;;;;This is the starting point of the "Amber Road". Raw amber stones collected from various places are gathered in Riga through relay trade, and then local merchants or Danish merchants are responsible for trafficking them to the south.
;;;;In today's era, the trade route is not prosperous, and any merchant who intends to go to Eastern Rome has to face the hardships and dangers of the journey. If he died during the trip, no one thought it was incredible, so when the old Harold claimed to be traveling
people died, but the Danish community was not shocked.
;;;;They are still more concerned about where Amber went.
;;;;If it is explained to them that the attackers are actually Russians and all the rough stones have been taken away by them, wouldn't the newly established alliance collapse instantly? Some things should remain secrets forever, rather than asking those who know the truth.
It is better to shut up than to stop spreading the news from the source.
;;;;Anyway, the attackers were Polotsk people, and Polotsk was conquered by the Russian cavalry due to defeat. During the battle, the amber rough stones fell into the swamp and were swallowed up by the earth.
;;;;This statement is very convincing, and people in the Danish community believe Old Harold's description. After all, the investors in this trade understand the dangers involved, and they can only swallow it with broken teeth.
;;;;But these Danish businessmen are not stingy. They focus on the future. Now the Russian cavalry and pirates are gathered in Riga. The boss Stekander has joined the Russians for the sake of the entire community. In the future, everyone will be considered a Russian. This means
A wider market!
;;;;The guys in Polotsk surrendered due to defeat, and will no longer have the strength to block roads and set up roadblocks to ask for tolls. Moreover, the locals in Kiev have miraculously formed an alliance with Russia, and the trade line seems to be much safer than before.
;;;;They believe in Odin and Frey. In the final analysis, they worship wealth and the force that can protect it.
;;;;A more powerful force has arrived in Riga, and Latvians are no longer the nominal masters of the city.
;;;;But if a city lord is parachuted in, will it have any impact on the current situation?
;;;;The people in the Danish community have nothing to do with the local Latvians, and there is no reason to fight if they look up to each other. The people simply feel that even if the Russians become the local bosses, life should continue as usual.
;;;;As the cocktail party ended, Spuyut, Fiske and Stekander had already made plans. There were no Latvian representatives involved in the whole process, and they had clearly arranged the future of Riga.
;;;;While Stekander informed his community of the favorable outcome of the reception, now it was the entire community's turn to cheer.
;;;;As soon as the news spread, the whole of Riga was informed of the Varyag's intentions that day.
;;;;Though the local nobles are banned, they can clearly get news from the outside world.
;;;;The strategy of the Varangians was introduced to their ears, which was different from the cheers of others. Although these people were not mourning, they could only say they were sad, and then they were forced to let go and look for the benefits they could get once they surrendered.
.
;;;; More than a dozen village leaders and local wealthy people gathered together to discuss countermeasures. They sat on the ground, each with different expressions on their faces.
;;;;"Sigh. What else can we do? After all, we are not strong enough."
;;;;"That's right, even if you give us enough time, we can't defeat these Varyags by gathering all the men."
;;;;"Hey, it sounds like you have decided to go to war. Don't mention this. We have no conflicts with them, and the Russians on horseback did not destroy our village. If they are always so kind, let them do it
It doesn’t matter if you’re the boss.”
;;;;"Are you so willing?"
;;;;"Otherwise?" Another person looked at everyone with a sad face: "If it weren't for those Danish Varangians, we would have been annexed by the guys from Semigalia. We just don't have enough strength, just like a pottery jar.
The fish can only be manipulated by them."
;;;;"So what's your attitude?" Another old man looked at everyone: "My opinion is that the Russians should be the boss. That Spyut doesn't look like a villain. Our trade with each other is very harmonious. I think they
We don’t want to destroy the trade we built with our own hands. They need us.”
;;;; "In my opinion, everything is a conspiracy." A slightly young village leader lamented: "Unfortunately, even if we see through the conspiracy, there is nothing we can do."
;;;;"I don't think so. I heard that the entire northern sea area is peaceful. That Spyut is still a nobleman of Ross. Let him be the boss. From now on, our fishing boats can safely fish in the ocean, and all the troubles in the past will disappear.
