Chapter 204 Radical, conservative, infighting and violent
In the big tent, Ragnar collected the broken sword on the ground and solemnly expressed his opinion to Hafgen: "Leader, I think we should continue to go north, and we should continue to raid Melalen. We now have three thousand
People, if we withdraw immediately when we win another victory, we will definitely hit the enemy hard."
However, everyone was indifferent to Ragnar's proposal.
At this moment, no one expressed their opinion on his proposal, and even their eyes showed rejection.
The leader of the alliance, Hafgen, felt that his strategic goal had been achieved, that is, if he decided to retreat now, he would definitely make this young man angry or be detrimental to himself.
Hafgen deliberately asked: "Everyone, what do you think? Do you want to continue the attack?"
Seeing that everyone was still indifferent, Hafgen further asked: "Didn't you plunder a lot of cattle and sheep? You see, this brave Ragnar defeated the enemy's elite. He will definitely be able to defeat more powerful enemies."
With him here, we can continue to win. You put the captured cattle and sheep here, and I will send people to watch them for you. In this way, the army can move north with confidence."
According to tradition, tribes participating in joint operations need to hand over part of the spoils to the alliance leader, because this is the alliance leader's power.
Good thing now. If we continue to expand our victory, the large amount of loot previously obtained will be kept by the alliance leader. Will the alliance leader return it? He will definitely not return it.
Many allies are short-sighted, or in other words, they don't have that big ambition. They just look at the wishes of the alliance leader with the most troops.
The Gotlanders, who have the second largest number of troops, are actually a joint force organized by a group of families, and the people within them also have their own agendas.
It seems that only Ragnar is determined to continue heading north to expand the victory, while the others are all uncooperative.
Finally, everyone began to express their opinions after appraising the leader's attitude.
"Oh! Keep going north, forget it! If the Mellaren people organize an army, we will win, and many people will die."
"Leader, now is not the time for a decisive battle. You should understand that the Melalen people can organize ten thousand people. If you choose a decisive battle, we should take action in March next year and spend the entire winter organizing the troops."
Some Gotlanders also expressed their opinion: "Now is really inappropriate. It is the trade period of the Northern Alliance. If we attack them at this time, it will be equivalent to declaring war with all the northern tribes. They will be united as never before, and they will destroy our island first."
"
As for the people of Oslo, they gave no thought to their new enemy: "Our employment relationship has ended. We will no longer fight for you, we just want to go home."
The Oslo mercenaries were the first to bluntly demand withdrawal. With this first move, many allied commanders immediately announced their withdrawal.
One after another, allies announced that they would withdraw as soon as they got along, but Ragnar still persisted.
"Are you guys cowards?" Ragnar gritted his teeth, "Which one is faster if they organize 10,000 people, or is it faster if we rush over now? Remember, we are only 3,000 people!"
A strong man with a beard stepped forward and shook his head: "We are not cowards. And you are not the leader of the alliance. Why must we continue to go north?"
"We can obviously get greater wealth and greater honor."
"Forget it, young man. If you want to continue fighting and gain honor, that's your business. Now I just want to take back what we caught."
"No, you are just cowards." Ragnar saw that they were unwilling to cooperate, so what else could he do except curse?
But his words really angered many tribal commanders.
Another person shouted: "Hey! Sons of Sigurd. Instead of attacking the Melalen people, consider your own affairs first. We haven't settled the accounts with you yet!"
"You?" Ragna stepped forward, and the chain mail on his chest had already stuck to the man's leather armor. "Oh, I know you, a bunch of cowards."
"Coward? Maybe we should have another fight."
Ragnar was not afraid of this provocation at all: "Okay, tell your new leader to come and challenge me. No matter who you replace, I can chop off that person's head. All of you,
They are a bunch of cowards." After saying that, Ragnar turned around and spat. Then he yelled: "Cowards!"
"You! Damn it."
Suddenly, Ragnar was pushed. After he reacted, he punched him with his fist.
The provocateur was immediately beaten until his nose began to bleed, and chaos ensued.
The people gathered in this temporary tent, although they belong to the Danish alliance, are never monolithic internally. The most powerful Robard tribe uses force and economic means to force each tribe to respect itself as the leader, and in
Internal disputes are avoided as much as possible under its governance.
