When setting off, three hundred warriors dragged some sleds and carried a batch of food, heading for the mysterious, dangerous and opportunity-filled north.
It’s almost March in the Julian calendar, and the warriors are back in larger groups with brand new means of transportation.
A large number of Russians, either carrying swords or carrying short spears, gathered in the sleigh team.
Many people subconsciously touched the giant antlers and fur of the reindeer, and many people stared at the leather tied tightly with hemp rope, as well as the strange men and women wearing animal skins and rough linen clothes.
They are outsiders!
They are probably new slaves.
But these people's hands and feet were not bound in any way, and they tried their best to avoid the eyes that stared at them.
Otto jumped off the sled like a king and met Harold Zosen who was the first to rush over on the frozen coast of Rossberg.
"You have been gone for nearly two months, and it feels like you have been gone for a full year. My great leader, you are..."
With a smile on his face, Otto pointed to the east and responded to his close friend: "Hallo Johnson, we not only hunted, we explored the land of the east."
"real?"
"Of course!" Otto, who was in a good mood, greeted his Rurik, and immediately after, Rurik jumped off the sled, pulling the brother and sister, and stood beside Otto.
"Look, my son has new servants. They are from the East. They are not Finns. They are called Covins."
Haro Zuosen glanced at the two children, and with just one glance, he concluded that the appearance of the two children was indeed obviously different from that of his own tribe. They looked more like Rumia, such as the round almond eyes and the overall appearance of their faces.
She is flatter, but her hair is more golden than Rumia's.
I looked at other weird people riding sleds, and they all looked similar.
Haro Zuosen was really happy for the leader: "It seems that your harvest has been huge. My leader, you have made great achievements. We thought you were strange attackers, but we didn't expect that you came across the ice sea."
Otto walked three steps forward with a smile and patted the old man on the shoulder: "They are not my slaves, they are Rurik's slaves. I'm back now, tell me, is everything okay?"
"Oh! Of course! Everything is really peaceful and everyone's life is quiet. Now that you are back, everyone is very happy."
"Then let's go! We need a big celebration."
Roseburg, the thick fjord, and the hills near the fjord are like a mother, tolerating her sons who are out to explore.
"Operation Northern Hunting" officially ended in a way that no one expected, and the biggest gain from this operation was the large amount of furs and hundreds of slaves that were extorted and plundered?
That was a great piece of information, which made the boundaries of the known world in the Russian worldview extend much further to the east.
Those Corvin people from the "Eastern Land" are a group of people that the Rus have never seen before. Now, after returning to their hometown, the big leader conveyed exciting news - the Rus have conquered the land of the Corvin people.
"The land of the east! All the lands of the east, except the territory of the Davens, belong to us!"
The Ross tribe fell into a carnival, and a huge number of bonfires were quickly lit in the snow-covered Ross Fort. At night, Rumia, who had just returned, put on her deer-antler helmet and set off in the car, regardless of the fatigue of traveling and traveling.
Under the guidance of High Priest Vilia, a "giving back to Odin" ceremony was performed at the Stone Ship Altar late at night.
This ceremony was a luxurious one, and two stags were sacrificed.
Although he was a little reluctant to execute two deer, Rurik tried hard to overcome his fatigue and still held the steel sword with his own hands and killed the deer. In his opinion, everyone felt that everything was worthwhile after completing this sacrifice.
a clear end.
Deer blood dyed the altar red, and the steaming deer liver was placed on a bronze plate. Rumia carefully placed it on the altar. At this moment, the sky, which was originally a dim green aurora, suddenly became brighter.
Villa's face, which looked like a crack in the earth, looked toward the sky, looking at the shining aurora, and two lines of hot tears moistened her withered face.
She couldn't help but murmur in the sanctuary: "God has received our feedback. Your great move across the ice sea has been recognized by God. We have conquered those people in the east, and we have been approved by God."
"Grandma, is this a good thing?" Rurik asked deliberately.
Villa lowered her head again, and slowly looked around, looking at Otto and his close associates, as well as all the warriors who had participated in the operation and returned safely. She looked at Rurik again: "Those conquered Kovin people
, how do you want to treat them? They are your servants."
This seemed to be a question from the soul, and Rurik couldn't help but think a lot!
