Chapter 825 The desire of the Swedish king Bjorn and the desire of the big white fat white fox Gouldsson
The Principality of Rus finally ushered in a new winter. A blizzard forced the people to hide in warm houses, and even the livestock and poultry were driven into warmer buildings for strict supervision.
In addition to the principality, there are a total of more than 50,000 large and small reindeer wandering around the principality.
Although we are facing the blizzard, no one is afraid of its cold terror anymore.
It can be said that the principality's treasury is full of livestock and the animals are prosperous. In winter, the people have no worries about food and drink. Since they are trapped at home by the wind and snow, they naturally want to eat a lot and do active work to bring new children into the family.
Otto's beard was completely gray, and all the white hair on his head had fallen out. His skin was very sagging, and there were some visible brown age spots on his face that was not covered by his beard.
As a soldier, it was difficult for him to accept himself like this.
When he carefully observed his son who had returned from the expedition, the increasingly heroic figure reminded him of the past. He thought that he was so young and strong back then, but the times did not give him many opportunities. At that time, Ross was still a hunter in the fjord.
, and was squeezed out by Swedish allies. Although Rus was able to go to Novgorod to ask for tribute at that time, it was only in the past few years that he fully ruled here.
Everything has changed, and the old warriors have decayed like dry wood.
According to tradition, after Hanukkah, everyone becomes one year older.
The only son Rurik was born in the autumn. Even so, when the festival is over, he can be said to be one year older. The festival is approaching, and Rurik will be eighteen years old.
A young prince has achieved unspeakable feats, but the old warriors of Rus are quickly passing away...
Otto is already sixty-five years old. He never thought that he could survive until now. Everything must be a gift from the gods.
However, if a veteran warrior could choose, fighting to the death on the battlefield would be a better destination.
Otto is not afraid of death and even looks forward to it. He knows that the gods have reserved a place for him in the Hall of Valor, but he must not leave now. He must witness a great moment.
The clever little girl who was personally selected by herself in the past has now grown pregnant ten years later. Svetlana is not a Viking. In recent years, she has behaved more and more like a female Viking warrior. She joined as a pregnant woman
When it came to the crusade against the Kingdom of Denmark, as for whether the enemies were killed by drawing bows and arrows, this is not a matter of further investigation. The key to the matter is that both Queen Svetlana and the child in her belly participated in the battle. This was to provide early support for the unborn child.
Received the meritorious service.
Svetlana finally settled down and quietly waited for the birth of her child at her parents' home in Novgorod...
Winter life in the principality is in full swing because the rivers, lakes and seas are completely frozen, and the ice forms roads that allow quick movement.
Reindeer sleighs began to move frequently on the ice. The sleighs from the east of Lake Ladoga were unparalleled in transporting stones and yellow sand. The newly-attached Lüdi people did not hesitate to engage in sand and stone work as a result of the profits.
, they relied on the hammers and chisels they obtained from the Russians to pound the stones on the shores of Lake Onega, transported them to their own villages on sleds, and sold them on the spot to the Russian merchants who came to transport the goods. In this way, some Russians
People are not stoneworkers, they are just stone movers.
Compared with transporting stone from Gogland Island in the Gulf of Finland, the time cost and travel risk of transporting stone from Eastern Lake Onega are low.
The demand for stones in Novorossberg on the Neva River is very high. After all, when people have the right to choose, including ordinary residents, they all hope to use stones to strengthen their houses and use them as a basis to build two or even three floors.
's residence.
Not only the needs of the people, but also the cement manufacturing workshops of New Roseburg also need raw materials. Currently, only the craftsmen trained by Rurik understand the principles of cement setting, and the knowledge is monopolized by the "Blacksmiths' Alliance".
A cement workshop is built in an open space outside the capital. It is surrounded by a wooden wall. There is a furnace inside the wall. The lime transported from the hometown of Roseburg is processed into hydrated lime, and the yellow sand transported from Lake Onega is processed into hydrated lime.
The iron wire screen filters the sand into fine sand. The craftsmen here all serve the prince, and they can receive food and salary for their work.
The processed slaked lime and fine sand are always put to use immediately to bond the stones to build solid walls and even lay hardened roads. However, the severe winter has forced such construction work to be suspended, so the workers in the workshop made hydrated lime and fine sand.
Complete and reserve.
Making slaked lime requires a flame, and the local blacksmith needs a more powerful flame.