How can hundreds of years of blood feud be eliminated just because Hafgen became the leader of the alliance? To put it bluntly, Denmark is still in the period of tribal alliances, and everyone can only be highly united when they are unanimous in dealing with the outside world.
Carrying their respective hatreds, the commanders of the two armies fought in front of the leader of the alliance.
Ragnar relied on his youth and vigour, and when he got away from others, he had already made a lot of money.
At this moment, the commander who had suffered a loss was already covered in blood. He suppressed his blush and shouted: "I will tell my master that you are openly provoking. It is you who provoked the war and you tore up the truce. Wait for death."
"Okay!" Ragnar was even more unconvinced, "We have killed all those Frank cavalry, are we afraid of you?"
The chaotic scene made Hafgen, the leader of the alliance, very uncomfortable.
"Shut up, everyone!"
With Hafgen's roar of a lion, the chaotic crowd finally calmed down.
Obviously, Ragnar has been isolated because of his own intentions and bloody fists.
Hafgen saw the young man's dissatisfaction. He clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention: "At this point, we should not have internal strife. Since most of you are determined to retreat, I can't say anything.
.”
As he said that, Hafgen deliberately looked into Ragnar's eyes: "Son of Sigurd, please calm down. In fact, I am willing to continue attacking the north."
"Really? You give the order now and we continue to fight. I really can't understand that the people here are actually satisfied because they have captured some cattle." Ragnar said holding his breath.
"Haha, things can't be that simple." Hafgen deliberately smiled strategically and began to explain a very realistic matter.
It is said that if the Danish coalition army of 3,000 men continues to fight, the time when the army will fight the enemy will be early June.
If the Danish army launches a surprise attack, they may achieve a great victory. Wouldn't the enemy gather a large number of people to counterattack?
Can the battle end in a short time?
Definitely not.
The fighting is likely to be delayed by a large-scale counterattack by the Northern Alliance. If the war cannot be ended by July, the results will be catastrophic.
Early August is the wheat harvest season in Jutland. Once the wheat harvest is disrupted, many people will not be able to survive the long winter.
Even the so-called powerful Robard tribe does not have enough grain reserves for the whole tribe to eat for a year without working.
"Ragnar, do you really think that the Northern Alliance is weak? As long as we attack the Mellarens, we must be prepared to fight the entire Northern Alliance, and the war may last for several months. Does your father Sigurd
Will you be allowed to risk the tribe's food for next year and fight here for your honor? Be realistic! We are just retaliating this time, and we have succeeded. We can rest here for two days at most, and our main force will withdraw before the enemy attempts to counterattack.
Let’s go. Listen, if the Northern Alliance is really determined to retaliate, we will fight them at our doorstep. When the time comes, they will be the ones who suffer..."
Hafgen said a lot, and he didn't know if Ragnar understood it.
Then he continued to face everyone: "Brothers, my decision will not change. I order you to rest now and have another day of rest tomorrow. The day after tomorrow, we will evacuate. Now, you can leave."
Ragnar didn't say anything. He shook his head and left the tent with a tight mouth.
Maybe there is some truth to what the leader of the alliance said. When he returned to his tribe, all he could think about was expanding the results of the war. He even imagined that if he killed the leader of the Melalen people with his own hands, would it trigger the Northern Alliance's rebellion?
What about crashes?
If this is true, people will remember that Ragnar "Woolpants" of Denmark was the first warrior in the north.
He returned with anger and saw that his tribe had already made temporary couples with the handful of captured women.
Seeing his men happily pressing on the woman, hearing his men's joyful laughter, and the woman's cries and wails, Ragnar was furious.
He personally walked over and kicked away a few people who were just walking around, and almost got a whip to beat them.
Forget it, he even yelled: "I thought you were all old warriors. You don't want to continue fighting and are already playing with your new slaves. Don't let me see you again today."
It was late at night, and the beach was full of bonfires. In the Ostara tribe occupied by the Danish army, the fires that filled the area did not know when to extinguish.
In the crackle of the flames, there are the joyful howls of a group of men, and the cries of the captives.
All the killed Ostara people were piled up by the Gotlandic army, piled with wood and burned on fire, which was regarded as a "merciful cremation".
Many cattle and sheep were dragged to the beach, and the bay was dyed red with blood. All the cattle and sheep skins were collected, and the fresh meat was used as food for the army.