After all, the composition of the Rus' group has become more complex. A large number of Novgorod women, as well as Rus and their mixed descendants have been added to the huge population. A group of deer herders and Kovin people have also
Joining in, some of these women also became Russian wives.
Rurik didn't think much about it: "I am their master, and they are my servants. Servants must be loyal to their masters and work for their masters. And their masters must provide shelter to their servants. This is the contract between me and God."
"What a perfect contract. Just abide by the contract! Just like your name, Rose will be strong again."
Ross will be strong again.
This is a bit mysterious when you think about it seriously. Could it be that the Russians were very powerful a long time ago? Rurik couldn't help but think that Vilia might still have some past stories buried in her heart. After all, she is over seventy years old. As for those
The story was not engraved on the wooden board.
The grand sacrificial activity is just part of the grander carnival of the entire Roseburg.
The tribesmen not only congratulated the returning warriors, but also because March was soon approaching, and the huge, weirdly twisted mass of ice in the center of the ocean would soon loosen, and the ice-covered ocean would thaw at an extremely fast rate. In order to welcome
As the trade season begins to resume in April, the Russians are also interested in finding a reason to consume various supplies at home.
Compared with previous winters, the winter that the Russians are experiencing is unprecedentedly rich. The reason for the wealth is not other than the huge amount of currency looted from last summer's war against the Gotlanders, and Rurik's request for ancient money.
Ed and a large number of small businessmen who followed the big businessman brought a huge amount of daily necessities.
Rurikben estimated that all the grain supplies could sustain the Russians until early February.
What is the reality? Small Russian families do not eat wheat every day. Even if the wheat is delicious, they are more accustomed to a small amount of wheat and a large amount of meat.
You can still eat a lot of fresh meat in winter, and this is entirely because of the new "soap trade" established by Rurik. The trade has caused a large number of men to stay behind, operating huge Nordic forest axes to chip away at the extremely thick sea ice to lure seals to breathe.
.
Two months after Otto's team left, more than 500 Rus men dragged sleds south along the coastline in search of thinner sea ice to catch more seals.
Fishermen know that it is better to catch herring in the southern waters, so they must try their luck in catching seals in the south.
Their luck can be said to be a symbol of strength. In just two months, as many as 6,000 seals were captured. So many seals that in Rurik's soap workshop, large amounts of seal suet could only be thrown in the snow.
After being stored in the ground for a long time, dozens of tons of seal oil cannot be consumed in a short period of time just by the work of a bunch of children processing soap.
As for the seal meat, it went into the stomachs of the Russians one after another. The smooth and fine seal skin made the fur traders who lived there crazy.
Gould was naturally a part of this "fur craze".
All merchants saw huge business opportunities in the future, because those warriors who had just returned began to look for merchants to negotiate a reasonable sales price for squirrel skins.
Therefore, a large number of Russians not only drank ale around the campfire, they also negotiated with all kinds of businessmen, and some business was concluded on the first night.
They took advantage of the carnival to dump their share of the spoils, hoping to use the money they earned to buy some strange things. And the merchants were not fools, a pair of invisible hands was influencing the fur trading market that appeared in an instant.
According to past situations, the fur market began to appear when the Russian hunters returned with their full loads. For a period of time, the entire Russian market was a big market.
After the transaction was completed, all the tanners' families in Roseburg began to be immersed in the stench of tanned leather.
This year's situation is not fundamentally different from previous years, but the large quantity and high quality of the new furs entering the market were beyond the expectation of all those who stayed behind.
Almost from the first transaction, some businessmen began to lower the purchase price.
Or they are eager to sell the leather on hand for money, return the credit to the blacksmith shop, order a new steel sword, or just want to buy some wheat and frozen carrots to make soup to satisfy their appetite.
Or you simply like the feeling of holding silver coins in your hands.
Leather owners began to sell leather in large quantities. In order to realize cash quickly, they either took the initiative to lower the price, or passively accepted the merchant's pricing.
Sacrificial activities can serve as a watershed for prices.
Before the sacrifice, those who sell squirrel skins can get one silver coin and fifty copper coins for one piece of skin.
After the sacrifice, the purchase price dropped at a speed visible to the naked eye. At one time, some people were even willing to sell two squirrel skins for one silver coin.
