The deep Gulf of Finland is a fishing ground occupied by the Kingdom of Rus. After the heroic and short triumphal ceremony, fishing boats of all sizes are once again sailing freely in the sea.

In order to catch big fish, many ships prefer to rush all the way to the central and southern Baltic Sea. They will use Gotland and Bornholm as their bases. They will pickle and dry the fish on the shore in the form of salted fish.

sell away.

Because the geographical structure of the Baltic Sea determines that the closer the sea area is to the Danish Strait, the lower the salinity. Therefore, when it comes to the ocean facing Fort Ross and Fort New Ross, especially in the current wet season, a huge amount of dissolved ice water is injected into the ocean, and the sea water is almost

Without fresh water, boiling salt with such water is really a thankless effort.

It costs more to buy good Atlantic salt from Balmok Norwegian in the port of Narvik. In the end, people's demand for salt needs to be met by themselves as much as possible.

In today's era, as the production of oats, rye and wheat continues to increase, a new way of eating has been born.

Boil oats and other wheat into a paste, then sprinkle a handful of salt and eat it with a wooden spoon. This was a common diet for ordinary people in the Roman Empire, and even gladiator slaves often ate this.

The traditional way of eating in Italy has become a luxury in Northern Europe due to insufficient food production. As the Russians completely own the Novgorod agricultural area, eating boiled wheat every day has become the norm.

Whether it is the Vikings led by the old Russians who want to eat wheat, the Slavs even want to eat wheat every time. When eating boiled wheat, they also need to eat salt. As long as conditions permit, they will pay more for food.

Simply sprinkling some salt into the cooked wheat is not enough! When cooking, you also need to add some vegetables, mushrooms and other accessories. It would be better if you can add meat.

Sun-dried salted fish is hard and can be stored for up to two years or even longer after processing, as long as the eater ignores the strange smell of "zombie grade" dried fish.

Its mixture of fish meat and salt was a necessary dry food for the old Russians during their long voyages. For the Slavs who were very short of salt in the past, this dried fish of the Russians was a delicacy.

Stew salted dried fish and wheat together. Even the hard dried fish can be cooked and combined with the boiled oats to form a delicious bowl of meal.

The people of various Slavic manors not only have a huge demand for salt, but buying dried salted fish directly from voyage fishermen is really the best of both worlds.

Since there is huge demand in agricultural areas, fishermen are driven to rush to the South Baltic Sea where the water is saltier.

This was simply not possible in the past few years, but the royal authority of Rus has reached there. Fishing boats from Rus can identify themselves by mounting flags on their masts!

One of them, belonging to the king's royal fishing team, rushed to the southern seas with various cargo ships and large fishing boats.

Twenty fishermen families signed a contract with Rurik more than ten years ago. Some of their children participated in the expedition in 840, and some simply fished.

The contract is eternal unless Rurik intends to end it.

Why end the contract? At least the fishermen want the contract to be permanent.

They were tenants working for the king, and the contract Rurik signed with them was touching. The old old fishing boats in the past were replaced by slender armed cargo ships (also fishing boats). Each family has the right to use them, and the contract requires monthly fishing.

There is a minimum quantity limit, and of all the catch income, the king takes half, and the remaining half is also purchased by the king.

This was a profitable business, and twenty fishermen families became rich, so much so that some families ordered their own fishing boats.

The royal fishing team has become rich in talents. In the past, due to safety concerns, they could only fish in the central Baltic Sea between Tombstone Island and Saaremaa Island. Now they dare to rush south.

Since all the fish caught will eventually be dedicated to the king to earn profits, the fish will eventually enter the belly of the thousands of kingdom babies raised by the king.

Those cubs are all descendants of the old Russians! They share the same direct ancestor with me.

Starting from this year, because the royal fishing fleet will arrive in distant seas, there is no longer the ability to transport enough fresh fish to New Roseburg. The salted fish processing that was originally supposed to be done in New Roseburg cannot be done, so they plan to do it in Gotland.

