The Avora moved forward in the sea of broken ice. She moved against the wind, and her bronze bow kept smashing into the ice, as if she was engaged in a war with the enemy.
The squeaking sound made the people on the boat feel uncomfortable when they resumed sailing, and it was even more difficult to fall asleep at night.
This is the last voyage, and it is also in late October. It is probably only a cold wave before the Gulf of Bothnia is completely frozen.
The weather has been quite sunny for the past few days, but the temperature has never gone up.
Due to broken ice on the sea surface, Ross fishermen have completely suspended their operations, and their winter life has begun.
The arrival of Avora was both unexpected and reasonable. The people of Roseburg saw a large ship with a triangular sail entering the bay completely covered by thin ice floes.
Many people stood on the deck. Although the cold wind was like a knife, they finally returned triumphantly after a long and great expedition.
People were chatting among each other, talking about taking the spoils they deserved after landing ashore, and living a nourishing winter.
Naturally, some people think this is an extravagant wish. Of course, people are willing to settle for the status quo and not get up if they have food and drink, but Sir Rurik is not a lazy person.
For several years the Russians have used winter as a new opportunity to explore, think of Rurik's preaching in Balmok.
This winter, many brothers have to escort the adults on their overland journey to Balmok.
There is a group of Balmoks in the mercenary team. They do not have a clear concept of nationality. Now they simply hope that the two ethnic groups can merge.
Rurik wore a thick leather coat and looked at his Roseburg.
Mary stood next to him, and when she opened her eyes, she saw a huge city no less big than Tamworth!
No! That is a very special city!
The city has walls and towers, and there are a large number of buildings outside the walls adjacent to the coast. Although the bay is already frozen, the ice will only get thicker in such a cold climate.
It seems like a forest grows on the seaside? That turned out to be a large number of ships! It was an extremely large fleet.
Is this the naval strength of the Russians?
Princess Mary fell into deep doubts. She was convinced of the power of the Principality of Ross, but she doubted that even if all the power of the British Kingdom was gathered, it would be unable to defeat such a powerful enemy.
Fortunately, I am already one of them.
Rurik looked at his harbor very carefully. He counted the masts and soon smiled.
The Avora-class sailing cruiser is very large. In addition to its own ship, there are three other ships parked on the seashore. Their majestic appearance is clearly visible.
The slightly smaller one is the planet-class sail destroyer, and there are actually eight of them parked here! Apparently all eight planned ships, from the Mercury to the Neptune, have been launched.
He seemed to hear a ding-ding-dong-dong sound, perhaps an auditory hallucination. Rurik can be sure that in the two huge wooden indoor docks on the coast, the Hotla family is building the fifth and sixth ships of the Avora class cruiser. What kind of names should I choose?
Rurik can fully confirm that Ross’s Eighty-Eight Fleet plan will be completed as planned next summer.
Roseburg was shrouded in silver light, and the silver covered her majestic outline, making the entire city even more profound in its history.
Indeed, as a settlement, Roseburg has existed for more than seventy years.
She is actually still the capital of the Principality of Ross, but her decline is probably within ten years.
Roseburg will always belong to Russia, and New Roseburg on the Neva River in the east will replace other cities with its glory, and it will definitely be the greatest among the cities of Russia in the future.
A group of people were wandering around the world of ice and snow. In the industrial area of the city, a group of stoves were still spewing frightening black smoke.
When she noticed it, Mary reached out her finger and exclaimed: "Ah! There's a fire there! This is your home!"
Rurik pressed his arm and said, "It's rare but strange. Have you never seen a blacksmith shop?"
"I've seen it before. Huh? You can't say it's a blacksmith shop?"
"That is, the largest blacksmith shop in Europe."
Mary still didn't understand, and it wasn't her fault. It is the only blast furnace in Europe that can smelt molten pig iron and easily mass-produce molten bronze. She was actually unfamiliar with blacksmithing, but she had seen the royal blacksmith forge weapons by chance, and that was all she had seen in the blacksmith shop.
In fact, Rurik underestimated his own strength.
There are five blacksmith families in Roseburg, and their blacksmith alliance naturally expands the industry.
During the few months of Rurik's absence, trouble occurred at the blacksmith's place. Due to the frequent operation of the old blast furnace, imperceptible cracks appeared in the furnace wall. A small-scale landslide accident not only frightened the workers, but also disabled the entire furnace. .
It doesn't matter. Kawei, who knows how to make blast furnaces, has already built a backup furnace in advance and has started tapping iron.
The old stove broke down, and Kawei built a newer one before the cold period by using its still usable residue.
It was God's blessing that this incident did not cause any casualties. Everyone was so frightened that they rushed to the Ross Temple and paid a large sum of money as offerings to the temple. Some of them entered the temple and faced Thor, the God of Craftsmen. The gilded idol is worshiped.
