The two lonely longships tried their best to keep a low profile, and more than fifty people carried some wooden boxes. They could leave the port in time for the gloomy weather.
"It's already very cold. I'm afraid that there will be a sudden snowstorm and all the brothers will freeze to death on the sea." Old Eric said worriedly while rowing.
His worries are by no means unfounded, and Snoreva is not unreasonable.
"Then row harder. As long as we reach Tombstone Island, we will be completely safe." He said.
No one wants bad weather to cause big waves in the ocean, but it seems like inevitable fate.
The sea became violent and a storm came unexpectedly.
The people on the boat were freezing to their core, but fortunately the situation was not too bad.
Snoleva endured wet rowing, and after more than half a year of experience in Hedeby, Denmark, he is no longer the fat man he once was. He has to do many things personally and devote himself to it, and this physical exertion is now indispensable.
This guy's fat has turned into muscles, and his whole person has lost its naivety. He no longer looks stupid, but has become stronger and more powerful.
It seems that his body has become stronger and he has become the first person in the family, but sailing in this vast sea has to survive to have a future.
Because he had to deliver a shocking piece of news to Fort Ross, a task that only he and he must accomplish.
Snoleva finally arrived at Tombstone Island, and while getting some supplies here, the cold finally arrived.
The sky was full of haze, and the snow was densely packed in the wind.
They continued to go north, the long boat with its sails furled and all relying on its oars. No one dared to be lazy, because everyone knew that after the snow, the entire huge bay would be covered by ice.
Ross's fishing boats all returned to the harbor to escape the wind and snow. They tied up their boats with cables and lined up neatly at the dock.
A large number of boats also washed up directly on the sandy beach in accordance with the old tradition.
At first, Gould looked at the snowy sky and no longer looked forward to his eldest son's return. His first wife was worried about her eldest son. Although Gould was worried too, he would not show it on his face.
The snow turned into snowflakes, and surprisingly the north wind was not serious.
In the empty bay, there were only two resolute long ships swaying northward. Covered in snowsnowleva, he was like a machine. He persisted passively as if he had forgotten life and death.
The end of the journey was just ahead, and they had clearly arrived at the small fjord of Roseburg. The people in the two boats, tortured to the point of numbness by the wind and snow, could only curl their lips to look happy.
Finally, they arrived at the dock. But this huge Rossburg, after not seeing it for half a year, feels both familiar and strange at the same time.
Old Eric shouted with all his strength, "Rosberg has become bigger than when we set off, and the high wall can block the wind and snow."
"It's the last journey. Let's go back to eat meat, drink wine, and soak in a wooden barrel full of hot water. Your slave girl should also be taken care of." As Snoleva spoke, the snow on his body But it was a lot of shock.
They came to a safe stop, like a snowman transformed into a living thing.
One by one, wooden boxes began to be carried to the shore, and soon someone began to help, and everything became orderly in the wind and snow.
Thanks to the arduous trek, the men had strong bodies to withstand the cold, but the accompanying women almost collapsed from weakness as soon as they landed.
Old Eric and his entourage have their own destination. The wooden house they bought remains intact because it is protected by a tall wooden wall.
The news of Snoleva's return was immediately notified to Rurik. Gould welcomed his son's triumphant return. Before asking about what he had seen in the south, this man who had lost a lot of fat and whose round face had become more angular, was still... Need to rest at home for a day.
Snoleva got what he wanted. He soaked in the warm barrel and fell asleep. When it was time to sleep, his wife accompanied him again.
He needs to talk carefully about what he saw in Denmark, especially the big things that happened there in Rurik.
Only the most important news reached Rurik's ears in the briefest words for the time being.
The Danish leader Hafgen is dead, and the giant longship Red Dragon sank!
After Gould's messenger finished reporting the message, he hurried away in the wind and snow.
Rurik stayed in the warm palace and rushed directly to the second floor.
At this moment, Rumia, with her belly bulging out, was acting as a de facto math teacher. The wind and snow outside forced the doors and windows of Rurik's mansion to be closed, and the fun-less winter seemed to have begun, but the palace did become a school.
Rumia, who already knew rudimentary knowledge of geometry and basic algebraic operations, was busy teaching her sisters to learn this knowledge.
Rurikben was also on the third floor, dragging his cronies with him to study Latin with the young monk John Invar.
Rurik left from the first floor, rushed to the second floor and yelled at the girls who were busy studying.
"The news is very certain that the king of Denmark is really dead."
Hearing this, Carlotta jumped up instantly, and even Ella stood up.