This is very important to us. So my attitude is to acknowledge him." Another village leader explicitly accepted the new order under Ross's rule.
;;;;"My people don't want to fight anyway. Even if I give them some food as tribute every year, it doesn't matter. As long as my people can fish far away from the ocean, the loss of food can be offset by the rich catch. What's more..." There is one
The old guy glared smartly: "The Russians will definitely not refuse gems. We go to the beach to dig amber, dig in the forest, and sell the amber to them to make extra money. The Russians are definitely more powerful than the Danes who have settled here for a long time.
They can continue to sell gemstones to distant places, and they can continue to purchase the rough stones mined by our tribe."
;;;;This description really enlightened everyone.
;;;;Yes! As long as there is demand, there will be a market! As long as the gems can be sold safely, they will need to purchase a large amount of rough stones.
;;;;"Then vote according to the past tradition! Most of the leaders are here anyway." An old man with an exaggerated white beard initiated the vote in a hoarse voice. "Just like we supported the Russian Spuyut before.
As a general, those who support him to remain a general, please raise your hands."
;;;; People of different ages looked at each other. As representatives of the city of Riga, the wealthy businessmen raised their hands in agreement quite actively out of interest considerations. Although the village leaders hesitated, they still agreed after seeing the situation clearly.
He raised his right hand. Then they looked at each other and laughed. Some were happy smiles, and some were just sad and bitter smiles.
;;;;The nobles and the wealthy have absolute power to influence the development of the entire Latvian tribe. They are very aware of their weak strength. This is exactly the case. As elites, they know that once they challenge someone who is much stronger than themselves, they will definitely be defeated.
Suffered a devastating blow.
;;;;Not to mention humiliating, they made what they thought was the right choice.
;;;;When this meeting ended, any uneasy local nobles were completely relieved.
;;;;As everyone knows, ordinary people in Latvia who have learned the news have recognized the new situation on a large scale. Ordinary people believe what they see. They have seen that these Russian cavalry did no harm to the village, even if it was recaptured by Russia.
The pirates also became peaceful merchants. A large number of people in Riga once brought weapons to prepare for possible battles. They saw the real might of the Russians, realized the tragic results of confrontation with them, and were glad that once these people became allies, they would be so powerful.
's guardian.
;;;;Latvia has such a small population, so as long as the nobles decide to surrender, the people in the countryside can only accept this result smoothly.
;;;;So, the banned Riga nobles simply expressed their attitude of submission to the Russians. They showed such obedience, which really surprised Spuyut.
;;;;In this case, even though the grains demanded by those people as tribute have just begun to arrive, the so-called striking while the iron is hot, the formal meeting is just in time to implement it.
;;;;Compared to the large seaport cities built by the Russians, Riga is far from dirty, and the appearance of the city is also terrible.
;;;;The young people brought by Fisk thought this place was terrible, while the handful of old guys under Spuyte thought this place was very retro.
;;;;The locals build their houses with local materials. Old-fashioned Viking longhouses are everywhere, as well as a large number of shacks. They surround the courtyard with fences, and the so-called wealthy people in the city erect wooden stakes to build taller wooden houses.
Wall. The structure of the entire huge settlement is just a spread. There are no two-story buildings in the whole city, so the settled population is not large and the city area is not small. There are no city walls in the whole city, making it easy to attack.
;;;;It really corresponds to the description of the Danish leader Stekander. If it weren't for the Danish community here, some nearby tribes that are eager to annex it would have already annexed it. Do those guys who speak a similar language to the locals have to make a lot of harsh demands?
At least the Danes, who have turned themselves into residents, run their own community and do not demand justice from the Latvians nor give them tribute.
;;;;The Danish community is indeed an outsider and has had a mutually beneficial and symbiotic relationship with the local Latvians for decades.
;;;;Spuyut is very satisfied with the current state. Since it has developed extremely stably, Rose should take over without any changes.
;;;;Before the formal meeting, the Rus-Danish community completely unified its attitude. In the view of Stekander and Harald Harald, the Rus had made the wisest ruling strategy, and these demands allowed Latvia to
There is no reason for people to bargain and they should just accept it.
;;;; Small carriages transporting grains continuously arrived in Riga, and the villagers escorting them were a little nervous. They saw the powerful Russians on horseback at close range, and immediately evacuated after unloading the grains.