The incident also served as a reminder to Kawei, Klawason and others.
The blacksmiths realized the importance of safe production for the first time because they saw the molten iron and liquefied slag flowing after the furnace cracked. Those things could cause death if touched.
Since the stove may naturally break after two years of use, then build some new ones.
With capital in hand, they were able to hire a large number of people who were forced to become unemployed during the winter and continue metallurgical production operations.
A group of people were eagerly awaiting the return of the Aurora, and many people were standing on the city walls.
More than a dozen employees pulling sleds to transport iron ore also stood outside the gate of the wall and looked sideways at the sea. After a while, many people laughed and walked out of the wall that blocked the wind and cold to welcome Rurik's return.
An old man with white hair came with determined steps, and behind him was an old woman with a wrinkled face swaddling a child. Many young girls also appeared wearing warm burqas.
Otto, Niya, and Rurik's female relatives all came out of the city to greet him!
Everything was so peaceful, Rurik could see his father's old face from a distance.
Not to mention, if the god-king Odin should have an image, then with a piece of cloth covering Dad Otto's right eye, the image of the god-king should be like this.
"Look, Mary, that's my family."
Mary couldn't see clearly. Since those were the top nobles of the Principality of Ross, she...
She couldn't help but panic, and subconsciously grabbed Rurik's elbow.
When it comes to height, Rurik is actually a little taller than Mary, even though his body is not that old.
Rurik liked this proactive woman very much, but Rumia was his favorite, as well as his first daughter Velika.
The Aurora was parked in her exclusive berth, the warm atmosphere now dispelling the harshness of the cold wind.
Rurik got off the boat and was soon hugged by his old mother and kissed wildly.
The infant Velika is actually almost one year old, and she looks particularly fragile in the cold season.
It was Rumia holding her daughter, showing the tenderness and kindness of a mother, but in fact, she also showed her strength inadvertently.
Velika can already call her daddy, and her milky smell is really endearing. Rurik's teasing was intentional, and his daughter continued to interact with her through her smile.
"You are finally back." Rumia said with a gentle look on her face, "You see, how much Velika likes you."
"Then let me hug you."
Rurik's movements in holding the child were self-taught. He was surprised by the weight of his daughter. When he saw the child, he looked up at Rumia: "How should I praise you? Tonight, come to my room with Velika in your arms." .”
Rumia nodded happily, feeling extremely happy in her heart.
Seeing all this, the princess of Mercia was so envious. Mari wished that she had been the same infant girl back then, but unfortunately, her fate was to be a victim of her parents' marriage.
No!
Ask yourself, Mary still doesn’t know who her father is, is she a noble or a farmer? Not Wiglaf anyway.
Mary stood here. Otto didn't pay attention at first. He thought that his son was a rare real man. What's wrong with catching a slave for pleasure during the expedition? However, a large number of women disembarked along the seesaw, and he couldn't help but start to doubt.
"Who is that woman?" Otto asked with a slight expression on his face.
"Oh, she's my new woman."
"Her?" Otto was surprised.
Not only Odin, but Rumia and the other female relatives were also shocked and inevitably jealous.
Especially Rumia, she still felt angry. Even though Rurik was still holding his daughter, he casually said that another woman was his woman!
She couldn't help but be wary, because this new woman was more beautiful than herself.
Of course, this is just Rumia's simple thought, but she does not know that among the many female relatives, her skin is the most delicate and has no body odor. This is based on Rurik's aesthetic advantage. In fact, as the first woman of the monarch, she has a natural advantage.
Rurik noticed something was wrong in the atmosphere. In the past, he would blame himself for being a scumbag, but this was in the ninth century AD, and the Nordic values of this era were like this. Heroic men have more than ten women, just like Odin has eighteen Valkyries.
By coincidence, he currently has exactly eighteen wives and concubines.
As a king, Rurik resolutely announced Mary's presence even in the presence of his most beloved woman.
"She is Mary, a noble from the British Kingdom of Mercia. She is now my woman. There are other women who disembarked from the ship, and they are all my prisoners."
Since all the female relatives were here, and even many Russian elites and a large number of fish-eating people who did not know the truth were watching, Rurik simply opened the skylight to speak out and publicly announced Mary's status among the prince's wives and concubines.
"Mary, she is a noble of Mercia. The son she conceived and I will have the right to inherit the throne of the Kingdom of Mercia. You must accept this sister. Rest assured, she will never threaten your status. Every woman of you has Your destiny, Mary's destiny is to bear a son and fight back against Mercia. She will live in our home and she will be a sister that you will all respect."
Rurik feels he must say this, the foundation for many things must be laid very early. It is human nature to strive for power and gain, and both men and women are prone to jealousy.
