Rise of Rurik

After days of trekking, Carl Eriksson wanted to have a good rest in Velikiy Lucki, but all he got was

Permission for a "comfortable night's sleep". His current status is extremely special. It is not that this person is a descendant of the old Ostara tribe, but that his existence as an envoy rushing from Vitebsk Fortress is evidence in itself. He must personally report to Liuli as a witness of the war. Reported by himself.

This is the arrangement of Duchess Carlotta. The war broke out at an unexpected time, and Carlotta was unprepared. Now there was no prerequisite for quickly mobilizing the army to counterattack.

"My fortress has been deliberately fortified, and summer's concerns have come true. As long as Yelinger doesn't get mad and attack without authorization, the fortress will be able to defend it until next spring. However, if the Smolensk people feel that attacking the fortress is not enough, Will they attack my Polotsk? Those farmers have no conflict with the Smolensk people. Maybe they will vote for Vadim as a whole and then join forces to attack my New Polotsk fortress. If Polotsk Will the Croatian peasants who refuse to join forces with those people face retaliation? Vadim will definitely continue to fight for his army and loot the Polotsk people's food. Even after the incident, the Polotsk people are still loyal to me and are losing a lot of money. After planting grain, how will I squeeze wheat from their hands next year?" Carlotta had to think a lot. She desperately hoped that there would be one or two wise advisers around her, but...

"At least time is on my side. As long as the cavalry is fast enough, everything will be fine. And when the weather is cold... maybe the war will be in my favor." Pessimism will immediately dampen morale. Carlotta pretended to be optimistic and went to bed overnight. Gather the capable people of Great Luki City.

At night, the north wind caused the flames of the torches to tremble violently, as if they could burn the warrior's face if he was not careful.

More than thirty elite soldiers gathered urgently. Except for a few older veterans, all of them were teenagers aged thirteen or fourteen.

Although he is a teenager, even an ordinary Slavic boy eats more food after his life gets better. He eats a lot during the critical period of growth and development and is diligent in physical exercise. Even bloody battles with long swords are contained deep in his genes. A burst of power.

At just fourteen years old, the Slavic boy has already reached the height of his biological father and is still growing taller.

As for the real Nordic immigrants, they have grown into

"A muscular man lacking muscle." The young faces were filled with determination. The whole Greater Luji Chengdu learned of the crisis encountered by the southern fortress and understood what position they would be in during the crisis.

The situation in the city was tense, and everyone who could afford weapons was obliged to fight, but no one was nervous because they had no fear of war in their long-term military settlement life.

Even the hunters who are living as guests are eagerly looking forward to the new battle. After all, this is an opportunity to instantly improve the living conditions of themselves and their families. They are grateful that they are in the southern settlement of Big Lucki and have a first-come-first-served opportunity.

Carlotta looked at each face, briefly recounted the details she had learned, and then informed them of her decision.

So on the next day, when snow began to fall in the sky, a small cavalry team was assembled.

The entire army did not wear armor. Everyone changed into thick leather clothes, and their helmets were replaced with Ushanka-style leather hats sewn with turned leather that could protect the entire face.

If it would be more dramatic to sew a metal badge or a piece of amber on the leather hat, Carlotta did not do it, and although Rurik once thought about it, he has not done so yet.

The Turkic horses have naturally put on their winter clothes. The manes on their necks are obviously longer and the hair on their bodies has become thicker. It makes these horses look bigger than they actually are. It is natural to ride on such a horse and stroke the mane. Feel comfortable.

After all, Rurik's second son Karl, who still doesn't know the truth, has been arranged by his mother to marry his unmarried daughter-in-law, Sorkina, the granddaughter of the old Polotsk leader. Carlotta intends to arrange an audience with this girl. king.

The little girl is also a princess, and she is also the only highest noble in Polotsk who was deliberately retained.

She put on a thick leather jacket, a hat, and a linen scarf to wrap her face, leaving only her blue eyes exposed.

Karl's situation is better. He followed his father's example and grew his hair.

"Golden ponytail", even though she wore a hat, her blond hair was deliberately exposed. Karl and Sorkina rode a group of well-trained docile horses together, and the reins were connected to another Pecheneg cavalryman.