;;;;Fisk ordered his people to exercise restraint and not to make any trouble, and not even to worry about whether the amount of grain transported was enough.
;;;;Xinmai understands that it tends to get damp. Undried wheat can make up a hundred pounds of bag, and there is too much moisture in it. Even though he knew that there were elements of chicken thieves, Fisk didn't bother to investigate after learning about the situation.
;;;;There is a good thing about Xinmai Road. War horses that march all the way and participate in battles have always maintained a high physical energy consumption. Especially in autumn, the horses lose weight a lot and urgently need to eat wheat to quickly restore their physical fitness. New wheat is easy to digest and is good for wheat. War horses who are sensitive to aroma also like to eat it.
;;;;This wheat came very timely. After all, Fisk's cavalry will not stay here for long. It plans to return in October and arrive in the Novgorod area at a very appropriate time to station. This batch of wheat cooperates with the wave of waves. The tribute from the Lotsk people just met the rations for the returning troops, and now the people who had received the new wheat were enjoying a feast.
;;;;In the Danish community, a larger longhouse was chosen as the location for negotiations between the Rus and local nobles.
;;;;Obviously it was a meeting to establish the ownership of Riga, but the atmosphere was not solemn, but even full of joy.
;;;;Because the situation is no longer known to be about the Latvians transferring Riga's ownership, but to leading the entire tribe, twenty villages large and small, to collectively defect to Russia. The information they learned is that the Russians will be just rulers, Everyone's life will be better than before, so why be sad?
;;;;Everything seems to have gone back to the past. Sipuyut was sitting on a simple bench indoors. Looking left and right, he felt that time and space were a little confused. It seemed that this was the parliamentary court built by the Ross tribe in his hometown in the old days, which could accommodate a hundred people. People get together to discuss things.
;;;;The long house has the central corridor as its midline. On one side sit the Rus', Danish community people, Ostara and steppe people, who represent the Rus' power. On the other side sit the Latvian nobles and merchants.
;;;;Spuyut was undoubtedly the protagonist of this meeting. Of course, Fisker, who took off his helmet to reveal his bald head, was really eye-catching.
;;;; Seeing that all the nobles who were due to come have expired, Spuyut did not hesitate: "Let's get started! Everyone looks at me, and I announce something. From now on, I will be the Lord of Riga."
;;;;After the words were spoken, the Latvians in front of them showed no objection or doubt at all. Their eyes were very kind, and it seemed that they fully accepted the result as they had revealed before.
;;;;"Do you have any doubts?" he asked.
;;;;That’s all, Si Puyut pointed at a few nobles at random and asked them about their attitude, and all of them agreed.
;;;;"Very good, since you are so obedient. Let me announce one more thing! From now on, your entire Latvian tribe will be merged into our Kingdom of Rus!"
;;;;This is a request for the sovereignty of an entire tribe. During the period, it will not be obtained through war, but only through armed deterrence and economic solicitation. When Spuyut and his friends were discussing, they could not guarantee that the Latvians would support such an excessive request, so he Again, keep your eyes open and observe their attitudes.
;;;;"Do you support or oppose it?" he continued to ask.
;;;;At this moment, an old man knocked on his wooden stick in public: "It is okay for the entire tribe to accept the rule of your Ross. So, what will we get? Is it a stable life as always?"
;;;;"You...old man, can you represent the wishes of other nobles?" Si Puyut temporarily suppressed his inner joy and asked specifically.
;;;;"Okay. I am the oldest. So, what do you mean?"
;;;;"Of course, just like our peaceful trade before, we will maintain such peace in the future. Moreover, it is happy to be ruled by Rus! Our king is full of wisdom and will be kind to all those who surrender to him. I actually know you
What you are worried about is nothing more than worrying about whether to pay tribute, how much tribute to pay, whether the people will become slaves..." Halfway through the words, Fisk noticed the heads of the nobles popping out, "I say, you don't have to worry at all.
"
;;;;"How do you promise?" the old man asked again.
;;;;"Whether to pay tribute, and if so, how much to pay, I actually have no right to decide this kind of thing, only our past can decide. As far as I know, the king will grant you ten years because of your smart surrender.
