Rise of Rurik

But the lonely old mercenary Harold, whose alias was Olaf, a Danish settler in Riga, suddenly became a guest because he possessed some important information.

But for him, what he saw and heard was too surprising.

What is the identity of the horse bandits who have been attacking Smolensk for many years? The most common theory is that the Russians in the north and the conquered Yin Ermen collaborated.

Harold had to pretend not to know anything, but he was also silently collecting information.

The settlement under construction, called Lukiholm, had to be built by order of the Rus' ruler himself. Its purpose is to better connect with the Kiev people in the south and the more distant steppe herders.

Who is the horse bandit? The Rus' people who obtained horses through many channels are indeed horse bandits, but what about the Ostara people?

The owner of this city is the female leader of Ostara, a young woman named Carlotta.

Carlotta, who now has real power and has become a prince, is very confident. She is not shy about showing her identity to the outside world, and even thinks that this is a way to gain glory.

"We are not Rus's, but we have been Rus' allies since ancient times. You Danes almost slaughtered our villages in the past, and finally the Swedish alliance launched an all-out counterattack. Rus was born in Sweden, and is now indeed the ruler of Sweden. Our coalition forces fought We won the war and have now formed an alliance with New Denmark. So, I heard that there are many Danes in Riga. We should get in touch immediately and form an alliance..."

Carlotta's words came from the bottom of her heart, but Harold was confused.

Some of the things she said made sense, proving that most of them were true.

The young woman did not shy away from the fact that the islands cruising on the sea had already recruited Ross. Saaremaa Island, the nearest island in the Gulf of Riga, is already the territory of the Russians. The pirate leader has been replaced by an old Russian with pure blood. The local area is also open to the merchants of the allied Kingdom of Denmark.

So, in Lukiholm, old Harold learned too much news that surprised him.

First, the Baltic Sea did give birth to the largest power called the Kingdom of Rus. Denmark, which was strongly infiltrated by Frankish influence, did expel its influence, and Ragnar Sigurdsson of the Stonewall tribe became the King of Denmark.

Second, Denmark, Russia, and Sweden have entered a state of alliance, and their civil wars have completely ended. Nowadays, various commercial ports are open, and some new ports have been born due to luck. It even includes the new Viking settlement of Rotterholm (Rotterdam) that is emerging near the old site of Durist in the west.

Third, as long as all Danes still believe in Odin, they should submit to the Kingdom of Denmark or the Kingdom of Rus.

Fourth, the eastern region of the Kingdom of Rus has been essentially in a state of war with the Smolensk people. A very simple reason is that the other party has hosted a great traitor named Vadim, which is enough to attract the north to send troops for conquest.

Fifth, Rus is in an alliance with the Kiev people and the Pecheneg people further south, and all three parties are using troops against the Smolensk people. As for why all three parties are launching attacks, the biggest reason is naturally that the Smolensk community blocks the smooth flow of the north-south transportation line. Unless they choose to surrender, this is obviously impossible.

These five messages can ultimately be divided into two parts. One is that the maritime area seems to have truly entered a state of peace, and a situation tending towards prosperity has been born. The other is the emergence of new wars in the eastern land, which continue to ferment and expand.

To seize opportunities in peace and troubled times, Old Harold knew very well that he could survive because he knew many things, and this knowledge was enough for him to gain glory and wealth.

Shame? Nothing to be ashamed of.

Even if his wife and children are still in Smolensk, even if he and Vadim, whom the Russians regard as a must-kill man, steal the power of Smolensk, what will happen to him?

War is inevitable, and if your wife and children die in the war, it will be their fate.

As an old mercenary, he had sex with his female slaves and gave birth to children. He also put a lot of the wealth he had captured over the decades in Smolensk just to provide for his retirement. If you can find a job here in the Kingdom of Ross, obviously the Ross people can give you higher rewards, and your previous plan to retire from the world can be stopped. He knew Vadim, the new ruler of Smolensk, and he had successfully escaped with him back then. This credit was naturally enough for him to retire in Smolensk with peace of mind.

From time to time, it seems that the Kingdom of Rus doesn't care or want to investigate its past at all, so wouldn't it be better to be loyal to it and lead the way to help it defeat Smolensk in the future?

Besides, King Rurik of Rus is called "the one favored by Odin". There are many chiefs who claim to be so great. Considering the strong expansion of the Rus people over the years, old Harold feels that this should be true. of. Then, maybe you can get glory after death by helping Ross.

Old Harold claimed that he had nothing to do with the people killed by the cavalry, but that they were just a group of people living in Riga who pieced together a caravan. The destination was of course Smolensk, and when they arrived there they were doing their own business, or working as mercenaries for the locals.

No matter what, he is still alive. If the treatment from the Kingdom of Ross is high, he can become a mercenary of the Ross people.