The industrial areas of New Roseburg are located together. They are all close to the frozen Neva River. On weekdays, you can take advantage of the convenient transportation of the waterway. If there is a fire, you can also get water on the spot to put out the fire.
Because a batch of trophy longships from Denmark were towed to New Rossburg and Tombstone Island, the ships were immediately sold, and the proceeds went into the treasury. The new ships had an impact on the shipbuilding work of the whole of Russia, but they did not affect the construction of large ships.
The workshop had no impact.
Three large shipbuilding workshops in Rosberg, Novorosberg and Novgorod still build standard cargo ships on shore. Today, some orders for cargo ships come from princes, but the other half of the orders come from simple merchants.
.
Merchants from all walks of life certainly have the right to purchase a cargo ship that can hang a triangular sail. Because it is jointly monopolized by the Hortra family and the Prince Rurik family, the price is sold by Rurik with a wave of his hand. The price is one hundred pounds of silver coins.
Or a hundred thousand pounds of wheat.
Are traditional cargo ships inferior to it? This is indeed the case.
Rurik's expedition to Bornholm Island consisted of twenty standard cargo ships that were both troop carriers, cargo ships, and trawlers that crazily exploited the wealth of the ocean.
A great white shark cruises the ocean, always followed by a few seal fish. Ross's ocean expeditionary force was also followed by a group of Swedes, and naturally there were fishermen among them, who were indeed spies serving King Bjorn of Sweden.
When the Russian navy planned to attack the Danish capital, a large number of Swedes evacuated first with their catch.
King Bjorn of Sweden knew about the ship. Although this general talker elected by many nobles was the master of Birka Port and the King of Sweden, his real strength was limited to Merlaren.
Tribe. In the past ten years, he has witnessed the expansion of the strength of the Ross people and the decline of the Swedish tribes. This must be fate. Sweden's attempt to defeat Denmark and seize hegemony failed miserably, and the victory over Denmark actually came from Ross.
Especially the nobles of the Mellaren tribe are thinking hard. They don't think that their warriors are inferior to others. I am afraid that the main difference is that their ships are not good enough.
The Rus had a shop in Birka, and because of the alliance treaty, Sweden could not charge even one copper coin in tax for this huge shop.
The obese Russian White Fox (Snoleva) Gouldson has long been ordered by the Prince of Russia to manage the shops on the shore and the completely fortressed Gould Island on the lake. These areas are outside the law compared to the Kingdom of Sweden.
land.
For general inner lake trade, it is enough to rely on traditional rowing long boats and traditional sailing cargo ships based on the expansion of long boats. However, Bjorn has always felt that the inner lake trade rights of Lake Malaren are declining. Every year
A lot of wealth was taken away by the Russians through peaceful trade methods.
The life is not to be said to be poor. The spies came to report that the so-called Prince of Rus was actually inviting Swedish fishermen from all walks of life to fish in the South Baltic Sea. In addition, the area around Lake Mälaren has been a grain-producing area since ancient times, and a group of Mälaren tribe members immigrated there.
Gotland, and even now the Russians have not claimed complete ownership of the territory of Gotland.
Life can neither be said to be poor nor rich. For the common people in Sweden, life has improved to a certain extent due to the overall peaceful environment, but for the nobles, they find that they do not have the ability to accumulate wealth quickly.
Snow and wind swept across Northern Europe, and the meeting in the council court of the Melalen tribe was in full swing.
The nobles first discussed the matter of purchasing a large ship from the Russians, and they agreed to go to Tombstone Island to invite the big businessman from Russia. For this reason, the White Fox himself also passed by on a sleigh from Tombstone Island in the Åland Islands where he was stationed in the winter.
Binghai came to participate in this Swedish meeting.
After all, this is foreign-related trade, and even if the trade object is a traditional ally, the matter must be taken very seriously.
The fat white fox returned to the principality's shop in the port of Birka first. The people who stayed behind were all upset when they saw the boss' sudden return.
He listened to the chatter of his subordinates, walked into an independent hut, opened the door and saw some boys sitting inside.
"Are they slaves?"
"None of them. They came to us on their own initiative," said the man who stayed behind.
"People who were kicked out of their families?"
"Maybe. All of them are poor boys, and all of them are very thin. Since the prince wants to collect such boys, we act according to the order, and you will definitely get the prince's reward." The speaker's words were flattering, and the white fox shrugged and left the door.
close.
