Last year, a black army of 500 people paraded through the city.
This year, a blue and white army of a hundred people is doing it again.
However, compared to the dead kings Olegin and Karl, the people of Melalen welcome the Russians more.
This is not because the Russian people are kind-hearted. It lies entirely in the Birka Market in Mälaren. There are all vendors setting up stalls on both sides of the road.
Everyone knows that the Russians are rich. They come to the market and even the entire lake area every year to buy all kinds of things, and sell a lot of rare things in the spring.
A large number of powerful traders have made money in trade.
People welcomed the wealthy adults to parade, and when they saw this group of well-dressed people, especially the beautiful young man Rurik at the head, they praised Youjia even more.
But they don't know that under this glamorous and benevolent appearance, the Russians hide their fangs and bloody mouths.
Rurik had no intention of interacting with the crowd of traders and left the Birka Monastery under construction. He was already imagining the missionary Eskil of the Frank Kingdom. When he saw the "Lindis" he snatched from Britain, "Fan Gospel", as well as a large number of gold and silver vessels, diamond crosses, will that guy still maintain that surprise?
Rurik stood at the door of the market tavern again.
The mighty military power scared the ale drinkers and ran away. Oh, and some guys finished their drinks quickly and ran away without paying.
The bartender ran out in a rage, yelling for payment, and collided with Rurik's army.
Is it an attack?
The two mercenaries kicked him so hard that the bartender was kicked so hard that he was chewed out of his mouth.
After a while, the bartender got up, and the anger he aroused was naturally lost when facing the Ross army.
"Sir, do you want to go in and sit down?" Jevro asked.
"No need." Rurik raised his head and couldn't help but shake his head when he looked at the tavern.
"Are you a little disappointed?" Gould, the big businessman, asked.
"Yes. Disappointed. This tavern is too run-down. You want me to take it over? I'll knock it down and we'll build a new one."
"That's true." Gould nodded, "Then, the soldiers shouldn't be rough with the bartender. They will all be your subordinates from now on."
Rurik pouted with an indifferent attitude.
"Of course I want a tavern, but these people... get rid of them all."
"Is it necessary? They are qualified tools."
"No. They are tools of greed. I need someone I can trust to manage the tavern for me." As he said this, Rurik turned his head and said, "I can trust you. Prepare some people and you can take over here. By the way, I want to take it." In some areas of the Birka Bazaar, the houses were demolished and rebuilt to serve as specialized stores for our Russian goods.”
"Wonderful." Gould was overjoyed, but he still had some worries, "I'm afraid Bjorn won't give in easily."
"No. He will. That guy is not Karl, that is a man who knows the current affairs. Let's go, that's enough. Let's go straight to Bjorn's mansion. I hope the guy has prepared wine."
The parade in the busy city ended here, and the army also left the market.
Compared to walking to Bjorn's mansion, it was faster to take a boat.
The two sister ships, the Aurora and the Gurdot, stood in the port like gods of war. The men, women and children of Melalen came to watch them closely, then whispered about the strength of the Russians, and even discussed such large ships. How much cargo can be shipped.
Rurik and his men waited for four long ships, and they successfully floated to the small dock owned by Bjorn's mansion.
The army was walking on the edge of the fields where the oats had been cut, and Rurik saw that there were still scattered people bending down to pick up something.
A wheat gleaner? It is really a cold pastoral song.
With its complex waterways and lush pine forests, this Nordic water town is a great place for leisure and retirement if you live a prosperous life.
However, the climate here and today's production capacity have made agriculture here extremely fragile. If they weren't too poor, how could everyone be so enthusiastic about going out to sea to plunder?
The fields are sparse with wheat roots, and it seems that they are not good at farming. Rurik had no intention of criticizing anymore. This place was just too cold. Compared with the benefits of intensive farming, it was not as good as immigrating to the warm French plains or the Ukrainian steppes.
At the same time, the private soldiers of the Bjorn family noticed the visiting army, the fluttering Ross flag and the spearheads reflecting in the sun. The first reaction of the private soldiers and servants guarding the home and courtyard was fear.
If the Russians were offended and they rushed over, wouldn't he die quickly?
