Chapter 324 Gould, who has a heavy responsibility, meets Olekin, the powerful leader of the Meralen tribe
The short summer in Northern Europe comes to an end in mid-August.
The climate is no longer warm. A rainfall that swept across the entire region suddenly pushed the climate that was supposed to be slowly cooling to autumn. When the temperature dropped, it was difficult to rise. When the rain stopped, Gul, in the south, suddenly
Virtue, when he stood on his island in the early morning, he could clearly feel the coolness and the hidden worries brought by this coolness.
Summer is finally over!
Just over the past three months, he carried a large amount of goods from Rossburg and made a lot of money at the market in Mälaren.
What surprised him a little was that the leader of Mälaren, Olegin, who had always been considered a harsh man by the world, was now willing to spend a lot of money to buy leather. Olegin was "sweeping" the leather sold in the entire market, forcing him to
Due to his power and financial resources, all kinds of leather vendors sold out their goods in a short period of time.
The leader personally executed, forcing a large number of ordinary people who wanted to buy high-quality leather to lose their right to choose. They clutched the limited silver coins that were almost deformed in their hands, and were faced with the few remaining inferior products, and the prices were quite high.
Exaggeration. There are people who are willing to buy even the last inferior leather. For ordinary people, if they can't get linen, they can only rely on leather. They have a sense of shame and need to repair or make new shame items.
Shame? Maybe Olegin has become a little shameless in the hearts of his people.
He actually asked for more tribute from all the professional merchants of the Melalen tribe! He also gave this behavior a term "tax". In this way, merchants in the market, even if they were selling slaves captured from unknown places,
As long as Norwegians do business, in addition to paying a land rent, they also need to pay a "tax".
"Oh, things are getting interesting. Tax? The tribute is going to increase?"
Gould didn't understand how they knew the word "tax". As a result, he saw that Olegin was trying to find more fat from his people, how to manipulate the "tax" opponent.
know.
But what does this have to do with myself?
At least until now, the people Olegin asked for "tax" were limited to the Melalen tribe. For other tribes, the old method was still the same, that is, as long as they did not set up stalls on the shore, they did not need to hand over even a copper coin in tribute.
The Gould family never had to go ashore to operate. He and his eldest son set up a stall on Gould Island, which was controlled by their family, and customers would naturally come by boat.
Of course, the customers included the envoys sent by Olegin.
They were a group of people who spent money lavishly. They came with real money and bought Gould's products in large quantities. It was obvious that such behavior was well prepared.
Soap, leather and some ironware were all bought by these envoys.
Especially the batch of colorful glassware with beautiful workmanship and the spirits stored in transparent glass bottles. They shocked the messenger, and also shocked the leader Olegin.
Just at the beginning of June, Gould's large stockpile of goods was basically sold out.
The gross profit from revenue was no less than 50,000 silver coins, and the net profit was astonishing. In other words, Gould Island suddenly gained a huge amount of 500 pounds of silver in a short period of time.
He, Gould, is Rurik's official dealer. This is the case now and will continue to be the case in the future. For him, backed by the strength of the Russians, Gould is even more confident in doing business. He is not afraid of the Melalen people at all.
To his disadvantage, especially in the current situation, he increasingly felt that he could open up a whole new field in trade.
what is that?
For the sake of greater interests, Chief Ross should make direct face-to-face transactions with Chief Melalen.
In July, Lake Malaren is the busiest.
Fishermen from the lake's mouth encountered a large number of Ross fishing boats heading south to catch fish, and some exciting news spread throughout Lake Mälaren.
The Russians have indeed built a camp on a deserted island opposite the estuary, and the Russian army is attacking the Gotlanders!
Isn’t that exciting news?
The Ostara tribe was destroyed, and a large number of allied tribes in the south were forced to move north. The Siya tribe alliance's efforts to expand southward encountered serious setbacks when Olegin was the leader of the alliance.
Who would have thought that at a time when people were grieving and angry, the "traitor" Russians who escaped to the north, who had never forgotten that they were part of the alliance, would actually be outdone by the most powerful Melalen people.
Public opinion became more and more fermented. While a large number of Mellaren people praised the Russians for their feats, they also secretly belittled Olegin's cowardice.
This Olegin is not only cowardly, but also bad. He is a greedy guy who only wants to expand his own strength.
People use swear words to express their grievances, but is this really the case?
The reason why he is the leader of the alliance is that he is responsible for the entire alliance.
