It had never occurred to Otto that there could be another bow that could shoot arrows through wood and that a child could operate alone.
It is true that the steel-armed crossbow has a very unique and time-consuming cocking method, and since its arrows can penetrate wood, they can also kill bears and wild boars.
This thing is the real "new trick" of his lovely son Rurik.
When Otto was shooting the crossbow himself, he suddenly realized that he didn't need a ratchet winch to wind it up. He put on thick leather gloves, stepped on the bow arm with both feet, and with the strength of his hands, with a roar, he could put the oil-soaked hemp rope bowstring on the trigger.
"Hey? Maybe it's best for adults?"
Rurik, who had his hands in his leather jacket, looked at his father's joy with satisfaction: "Dad, this is for adults. It can make our warriors particularly powerful, and it can also give many children the ability to kill enemies." ability."
Otto's rough cheek was pressed against the wooden support. In Rurik's view, his father was slightly bowed and he was clearly holding a rifle.
Otto muttered: "The wooden shield has no defensive effect. Isn't it unfair if the enemy's warriors are simply shot and killed like this? Well, maybe real warriors shouldn't hold such weapons, or is it like Real men fight like that.”
The old leader said no more, and he pulled the trigger again. The hemp rope that quickly returned to its place was like a knife, once again shaving off a lot of Otto's beard.
The hardened steel-tipped arrow fired once again penetrated the wooden plank and struck hard on the second plank behind it.
At this moment, eight arrows were inserted into the second piece of wood.
"I'm tired." Otto put away the weapon, threw it to Harold Zosen who was eager to try, and then shook his arm that was a little sore from stringing it with his bare hands. He approached his son and asked bluntly: "Son, how do you plan to use it? For example, to shoot prey?"
"Sure. Like shooting a seal."
"Seal?" Otto shook his head: "It's better to hunt bears, or attack the enemy. Tell me, if you commanded an army, how would you use it...your crossbow?"
Rurik said loudly without even thinking about it: "Of course it's a lot of equipment, use it for hits. Dad, you know, I have a new agreement with Klavason."
"That's your arrow array? Well, maybe it will be effective."
Otto could not imagine a scene of thousands of arrows being fired. Perhaps the big reason was that the Russians organized so-called armies to take some actions, often with only about 500 troops. Now, the archers released rockets, and the engineers began to get Otto's attention, but it was only for arson.
The crossbow gave Otto a strong shock, and he finally patted his son's head wearing a velvet hat: "Son, you may have a chance soon."
Rurik wasn't sure what his father meant by his words, and he didn't want to pay attention to the crossbow for the time being. He only needs to occasionally run to the blacksmith shop of Clavason to get some spirits donated to his father and at the same time see how many crossbows are completed.
After Sogon's fleet returned, the tribe immediately began their annual spoils-sharing meeting.
Just like the "rules" that were revised again before, the chief family received half of all tributes! And this is also the result of Otto showing mercy out of joy.
This time, a small group of unmarried young Russian men married their wives in Novgorod. After they returned, they held the wedding ceremony of the Russian tribe as usual.
Young men after marriage not only receive blessings from their tribesmen for giving birth to new warriors, but they also have a large amount of food in their hands, so that they can spend a stable and prosperous winter with their newlywed wives.
More than 500 Russian warriors shared as much as 200,000 pounds of grain, which was their well-deserved reward.
Each warrior had about four hundred pounds of oats or rye, among other things.
The Russian people are always very busy in the summer, and when it comes to the cold winter, people hide at home due to the severe cold. If there is nothing profitable to do, they will not leave home.
Hiding at home, a man could eat a pound of wheat in two days.
Therefore, in the past Sorgon voyages, all members of the tribe were eating from a big pot, so that the food allocated to everyone could often only last a month.
What makes things different now is not only that the tribe has changed the rules for dividends, but also that the tribe has increased its extortion efforts. Now, the wheat owned by the participating families can be eaten sparingly until the ice and snow melt. Not to mention that they have already prepared food for the winter, and the plundered oats are the icing on the cake.
They attributed their ability to eat for a long time to their leader's wise leadership.
It can be said that the success of every Sorgon voyage was accompanied by an increase in Otto's prestige.
But Otto is getting older year by year, and the strength he currently possesses will be quickly lost within a few years, and he will eventually become a senile old man waiting to die.
Every winter, Otto's inner sense of crisis became stronger. Seeing Vilia's rapid deterioration in physical condition over the past year, his worries increased.