She turned her head, her nose was sore, her eyes were filled with tears, and she desperately approached Rurik and hugged him.
"Thank you. The blood feud of me, the Ostara people, is you... 嘤嘤嘤..."
Wiping away her tears, Rurik whispered, "Continue studying. I will summon Snoleva in two days, and you and Ella will attend."
"yes."
Rurik put his mouth to her ear and said, "Tonight, come to my room."
Carlotta smiled knowingly with tears in her eyes, she expected a lot.
What to do if you have too many wives and concubines? Rurik remembered that the Eastern emperors treated many concubines, except for one or two who were particularly favored, and they should not forget to treat others. The emperor turned over the cards with his eyes closed, and he would be lucky to find the one he turned over.
Except for the ten original Slavic maids, none of them were destined to be of high status. The remaining seven wives and concubines all lived in this "palace" with Rurik himself.
The disaster of Carlotta's Ostara tribe happened exactly three years ago. She was more than a year older than Rurik, and she was about to turn thirteen now.
She had already gone through a simple coming-of-age ceremony, which meant that according to Viking customs, she was already obliged to give birth to offspring for her husband.
But the initial glory was finally obtained by Rurik's first maid.
This night, Carlotta entered Rurik's room with a grateful heart. Even if she is older, Rurik is still ten men, stronger and taller.
…
Carlotta finally got her wish and she became a real woman.
She lay peacefully, lost in happiness.
Rurik sat on the bed, looking at the flame of the oil lamp from the corner of his eyes and gasping, "Maybe it would be great to have a flower at this time."
He whispered, "Now you have another wish, and I will grant it to you."
"Yes, and my sister, she is waiting too..." the girl murmured.
"Ella is too young. Besides, I have to train her well."
"What to train her for? To record past events?"
"There are things in the future. She is Historia, and she has a lot to learn and let our descendants know their ancestors from thousands of years ago."
Carlotta chuckled and got up, "You ask too much, Rurik, I just want to revive my tribe. I don't care whether you become the King of Sweden or not, you are my king."
"Okay. I'm done..."
Carlotta was so tortured that she screamed, and Otto and Niya who lived on the same floor were secretly happy. The old couple even joked with each other about what name to give Carlotta's son.
After four times in a row, Rurik finally lay down tired.
"That's enough. You are stronger than ordinary women, and you will have children successfully. The people of Ostara are beginning to revive, but you still lack followers."
"Then...what should we do..." Carlotta asked weakly.
"Five hundred serfs were brought from Melalen this year. They are all poor people. Your existing tribesmen are all in the east, and they are busy opening up new farms. I will give you two hundred serfs."
"Wow! Okay."
"Also." Rurik had thought about one thing, and now he was enjoying it. "I will try my best to talk to those small tribes. Some of your tribesmen did not die, and those women were taken in and even gave birth. I persuaded those The tribe releases the people, or uses means to force them to drag their families back to Rus."
"This is also a way. Rurik, how can I repay you..."
This girl is emotional again, or is this her way of gratitude?
Rurik played with her braid, "It's nothing, it's enough for you to be obedient. You have a rest tomorrow and will stop studying."
As Rurik hinted, Carlotta will eventually pay the price for her actions. She grew up overnight, so why did it become painful to walk?
Rurik was busy preparing some things. He speculated on what good news Snoleva could bring back besides Hafgen's sudden death.
Yes, Snoleva did get some important news that could not be confirmed from the rumors among the locals in Hedeby. He was afraid that the news would be wrong and deceive the adults, so he did not entrust the messenger, but decided to tell it in person.
The agreed date is today!
The stone fireplace on the first floor warms the entire palace. Rurik was in the meeting hall on the first floor, personally summoning the returning heroes.
As the powerful Duke, he sat on a wooden throne covered with bearskin, with two ferocious polar bear heads at his feet.
Otto, who had already delegated power, sat next to him with many old friends.
And Sister Carlotta sat on the other side.
This is not a simple summons, it is clearly a parliament.
Snoreva could see the great significance of this battle at a glance, but with his experience in the south, the fat man had already experienced hundreds of battles.
He comes and sits here. Anyone who had seen this fat man was shocked by his current physique.
"No longer strong, Snoreva." Rurik said politely.
"Yes, my friends." Snoreva puffed his chest, "Before, you thought I was just a timid and cautious fat man, a pure businessman. Now, I should be able to become a warrior."
It's okay if he didn't say it, which made the old guys laugh.