Among the troops participating in the battle, Ragnar's men later brought an extra batch of rations. The rations for the rest of the troops were generally only enough to last three or four days, especially the mercenaries from Oslo. They brought almost no rations.
Waiting to eat the spoils after the battle.
The lack of military rations was indeed a major factor that hindered the Danish coalition from going north to expand its results. The army took advantage of the Ostara tribe. If they could not continue to obtain large amounts of food on the new battlefield, they would certainly not be able to fight on an empty stomach.
Just say that nowadays, the slaughter of cattle and sheep by the army is an act of luxury that can be called crazy.
They are doing this precisely because, if they don’t eat beef and mutton, they really don’t have anything to eat.
Having said that, ordinary warriors rarely eat meat on weekdays. In Nordic culture, meat refers to "red meat", typically beef and mutton. Fish is not considered meat.
Everyone knows that barbecued beef and mutton are delicacies. Ordinary soldiers can eat a herring in one mouthful and a large piece of roasted beef on weekdays, but this is extremely rare.
They gnawed beef, drank milk, and were served by captured women.
Many soldiers had such a joyful experience for the first time in their lives.
Unlike those wild guys, Hafgen also wanted to learn from hearsay about the luxurious lifestyle of the Frankish nobles. Even on the battlefield where the war was not yet extinguished, he wanted to be more gentle to show that he was a noble person.
.
He took off his helmet and put on a mink fur robe stitched by more than a dozen ferrets in his beachside tent.
There was no table in the tent. There was a silver dinner plate on a leather mat, and on it was a roasted leg of lamb.
He owns a natural crystal cup that has passed through his hands several times and is now filled with wine.
For the time being, he just wanted to be alone and had no intention of hanging out with his large group of crazy subordinates.
Suddenly, a general burst into the tent with an excited and rude look.
"What's going on? I told you, I want to be alone."
The general's face glowed brightly and he said, "Oh, sir. Brothers are all afraid that you will be lonely." As he said that, the general, who looked like a strong bull, pushed a crying young woman into the tent. "Sir, please enjoy.
"
The woman sat directly on the ground, then put her hands on the ground and begged for forgiveness.
Hafgen looked at the woman with contempt, "Your men all died in the battle. According to tradition, you should have been martyred for them. Are you actually begging me for mercy?"
After that, he looked at his general with regret: "Are you asking me to enjoy myself? I'm afraid you have already enjoyed yourself."
The general denied it and said: "My lord, I will keep this woman under strict guard since I captured her. I just want to dedicate her to you."
Hafgen looked at the woman again. Under the dim oil lamp, the woman was indeed pretty. He did not believe what the general said, otherwise how could this woman cry so miserably.
"Forget it. You are not a priest. I don't believe you can really restrain yourself!" Hafgen waved his hand.
The general's eyes revealed embarrassment. "Sir, do you really not want it?"
"You are such a fool. I am the leader of Denmark, and my woman must be noble. Take this woman away and do whatever you want with her. Anyway, before we set off, all the captives will be executed."
As soon as she heard "execution", the woman immediately fell down on the ground, wailing for her life, and saying that she was willing to be a slave.
Hafgen picked his ears and said, "It's really annoying. Take her away and don't disturb my peace."
The general couldn't help but boldly asked: "My lord, are you serious about your decision? We have captured many women, and we should take them back."
"Get out of here!" Hafgen roared, picked up the leg of lamb on his plate and threw it at it, then roared: "That's an order! I gave the order before we set off, and my battle was revenge! They killed
My friend Oxon, who killed my people, took my money. It was all my money! Ever heard of tit for tat? The captives of Ostara don’t deserve to live! This is my revenge! Revenge! Do you understand?
?!"
Hafgen opened his bloody mouth, even revealing his teeth inlaid with gold.
Seeing this, the general stood stunned on the spot and didn't know what to say.
In fact, Hafgen's anger was also mixed with irritation and jealousy towards young Ragnar. The greatest honor was actually taken away by that boy! Somehow, Hafgen felt that that boy was a future threat.
His anger was vented. Hafgen looked at the empty plate and pretended to be calm and said: "You, get me another roasted lamb leg. Take this woman and get out."
"As ordered." After saying that, the general grabbed the woman's feet and dragged her out like a dead dog.
After a while, a brand new piece of sizzling and oily roasted leg of lamb was delivered to Hafgen.