Rise of Rurik

A new batch of horses were added to the treasury, and a new batch of recurve bows were added to the armament. Rurik had enough supplies to exchange these with Kagan, but now he wanted to trade more than just these.

The army is about to assemble, and the recruitment operation quietly begins.

Many farm boyar nobles have arrived in Novgorod city on orders. They probably witnessed the wedding of the king and Princess Pecheneg, and they must have witnessed the military might of the Russian army at the same time.

The boyars who came first had enough time to rest, and King Rurik wanted to wait until everyone arrived before holding a key meeting.

He has already arranged for his men to collect and transport supplies, and the entire city is also actively preparing for war. The war is related to the dreams of many people from nobles to common people to get rich, and he is sure that everyone will not neglect it.

Before the official assembly, a special small meeting was held secretly.

The number of people attending the meeting was very small, and there was a strong distinction between high and low status.

Oil lamps were lit in the warm house, and they all had dinner, gathering together like a black party in the cold night.

Indeed, they were plotting a "conspiracy."

King Rurik was undoubtedly the host of the meeting and the mastermind of the ensuing strategy.

The others are Duke Carlotta of Ostara, Duke Svalgard of Gran, Prince Kagan of Pecheneg, and Sakhi, the speaker of Kiev (recognized by Rurik).

The dancing flame of the oil lamp made Rurik's handsome face sway, as if showing the king's murderous intention.

"Thanks to the information you provided, it seems that the Smolensk people in the south are very hostile to our Rus." Rurik started without politeness and pointed out the key points with a cold face.

In this way, Kagan said bluntly: "Brother, do you think I brought back not enough slaves this time? Most of the slaves were bought by your wife. I think you are very close to each other and it will be the same to anyone you sell to. You may be able to do this." You can’t blame me.”

"That's not the case."

"Oh? Are you asking me to raid more? Do you want me to bring more slaves this autumn?"

Since he had a good guess, Rurik's words were easy to describe. He nodded: "That's right, but..."

"so what?"

"I hope you, and I hope you. Let's join forces to do something big. Let's attack Smolensk!"

Attack Smolensk? When Rurik pointed out this matter, everyone present was certainly surprised, but not overly surprised.

Kagan had a sullen face and exuded murderous intent, and said in a low voice: "You have long said that you would use troops on Smolensk, and it seems that you have finally made up your mind. If you start a war, as a brother, I will directly send troops to support you. It's just that , Brother, I have something unclear.”

"Speaking."

"Even if Ross is very powerful, do you really have the courage to fight on two fronts? There is a proverb in our grassland."

"What is that?" Rurik asked.

"When you charge on horseback, be sure to carry a shield. This means that it is not wise to fight on two fronts if you really want to target one direction."

Is it really unwise to fight on two fronts? This is mostly the case unless the country is very powerful and the enemy is weak. Rurik had no intention of refuting his Kagan brothers. He did intend to fight on two fronts, but the troops used in the war against Smolensk were not Rus' troops!

Now that Kagan said so, Rurik complimented him obediently: "Thank you for reminding me, brother. The main force of our Rus is about to march westward, and I will personally drive it. I will also take the newlywed Beyathil with me on the westward expedition. She aspires to become As a female warrior, I will give her the opportunity to make meritorious deeds.”

But the meaning of this sounded a little strange to Kagan. "Very good. Beyathil should see the vastness of the world, but she doesn't understand your big ship. I really hope she can adapt to wandering on the sea."

"She will definitely achieve great results. The problem now lies with you. Brother, I want to make an appointment with you."

The Rurik brothers in front of them frequently call themselves "eldest brother". In terms of strength, the national power of the Pecheneg Khanate is really inferior to that of Ross. In terms of military strength, Pecheneg is a country with all cavalry and has unique advantages. Kagan felt very comfortable and said without much thought: "We are brothers. I am willing to sign any agreement that is beneficial to our two countries."

"That's good." Rurik looked specifically at the other people sitting there, and particularly glanced at Sakhi, the Kiev man.

