After the Spring Festival is what the Russians call the Fishing Festival.
Nearly a thousand wooden boats of various types poured into the thawing sea. Even though there are still a lot of ice floes on the sea, it cannot stop people's enthusiasm for fishing.
Silver is a good thing, but it cannot be used as food. Many people saw the priests personally dissecting two big fish on the altar, which was an auspicious omen.
The ice floes are the largest near the coast. When the boat is rowed out of the fjord, things become different.
Cod play a very important role in the entire Baltic Sea ecological chain. They are also a very expansionist fish, so much so that they can be found in the entire huge sea area. The Gulf of Bothnia has a large number of cod resources, but they are not suitable for fishing by the Russians dragging fishing nets.
After nearly half a year of fishing moratorium, the cod, which has become fat and strong, does not mind the sudden appearance of bait at all.
A large amount of hemp rope fishing line was thrown into the sea, and a lump of herring meat was hung on the barbed iron fish hook to lure the herring at the bottom of the Gulf of Bothnia to eat.
In one afternoon, at least 3,000 fishing lines were thrown into the sea, kicking off a massive catch of cod.
Everyone spontaneously dispersed the boats, so that some fishermen were destined to wait until the next day to return to port.
All the efforts were well rewarded. When the soft light of the evening sun shone over the entire Roseburg, a large number of fishing boats had returned with loads of catches.
Half of the ships are still working, and they are just waiting for nightfall.
The geographical location of the Ross tribe determines that few of the southern allies are willing to go to the northern waters to fish. In fact, due to technical limitations, all tribes cannot imagine the grand occasion of catching thirty tons with a single net.
A successful trawl with a large net that catches five hundred pounds of herring is a blessing from Odin!
Cod fishing is different. With luck and the hemp rope is strong enough, it is possible to catch cod that is two stikas long (nearly two meters).
On the night of the great festival, the residents of Fort Ross spontaneously lit an astonishing number of bonfires, and the quiet world was filled with people.
People grilled fresh fish around the bonfire, and Rurik also participated in this gluttonous feast!
Grilled fish, with just a sprinkle of salt brings out the simplest deliciousness. Cod is very different from other fish. The fat content of fish meat is very low, and the cod liver is full of cod liver oil.
Rurik could not only eat the fish steak without bones, but also eat the fish liver and make his mouth full of oil.
Oil? Can fish oil be used to make soap?
Forget it, fish oil soap must be fishy, and washing clothes with it shouldn't smell like fish.
Around the campfire, Rurik couldn't help but think about it. The most efficient way to catch a seal is to dig a hole in the frozen sea. When the seal comes up to breathe, the harpoon will directly hook it and kill it on the spot. Currently, all soaps are made from seal oil, and its fat has no odor. Its best substitutes are butter and mutton fat.
Soap can indeed bring a lot of wealth. Without high-quality oils, everything is empty talk.
"Damn it, if I want to make more soap, do I have to start by raising cattle and sheep? I'm really convinced."
Rurik's eyes noticed his father. This old guy was already a close friend of his. He was holding his own horn cup or oak cup, drinking the remaining ale and laughing.
All the young people were caught up in the carnival, their bellies filled with fish and various drinks.
According to general custom, tonight, the entire tribe drank all the wine they brewed last year, and if they want to drink new ones, they have to start over.
The carnival only lasts one night, and the next day, the Ross tribe officially enters the most active period of the year.
Just like a big tree waiting for spring, it feels that the time has come and tries its best to protrude new buds. Soon, the dry trunk returns to the lushness of summer.
The whole tribe has become busy, and the new busyness is indeed different from previous years.
Everyone is telling the story that there are several powerful young men in the tribe who have won the support of other young people and continue to seek revenge against the Gotlanders.
Another major event is proceeding in an orderly manner with everyone paying attention, and that is the tax collection operation of the Russian army traveling eastward after the fishing season begins every year.
The trip won't be too long, but participants still need to prepare some dry food.
The amount of cod caught yesterday was huge, people were not yet luxurious enough to intentionally waste food, and there was a constant supply of new catches.
Women began to make salted fish and dry fish again. They also processed the little wheat left at home into hard wheat cakes to serve as food for their husbands or sons when they went on expeditions.
