From the moment those Uppsala children arrived on Gould's Island, a new destiny had already befallen them.
The happiness they could once imagine was so cheap that it was simply not being hungry all the time.
On Gould Island, they had the opportunity to eat thick vegetable soup and nibble on fresh grilled fish. They also got an unexpected feast, and Rurik asked Gould to slaughter a sheep and roast it to appease the poor children.
Is the taste of red meat still in your memory?
Boys and girls, they didn't care that the meat in their hands was only half-cooked, the aroma of the barbecue made them almost lose their minds.
No, on the first night, their shriveled bellies were filled with food for the first time. The bulging bellies and clearly visible ribs formed a sharp contrast.
Something that will subvert their understanding is yet to come.
Each child was given a simply sewn burlap top, pants, and even underwear. Gould actually gave all the children who were collected this new outfit in accordance with Rurik's special request. Due to the cold weather, each child was also given a leather jacket.
Before putting on new clothes, each of them had their old, badly damaged clothes torn off. Several old women who took care of some housework were ordered by Gould to bathe the new children.
They were herded into the dark wooden huts in groups, and soon the whole room became damp and hot as cold water was poured on the hot stones.
The feeling of warmth and comfort combined with the happy feeling of fullness made them feel happy but not sure what would happen next.
The Finnish sauna was just the beginning. The mud on the children was finally washed away with soap, and their muddy hair was also washed clean.
As they put on new clothes and new leather shoes, the hair of boys and girls was simply tied into a ponytail, and part of the hair that was too long was directly cut off with a knife. The sloppy image was a thing of the past. When they were in a warm wooden house and lying on a warm leather sleeping nest, it was only then that everyone realized that the whole day's adventure was not a dream.
The Uppsala children quickly adapted to their new life. Together with the children who had been taken in before, they did what they could on the small Gould Island.
Uppsala? Say goodbye to this identity forever!
Their new identities are Rurik's servants. It sounds like this identity is slaves, but in fact it is not. The kind of slaves who were exploited to death was definitely not what Rurik wanted. They were human beings first, and as long as they were human beings, they could burst out with strong subjective initiative after correct guidance. They can obviously create wealth, so that when they are exploited, they, as the master, can gain greater benefits.
Providing them with food, clothing and housing is just the most basic thing. If you can make them think that being a servant is something they are proud of, then that is what you want.
Rurik is constructing a concept of identity for his servants - servants who submit to the leader's family are also new Rus' people.
Children who have lost their parents, their hometown, and others need a new support. At this time, Rurik stood up and claimed, "I am your supporter."
But Rurik had already made a promise to Carlotta.
No, while he was waiting for the messenger sent by Gould to return the clear order from the leader, Rurik divided all the children stranded on the island into groups.
As the female leader of Ostara, Carlotta accepted the kneeling ceremony of more than fifty children and swore allegiance, so the Ostara tribe had fifty more tribesmen in name. Rurik separated all the Uppsala children, and almost all of them saw the scene of violence committed by the leader. For Melalen, the place of hope they once imagined, is now a place of sin.
Who is the great virtuous person? It's from Russia!
More than fifty Uppsala boys and girls were transformed into children of the Rus tribe. They have no father or mother, but they have a trustworthy older brother Rurik.
Life seems to have entered a brief period of tranquility, and tranquility is only the surface of tiny Gould Island.
The world outside the island is getting increasingly chaotic.
Alliance leader Olegin wanted to exploit all the merchants selling goods in the market again, and he basically succeeded! Considering that the sheep's wool could not be harvested at once, he did not charge an excessively harsh tax.
The tossing of the market lasted for two full days, and as many as 20,000 pounds of silver coins and some copper coins were collected from merchants who landed from all walks of life and failed to take their goods with them in time to avoid the danger.
It seems that Olegin has made a lot of money, but what is the reality? The money still didn't satisfy him.
For a long time, the wheat harvest season has been the best time for him to make profits.
The climate is getting colder and colder. The lowest temperature at night around Lake Mälaren is not too bad due to the regulating effect of the big lake.
Wheat production is destined to decrease, and every farmer can evaluate this year's production based on the state of ear heading.
Maybe this year’s wheat production will be reduced by half!
The families of the Melalen tribe who owned a large number of acres also discovered an opportunity when they sensed a crisis.
This year, a group of farmers are destined to go bankrupt due to reduced production. If they want to survive, they must buy survival grain and next year's planting grain from those who have a large amount of grain. For this reason, they will sell part of their fields to tide over the difficulties, or they may actually There was no choice but to sell himself into slavery.
As the most powerful man, how could Olegin let go of this opportunity to exploit his own people? Exploiting wealth is one of his goals. In addition, by directly controlling a large number of tribesmen, making them complete serfs, relying entirely on their own rewards to live, this way his family's power in the entire tribe can remain at its peak for a long time. By holding tribal power for a long time, one's own family can also control the entire alliance for a long time.