Bjorn, with a mixture of joy and fear, went out to greet Rurik and his party. At the same time, all the free peasants and serfs who lived with his family's dependents fled urgently.
Rurik came with arrogant steps. He was short and had a childish look on his face. But the soldiers around him all looked ruthless.
Bjorn bowed respectfully, "Welcome! Welcome to the mansion."
"Am I here as an invitation? Bjorn, we meet again. Now that Karl is dead, you are elected as the leader. Do you want the dukes of all tribes to support you as the King of Sweden? No one appreciates it."
Rurik told the truth very abruptly. Bjorn was surprised at first, and then smiled awkwardly. "You... know everything."
"Yes. I don't mean to say much. Let's go, my army will stand outside for now, and I will enter your mansion with my cronies. Let's talk about your becoming king."
Bjorn woke up suddenly, Rurik's last words clearly pointed out this matter.
That is to say, Gould got the matter done, and the Russians did support Bjorn in becoming king. How much price would it cost? Rurik came to negotiate on this matter.
"Then please come in" Bjorn said with a sullen face and said no more.
The two parties in the negotiation maintained a certain tacit understanding. Rurik had expectations in his heart, but he didn't know where Bjorn's bottom line was.
Rurik stepped into the mansion surrounded by wooden walls. As expected, this mansion was not even as good as Karl's old mansion.
The houses are simple without floors. Those buildings are made of rammed earth and wood, and a large number of haystacks are laid on the roofs. This creates a traditional longhouse.
How can a nobleman show his nobility if he wants to live in such a house?
Rurik and his cronies are no longer able to adapt to such an existence. He had no choice but to endure the discomfort, enter the largest room, and then sit cross-legged on a soft leather cushion, waiting to negotiate with Bjorn.
The so-called negotiation is nothing more than the two parties involved discussing around a warm campfire. There was no one to record the incident, and the witnesses sat separately.
Bjorn did not prepare a meal, and Rurik had no intention of staying here too long.
"Let's get started." Seeing that his old friend had already sat down, Bjorn pointed out his hope with a sullen face, "We killed Karl. Now all the big families support me as the leader, and also support me to replace Karl as the leader of Sweden. King. However, the other leaders do not support me. Me! I want your support."
"I am fully aware of the matter. I! Support you in becoming king! My attitude is very clear, I am worthy of your trust."
It sounds like Rurik is worried about himself. Bjorn immediately cheered up, his sullen face relaxed and he forced a smile, "So, what's the price?"
"Huh?" Rurik was also sitting up, and he couldn't help but mutter in his heart, didn't this guy Thorgold send a message and promised the ownership of a hundred serfs?
Suspending the plans in his mind for the time being, Rurik asked, "Then, what will you give me?"
"One hundred serfs. I heard that you are opening up fields in the far east, but you lack slaves to cultivate the fields. I will give you a hundred slaves who are good at cultivating the fields. What do you think?"
"That's it?"
"Too little?"
"Not a few. Are they...all men? Are they just serfs?"
Bjorn thought for a while and simply told the truth: "They are all slaves of the Karl family, not only men, but also women and children."
"How many adult men are there?" Rurik asked forcefully.
"There are thirty."
Thirty small families? Rurik thought about it and realized that this amount was really not too small. By the standards of this era, thirty households would constitute a "large village" by Nordic standards.
However, this is not enough.
"Too little, I want more. You!" Rurik patted his chest, "I destroyed the entire island of Gotland, and now you Mellaren people have begun to colonize that small island. In other words, you are not only Is it the leader of Mellaren or the leader of Gotland? You say, give me thirty male slaves and let me support you in becoming king, is that appropriate?"
"This...of course is not appropriate." Bjorn used the words he had prepared, "I will give you one hundred slaves, plus the accompanying women and children, a total of two hundred and thirty people."
This number really made Rurik happy.
However, it is still unreasonable.
Rurik continued to say with a sullen face: "It's still not enough. Give me at least two hundred male slaves, their wives and children. And the women whose husbands died in last year's war. If they don't get married a second time, they will all be given to me." I."
"Ah! This...this is not just me paying the price, but also the entire tribe..."
