Everything lies in Rurik's plan. In addition to the 20,000 pounds of grain planned to be rewarded, an additional 50,000 pounds will be transported. The sleigh used to transport grain alone is a huge beast. Fortunately, in the new era, the Ross tribe is not in short supply of reindeer pulling sleds. Rurik never intended to reward Mechasta's men with so much grain. Oats are a grain that is extremely durable and has a high energy density. It is the best reward for heavy manual workers in northern Europe in this time and space.
If the northernmost beach in the Gulf of Bothnia, apart from a mine, has any resources worth developing, it is trees.
Rurik's mind was filled with shipbuilding plans. Since he had no financial resources to build an ironclad ship, and he didn't even have the ability to build an iron keel or iron ribs, he had to rely entirely on hard wood.
Of course, the best shipbuilding wood is oak. Are there large oak trees here? The answer is obviously no. He was not new to this place. After a long march a year ago, Rurik had already concluded that the most abundant pine trees here were several varieties of very cold-resistant pine trees. There should be other tree species such as oak trees, but they need to be looked for carefully.
Even if there is not that much oak, it never means that the boat is not easy to build. Pine wood is definitely not as good as oak, and it is better than most woods in terms of hardness and toughness.
Rurik also made a mistake, that is, he did not take a closer look at it, and most of the time he just watched the distant woods from a distance. He defaulted to those woods as pine forests, which were obviously mixed with a large number of Nordic spruce.
Maybe it's not his fault, because red pine and spruce are both a type of pine tree in taxonomy. If you don't observe them up close, as straight as Optimus Prime, of course you can't tell the difference.
The wooden walls of Elon Orava Fort and all the houses inside are made of solid pine trees. When the house was built, the interior was naturally filled with a strong smell of rosin. It evaporated for a while and the problem disappeared.
The fleet led by Otto successfully completed the last tribute payment this year, and it was also the first time it completed the tribute payment in a newly opened tax source.
The wealth of the chief family increased greatly, but the loss of silver coins was astonishing. All the silver coins were turned into grain, leather and iron tools. Standing on the bow of the ship, Otto looked at his home in the south. He increasingly thought that his son's explanation was correct.
People live to obtain them, not just beautiful silver coins.
So what awaits him is a comfortable winter? No! For the warriors of Ross, the severe cold in winter can only lock up the cowards, but the real warriors dare to fight against the harsh nature.
Of course, these are just beautiful words. In recent years, Otto has become more and more fond of encouraging his tribe to hunt in winter, and the tribesmen are also willing to follow him. The era when a deerskin could only be sold for one silver coin was completely over. Huge amounts of money poured into Roseburg. Everyone seemed to have become very rich, but in fact they were still poor.
More leather merchants flocked to Rossburg in order to bring more fur goods, and some even decided to leave their former tribes and take root as new Ross people. Otto knew about the Verdegen, a workshop where slaves were raised to make leather and linen tailors. Rurik planned to sell part of the squirrel skin to the man named by name, and Otto decided to fulfill the agreement made.
This time, Otto will fulfill all the promises he made to his son. He could only stay in his hometown for a mere two months, and he had to lead his people on the ice sea all the way north.
The once peaceful and boring winter has become lively.
A group of fishermen who cut the ice to catch seals stayed on the ice for a long time. A large number of seals were sold to the priests to boil oil, and the fishermen got a benefit. The priests, especially Parla, organized ten named maids under Rurik, who mainly took on the heavy work of making soap. In the soap-making industry chain, the peak production capacity is in the winter, and it must be in the winter, so those seals will deliberately eat fat, and they can make the best soap.
What’s interesting is that many families in Rossburg have completed upgrading their homes in the past. They followed Rurik’s footsteps and completed the “Novgorodization” transformation of their houses, which was to upgrade them to wood-cut tiles. , the homeowner sleeps on a wooden bed. The fireplace system made of stone and clay greatly ensures the residents' heating safety in winter. Of course, they also have to consume a lot of charcoal or wood to serve the stove. After all, the burning ashes are thrown outdoors as waste.
Ashes are plant ash. In particular, the potters responded to the demand for casting molds for the blacksmiths' blast furnaces to smelt pig iron. The potters consumed Rossburg's wood resources, which were already becoming barren, and produced more plant ash. They become the raw material for making soap.
Just like a thousand years from now, fossil energy such as coal and oil will support the world's operations. They are the blood of industry.