The great businessman Gould began to reorganize his fleet, and he hired some people from Fort Ross as temporary sailors. Under Otto's personal supervision, Gould personally led his men, pulled a two-wheeled wooden cart, and began to transport the yellow sulfur soap to the fleet. A large amount of processed deerskin has been bundled and thrown on board the ship.
Gould was going to make a lot of money. As for the blacksmith Clavarson, he had already made a lot of money, but his body was seriously exhausted. The huge demand for steel swords led him to greedily sign a huge order to produce two hundred of them? It's crazy.
What's more, the kid Rurik now has a new idea. Burning shiny sand and mixing in some quicklime can make a transparent cup. It sounds very tempting and worth trying. However, how can I have the time and energy to help him now?
Children are children. When spring comes, the child continues to lead more children to the hillside for training. Not to mention, what Rurik does is very interesting. This group of children will definitely be better than their parents when they grow up.
That's how Klavasen feels.
Otto didn't know that some things were beyond his knowledge, which Rurik didn't expect.
The five blacksmith families of the tribe all believe in Thor, the God of Thunder and the patron saint of craftsmen. Therefore, they naturally maintain a relatively close relationship. Although there is inevitable competition, the intensity of competition can be completely ignored.
If it weren't for the huge orders that made it an impossible task, Klavasen wouldn't have thought of spreading the technology to his friends. What's more, his son Kawei has already made himself a steel sword and easily completed the "cutting the iron sword" test. A few days after the big festival, Kawei will inevitably follow the leader and bring his own steel sword. Expedition to Novgorod.
There was one less outstanding blacksmith, and Klavasen, who didn’t even have an assistant, even thought of asking his wife to help him.
Is that possible? Trapped in impossibility. He found it incredible that a woman would work as a blacksmith.
The four blacksmiths knelt down and longed for a complete set of steelmaking techniques. They not only pointed out the friendship between generations, but also made it clear that they would pay a sum of money as a reward.
In essence, Klavasen is a craftsman and a businessman. Since Rurik negotiated a share with him, the child would not have to work because he could get 10% of the profit from each sword by selling the technology. Why couldn't he follow suit?
Klavasen also understood that as long as there were more orders, Rurik would quickly accumulate wealth because of the "agreement". He knew that he was fully capable of taking away the share that should be given to Rurik. Considering that the child would be the next leader without any accident, which fool would dare to take his money?
But your colleagues and friends need special treatment.
Klavason and his four colleagues also made a formal agreement engraved on the wooden board, that is, the proliferation of technology with a price, and the price is a thousand silver coins.
Indeed, it seems that this is an agreement that they cannot accept at all. After Klavasen explained it, how could his colleagues not agree?
It turned out that the agreement he signed with each of his colleagues was to make twenty steel swords free of charge after providing technology, and the performance test must be successfully completed.
Twenty pieces were sold for a thousand silver coins.
While others immersed themselves in the lively night after the big festival and feasted on fish and meat, the blacksmiths gathered together to complete the signing of all the terms of the agreement. Here, the deeper agreement is that since everyone can manufacture steel products, everyone must make changes in doing business in the future.
The pricing power of any metal smelting products is no longer owned by individuals, but five families of blacksmiths gather together to discuss. No one is allowed to raise or lower prices without authorization. All prices must be negotiated by everyone and cannot be changed.
They discussed many things about this, such as how to prevent the disharmony in production caused by one company being lazy and the other being too diligent, which would further lead to the disharmony in sales. In order to avoid being too poor and too rich, all professional blacksmiths must distribute their orders equally. That is, if a company receives too many orders and reaches the point where it cannot be completed at all, the orders must be diverted to others.
The blacksmiths took advantage of the festive atmosphere to successfully complete the signing of the agreement and formed an alliance for this purpose.
Five families of Russian blacksmiths made a great attempt.
In the ninth century AD, Europe completely returned to the agricultural age. The trade network in Western Europe almost completely collapsed, with only the Viking tribes keen on trade.
Five blacksmiths from the Ross tribe, one of the Viking tribes, got together and decided to form a cartel organization, also known as the Price Alliance.
Since ordinary people don't bother to convert Tol to become a blacksmith, the remaining blacksmiths have the motivation to unite.
The blacksmiths all know their own nation's rune script, and they also know a lot of practical mathematics and physics experience. They are more knowledgeable than other people, and are naturally more intelligent.
When Klavason further explained his thoughts, others thought for a moment and realized that the signed "agreement" also established the existence of the alliance.
