The extremely hungry child was completely hungry for food, no matter if it was water or anything else, Carlotta instinctively felt that what she drank would make her feel better.
She never imagined that she had just drank a lot of ale.
Before the alcohol attack, her blood sugar had almost reached zero, but thanks to the cloudy ale, it could be considered improved.
Her spirits were only slightly better, but overall, her condition was still bad.
"How do you feel?" Yevluo asked gently while supporting the girl.
"I..." Carlotta raised her little head with difficulty. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed her sister eating wheat cakes again, and she couldn't help but shed tears of joy again.
"Child, answer me."
"I...I feel a little better. But, I think I'm still going to die..."
"Death? If you are discovered by me, you can't die."
The girl's eyes showed satisfaction and a touch of regret.
"My legs...are injured. I'm still going to die."
"Are there any injuries?" Jevro pulled away the rag she was wearing to cover up her shame, and saw her knees dripping with thick water, and her legs were covered with mud. The situation was really bad. He subconsciously pressed his hands tightly against hers.
On the girl's forehead, not only did the girl not feel frighteningly hot, she even felt an obvious chill in her body.
Carlotta slowly stretched out her hand and tried her best to grab the good man's clothes: "I... only have one request."
"Request? Tell me."
"I...I'm going to die. I just hope you save my sister..."
At this time, my sister Ella, who had finished eating the whole wheat cake, crawled over. She put her smiling face close to her and shouted heartbreakingly: "Sister! You will not die. They will save you and me, and we will all live well.
"
"No, I'm too seriously injured." Carlotta looked sideways at her sister, "I just saw my parents, and our clan members. They are all in the clouds. I...should have gone too. I
I think my soul will be gone soon."
"No! You can't leave! We have to live a good life... Wuwu..." Ella burst into tears again. She felt that her sister had returned to her former glory.
But Jevro found the matter very boring and was not moved at all by this sisterly love. After all, based on his experience, the child in his arms was simply too weak. If he poured a bag of ale into it, she would not die. At best,
Just get drunk.
Carlotta continued to mutter: "Sir, I just ask you to save my sister. I... can see that you are a good person. I just hope that you can treat her well and don't... let her be a slave."
"Slave? Why? Sometimes, being a slave isn't such a bad thing."
"No!" The girl's mood immediately became tense: "We can't!"
"But, our leader, you and your sisters are no longer able to help themselves. Do you really think you are going to die?"
"No! If it is to be a slave! I would rather die."
Now Jevro felt that it was very ridiculous. He and his brothers were ordered to go to the streets of Mälaren to collect beggars, who would be transported to the north to be slaves for the Russians.
Jevluo comforted: "We can save you, you don't need to die. The price is that you and your sisters have to be slaves of a noble person. Don't worry, that noble man will treat his servants well. You two will be in the future
No more begging, no more dying like a dirty rat."
"No! We can't, only this. If possible, my sister will be your concubine. Sir, please..."
Yevluo really couldn't understand what a person who was about to starve to death could have to worry about. Could it be that this girl was as stubborn as him?
Seeing her persistence, Yevro was very pleased.
Before meeting these sisters, he and his brothers had been ordered to pick up ten children. Miraculously, all of them were girls. Specifically, they were girls with no major physical problems.
From Rus to Mälaren, girls are abandoned all the time.
In this ancient society where the gap between rich and poor is very extreme, poor families are trying their best to raise their own boys. The girls in the family are labor tools. Once there are difficulties in life, they are the first to be kicked out of the house.
Some families will do this to make a fortune by selling girls to old madams.
Or maybe you have an engagement ceremony for your daughter in advance.
In short, they are the first to be sacrificed in family difficulties.
Some stubborn girls resisted such a sad fate. They ran away and became beggars. Or a family encountered a disaster and the mainstay of the family died, and the mother had to beg with her children.
A little boy becomes a poor beggar? This kind of thing is very rare. As long as the child is not stupid, someone will take him to his house as a servant.
What's more, the leader of the Melalen tribe intentionally collects such orphans and keeps them around to train them into private soldiers who are only loyal to their own family.
It stands to reason that Jevlo should have followed the order of his financial lord Gould and only taken away his sister who was in good spirits and not injured. But the girl with a seriously injured leg did not need to be taken care of at all.
I didn't expect this child to be so stubborn. Even though he thought he was about to die, he still insisted on giving his sister a good way out.
This matter is really not simple.
Jevro thought for a while, then reached out and fiddled with the girl's hair, especially the silver hairpin.
"Your hairpin is actually made of silver. I already know your name. Carlotta, you and your sister are not like ordinary beggars. I don't mind your filth. Now can you tell me your story?
