Chapter 312 Discussion on Social Security Caused by Fishing Vessels
The fishing boats were purchased, but when Rurik personally began to inspect the boats the next day, he somewhat regretted his hasty decision.
Jevro reviewed his duties as a mercenary captain. Now his biggest job is to serve as Rurik's personal bodyguard.
He followed Rurik closely, and there were more than twenty mercenaries, dragging the cables on their shoulders and shouting slogans to further tow all the fishing boats to the same position.
It was already afternoon, and the gentle sunshine was shining on the entire fjord. The climate was extremely pleasant, but the many ships in front of Rurik made him a little unhappy.
Let's look at these fishing boats. They are certainly built using the shipbuilding techniques commonly used by the Viking tribes. The layers of dry wooden boards are soaked in seawater and expand. The gaps are then coated with rosin, and the entire boat remains sealed.
Rurik's little hand touched the old dark hull, and he could clearly see a large number of scratches on the wooden boards and even signs of aging and cracking.
What troubled him even more was that the overall hull of the ship was too thin.
Under Jevlo's gaze, he wandered around a small fishing boat about five stikas long (nearly five meters), and soon noticed some unusual holes in the ship's deck.
"Jevlo!"
"exist!"
"These ships..." Rurik wanted to say something, but now he didn't bother to say it.
"Sir." Jevro came over and asked tentatively.
"It's nothing. Just put me on the boat. I want to see the structure inside."
"As commanded."
Without a ladder, Rurik could not have climbed directly onto the ship by his own strength. He was lifted by Evloto, and then he turned over and entered the cabin.
Rurik was sitting on a relatively flat plank at the bottom of the boat. This was not a real deck, it was just a plank laid out so that fishermen could stack their catch stably and even have a flat place when floating on the sea.
Rest on your side.
However, the interior of the ship was not completely straight, and a standing pillar covered with wood debris immediately caught Rurik's attention.
He immediately grabbed the side of the ship with both hands and asked Yevlo: "What's going on? Where is the ship's mast? Did you chop it down?!"
Yevluo was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly replied: "Sir, we cut it."
"Why?! A good sailing fishing boat is now a rowing boat."
"This..." Jevro wanted to say that this was what Arik ordered. Considering that the man was his master's brother, it was obviously unwise to blame Arik.
Jevro had a good reason, and it happened to be Arik's reason: "Sir, we don't have the ability to take care of so many sailing ships. In order to avoid chaos on the return voyage, all the masts were cut off. As for those canvases, the brothers from Tombstone Island took them
Take it away to make clothes."
"Making clothes? It's really amazing." Rurik was shocked, and then he grinned with helplessness. "They are already so poor? You didn't plunder many good things? How is it possible?"
"Sir, they are indeed... indeed somewhat poor. I'm sorry that I offended them."
"It doesn't matter." Rurik waved his hand, then raised his little head and looked up to the sky and sighed: "Alas! All twenty of them are broken boats. Those Gotlanders, are they using these broken boats to fish?"
"Yes, their ships are all terrible. My lord, maybe you spent four thousand silver coins..."
Rurik immediately stopped Yevlo: "I know you want to say that I wasted money. It doesn't matter, I have always been a man of my word."
In the plunder war that lasted for more than two months, Arik and his straightforward Ross army were the main force, while Jevro and his mercenary brothers were the auxiliary forces in principle. Based on this principle, even if twenty of them carried crosses,
Bow, get close to the enemy fishing boat and launch a volley. Basically, one blow will hit the fishing boat with no actual deck, very thin planks, and no effective defense on the whole body. They also have no authority to share the spoils.
During the long battle, Jevro and his men were completely the tools of Arik's men.
After all, he is a mercenary, and in this line of work, he must obey his master's orders.
So Arik really used Jevro and others as tools. They drifted on the sea almost every day, and the so-called rewards they received were only fish meat and distilled fresh water. The other Russians could often rest on Tombstone Island and get the first
Time to digest the loot you caught.
Anyway, they are mercenaries, and Jevro and his brothers are more willing to be Rurik's mercenaries. As for the suffering they suffered at the hands of Arik, the blood and sweat they paid, and the unfair treatment, they have to swallow this pain themselves.
