Rise of Rurik

After landing in Riga, Spyut never showed Ross's force to the locals because of his strict discipline.

Even though most of the Russians who landed were given this status later, it is still nearly ten years ago.

Regardless of their origins, the sins of the old identity of the Saaremaa islanders were completely canceled by Rus, and thus they legally became New Rus' people. Now that I have become a Russian, I must act like a real Russian in all aspects. They added new clothes and new weapons.

Sew a plain white robe, and sew blue strips of cloth on the front and back. Such a shirt has no defensive capabilities, it can keep out the cold, and its greatest significance is to show one's identity to others.

Even a group of pirates have uniformed clothing, but the quality is far inferior to the craftsmanship of state-owned garment factories.

Every northerner longs for a good sword!

What was once popular throughout the Viking world was the so-called Viking sword, which was imitated from the broad-bladed sword of the Roman era. That kind of sword is made of pure wrought iron. It has no elasticity and is easy to bend. In order to increase the strength, it is deliberately made thick in the middle, has a bleeding groove, and has a wide blade. This kind of sword focuses on cutting and thrusting, but the blade is too heavy, so warriors always install a weighted iron plate on the hilt.

Living in the Danish community in Riga, local elite warriors all have swords of this style.

Indeed, only elite warriors have the financial resources to equip such swords.

The Russians were completely different.

Even the Saaremaa islanders are willing to accumulate a fortune and then go to the mines in the north to buy a cheap sword embryo. The so-called sword embryo is a steel bar without an edge. When the islanders get it, they hot-forge it themselves, then edge and polish it to create a sharp sword tip. Their craftsmanship is inferior to the masters of the state-owned blacksmith shops, but the advantage is that the cost of self-made swords is low.

Even so, the islanders have been equipped with this kind of "home-made sword" on a large scale. The sword body has been polished to a bright white color, and it is extremely scary when pulled out of the oak scabbard.

They showed off their swords on a large scale for the first time, and bought some mutton fat and butter from Riga, and used the grease to maintain their swords.

The temporary residence of the Russians was originally the territory of the Danish community, and these lodgers did not shy away from the wide-eyed onlookers of their temporary allies.

The leader Stekander, who was also sharpening his sword urgently, never imagined that all the Russians had swords.

A sword, a round shield, and a leather helmet with a huge nose guard, all these satisfied all his expectations of a good warrior.

This group of Russians even unloaded a heavy weapon called a torsion slingshot from the ship in a surprise attack. There were six huge weapons, each of which could fire stone bullets and javelins, with unfathomable power.

A weapon called a crossbow was also transported from the ship by the Russians. It looked like a flat bow, but it had a mechanism that could freely control the shooting timing, so that a clumsy hunter could shoot a squirrel at a long distance using it.

With such a general sight in front of him, Stekander had to think about it. What if the two hundred Russian merchants who landed this time were not the two hundred pirate-turned-Russian merchants, but the real Russian army? What would happen to Riga? Maybe...then we can only declare in a high-profile manner that we are Danes and the true allies of Ross in order to protect ourselves.

Judging only from the armaments displayed by the Russians, he felt that the coalition forces would definitely win in future battles.

All this explains why the elderly Ross nobleman is so confident with the small amount of troops he has on hand.

A group of monsters were rushing towards them in the distance, and a beast also got into the warm shack. This beast was just not crazy. This is the new perception of the local Latvian nobles in Riga towards the Rus merchants.

Indeed, when the sun shone on the earth the next day, a group of warriors with uniform clothes, uniform shields, and large numbers of sword-wielding soldiers emerged from Ross's residence. They look exactly the same. They gather together to talk and laugh. To outsiders, they are a group of blue and white people who cannot be messed with.

The vast number of Latvian militiamen learned of this situation. Most of them were simple people. They only thought that the big shots had recruited a group of excellent mercenaries. Now the Semigalian sneak attack would definitely fail.

Obviously they were guarding their own territory and surrounding their food and livestock, but the militiamen were not willing to go all out. Just let those Varyag mercenaries fight. The worst they can do is get a lot of trophies after the war. It's still important for everyone to save their lives. We cannot say that these militiamen are cowardly, we can only say that they are very thieves.

Keeping this idea in mind, there are indeed a thousand militiamen. Their weapons are various and mainly farm tools, and their clothes are very messy.