?”
Her own suffering can be described as a scar. Since the noble person wants to know, she will tell the truth.
Now it was Jevlo's turn to tremble.
"People of Ostara, are you people of Ostara? Are you really the granddaughter of the leader of Ostara? It's incredible."
"My lord, it is absolutely true." Carlotta said with tears: "God has forgiven us and did not grant us death immediately. Perhaps, it was all because he was waiting for your rescue. It must be the goddess Al who allowed my sister to meet
It’s your turn. I think my mission ends here.”
The Ostara people? Jevro heard the sponsor mention this tribe. They are a group in the south that is as powerful as Onkras. They are a large group of experts in raising cattle and sheep. They have also been in contact with the Goths who landed.
The front line in the battle for cattle pasture.
Because Gould didn't have time to go to the dangerous southern border, but he did have a lot of dealings with second-tier dealers who trafficked in cattle hides.
Jevro felt that what this girl said was true. They were indeed survivors of the Ostara people, and they were also children of considerable status.
Yes, only such children are more likely to die for the sake of honor.
Another piece of evidence is the legend that has begun to circulate in the Mälaren market in the past few days, that is, the Ostara tribe, a large producer of cowhide, was completely destroyed by the Danish army.
I won’t say whether this is true or not, but the Melalen tribe has indeed reacted to these rumors in the past few days.
The people of Mälaren were on guard, and there were more and more boats on the lake in the past few days.
Just yesterday, Yevro saw more than twenty dragon-headed warships sailing towards the east on the island of the gold master. The oarsmen on the ships all wore bronze helmets.
What does this indicate? Military action? It certainly seems so.
There is a rumor in the market that ordinary men of the so-called Melalen tribe have received orders from their leader Olegin to check their own military readiness and participate in the war immediately after receiving the battle order.
The more than twenty warships were not taking any military action, but were heading to the small fishing village at the mouth of the lake in the east to build a small stronghold there to prevent the enemy from entering the port of Mälaren from that direction.
The facts have become very legendary. The Mälaren people are also trying to build a small fortress with strong strategic value. In addition, there is already a tiny fishing village in the local area. If it continues to develop, wouldn't this be the prototype of Stockholm?
After all, those matters are not his own. As a Fen tribe, Jevlo is now following his sponsor Gould. A few months later, he was given to the Russians by his sponsor.
The Russians were the next donors, and it is said that they were more friendly and promising donors.
As for all the children who were collected, they were all brought to the Ross people to be servants. According to the information that Jevlo learned from Gould, the Ross leader and his son had obviously been crazy about increasing the tribe's population in the past two years. As long as it was
A woman, even if she is a foreigner with whom she does not understand the language, is one of our own as long as she can bear children.
Most of the children he brought back to Gould Island would become the mothers of the Ross tribe a few years later.
When the Rus did this, the sponsors believed that they wanted to replace the Melalen people and become the new leader of the alliance.
Regarding himself, Jevro thought that if he was put into their good use, he would have a good future.
Thinking of this, the financial sponsor who is like a father really treats me very well.
Now, Carlotta still feels that she is not going to die soon. What is very strange is that she is in the arms of this strong man. It must be because she drank something before, and her spirits are obviously much better. Maybe God allows her to continue to live.
.
After thinking for a while, Jevro patted the girl's face again: "Carlotta, you said that you are the granddaughter of the leader of Ostara. Your hairpin made of silver makes me believe you. However, my sponsor may
I don’t really believe it. You...have anything to prove your identity."
"I..." Carlotta thought for a while and said regretfully: "Maybe when my sister and I ran for our lives, we should have held a shield from our tribe. Or, it was my grandfather's sword. Those things are not for women like us.
It’s available.”
"Then what else can show your identity? At least, show that you are an Ostara! For example, some tattoos."
At this time, Ella, who was watching from the side, suddenly turned her back, lifted up her dirty braid, and exposed her clean neck.
There was a tattoo with a "calf head" pattern on her neck. The girl asked weakly: "Sir, is this a tattoo like this?"
"A calf? Son, I don't know. Maybe this can prove your identity. Don't worry, we will treat you well. Now come with me."
After that, Yevro ordered her men to pick up her weak sister, and she directly picked up her even weaker sister.
One subordinate asked suspiciously: "Boss, is this really okay? Our sponsor said we don't want injured or sick children."
"The child named Carlotta is indeed injured, it's just a skin injury. If she was feverish, we wouldn't need to save her. Now she is obviously fine. Brother, give her a bag to save her. We good people will do our best.
"
"Oh, boss, you are so kind."
