A huge fleet entered an archipelago, and the great businessman Gould started this year's trade with great enthusiasm.
Lake Malaren is sparkling and boats are rippling on the lake. A large number of fishing boats are operating daily, as well as transport ships, carrying their various goods, trying to sell them at a good price at the market on the shore.
Gould's forty boats came from the north. When they arrived at the mouth of the lake, they attracted the attention of nearby fishermen.
"Brothers! Light up the sign."
He gave the order, and a large sail dyed with the emblem of the Angkras tribe was shown, and at the top of the mast, It is the Gould family symbol.
Don’t expect the fishermen to recognize Gould clearly. What they know best is the symbols of each tribe.
They come from the north, are they Rus?
They are actually from Onkras. Why them?
Gould naturally had no time to communicate with the first batch of fishermen he encountered. They were by no means his buyers.
The villages where fishermen lived were built on a large number of shallow sea sandbars. Hundreds of years later, the new market formed here was Stockholm.
Gould’s destination was even more distant.
The fleet entered Lake Mälaren, and another whole day of sailing awaited him.
He will definitely sell out all the traditional fur goods shipped from the north in a short period of time. He is very particular about who he sells the goods to.
Although the Melalen people are richer, it is very important for them to first satisfy the wealthy households of the Angkras tribe where they belong.
What’s more, this year’s situation is very different!
The Russians not only sold a batch of high-quality furs, but also a large number of high-end goods.
Gould was in high spirits, and he already fantasized about making a lot of money.
"Master, there are more and more ships ahead. Should we..."
"No need! It's not a good time to sell yet. Let's go back to Anglas first." Gould rejected his subordinates' suggestion.
In fact, many of Yang Fan's subordinates were rowing at the same time, and their bodies were feeling tired. They wanted to go ashore to rest.
For example, buy some food and drink at the market, buy some high-quality linen and make new clothes. Or simply find some pretty women and spend the night comfortably.
After all, these guys who had been following Gould for a long time saw Gould and the two maids enjoying themselves all day long. But those Ross women were not willing, even if the other party was a man from an allied tribe.
Because of Gould, he just wanted to go home early.
But he stood on the bow of the boat, squinting his eyes and staring at the bustling market not far away.
The core of the Melalen tribe is a huge settlement with a population of up to 10,000 people. Together with the surrounding small villages along the lake, the tribe's population is as high as 20,000.
The core area is not given a special name. Businessmen visiting it all call it Melalen, or give it a noun with a place name suffix."Fort".
Gould did not want to disturb the business here for the time being, but the small traveling merchants who followed him closely turned into the market one after another.
The most exciting moment is when a ship docks. The leader of Melalen is happy to see merchants coming to trade in his territory.
Whether it is merchants coming by land or sea, or even Norwegian merchants coming from the west after crossing the mountains.
Only the Danes and Gotland merchants, even if these people can disguise themselves, once discovered, the goods will be confiscated and the people will be beheaded.
Gould’s fleet was too big! They actually had no intention of docking. When the news reached the ears of the leader of Mellaren, Onclas's transport fleet had already sailed upstream and headed straight for their home port along the waterway.
Those are indeed transport ships, none of them are dragon-headed warships, and they are also hung with the sails of Unclas.
However, any ship that came into close contact with them was shocked by the draft of those ships.
They gradually formed a giant python and traveled upstream in a small river, destined for Angklas in the northwest!
The forest is lush and green, and the Angklas people have opened up some farmland along the river.
Gould noticed that the wheat of his tribe has grown green seedlings, and there are still four months to wait.
Compared to the Russians, Gould was fortunate that his people had land that could be cultivated. As for the climate, Angklas is warmer than Roseburg.
Wheat, onions, cabbage. Rurik put aside his bold words and would double the acquisition of them. Originally, trafficking in these crops could only make a small amount of money, but with Rurik's promise, the matter became profitable.
The entire Onkras tribe has a total population equivalent to that of the White Tree Manor in Novgorod.
