Compared with Novgorod, the situation in Novostar makes it easier to house a large team of horses and even serve as a temporary residence for commercial horses.
Since his Rurik brothers are still in the capital, Kagan is not busy crossing the frozen Lake Ilmen.
Merchants from the south brought opportunities to this closed area, and a trading market was established! But the transactions were not just regular cheese, butter, honey, and wool felt.
A special store was built with great fanfare by Carlotta, the new Duchess of Ostara. She made the "opening of the store" a big deal. As for the goods she wanted to sell, it was people...
The Smolensk women who almost froze to death and the Mickey women in La became de jure Carlotta's private property after that reception party.
She is a female slave, or a female general, and she does not need too many maids. She packaged and purchased these female slaves from the Pechenegs, and of course she could not let them die in her own hands.
She paid the seller ready-made silver coins and grain, and signed an agreement to provide food and lodging for personnel, mounts, and commercial horses.
This is no longer a problem for the Ostara tribe than the consumption of materials, because the tribe's successful immigration and development have solved a long-term shortcoming in the area around Lake Ilmen - animal husbandry. Farming is not the Ostara tribe.
The strong point of the immigrants was animal husbandry, and now Carlotta received the task from her husband Rurik, which was to open up new pastures in the south of the Great Lakes and domesticate cattle, sheep and horses.
Since cows began to produce milk, sheep were the only supplier of wool, and dairy products and wool products immediately began to be transported to Novgorod, the center of the handicraft industry.
The people of Ostara sold cheese and butter and bartered for wheat. They sent roughly processed skimmed wool and fresh cowhide and sheepskin to state-run garment factory directors like Vodgen, in exchange for solid
Real silver coins.
Carlotta accumulated wealth in this peaceful way, and also took advantage of her personal advantages to ask for a sum of money as a monarch woman, which was said to be used for consolidation and development.
The Prince of Rus never prohibited the slave trade in the form of law, but there was a fact that the whole people acquiesced to, that is, the purchased foreigners would become the family members of the buyer. This has nothing to do with kindness or not, it is a pure legacy of the tribal era.
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Carlotta then personally inspected the women in the stables, asking them to open their mouths one after another like a horse, and determine the age of each other by looking at their teeth.
They were all frightened and had no idea where they were going. The more they were like this, the more frightened they became.
Carlotta checked them herself, graded their ages, and finally even checked their virginity herself.
Even though Carlotta was a woman, the attendants who accompanied her were also women. After all this, many female slaves suffered great humiliation. Unfortunately, their will to resist had already been disintegrated on that bloody night, and they could only hide their faces.
Sob.
I have to say that Carlotta is a smart woman.
She summoned her female attendants: "You take all the ten young ones away, untie all the shackles, arrange a bath to refresh themselves, and then send them to a normal room. After that, let them do nothing, a group of emaciated people
All the cubs have to be fattened up for me."
This move puzzled a waitress: "Sir, is this too much kindness? Do you plan to incorporate them into our tribe?"
"Why do you say that? Shouldn't all these women be included?"
"Why should those ten women be treated specially?"
It seems that he should answer questions for his subordinates. Carlotta sighed angrily: "You don't need to know too much, it's okay for me to say it now. Originally, the king had an appointment with the prairie people, and these women should be dealt with by the king in principle. I now
I am acting on behalf of the king, and I am risking punishment. I am his woman, and I used to be his sister. Of course he will not do anything to me. I am still worried that he will be dissatisfied. This does not leave ten pure people.
I sent the women there and raised them to be beautiful, so that I can have a good end here."
A gift to King Rurik? The maids blushed in embarrassment when they realized this.
A brave man suddenly got the courage and complained to his master: "The king has too many wives and concubines. Why...why are you like this?"
"Stupid!" Carlotta suddenly grimaced, "These ten people are left to the king to deal with, and they must be rewarded to his subordinates. Don't ask any more questions, and do the work first."
"As you command!"
When her man became a king and upgraded, her relationship with him became more subtle. Carlotta had to think carefully about whether she was more of a wife and concubine of the king, or whether she was more of a border noble.
Rurik has more and more children. Prince Osborne Slav has learned to walk and talk. What about his son Kardan?
She will eventually become old and lose her luster. She wants to create a good environment for her son and ensure a prominent position among the many noble brothers. This will be a good thing for herself and the people of Ostara.