He cleared his throat and formally stated his decision: "The Smolensk forces are straddling the trade routes of Rus, Kiev and Pecheneg. It is said that there is also a small Lamic people. These forces are all in the way. , we can carve them up. Even if we cannot really carve up Smolensk, we will greatly defeat their strength and even drive them into the dense forest further east.

Rus will officially launch a war against Smolensk this year. I will detach a part of the cavalry to continue to be stationed in Novoostara in the far south. I will also train five thousand militiamen to prepare for subsequent wars.

My main force will march westward, and it is indeed unfavorable for the garrisoned troops to rush south to start the second war.

I need the support of the Pecheneg and Kiev armies. Please use Rus, especially Novostar and Novgorod, as rear bases.

The Kagan brothers, and old friend Sakhi. You now have a cavalry, and I will fund you with better weapons and equipment. You must rush south in April, like a pack of wolves at dusk, to suddenly attack, plunder their villages, cause destruction, and send the prisoners to me. Here, there will be many benefits. "

Hearing this, Kagan, who was originally excited about joint operations, realized that he was the next khan and suddenly became a bandit.

Kagan smiled: "I really thought you were going to send troops directly. It seems that you have put up a defensive posture. You invited me to go to the south to plunder. This matter is my responsibility. But this can't be counted. Become a part of the war, brothers, I really admire you."

"Are you mocking me?"

"How dare I. Just do it! This is an opportunity to make a fortune, brother. We have to negotiate the price of the slave in advance."

"This is easy to handle." Rurik slapped his thigh: "You can arrest people as much as you want. This is a war after all, and you can use your prairie rules to do things. I prefer you to kidnap female slaves, and stick to the old rules, a A pound of silver coins for a slave girl, or a thousand pounds of wheat, or two bearskins. You know the prices of goods here, and I will never set random prices to displease you."

Because Smolensk is a quasi-state group that has been expanding. It is a tribal alliance and is actually the same race as the people of Kiev.

How is it that they are very close in blood? They are expanding along the Dnieper River, not far from Kiev, which has expanded its power downstream. If this situation cannot be curbed, Kiev people will have to respect them as the boss.

Different from the current situation in Kiev, Smolensk has already given birth to their powerful chief. According to existing intelligence, the situation over there is becoming delicate.

Rurik found a very good reason for war - to continue the rebellion Vadim.

The Smolensk chief not only accepted Vadim, but even made him his son-in-law. This is how he used actual actions to become the enemy of Rus! Regardless of whether the thing is reliable or not, since similar statements are so popular, there is a reason for war that can convince the public.

King Rurik used this excuse to announce his tough attitude towards Smolensk to the public.

But it was not the real reason for the war.

In this black meeting under the night, Ross, Kiev and Pecheneg reached a consensus, because Smolensk blocked everyone's way to do business and make money, and not only did they not want to join but also controlled the trade routes, then they really deserved it.

The war had a special beginning. The Pechenegs and Kievs went to plunder the population. The slaves were first transported to Novoostara and digested directly. A "Slave Road" will be formed along the banks of the Lovati River, which runs north-south and flows into Lake Ilmen.

Rurik knew that one of his beloved wives, Carlotta, was full of sadness for her hometown of Ostara. The main force of the Western Expedition had already set the anchorage of the fleet at Old Ostara in southern Sweden, allowing her to Accompanying the Western Expedition only added to the sorrow, but she was already a good female general, and she could just sit on her own New Ostara people and be responsible for Rus's national-level looting of Smolensk in 840.

One Carlotta may not be enough, so Grand Duke Svalgard, whose own military strength is ridiculous, can also come in handy. Carlotta led a cavalry force to guard the border in New Ostara, while Svalgard led an infantry force to garrison the border.

It is said that Smolensk has a large population. Rurik estimated that based on past experience, Kagan and Sakhi used cavalry units to destroy the area from north to south. There is a high probability that the other party will become excited and then go north to seek revenge. Seeking revenge is not scary. It is not appropriate for Rose to take the initiative to mobilize the army to go south this year. He is still very confident in waiting for work to launch a beautiful defensive counterattack. After all, the path the Smolensk people took north to seek revenge was extremely narrow. They followed the natural road along the Lovadi River. As long as they guarded the river and deployed a strong force, they could stop ten thousand people.