"Rurik, you must gain experience quickly. Rumia, you must also grow."
This sense of urgency reached its extreme, and Otto decided to implement a great plan. The plan began to be quietly prepared among the Ross tribe in November.
It has been more than a month since the Sorgon fleet returned, and the time has also entered December in the Julian calendar.
During this period of time, the people of the Ross tribe did not stay in their warm homes one by one.
Ice and snow are terrible and harsh for many people, but for some brave people, isn't it an opportunity to make profits?
What's more, this year's situation has seen greater changes, and its appearance has really stimulated the tribe's hunters.
Nowadays, when people spontaneously go out to set traps to hunt ferrets, its attractiveness of profit seems to have been replaced by another kind of prey.
During the clear and short day, snow covered the entire land as usual, and a terrifying ice layer up to half a meter thick appeared in the fjord where Fort Ross was located. The ice did not block the fishermen's thoughts of fishing, such as digging a hole and throwing down the hemp rope and fishhook to catch cod.
However, after fishermen dig holes, they often accidentally poke the seals that emerge to breathe with their short spears.
In the past, people would catch seals in winter just for their meat, to skin them and then tan them to sell them for money.
What now? Seal oil, which once had limited value, is being purchased by Rurik at a high price.
Because the explorers were surprised to find that once they left the Rossberg Fjord and entered the vast ice-covered sea, the ice here was thinner and it was easier to dig holes.
There were more than four hundred fishermen, and they blocked the fishing boat and pushed it into a wooden shed. Then he took the sled, loaded with equipment for setting up a tent, and ran to the distant sea to become a seal hunter.
As for Rurik's maids, they all became soap workers.
Yes, they are actual child laborers.
But Rurik did not feel that he was guilty at all. He told his men that the purpose of boiling oil and making soap was to earn silver coins. Later, the merchants would use the silver coins to buy food so that everyone could have enough to eat. They talked too much and it was difficult for them to understand. Rurik simply repeated a truth: We just need to use today's soap to exchange for our food next year. If we don't make soap, everyone will starve to death.
The beggars of Melalen who are now Russians cherish the hard-earned favors when they think of the pain of living on the streets in hunger and cold.
The first ten maids became the best "soap teachers". They were generally responsible for about six subordinates, forming a team.
Rurik divided the work among the girls' teams so that all steps of soap production are fully responsible for the team.
Because of the current situation, those hunters with amazing mobility can bring back more than a hundred plump seals every day. What Rurik received was not only a large amount of fat that exceeded his estimate, but also a large amount of meat.
He really could not have imagined that eating seal meat would become a daily routine.
But what shocked him the most was his own Rumia.
"This girl is truly a Sami. What? Raw seal liver has a special flavor? Bah! What's the taste of something fishy?"
But Rumia, who has a special liking for seal liver, does have this important job now - serving as a teacher.
Those wooden shed canteens have been reinforced, and the so-called reinforcements are actually snow and ice. The leaky shed was crooked and turned into an enclosed place, which was a perfect place to serve as a classroom.
It is very strange to say that now Rumia, a Sami who is good at raising deer, has begun to hold the priest's board and tell the history of the Rus to a large group of children.
What is the Ross Tribe?
What is the Siweiya Tribal Alliance?
What is a Dane again?
And the mysterious Eastern people?
Rumia now plays a supporting role. When it comes to teaching, Rurik must personally take charge.
Here, the most important content Rurik teaches for the time being is history, or "stories of the past." The children listened to it as a story, and under the dim oil lamp, Rurik saw wide eyes. For a moment, a kind of happiness of being a teacher came to my mind.
It was a bit regretful to him that apart from his maids, there were only a handful of boys who could receive training here. The boys sitting here are all his confidants. They may not really be here for knowledge, but maybe just because they want to have a closer relationship with the boss.
In this case, Rurik simply told everyone that the so-called "human world" is not a giant disk on the so-called World Tree, but a big ball floating on the water. However, it was too difficult for children to understand the appearance of the world in an abstract way, so Rurik had to make up some stories to justify himself.
The large number of incredible words made Rumia highly nervous. She felt that the words of the "Son of God" were the truth.
She felt that Rurik was her male god, and there was admiration in her eyes.
Of course, all the maids had the same attitude. The master is the greatest person.
Rurik felt that such a life was extremely comfortable. He could not teach knowledge to all the children in the tribe for the time being, so it would be a great good thing to be able to teach his girls clearly.