You know, although the squirrel skin in normal times is not as amazing as the ferret skin, which costs six silver coins, it is also close to the price of forest cat skin, which is two silver coins. Now, who is in the "Northern Hunting Operation"?
Make a fortune from attacking the Kovin tribes?!
It's businessmen!
And this is the economy, which is the greatest profit motive that allowed travelers to come with their families and their families.
The merchants are waiting for the opportunity to make a fortune, and a large number of small merchants have joined the crazy army. The merchant families living there are busy buying furs under the night, and they have even forgotten what it means to be embarrassed. The whole family is dreaming about the trading season.
After recovering, he went to the south to sell leather products and make a lot of money.
All this happened quietly without Rurik being aware of it.
The carnival lasted until the sun came up!
In Fort Ross, a large number of bonfires were still slowly burning with hot embers, and many drunk and exhausted people lay beside the bonfires and fell asleep.
There were also many warriors who participated in the action. They sold their furs, carried a handful of silver coins in their arms, and reunited with their long-awaited Novgorod wives who had just given birth to a child.
Isn't this the case with Rurik?
Fortunately, Otto was reminiscing with the old guys who were left behind. He took a batch of spirits from the blacksmith shop and told the guys about his great journey at the house of Harold Zosen.
They formed a large group of rotten, unshaven men, lying in a heap in a heap, just like soldiers who had just finished a bloody battle and lay down on the battlefield to rest.
This caused the leader's house to become a children's nest.
"For the new children, I must train them to be reliable partners, wives, or strong men."
No, Rurik was dragged directly to the bed by Niya, who was eager for his son, and held him in his arms. This bed should have been lying on this bed, Otto, a strong old guy. When the team was hunting north,
Niya pulled little sister Carlotta over purely out of emptiness.
However, no matter what, she did not feel at ease and happy like holding her own son in her arms.
A total of four people, one senior and three juniors, were squeezed into a big bed. Although it was a bit crowded, everyone felt happy.
Lumia took Lumi, the daughter of the leader of the Salmon Lord tribe, a little girl with the same name as herself, and the two of them slept on the bed in Rurik's own room.
As for the Tyravis brother and sister, they lived in the room that originally belonged to Rumia.
Seven children were crammed into a warm wooden house, and Rurik was naturally one of them.
The three newcomers marveled at the wonderful feeling of sleeping on the bed, the wonderful feeling of being wrapped in blankets, and even the indescribable safety and warmth.
Compared to his sister, Taravis is very sensitive to everything that is happening. This child knows that it is impossible to defeat the Rus on the battlefield, and the Rus have also expressed kindness to the surrenderers. Surrendering and becoming a servant is the only cost-effective option.
.
However, this so-called kindness is simply a kind of care!
"Slaves? Are the Covin people we entered into the homeland of the Rus really slaves?"
What Terravis knew was that all the Covin people with their families were required to live temporarily in an empty desert beach. As well as the deer herders, they were designated to live in another desert beach together.
The leader of Ross provided a batch of linen and leather, as well as some low-quality axes, which allowed the Covin people to quickly set up tents to avoid the wind and cold. When the new day comes, the Covin people will surely start on the spot.
Build your own home.
It is said that all Corvin people will migrate to the mines in the north and build a new settlement there.
He was originally worried about the future, but when he saw the huge Rossburg and the staggering number of Ross people, Tyravis fell into fear for a while. Now, he was lying on a soft bed and the floor was made of pure wood.
, thanks to a built-in stone hearth, the air throughout the house is warm.
He couldn't describe this feeling of happiness in words, everything was like a dream. He was even in a trance. The Russians were all flesh and blood, and they even paid great attention to happiness. They were even full of warmth. This was completely different from their terrifying performance on the battlefield.
Two concepts.
Taravis knew that he had left his homeland and that his future and the future of his sister were not something he could control by himself. The people of Corvin clearly enjoyed preferential treatment, and this treatment was probably a simple favor from his master.
He and his sister became wanderers wandering to the world on the other side of the sea. For the Kewen people, the land of the west also existed in legends.
The facts are completely different from the legend. The Varangians are not barbaric monsters emerging from the land of ice and snow. They are human beings who know how to enjoy themselves. They are a tribe with a huge population, an astonishingly large village, and powerful strength.
Fort Ross was an existence that completely shocked Taravis.