Although there is no rigorous theory to support his actions, he is indeed using economic means to continuously strengthen his comprehensive strength. Being able to support a fully independent private army of 500 people is an important manifestation of strength.
Since Rurik returned to Gould Island, he has been limited to four days! Rurik wanted to see the craftsmen who Gould called the big ships, and he also wanted to see the clothes-making master Vodegen who claimed to want to immigrate to Rossburg.
However, none of them came, and even the number of boats on the lake has decreased these days.
Finally, the messenger sent by Gould every day, after four consecutive days of being rejected, finally met the leader Olegin and reported to him the visit of the two sons of the leader of Ross, bringing a large amount of silver coins and eager to buy new ones. Mai facts.
Olegin did not mean to neglect Gould's messenger. He actually had his own things to do.
What he lacks most now is silver coins. This is definitely not his greed, but entirely practical reasons, forcing him to need a lot of cash.
No, a nobleman came with a real large sum of silver coins. Although Olegin wanted to see Otto, the leader of Rus, in person, the man's two sons came to meet him, and Olegin felt that he had gained his dignity. respect.
Permission to visit has been granted! Just tomorrow!
At night, the meeting hall on Gould Island.
The dim room was filled with the aroma of barbecue as usual, and the sizzling and oily roast lamb exuded a charming aroma. Now Rurik didn't have any particularly strong food to take a bite of.
Gould also maintained great restraint for the first time, completely worrying about tomorrow's big event.
There were only four people sitting in the huge room, including Gould and his son, and two brothers, Rurik and Arik.
"Although it took a lot of time, that guy Olegin finally didn't let us wait in vain. This is the news. We must go to see him tomorrow. This is a very important matter that you two are facing. Please do your best for the Ross tribe. Show it." Gould said this from the bottom of his heart.
Rurik was all ears, but Arik still looked contemptuous.
Gould looked at Arik's unruly look, and he couldn't let go of the stone in his heart.
"What happened in the past few days, no matter what, it was actually you who offended the alliance leader. I am most afraid that he will care about these things, and it will be detrimental to you two in the end. I think that when we meet tomorrow, you two should... salute Apologize."
Gould lacked confidence when he said this, and he kept paying attention to Arik's emotional changes from the corner of his eye.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he finished speaking, Aric roared; "Apologise?! Why?!"
"Ah! My hero, listen to my advice. Apologizing to that person is the right decision."
"But that shames me."
"No." Gould sighed slightly and tried to persuade him in the tone of an experienced person: "You two, when you step into Olegin's mansion, your identity is not yourselves. You are the entire Ross tribe. The incarnation of!"
"Then there's no point in apologizing!" Aric sat straight up and looked at Gould with murderous eyes. "What's the crime of our proud Ross tribe? It was obviously that Olegin who provoked me."
"Ah... for the benefit of the Russian people, I just suggest that surrendering at a special moment is not really surrendering. If you can gain a lot of benefits by pretending to surrender, we can do so."
"Is it to be a slave? Why?! And you, why are you ordering me?"
What is this "being a slave" thing here and there? Gould secretly scolded Aric for his recklessness, but he didn't dare to say it. He had no choice but to continue to persuade him with sincerity. He looked at Rurik, who was silent for the time being, and frowned. He must have understood his good intentions.
Gould immediately turned his face and said sincerely: "Rurik, I hope you can understand what I mean."
"Well, if you apologize to that person, you can get a lot of benefits, so that's okay."
Hearing this, Gould was overjoyed, but Arik simply stood up, looked at his stupid brother and asked: "Rurik, are you crazy? Why should we give in to that guy? Weren't you so angry that you wanted to stab that guy with your own hands?" people?"
"Brother! Don't be impulsive!" Rurik raised his head and shouted with firm eyes.
Arik sat down again, clasping his hands together like an angry toad: "I just don't obey him. Olegin, that's a fool. If we are hostile to each other, I will chop off his head on the battlefield."
Is my cousin talking angrily? Rurik didn't think so. As far as his own emotions are concerned, the past exchanges between the Russians and the Melalen people were limited to spontaneous exchanges between some businessmen, and official-level exchanges have long been severed.
The Russians have been through many obstacles over the years, and a large number of young warriors have gained good experience in killing enemies. They are unruly and want everyone to really recognize a guy they have never met as the most noble leader of the alliance. Why? !
I'm afraid, this is because Olegin is the leader of the alliance.
Rurik didn't care about Arik's rhetoric. He knew that even if his father Otto was present, he would not dare to rashly destroy the inherent political ecology of the alliance. As long as the Russians are still gathering strength, they must strategically submit to weakness or even flattery.