On the coast of the island, salt is boiled, fish is dried, and finally tons of dried salted fish are presented to the king.

Rurik allowed all this, and the once dangerous southern Baltic Sea and even the Denmark Strait are now open to all Russian fishing boats. Everyone has the right to plunder the catch there. This is one of the war dividends the kingdom has.

In the future, a large amount of dried salted fish will surely arrive in the capital, and then be distributed to Finland, the area around Lake Ladoga, and the Novgorod region with a large population base. These three areas have a common feature: they are far away from the ocean and difficult to obtain.

Salt, the huge salt gap cannot be solved by small-scale trade, unless Russia occupies high-salinity sea areas and enables people to cook salt voluntarily.

Thousands of large and small fishing boats leave the Kronstadt moorings. They will join the fishing boats from the Gulf of Bothnia, as well as a large number of boats from Lake Mälaren. Boats from the three waters are at the T-junction.

The Tombstone Islands merged and gradually filled the southern Baltic Sea.

The fishing industry, which had been suppressed by tribal disputes, has burst out with incredible vitality. The "Northern Alliance Treaty" has clearly defined the Baltic Sea as the sea of ​​all alliance members. All fishing boats can fish freely. Anyone who claims to be the hegemon of the enclosure will be

Considered to be pirates that must be combated.

The concept of exclusive economic zone does not exist, but from another perspective, the entire Baltic Sea is Russia's exclusive economic zone.

Because no Viking force can compete with Ross in terms of shipbuilding capabilities.

There is a huge demand for the fishing industry here, and a huge amount of hot money is pouring in. It is natural for all kinds of people who have become rich to order a boat of their own out of national tradition.

No matter how desperate they were, a Viking family could sail a boat far away to explore new life possibilities, and a boat itself could ensure that the whole family would not starve to death.

Such a wonderful phenomenon immediately appeared in New Roseburg. All the professional shipbuilding families in the city received a large number of orders. The orderers were eager for a standard long-headed longboat. If this was not possible, a much smaller ordinary fishing boat would also be suitable.

The leading longship is still the most versatile ship in rivers, seas and lakes, but with a lot of hot money circulating in the market, shipbuilders have no choice but to raise their prices.

The fact is that the prices of all commodities have increased, and the victorious warriors who have a lot of loot don't care. They continue to spend money like water in the largest trading city in the kingdom, buying all the daily necessities on the market in a short period of time.

Rurik was dumping the spoils of war in his capital. He was not dumping indiscriminately, especially the large number of captured Frank weapons that could not be simply sold to the people. This was why he was worried that the people might rebel if they got the weapons. It was these captured weapons that

What's the point of keeping a severely damaged and exaggeratedly bent broad-edged sword? It's better to break it into iron ingots, carburize and process it into low-carbon steel, then reshape it into a steel sword and sell it to earn more.

Only two thousand horse hides were left behind. These horse hides that were starting to rot and were of average quality were deliberately left behind by him. Even so, these horse hides were larger in area and had more processing potential than deer hides.

It is impossible to reproduce the operation on Tombstone Island. A large number of the leather craftsmen in the capital are the folks of Old Ross. To deceive them is to commit suicide. Besides, these horse leathers reek of stench, and more Glauber's salt and plant ash are needed to process them.

, which increases the cost.

Rurik sold two thousand pieces of middle and low-grade horse leather at the price of deerskin. It was precisely because of the large area of ​​these pieces of leather that the merchants who bought it always smiled and thought they had made a profit, ignoring the stench it gave off.

taste.

Among the many unloaded trophies, only one large piece of cargo still fills the cabin of the ship.

A large amount of wool was seized from the Flanders region and was still compressed in coarse sacks and stored dry.

The capital inherited the traditional leather processing industry of the old Rus. Although the materials for wool spinning and linen weaving are different, the weaving patterns are basically the same, and this is the strength of the two hundred thousand Slavs in Novgorod. Novgorod

Gorod is the center of the Russian textile industry. The excellent quality Flemish wool and even the breeding lambs kidnapped from the local area will definitely continue to consolidate and develop its economic status.