Carlotta rode the horse herself, and Carl Eriksson and two other hard-working men were asked to accompany the duchess.

The sky was gray, and the north wind blew snow that hurt my face. It was under such harsh conditions that for the sake of safety, they gave up sailing downstream, and a total of fifty riders began to march north.

Everyone knows that when it starts to snow, it's only a short time before it actually snows. They had a good meal in the morning, including boiled oatmeal with extra salt on the ground. The overall condition of the man and the horse was very good, and it was really suitable for rapid progress.

With one person and two horses, Carlotta had already invested money in order to reach Novgorod quickly. Just that afternoon, the bad wind finally subsided, and another bad thing happened - snow began to fall.

The horses' hooves were so fast in the winter snow that the cavalry did not dare to breathe. Everyone even felt that the Duke was abusing the horse power.

Little Karl tried hard to hold the reins tightly, and Sorkina tried hard to hug little Karl's waist. The two children couldn't help but lower themselves down and tied each other with ropes, for fear of falling and getting hurt due to the tremors of the galloping horses.

"Sir, are we going so fast...are we hurting our horsepower?! I didn't even dare to go so fast when I came here."

"What did you say?" Carlotta turned her head angrily and glared at Carl Eriksson: "So are you wasting some time before you get to Big Lucki?"

"I...I tried my best."

"Damn it. You should have been faster. Now I have to make up for the lost time. Haha!" She squeezed the horse's belly with both feet, and with a roar, the horse's speed was obviously faster.

He had no armor or helmet, only a sword for protection, and he didn't carry much dry food. The cavalry team with one person and two horses is pushing the limit of the so-called prairie cavalry's single-day running, so it is inevitable that the horses will be exhausted to death.

Because of the emergency in the south and the strong appearance of the evil Vadim, Carlotta, who did not dare to wait any longer, had to make this move.

Maybe she didn't need to be in such a hurry, because she had another concern - if the light snow gradually turned into a blizzard, and the army marched in the wilderness staring at the blizzard, all the people and horses would freeze to death.

"We must return to New Ostara before dark on the third day!" This is Carlotta's loud slogan to her subordinates, and she truly implements this determination.

On the first day, they spent the night at Outpost Snakul. The Duchess's appearance surprised the outpost defenders who were busy preparing for the winter. They were also surprised by the brothers who ran all the way.

It was a tragedy that a horse died on the first day of march, but it was a miracle that he could reach this outpost.

Because this meant that they had reached the big bend downstream of the Lovati River. After a night's rest, the horse team set foot on the snow-covered road to continue their run.

What was different from yesterday was that the cavalry soldiers who were prepared for the snow march took out their wooden-framed sunglasses from their respective wooden boxes and cloth bags.

The simple oak bracket is quickly assembled. Although it reduces some light, it effectively protects your eyes.

Because the snowflakes have become too dense. This day they spent the night at the outpost Milshum. The military miracle of two marches was impossible, for Carlotta had lost a combined ten horses in exchange.

It turns out that not all Turkic horses bought and bred are the best for riding. This cold

"Snow Pull March" is a huge test for war horses. After all, prairie people would not risk a snowstorm by riding horses outdoors unless necessary.

However, the Rus' and the Ostara people have the opposite winter life. What is winter hunting?

It is a group of warriors who are not afraid of blizzards to hunt big beasts in the harsh winter, just because they think they can do it after calculating the risks and benefits.

Not only did Carlotta feel no danger, she was also convinced that when her husband Rurik learned of the disaster in the south, he would brave the snow and go south to fight in a rage.

Just under her command, when it was about to get dark on the third day, after taking off her sunglasses, Carlotta, who squinted her eyes, tried hard to distinguish the black shadow blurred by the fog and snow, and was convinced that it was New Ostara City. Specially constructed city gate tower.

The riverside area trampled by the cavalry's horses' hooves was indeed a hard rammed earth road built by her own order.

"Ostara City has arrived! Brothers, let's go home!" Her sharp and high-pitched voice inspired everyone. After losing some horses, they finally reached their destination.

The city of Ostara is indeed Carlotta’s stage destination. The Duchess's return from the surprise attack excited the whole city, especially the acting city lord Beyathil, who was overjoyed that her sister had returned triumphantly.

