Rurik is stationed on his temporary flagship Mercury. Compared to a large ship like Aurora, the current ship is indeed a bit smaller.
She is small, but her combat power can easily annihilate the canoes in front of her. Looking at the "Viking Army" under his command, once the two armies fight, the Ross Army will not kill the chicken with a sledgehammer.
"Mercy?" Jevro stood next to Rurik again.
Rurik glanced at him and said, "Your eyes are flickering. You are worried that our army will annihilate them all."
"With the capabilities of our army, victory is just within reach. Our army was completely victorious in the small-scale battle just now, but..."
"What?" Rurik asked again.
"I still hope..."
"Okay." Rurik let out a long breath, "At least we can spare the lives of those who surrender. If the Suomi people finally surrender to us, I can promise them peace. However, tribute is naturally indispensable."
"This...this is best."
Rurik shook his head again: "Maybe you are not suitable for this battle, so just avoid it for now."
"No need." Yevro said cruelly, "It's like two dueling warriors. As long as they stand here, they must decide the winner. Let's fight. I just hope the battle won't be too cruel."
Rurik shrugged and didn't say much. He calmed down and organized his men, preparing to give orders to all the ships that were spread out.
How to issue an attack order, the method is "semaphore".
The Russians do not have a clear semaphore system here. Rurik just arranges for a person to stand at the bow of the ship. He will wave the flag with the "Russian oar flag" desperately, so-called issuing advance orders to all ships in sight.
But is this method efficient?
Reality told the commander-in-chief of Ross's army that when he commanded the land troops to fight fiercely, he could pass orders to each centurion through flag officers and messengers running errands. In the previous naval battles, because the tonnage of the participating ships was relatively large and the number of ships participating in the battle was relatively small, the dispatching system also required the personnel to wave flags and shout to each other most of the time, and the dispatching was basically completed.
It is necessary to establish a set of maritime communication methods that are efficient and accurate in information transmission.
Rurik was somewhat hesitant to command the large number of longships. Based on the communication conditions, he decided not to use any tricks and ordered the army to rush forward without prioritization. What followed was random killings on the lake.
At this critical moment, Yiye Bianzhou broke away from the enemy's large army and rushed straight towards him.
"What's going on?" Rurik looked sideways.
"Sir, maybe they are afraid of the might of our army and sent envoys to ask for a ceasefire. Even if it doesn't work, it's negotiation." Yevro spoke with some excitement, simply because he didn't want this untimely war in his heart.
Rurik nodded, "Negotiation, okay. I'm afraid the brothers can't suppress their emotions. Yevro, hurry up and rush forward with your brothers holding my flag. You call on others not to go to war..."
"Then bring the envoy back?"
"Exactly. You tell the envoy that I am being reasonable. The two armies are fighting without killing each other."
"As you command!"
Yevro immediately jumped onto a long boat with more than ten people. He personally held the "Russ oar flag" with a white background and blue stripes, and stood out from the Ross fleet lined up in a long snake formation.
Looking at the Suomi Army.
Uko still doesn't know whether his decision is right or wrong. As he gets closer and closer to the Varyag army, his nervousness is also increasing. A dangerous longship is coming on the waves ahead. Could it be that the other party already understands his intention? His mood improved slightly.
Yevlov ordered the rowing brothers to gradually slow down, and also asked everyone to remain on due alert. Even if the other party is his own Suomi clan, everyone is doing their own thing, and he is afraid of being plotted by the other party.
The longboat deliberately kept a little distance from the canoe. Jevro carried the flag and shouted hard, reporting his identity and asking the other party's purpose.
Now, Uko of the wheel was shocked.
"What's going on? There are still some of our people among the Varyag people. Could it be that some brothers have defected to them and become mercenaries?" The more Uko thought about it, the more he felt that this was the truth.
Things were far better than he thought. The leader of the Varangians decided to receive the Suomi envoy and promised complete safety.
Any hesitation at this point may make the Varyags feel that they are rejecting peace talks. Yes, Uko came here to seek an armistice and peace talks.
The Suomi leader stood on the canoe and spread his arms to show that he had no intention of fighting.
Yevluo then ordered the canoe to follow him closely so that he could smoothly pass through the heavily guarded Varyag fleet.
The atmosphere was suffocating, and the Suomi people rowing continued to faint. It was just the instinct of their muscles that they could still row.
I have seen the Varyag people so close in this life, and they are so full of energy!
Those warriors who came from afar, almost all of them had blond hair, and one after another wore highly reflective helmets. The extended visor of the helmet also covered half of the face.