"Let them rest for a while. I don't have time to take care of them at the moment. These brats look quite old. Give them fish, meat and wheat, and train me to become thugs who don't have to pay commissions."
“But, is such an investment really appropriate?”
"Just do it." Bai Hu emphasized: "This kind of bastard is here to beg for work. If we give him some food, he is willing to work for us. After training the fortress that stays in us, we can dismiss those mercenaries or persuade them to go
I'm going to the East to serve as the prince's subordinate. Now I just want some trustworthy people."
The people who stayed behind didn’t know why the boss was so entangled with this. It seemed that the big white fat man was worried about his own danger? Lake Malaren was peaceful and trade was prosperous. Even though there were bandits, they didn’t dare to get involved in any of the Rus’ property. The relationship between the nobles and the Rus’ people was
Very good, now that everything is like this, what else do you have to worry about?
There are some things that White Fox does not need to discuss with his subordinates, and the central idea must be kept secret.
When his subordinates asked him why he came suddenly on a sleigh in winter, he just stated that he wanted to have business dealings with the nobles and stopped talking about it. His subordinates were too sensible to ask.
The King of Sweden sent an envoy to Tombstone Island to clearly disclose the purchase of the cargo ship to the old Gould who lived on the island. The Goulds were all businessmen, specifically, they were super second-rate dealers who were collecting money for Prince Rurik.
The tool family. The Gould family has no right to conclude a bilateral trade agreement with the Swedish nobles, but they have the qualifications and obligations to negotiate with the Swedes in advance for Rurik as a commercial intermediary.
Poor old Gould, due to his indulgence in his later years, his decaying body was no longer able to linger with the young slave girl he had raised. He felt that he would die if he lived for another year at most. If he died, he had already made up his mind.
His beloved slave was buried. He had high blood sugar and high blood lipids. After a snowstorm, the world froze, and his head was always troubled by headaches. Old Gould's face was always red, although this was related to the fact that this guy liked glass bottles.
The strong drink called vodka has a lot to do with it, and another relationship is precisely because the symptoms of high blood pressure in this old boy are already obvious.
People from the old era are leaving. As the eldest son, Bai Hu will inherit most of the family's property. His younger brothers have no right to compete with him on this matter. As a son, he hopes that his father will be happy before he dies.
It is best to die in the pleasure of the slave girl, which is also in line with the father's wishes.
The white fox himself is also getting older, he is over forty years old, and even the two daughters he married to the Danish old Eric family have given birth to children. He has a grandson, and there is no clear grandson and grandson in the Nordic world.
The difference is equivalent to saying that the Gould family has been together for four generations. It's just that he is very unlucky that he still has no living son.
Bai Hu has succeeded his father and taken over all the family's trade matters in the western region of the principality, and this year he paid heavy taxes to the principality according to the contract.
It was also after he negotiated with King Bjorn's messenger first that he arrived at the winter port of Birka.
The prosperous ports in the warm period suddenly went into depression, or a large number of Swedes preferred to stay at home and survive until spring. This was completely different from the situation in the Principality of Rus.
The Parliament of the Malaren people welcomed a heavyweight, fat, white man like him, who was really out of place among the lean and bearded Swedish nobles.
Everyone sat on the floor, but the fat white fox had some difficulty sitting on the leather cushion, which reminded the nobles of a seal covered in oil.
The nobles mocked this naive fat man in their hearts, but did not dare to show a trace of smile.
The nobles had no intention of being polite, but White Fox spoke first: "No need to say anything more. I came here in the winter just to take care of your face. Whether you want to buy our Russian ship or not is not up to me."
This big white fat man was a bit arrogant when he spoke, and his arrogance was naturally based on Rose's strength.
King Bjorn laughed alone: "We have always been an alliance, and the trade in the past was relatively smooth. I admire your... large cargo ships. It is said that one ship costs one hundred pounds of silver coins? The price is a bit expensive, but I still plan to
Buy."
"Sigh. This matter is not something I can decide." Blue Fox sighed slightly, feeling as if the price the Swedes were willing to pay was somewhat unsatisfactory.
"Don't you think you have too little money? I can pay more for the big ship."
"Oh? Really?" The white fox stared into King Bjorn's eyes and deliberately talked nonsense: "You are indeed eager to get the Ross ship. This matter is of great importance. You must explain this matter to Prince Rurik personally. Without the prince
I don’t have the power to make a decision. Besides, the prince is very busy every day. Even if you are the King of Sweden, you should understand your true identity. Our prince will not easily take time out to meet people, unless..."