There is no need to pay tribute, and even if we start paying tribute ten years later, the tribute will be very small. Besides, I am the Count of Saaremaa Island, and I do not want to collect tribute from you. Now just relying on our normal trade is enough to meet my needs.
As for the issue of slaves, listen! Only criminals and prisoners of war can be slaves. Our king is very kind. In principle, ordinary people will not be slaves."
;;;;Spuyut explained it like this. The local nobles took a good look at this already familiar man and whispered among themselves. To be fair, it would be great for the Russians to offer such a price, as if they were a group of good people.
, I also have a good impression of the young man named Rurik, the King of Rus whom I said I met.
;;;;Now, it is the turn of the Latvians to make their case.
;;;;Because he is the oldest, the old man was elected as the speaker to speak on behalf of all Latvians: "The result of our discussion is that the entire tribe will be merged into Rus. We don't know your specific situation, but we know that you
.Will you treat us kindly, General Spyut?"
;;;;"Will do."
;;;;"Actually... we don't have any choice, we can only accept your rule. I hope you will fulfill your promise."
;;;;The old man said it very truthfully. Spuyut was not a kind person. He had already prepared in his mind that if this group of Latvians refused to be ruled, the army would attack to force them to surrender.
;;;;"I will fulfill my promise. Our relationship goes beyond allies. From now on, you will be my people, and I will be directly responsible to the king."
;;;;"Very good. Then, our proposal is to elect you as the permanent general. In the future, you will lead us to resist attacks from other tribes and lead us to become rich. We have never elected a permanent leader. Now
That’s you.”
;;;;As expected, there was no bargaining, and the Latvians accepted the new order established by the Russian conquerors very smoothly.
;;;;This meeting determined that the Danish community in Riga and the entire Latvian tribe would be integrated into Rus. Under a fine division, the two forces were directly merged into the Earldom of Saaremaa.
;;;;As a result, the Russian flag officially flew in Riga, and Spuyut, who originally had a small number of men, was transformed into a large border noble with theoretically tens of thousands of people. He especially remembered the power given to him by King Rurik and his current expansion.
It's just the exercise of power.
;;;;Theoretically, the king did not intend to expand in 841, but this did not mean that he refused any form of expansion. The ban was limited to the main force of the kingdom attacking far away places. For example, the expansion of the Principality of Ostara was legal, so Sa
It is also legal for the County of Liema Island to expand peacefully.
;;;;For the Latvian tribes, surrendering to a powerful force is their destiny! Their merger with Rus is exactly on the right path of historical development. Either they must submit to the power of the West or the power of the East.
;;;;The process of history is not disrupted here. Rus controls trade points and routes, while the surrendered Latvian tribes continue to live ordinary lives. They have huge autonomy on the premise that they cannot rebel. It is profitable to join Rus.
In order to gain continuous wealth and improve their lives, they are happy to accept the new order. However, compared with the progress of the other plane, the Russians are more than two hundred years ahead of schedule.
;;;;The autumn rainy season has finally arrived, and the Ross cavalry who came from afar have picked up a batch of amber and beeswax rough stones on the beach, among which the most turbid beeswax is the most. Forced by the rapid cooling and rain, this stone-picking operation
pause.
;;;;The Riga and Latvian tribes experienced some turmoil and their lives returned to their original state.
;;;;What is currently being shown is restoration to the original state.
;;;;Times have completely changed. Latvians no longer worry about attacks on offshore fishing. The sea is open to them. In theory, bold Latvian businessmen can go directly to Fort Nova Ross under the banner of the Countate of Saaremaa Island.
Doing trade. In fact, Spuyut decided to take the surrendered Danish community leader Sterkander and representatives of the Latvian nobles to the capital to meet King Rurik in person, and the king would confirm the legality of the surrender, and then make a complete decision.
The rights and obligations of those who surrender, and the rights and obligations of the Kingdom towards them.
;;;;"It's time to come to an end. I obviously set out inland, but now I finally see the sea. It's a miracle. The king's map is actually real. Odin protects us..." It's rainy outside, so we hide in
Fisk in the house felt very comfortable. He had already planned to return the same way and bring his adventure this year to an end.