Generally speaking, Rurik didn't care about how his tribesmen traded with those merchants. It wasn't until after the Spring Equinox Festival that he heard his tribesmen complaining about something deep inside the sacrifice site.
What? Five squirrel skins can be exchanged for four silver coins?
What? A whole piece of very fine sealskin costs only two silver coins?
What? The price of the precious ferret skin has also been reduced to five silver coins?
Rurik even heard something. The Gould family was the largest fur buyer in the entire tribe. This made Rurik think more. That guy had already taken away a batch of soap and put it in his own house.
warehouse, and at the same time, that guy was also buying large quantities of leather goods at low prices.
Of course, taking advantage of low prices to hoard goods crazily is a normal market reaction of capital, but what happened to Gould made Rurik really unhappy.
But when this happened, his father still discussed other things with the guys. It was said that they were discussing how to continue to take revenge on the Gotlanders, and then they would gather together to drink some burning liquor, as if they were swallowing fire into their stomachs.
Tough guy style.
In the past few days, what Otto was most upset about was his mistake. The burning spirits burned off a bit of his beard, and he seemed to have lost a bit of his majesty. But the spirits he should drink are indispensable.
Dad is addicted to the extraordinary stimulation of strong alcohol, and what he cares most about is robbery and conquest.
Rurik knew that the more times like this, the more he had to shoulder the responsibility of the leader. He even felt that this was done intentionally by his father Otto, so that he could continue to practice.
Experience? Okay!
Then let's get down to business! In order to establish a right that the Rus tribe, which has become a city-state in a practical sense, must have - commercial taxes must be collected.
April of the Julian calendar arrives quietly amidst people's expectations.
Calmness is superficial, just like a stream that begins to swell, and many vigorous things gradually change quietly.
This year's situation is indeed worse than last year. On April 1, the ice floes in the bay still have not melted. Even the hunters who entered the vast ocean to cut ice to trap seals, the news they sent was still bad. Compared with the previous
Over time, the sea ice has indeed become thinner, but the thickness has shrunk from one meter to half a meter, but the situation is still bad.
The annoying winter seems to be extended by some mysterious force, and the people of Rus and even all the visiting merchants need the priests of Rus to divine an answer.
Such embarrassment is not uncommon in the memory of High Priest Vilia.
She vaguely remembered that in some winters, the sea ice did not melt enough for ships to sail until May.
There are even years when the summer solstice festival is approaching, and there are still some accumulated ice blocks in the shade of the hills.
I'm afraid all this is not "the wrath of God", after all there are some years with distinctly warm winters and the oceans thaw enough for navigation in March.
In the past, when the seawater thawed, it had no obvious impact on the lives of the Russian people. If the seawater thawed early, the Russians would not become rich. If the seawater thawed late, the lives of the Russian people would still be ordinary.
Perhaps the commotion among people this year is due to the fact that merchants have hoarded a large amount of goods and have an unprecedented desire for trade. However, the ice and snow are still hard and the climate is still cold.
Businessmen most want to get a good revelation.
Otto and his men, as well as a large number of Russians, also wanted an answer.
When the ice and snow melt, the Russians' huge fleet will rush to all directions with their own purposes, whether it is trade, construction, or simply war. If the sailing is forced to be delayed until May, many things will be disrupted.
Messy plans.
Actually? The climate at the beginning of AD 830 was indeed cold, especially deep in the Gulf of Bothnia where Fort Ross was located.
The Russian army that ended its "Northern Hunt" crossed the frozen sea. The appearance of the weird and twisted iceberg they saw was extremely rare. It is usually squeezed into a narrow five or six meters by the stress of the sea ice.
The wrinkles are more prominent this year.
Not only the territory of Roseburg, but the climate of the entire Northern Europe is even colder, so much so that the entire Baltic Sea is frozen!
If there is any benefit to the Danes from this ice, it is that they can walk through the frozen Denmark Strait and walk to Oslo with one foot! They actually exchanged goods in winter. In the past, this kind of thing was
Extremely rare.
The small businessmen were anxious. What they didn't know was that Lake Mälaren in the south was now also frozen. A large number of fishermen were swimming on the frozen lake, or pulling sleds along the frozen river into Hyères.
The territory of the Maren tribe, and exchanged furs and flax with the Gran people who suddenly immigrated to the country, exchanged some iron tools made by the Gran people.
Yes, the Gran people who fled to present-day Eskilstuna, in order to survive the hard life, smelted local iron ore and sold iron products in exchange for various foods to survive the winter.