.
In any case, Jevlo did not like these captured fishing boats.
Although in the raiding battle, most of the enemy ships were destroyed immediately, the best ships became the treasures of the settlers of Tombstone Island, and the rest of the inferior goods were all thrown to the settlers.
Rurik.
Jevlo felt sorry for his master.
"These ships are terrible. Since you need ships, why not just hire local shipbuilders from the tribe? There is a lot of wood suitable for shipbuilding in the mountains and forests here. You can make better ones, so why use the broken ships of the Gotlanders?"
.”
"I just need it urgently now," Rurik corrected.
"Sir, do you... do you expect me to take my brothers and sail these boats to fish? Oh, you think so highly of me." As he said this, Yevluo smiled heartily.
"Then why not? You are a Finn, and almost all the other brothers are from Mälaren. You all know how to row and fish, and fish."
"But we are warriors."
"I know. But you will all grow old one day! What will you do when you are old and can no longer carry weapons to fight? You will have to continue fishing to support yourself."
"Then fight to the death in the last battle." Jevro joked, "Those people's belief is to fight to the death."
"Can you? Are you Odin's warrior?"
"I don't care. You know, I am a Finn. Thanks to your concern, if I am too old to lift the sword, please let me stay with those Covin people. I have a common language with them."
Rurik suppressed his laughter. He still lay on the side of the boat and looked at Yevluo: "These broken boats can still be pushed into the sea to fish, and they can be paddled without sails. Yevluo, you and your brothers have it."
One day when you get old, if that day comes, don't worry, I will not forget your achievements in your youth. I will reward you with a fishing boat, and you can fish on your own and continue to live. If you are really old and can't even fish,
, you still don’t have to worry. I will send people to reward you with fresh fish every day until you naturally come to the end of your life.”
Rurik's words were completely unheard of by Evro. He was a little moved, but still found it ridiculous.
The conversation between the two gradually attracted some mercenaries who had finished towing the ship. They gathered and soon realized the wonder of Rurik's words.
Because, my master is talking about something that no one has ever considered - old age care.
Talking about old age care in ancient times? It is really an unrealistic luxury.
Rurik is not unaware of this. Regarding this matter, in fact, more often than not, it is not unwilling to do it, but it is due to the poor productivity of the times that it cannot be done.
The ancients in the East have a saying that on the journey of the great road, the widows, widowers, lonely and disabled people all have something to support them. This is a philosophical idea put forward very early in the Eastern world, and it is also the theoretical basis for exploring the feasibility of building a harmonious and harmonious society.
However, the Western world has been in a "jungle ecology" for a long time. The so-called concepts of social relief and elderly care are really miraculous for a kingdom established by a group of barbarians. Even if they generally believe in God, they still think that relieving the poor is the job of the priests.
There are also weddings and funerals, which are all managed by the priests. Finally, the nobles are more concerned about whether they get the land tax.
Therefore, Rurik had already been trying to change something for tribes like the Ross tribe, which were even more backward in civilization.
Now, Rurik didn't bother to mention to Jevro his attacks on tribal governance, such as organizing a group of widows and poor women to buy their labor force for tailoring work; hiring a group of older men and buying them to cut wood and
Construction labor.
Especially for the orphans of the entire tribe, and even all the young children, regardless of gender, Rurik controlled them all, trained their bodies, educated their minds, and gave them better food.
Since the mortality rate of men and women in the tribe rises rapidly after they reach the age of fifty, the Russians really do not need to consider the issue of old-age care.
Therefore, a haggard old woman like High Priest Vilia, who is now seventy-four, is truly a miracle of life.
But Rurik had to think about something in advance, and that was the tribe under his rule. As people's living standards began to improve, everyone's life span also increased. Especially the soap that began to be widely used, and the new warmer Nono.
With the emergence of Fugolod Wooden Forest, the health condition of the tribe has improved significantly.
Although everyone still believes that everyone has their own destiny, now the leader can properly take care of the children of the tribe. If he can also take care of the elders of the tribe, then the leader's power can be further supported.