Many of them wore precious chainmail, but what shocked Uko most was that the Varyag people all had uniform attire.
"They are white Varyags. They are different from other Varyags..."
He was muttering in his heart and had no choice but to tilt his head and not dare to look at these people.
Finally, the canoe drifted up to the Mercury, whose propellers were moving slowly forward.
This scene is even more strange. The sails of the big ship have been furled and there is no big oar extended, but the ship is still moving.
After all, the rope ladder was thrown down, and Yevluo, who was riding in the long boat, stood on the boat: "Leader of Suomi, you can board the ship. You have enough status to meet my master. Don't worry, my master can basically understand Suomi's language. .”
"All right."
It's really weird. They are Rus' people. Are Rus' people also part of the Varyag people? How amazing it is that the Varyag leader actually understands the Suomi language.
Uko and several of his followers all boarded the ship, and saw a group of burly men wearing chainmail forming a human wall. Fear eroded his mind, and Uko took three steps back. His followers were so frightened that they almost fled for their lives.
When it did, the human wall gave way to a gap.
The young Rurik walked out of the gap holding his waist. He opened his hands in a gesture of welcome, his face was harmonious and showed no intention of using force. Of course, his smiling face made people think that he was really a "human killer" .
Rurik cleared his throat and said: "Messenger Suomi, welcome to the big ship. Let me guess, are you here to beg me for mercy and ask for an armistice?"
Is the leader of Varyag a child? Uko felt that his character had been insulted. The real leader of his opponent must have been hiding and sent a boy to talk to him.
But looking at this situation, I am a lamb among wolves, how can I be dissatisfied?
Wuko simply revealed his identity. He held his head high and braced himself: "I am the leader of Suomi, and I brought the army back. Now, I hope to stop this conflict?"
"Really? We didn't attack you, why did you take the initiative to attack me? My people were angered, and now you want to stop?"
What Rurik said was right. He actually gave his opponent a chance to defend himself.
Looking at the situation, both sides realize that the negotiations have just begun and are now just an initial exchange of information between the two parties.
Uco was frightened the moment he saw the Ross fleet at close range, knowing full well that once a war started, his canoe army would only have the tragic fate of being slaughtered crazily by them.
He is not as staunch as the leader of Tavastia. As a lake dweller who is good at business, everyone is very flexible.
Uko immediately changed his tone, his attitude became a little flattering, and he said with a smile: "It's all a misunderstanding." Then he pointed at another follower: "It's all because of this man, he is the leader of the Tavastians. , inciting us to fight you."
"Fight?" Rurik glanced at the trembling Nuori. He had no idea about this person and stared into Uko's eyes: "You are the leader. Are you here to tell me that you have chosen war? Well, the armies of both sides have been placed on the lake. I will put you back now, and then we will fight openly."
These words were spoken loudly, and Uko completely understood Rurik's words, especially the key word - war.
war? This is suicidal.
Uko hurriedly complimented: "I am so blind that I dare to challenge you. Once the battle breaks out, our entire army will be annihilated."
"Are you very self-aware?" Rurik smiled, and suddenly took a step forward with concentration, "Since you don't want to fight, put down your weapon!"
"Ah this..."
"Don't want to fight? Are you hesitant to surrender? You are the leader of Suomi. Make a decision quickly."
"..."
Rurik pursed his lips and pulled out his dagger: "Then I will hold you captive. I will immediately order the army to attack your team. I will kill all of you without mercy."
A beautiful young man exudes ferocity. No matter how handsome he is, he is still a sea wolf!
Ukoben planned to get close to this group of Varyag people again. It was said that many Suomi fishermen had seen their fleet cruising on the ocean.
It seems that whether to choose war is just a matter of one's own thoughts? !
Uko sat directly on the ground and shouted, "Armistice! Let's armistice! It's just that I have conditions."
"You?" Rurik said contemptuously: "You actually want to negotiate terms? Are you worthy?"
"There is only one condition, we will surrender, as long as you don't attack us. Besides, why do we have to fight? We... can do trade, why should we cooperate in depth."
"Cooperation? Okay. Come here! Give me wine! Give me meat!"
When the Suomi leader said "requesting cooperation", Rurik knew that his arrogance could be suspended.
They were frightened to pieces by the might of the Russian army. Of course, these guys are also smart and understand a very wise truth - if you can't beat them, join them.
Things progressed far beyond Rurik's plan, and this incident also made the nervous Jevro completely relax.
Yevro knew that his master understood the contract very well. Since the Suomi people planned to cooperate, the master also supported this cooperation by rewarding them with wine and meat, which meant that at least the Russian army would not unilaterally break the cooperation.