Their clothing and weapons were chaotic, and most of them had loose hair tied up with a hemp rope. Those in good condition had leather shoes, and many were simply barefoot.

One side is uniformly dressed and armed. Although they are pirates, they are extremely tough.

One side is a local farmer, who is poorly armed and dressed in disorder, and believes that fighting is about everyone swarming up and fighting in groups.

In between are the warriors from the Danish community who can maintain a certain degree of discipline and build a shield wall to fight in formation under the command of the boss Strand. Their clothes are also varied, making the whole group richer. If the clothes are not uniform, at least they are kept clean. The warriors decorate their clothes according to their own preferences. As a result, there are many people who use leopard skin to make shawls. Obviously, this special leather is bought from people in Polotsk or Drigovich.

In just one night, Riga organized an army. This is of course not because they have a high degree of organization, but because the city's population suddenly surged on a large scale, and they were assisted by the Varyag people who settled down and lived there as guests.

Then by daytime the next day, public opinion had quietly turned from initial fear to courage to fight. They waited for a whole morning but did not see the enemy at all. In the afternoon, the boring wait turned into a fight.

Could it be that those Semigalians stopped?

The Latvians in Riga posted sentries further upstream, but these sentries did not dare to go too far out of fear. The sentries were also very smart. They collected some cow dung and prepared fire. They planned to create thick smoke for the rear to see after discovering the enemy's situation.

There was no danger warning until the sun went down. Just in the boring and nervous waiting, the third day came quietly.

No one could doubt that the Semigalians were not coming, and the warnings of war had been carried to distant villages by well-legged messengers during that calm day.

The top priority was to defend their own territory. Later they got the news that the guys in Riga had hired two Varangians as generals. They had no time to criticize the move because it was not a vote of all the leaders that was illegal, but an urgent request from the village. He picked up the best and went to Riga to help in the battle.

There are more Latvian militias! The more numerous they became, the more confident they became, and the more eager they were for the Semigalians to show up.

The boring wait will eventually end, and there will be no dramatic changes.

Because even older people can see the smoke in the distance.

The horns and drums were blaring loudly, and the whole Riga was in a lively noise.

The strength of the militia has swelled to 1,500 people! Coupled with the Varyag mercenaries, the Latvian tribe organized an army of two thousand people, which was objectively the largest in the history of the tribe.

If the enemy were to attack Riga directly, they would have no choice but to go straight to the mouth of the river along the river, which would make the battle situation extremely simple.

As a result, the so-called Varangians, that is, Danish and Russian mercenaries, lined up in front of the formation according to the conditions negotiated with the local nobles.

The Russians gathered together to form a rectangular array in blue and white tones. There were six torsion slingshots in the front row, and there were crossbow wielders on standby, and there were sword and shield bearers in the back.

The Danes have already set up a shield wall in advance, and leader Stekander has drawn out his broad-bladed sword and is pacing in front of the shield wall.

Behind them were a large number of Latvian militiamen holding long-handled weapons. The militiamen stood in a disorderly manner and gathered together to form an oval. Several village leaders personally went to fight, but this group of nobles could only manage their own men. The armies of each village can only fight under the command of their own leaders, and on a macro level they are fighting independently.

This is true for the Latvians, and it is true for the Semigalians.

At first Spyut didn't think it was stupid to hire his own allies. Look at the reality! Just turn around and look at this group of allies. Although there are signs that they are a group of armed kung fu, a group of wild animals that only rely on instinct to fight.

But I felt relieved when I thought that the enemies I faced were also half-matched.

"Too slow! Are we just waiting here?" After standing for a while with no trace of the enemy, Spuyut inevitably complained.

After hearing the complaints, Stekander came over subconsciously: "Give those idiots some time."

"Just keep waiting?"

"How about everyone sit down and wait for those guys."

In fact, just look at the current situation. The Latvian militiamen who gathered when they heard the horn sound were already sitting on the ground because they could not wait for the enemy. Their laziness can be contagious. Gradually, more and more militiamen sat on the ground, holding their weapons in their arms and chatting with their companions. . This is not like a war, but like an audience watching a show that has not started yet.

What else could Spruit do? Can't we just keep the armored warrior standing? When he saw his son sitting down, he couldn't say anything.

The bravest Varyag mercenaries sat down collectively, literally waiting for work.

