Bjorn, who was covered in wet clothes and had a braided beard, could not have imagined that the inner wooden castle on Gould Island, which he entered for the first time, could be warm and dry.
He once relied on his willpower to resist the trembling of his body. When he thought that he might meet the leader of the Rus people, he had to pay more attention to his demeanor and make these ruthless people from the north take him seriously as a warrior.
The guard boy brought good news that the Duke of Ross was in the wooden castle, as well as the legendary boy Rurik and the well-known "Fat Gould".
Bjorn took off his wet leather coat and handed it to his followers for safekeeping. His few servants were all taken away by Rus warriors wearing white bear skin coats. The air is filled with a faint alluring fragrance of wheat. I wonder if the generous Russian people will give me a chance to cleanse themselves from the dust?
Bjorn's servants did indeed reward each of them with a wooden bowl of porridge. It seemed like a generous reward, but it was just the usual routine of the Gould family. They wanted to let anyone who came to discuss business know that the Gould family valued them. is taken seriously.
Then when Bjorn officially met the Duke of Ross and other elites, he himself also received a breakfast of wheat cakes, dried meat, wine and dried raspberries.
The scene of the meeting was really novel. Entering the largest room in the wooden castle, he was enveloped in warmth, and mist evaporated from the wet linen clothes.
He sat naturally on a wooden chair, with a large square table made of wooden boards in front of him.
This is completely different from the situation at home. The Russians are not sitting on the ground anymore? Did they also learn something from the Franks?
The floor is made of hard oak, the people sitting are wooden chairs, and there is a wooden table in front of them. There are a large number of silver plates and crystal plates (glass) on the table, and the plates are full of delicious food.
The vessels for holding wine included silver cups and walrus ivory cups set on gold bases. What’s even crazier is that every noble person from the Russian people has a precious crystal cup in his hand. There is dark red wine in the cup, exuding a charming aroma.
Bjorn's eyes looked left and right. Although the light outside was very dim due to the rain, the indoors was brightly lit.
The Russians lit a fire in the house and built a stove with stones, but there was no choking smoke at all. He saw a stone fireplace for the first time. If you look carefully, you can find that almost all the houses in the wooden castle have stone chimneys, and underneath the chimneys are heating fireplaces.
There were as many as twenty white-haired bear heads hanging on the wooden wall. Bjorn even felt a little scared when he thought of the bear skins worn by those Rus warriors.
Above the bear's head is a bronze oil lamp holder, the flame burning calmly.
Directly above the wooden table is a huge chandelier, the lights on it are as bright as stars.
All of this is actually only a trading stronghold for the Russians on Lake Mälaren. So what is the home port of the Russians? Think about your own home again, even Carl? It is simply a sheepfold and a cowshed.
Bjorn mustered up his courage? Invisibly, the momentum of the Russians overwhelmed him.
Otto grimaced slightly: "Are you Bjorn? I am the Duke of Ross. I came to Mälaren ten years ago? Now I am here again. I don't know you! So? Bjorn , What big thing did you come here in the rain for?"
Did Otto ask this knowingly? He deliberately left Bjorn at the door for a while, taking this opportunity to order Gould to explain something to himself and his son. At this moment, Otto already knew that this man indeed represented the interests of a large number of large landowner families. This man rushed over in a hurry, for nothing more than food matters.
After all, in September in Melalen, the lakes are boiling due to food issues.
Bjorn did not have any arrogance. What is the strength of both sides? He said respectfully: "I am Bjorn? I own a group of fertile fields rich in wheat and a group of farmers who are good at farming. I cooperate with other families. After discussion, everyone elected me as a representative to discuss the sale of grain with you. I have been paying attention to you, so even if the weather is bad, I am here now."
Otto's expression remained unchanged. His sullen face was covered with beard. If he covered his right eye, he would look like the legendary god Odin.
Otto sat upright and pretended to be a wise man, but now it really involved the issue of grain trading? He immediately stepped aside.
"Is it a grain trade? Very good. We Russians are here to conduct extensive trade with you. I like your wheat, your vegetables? And your linen."
Is the situation going so well? Bjorn's slightly tense face is now relaxing.
"Next? Let my Rurik have a good talk with you. Bjorn, you have to remember that anyone who deals with us Rus should also understand that my Rurik is the Duke of Rus."
Is he Rurik? Sure enough, he was exactly as the legend said, he was really a beautiful boy.
The child was dressed extremely neatly, and he had a unique temperament. The jewel decoration on his clothes only further enhanced his nobility. He is not a son of a rich family, and he is not bound to inherit the power of the old leader of Ross because of his blood. There is something extremely complex and profound in his blue eyes. It is obvious that this Rurik is the master behind the scenes of the Ross tribe.
Just when Bjorn was surprised by the large number of Rurik, Rurik spoke, and his words were shocking.
"Bjorn, who do you represent? Do you represent King Karl of Sweden? Or the entire Mellaren tribe? Or some of your big families? Or just your family?"
Four choices were placed in front of Bjorn, and he suddenly realized something.
"I... represent my own family, and also represent twenty large families who own large amounts of farmland."