There is nothing more than one thing to do next - discuss specific cooperation.
What can be the outcome of the discussion? Jevro could figure it out with his toes. At this time, the Suomi people must surrender to Rus. If they don't surrender and pay tribute, war will still be inevitable.
But looking at today's events from the perspective of the majority of Russian soldiers, it is simply a farce.
More than a thousand people sharpened their swords and planned to kill in the sun to show Odin the heroic appearance of a berserker.
Fortunately now, the assembled army was ordered to disband, and the Duke also ordered that no one is allowed to attack the Suomi camp.
Uko himself was released, saying he had avoided a horrific killing, and village leaders expressed their understanding.
We are all businessmen. If we go out to fight and get nothing, then why fight? Who would fight with the Varangians for the souls of the Tavastians? Besides, more than 200 brothers have been easily killed by the Varangians before and after, and as many as 80 people are still controlled by them.
The 3,000-strong army was so useless that they lost 300 people. The remaining Suomi people generally wanted to escape, just because they didn't want to be the first to run away because of their dignity.
In the afternoon, a large number of Suomi's canoes docked, and they camped in a forest on the shore.
In the evening, after some discussions among the Suomi elites, Uko took five bold village leaders and took three canoes to land in Tavastalu, which was occupied by the Rus, in accordance with the verbal agreement with Rurik. Sacrifice center.
Here, it has become a Varyag city!
At sunset, Uko saw a large number of black-haired Tavastian women being controlled by blond-haired Rus, and the intruders became the masters here!
Looking at the lake again, there are a large number of long boats with raised bows and sterns floating on the lake. Many boats are lit up with flames. What are they doing?
Uko didn’t understand the wonders of night fishing.
Will the Suomi people implement the verbal agreement they made with the Suomi leader before the battle?
If he was let go, it would mean that his opponent had chosen war, and Rurik knew that he would have a new reason to start a war. In principle, he was too lazy to let the war expand, or he and the army no longer wanted to waste time in this eastern land.
Finally, a guard reported that the canoe had landed.
"Finally here! Great." Rurik walked out of the warm house and gestured to his waiting subordinates, "Get ready and let them see a good show!"
A good show, a terrible show indeed.
Uko, five other people and a small number of followers were in the Varyag community. It was strange, really strange, but they also found that they had some commonalities with them.
Many blond Varangians came to watch with their arms around their little women, pointing and saying some incomprehensible words.
It was Yevluo who led them and urged: "Hurry up and leave, my master wants to show you a good show."
What is a good show?
Under the setting sun, Uko and others saw a person tied up with ropes. Who was this person if he wasn't Nuori?
Rurik walked over, holding his waist tightly, and pointed at the man casually: "You are finally here, the noble ones of Suomi. Now you see, this is the last Tavastia warrior who will be executed by me."
"This..." Uko widened his eyes and closed his teeth, at a loss.
Rurik waved his hand, and as many as four strong men pulled the rope. Poor Nuoli was hung up by the neck, and was gradually hanged to death while crying and struggling.
Rurik didn't want to watch the execution, even if his men were cheering. This is a necessary evil. There are still some Tavastian men who have not been annihilated because they were mixed with the Suomi camp. This time, except for their leader, the others are just leaderless chickens and dogs.
He said to the visitor with a dull face: "I understand your language and your traditions. You feel that the soul is in the blood. If you give this person a bloodless death and then bury him, his soul will return smoothly." Sea of Souls.”
"Yes...that's it." Uko was already trembling a little.
Rurik shrugged again: "Let's go, I have been prepared for a banquet. Since you are here to seek cooperation, we will discuss how to cooperate. Don't worry, as long as your people will not be stupid to attack my camp , and I will not start a war."
"That's great." Uko's smile was very embarrassing, and he followed cautiously behind the young man Rurik, his eyes fixed on the young man's floating golden ponytail, and the large number of inlaid embroidery hanging on his waist. The precious dagger, sighing with emotion that this extremely young Varyag leader can easily command thousands of strong men to do anything. There must be another hidden secret behind the incredible.
When they entered the meeting hall of the Tavastians, the aroma was already fragrant. The alluring smell of barbecue was mixed with the aroma of wine. How beautiful this was.
Since the Varangians are willing to serve barbecue and fine wine, they must be trustworthy.
Uko was glad that he chose to cooperate, but he and the village leaders had reached a consensus that the Suomi people would pay a price for this cooperation.
As for the price, everything is negotiable as long as the bottom line is not touched.
The Suomi people's bottom line is also very simple - they cannot be slaves.