I don’t know how long I waited, but just as the boredom continued to increase, a black shadow really appeared in the distance. The people in a daze seemed to have been stung by bees on the face. They jumped up one by one, patted their Azabu cheeks hard, and then tightened their weapons. Be prepared to fight. The horns and leather drums in the army kept sounding, which cheered up the listless people.

"It's time to fight! Damn it, these Semigalians are getting a little weird." Without thinking much, Stekander yelled at his stunned allies: "The fool is in a daze! Get ready to fight!"

Si Puyut, however, squinted his eyes and seemed to be still in a daze.

"Hey! Friend, are you still dazed? Quickly organize your people and prepare to fight!"

It was very strange to say that Stekander noticed that the Ross people were looking at the "things" slowly approaching in the distance, as if they were watching the fun and not fighting at all. They poked their heads and pointed, and the hands that should have been gripping the sword hilts were quite loose.

The Danish leader's shouts filled his ears, and Spyut's ears felt calloused. He suddenly turned his head and asked impatiently with a sullen face: "The people who are coming are all your so-called Semigalians." ?”

"Yeah. You... doubted it."

"Yes. I'm very doubtful. I'm not blind yet. Why do I feel that they are actually a group of guys on horseback?"

"Equestrian?" It's embarrassing to say that this concept is very unfamiliar to the Danish leader Stekander. "Who knows. It's better to prepare for battle immediately."

"No rush. I...feel very strange."

Although very bizarre, Spyout noticed that the people on horseback all had a white tint and were holding something resembling a flag. The distance is still shortening, and the opponent's movement speed is also slowing down.

A very strange thought came to his mind: "That's weird, could it be...our cavalry over there?"

A man on horseback, dressed mainly in white. After traveling across the ocean for so many years, the only one Spyut knew who could dress like this was the Ross Cavalry. Since the war, he had been responsible for patrolling the ocean and knew that the cavalry returned by boat. From then on, he knew nothing about the cavalry.

Don’t jump to conclusions yet!

Si Puyute was so anxious that he ordered his subordinates to hang the folded flag on a wooden pole, and then performed an action that was extremely inexplicable to outsiders.

"Flag flag soldiers! Go out into battle! Send greetings to those guys!" he ordered.

Naturally, there are people under Siputu who understand semaphore. Ever since "semaphore" was invented, it has been used in naval battles. Now that he is a marine law enforcer, he has greatly developed this technology. He felt that as long as the opponent was the Russian army, they must understand the concept of semaphore. Regardless of whether the opponent could understand it or not, as long as he noticed a person doing a set of seemingly incomprehensible gymnastics, he would realize that this was a friendly army.

The so-called flag is two wooden sticks temporarily tied with cloth strips. The flag soldiers then bared their teeth and claws in public, leaving others confused.

"What are you doing?" Stekander felt that the world had become extremely absurd.

"I'm just testing it out."

"What are you exploring again?"

"See if the other party is one of ours."

"Huh?! It's really baffling." Stekander really didn't understand.

It is obvious that the signal soldier's arrogant operation really caused the approaching enemy to take action. Listen carefully, the wind brings distant sounds, which are the sounds from the horns, and the rhythm of the blowing is the signal.

Si Puyut showed a comfortable smile. He simply sheathed his sword and suddenly ordered all the soldiers to put away their weapons.

"Is this not a fight?" Stekander asked again.

"No fight! I don't know what's going on with you. The information is simply wrong. But those people are not Semigalians, they are... us Rus."

"Um?"

"It's us Russians!"

Spyut may have an individual ear that hears the wrong sound, but the ears of all the Russians who landed will not be confused as a whole. The melodious trumpet sound turned into a muffled sound, but everyone could still judge that this was a signal to "retreat troops." "Retracting troops" means the non-combat state of rest, truce, and truce, and also extends to the meaning of peace.

He asked his allies not to be nervous anymore because the other side was no longer hostile. He even said: "Don't worry! If a fight really breaks out, Ross's cavalry will make you cry. Fortunately, they are not hostile."

"Ah? Are they really your people? Didn't you come across the sea? How come you came from upstream on horseback?"

"Who knows? At least I can guess who their leader is."

When all the Varyag mercenaries gradually slackened collectively and the Latvian militia was confused, the cavalry had already reached the range of the Ross torsion slingshot.

The cavalry formed a wide queue, with the Ross cavalry in uniform uniforms in the front row, the second row becoming the Ostara cavalry, and the steppe cavalry at the end. The cavalry flew two flags, the Ross and Ostara flags, both of which Spyut knew very well.