"Mercy?" Yevluo forced a smile: "Don't you think these sisters are beautiful? Let's go back now."
Just taking the two children back, Jevlo's men were really frustrated. They wished that each of them would pick up a child and receive a silver coin as reward.
What exactly motivated the mercenary captain? Just because of the so-called beauty of the two children?
Beautiful? Bah! Dirty and bruised.
It's worth teasing a guy who shows no mercy in a fight, but he actually has a kind heart.
In this way, Carlotta and Ella wandered around Mälaren for three days, and miraculously boarded a long boat, and their destination turned out to be a small island.
Carlotta, who was wearing it, was still in a daze, this time not because of hunger, but because she drank too much ale.
On the surface of the lake, more than a dozen oars were paddling slowly, and the two children stared at each other with their eyes wide open, feeling a bit at a loss.
Jevro joked: "You'd better be nobles of the Ostara people. In this way, I think the Russians will give you courtesy."
"Russian?" Carlotta asked slowly: "I know the Russians. My grandfather said that the Russians had a man named Rurik. He was...he was favored by God."
Jevro was really shocked, and then thinking about his future, he said, "So you know them?"
"Because of that legend, the only son of the leader of the Rus people received the favor of God. We Ostara people were ready to sell the cowhide to them, but... now it's all over." As she said that, two more lines came out of the girl's eyes.
tears.
"Kid, is this all you know?"
"Yes." Carlotta asked immediately: "Sir, where are we going?"
"Go back to my sponsor's island."
"No! I'm asking about our final destination. Are we really going to be slaves? We are the granddaughters of the leader. According to tradition, we can only marry into other tribes and cannot be slaves. If we really are slaves, I...
I would rather commit suicide by drowning."
Having a strong temper at a young age? Carlotta doesn't think so. She must have died a long time ago if she wanted to die, and it must be because of her sister that she is now like this.
Yevluo said casually: "I don't know much about the Russians. You mentioned Rurik? The only thing I can tell you is that I will be Rurik's mercenary captain in three months. What do you think Rurik is?"
A magical person? Well, you can meet him in three months. If you two are real nobles, maybe the Russians will take you in. Rather, you will be the daughter of the leader. Who knows your future?
?Maybe she could become Rurik’s wife.”
These two children were so shocked that their jaws dropped.
To them, Rurik is just a legendary figure from their grandfather's mouth. The so-called legend, to put it bluntly, is the rhetoric of Russian businessmen over the years. It has been passed around and spread to Ostara. Rurik is described as "
"Messenger of Odin" and other magical beings.
The mystery of Rurik is just like the Ross tribe, they are both mysterious existences.
Yes, the Rus are in the far north! Legend has it that a long time ago, they left Lake Mälaren, just like the Ostara tribe left the Hjelmalen tribe. It was a very old thing.
If it were not for the large number of merchants who enter the Melalen Market every year with precious furs from the north, the Ross tribe would have almost become a forgotten existence.
Carlotta asked again: "Sir, are you really Rurik's mercenary captain?"
"Me? Not at the moment, but soon."
"Then you saved us under Rurik's orders?"
"That's...probably so." Jevro, who was paddling, didn't want to say too much. Logically speaking, the girl's guess was correct. Her sponsor came to Lake Mälaren at the invitation of Rurik of Rus.
The child picker picked up these two children. In theory, it was Rurik who saved them.
At this moment, Carlotta's eyes continued to well up with tears. She was so moved that she cried this time!
She hugged her sister and cried loudly, unable to control her emotions at all.
"Ella, everything is fate. It was Rurik who saved us. He is the man praised by grandpa. He saved us!"
Hot tears kept flowing down her sister's face, and Ella also shed tears because of this emotion.
A pair of sisters seemed to be performing a drama. They told their stories in passing, but they killed the boredom of the rowers.
Of course, most of them don't believe it. Even Jevro is willing to believe in the girls' fantasy adventures, but their identities are still suspicious.
Not far away is Gould Island, where many merchant ships have docked. The situation during this period was very good for Gould's business. The strange products from the Russians attracted the wealthy people of the entire Malaren.
People came to check it out. They bought as many as they came, so Gould's imported soap had no problem selling.
Until the soap is sold out, merchants' ships will only continue to stay on Gould Island.
Jevro and others only protect the safety of the benefactor, and use the money to do other things, such as recruiting beggars and buying slaves.
Today, many people have been settled on Gould Island, and they will be transported to the Ross tribe to work as servants.
Before confirming the identity of the two children, Yevlo did not think that the sponsor would give them special care.
In fact, the donor has always been very polite to others. He has given everyone he bought enough food and shelter from the wind and rain. Is there anything more benevolent than this?