Roseburg has formed a handicraft system. It is too early to upgrade to a preliminary industry, but the contract system, employment and being employed in the industrial era have begun to take shape and are in operation.
The system also has a source of energy, which comes from nearby large trees. It is the endless power brought by the burning of firewood and charcoal, which promotes the industrial operation of Roseburg's metalware, pottery, glassware, spirits, leather tanning, and soap.
Of course, the milestone ship building business began, which relied on the source of wood.
To get a towering tree, you need to go deep inland and then drag it to the shipbuilding workshop on the seaside with great effort. The Hotla family, the most capable of building ships, would be a luxury to expect them to build a new cargo ship in a short time if they did not have suitable wood.
Fortunately, Hotla had already made an agreement with Rurik, and that was some important materials for shipbuilding. Rurik would ask them to find a way to get them.
Otto's final voyage lasted only two days, and was blown by the strong north wind all the way back to the fjord where Rossberg sat. Even though these cargo ships are naturally slow, their speed is quite impressive because the wind is strong enough.
Rurik lived in the Iron Olav Castle and became the supreme leader of the settlement.
He can give orders at will, and the mercenaries under his command, such as Jevro and others, obey his orders. Other settled Rus are also willing to obey the arrangements of the future great leader.
Should you beware of science and technology mistakes? Totally useless.
Mechasta was very happy to see her daughter treated like family by Rurik. The two children were even on the same wooden bed. He really wished that his daughter would grow up. As long as she could give birth to a daughter for Rurik, with the child as a bond, the future of the Iron Squirrel Tribe would surely be better. Better off.
In settlements in the far north, the snowfall period seems to be unexpectedly delayed. The temperature dropped almost every day, until on the fourth day after Otto's fleet left, ice floes on the river were clearly visible.
In fact, Rurik didn't know that on the island at the mouth of the Oulu River in the distance, ice eggs were born again. Their appearance seems like a miracle, but it is actually the prelude to the freezing of the entire Gulf of Bothnia.
Freezing has begun in the northernmost part of the bay, and the temperature will gradually drop to the terrifying low temperature of minus 30°C at night. Without thick fur, only the strongest Ross warriors could withstand the cold for an hour or two, but red pine and spruce were not afraid of the cold at all. Polar bears and reindeer are still active in such extreme temperatures.
By the tenth day, it was already November 7th in the Julian calendar. The daylight hours were already very short. The former sunshine was suddenly obscured by dark clouds, making the world darker. Everyone realized that a snowfall was coming.
The snow finally fell!
All those who were stranded in the "Cemetery Hill Castle" in the mine, especially women and children, were led by the priestess. When the sky began to darken, they took Xinluo with them, or sat in reindeer carts with very limited load capacity. , or on foot, walking through the winding forest road with a straight-line distance of five kilometers, and returned to the most substantial Alon Orawa Fort, which gives everyone a sense of security.
The heavy snow is coming, and it doesn’t come simply.
The outdoor world is raging like a frost giant, and the howling cold wind carries snowflakes like sharp sabers, cutting the wooden stakes of Ironburg. Including the domesticated cart-pulling reindeer, they were all driven into the sturdy wooden deer enclosure. They stopped all work and ate the dry pasture that had been reserved for them.
Even deer, which are extremely resistant to wind and snow, instinctively avoid heavy snow and wind. The wild reindeer herds will stay in the dense pine forests to avoid snowstorms, and then come out to plow the snow and gnaw grass roots after the snowstorm is over.
As for the people, everyone stayed in thick wooden houses. Thanks to the tall wooden wall, it acts as a strong barrier and resists the erosion of the north wind. There were also two towers that were not built securely from the beginning. They collapsed under the strong wind in the early stages of the storm.
The remains of the tower appeared inside the fortress, but no one went to clean it up.
The wind and snow were so serious that even if you were wearing thick clothes, being outdoors rashly was a way of courting death.
Rurik stayed in his own home, and Mechasta and his daughter Saipolava were asked to live there. Of course, there is also Jevlo, the Finn mercenary captain, who is Rurik's most trusted thug and the person who will hold important responsibilities in the future.
There was a heavy snowstorm outside, and the roaring sound was extremely terrifying.
The warm interior is a different scene. Rurik brought two large bags of oats, one bag was given to the mercenaries who stayed behind, and the rest was for himself.
They were like prisoners, forced to stay in the wooden hut, eating oatmeal and eating dried fish and meat all day long until the storm stopped.