"Exactly!" Rurik continued to say seriously: "You want to be the king of all Sweden, and your Mellaren tribe wants to be the leader of all Sweden. I just want some slaves and poor people from you, but you are actually hesitating. "
"I..." Bjorn felt that he was looked down upon by this boy.
Indeed, Bjorn himself is not a domineering person. He wanted to take away Karl's power, but now that he has succeeded, he has become conservative.
Rurik has noticed this situation keenly.
Bjorn thought for a while, then gritted his teeth, "There are many tenant farmers who owe rent, and there are more serfs. I... can give you five hundred people, including at least two hundred adult men. This is our Mei Lahren’s bottom line cannot be any more.”
Five hundred people? This number indeed exceeded Rurik's expectations. He organized a group of up to 500 absolutely obedient slaves, ordered them to open up wasteland and farm the land, and pay taxes directly to the Duke of Ross himself. Such serfs are indeed still serfs, but Rurik is determined not to ask excessive demands from such farmers, and will even provide relief grain to survive in disaster years.
At least among the Malaren people, the local wealthy landowners lacked a sense of protection when it came to the life and death of serfs.
However, this is not enough.
Bjorn waited for Rurik to give him an attitude, but what he got in return was further demands.
"Give me five hundred slaves, I will be happy. However, I am the Duke of Ross. With my current strength, I can immediately summon an army of five thousand men in chainmail! You have to believe that I am not bragging."
Rurik was bragging, but not completely bragging. Bjorn learned from the tribal immigrants who immigrated to Gotland that the bones of the war dead were everywhere east of the hills of Visby Port.
The very few former Gotlanders who were caught hiding in the mountains and surviving told a lot of details about the war.
Now Bjorn and the entire powerful nobles of Mellaren have to admit that the pieces of bones are all the war masterpieces of the Ross army.
Therefore, by winning the support of the Russians, Mälaren was able to maintain power in Sweden despite a series of war defeats and political changes.
Now the question is, since they are part of Sweden, why don't the Russians become kings?
Bjorn's bottom line was to spend 500 slaves to buy one support, but he didn't expect that the Russians would continue to ask for it.
Do we have to retreat again and again?
Bjorn suppressed the anger in his heart. He knew that he could not get angry and anger the Rus.
He simply asked tentatively: "We all admit that Ross is powerful. Then, Rurik, my friend, maybe you should be the king of Sweden."
"Me? I know you will ask that. But, I don't want to be this king."
"Why? Your power is obviously very powerful. In fact, we Mellaren people are already inferior to you now."
In many senses, what Bjorn said is true. In fact, with the allyship of the 20,000 people from the Balmok tribe, and the fact that there are tens of thousands of servants in Novgorod, the Rus are now de facto The small Nordic overlord second only to Denmark.
Bjorn's words fell on deaf ears.
"Even if my Rus is very powerful, I have no intention of becoming the King of Sweden. Indeed, our Rus once lived by the lake, but you! They expelled us seventy years ago. Now that Rus is strong, you give up your power and think we appreciate it. ? I! Rurik! disdain to be King of Sweden, I want to be Augustus, Vladimir, Alexander, in short, I want to be the conqueror of the world."
Rurik expected that Bjorn would be shocked by this far-reaching revenge, but the guy's dull expression made him understand that Bjorn couldn't understand it at all.
Rurik shook his head and said in a gentle tone: "My heart is in the north and in the east. I will not ask for the Swedish throne. The Russians are very sad about the land of Lake Mälaren."
However, Bjorn also knows nothing about ancient history. He was not sure whether his ancestors actually drove out the ancestors of the Rus. Looking at the grief and anger shown by Rurik, maybe this is indeed the case.
"So, how should I satisfy you? You...what are your conditions?"
Rurik said decisively: "I will not be the king of Sweden, and Ross is not a subordinate of Sweden. Karl is dead! Our Principality of Ross will voluntarily break away from Sweden! From now on, you and I are two countries on equal footing."
"Ah! You! You actually want to break away from us! Isn't this just like the Gotlanders, a betrayal..."