From the beginning, Rurik did not believe that the so-called "Son of Odin" myth could maintain his prestige for a long time. Maybe he was indeed the "Son of Odin", but in reality, what the tribesmen need most is always sufficient food and warmth.
residence, clothing.
Seeing his mercenaries gathering one after another, Rurik was just a chatterbox, but now he had to take it seriously.
It was indeed a dream in the past, but now Rurik feels that it is necessary to paint a giant pie for these guys who have worked hard for him before they grow old.
Rurik immediately stood on the bow of the ship and said loudly: "Brothers, you are now in the prime of life, but you have to think about what you will do when you are old."
Everyone looked at each other because no one had really thought about this problem.
"What do you care about?" a mercenary said carelessly, "We work hard for you and you give us money, that's enough. If we are rewarded by you for our military exploits and become members of the Ross tribe, that will be our greatest
pleasure."
"What? That's all you ask for?"
"Otherwise?" Jevro shrugged, "Sir, do you really want to follow through on your words? Reward your brothers with fish and meat every day in a few decades?"
As soon as Jevro finished speaking, everyone burst into laughter.
It is clear that these guys obviously have an indifferent attitude towards their future.
Then someone laughed and said: "We are all soldiers, how can we grow old one day? Maybe we will die in the next battle."
"That's right! As long as we who died in the battle can be buried or burned into ashes, that will be fine."
Of course, some people think that if they are lucky enough to live long enough to be unable to hold an ax or a sword, and are rewarded by Rurik's master, then they will bless their master's family with eternal prosperity in another world.
Therefore, no one doubts that the wealthy Rurik is bragging. They really don't have that much thought about their future. They just live one day at a time.
Only a young mercenary said carelessly: "Sir, as long as you give me a woman, I will fight for you for the rest of my life, no matter what kind of battle."
I'm afraid this is the only thing a mercenary should never say!
Yevluo slapped the kid on the head directly: "You are an idiot. How can you make such a request to an adult?"
"What he said makes sense!" Rurik slapped the boat gang to attract everyone's attention: "Don't you just want women? OK! You are loyal to me, you are my warrior now, and you will be my warrior in the future. Now I want to
You promise that when you have fought for me for five years, I will find beautiful and young women to be your wives. You will give me more boys, and your sons will continue to be my soldiers. When you are old,
Don't worry, you will always get some food until the end."
Everyone believed that Rurik would never break his promise. This kid had never been a liar. He had fulfilled too many promises, and he must have fulfilled what he solemnly said now.
Regarding this, Yevluo felt very happy, but did not show his excitement on his face.
On the other hand, the other mercenaries stamped their feet and shouted Rurik's name, praising his greatness.
After encountering such an episode when inspecting fishing boats, Rurik thought about the feasibility of implementing these matters.
Anyway, in this era, what everyone thinks about at the highest level for old age care is to get some food that will not starve to death when you are too old. After all, death is something that no one wants. Everyone wants to live forever. The once strong and proud warrior
, they would rather die in battle than commit suicide when they are old.
If you give some fish as a reward, it will be regarded as a pension, but the financial expenditure for this kind of pension is too small.
Rurik thought about it, and based on this standard, he felt that he could simply build some nursing homes, especially to gather the old guys who had fought for him all their lives, continue to take care of them until they died of natural causes, and finally circle a piece of land as a cemetery for veterans to bury.
In the final analysis, Rurik felt that doing so would provide him with psychological satisfaction and the support of elite warriors.
Yes, a young soldier recruited by a company, because he fought for his master, got his own woman, house, and even a job to survive after he retired from the army. But when he couldn't do it anymore, his master still took care of the pension in the last period of his life.
With such a good thing, Rurik couldn't believe that they were not willing to sacrifice their lives.
When Rurik saw that the young warriors of the tribe were all supporting the fighting hero's cousin Arik, what could he do? The young warriors under his command, even including girls, currently numbered only more than 300, and they were all children.
ah!
Facing his cousin, Rurik felt a hint of worry. All he could think of was to recruit more warriors, especially warriors from other tribes in the same alliance, and give them good treatment in order to make them work hard.
The more he thought about it, the more Rurik felt that the slogans of ancient generals to motivate generals, such as "grab money, rob food, rob women", seemed vulgar and even ugly, but actually had underlying logic. Especially Ross.