But most of the poor beggars who were left unaccompanied on the streets of Mälaren Market froze to death in this cold winter. In this way, the group of beggars who were finally collected by Rurik were undoubtedly very lucky.
.
There are always a large number of poor people in the Melalen tribe. Such severe cold has caused the death of some families. The children who are lucky enough to survive have to face loneliness, even hunger and cold. The leader of Melalen has no energy or consciousness to manage the orphans under his rule.
, the wealthy generally regard orphans as pests and should be avoided.
Every day, the leading mercenaries patrolling the streets of Melalen collect some dead beggars, throw the frozen corpses into the pyre, and burn them to ashes.
New beggars are still appearing, and new deaths are coming one after another.
The Melalen tribe, and even other alliance tribes, have seen a significant decrease in the number of their tribesmen due to this cold winter. The Melalen tribe has lost as many as 400 people. Most of the dead are children and the elderly, and those with strong physical strength are basically safe.
, the tribe’s current strength has not been significantly damaged.
What worries the leader of Mälaren, Olegin, is that if the ice and snow have not yet melted, wouldn’t the sowing season be delayed? Wouldn’t the delay of the most critical trade gathering be even more fatal?
The people of Mellaren are holding a grand ceremony to pray for God's grace to let the ice and snow melt and everything return to normal.
The Russians are doing exactly the same thing here!
Although he was extremely reluctant to part with it, Rurik had to contribute as many as five reindeer for sacrifice. As a "person blessed by Odin", he had high hopes. Everyone believed that this child could talk directly to God.
As the leader of Ross, he can ask God for an answer—when will the ice and snow melt?
If possible, Rurik should ask Odin for mercy, and it would be best to turn the frozen sea into ten thousand miles of waves on the second day of the sacrifice.
The sacrifice begins with the anticipation of all people, and ends with the sighs of all people.
Rurik had to follow the advice of the high priest Vilya. He beheaded the deer, smeared his face with its blood, then lay down in the deerskin spread in the altar and closed his eyes. Vilya then instructed to wear the antlers.
The helmeted Rumia announced that Rurik's soul had now gone to Valhalla in person to see him in person.
People stared wide-eyed, waiting for a result. But what happened? Rurik was pretending to be asleep. He could feel how solemn the silent grand sacrificial scene was, and he had already thought of a countermeasure in his mind.
Everything was in accordance with the pre-discussed script. During a deliberate twitch, Rurik was announced by Rumia that "his soul has returned."
Rurik, deliberately sullen, announced that the ice and snow would melt in May.
Who can not lament this somewhat bad news?
Facing the noise and dissatisfaction of the crowd, Rurik's mind was not disturbed at all, and he continued to announce: "Maybe this is not the answer we long for. This is Odin's attitude. As mortals, you have no right to negotiate terms with gods.
, not even me! May is May! This is God’s test for us. If we Russians cannot overcome this small difficulty, there will be no greater development."
Is it inevitable that the ice and snow will melt in May?
Never mind it! If the situation is still bad at that time, there will be another sacrifice drama.
At the sacrifice site, the shy and pregnant Gould led all members of the family to become key spectators.
Unlike most people who believed deeply, Gould knew from the beginning that this move must be a trick discussed by Rurik and the priests. First of all, Gould believed that Rurik had indeed received the favor of God, but let Rurik
He believed that Odin always favored this child, but that was too much. Odin was the legendary god! He was not Rurik's nanny.
Gould is very pragmatic. Because he is well-informed, some people say that when a person dies, he will become a heroic spirit, some say that the soul returns to the sea of souls, and some say that it is sealed in dust in the dark underworld. He also listens to his own Britten
The woman said that when bad people die, they will suffer in a world full of fire, while when good people die, they will go to a wonderful place to live forever.
Different people have different opinions. Since death is inevitable, why not enjoy life in this world?
He felt that he had stocked up a huge amount of goods this year, especially the most traditional fur trade, which he operated, which had explosive development this year. He saw the desires of the frozen merchants, not only the merchants
, a large number of buyers are also looking forward to the arrival of merchant fleets carrying huge quantities of goods.
Therefore, Gould is not in a hurry. Even with a longer freeze period, he will have more time to prepare for the subsequent trade season.
But what he didn't expect was that not long after the sacrificial ceremony, Rurik actually walked into his house in person.
The ice is still there, but the breeze makes people feel a little gentle.
On the afternoon of April 5th in the Julian calendar, Rurik was accompanied only by Jevro, and the two of them set foot at Gould's mansion.
Gould, who had already taken a nap, had to get up immediately to meet his old friend.