The war dividends brought New Roseburg into a new period of prosperity. People praised the king and the victorious army from the bottom of their hearts, and respected and respected the sacrificed soldiers.

Because the people of the kingdom have benefited.

Some people can only get small profits, while some not only make a huge fortune, but a wonderful future is undoubtedly waiting for them.

Karl Hotrasson, the second eldest son of the family, owns the largest shipyard in the capital and has been building a huge ship for the king.

Even though there is now a rush to order ships, he declined any attempts to order ships and continued to lead the team to focus on construction.

No, King Rurik came to visit in person with his entourage!

Rurik was dressed in military uniform and led his cavalry on horseback. They all wore furry white fur and were all decorated with dyed feathers.

The craftsmen who were riding on wooden scaffolding and manipulating tools were seen suspending their work, and their eyes were focused on the approaching cavalry.

The earth was shaking abnormally, and the king actually came on horseback.

"Quickly summon the brothers to stop work temporarily and take off their hats to the King at their original positions!" Karl urgently ordered the foremen under his command. They immediately put on their own furs and bearskin coats and went to meet the King in a dignified manner.

.

He bowed slightly to the king on horseback, covered his heart with his right hand, and then took off his hat in greeting.

Rurik was very satisfied with such respect.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for coming to inspect this messy place of mine. I'm really sorry that we rushed to welcome you."

"It's okay. I just came to see the battleship! I saw a huge hull. Let your craftsmen continue working! I... want to have a good chat with you."

After saying that, Rurik dismounted and ordered his men to dismount and stand by.

He clapped his hands and continued to look up at the hull with interest.

"When the fleet returns, this big ship's hull is eye-catching and beautiful. There are no sheds to cover it. The workers have to work outdoors. Maybe you are still working in the winter!"

"That's true. I am also about to report to the king." Karl continued to say respectfully.

"Okay. Let's talk as we walk."

Rurik kept observing the hull of the ship with a smile. As he walked slowly around, his ears were filled with Karl's professional report on the battleship, especially his estimation of the various characteristics of the "Sea Monarch".

Rurik was willing to call her a Galenic ship, but for Karl, she was an enlarged modification of the largest ship type inherent in Rus.

The land where New Roseburg is located is surrounded by forests, including some oak trees that grow into giant umbrellas.

The search for qualified timber from undeveloped forests has begun since the permanent settlement of New Roseburg was established. As the Hotla family who had already settled here, due to their professional habits in the industry, they searched for qualified timber in the dense forest.

After finding a batch of qualified ship materials, he cut down the big trees and transported them to his processing workshop in various ways.

So during Rurik's surprise inspection, there were still large and small logs piled up on the shipbuilding ship.

No one is better at building large ships than this family. Rurik arranged a group of young boys as Karl's apprentices. They are cheap labor for the shipyard, and they are shipbuilding talents that Rurik intends to cultivate. The Hortra family is also worthy of the honor.

, after all, there were not many orders for building Kirk ships (old-fashioned cargo ships) in the past. The usual orders were for the construction of longships and smaller fishing boats.

There is no need to go to great lengths to improve technology in building these ships. Even if smart craftsmen have ideas, they would rather not do it because they cannot afford the cost of trial and error.

King Rurik took over the task of building the largest warship for the Hortra family!

At least he had stocked up on the most critical oak material in advance. Such a strong hull frame could be completed, just like a human skeleton. The remaining task was to install the various parts as a whole.

Even if they kept searching, they could not find a giant oak tree with a height of fifty meters in the dense forest in the south. The oak tree is the most common local oak raw material, and its trunk always grows crookedly. Some oak trees have

The main trunk can be planed into a thick wooden pole, and its length of nearly thirty meters is enough to make the core keel of a very good Avora-class battleship.

Today's Sea Monarch has a longer keel. Rurik originally hoped that the keel could reach 60 meters, but he still failed to achieve reality.
To be continued...