The tribe’s group of tribal warriors are more appropriately described as pirates than warriors.
After all, the order had long been given to Gould, who went south to do business. Presumably, this old guy will arrive in Roseburg at the end of August or early September with a large amount of living supplies and a group of people. At that time, there will be a new group of people.
When mercenaries join the team, a group of poor children will also join them.
I'm afraid there will be another problem by then. Rurik is a little worried that when the old mercenaries see the newcomers earning the same salary as themselves, they will inevitably have objections, even if they keep it to themselves.
What should I do? Increase my salary!
As a result, Rurik quickly increased the salary of his mercenaries. The so-called ordinary mercenary's monthly salary was ten silver coins, but now it has increased to fifteen. For an expert like Yevro, the salary has increased even more.
Thirty silver coins arrived.
Of course, getting more salary means that mercenaries have to continue to do hard and boring work in peacetime. Generally, they have to do logging work, so they can exercise their physical fitness, and they can also process wood and sell firewood.
, allowing Rurik to earn a little money, thereby reducing some net expenses.
The mercenaries have a new job, which is to use the captured ships to fish in the sea.
After all, most of the mercenaries themselves are fishermen. They are too poor in their hometown of the Melalen tribe. Because they cannot compete with their brothers for the family business, and they are not recruited by the leader of Melalen to become private soldiers, they have no choice but to go out alone. In their hearts,
, the Russian people gave themselves a chance to develop. Even if their master was a child and had a magical legend, the master really gave him real silver coins and even good weapons. They were grateful to their master.
Therefore, when Rurik asked them to take turns being fishermen in peacetime, everyone was very satisfied. If they were a little dissatisfied, it was that the boat they used was too old.
Everyone complained that the Gotlanders used poor quality wood from the island to build broken ships, but they only had such ships on hand.
In fact, Rurik arranged for all twenty ships to be sent out!
There are some elderly men in the Ross tribe. They are actually only in their forties, and they are aging more seriously. They can no longer go to the battlefield, and their work of logging and fishing is actually not very affected.
Rurik quickly signed a contract with some people, that is, up to fifteen fishing boats were rented out. As for the rent, half of the catch was paid entirely.
For the time being, due to the simple folk customs of the tribal residents, Rurik does not have to worry about these boat charterers paying less than half of the fish without conscience. If they are really greedy, Rurik does not want to attack them immediately.
As for the other five boats used by the mercenaries in turn, all the catches will naturally belong to Rick. Even so, the mercenaries still work hard because they know that the fish they catch are not for their masters, but for the mercenaries.
Food rations for the brothers in the army! They think it is reasonable to catch fish for their brothers, so that in future battles, because of the friendships established in life, they will have brothers to protect their backs.
Captured fishing boats are finally starting to show their value!
Rurik also personally selects tenants when renting a boat. He chooses fishermen who only have worse boats at home. Their hard fishing is actually saving money to buy new fishing boats. Now they can rent Rurik's boat for a long time. They think it is
I am honored to have done some financial calculations and found that my living standard will improve. So is there any reason not to sign the contract?
Renting fishing boats to obtain catches is the purpose of Rurik. It can be said that in this matter alone, Rurik has become a "classical landlord" in the true sense. However, Rurik does not need to sell the fish caught by the fishermen.
Rurik even gave priority to buying the remaining catches from charter fishermen. All the catches were eaten by the children. What was the result of this?
Its benefits are obvious.
Even if the technology of the fishing industry is underdeveloped in this era, the number of fishing boats can be increased and the catch yield can be increased.
The total amount of food Rurik gave to his children has not changed, but Rurik's financial expenses have indeed dropped significantly!
What's even more interesting is that because Rurik's men nailed strange letters on the captured fishing boats with wooden strips, all twenty boats had hull numbers on their bows.
The so-called ship number is from "rfb01" to "rfb20". Its meaning is very simple, r stands for Ross and fb stands for fishing boat.
They are Rurik's boats. In order to avoid suspicion, other fishing boats dare not disturb these fishermen's operations. This brings about another interesting effect - the average catch of the fishing boats under Rurik's command is more than that of their peers.