Olegin was extorting money and taxes, and the unprecedented tragic news soon spread to Gould Island.
Rurik didn’t want to comment on this, because this approach can be said to have been done since ancient times. Any powerful man has robbed civilians of their property in this way, and civilians will only rise up to resist when they really can’t survive. , this is true both at home and abroad.
Based on the intelligence sent back, Rurik learned that Olegin did not really kill the goose to obtain the eggs.
However, your violence will definitely make the lives of ordinary people who are already struggling to live even worse.
Looking at the vast lake, Rurik’s sense of guilt quickly disappeared.
"If there is no wheat to eat, why don't you eat surimi? What does your matter have to do with us, the Russian people."
Of course Rurik's biggest concern is that there are as many as five One hundred thousand pounds of grain was delivered, and Gould was already preparing a huge scale to count the shipped grain.
On Gould Island, a large wooden house has been cleaned up. It is a warehouse used to temporarily store food.
Many wooden houses on the island are used as warehouses, and now many wooden houses are filled with goods. They are mostly vegetables such as onions and cabbage.
In this era, people did not have any scientific concept of diet. The biggest motivation for Europeans to grow vegetables was for a very simple purpose - they can be eaten.
In the Frankish Kingdom, some farmers have turned into full-time vegetable farmers, and the fees they pay are vegetables.
In the Nordic world, some land that is not suitable for growing wheat is widely used for growing vegetables, among which onions have the highest yield.
Gould's warehouse is filled with a large number of onions purchased from the Hjelmalen tribe in the south. Every time she sees the onions in the warehouse and the stewed onion soup in front of her, Carlotta thinks of the bad things she did a year ago. Relatives have passed away one after another, but fortunately Ostara is still there, and the lives of those who survive will even become richer.
Because all the food in the warehouse, as well as the huge amount of food that will be piled in, belong to Rurik's property.
Rurik, what a kind man!
Even the children of Ostara are rewarded with food from him almost every day, and this reward also benefits a kind of slave child. The best way everyone can repay this gift is to play for Rurik. Practice martial arts well, and when you grow up, you can become a powerful army and take revenge on your enemies.
It is already the end of September, and the Melalen tribe under Olegin has finally completed this year's food harvest. Even though there was a drought, he got more food than last year, so much so that his own barn was not enough. If a cold rain suddenly falls at this time, a large amount of new wheat will be directly soaked by the rain.
On a longship sat a distinguished visitor, who was none other than the Arrogant Karl.
His complexion is very bad, he has a sullen face, but he is dressed gorgeously and has high toes.His arrogant attitude really deserves a beating.
The ship approached Gould Island and quickly attracted the attention of the sailors organizing the cables at the dock.
Soon, the mercenary who was standing on the wooden wall scaffolding on daily security duty noticed that "a distinguished merchant" was approaching.
Gould and Rurik were warming themselves around the brazier in the warm wooden house, waiting for Olegin to pull all the wheat over. Rurik estimated how many cargo ships they would send. Even if they were transported by large cargo ships, there would be seventy ships. Similarly, it is probably an almost impossible task for Ross's fleet to simply transport food back at once.
It can be said that just transporting this huge amount of food is an extreme test of an organization's ocean transportation capabilities.
The mercenary knelt down and reported: "Sir, a merchant is here."
"Huh? Are there many ships?" Gould asked impatiently.
"There is only one. It seems to be a businessman."
"Oh, I got it." Gould looked frustrated.
"What? You don't welcome merchants anymore?" Rurik asked inexplicably.
"Let's go and see what's going on." Gould patted his plump face vigorously.
He really doesn’t want to do business anymore. Compared with accepting food, he is worried about another important thing, that is, how to transport goods. Compared to the past, the fleet I need to organize this autumn is also unprecedented. So only now did Gould suddenly realize that Rurik's previous order for two hundred cargo ships to the lions of shipbuilders was really not nonsense.
The two of them, with some entourage, wearing fur hats and coats, hurried out of the wooden castle and approached the dock.
At this moment, Karl has logged in.
When the two sides looked at each other, seeing the disdainful look on this guy's face, Rurik felt an unknown fire well up in his heart.
Fortunately, Rurik suppressed his anger. When he saw Gould put on a good-guy smile, he had no choice but to keep a straight face and follow behind him without saying anything.
Yes, Karl really didn’t want to say anything to Rurik. He didn’t think a little boy could do anything other than imitate adults and say some “great” words.
Karl was still arrogant and faced Gould: "I landed on your island. Originally I refused, but the leader of the alliance asked me to be a messenger. I am here to tell you only one thing today. ."
"Oh, noble Karl, can you come to my..."
"Stop! Listen to me!"