Our agreement has been made. Although we can't personally participate in the Western Expedition, thinking about revisiting our old place will be very sad, so it's better not to go this time. Carlotta is also very happy that her man thinks so highly of her, and she is also very happy that she can cooperate with the Gran people as in history, and the Gran people are still under the jurisdiction of Ostara.

Based on his promise, the day after the "Black Meeting" ended, the costume change for the Pecheneg soldiers began. Not only these people, but also members of Kiev's limited armed merchant group began to change their clothes.

Kagan and Sakhi, their people have their own weapons. Rurik this time provided a large number of steel cluster arrows, a large number of steel spearheads, prisoners of war and steel swords.

Even the ordinary men of the poorly equipped Kiev caravan have completed the change of clothes. In principle, they have to pay for their new exquisite weapons. Now they do not need to pay. They only need to send the plundered people to the north to compensate.

The weapons are so good, they even have protective gear.

Most of Kagan's subordinates are armored guards raised by himself. They are all equipped with armor, even though many places have been leaked due to long-term wear and tear.

This time Rurik provided a batch of special armor, which was imitated from the armor of the regular army of the Frankish Kingdom.

The tanned deerskin is lined, and a large number of iron sheets are attached to the outside and fixed with rivets. This kind of armor is far inferior to excellent pierced armor. It is true that Ross can make pierced armor and even plate armor. Considering the dual cost of materials and time, they are unnecessary.

It’s good to have armor and clothes, so why pick and choose? Considering the previous plundering battles, Kagan did not think that the Smolensk people were very powerful. He just knew that everyone would just follow the traditional "stealing tactics" of their own nation and make frequent sneak attacks.

Kagan was very aware of the significance of gifting armor. Although in principle he wanted to exchange for slaves, his brother Rurik did not sell armor in the past. He really regarded himself as a brother.

To be fair, the Frankish army was pursuing cost-effectiveness when wearing this type of armor. Its defensive capabilities were not strong. Considering the Saxon expressions and West Slavic tribes that were usually their opponents, the tribal warriors of these two tribes had almost no armor weapons and equipment. The Frank army, which is crude and wears inferior armor, can still blast them.

Ross also pursued cost-effectiveness and improved it based on his actual capabilities.

The cowhide of the lining was changed to deerskin, which Ross had a large amount of, and the original iron sheet was replaced with mass-produced malleable iron. Bailurik started the talent pool more than ten years ago. There are now more than 200 blacksmiths in Rus serving his great king, and a number of blacksmiths have emerged among the people.

A mass-produced type of armor is still in production. It is a waistcoat, which is a square piece of tanned deerskin with a hole in the middle to accommodate the soldier's head. A large number of square carbon steel sheets are riveted on the front and back, and there are hemp ropes on both sides of the waist ribs to tie the armor firmly. Its quality is inferior to pierced armor, and even inferior to chain mail, but this type of armor is very suitable as a quick equipment for horse armor and phalanx infantry. In other words, it is more suitable for Slavic peasant soldiers.

Because in the past ten years, any Viking warrior who got rich had to buy himself weapons and armor, and they were willing to pay a lot of money. When his son grows up, the father will also spend money to buy weapons and armor for his son. The common warrior culture makes the Viking warriors in the Kingdom of Ross have a very high armor rate, which is also due to the technological bonus and war bonus of Ross.

When recruiting Viking warriors for the western expedition, Rurik did not worry at all about the armament of these warriors. They were guys who brought their own excellent weapons. All the king had to do was to prepare all the food and grass.

There will be a large number of Slavic and Finnish soldiers participating in the battle, and the "riveted iron plate armor" reserved for this purpose can be equipped with them.

The deal with the Pechenegs and the Kievs has been completed. As for the last dozen or so beautiful and young slaves sent by Kagan, they have become a kind of bargaining chip.