Rurik nodded. This was the answer he wanted to hear, but he was still a little unsure: "So, your relationship with Karl...are you against Karl? Or, you don't like him?"
Bjorn hesitated and said deliberately: "Karl, after all, is the king and the leader of our tribe. How can we oppose the king."
"No. Your eyes are floating, you are lying." Rurik stretched out his little head: "If you really support Karl, why come alone? You landlords know full well that we Russians are here to pay tribute to Karl, the successor to the king's power. They are engaged in grain trading. If you really recognize Karl, you shouldn’t negotiate with us behind his back.”
These words hit Bjorn's heart directly, because it was indeed the case that Bjorn was going crazy and wanted to oppose Karl.
Bjorn grimaced and sat upright: "Karl is the king, of course we must support the king."
Rurik believed in his own judgment. The attitude of Bjorn and the guys behind him was already very obvious.
Rurik also prepared himself to be cowardly and said with a slight smile: "Yes! Karl is the king, how can we oppose the king?"
The atmosphere has become extremely delicate. This is a wonderful diplomatic situation. There is a very obvious thing before both sides, but reality forces both sides to not openly oppose it, even if everyone is opposed to it in their hearts.
Otto and Gould were fully aware of this situation. What was supposed to be a happy business negotiation turned out to be confusing.
Rurik shrugged again. He no longer had any worries: "Okay, Bjorn, tell me your price. You know, as my father said, we Russians like your agricultural products very much."
At the most critical moment, Bjorn was not nervous because before setting off, the big landowner had a completely unified attitude and came up with a plan for negotiating grain prices.
"We plan to take out 300,000 pounds of wheat, all of which are new wheat this year. We can guarantee with our reputation that every wheat has been shelled and dried. They have a very good quality guarantee, and the well-made wheat The porridge smells delicious. So, ten pounds of wheat for one silver coin."
"Really? Is this the price?"
"Exactly this price." Seeing the calm expressions on Rurik and others' faces, Bjorn subconsciously felt that the Russians fully agreed.
Of course this is not the case, because the people left behind by the Ross people are fully aware of the many events that have happened in Lake Mälaren in the past month. One of the tasks of these people left behind is to monitor the price changes of various bulk goods, and make statistics to ultimately report to the market. The Duke of Ross reports.
Rurik paused deliberately and said calmly: "This price is too crazy. It is completely the price of a famine year. I heard that all the farmland around Lake Mälaren has a bumper harvest. Are these statements wrong? Or are you setting this price deliberately just to make a lot of money from us?"
The convoluted way of speaking ended here. Rurik no longer concealed himself and continued to speak calmly: "I thought you would have something to say when you risked getting sick to come to our island. I didn't expect that you just came to tell me what you want." Do you want to carry food to yourself?"
"No! We didn't!" Bjorn never expected that Rurik already knew some key inside information. His denial was so weak that it seemed like an admission.
Rurik had been mentally prepared when he listened to the report from the people left behind yesterday. Unexpectedly, he did not expect the wonderful encounter today. The landowners of Melalen were really licking their faces and asking for money.
Don’t you want money? They know that the Russians are the biggest and craziest buyers, just like slaughtering this big fat sheep?
The Russians are indeed very furry, and the hair is not wool, but polar bear hair!
Rurik was calm and fierce: "This price is unacceptable to us Russians. But we still need your food. I heard that the price of food in the entire Malaren is like this, which is very abnormal. I can only think that This is a dirty betrayal. The Rus were betrayed by the Mellarens. Listen! Bjorn. If I can't get food comfortably, I can only organize an army of three thousand people to attack. You You know, our army annihilated 10,000 people on Gotland at a very small cost, and the consequences of angering us..."
Rurik saw the wine glass in front of him. He first drank a glass of low-alcohol wine, and then smashed the glass into pieces.
"This is what happens. War!"
This was really the most serious threat. Bjorn was so shocked that he was at a loss. Fortunately, he had a plan.
"Dear Russians, please calm down. We didn't mean to offend you maliciously, but someone forced me to do this."
"who is it?"
"It's King Karl. It's Karl who set the price. If we don't comply, Karl will raise his troops to attack. All the landowner families are very afraid. In order to avoid disaster, we can only do this..."
Such rhetoric is nothing more than passing the blame, and of course there is some truth in the rhetoric.
"In this case, can we continue to talk?" Rurik said deliberately, "I know what you have done. You have almost squeezed out the rations of ordinary farmers, and ordered the surrounding tribes to follow suit to increase prices, just to let us The Russians are being taken advantage of. So, is your purpose to sell the grain to earn silver coins? I tell you clearly that I will not accept this price. If you refuse, I can only understand that Melalen betrayed the alliance and provoked a civil war. Prime culprit."
"We don't want war, it's all that Karl." Bjorn continued to blame, taking the opportunity to put forward preset conditions: "We are also willing to lower the price, we only have one condition."
"Say it, I'll think about it."
"We are really afraid of Karl's revenge. If he takes revenge, please support us, the Russians."
shit! It's all bullshit! Rurik now understands that these big landowners are simply pretending to be weak. They are not afraid of Karl at all, but they just need a scapegoat who will bear all the risks. Karl is the king, so naturally this person will bear everything.
