The chosen men were full of enthusiasm, and they returned home one after another to seize the time to prepare supplies for the future expedition.
Almost all the able-bodied men in the old Bryn Goethe's small fishing village joined the army, and they received strong support from the women, even if the men leaving one after another will make future fishing operations more difficult. Everyone firmly believes that such an adventure is
It was worth it, because Hellafed, the younger son of Old Bryngod, proved to himself what a good fighter he was, and the final commander of the army was the invincible Rurik of Rus.
Instead of worrying about war, they saw this as an opportunity to get rich overnight.
In old Bryn Goethe's house, the family practiced this for the young man who was highly regarded by Duke Rurik of Ross.
The slightly dilapidated longhouse was brightly lit, and the old mother looked at her young son with a smile.
Old Bryn Goethe's eyes were solemn, and he held his sword and handed it to his son.
"Boy, for the glory of our family, you go and fight. Bjorn is in the west and you are in the east. Both of you can make achievements in different fields. I will give you this sword."
"Father..." Hellafed knew the weight of this sword, even if it was just a seemingly ordinary iron sword.
"You have made the whole family lose face in front of the Russians. It's just a pity that according to tradition, you have to make achievements in person, but this is also a good thing for you. Take this sword and don't think about anything else."
Hellafed knew that he actually had no right to inherit the sword. He couldn't help but glance at his elder brother, only to find that his elder brother had his head raised and said nothing. He must be dissatisfied...
He took the sword with determination. To a large extent, he inherited the family's glory. Unfortunately, the property inheritance rights still belonged to his eldest brother.
This is tradition and this is everyone's consensus.
According to legend, since the creation of the giants, the human society has been that the eldest son inherits everything, and the rest of the children go out to start their own careers. Therefore, Hellafide has never been angry with his eldest brother, who is a coward but can take everything. Now he has
Jian's father has broken the rules, so he should leave forever. In fact, he is seeking benevolence and getting benevolence.
He pulled the sword out of its scabbard for a moment, stared at it, and closed it again.
"Father, I will lead my brothers to victory without any casualties." His face was full of determination.
Old Bryn Goethe said nothing more, only saying: "You must prove your strength to the Russians, even if you kill some people in battle. If you can be stronger than the real Russians, it will be our blessing."
By riding on the lap of the Russians, the Balmoks who stayed behind in their hometown will be able to develop. How to impress the Russians and completely regard them as their own people, then they must do better than the Russians.
You must try your best to be a convert and gain true acceptance from the other party. Bryn Goethe has already realized this.
Just like Hellafed received a gift from his father, the young men who went on the expedition also picked up their best spears and shields.
They spent the night painting patterns on their shields or simply carving inspiring words in runes.
They actively prepared dry food along the way. Even though they learned that going to Ross would save a lot of energy by sledding all the way, they still tried their best to stock up on the local specialty salted dried herring.
Herring is already high in calories. When it is salted and dehydrated, one pound of fish meat has surpassed the same amount of wheat. Unlike wheat, these dried fish meat can be eaten directly. This is the theory, but human beings
The body consumes starchy sugars first, and dried fish is a reasonable emergency food. But once people have tasted wheat flour products such as bread, even the Balmoq people will immediately fall into the arms of bread.
No, they have noticed the pancakes carried by the mercenaries under Duke Rurik of Rus, especially the old mercenaries from Balmok. They show off their heroic past to their old families and do not hesitate to show off their own
The bread he brought was shared with the brothers.
After all, these old mercenaries have become "team leaders", and each of them is responsible for the nine people under them. Sharing noodles and sharing delicious food is also a way to build relationships between brothers. As for another effect of noodles, it is to hook up.
It made everyone greedy.
The Duke of Ross’s promise should be fulfilled, right? If you fight for the Duke, you can also get free military rations, and there will be bread for every meal?
Such good things are something the old leader Magnute would never promise.
On the appointed day, the soldiers who went on the expedition gathered at Narvik, the core settlement of the harbor.
When the sky just turned blue, there were soldiers landing with weapons, shields and large sacks on their backs.