As long as they give birth to children, their inspired motherhood and continuously cultivated desire for power will surely protect their children, and then use their children's natural noble status to carve up as much of the pie of power as possible among the top tier of power in Ross.
There are many people here, and everyone is a witness. Rurik believes that his preaching will have a strong power to intimidate.
They are all wives and concubines. Since he has divided them into four levels, each of them should continue to uphold the realm of power.
Of course, now that I am home, long periods of time alone with Mary will become rare.
The king...the emperor flips the cards.
"Tonight is Rumia, tomorrow is Lana, the day after tomorrow is Rumi, the day after tomorrow is Nolen, the day after tomorrow is Saipolava, and Carlotta Ella. As for those ten, we can't do it now..." He thought silently in his mind. .
Rurik made some plans for himself, but he is also a rational person, so it is impossible to indulge in beauty.
His face glanced at Nolen, and he thought about the land trip to Balmok this winter. Nolen probably didn't know that she was made Countess of Narvik Port by her biological father.
Arik must have been busy with his own affairs and had no chance to tell her about this.
Rurik planned to have a good chat with her, but before that, he himself had to tell the old guys in Rossburg about his British war record.
There must be a great party tonight.
It was naturally a grand event, including Otto's old guys, a group of blacksmiths including Klavasen, the Gould family, who were all fat boys with a fat belly, Vodgen who was good at making clothes, and shipbuilding expert Hortra …
More than sixty people gathered on the first floor of the palace.
Their noise made the women upstairs no longer interested in chatting and laughing with Mary, who had just arrived.
Facing the enthusiastic gazes of everyone, Rurik, who was sitting in the front seat, slapped the table hard to signal everyone to be quiet.
With a smile on his face, he said in his changing voice: "It seems that we need to build a council like the old Gotlanders."
"What a great idea!" Otto clapped his hands.
There are all those who agree here, and the room that was quiet just now is like a pot of boiling water and boiling oil.
They were not agreeing that the place seemed too small when everyone was together, but even so, the old meeting tent was actually even smaller. It is necessary for Ross to build a magnificent building, just like the large meeting hall of the Melalen people, although it is obviously a waste of space.
Of course, if the ground is broken and construction begins, the property rights of the meeting house will belong to the Duke, and the Duke will give all the craftsmen a sum of money. There is money to be made in Roseburg. Who would reject the opportunity to work and make money? The old guys in Ross knew that the Duke was very wealthy and generous. Everyone wished that the Duke would carry out large-scale construction projects forever. They just took wages from Rurik's treasury and then bought grain and tools. They had no time or knowledge to think about the economic operations involved.
This matter is very important, Rurik gave affirmative instructions. It just so happens that winter is another time for shipbuilding. This winter there is still large-scale logging, and Roseburg's cement-making technology has initially matured. Wouldn't it be nice to collect building materials this winter and build a large and stable meeting room? No, more houses should be built, maybe they will sit idle for a while, but they will always be useful later.
The most important thing is that our own people must take action to earn wealth through labor, so that Ross's economic activities will be more prosperous, and by the way, the infrastructure will be improved for the future.
According to Russian tradition, the meeting hall is called "Olympic Court", and according to Slavic parlance, it is "Duma".
It has to have a concise, catchy noun.
Rurik decided that the council would be called "RUSDUMA". Once it is completed, a plaque will have to be hung. As for the name, it is naturally his bad taste.
Putting this matter aside for the time being, Rurik wanted to tell everyone about his British war record. He prepared a lot of honey water and started talking...
Wonderful! How wonderful!
Although Arik had already talked about it and many people knew about it, when Rurik told more details, everyone was still sweating.
It is true that the first floor of the palace was very warm because of the fireplace. Everyone felt comfortable when they heard about the war, and then turned into envy and lamented that they were getting old.
As for those brothers who died in battle, no one regretted their deaths.
The heirs of those who died in battle were directly supported by the duke, and then inherited their husband's sword and shield. As for the dead themselves, they not only died in battle, but also died in battle for the son of God, Rurik, and their heroic spirits must enter Valhalla.
Then when a drunk guy mentioned this, many people shouted that the Valkyrie Speros had brought the warriors from their hometown on earth into the holy realm. This is the privilege of the heroic spirits of our Ross warriors after their death.
Many people got drunk on the recently distilled liquor in a lively atmosphere. Otto was also drunk. It was rare for him to be as excited as he was today.
No one disturbed the drunks in this room, and they almost slept on the warm first floor until dawn the next day.
Rurik went up to the second floor, stroking his aching head, silently cursing Kamne for not controlling the strength of the distillation. He finally greeted all the women and got into the room.
Here, with tears of excitement in her eyes, Rumia sat on the edge of the bed and welcomed her man.
And Vilia was lying quietly asleep in the hanging basket on the side...