Just like the relationship between the Ross tribe and those tribes in the south, that is, the basic principle is that if one side is in trouble, the allies must rescue them.
The same must be true for the blacksmiths' covenant. The fundamental purpose is for everyone to make money together.
Each of their families carved their name on the wooden board, and then performed a small ceremony under the stars, as if this would be affirmed by Thor, whom the blacksmiths believed in.
Rurik had no idea that the blacksmiths had spontaneously organized a price alliance. On the new day, he ran to the hillside with one of his young subordinates and continued to carry out purely militarized activities with wooden shields and wooden swords. training. In the eyes of adults, it is a good thing that Rurik can train his children in an orderly manner.
The boy will soon grow up to be a warrior and will make great achievements.
Rurik had some tricks up his sleeve, and he could actually make the children change into complex formations through verbal slogans. From now on, all their children will follow Rurik. They have established a good relationship now, and they will easily become warriors in the future.
In fact, the child's parents are happier because they don't have to worry about their lively son trying something particularly dangerous and losing his life. The leader's two previous sons died because of dangerous games, and every year a child dies in an accident. However, it is not advisable to confine your son at home because of danger.
The future leader will gather young children together to train tactics, so that the children's father and brothers can boldly and boldly make greater attempts.
What people fear most is having worries about their future. Even the Russian men who are willing to open up new lands are worried about the miserable situation of their wives and children after they die in the war.
Although many women love their husbands so much that they will bury their husbands if they die in battle, but what about their sons? Young children are usually raised by relatives and friends. Can they really get good care?
Rurik's actions reassured many people. They all believe that as long as their youngest son builds a close relationship with them from an early age, they will never have to worry about their youngest son having a bad life. On the contrary, those little children have become the lucky ones.
Three days had passed since the big festival. When Rurik personally visited Klavassen's blacksmith shop, he saw a large group of people hammering iron blocks.
who are they? They were actually Klavasen's colleagues.
The main purpose of Rurik's visit was to collect the 10% profit that belonged to him, and to continue discussing the glass making business. He never thought that he would end up like this after not seeing each other for three days.
"You are actually teaching the skills I gave you to others?" At this moment, everyone could see Rurik's childish anger showing clearly.
Klavason quickly explained carefully: "Ah, my son. The tribe gave me an order for two hundred swords. I have been working hard for a long time, but I still only made thirty. With the abilities of me and my son, Even next spring I still can’t complete this order.”
"So you just teach the technology to others?"
"Yes." Klavasen actually didn't think there was anything wrong with this, and continued: "We are all brothers of the same tribe, so I can't make a lot of money alone, right? So we also signed an agreement. From now on, We are an alliance, we work together, and only in this way can we complete the order of two hundred swords on that dark night (referring to the summer solstice)."
"You!" For a moment, a word called cartel appeared in Rurik's mind. "You are actually...a cartel."
"What's wrong?"
"You actually formed an alliance."
"You..." Klavasen was stunned for a moment, and the other blacksmiths also stopped what they were doing. "Rurik, don't you like it? Don't worry, we have made an agreement, and we will fulfill that agreement. It is your money. We swore to Thor in the sky that we will never covet even a copper coin from you. .”
Hearing this, Rurik felt a little relieved, but the shock and a bit of uneasiness in his heart still lingered.
Rurik muttered in a low voice: "It seems that even if I am not involved, you will spontaneously become different. Okay, you continue to do it."
Klavasen couldn't hear the meaning of these words at all, so Rurik simply did not object and continued: "You must rest assured, I know you are here to ask for money today, Kawei, take out the money."
Soon, Kawei came with a linen bag and handed it to Rurik in its entirety. There were all heavy silver coins in them, and Rurik counted thirty of them, which was the profit he should get from the production of six swords.
Undoubtedly, Klavasen's behavior surprised Rurik. He did not stay any longer and left hastily with his servant Rumia. He didn't even continue to persuade Klavason to lobby for glass production, and he withdrew after taking the money.
Looking at his hurried back, Klavason shook his head and couldn't help but blame himself: "Is it really wrong for us to form an alliance? We are all blacksmiths, so it is strange to form a covenant?"
Perhaps only by looking at it from the perspective of future generations can we understand the progressive nature of the blacksmiths' actions.
Rurik was simply shocked! He simply retreated to his home to calm down.