Already! Gould, who was half-crouched, immediately stood at attention, wondering why this guy was so arrogant.
"I am telling you that the grain harvest has been completed. Tomorrow you will bring your linen bags, boats, and your manpower to land at our dock, and we will complete the delivery of the grain."
As soon as he finished speaking, Karl immediately turned around, as if staying on Gould Island made him uncomfortable..
Gould stretched out his hand to say something, but Karl had already boarded the ship. The accompanying oarsmen were also very interesting. They listened to the master's order and directly pulled off the hemp rope that fixed the long boat, and then took out the oars, making the entire long boat run away as quickly as a water strider.
Until then, Rurik stuck his head out and said disdainfully: "This fool is so arrogant, he will pay the price sooner or later."
"But not now, my little master. "
"I heard what Karl said, what should I do next?" Rurik asked.
“This is the news we are waiting for, so we will do as he says.”
“However, we actually have to go and bring the food back in person. I heard that this was not the case last year. ."
Gould shrugged helplessly: "Who calls him the leader? The leader is just a good person, even if we are a big customer."
"Are the ships and sacks enough? ?" Rurik asked anxiously.
"You don't have to worry about this." After Gould finished speaking, he sighed deeply. This move was self-evident. Obviously, Gould also lacked confidence.
The delivery date came suddenly, but fortunately Gould also made some preparations.
First of all, Gould's own cargo ships can gather twenty, and ordinary longships can gather thirty, which can be said to be basically his entire family fortune. So many ships were almost all built by the shipbuilders of the Melalen tribe, so the previous shipbuilders were very happy to see further trade with the Ross people.
Not enough ships? Since it can be solved with money, it is naturally not a problem.
Gould quickly discussed the plan with Rurik. Since buying grain saved forty pounds of silver, this money must be important to those farmers who were on the verge of bankruptcy. Use this to buy them ships, each other can solve urgent needs. Of course, the boats you buy are all fishing boats, so don’t count on their carrying capacity.
So the two people’s plan is that since it is impossible to transport the food away at once, they will do multiple operations. Anyway, as long as they continue to sail, they will go back and forth from the island to Fort Ross in seven to eight days. , the problem is not big anymore. It takes at most two round trips and uses existing ships to bring back all the personnel and materials.
So in order to ensure the priority of food transportation, cargo ships transport food and develop its transportation potential! In short, it is overweight transportation.
Of course it would take some risks, but Rurik couldn't care less. Rurik couldn't believe it. The Malaren people, especially when they saw Karl's face that couldn't be beaten, felt the hidden malice of the Malaren people. A huge amount of food is left on Gould Island, and this place may become a target.
The day promised is fleeting.
In the past day, Gould sent his men into full action.
All cargo ships completed various operations, together with a large number of ordinary longships, and even the twenty Gotland fishing boats with average performance brought by Rurik, they were all gathered together.The knot was formed on Gould Island and surrounded the island.
Using financial means, Gould easily hired some fishermen, promised them a silver coin, and asked them to do the hard work of porters. As for the vast number of mercenaries and Ross warriors, most of them were sitting as guards and oarsmen.
Gould Island became extremely lively, and the fishermen passing by could not help but look sideways. Those who did not know it thought that the Gould family was about to return. Many eyes were staring at Gould's actions. They were a large number of merchants. They were waiting to follow behind Gould's fleet. Just like their previous actions, they took advantage of the blessing of Gould's fleet and arrived safely in Ross. Fort continues its leather business this winter and so on.
However, Gould did not say anything, so everyone had to wait and watch in uneasiness.
Who would have thought that this huge fleet would sail northward against the north wind with its sails raised, and the ships would dock near the shore one after another.
A large number of men waded ashore and soon formed a huge team. Onlookers saw that they were also carrying some huge utensils.
Ah! They turned out to be several large scales, which were only needed when weighing wheat, vegetables and large fish.
A mighty team was walking in the slightly deserted streets of Melalen. It was not because the tribe was depressed, but simply because no one dared to provoke such a mighty team. Their momentum can completely suppress the leader's powerful private army! At this moment, who would dare to wander around on the street without opening their eyes?
A group of people went straight to the warehouse of Olegin's family. At this moment, Olegin himself had got the news and he was ready.
All the wooden doors of the warehouse were opened.
Only when preserving grain, Olegin would use wooden houses with wooden planks. What he was most afraid of was that rainwater would contaminate the grain and cause it to rot on a large scale.
The interior of the warehouse is made of wooden crates, with a large amount of wheat piled inside. In order to save costs, Olegin was of course too lazy to use sacks to carry grain, which made it easier for rats to breed.
Rurik and his party finally arrived, and the huge crowd really shocked Olegin. Fortunately, the hundreds of private soldiers who rushed over in an emergency bolstered his self-confidence.