In the solid wooden parlor with solid wood floors built by Gould, he quickly set up a small banquet.
Gould took it for granted that Rurik's sudden visit must be to discuss a new trade plan.
However, it was a little worrying to see that this child Rurik was not even interested in the extremely sweet dried plums on the table, but kept a cold and calm face.
Gould murmured in his heart, after all, people who have experienced real wars, who were once innocent children, have changed?
"Rurik, you are an auspicious bird, and you flew to my home again today to bring me good news?"
Gould's ruddy face was full of flattery, and he always treated important trading partners like this.
Rurik still had a calm face. He didn't even have any courtesy. He didn't care about the snacks and wine on the table and went straight to the topic.
"Gould, this time, on behalf of the leader, I am announcing a very important order to you!"
"Ah?!" Gould was shocked, and his hand holding the pure gold wine glass trembled.
"Are you scared?"
"No!" Gould denied flatly, "I am already a Russian. Of course I must do what the leader told me to do."
Hearing this, Rurik suddenly cheered up, and a slight smile appeared on his calm lips: "You have such an attitude? That's great."
"So, what can I do for you?" Gould complimented.
"I want money."
"Is it a new trade? Great! I still have a lot of wealth in my hands."
"You misunderstood what I meant." As he spoke, Rurik's small hands knocked rhythmically on the low wooden table, and he said slowly: "This is the leader's order! The leader has decided! We will start collecting taxes this year."
Tax is tax. Since Rurik proposed the concept of tax in the Rus tribe in 829 AD, most people have a certain understanding of it, and Gould is no exception.
"Collecting taxes? Huh? I am a businessman and I have not signed an agricultural contract with you. Even so, do I still have to collect taxes?"
Maybe someone else would have been stunned by Gould's questioning.
To be fair, Gould's words are absolutely correct. Whether in the East or the West, the so-called tax originally refers to the agricultural "tribute" provided by grassroots individuals to group organizers. Its emergence is very consistent with a group.
of natural development.
Those tribesmen who moved to New Roseburg signed a contract with the chief's family, that is, they would receive high-quality agricultural tools provided by the chief to cultivate the land, and receive grain and large amounts of rations provided by the chief. As a price, they would receive every year's harvest.
Give a small part and return it to the leader.
The tribesmen generally understand taxation and the word tax in this way.
Of course their understanding of this concept is too superficial.
Rurik said bluntly: "You and I do not have an agricultural contract. We clearly have a commercial contract. With a contract, you have to pay taxes."
"Ah? But, the contract between you and me..."
"Listen to me!" Rurik raised his voice and raised his little head: "Listen, the contract between you and me is just a contract between two people. In fact, you, as a businessman, have a contract with our Ross tribe."
"what is that."
"Don't you understand? A large number of businessmen do business in Roseburg, importing our goods and transporting them to other places for sale, making great profits from it. Thousands of businessmen come every year, and they can do their business safely in Roseburg.
For business, there is no need to worry about bandits attacking their wealth. Even if there are, we Russians will punish the bandits with capital punishment. The tribe provides security for businessmen and a peaceful business environment. But this peace is not natural, I
The tribe’s efforts need to be rewarded.”
Gould reacted instantly: "So you ask me to pay taxes to pay this special price?"
"Yes, you are indeed a big businessman." Rurik felt that the matter had been settled, and his attitude became very kind.
At this time, Gould was in trouble. He shook his head slightly and said: "Although it is different from the explanation of the Malaren people. Rurik, you have become a bit bad, and you are acting like a Malaren person."
"Oh? I have changed? I still have the same nature."
"No! You gave a more reasonable reason than the people of Mellaren. Even so, please listen to my opinion." Gould said boldly.
"Really? Just tell me."
Rurik didn't think Gould could come up with any theories, and he was already mentally prepared to argue with them.
Rurik has decided to "invent" commercial tax himself and start collecting it this year. He does not expect all businessmen to cooperate, and even pessimistically believes that a large number of businessmen are actually uncooperative. After all, who would willingly spit out their money?
What about part of it?
If you encounter some trouble, use a little force to solve it. You will succeed in the end, and this business tax will have to be collected every year in the future.
Of course, if the businessmen generally cooperate, there will be no need for them to resort to force.
Therefore, Rurik felt that he must first get rid of Gould, the richest businessman. As long as the Gould family is supportive, other businessmen will surely agree when they see this trend.
But Gould's remarks were somewhat surprising.
Rurik initially thought that businessmen were highly self-interested in order to obtain higher profits, but he never imagined that their self-interested attitude had reached this level. However, this seemed to be a normal thing.