Originally, Rurik intended to give these well-dressed women to his brother-in-law Medvet, who was also the governor of Novgorod. He didn't want it, and even said that his wife didn't like it.

Regardless of Medved's plans, these women will still be given away.

They were not suitable as maids in the Rus palace, and Rurik could not trust them. If there is any kind of woman who is best suited to be a maid, it is none other than the mixed-race daughters of old Russians and their Slavic wives. In principle, they are their own people. Rurik can trust her, and so can other nobles.

These were originally Mickey village girls from Smolensk or La. After they were groomed and dressed up, their hair was tied up like Viking women, with some glass beads hanging on their braids, and colored glass and onyx beads hanging around their necks. Pendant. If she changes her clothes again, wouldn't she look like a fairy?

They were just a group of pure and helpless young women. Even though they were dressed like this, it seemed at first glance that the king had really put some thought into them.

There were exactly twelve of them, and there were exactly twelve of the farm boyar nobles who had outspoken their loyalty during the counterinsurgency war but later betrayed them.

According to the king's order, these boyars gathered in the city of Novgorod.

At the same time, as many as thirty village chiefs from the "pioneering villages" without noble status arrived under the order. These people were all from the "hiding people" who were pulled out of the forest. They also received the order to recruit soldiers, even if Even if only a handful of men are sent out, they must also participate in the battle!

So leaving aside the White Tree Manor, which was integrated with Old Ross ten years ago, the number of other local Slavic farms has expanded to as many as forty-two! Under the command of the governor, many nobles and leaders, whether willing or not, have actually contributed their corresponding men.

They murmured to each other, guessing that the king was just gathering everyone together as a routine, and then continued to work according to the plan.

In fact, this is not the case, because a special second battlefield is to be opened against the Smolensk people. In a sense, the entire Lake Ilmen area, including Novgorod, which was originally a safe place, has been attacked. risks of.

The thirty villages are completely under the control of Ross. Although they have a large population, they are actually a collection of various miniature forest villages. They are not independent and can only listen to the arrangements of the king and the governor.

As for the other twelve native farms, their overall population has exceeded 30,000. In recent years, their lives have improved, and each farm is trying their best to have children. The population can only be more in the future.

Future warriors, as long as these twelve farms clearly support the king, it means that the more than 100,000 Slavic people in the entire Lake Ilmen area are already monolithic, and they are the extremely stable rear of the country.

Twelve well-dressed boyar nobles gathered in a room. They greeted each other and murmured about the king's intentions. They also speculated that they had dedicated their sons to serve as cavalry for the king, and their sons would hope in the distance. What a feat.

They also tried to ask where the King of Guards had gone.

Soon, Rurik made his debut!

The boyars cast complimentary glances one after another, and greeted him with compliments one after another.

"Okay! Friends, your loyalty can be learned by the gods!" Rurik first said a set of words, and then followed the words: "So in order to commend your loyalty, I will give each of you a big gift today. !”

Forget it, he clapped his hands, and a group of beautiful women filed out in a queue. Find Shuyuan www. zhaoshuyuａ． com

They were really beautiful, and the boyars present were amazed. Someone asked: "What does this mean?"

"Oh? Don't you see that these are gifts given to you?" Rurik continued to smile: "These women are given to you. Whether they are wives or concubines or maids, it is up to you. Maybe you I understand that they are indeed women kidnapped from Smolensk. They are all yours now!"

At this point, everyone pinched their beards and figured it out completely, but they didn't know that the slave-transporting prairie people really hid some treasures. Thinking about all the crooked melons and jujubes I bought before, shouldn’t the beautiful slaves be adopted by the Varyag people for their own use? I actually...

"What are you still doing?" Rurik urged: "Go and get what you like!"

No, the boyars are taking action! They know that they will have to pay some price after getting the gift from the king, so what? Even if there are no gifts, how dare everyone not support any decree issued by the king?

These beauties are really not for nothing.

Please remember the first domain name of this book: . :