Rurik got up early today. When the golden light of the morning sun spread through the snowy hills of the central mountain range to the entire fjord, all he saw from a high place were soldiers with reflective metal helmets on their heads, which should have been rusty spearheads.
The harpoon and harpoon were clearly polished to a shine, and a large army stood in front of him, with strong morale coming towards him.
After a while, Hellafed, who had changed his outfit, hurriedly came over and met his master: "Sir, all the brothers are here, we can set off now."
"Well, even though I'm not ready yet, you are."
Now that they were ready to go, Rurik had no intention of lingering.
He stood on a snowdrift and looked at everyone. He just stood here and waited quietly for the noisy sound to subside completely.
People's eyes stared at this hero.
"My brothers." Rurik raised his arms and shouted, "Please forgive my haste, now we must get on the sled and arrive at Roseburg before the ice and snow thaw. What awaits us all will be a race to the distant east.
The expedition is a great achievement that you can proudly tell your descendants. Let's leave now, take your luggage and get on the sleigh!"
They howled and yelled, forming a Viking war cry. This roar shook some snow, but it could not scare the deer into jumping.
The deer pulling the sled have long been accustomed to human chaos. During these short days, they were driven on the spot by the Lapp charioteers who were responsible for grazing.
It was also a delicious meal. The deer had eaten a belly of hay and supplemented it with some oats, and their physical strength had recovered.
It was the act of feeding oats that shocked the locals. The Balmoks who stayed behind did not understand how rich the Russians were, and they were so rich that they fed wheat to deer.
Thousands of ordinary people gathered in the settlement of Narvik. They watched with warm cheers as armed men boarded one sleigh after another. They shouted slogans of blessing and were even more concerned about the situation.
Thinking about the future.
Perhaps the fleet of the old leader Magnute is already taking advantage of the beginning of the warm season to sail back to his hometown?
However, a group of those who stayed behind are destined to leave. Today they are sending away the Russians and their brothers who are going to fight in the East. Soon, they themselves and their family and friends, carrying all their belongings, will paddle straight to Britain in a long boat.
The wind was no longer as sharp as a knife. Although it had only been cutting for five days, the sled team once again ran wildly on the ice of the slender Lake Torna at the top of the mountain.
The reindeer kept moving forward, the people on the sled were talking and laughing, and the atmosphere was so lively.
But when a snowfall hits, the joyful atmosphere comes to an abrupt end, and people have to wrap up their fur blankets and huddle together, praying that the sleigh shelter is strong enough to protect them from the wind.
The wind and snow did not make it difficult to move on the road, and the sudden drop in temperature really made Rurik feel at ease.
What does it mean if it gets cold suddenly? If the glacier thaws quickly due to rising temperatures, that would be the worst thing!
This snowstorm was really a gift from God, and a wonderful scene appeared on the glacier.
In the fine snow, a reindeer sleigh team lined up in double columns, speeding up the frozen Torna River.
How long it took when I came here, maybe it will be the same when I go back.
It has entered May, and even with such a storm, the arrival of the warm season is unstoppable.
Finally, when the snowstorm ended and the sled team entered the lower reaches of the Torna River, everyone noticed something unusual about the ice - it had obviously become thinner.
Continuing to move forward on the ice was full of dangers. Rurik resolutely chose to move forward through the riverside forests that were still full of snow. However, the path he chose to go home soon aroused everyone's astonishment.
He immediately explained his decision, and then the old mercenary who was appointed as a junior officer gave them the clearest explanation.
Because Rurik and a group of Russians knew the geography of this area, and Modgen, a native of Balmok, probably knew the geography and hydrology best.
The sled team turned around and headed east. They were advancing in the pine forest. The snow falling from the branches from time to time clearly showed that this area was thawing rapidly.
Rurik is going to Ironburg, where he will obtain key supplies, and then recruit all the local longbowmen. By that time, the frozen Gulf of Bothnia should be thawed enough for navigation, and then Fort Ross will
Large ships can be quickly brought in, and fresh troops can be easily transported to Fort Ross to assemble the army.
Don't look at the majesty of the Fourth Banner Troop composed of Balmoks, but their own weapons are nothing to Rurik. This group of people must completely change their equipment, such as replacing stainless chrome iron on the spot in Ironburg
They made slender and pointed spearheads and even gave them some bows and arrows.