Naturally, this act of abandoning their brothers was despised by Fisk and Carlotta, but this old guy was indeed useful. His beard and hair have turned white. He is an old doctor who has traveled north and south and even been to Rome. It is best for this kind of "story teller" to tell everything he knows and what he has experienced in his life when he stays in Lukiholm.

Of course, because Lukiholm was deliberately built in the source area of ​​the Lovadi River, its existence itself served as a military base, allowing the cavalry to assemble and frequently raid Smolensk. They can attack southeast, west, or southwest.

As a result, old Harold declared his allegiance to Carlotta, the Duchess of Ostara, and his status changed from a prisoner of war to a guest. He also offered his knowledge of the Western world, including but not limited to his local knowledge of Riga and the surrounding areas near Riga. The Baltic tribes, as well as the western Slavic tribes Polotsk, Derevlian, Drigovich, Pskov.

"What? There are so many Slavic tribes in my west? Does Rurik know? Ah! These tribes should be conquered. If it was me who did these feats..."

Having become a mother, experienced cruel wars, endured hardships and gained warmth, Carlotta has already experienced the ups and downs of life, although she is only twenty-three years old (a virtual age). She was forced to become strong, and as a female, she had already accomplished greater things than her blood ancestors. It is a pity that there are too few survivors of the war in old Ostara. Even if the survivors try their best to reproduce and restore the population, their ability is limited. Today, the Principality of Ostara has left its homeland forever and integrated with the Gran tribe. It then absorbed a large number of Slavs who betrayed its own manor and revived in a special way.

Legally speaking, the Principality of Ostara was incorporated into Rus in the form of an alliance, and its status should be the same as that of Sweden.

However, starting from her son Karl, the ruler's family has the same bloodline as the Ross family. This makes the people of the Principality of Ostara think that they are part of Ross, but they also have strong strategic autonomy.

The Kingdom of Rus's aggressive expansion strategy continues, and the Principality of Ostara has the obligation to further expand the Kingdom.

"If we just defend passively, we are likely to be attacked by the Smolensk people. I think the best defense is to attack, send cavalry to continue activities in the south, and force the local army to be exhausted by harassment, so that they cannot gather the army on a large scale. Go north. Even if they do start to mass their troops, our cavalry will be the first to notice the situation and take action."

Carlotta explained her idea to "big brother" Fisk, who returned happily with the trophies. The implication was that he hoped that Fisk would go to the south to make further achievements.

It was an ordinary night. Carlotta and Fisk got together to have dinner and discuss important matters.

"Do you trust that Olaf (old Harold)?" Fisk said and shook his head: "That old guy must be hiding a lot of problems, he is not trustworthy."

"It doesn't matter. At least most of the situations in the West he reported should be true. As for whether it is true or bragging, we have an obligation to investigate for Rurik, especially the place called Polotsk, which is actually closest to us. "

"How about it? From the look in your eyes, do you want to send troops to eat it?"

Carlotta couldn't hold back a wry smile: "Our people are too tired. Thanks to you bringing back a lot of salt, coupled with the grain I transported from the Great Lakes, the supply problem has finally been replenished. But Rurik doesn't want to start a war. We have a military adventure, and I dare not disobey him."

"It's a joke. So what if you just launched the action?" Fisk shouted carelessly: "You are his sister, and you are helping him. Ross's expansion is beneficial to both of us. Rurik can't take care of the south now, so the opportunity will return. is you?"

Carlotta was indeed very interested in expansion, especially when Olaf claimed that Polotsk was weak and that maybe just by gathering the Ostara cavalry and combining it with the bravery of some of the 1st Cavalry, they could conquer that community in one fell swoop. . She responded to Fisk's words easily and cheerfully: "Polotsk should be surrendered first, and then we can contact Riga directly. Since there are many merchants there and a large number of Danes speaking Norse, it is completely feasible to contact them! "

"The old guy told me about this possibility along the way." Fisk raised his chest energetically: "After Polotsk is destroyed, the West Dvina River will be ours. Then it will be with the people floating on the sea. With the Spuyut partnership, we are flanking Riga from both sides by land and sea. Regardless of whether they form an alliance with us at that time, they must form an alliance."

"Hey, otherwise it's war. They'll make wise choices that benefit themselves."

That's all, the two looked at each other and laughed wildly.

After laughing for a while, Carlotta calmed down a little: "So, we must first control the waterway of the West Dvina River. Brother, during your exploration in the south, you found shoals that are impassable even for long boats. Our cavalry can directly Wading through, maybe..."

"You?" Fisk stared into her eyes: "Please ask me to explore the local situation? Build another stronghold?"

"At least I think there is a reason to do so. The place you found is very suitable. If you don't mind..."

"Just let me rest first!" Fisk shook his head, his expression not seeming like rejection.