Rurik at least separated a small room in the house, which was the toilet of the house. It was actually a squat toilet that was convenient for squatting. Only this small compartment was the coldest in the entire wooden house.
Because of his death order, those houses built in batches had such independent toilets. At first, people felt that this design did not bring much convenience as imagined, until the snowfall came.
It was another extremely boring day, and all indoor lighting relied on firewood and slow-burning oil lamps. In order to save fuel, the lighting time is generally not long.
The porridge in the wooden bowl was eaten again. Mechasta wiped his mouth and, under the soft light of the fire, picked up the wheat grains in the bowl and stuffed them into his mouth.
"Rurik, when the snowstorm is over, do we really have to find a big tree and cut it down?"
"We have been talking about this topic these days, why do you still think it is impossible now?" Rurik shook his head, "You are the leader of the tribe, you must complete this thing for me. Don't worry, I will do it again when it is done. I won’t treat you badly.”
"But, that's a big tree!"
"Are you still struggling with this? Do your people really dare not chop down the big tree when they see it?"
"Yes. I really don't dare." Mechasta will never show off. His tribe does not have any technology or ability to chop down a tree that cannot be lifted up with its arms.
"Hey! But my people dare."
"That's right." Mechasta hurriedly complimented, "You Russians are brave people and have such abilities."
Rurik felt that he was being sarcastic: "Huh? Do you think that as long as you are strong enough? The warriors under my command are just one head taller than your men, that's all. They are not even as strong as bears. Do you think we are How to do it? Let me tell you! Rely on wisdom." As he said this, Rurik specifically pointed to his brain.
Anyway, idleness is idleness. Rurik explained straightforwardly that many of his mercenaries and even the settled Rus knew how to cut down giant trees. But they never showed Mechasta this skill. The reason is very simple, there is no demand.
Using the Viking-style logging method, trees of any size can be felled safely and directionally, and only a long-handled forest ax is needed.
Rurik talked about the techniques he learned about, although he never actually implemented them himself.
"Wonderful! What a good technique." Mechasta was busy clapping her hands. Did he understand? How could he think of something he had never seen before seeing real lumberjacks practicing "Viking lumbering techniques"?
Rurik smiled, but proposed another tool that even Jevro had never added - a saw.
It is a very long iron bar with a large number of tiny "teeth" in it. If one tooth can only bite a small mark, and a thousand teeth bite continuously, it will be a huge wound.
Mechasta and Gevlo had never seen a saw, and Gevlo in particular had never seen a saw either in his hometown, in Mälaren or in Rossburg.
This is an extremely unfamiliar tool, although it has long appeared in this area of Europe.
Rurik also knew that the craftsmen in Rus only had tools for processing wood such as axes, scrapers and planes. It is reasonable to think that there is no saw, because making it is somewhat difficult under the existing technical conditions. Craftsman Ross did not study it spontaneously, perhaps simply because he had not been exposed to the concept, that is, "there is actually such a method of logging."
"It is not difficult to make a saw, but after it is completed, even a child, or even..." Rurik simply pointed at Saipolava, and then at himself, "The two of us can operate the saw without wielding an ax at all. It can make a tree collapse."
What he announced was so tempting and added fun to a boring time.
The forests in the Far North have not been developed in any way, but they contain an astonishing reserve of excellent trees. They need to be found and turned into ship materials.
How to make a saw? Rurik had already thought of a countermeasure. His subordinates are equipped with weapons made of two materials, namely simple iron and ferrochrome. It is not difficult to reduce low carbon steel to mature iron. The blacksmiths of the Iron Squirrel Tribe have this ability. Wrought iron is soft, and it can be easily cut with a quenched chromium iron chisel to create sharp dents. The rough saw blade is then carburized and quenched to become hard and elastic, and each tooth is polished with iron ore to become sharp enough. In fact, the saw blade does not need to be too sharp. In theory, even if it is an iron bar, if it is rubbed crazily against the tree trunk, it will still file the tree trunk hard.
The plan has been set, and the next step is to wait for the snowstorm to end.
Those wrought iron and mild steel axes will be returned to the furnace and will be beaten into long and thin iron bars, as if to make a steel sword. Maybe by making a few more, the children of the Iron Squirrel tribe can become a group of naughty children who can destroy the mountains and forests efficiently. At least in this era, children with the ability to cut trees efficiently are really an excellent labor force.