Just noticing her sister's overly anxious attitude, a bad premonition suddenly arose. Returning to her palace, Carlotta quickly changed into clothes.

She has returned, and after merely drinking some boiled milk and eating some stinky cubes of cheese, she has assembled the city's elite for a special war council.

Naturally, Beyashir was sitting here, and there were even another Pecheneg noble, another brother of Khan Kagan, and the grassland man Nurg who was responsible for escorting the commodity horses in 842.

The duchess's face lacked the joy of returning home, and everyone noticed that two children, a boy and a girl, were sitting next to her.

One of them is the next generation Duke Karl, and what's going on with the other, a brown-haired girl with Nordic-style braids?

Beyakhir was outspoken and reported hurriedly: "Sister, I manage Ostara in an orderly manner. Moreover, the king gave me Earl Demyansk, my future territory... just east of Ostara, just to the east. On the banks of the River Hafen." She originally hoped that her sister would be happy, but Carlotta didn't care at all, and at most she had a tremor in her eyes.

"You can talk about anything later." Carlotta slapped her thigh suddenly, her face was sullen and she didn't frown. She was still very young and unexpectedly squeezed out deep wrinkles: "Now, we have to face a very serious situation. The situation..." The war came very suddenly, and it did happen at this terrible juncture.

After listening to Carlotta's description, the people present showed all kinds of life styles. The young Pecheneg nobleman Nurg only knew a few Slavic and Norse words. He couldn't help clenching his fists and blaming himself for his negligence in his speech: "If I had known this would happen, I would have marched eastward to cross the border. Disrupting the Smolensk people's plan can avoid the current trouble. The enemy has cut off the communication line. If the situation cannot be resolved, we will face risks on our return next year." He chattered a lot, and it was Carlotta who was upset. I can't understand it at all.

"What did your clansmen say?" she asked Beyathil.

"Nurger...he said that the current situation cannot be resolved and it will affect the trade between us."

"Of course!" Carlotta burned the violent hammer wooden floor angrily: "That's why I gathered you here. That's why I suddenly rushed back from Big Luki in advance. Brothers!" There is no time anymore. Nonsense, Carlotta stood up, causing others to stand up.

She clenched the hilt of her sword as if she was about to go into battle immediately: "Tomorrow I will set off to see the king. All of you must assemble your troops immediately! Remember, all men who can fight on horseback must be prepared. Then check the horses we have. , immediately choose a suitable horse to prepare for battle."

"As ordered." All the men present said yes.

"What about me? With the war, I have no reason to be absent any longer." Bejahir asked anxiously.

"Perhaps Rurik will ask you to join the war. You should prepare immediately! Bring your steppe guards. And..." Carlotta took a good look at the steppe man Nurg who he had met before in Velikiy Luki, and then Looking into his eyes, he suggested deeply: "Brother, the enemy's rebellion has harmed each other. As the wife of King Rus, I beg you to lead your people to the war to jointly defend our trade lines and defend our alliance." The words were Bejahir translated, and Nurger was greatly moved.

Of course he knew about Carlotta's noble status, not just his wife, but the adopted daughter of the old King of Ross.

Khan Kagan respectfully calls old Otto his father, and Rurik also respectfully calls old Khan Pecheneg his father. The two sworn brothers are in harmony.

Based on these relationships, Nurger could call Carlotta his sister, and he would never go so far as to do so. I am just an ordinary grassland noble. Wouldn't it be a huge honor to be begged by the top nobles of the Kingdom of Ross?

Nurger didn't think much and punched his chest with his right fist.

"For the sake of the alliance, I will take my brothers to fight."

"Then it's time to work. After the war is won, you are eligible to plunder the loot freely." Participating in the war is out of alliance on the one hand, and on the other hand, it is also about reaping benefits.

Just as Pecheneg intended

"United by brotherhood", Kagan's blood-sworn alliance with Rurik six years ago is really a Pecheneg-style alliance in the north, but what can maintain the stability of the alliance is mutual benefit.

It is said that the Smolensk people gathered an army of five thousand to besiege the Vitebsk Fortress. After all, Nurg had seen the fortress, and asked himself that he would never be able to break the city if he commanded the entire army.