"Are you going to refuse?"

"No. I just feel too anxious. My people are more tired, and my horses are even more tired."

"What if I send more people to help you? Or instead of you building a stronghold, you take your brothers to explore a suitable location, and then my people go to build an outpost." She said.

"This is deliberate, I think Rurik will also support your move in. I am still too tired, and the weather has been bad in recent days. Besides, next time the Kiev and Pecheneg horses will pass by us, Kiev people It’s basically just doing business, but the Pechenegs have to do part-time raiding. When they come, we can talk to them and build a new stronghold. We need the help of the Pechenegs.”

"Then it's agreed. Very good!" Even if he can't send troops to build a new stronghold immediately, Carlotta would rather make all the preparations in advance now, especially naming the first target location, so that the new operation can have a more specific goal.

"Give it a name first," she said.

"Name? You can choose whatever you want."

Fisk was obviously perfunctory, and Carlotta bulged her mouth. So what if she had to give her a name? After all, she was a "name-challenged" person. Even her son Carl's name was chosen by drawing lots from among ten wooden blocks with chosen names written on them. Afterwards, she euphemistically called it "Odin's Will." .

It was really unnecessary for her to choose a name, but seeing Fisk's attitude of not having anything to do with him, she gave up.

She suddenly remembered that Olaf had described that area, and even had some adjectives to name it - Viettaba.

This is the name that the Latvians of Riga came up with, which is a compound word of the words "river" and "road". It does not refer to an exact place name, but to "the waterway communication line leading to the south." If it is more specific, it can be regarded as the Ula River, a tributary of the West Dvina River. It is a larger waterway leading to the south, but There are many similar waterways.

All waterways leading to the south can be used. As for which waterway is the most suitable, it is impossible for a fledgling boat runner to distinguish clearly.

The stupidest way is to sail against the current until you enter the swamp, where the West Dvina River becomes shallower and becomes unnavigable. Then proceed from the nearest waterway to the south and walk through a lot of mud." After taking the "dry road", you can find a waterway that leads directly to the Dnieper River. This path is simpler than the Ural River route, but you are forced to take the dry road, and the traveling merchants have to pay the price of physical exertion for this simplicity.

"Just call it Viettaba, or add the suffix holm, or the suffix ski. Anyway, this is the name given by the Riga people, and we use it. If we can do business with the guys from Riga in the future, we will avoid embarrassment to them."

Fisk nodded: "That's okay, I don't feel embarrassed or weird."

As a result, Carlotta's plan was no longer just an idea in her head, she even thought of the name of the stronghold. In Cyrillic nomenclature, the settlement is Viettabask, which is Vitebsk.

(The etymology of Vitebsk comes from an ancient geographical concept named in Baltic language. When a city was established here, the geographical concept became the name of the city. The pronunciation of the name was simplified several times, and finally condensed into the abbreviation of Vitebsk. )

The eldest brother Fisk has indeed contributed a lot these days. Besides, they are the First Cavalry. Their first task is to assist Ostara in the construction of Lukiholm. In principle, Fisk should not lead his men to do things beyond their duties.

Hundreds of people built Lukiholm, and a large number of buildings sprung up quickly. There were a large number of wooden houses with floors, adhering to the Slavic woodcut architecture and the longhouse model that the Vikings were accustomed to. These buildings were built to be quite slender, with interlayers inside the wooden walls, and they were filled with dry reeds.

They have also taken precautions and built cowsheds and sheepfolds that can be properly kept warm in advance. They want to make use of the relatively good local water-rich grassland for livestock raising. When the situation stabilizes, the people from Ostara will bring in a large number of cattle and sheep for breeding. For the time being these pens made excellent stables, with both draft horses and mounted horses plundering the inexhaustible supply of local grass.

The large-scale construction was over, and the Slavic boys who were tired from working all day did not get a comfortable holiday.

They are a large group of young men, all drawn from various manors, and permanently assigned to the Principality of Ostara in a forced manner to become subjects of Carlotta. To be honest, Carlotta regarded these boys as her own people and tried her best to satisfy their large material consumption. However, because she was on the front line of the war, the current situation forced her to squeeze the labor force of these boys.

Even though the large-scale construction is now over, the boys are still under military control. They begin to receive military training every day, learn the orthodox Viking shield wall assault, and then practice archery with short wooden bows on a large scale.

Compared to their fathers, these Slavic boys, most of whom were only twelve years old, were already close to their fathers in height. They were still growing, and each had a bright future. As long as they undergo sufficient training, there is no difference between Slavic warriors and genuine old Russian warriors. This is clearly shown in the record of the standing army cavalry.

Fisk and Carlotta did not have the slightest discrimination against the conquered Ermen Slavs. They had proven their strength through large-scale wars, and the premise was naturally that they would achieve a huge victory under the command of the Russians.

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