The cavalry had no intention of fighting, or they had. They started to get suspicious when they saw someone in the distance making some weird body movements that only semaphore soldiers could do. Then they noticed that there was a Ross flag among the troops arrayed in the distance. This fighting spirit quickly dissipated.

A tall and strong cavalryman waved his hands first, and then ran towards the formation of the army alone.

Now, even the Danish mercenaries could clearly see the attire of the man on horseback. You can notice the huge nose guard of this man's iron helmet, and the mail shield that covers most of his face. The round shield hung on the saddle, and the pattern painted on it could not be said to be slightly similar to that of his ally, but could only be said to be exactly the same.

The emphasis on drawing patterns on bucklers is to be unique and unique to reflect the bravery and tenacity of the owner. A small group will collectively draw a pattern. The larger the group, the more important it is to ensure that everyone has the same pattern so that friendly forces can be identified during battle.

Stekander seemed to be dreaming. This was the first time in his life that he saw the cavalry up close.

Because the Latvian tribe did not have cavalry, he only heard that the Utvin (Lithuania) tribe far to the southwest had horsemen. He didn't know anything about horseback fighting, let alone cavalry in front of him.

Now, Spuyut, a Russian, took off his helmet and revealed his old face: "Fisk! Is that you?"

The equestrian was seen letting go of the saddle, holding his helmet with both hands and slowly revealing his face. I saw a funny big bald head peeking out from under the helmet!

The man has a mustache and a bald head, and the absence of wrinkles on his forehead proves his youth. His face is naturally recognized by Sipuyut. Now that the truth is revealed, it makes the current situation even more absurd and ridiculing.

"Fisk! I didn't expect it was you! Why are you here?"

"Is it Uncle Spuyut? It's really weird. Why are you in Riga?"

"Ah?!" Now, it was Spuyut's turn to be further surprised: "Do you know this is Riga?"

"I know. I just came to find the people here, but I still have to fight? I don't want to fight." Fisk said it easily, and he didn't expect that such a relaxed attitude would make the feeling of absurdity even worse.

"Then stop fighting! Let's talk about everything. Damn it, if I had known it was your people, what kind of army would you have organized?" Si Puyut slapped his old face hard to wake up, looked at his allies again, opened his arms and Norse kept yelling: "Let's all break up! It's all a misunderstanding! They are not enemies at all."

If this is the case, the Danes can immediately announce that they will not fight, but the Latvians look at the situation in front of them and subjectively the nobles do not want to withdraw their troops casually. What the local nobles learned was that an enemy was destroying the village, and the suspect was locked among the Semigalians. Who knows the result? They don't understand these guys at all. They are very powerful. If there is a fight and the Varyag mercenaries collectively give up, wouldn't Riga be destroyed by then? !

Ordinary militiamen could only see the situation in front of them. They found that the battle could not be fought at all. Their already depleted morale was even more demoralized. Those so-called enemies were not Semigalians at all. Although the opponents were very weird, they were not hostile. He even had a pleasant conversation with the Varyag leaders.

Even if the local nobles remained on alert, when the militiamen felt that there was no point in continuing to stand here, they began to spontaneously withdraw from the battlefield. The withdrawal became more and more intense, and the nobles had lost the ability to fight.

The noble felt fear, but then he thought that these horsemen, who were dressed very similar to the Russians, did not look hostile. If they talked to them, they could find out the situation.

As a result, the so-called military confrontation was only theoretical and existed for no more than thirty minutes. When the Varyag mercenaries began to talk happily with the so-called enemies, the powerful Latvian militia directly disbanded itself. The local nobles stood up and approached the leisurely formation of the Varangians, approaching the bald foreigner and the cavalry army behind him.

Although it can be judged from the clothes that the strangers have a very close relationship with the Russians, some local nobles simply greeted them in Norse with a strange accent: "People who have come from afar, who are you...?"

Fisk just wanted to have a good chat with the relatives he met miraculously, but he saw some "warriors" wearing various furs approaching and asking very stupid questions.

"We are Russians." He replied arrogantly: "It seems that you are the local leaders?"

"Yes"

"Very good, we just want to chat with the Riga people here. We are not hostile at all. I don't know why you are hostile. That's fine! I didn't expect that my people have arrived here first, so that there will be less misunderstandings in our future exchanges. I'm so lucky. ! It was almost a war..."