The women who were left behind watched eagerly as the young women were removed from their bonds and taken away, as if they had been freed. At this moment, Carlotta, who had been speaking in Norse for a long time, suddenly shouted in Slavic with a clear voice.
"I heard that you are all Slavs from the south! What a coincidence! This place is full of Slavs from the north. And us! Fair-haired Varangians! Many strong men will buy you and you will be their wives
, give them children. From now on, your lives will be protected by noble people, and your lives will return to stability."
She said no more, no matter whether these women understood it or not, they would all understand it in the future.
The news spread throughout the country, and a special market was set up in the city of Ostara. Any man who could produce a thousand pounds of wheat could come and buy a wife or concubine.
Some Slavic boyar nobles from nearby farms came to join in the fun and tried to buy back a slave. However, most of the female slaves were bought by the Ostarans and Grans first, and the prices were quite low.
They were pushed onto the wooden platform like commodities and stood in several rows nervously. Most of them were digested by Carlotta's own tribe.
Only a dozen women were obviously older, so they were sold to nearby Slavic nobles and received nearly 20,000 pounds of oats.
The market for trading people disappeared immediately as the goods were sold out, and the man who got a wife immediately "treated" his new woman well on the first night.
They made a lot of noise, and many women were heard crying during the night.
Carlotta regarded it as boring noise, while the Pechenegs and Kiev residents stayed in the mansion to have fun, especially Kagan and Sakhi. This was the second successful robbery, and they will go north together again next year.
When doing business, you must be more prepared to rob a Smolensk village and take away people and property.
However, things very accidentally developed into a magical place.
The martyr girl who dared to resist has died under the sword of the Pecheneg noblewoman Beyashir. The other female slaves were frightened, but this does not mean that they have really lost their will to resist.
That night, although some women could not resist the strong men's intentions, they cursed with a foul mouth, and this was the only way they could resist.
It is said that a handful of Ostara boys who successfully escaped back then have become strong young men ten years later. The various Vikings who later joined New Ostara are equally strong. They bought these women, and today
It is to act under the orders of the duchess and must show the strength of a man.
This Ostara is not the old Ostara more than ten years ago. At least the rulers are still the aristocratic lineage of the old family. They have all undergone great changes. For example, due to frequent contact with the Ilmenslavs, their people
Everyone has learned some Slavic languages.
The new wife he bought hopelessly scolded her, which only aroused his stronger desire to conquer, but things just became strange.
Early the next morning, a man with a lot of blood on his face rushed straight to the Duchess's residence, intending to report important information.
Carlotta is in a good mood today, especially since Hanukkah is coming soon. The Ostara and Gran tribes will celebrate the festival together for the first time. The festival will be more grand, and she is looking forward to it.
What else can the men under my command report?
When she saw the strange face of her subordinate, she just took one look and started laughing, holding her stomach. After laughing enough, she asked: "Didn't you buy a new woman? You are obviously very strong, but you can't surrender?"
"That's not the case, my lord. It's just that she said she was from Smolensk, and she cursed us viciously. As for her hurting my face with her nails, it's nothing."
"Curse? Could it be that he prayed to some god to send down thunder and kill us? It's ridiculous, we are the ones blessed by the gods." Carlotta's expression became serious.
"That's not it."
"what is that?"
"That woman said that a big noble who was against Russia escaped from us and became their son-in-law in Smolensk or something. She had an army on hand and also inspired the local nobles..."
"Is it possible that we are going to raise troops to attack us?" Carlotta interrupted his subordinates nonchalantly, with contempt written all over his face.
The subordinates, on the other hand, did not dare to speak and simply remained silent.
"That's it. Just back off. It seems that the woman you bought is a stubborn cow and needs you to tame her."
"Follow your orders, I don't dare to embarrass our Ostara people."
Carlotta thought this was an interesting story, and the more she thought about it, the more she laughed, thus ignoring the information reported by her subordinates.
But in the following days, more than a dozen men reported that the new wives they bought had made the same verbal curse. The content was similar, and they all pointed at the malicious intentions of the Smolensk people. What's more, even that
The Slavic farm nobles who are good at growing hemp stalks also sent envoys to tell Carlotta something. They said they had learned information about the missing rebel Vadim from the slave girl.
One and two came to report, and Carlotta could no longer sit still.
Unable to let these worries dilute the joy of the festival, after many days, she suddenly had the idea to interrogate the ten young women who had been treated specially.