Over the years, Olegin's understanding of the Russians was that this group of "traitors" who came to the north provided a large amount of leather every year, and a group of merchants also came to the north every year. It is said that the Russians have a god Liuli who descended from the sky.
Well, as the legend came out of the mouths of the businessmen, the story became more and more bizarre.
After all, the name of the great leader Otto is slightly similar in pronunciation to the great god Odin that everyone revered.
This is great. People need to find something to talk about in their boring lives. Now that the talk is here, people begin to tease Rurik as the "son of the great god" and the "god of Asgard who descended to earth". The person who said this
The more stories you tell, the more authentic they become.
Olegin didn't believe these rumors at first, but he couldn't help but be wary.
The fact is that the sales volume of leather, a traditional bulk commodity, in Russia has continued to increase in the past two years. Not only has it hit new highs, but the quality is also quite good. Not only that, the Russians can also take some rare items.
Come out, the price they proposed is no longer extremely expensive.
Glassware, soap, and flammable spirits in glass bottles.
After drinking the burning wine and feeling the fire in his stomach, when he sobered up after a hangover, he even claimed to those around him that his soul had left his body.
Xiao Zuo, who arranged to go to Rossburg disguised as a businessman to get information, claimed that all the changes came from that Rurik.
He described what he saw and heard in detail, but many things seemed to Olegin to be an excellent story.
One boy rules over hundreds of children and even treats them to meals.
What other bows are made of iron? How is this possible?
Xiaozuo claimed that what he said was true, and it was impossible for Olegin to completely believe it. However, the fact that the Russians demanded money from customers and merchants aroused his strong interest. This is "tax". Olegin, the leader of Mälaren, he
Do it the same way.
The understanding of the Russian people has deepened. During this year's trade, Olegin also learned that the Gould family, who were originally from Onkras, had completely become Russians.
Things have become very subtle!
Gould already had a problem with Olegin. After all, he was shouldering a heavy responsibility. In order to complete the task, it was obviously a shortcut to get the support of the leader of Maclaren himself.
What about Olegin? He is eager to know more about the Russians, and he is even more eager to establish some kind of close connection with the leader of the other party. In the past, he did not care about the affairs of the Russians at all, as long as the Melalen people controlled the vast lakes and Svealand
Agriculture and animal husbandry on the plains are all peaceful. Now, facing the increasingly serious threat of war, he needs to obtain more military power for himself in the war that is likely to break out in the future.
Both parties had strong demands for contact, so they sent a messenger to Gould's Road again to inform Gould of Chief Gould's wishes. What he received was Gould's unhesitating affirmation.
It has entered August, but the situation has become very delicate, or rather tense, in the vast farmland reclaimed along the lake controlled by the Melalen tribe.
Although some people grow earlier-maturing oat varieties, more people grow traditional varieties.
In normal times, people in Mälaren plant their seeds at the end of March or early April, and by mid-August they begin to harvest oats.
The sowing period was delayed by a month due to the sudden extension of winter. The seedlings that were supposed to be in the heading stage are still green.
Gould originally intended to meet Olegin as agreed, but a continuous rain canceled all plans.
After the rain has passed and the weather has turned cold, the agreed matters should be implemented.
A small boat left Gould's Island, and the most distinguished people on board were Gould and his eldest son Snoleva, who were dressed in costumes.
The ship docked, and the two of them, accompanied by ten mercenaries (also paddlers), headed straight for Olegin's mansion, which was surrounded by wooden walls.
Thick oak wood formed a solid wall, and each piece of wood was tightly tied with hemp rope in misplaced positions, and a sharp blade was cut out of the top to prevent outsiders from entering.
"Dad, is this their house? That Olegin is isolated from his tribe."
"Alas, he is worried that his wealth and power will be backlashed by his people." Gould sighed.
“Is the wall necessary?”
"You...how could you ask such a stupid topic?"
"But."
Gould's fat hand slapped his eldest son on the head, who was also fat and big-eared: "Fool, of course the powerful must be separated from the poor."
"But Rurik..."
"Oh? What do you think of him?"
"He...he is a kind man. He eats and lives with those lowly people. He is a good man."
"A good person?" Gould wanted to laugh but felt it was inappropriate. "Rurik is an adult, and you are a child. What he calls kindness? What he calls buying people's hearts, compared to the Ole we are about to meet.
Ge, Rurik knows better how to be a leader."
At first, Gould did feel that Rurik was a little too kind, but after that child experienced a war, many things did change. Rurik, he had done anything to get money, even letting Ole
Gold is following suit.