They are deep inland and connected to Lake Mälaren by water. The environment determined that they could not become fishermen like the Russians who could sweep across the Gulf of Bothnia to catch herrings. They became farmers, and they were more willing to raise cattle and sheep during the off-season.
Of course there must be commerce, but there are too few residents in the tribe, and the richest ones are only a dozen families who are not prosperous in population.
Here, Gould is undoubtedly the richest.
He is not only rich, because he has raised a guard consisting of fifty strong warriors. At least the tribesmen, and even the big leader, dare not take any chances with him.
Even Gould was able to use money to win people's hearts and serve as the leader of the Angklas people.
He has never had any thoughts in this regard. He does not want to assume the responsibilities and obligations of a big leader, but only wants to be a rich man.
However, wealth without power to protect it will ultimately be a dream.
The Onkras are too weak compared to the Melalens. In terms of population alone, the Rus are also much weaker than the Melalens.
Perhaps the balance of power is being broken by Otto and his son from Russia.
Spring is here. After the ice and snow melt, the people of MälarenHe has already rushed to the Melalen Market to sell his agricultural products. For example, leather clothing made of cheese, yogurt cubes and sheepskin, and even a small number of metal tools made by blacksmiths.
Apart from this, are there many other ways for Angklas people to earn wealth?
Everyone knows that no one in the tribe is richer than Gould, who has lived in Roseburg for a long time.
Many people imagine that maybe a million silver coins are buried in this old guy’s home!
Of course this is a joke, but everyone is willing to believe that Gould's money is at least one hundred thousand silver coins.
Gould is back, and without bothering him to disembark in person, the mighty fleet has already proven its identity.
Many farmers working on the farmland by the river stopped to watch their fleet. From a distance, they could see a fat man standing on the bow of the boat! Is there anyone fatter than that family? there is none left.
Everyone in Onclas knows that Gould and his five sons are all fat men, and their women are even more plump.
The news spread quickly in the settlement, and large crowds flocked to the tribe's riverside dock.
The leader of the tribe, Angreev, was very excited: "What? Is the news reliable?"
The groveling servant complimented: "It's absolutely true, it must be Gould. We No one has more ships than him."
The words were true, and the big leader Angreev felt a little unhappy when he heard it.
He knew that his role as leader had not convinced people. Everyone knows that the Gould family is the richest. Isn’t it natural for that guy to be the leader?
As a result, the fat man spent most of the year hanging out with the Russians in the far north.
It seems that he has the power, but unfortunately he cannot maintain a guard of fifty strong warriors for a long time.
Give the guards a monthly salary of up to 600 silver coins? The big leader Ungrieve could not afford this money on his own for a long time. There are only a dozen followers with mediocre physical fitness around him, and they will only follow the action at critical moments. Because depending on his wealth, he can hire a small group of tribesmen to serve as "security guards" by paying only a small sum of money.
Ungreave twisted his beard and slowly answered the servant who was waiting for orders: "Let's go. Gather the people and let's go to the dock."
"Okay! Chief, we need you Put on your armor?"
"No! I'm not going to the battlefield. Bring me my sable coat."
At this moment, Angreev hoped. A sable fur coat that he spent a huge sum of money to buy reflects his wealth and status in appearance.
He happily led his men to the dock.
Before that, Gould's family members had received the news and were already waiting at the dock, accompanied by fully armed warriors.
The tribesmen watching the excitement knew that they were slovenly and unworthy of being close to the wealthy Gould.
Look at that guy’s women! He actually has five wives, each of whomHe has a ruddy complexion and wears a white ferret coat with a gold-embellished belt around his waist. Even the leather boots of these women are decorated with rubies, not to mention that they all have beautiful gold necklaces, and their ears are hung with huge cobalt sapphire earrings that almost tear off their ears.
The women are all luxurious, and the group of fat men around them are even more well-dressed.