Because the Pechenegs, as national cavalry, did not understand how to fight a siege, they also took it for granted that the Smolensk people were helpless in the face of a solid fortress.

So the two hundred prairie people who came to the north in 842 transformed into allies and decided to participate in the war.

Carlotta suddenly declared that the Principality of Ostara was in a state of comprehensive emergency. All men over the age of twelve who could ride horses in the Principality should seize the time to prepare their weapons and food to prepare for war, even if it was still snowing outside.

She even made the worst plan. She said that she would assemble 200 cavalrymen in a surprise attack in Ostara City. Bejasil would lead 50 cavalry guards to join the battle, and Nurger would lead his 200 cavalrymen to join the battle. It was so pieced together. After dispatching a cavalry team of barely 500 people, we gathered another 100 cavalry from Great Luki in the south, making a total of 600 cavalry.

Carlotta believed that Rurik would be furious when he learned that the villain Vadim had appeared, but did he really intend to conquer it himself?

Not necessarily. After all, Rurik had already revealed to himself that he would use troops against Frank in 843. If the imperial commander personally participated in the struggle for hegemony in the Western world, Ross should be fully preparing for war now.

She heard the news after arriving in her main city - Ross was indeed preparing for a large-scale war, and even expanded two cavalry teams and four citizen flag corps, all of which were deliberately targeted at Frank.

"You still want to go to Frank to stir up trouble?! Now Vadim has invaded your wife's territory. You have to help me solve the disaster in front of me!" Carlotta thought, if Rurik hesitates, she will be in danger. But you can roll around in front of him, even if it's indecent.

If nothing else works, I will kneel down in front of old Otto and cry. It is best to drag little Karl and Sorkina over to cry.

She actually didn't want to force Rurik to do something that would ruin his expedition plan. At least the expedition to Frank would not require cavalry, right?

How about letting Fisk take the tough veterans of the First Cavalry into the war? This is her lowest hope.

"At least one Fisk. If I can still come to Brody's 2nd Cavalry, it will be even more powerful. When the time comes, I will leave the specific operations to Fisk. Just like in the past operations, we will definitely win. Rurik, stay Rick. How I wish you could lead the expedition in person. Because you are the most qualified to execute that Vadim with your own hands..." With such a complicated mentality, Carlotta took her son, future daughter-in-law, and some entourage the next day. They were marching on the east bank of the great lake where the road was flat.

The cavalry passed through one Slavic village after another, and then passed through Youth City and Mstisk, the immigrant cities of the old Russians, in the afternoon.

Little did they know that the cavalry were holding the flag of Russia and rushing toward Novgorod in a charging manner. Many of the visitors were wearing helmets decorated with horns. At a glance, they knew that they were warriors of the Principality of Ostara.

What's happening here? The alert old Russians in Mstisk had to think of a possibility - there could be a war in the south.

It is not surprising that they think so. After all, throughout 840 and 841, the area around Lake Ilmen was on high military alert for fear that the Smolensk people would launch a large-scale northern expedition.

At this time, in Novgorod, the second capital of the kingdom, an army was training in the wind and snow outside in a place covered with thin snow.

King Rurik stood in the snow with a golden crown on his head, as majestic and tall as Otto in his youth.

In line with the principle that more sweat will be shed during normal training and less blood will be shed during combat, the four new flag corps began various trainings under the leadership of veterans, and the two new cavalry corps also conducted special training under the leadership of the existing standing army cavalry.

The young direct descendants of the old Russians, as well as most of the young people of the White Tree Manor, were all absorbed into the army by Rurik.

The outdoor area of ​​Novgorod was transformed into a large military camp, and the shouts of killing during training were deafening. It was under such special circumstances that Carlotta arrived in Novgorod with her followers and simply met Rurik himself at the wasteland training ground outside the city.

After all, they were still husband and wife. Without the courtesy of a monarch and a minister, Carlotta dismounted and ran towards Rurik. Before Rurik could recover, he was hugged by a bear.

"Carlotta, why are you here?!" The girl in front of her suddenly raised her head, and she burst into tears with a sore nose.

"Rurik!" Carlotta said with a cry: "Smolensk started a war. You! Please help me."

"Huh?! Now? War breaks out?!"