While the two were waiting, the envoy sent by Olegin pushed open the wooden door, nodded and bowed in front of the two distinguished men, and asked to enter Olegin's mansion.
The dirt road outside the wall is the same as inside the wall.
Gould looked left and right. It was indeed the first time in his life that he had entered Olegin's territory. He didn't expect that when he actually entered it, what he saw was a simple scene.
It was a building made of a large amount of wood. Only one house was the tallest and could be seen directly from outside the wall. It was a tapered building, but it had no wooden floor.
"I can't believe that this noble guy is actually willing to sleep on the ground?"
Gould was a little speechless. He and his eldest son followed the guide straight to the simple hall, which was the tallest building, without any mercenary guards.
The wooden door was opened, and a thin-looking guy sat upright on a low chair wrapped in bearskin. Beside him were some wives and servants, but there was no armed warrior.
There are a large number of wooden steps on the wooden wall, and a large number of bronze lamp holders are placed on them. In particular, chains are hung from the ceiling, and a chandelier with shining firelight prevents the room from being too dark.
The hall is just dry land, with some hewn stones and some leather placed on them. There are also a lot of leathers on the ground, which are obviously for people to sit on.
"Are you Gould? Oh, look at your clothes, you are indeed a distinguished person."
Gould and his eldest son bowed slightly as usual with their right hands on their hearts. He had heard about Olegin's appearance and knew that he was a somewhat thin man.
"Dear Chief Melalen, I am indeed Gould. The weather is really bad and delayed our meeting. I apologize to you."
"It doesn't matter." Olegin waved his hand, and at the same time, the wives, concubines, and waiters all retreated with interest.
In a short period of time, Gould realized that he, his eldest son, and Olegin were the only three people left in the huge hall. While things became very delicate, Gould also realized that today's meeting might
There is a strong secrecy for both parties.
"The noble leader..."
Gould tentatively wanted to ask, but Olegin went straight to the point: "My friend, I like the Ross products you sell very much. Maybe you already know some of the reasons why I invited you, and I also learned that you have already
Became a Russian. Hurry! I want to know more about the Russians."
"Ah! Is this why you asked me to see you?"
"Of course! Tell me quickly, and I will satisfy all your demands as long as they are reasonable."
Gould's question was knowingly asking, and he was already prepared for it. But he didn't expect that Olegin was also very proactive, and even this man, who was obviously much thinner than the leader of Rus, Otto, was even more urgent in his attitude.
Under the delicate current situation, Gould abruptly assumed the role of Rurik's "foreign minister". To safeguard the interests of the Russian people is to safeguard the interests of the family.
On this issue, Gould knew he had to be precise.
He had already prepared some words. While touting the strength of the Russians, he also deliberately kept many things, such as the fact that the Russians conquered the "Land of the East", the construction of New Fort Ross, Alon Orava
Fort etc.
Of course, there are some things that cannot be concealed, and that is the matter of the Russians, leader Otto, going to Novgorod in the far east to ask for tribute. This has been going on for decades and cannot be hidden at all.
This incident was really not surprising to Olegin, and he had no reason to lead his tribe on a large-scale expedition to ask for tribute. He only had to ask for tribute from his tribe who farmed and fished.
After all, compared to the Rus, Mälaren and all the people living in the Svealand Plain, they can completely rely on growing wheat, growing vegetables, fishing in the lake, and raising livestock on small flats. They can meet their own needs while having a certain degree of satisfaction.
Surplus. They knew that they could not even defeat the powerful Danes, so they held on to their territory and tentatively expanded grazing pastures and arable farmland.
For them, times have really changed. Although they are all Viking tribes, Melalen's expansion ambitions have gradually been diluted by the stable life of farming.
Gould wanted to show that the strength of the Ross people was "not to be underestimated" and that the Ross people were very keen on trade. He also wanted to reflect the poverty of Rossburg and take the opportunity to praise the fact that the Malaren people are sitting on a geomantic treasure.
.He simply did not mention the expansion of the Rus and the ambitions of Otto and Rurik.
In Gould's description, Rurik is a smart boy, but he is not the "Son of God" in the legend. Otto is also a courageous leader and a ferocious pirate.
There is a big discrepancy between Gould's description and his detailed description. Olegin would rather believe Gould's statement, because in this set of statements, the various bizarre legends about the Russians are completely interpreted as an exaggeration of the facts.
It made Olegin feel more credible. They were just ordinary people who were better than ordinary people. Rumors were just rumors after all. Olegin let out a sigh of relief.