On the way home, Rumia couldn't help but ask: "Masta, why did you leave so quickly? Didn't you still have something to say..."
"What do you know!" Rurik shouted.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Master."
"No! Keep calling me masta. Rumia."
"Yes, masta?" Rumia replied weakly.
"You still have to continue studying. You still can't understand what the blacksmiths are doing now. They just want to escape the control of the leader. I don't like this. When I become the leader, the blacksmiths must be under my control."
Rumia really didn't understand. The only thing she understood was that her master had a strong desire to dominate at a "young age". Why did some blacksmiths have to be controlled by him?
She said nothing and just followed Rurik closely.
In Rurik's concept, cartel price alliances are always hated by a country. But it cannot be denied that it is actually a product that will inevitably appear when commercial civilization develops to a certain extent.
Businessmen are the first group of real bourgeoisie to appear, and such businessmen often take care of both production and sales. In order to compete in an increasingly competitive market, monopolistic organizations will emerge. Without him, an individual businessman is fragile. If he makes too much, he will be a fat sheep in the eyes of others. If he makes too little, he will naturally starve to death. If he becomes an organization, it will be completely different.
The Hanseatic League was such an organization. First, it was a city formed by merchant bazaars due to the restoration of trade in Western Europe. Merchants gained control of the city to form a free city. Multiple free cities formed alliances for the benefit of wealth. The merchants recruited their own mercenaries to resist the attacks of the lords, and formulated their own business rules to coordinate various industries within the alliance.
Their origins are not aristocratic, but are filled with a desire for wealth and a determination to protect their wealth.
If you don't want to be a fat sheep slaughtered by the lords at will, then unite. Since everyone is so poor that only money is left, use money to build a position of power.
The Hanseatic League was a classic cartel alliance. This alliance was eventually destroyed in the increasingly fierce wars between the European powers, but it did not really disappear. As long as the business culture reaches a certain level, businessmen will definitely try to form an alliance in order to maximize their profits.
Some merchants went to the New World. They did not want to be controlled by the European powers, so they established a new type of country purely dominated by big businessmen and big landowners. They found that it was possible to run a country using the operating methods of their Natong Commercial Alliance, even better than The method of monarchs and lords is quite efficient, but it is so shocking that even the monarchs are no longer wanted.
But the times have also entered the modern era.
Great changes often begin with subtle changes. Originally, Rurik felt that his people generally lacked knowledge. Although they all have strong learning abilities, it is not difficult to change their concepts.
Now, Rurik really feels like he has some ideas for clothes.
Are they just a spontaneous alliance of five blacksmiths? I'm afraid that when the Hanseatic League started, it was just a few big businessmen in Hamburg who got together to hold a meeting to form a small alliance. Then more and more businessmen and industry experts joined in, and quantitative changes turned into qualitative changes.
After all, Klavasen and other five families of blacksmiths have taken the lead in mastering the technology of block-smelting low-carbon steel in Europe. As long as their alliance has a chance to continue to develop, it will not be as simple as making a lot of money.
"This is a danger. I must control them. I must form my own team of blacksmiths and obey my orders. Yes. The salt and iron monopoly has never been because of its huge profits. If businessmen in these industries form an alliance and develop, will they Will they still listen to the king? Bah! They will try to depose the king and install an obedient one, even if the king is no longer wanted. They are Europeans after all!"
Thinking about it this way, Rurik increasingly needed his father to go all the way to Novgorod to get some servants for him. He also needed the servants and mercenaries that the great businessman Gould got from the south.
Rurik's ideas changed a lot.
Clavarson and the others are very smart, and Gould is even smarter. As a time traveler, I can regret that they don't understand what advanced means. It would be stupid to despise their IQ!
To control them, we must first compete with this group of businessmen and industrialists and win with an overwhelming advantage. Only by establishing your own industrial chain and sales chain can you prevent future wealth from being controlled by them.
Is it not?
When Rurik thought about it, a shocking reality appeared here. If the blacksmiths run away collectively and the great businessman Gould no longer lives in Roseburg, where will his wealth come from? Although the industry can still be rebuilt, without these ready-made powerful producers and sellers, it will definitely suffer from the northwest wind for several years.
The lifeline of one's wealth is actually controlled by people like them. no! Must change! Must completely change within a few years!
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Chapter 123 The Price Alliance of Blacksmiths