Because the girls here are indeed maids. Rurik does not think that his kidneys are invincible. He can indeed ask for the marriage of some girls. The vast majority of girls here are just maids, nothing more. They will marry the boys of the tribe in a completely pure attitude. Rurik believes that these girls with some knowledge will first educate their own children.
Rurik focuses more on the next generation. After all, it takes ten years to educate a generation that takes more than a hundred years. For example, it took the old King of Prussia half a century to complete compulsory education nationwide. Education must be done, but it cannot be rushed.
A comfortable life always passes quickly.
The maids spend a lot of time every day busy making soap. After completing the planned work, they then receive Rurik's cultural knowledge education.
As for a group of boys in the tribe, they are currently busy playing in the snow. Or he went hunting for seals with his fisherman father.
The five families of blacksmiths in the tribe continued to work. They wore leather aprons and stood in front of the stove and blacksmith's bench, working under the heat.
The blacksmith's sweat fell into the fire from time to time, causing a strong crackling sound.
Things are very different this year for the Klavason family.
"Dad, is it really right for us to give up on other people's orders? I still want to continue making steel swords." Kawei, who was bending the iron bars desperately, was emotionally dissatisfied and confused.
Klavasen, who was immersed in rummaging through the smoldering sponge iron, did not face his son directly.
The old blacksmith buried his head and said: "I made an agreement with Rurik. I must complete fifty sets of steel-arm crossbows before the Winter Solstice Festival."
"But the workload is not small. We still have to make a thousand special arrows. Dad, we are blacksmiths who make swords and spears, not bowsmiths."
"We have never been bowsmiths. Listen, Kawei." Only then did Klavasen raise his head. He also controlled the tongs in his hand, took out the red sponge iron, and carried it to the blacksmith's bench: "Stop talking nonsense. This winter, we will leave the work of making steel swords to those colleagues, and we will focus on completing Rurik's order. You don't have to regret anything, fifty pairs of crossbows and arrows, we can still earn fifty steel swords Money. Besides, this time you and I don’t have to worry about the client not being able to get the money. Rurik is the richest!”
"The same goes for this." Kawei frowned and said, "However, I still like to make swords. A man should have his own sword and fight with a sword and shield."
"Forget it! Kawei, you are a blacksmith, don't have any thoughts of a warrior. We are simply making weapons. What is a good weapon? A good weapon is one that can kill the enemy. This has nothing to do with honor. What we are doing now Give Kamne the crossbow, and the child can use it to kill a strong man two stikas (nearly two meters) tall."
"Okay. I guess this thing can easily penetrate the thick ship plank. If Kamni can kill a strong man, he can be called a hero." Kawei shrugged and formed a curved weapon. The bow limbs, still in a wrought iron state, were stuffed into a new furnace specially designed for smoldering and carburizing.
Kawei whistled skillfully: "Kamne, bring the charcoal, the rest is your job."
Kamne, who was only seven years old and thin, hurriedly ran to the furnace holding a small basket of charcoal blocks. While stuffing the charcoal inside, he responded to Kawei's words: "The weapons invented by Lord Rurik are the best. Yes, I will use it to kill every breast in sight, and then give... the bearskin to my lord."
"Only you? Well, maybe you have a chance." Kawei shook his head and looked at the child Kamne who was about to get into the furnace. Then he picked up the hammer and started smelting iron with his father. of forging.
Forging iron is the first step in making a steel-arm crossbow. Then Kawei also participates in the casting of bronze parts and the processing of oak stock.
Making a steel sword is a process of constant smoldering and forging. But the process involved in making a crossbow is really complicated. Kawei, in his heart, he would rather bang steel plates more than the various tedious tasks at present.
No one in the entire Klavassen family is leisurely, not even the pregnant Lilia.
This Novgorod girl, who is barely sixteen years old, is getting bigger and bigger, and now even a leather jacket cannot hide her obvious pregnancy.
But she still shoulders the important job of making money for her family, which is making glassware and making distilled spirits. She even felt that as far as making money was concerned, why should her husband, father-in-law, and even her future son have to go shirtless and work hard to forge?
Isn’t it more profitable to make glassware? Use crystal clear pebbles that are easy to collect in mountainous areas and process them into transparent cups. With a not very complicated process, you can earn an income equivalent to a sword.
She knew that she had no right to dictate a man's work and decisions, so she had no choice but to keep her head down and busy with her own affairs.
And silently await the Rus’ Hanukkah on the winter solstice.
The entire Ross tribe is also eagerly looking forward to Hanukkah, and even the big leader will inevitably announce a new decision after the festival.
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