Bjorn was not a fool. He could guess what the white fox was implying, so he asked: "So what do you want? A sum of money? How many women?"
Hearing this, the white fox deliberately looked at all the Mellaren nobles present. Their faces were solemn, and no one spoke. King Bjorn was the only one present during the whole process.
The white fox patted his body: "I want money, and I am also very interested in women..." At this point, he raised his head and smiled maliciously and said: "Just like you long for our Ross's big ship, I know you plan to do it
What you are doing, since I am stupid, I can guess it, and our prince knows better."
"So... in your opinion, will the Prince of Ross agree?"
"It depends on your sincerity. Moreover, I will also say a lot of good things for you."
There are certain words and situations that the two parties in the conversation know well but have a tacit understanding and will not bring to the table.
Bjorn suddenly said with a serious face: "What... do you want personally?"
Now that things have happened, Bai Hu no longer pretends: "I know you have multiple daughters, and now the youngest daughter can also get married. Marry her to me, and I will try my best to help you complete the boat purchase."
"Ah!?" King Bjorn was really shocked when he heard this. He didn't expect that this fat man would ask for his youngest daughter's marriage. Of course, his daughters themselves were bargaining chips for the exchange of political rights among nobles, and their marriage was destined to be a political marriage.
, but you have to marry such a guy.
The white fox simply patted his round belly and murmured meaningfully: "My ancestral home is the Angkras tribe, and now my whole family has become Rus and has a great status. It's really pitiful. I gave birth to my eldest son a few years ago, but
I lost my beloved son to a disease. My wife almost collapsed because of this, and my father also fell ill. Now my father is about to die, and I will inherit the main family business. Who will inherit me in the future?
Where is my wealth and status? You know, I am already forty years old. As a man, I don’t have a biological son. How painful it is.”
Every word struck Bjorn on the head. For a moment, King Bjorn, who was also forty years old, suddenly understood. He couldn't help but sigh that this white fox was indeed the son of the Gould family. For wealth and status, he not only
They made bets with the Russians, and now they have to make bets with themselves. The loyalty of businessmen has always been ridiculous, but there is no doubt about their pursuit of wealth, and the latter can also be exploited.
In fact, Bjorn was more willing to give his youngest daughter as a gift to Prince Rus. After so many years, that handsome boy must have become a brave and strong man, better than the big white fat man in front of him in any way. But his little daughter's appearance is also different.
It's not outstanding. The saying that the Prince of Rus is like a bull in April and has a lot of wives and concubines has long been spread everywhere. Presumably the boy doesn't like his daughter.
There is no record of the family marrying a female member to a merchant, but in order to get the big ship, Bjorn was willing to sacrifice his youngest daughter.
In an instant, King Bjorn had a flash of inspiration.
He asked: "The ocean is frozen. Can I take a sleigh and go straight to your New Roseburg? I want to see your prince and my old friend Otto in person. I want to negotiate with your nobles in person."
Bjorn's attitude is quite firm. Although the white fox has no experience of sledding in the harsh winter, the Balmoks who sell salt and a group of Finns have become good at sledding in the winter in recent years.
Trade lines already existed above the ice from Wick Harbor to New Roseburg in the far east.
"I am not afraid of the wind and snow!" Bjorn looked at everyone seriously, appeased everyone's shock, and emphasized: "I will arrive at New Roseburg this year. I am the king of all Sweden, and I have this power. These are two
A meeting with a king, no one can stop me from going to the East!"
He deliberately stated this to knock other nobles. The so-called "I am the legal king of Sweden" is to warn others not to think about the moment when he leaves and make any move to seize power, even though King Bjorn's power has not been there from the beginning.
Stability. In fact, this is also the reason why the power is unstable, so it is even more necessary to buy large ships to support itself, and to strengthen the support of the Russian people for itself, and even buy the support of the largest trader through a marriage.
Bjorn made it clear that he would leave for Rus to meet the Prince of Rus with an attitude similar to paying tribute. Indeed, now that Sweden is unified in name but all tribes have ideas, King Bjorn cannot use his strength to
From the perspective of yelling at the Prince of Rus, the businessmen who became popular under the Prince's family must also be respectful.
Naturally, before leaving, Bjorn had to hold a wedding for the white fox Gouldson.