Rurik shrugged, "It's nothing. We Russians were expelled by you seventy years ago. If the late King Olegin hadn't decided to attack Gotland and Denmark, how could we be invited to continue to join? In the past, we only belonged to the alliance in name, but now Karl He is already dead, the legal leader is dead, and the alliance has collapsed with the destruction of the Olegin family, so how can I talk about betrayal? So, what do you think is the real reason why those dukes refused you to become king?"
"Am I illegal?!"
"You are just illegal, but..." Rurik raised his fists, "Using force can make it legal. So as two countries, we, the Principality of Rus, support you as the new king of the Kingdom of New Sweden. In response, we Military support, you need to cede some privileges.”
"Speaking."
"First, we Russians will not pay any taxes for any activities in Sweden. Secondly, if we Russians commit crimes in Sweden, they should be handed over to Russia and dealt with according to Russian rules. Thirdly, I want to get Birka's tavern , as well as a land with a radius of 50 stikas, as a shop specialized by us Russians."
It seems that only tax collection is prohibited. Bjorn's attitude toward the first two requests was completely indifferent.
Bjorn immediately said, "There is no problem with the first and second clauses. You Russian merchants have always been very particular about contracts. Even when old Olegin was alive, he never collected taxes from you. You even invented the tax collection. "
Rurik nodded, already laughing in his heart. This Bjorn is probably because of the limitations of the times. He doesn't know that "extraterritoriality", "consular jurisdiction", "free trade rights" and "tariff autonomy" are all gone!
On the other hand, Ross has a firm control over these powers.
Bjorn ends up struggling with the issue of the tavern.
Rurik shook his head, "I must get the tavern, and I want to build a shop exclusively for the Russians. This way you Merlaren merchants no longer have to go to the narrow Gould Island to trade. In the future, our transactions will be because we are located in the bustling city of Birka The shops will further prosper, and Gould Island will only become our Ross's warehouse. As long as we agree to these, we will sign a written agreement, me!"
Rurik patted his chest again, "I will declare loudly in front of all the leaders that I support you as king. However, the kneeling warrior ceremony is waived. I will support you as king of Sweden, once you intend to start a foreign war , our Ross will also send troops to join the war."
Bjorn's heart was beating wildly, and he said tremblingly, "Okay! I agree, I completely agree. I will convene all the nobles for discussion and give you a reply within two days. Don't worry, our alliance is permanent. "
Obviously, Bjorn didn't know that he had betrayed huge benefits in exchange for the apparent "surrender" of the Russians.
No! The Russians even gained face and did not lose it.
This was actually the first secret meeting, and Rurik knew that he had won a great victory.
Bjorn and the nobles of the Mellaren people did not dare to ask for any taxes from Ross, nor did they dare to offend such a powerful and wealthy power.
The final defeat of the war has caused the entire Sweden to vomit three liters of blood, coupled with the consumption of civil strife. Unless all the landowners and nobles of Mellaren are stupid, they will harm their inherent alliance with Ross.
Oh, the two large ships anchored in the port are actually the Ross authority standing there, either for the common people, or to intimidate the Malaren nobles.
The so-called selling out some interests gained the approval of the coup from the Russian people and the continued alliance between Sweden and Russia.
Sadly, though, Bjorn and his friends negotiated urgently and felt they were paying little more than a small benefit.
Especially the old guy Sven, who proposed an alliance with Ross. Seeing that the senior nobles were so determined, no one else had any objections.
It seemed that everyone just took out a few slaves, and then led people to capture the widows of the tribe, and gathered 500 people and threw them to the Rus.
As for the ownership of the tavern, it was originally given to Bjorn himself after a dispute. It was generous to others, so why should anyone complain? Even using this to weaken Bjorn's strength, everyone was secretly happy.
Because the landowners and nobles do not want Bjorn to become the new "King Olegin" and gain personal hegemony. We don't want to be a king and face all kinds of pressure. We just want to share the power of the king and reap the benefits of our family.
But those small tribes whose combined population and strength cannot compete with Melalen must recognize that Melalen is the eternal hegemony, and that the leader of Melalen is the King of Sweden!
And this is the so-called Swedish version of "the king and the nobles rule the world together."
Rus and Rurik are still on the road to becoming Augustus and the third Rome.