After all, Arik was a reckless man. Gould could see that Rurik was the wise man. His only hope was that Arik would not cause any unpleasant trouble tomorrow.
Gould continued to suggest: "Based on my understanding of that man, he is a man who loves success. He needs the powerful to recognize his power most in his life. Therefore, I hope you can provide him with some precious gifts."
"A gift? He deserves it too!" Arik interrupted sternly.
Rurik now understood Gould's intention. If that guy was really overjoyed and took out some valuables to please him, in terms of the benefits he might gain, a small gift would be a stepping stone to greater benefits. .
What is the best interest? Rurik has already decided that if the Ross tribe wants to continue to develop, expanding business and trade with the Melalen people is a top priority. The two sides can sign some trade agreements, so that the Ross tribe can rely on the alliance leader himself to receive a steady flow of supplies. The most critical thing here is food.
However, Aric kept chattering about idiots and stupid things.
Gould really didn't tire of it. He complained: "Arick, do you know what a fool is? You can't position yourself correctly and think of yourself as strong. This is a fool."
"Ah!" Arik was overjoyed at first and sneered: "I didn't expect you to treat such an alliance leader as a fool? I thought you were afraid of his so-called power."
Gould put on his old face again and didn't want to say anything else for the time being.
Rurik smiled and said nothing. He looked at Gould and knew that there was something in this guy's words. There was a pun here. In fact, it was mainly criticizing Arik for being a half-hearted and reckless guy.
The person who can listen to his own opinions humbly is Rurik. As for Arik, this young man who is good at fighting again, Gould does not want to offend him.
"Our purpose is to do business. This year's wheat harvest is destined to be a large-scale failure. For the Russians, we must get a large amount of wheat. To achieve our goal, we have to coax Olegin and let him get the pleasure of being worshiped on his knees. We get a large amount of wheat. . In the end, his people will be hungry next year, but our people will not worry about food. Maybe one day, he will kneel in front of you and beg for food. So those polar bear skins ready for sale..." When saying these words, Gur De also looked at the change in Arik's expression. Perhaps his words were tactful enough, and the young man's tense face relaxed slightly.
Rurik gritted his teeth and said, "I understand. All the bearskins I brought will be given to him as gifts."
"No need!" Gould waved his hand, "Giving him two pieces of leather is enough. That guy actually needs our Russian steel swords, steel spears and crossbows. In addition, there is a lot of leather. It is enough to supply him Ordnance is exchanged for huge benefits, the decision is yours."
"It's a pity that the time is not ripe. As long as our soldiers are equipped with the best weapons, and then we sell the excess weapons, I think it will work." With this said, Rurik does not feel that this is necessary, " It is also possible to use the "human version" weapons for your own use and sell them to Olegin's "monkey version" weapons to make big profits.
"Then give him a bear skin and a bear head. Don't give him anything like spirits, glass, soap, etc. as gifts. That guy is already a big customer of ours. In my opinion, he would be more willing to use a large number of pictures." A bear's head with a big mouth to show his personal bravery," Gould continued.
Rurik patted his forehead, "Ah, if I had known better, I would have brought all the bear heads. Those things themselves would be useless."
"Don't say that." Gould hurriedly explained the role of the bear heads as specimens. "Rurik, if you can hunt a large number of bears, you can make a large number of helmets out of the bear heads and distribute them to you. Warriors. Think of hundreds of warriors wearing bear heads. Your army will have the spirit of a bear and will scare the hell out of your enemies before they engage in battle."
For a moment, Rurik thought of Huben.
ah? Could it be that the alliance leader Olegin wanted to turn his private soldiers into "Xiong Ben"?
Everyone's deliberations have come to a conclusion, and Rurik is mentally prepared. If necessary tomorrow, he will not hesitate to kneel down on one knee to salute the leader of the alliance as a warrior. Of course, tomorrow's true identity will inevitably be exposed. If the guy blamed Olegin for the unpleasantness he had with him as a "Norwegian Traveler", he would have no choice but to continue saluting.
There is a bottom line for etiquette, and Rurik has already thought about it. If that person is mean and mean, the Russians don't have to be humiliated anymore.
The worst thing is that they break up on bad terms.
At that time, it is not impossible for Arik, who already despises Olegin, to cause a scene. Anyway, Arik despises Olegin. In his heart, Olegin's image as a despicable coward as a "child killer" cannot be changed. .
Tomorrow's contact is ultimately unknown. Rurik is eager to sign a series of agreements with Olegin as the leader of Rus. He believes that falling out due to a trivial matter of etiquette is purely a small probability event.
It is more likely that the two sides will sign a relatively equal bilateral trade agreement because they each get what they need. This is Rurik's biggest purpose.