Rurik did not dare to neglect the war at all. He would rather spend a lot of money to arm his own troops. Even though the Russian army was already very strong, he did not dare to rush into battle rashly and conceitedly because of optimism.
For example, this year's war against the Karelia people in the warm season cannot be completed by sending out a continuous army to fight the enemy in a decisive battle and win.
"I'm afraid this war will start after the autumn harvest." Rurik was making calculations in his mind.
The Principality of Rus is now unusual. He estimates that the war against the Karelians will not yield much immediate gains. The positive value of this battle is that it completely wipes out the strategic threat of Novoros Fort on the Neva River. The huge Ladoga Lake can
For the Russians to catch fish as much as they want, and even hunt as much as they want in the surrounding areas, the huge economic value will only be revealed in the next few years.
But the strategic results of the conquest of Britain still have to be tasted this year. A small fleet must rush to the Viking Kingdom of York before the autumn harvest season in Britain, seize the wheat tribute from the weak Kingdom of Northumbria, and then return. However,
Deep down in his heart, Rurik was not optimistic about going all the way to Britain to harvest wheat. After all, Northumbria was very weak after the war, and the tribute offered to them was huge, even for the broken-armed King Aenred.
You have to sell everything to get it together.
The food self-sufficiency rate in the core control areas of the Ross Principality is too low, and it must be too wishful thinking to expect wheat from the British Isles to fill the vacancies in the principality.
Desperately plundering the fish resources in the sea can basically maintain the livelihood of the people, just like the way of life of the Russians in the past hundreds of years. However, as the principality becomes stronger, the fundamental reason for the people to have enough food is to grow wheat.
"When Karelia is conquered, I should also focus on reclamation in the east."
The final journey was uneventful. Rurik took advantage of his passive leisure to deduce in his mind a future with abundant harvests.
The sled team found the Aylon (Kemi) River very smoothly, and to everyone's surprise, they heard the sound of water flowing!
The snow on the shore is still thick, but the melting snow has washed away the ice floes, and the currents are not serious. However, sledding is not possible on the river, and even boats cannot be used for the time being. Look at the blue sky, the sun is so warm, and the wind is no longer strong.
Lie.
A lake lies in front of the sled team. From a distance, the lake is full of ice cubes of all sizes, and they are even a little blue.
In the distance, a village suddenly appeared, and now Rurik's old mercenaries knew where it was - Fisk Castle.
The lake fishing season is coming again, and people who are waiting for the ice to melt and push their boats off the lake are surprised by the sudden arrival of Rurik's sled team.
How could Rurik not be surprised?
Because a man and his gang happened to be here too.
With a rare opportunity to stop and rest, the Balmok warriors descended to the ground one after another. Since everyone was a Russian, these guys immediately became brothers with the Russian fishermen who stayed behind, exchanging some things and sharing some stories.
At night, in the slightly shabby yet warm woodcut room, the stubble-covered explorer Spyut, who looked like he was twenty years older, sat casually cross-legged. Opposite him was Rurik himself.
A piece of leather was placed on the ground, some dried meat on a glass plate, and two glasses of ordinary ale.
"Spuyut, I almost don't recognize you. Let's drink some wine to celebrate our chance encounter." As he said this, Rurik had already raised his glass.
This was a toast from the Duke himself, what an honor it was.
Thinking of his work in Murmansk in the far north, Spuyut's nose became sore and he still held back his tears. He raised his glass and drank half of it in one go.
"Sir, I know you want me to talk about what happened in Murmansk. Well, I am looking for an opportunity to report to you."
"Say it now."
"yes……"
Spuyut kept talking, and what he said was within Rurik's expectation. The construction speed of Murmansk is still slow. The current positioning there is based on the existing strength of the Rus Principality. At most, it can maintain a hunter stronghold.
, it is extremely difficult to maintain a settlement of fifty people.
The warm season means comfort to people in most areas, but for those who go to Murmansk, it is a journey to fight the mud. Summer is not a good opportunity to go to Murmansk, but summer is also the time for elephant seals and seals.