Ten women or girls, they put on new clothes and new boots. Since they were fed and fed well, their fear dissipated a lot. But when they saw Carlotta, they felt a sense of fear from the bone marrow.
It popped up again.
They stood in a group with their heads lowered and timidly.
Carlotta shouted loudly: "Women! Look at me!"
Only then were they forced to raise their heads out of fear.
She continued: "Those of you who are from Smolensk, come forward! Come on, don't force me to use any means."
Forced by the power, six women walked out timidly. They were frightened, and in order to protect themselves, they followed Carlotta's order and told them what they knew.
At the same time, Carlotta's maid was standing by, recording their speeches with pen and paper.
It is said that if Smolensk really has absolute hatred for Rus, this hatred must be widespread. Unexpectedly, these young women have feelings for Rus and other Varyags in the north, as well as the Ilmen
The attitude of the Slavs is indifferent. They cannot talk about hatred, let alone love.
They were not ignorant young village girls, but they revealed some of the same information.
Even the ignorant young village girl knew this. It was obviously a fact that the rebel leader Vadim was not dead!
In that counter-insurgency war, the Ostara people also participated in the war with only a few troops, and Carlotta was a witness.
Since Vadim most likely went south to become a Smolensk noble, what happened to him now? Following this line of thinking, she immediately started interrogating more women, and the answer became increasingly clear.
It is necessary to ask not only them about this matter, but also the Pechenegs and Kiev people about what they know.
When the information from all parties is pieced together, the foggy situation becomes increasingly clear.
She could conclude that the rebel leader Vadim did not give up the rebellion even after losing his entire tribe. Smolensk had a large population, and the local nobles were probably hostile to the Rus in the north. What those women said was definitely not just rhetoric, but
It was the Smolensk people who really had the intention to go north and launch a massive attack.
She shuddered, thinking that Rurik had anticipated this situation by ordering her to build fortresses and station cavalry troops.
As a woman who had been close to Rurik, Carlotta knew his attitude towards Smolensk. The reason why he did not attack them now was just that the time was not ripe. Rus would eventually conquer the Slavs in the south.
It is impossible for the Smolensk army to defeat the Rus, but once they launch an attack, Novostar will be the first place to fight.
The possibility of a large-scale attack by the Southern Slavs has always existed, but in recent years the people have forgotten this matter, so that Carlotta recently encountered the Pecheneg caravan that was seriously late, and took this opportunity to make a surprise attack.
A very bad exercise for the army to assemble for battle.
Now she can no longer ignore this threat, and must personally deliver the compiled information to Rurik!
On the winter solstice, the people of Ostara-Glan gather together to celebrate Hanukkah, which is also the biggest festival of the year for the Pechenegs and Kiev people.
It was such a joy to celebrate the festival together, drink together, and dance around a small fire tower.
Carlotta was worried about something on her mind, but her attitude towards the festival was outwardly cheerful.
She finished summarizing the documents. The so-called two or three women explained the same news, which meant that the news was most likely true. She then concluded that the Smolensk people were preparing for the Northern Expedition, and the rebellious Vadim
The son-in-law of the leader of the Smolensk alliance holds an army. The Smolensk people regarded the previous terrorist attack as an active attack by the Russians (actually it was done by the Pecheneg caravan), and the main nobles supported it.
Take a hard line against the Rus' and Ilmen Slavs, and also call on villages to migrate to avoid risks.
A report was compiled by Carlotta herself. Although her handwriting was not as good as that of her sister Ellajuan, the entire report was written in Latin, which still showed her high cultural literacy.
All of Rurik's wives and concubines are bad at Latin, and high-ranking female nobles like Carlotta need to study harder. After all, Norse, Slavic and Latin are all Indo-European languages, and the language structure is logically logical.
, if you look carefully, you will see that some vocabulary words also have similarities. It is said that only nobles read and write in Latin. As a real nobleman, Carlotta must master it well.
She had made a plan for herself. This time she would not take her troops to gather in Novgorod, but she would also personally submit the report about Smolensk to Rurik.
So, after the festival, a huge horse team and sleigh team began to assemble.
The Pecheneg-Kiev armed merchant group, leading their own commodity horses and special supplies that were urgently needed to be sold to Rurik himself, headed north along the frozen lakeside under the escort of the Ross cavalry.
Carlotta had a hunch that King Rurik had arrived in Novgorod, and the information she brought with her would definitely shock her man deeply and even have a major impact on the next decision.