"I can guarantee that. Therefore, we Russians demand that the price be lowered to seventeen pounds per silver coin."
"Ah! This...maybe."
"What? You guys are obviously forcing me to buy it for twenty pounds a silver coin, and you are selling it for ten pounds. You make too much, what's wrong with me asking you to make less?"
"Fourteen pounds, no less," Bjorn said hastily.
"That's fifteen pounds! Just like the price in a normal harvest year. In this way, you can earn an extra silver coin by selling sixty pounds of wheat."
"make a deal."
Fifteen pounds of oats sold for one silver coin, which was the bottom line price negotiated by each family. They really hope that the Russians will be taken advantage of, and if the other party is unwilling, they will offer this price. The big family believes that the bottom line of the Ross people is probably within this price range.
However, each family is also sure that once the Rus people decide to buy grain, Bjorn, as the representative, immediately declares that the grain sold will be as high as 400,000 pounds.
"What? Four hundred thousand pounds?" Rurik was finally surprised. "Do you have so much food?"
"some."
"Are you really crazy about robbing farmers of their food?"
Bjorn didn't take it seriously: "Many farmers owe debts to my family, and they must pay off their debts with grain. Each of our families can provide 20,000 pounds of high-quality oats at the price we set. When the rain stops, we Then the wheat will be transported to the island. Now I need to know whether we can get the silver coins as soon as possible."
"High-quality Frank silver coins? You can rest assured on this. We pay with one hand and deliver the goods with the same hand. For the sake of our peaceful trade, we Russians are willing to set up a banquet to celebrate our happy cooperation."
Rurik, who just issued a threat of war, now wants to have a drink and have a good time?
In Bjorn's opinion, this child was not artificial at all, and what he said and did was not a performance. Rurik, maybe he only has the appearance of a child, but he is already very mature on the inside.
Bjorn already had a high opinion of Rurik in his heart, and he urgently needed to tell those big families what he had seen and told them that the Russians would never be taken advantage of.
Rurik randomly sent a maid who was dressed in simple yet gorgeous clothes (he came to see the world again with ten Slavic maids under his command), put on new glasses, and poured new wine.
The free and easy way he raised his wine glass was indeed not childish at all, and the others also raised their glasses.
Bjorn looked at the crystal cup in his hand for a moment, then raised it.
They drank and chatted and concluded a trade contract in this way. As for carving the contract on the wooden board, forget it.
Through this negotiation, Rurik has completely determined that the grain trade in Lake Malaren has completely shifted to the buyer's market. Only the Russians who control 10,000 pounds of silver capital can destroy so much grain.
Bjorn left again in the cold drizzle, and he did not leave empty-handed.
He took the wine glass with him as a token.
Of course, Bjorn also knew that the Russians had been selling a large amount of glassware and many strange utensils in recent years. Glass cups are certainly expensive, but they have dropped significantly compared to the sky-high prices in the past. He didn't know how the Russians obtained glassware in large quantities, but they sold it every summer and made a lot of money.
Naturally, the more of this precious treasure, the better. Bjorn knew that his family needed to sell a large amount of grain to make money from the Russians. He could spend money to buy rare items from the Russians, but now, he needed to recruit private soldiers. Purchase weapons.
Now is really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Every family believes that through the transaction between the Ross people and Karl, Karl's family will make a lot of money.
That’s probably true! After Karl's strength expands rapidly, he will organize more armies!
The Russians want to buy 800,000 pounds of wheat from Karl! This news has been leaked for a long time, and every family knows it. Karl would have made more than four hundred pounds of silver coins at least!
However, until now, various families still don't know a very crazy inside story.
Did Karl really sell 800,000 pounds of wheat to the Russians? On the contrary, these 800,000 pounds of wheat are a debt, or a debt established after political mediation! As for the secret talks between the two parties on Gotland, the big families in Mellaren would not know about it at all, unless Karl himself revealed it himself.
Karl was indeed selling wheat to the outside world, and it was he who determined to raise the price to the point where one silver coin could only buy ten pounds. It is said that Russians will take advantage of others, which may cause the other party to become furious.
how can that be possible? Karl's pricing itself is not aimed at the Russians, but at those people in his tribe who need to buy commercial grain. How can the Russians be angry if they have no direct stake?
The windless world is filled with dense haze, and the fine cold autumn rain sprinkles on the entire lake area. However, around the big lake, there are undercurrents surging in each settlement.
Karl is not a pure reckless man. He realizes that his power is threatened and is trying to use the Rus people to suppress the rising opposition forces within the tribe. He is also actively establishing and restoring his own power.
Each family of the Melalen tribe tried their best to get money. The purpose of getting money was to expand the private army, make the "Anti-Karl Alliance" stronger, and find the right opportunity to kill Karl. Of course, it would be great if Karl pissed off the Rus and was killed.
But Rurik, he was already planning to flip the table. The work of instigating rebellion against ordinary farmers and fishermen in Mälaren is being carried out in the rain.