During the breeding season, the local leather and oil resources reached their peak, and the opportunity for large-scale hunting encountered terrifying mud. Murmansk was so far away from Rosberg, and the people who stayed behind felt that they were in two worlds.
His words made Rurik feel itchy in his heart, but the mud that reached his knees after the permafrost melted would kill him. Both the Elon River and the Moorman River come from the same swamp. In today's warm period, there is a very fast
It will turn into deadly mud, and I'm afraid the only way to go to Murmansk is by sea.
Wait! Sea route!
Rurik chuckled.
"Sir...have you thought of any decision? Then seals are everywhere, we..."
"Of course we must capture as many as possible." Rurik said openly: "Have you seen the Balmok warriors I brought back?"
"I see. They look so much like us."
"Of course. There will be no Balmok in the future, or we can say that Balmok is us. The western harbor is already our Russian territory, and these brothers are all our Russians. Soon Balmok will be in contact with Murmansk, we will not
If you walk on muddy ground, use the sea as your connection."
"Ah?" Spuyut was surprised: "Is the sea connected?"
"Of course. Alas? You are actually doubting that you are an excellent explorer but you don't know this?"
"I'm sorry, if I had brought a longship, I should have been able to detect this. The fact that the two locations are connected by the sea is really a gift from Odin to us."
"It's a gift." Rurik said excitedly: "Soon, I will focus on Narvik, where I will build a new fleet."
"A new fleet? Could it be that the current fleet can't satisfy your needs... Oh no! My vision is too small. Our Ross fleet must be huge."
Rurik nodded, thinking that this guy was quite smart.
"Yes, what we have now is the Baltic Fleet, which is already invincible. Next, I will definitely build an Atlantic Fleet, with its home port in Narvik. In this way, the Atlantic Fleet may go to Murmansk to capture seals
, or going to Britain to get wheat tribute will go smoothly. Oh, and the Western Ocean is full of miracles. Believe me, there are no sea monsters in the West, but a land of miracles. When the time comes, I may send you to explore
."
This was an honor from the Duke, and Spyout did his part. He slapped his chest and shouted loudly: "Even if you let me go to the end of the world to explore, I will go. This way, the children of Ross will know that there is a man named Spyout."
The guy has been to the furthest places and is a hero."
"Here's to you." Rurik raised the glass.
The two sides exchanged greetings and drank the last of the ale.
Siputu did not simply report some information, he returned with a batch of precious goods!
It was seal leather, elephant seal tusks, and seal grease that was slightly hard and white due to the cold. The total number of leather items alone was a thousand. When Rurik saw the bundles of seal skins, he touched them himself
With its smooth texture, the face is filled with more than just the joy of harvest.
This was the output of Murmansk hunters. Rurik did not ask them to hand over some leather as a kind of tax. Instead, he sent this batch of leather that was supposed to arrive at the Roseburg Market at the market price according to the winter market price.
This is a price that everyone is happy to accept. As for the leather being processed in Rurik's hands and then sold at a higher price, that is what Spuyut and his guys don't care about.
The sled team became larger, and the snow on the land was melting faster. Fortunately, Fort Fisk was very close to Fort Ellen, and soon, a huge city wall standing on the riverside lay in front of everyone.
Many Balmoks who came here for the first time opened their mouths in shock, saying that they had witnessed the majestic appearance of Fort Ross.
But the reality made them even more astonished because they were rare and strange. However, it was Iron-Olawa Castle, and no matter how majestic it was, it was only the northern iron smelting center of the Principality of Ross. And in terms of iron smelting alone, the iron smelting industry of Rossburg was obviously even more evil.
When they learned that Fort Ross was even more shocking, they could only take a good rest for the time being.
The entire Gulf of Bothnia has melted. Although the sea is full of ice floes and there are huge ice lumps of staggering size, these obstacles are no longer able to affect the navigation of ships. A group of bold fishermen have already begun offshore boating and fishing operations.
Already.
Another ship rushed to Rossburg to report the news, so before the big ship arrived, all Rurik had to do was to wait at Ironburg. Taking this opportunity, he just changed his new subordinates' clothes and became more martial and virtuous.