Rurik signaled the tribesmen to be quiet, and then said, "You have indeed become stronger. You must have encountered a lot of things in Denmark. We will talk about other things slowly, and now I want to confirm again. That Hafgen, is he dead?" "
"Dead. Crushed by your ship. No one found his body, but civil war has broken out among the Robard tribe in Denmark."
"Civil war?" Rurik suddenly raised his head, "Why?"
"Without him, all forces would compete for the leadership position."
"That man doesn't have a son of his own?"
"Only the daughter, and the woman was also killed, as well as her sister and brother-in-law. This is a fact. Hafgen's power has collapsed, and Denmark is now in some kind of chaos."
Snoleva said this at the risk of his family's honor, and what he said was far more heartfelt than the messenger's understatement.
The old guys in Ross all stared at Rurik, praising this kid as really being a great hero of Ross.
Otto stood up and took a long breath, "I thought Denmark was a strong enemy and we were all afraid of it. I didn't expect them to be so weak. That Hafgen sent his troops to kill the Ostara people. I didn't expect that villain." He was easily killed by my son."
Rurik said casually: "It's not that we are weak, but that our Ross has become strong. We no longer worry about being attacked by a certain force. Once Hafgen dies, Denmark will be leaderless. We should take the opportunity to change our attitude towards Denmark."
"How else can we change it?" Otto asked, but he already had the answer in his mind, "Is it to change the hostile attitude?"
"This...can't be rushed. Because interests are eternal, and in order to obtain benefits, it is inappropriate to be in a state of war all the time."
"Are we going to form an alliance with them?" Otto asked again.
"If it allows us in Russia to do business openly, an alliance is possible. However, there seems to be no hero among the Danes now, no one who can be trusted."
"They are not trustworthy!" Haro Zuosen shouted.
"Uncle, please calm down." Rurik greeted the old man and asked Snoleva if there were any heroes in Denmark.
"Hero? There is one."
"who?"
"A man named Ragnar. He..." Snoleva paused, "He killed old Olegin. He was young and energetic. Because of this achievement, he learned about Hafgen's death. After that, we recruited warriors and made weapons in Hedeby.”
"This man?" Rurik stood up suddenly.
Otto raised his head, "Do you like this person?"
"Perhaps, we can form an alliance with this person."
"You like him? This man killed Olegin."
"Dad, you don't like Olegin either."
Otto shook his head, "Yes, but I, Olegin, was killed by this man. If this man becomes the leader of Denmark, he might attack the north again. I know you are not afraid of Denmark, but..."
"This man is a hero."
No one knew why Rurik suddenly became so confident, as if he was destined to establish a connection with Ragnar.
Snoleva mentioned something very important again, "Sir, it is true that Ragnar intends to compete for the Danish alliance leader, but he still lacks the strength. Do you know the old alliance leader who was expelled by the Danes?"
"Is there such a thing? I don't know."
"A man named Harald Clark, who embraced Frank's faith and was expelled, fled for his life with his nephew."
"So, that man thinks there's an opportunity for restoration?" Rurik asked.
"No. It's his nephew, a man named Horik."
"Horik?" Rurik thought in a daze why this name resembled his own, "Who is this person? Can a person who has been expelled have strength?"
"This... news is difficult to confirm. I heard that that guy is the master of Durist, and he has the support of the Franks. That man was canonized as the earl of the Franks. If he kills in Denmark, I am afraid that the Danish lords will be scattered. There’s really no stopping him.”
Rurik became a little wary. "Is the news reliable?"
"Sir, this is just a rumor in the market."
"Rumors? How can there be such rumors without a reason?"
Instead of Snoreva reporting what he saw in Hedeby, Rurik paid more attention to the two men named Ragnar and Horik.
Who has the highest authority in Denmark? Perhaps it will be a battle between these two people?
Rurik thought for a while: "I understand. You will visit Denmark again next year and pay attention to Horik's movements and the actions of Ragnar."
"As commanded."
Rurik nodded and looked at the elites of Ross, "I am very happy about the occurrence of the Danish Civil War, especially the internal strife of the Robard tribe that controls the waterways. They cannot gather a maritime force to prevent us from entering the western sea. We should Take this opportunity to develop our maritime power."
How could a true king indulge in jewelry and beauty? Rurik longs to conquer a large territory, but as a principality that relies on the sea, without ships, all dreams are just dreams.
shipbuilding! A ship must be built!
We must take advantage of the window of political instability in Denmark to quickly build a Ross Baltic fleet.
