's clothes also have large and small holes.

The first to come down were the soldiers of the Melalen Army. They changed their arrogance, and a dejected atmosphere enveloped everyone.

Soldiers from other tribes also disembarked, but their condition was worse.

"It's strange, am I dazzled? Why haven't I seen that old fellow Olegin?" Otto kept pinching his beard and suddenly realized a terrible possibility.

Otto directly picked up his son Rurik, so that his head could surpass the helmets of all the soldiers and see the image of the "huge" army that landed.

"You see Carl now, the guy with the crown. Do you see that?"

"He... he actually became a king?!" Rurik saw it so earnestly, he rubbed his eyes hard again to make sure he was right.

"I think so too," Otto speculated disdainfully. "Perhaps he killed Olegin. He was a wicked man."

"Perhaps Origen was killed. You look at the warriors behind him, as if they were all defeated. Didn't they go to loot the legendary Silver Fort? They must have failed."

"Let's go, go and see these poor people." Otto put down Rurik, pushed through the wall and showed up with his son.

Seeing the big boss of Ross and the young Rurik again, Karl couldn't help but be startled, and then walked over with energy.

He approached Otto and asked respectfully: "It seems that Duke Ross has occupied this town, and Visby is occupied by you, which means that this is already the territory of our Kingdom of Sweden."

Otto didn't have time to listen to some of these, and I was very curious that this arrogant kid has become gentle now? What did they experience in the world in the South?

"Karl, you're wearing your father's crown? Where's Olegin? Let him come! Talk to me, you're not good enough boy."

Carl's heart suddenly became angry, but looking at the current situation, he was not stupid enough to release his anger at the strong.

The Nordic world is like this, whoever has the bigger fist is the king. In this Visby in Gotland, it is obvious that the Rus army is the king, even Carl can't believe what he sees is true, is this the true strength of the Rus? !

Carl struggled to maintain his arrogance. He vigorously lifted his bearded head and pointed at his crown with his right hand: "Now, I am the king."

"Really? Where's Olegin? Where's your father?"

"He died, we..." Karl had an idea and deliberately said: "Our coalition fought a decisive battle with the entire Danish army in the south. We almost won, but the opponent killed a hero, and we were defeated. But you left early. , look at this Rus army! It's really strong! Unfortunately, if you appear on the battlefield in the south, the victory belongs to Sweden, and by that time, won't the little Gotland just look out for the wind?"

At this moment, Rurik gritted his teeth, and he heard Carl's excuse for failure, "So, you put the responsibility of your failure on us?"

"You?" Carl looked down at him and shook his head: "You are still a child, and you have no place to speak here."

"Then don't talk about it." Rurik was not to be outdone, "I only have two questions now. First, what do you want to do when you land in Visby? Second, the debt owed by your father, since you inherited the throne , you must claim it."

debt! This is a major event that Carl absolutely cannot avoid. He pretended to be garlic in front of a boy, and the other party raised a debt problem, and he had to fight haha.

Carl's attitude softened again, and he opened his arms to face Otto: "Look at us! We need help, we are allies, I... just want to eat something in Visby. I believe in the powerful Rus, who will give him My allies have some food and fresh water. As for the debt, back in Melalen, I'll pay it back for my father."

Otto and Rurik estimated the failure of the coalition, and seeing the exhausted appearance of the soldiers, they believed Karl's words for the time being. Most realistically, these warriors are almost all farmers and fishermen in Lake Melalen. They really starved to death and died of exhaustion. Who can provide the Rus with wheat that they can buy? Even out of selfishness, these people have to be given something to eat.

The father and son had the same attitude, so they invited Karl and all the leaders of the tribes participating in the war to gather at the Visby court. Other warriors landed one after another, and everyone would get some cattle and sheep. As for how to slaughter the food, it all depends on their own endurance.

In this way, a tired "army" of only 1,200 men completed the landing.