These are Gould’s family members, the people whom Gould loves most. It happens to be them too! In order to have more sons to expand his family business, Gould married a beautiful girl he met at the Melalen Market. Now that he has five sons, when he comes back today, he has to live a real life where his wives are jealous.
Ah! During his stay in Rossburg, only the two women from Britain around him gave him physical comfort. However, if they give birth to a son, the situation changes again. I'm afraid it will turn into a grand occasion where seven wives are jealous and competing for beauty.
Life has to go on, not to mention coming back this year, a major family meeting related to the future of the family must be held.
Of course, before that, Gould still needs to pay a visit to the chief of the tribe. First, as a "filial piety", Gould sells him some of the goods shipped "cheaply".
The ships docked one after another. Before that, Gould had already covered his old face full of fat.
Then he ordered the two maids: "Anne, you two get out of the way."
The two maids sat obediently, watching the rowers stand up and try their best to row. The cable was thrown to the trestle. People waiting on the shore took the cables and tried their best to pull the ship to the shore.
Gould's big feet stepped firmly on the trestle of the Onkras tribe's dock, as if the entire bridge was shaking due to his weight.
Oh, no! That's because the ships carry too much cargo. The powerful momentum of the ship collided with the trestle. No, two of the tribe's more than 20 trestles were knocked down, even if the ship was very slow.
As soon as Gould landed, his five wives rushed over as if they had found half of gold, for fear that the treasure would be snatched away by others.
The situation suited the situation. The original meaning of Gould's name was "a piece of gold."
They hope to be more favored by their men, even if these women include former slave girls.
No, after giving birth to his son, his status completely changed.
Gould's cheerful face showed displeasure.
He scolded vigorously: "You all go away, we can talk about it when we go home!" He tried his best to push away the women's extended hands, and only got away after another scolding.
However, what really made him escape completely was the arrival of the tribe's leader Angreev.
Ungreave, this man with a slightly thin face, a long beard, and a scar under his eye, his name means "combat attack". However, he transformed into an inland agricultural The tribe members are now devoted to farming and managing their own farmland.
Ungreave still has many scars on his body, which are all the result of fighting the Danes when he was young.
Until now, this passion for fighting has not been worn away by the years.
As a big leader, if a powerful enemy attacks, he must lead his tribe to fight.
As for the dozen professional businessmen, they will run away with their families.
About this matter, Ungreave could not restrain them, and could only mutter a few words.
Especially this Gould, what does this person want, even if he wants to ask for the position of the big leader, Angreev feels that if this is the case, he should withdraw.
"Oh, noble businessman as gold, you are finally back!" Ungrieve stretched out his arms and walked over accompanied by a dozen guards.
At this moment, Gould was not only surrounded by his family, but also dozens of loyal guards.
Especially the warrior Yevluo whom he bought from the market and trained for more than ten years.
These guards are only loyal to their financial masters, and the most powerful Jevro is only loyal to his master.
Ungreave is here, and even though the other party is completely well-intentioned, they still remain vigilant.
Being good at appearance, Gould pushed his man away, stretched out his fat arms, and walked over with a strong step.
Two powerful people hugged each other. They patted each other on the shoulders and said some obviously polite blessings.
They let go of each other, and the big leader Angreev stopped dawdling and said straight to the point: "You still come from the Rus. It seems that this time you really transported a lot of good goods. ”
“Of course! I have never forgotten who I am, I am from Onkola. This year, I bought more good things from the Rus, some good things that will shock you. . I didn’t stop at the Mälaren Market at all. I didn’t even stop at the Great Lakes. You see, I went home, which was my only stop along the way.”
The words were still very polite, and the big leader Angreev was really happy to hear them.
Then he asked: "Should it be a batch of precious furs?"
"Of course! It's not just furs!" Gould was about to announce to Ungreave Some big things, he estimated, would definitely make Ungreave dissatisfied. Of course, in fact, I don't need to consider the old guy's mood at all. There is indeed no one in the entire tribe who is more powerful than me.
After all, I have been an Angklas since my ancestors, so I have to consider the friendship between generations.