Olegin stepped forward and faced Rurik, the only person with a noble status.
He pointed to several barns with open doors: "Look, the food is all here. You seem to be carrying a lot of people, ah, I am also thinking of finding some people to help you carry it. "
This was a boring polite statement. Rurik said bluntly: "Dear leader, it is better to let me come, so that I can rest assured."
Olegin felt suddenly. A little unhappy, this kid is still worried about himself?
"Oh, at least let me provide you with a scale so that you can weigh the wheat."
"Okay, okay." Rurik immediately signaled to Gould and put the weight of the wheat into his hands. A large scale was brought in, along with stones used as standard measuring tools. These stones were so-called weights, each weighing a hundred pounds.
"You...I have prepared a scale for you, but you insist on using yours? "
"Why not? Rurik shrugged, "Or are you worried about us doing something?" ”
Olegin couldn’t say this. He did want to be a little unreasonable during the weighing, but the Russians brought their own scales, and the two sides competed. Yes, wouldn't it be embarrassing if something went wrong?
Olegin gritted his teeth and pretended to be generous: "Okay, Frey (God of Commerce) is supervising, and our trade is fair. of. "
Just? Both Gould and Rurik agreed that this guy must be a stumbling block, because he has the ability and motivation to do so.
The person who carries the grain Among them were local porters from Melalen, as well as mercenaries and strong Ross warriors, especially the accompanying Ross warriors. They were asked by Aric to go into battle shirtless, in order to use their strong muscle texture to show off. The leader of the alliance demonstrated.
Olegin had the final say as to which barn the Russians would move.
The grain outlet of a barn was opened, and a large amount of shelled oats were like a mudslide. They usually rushed into some large wooden boxes, and they were carried to the scale set up outdoors. Under the supervision of Gould and others, the wheat began to load the sacks. After weighing enough to one hundred pounds, the sacks were tied (with weights). A linen bag was folded and placed on the yard to make it precise).
It seemed that everything was going on in an orderly manner.
Rurik looked curious, but under the sun, he always felt that. There was something wrong with these oats.
He stood up straight and looked around, only to see that Gould was only asking his men to carve words on the wooden boards to make statistics from beginning to end. People pay attention to the quality of this wheat.
Rurik glanced sideways and noticed the guy Olegin from the corner of his eye. There was always something strange in his eyes. Only people who took advantage could have such eyes. < /p>
"All suspended! ”
Rurik ran to the grain outlet of the granary and stopped his men from moving the wooden boxes. He stretched out his hand to grab some oats, rubbed them vigorously and threw them into his mouth. He chewed them hard and A very familiar feeling in Guzi's memory came to mind.
"Leader! "He shouted loudly.
"Huh? What’s wrong with you? "Olegin came with his hands behind his back and led some private soldiers.
Rurik pretended not to be angry. He raised his head and asked sternly: "You are using Chenmai to deal with me! "
"Chen Mai? This is new wheat. "
"No, it's Chen Mai! It's drier and tastes a little weird. This is Chen Mai, you can't lie to us.
Knowing that his plan had been discovered, Olegin not only did not feel guilty, he put his hands on his waist and looked like an adult criticizing a child: "Did the contract say that I must bring out new wheat?" "
"Ah! you? ! oops! "Rurik then thought that he had made a small mistake. With this result, he admired Olegin. In this era, Northern EuropePeople all over the world can use loopholes in contracts to do bad things.
It’s just that Rurik never expected that the Olegin family would still have enough food all year round. This is simply miraculous.
But the loss cannot be in vain.
Rurik directly ordered; "Stop weighing! Leader, from now on I want new wheat, even if they have not been properly dried. Leader, I think you don't want to get a bad reputation, right?" The Russians are all here, and we will do business every year from now on. You are wrong to cheat us. If you give me new wheat, we will return the wheat we weighed to you, that’s it.”
"You...are you despising me?" Olegin's eyelids couldn't help but tremble.
Rurik did not back down: "You are the leader of the alliance, not a god. The tribes respect you as the leader because they believe in your credibility. When you lose your credibility, where is your majesty? Leader, Do you only care about your little old wheat? Or do you never care about us Russians, thinking that we are just some fools from the north who only know how to transport fur?"
Olegin was helpless. , had no choice but to laugh happily. His right hand subconsciously rested on Rurik's hat, but Rurik immediately pushed it away.
Rurik said with a sullen face: "Give me new wheat, and I will give you silver coins of good quality. Let me give in. If you insist on giving me old wheat, I will have to give you the worst silver coins. This way Neither you nor I will lose."
For a moment, Olegin was stunned.
Olegin didn't want to do things right. He was as miscalculated as Rurik. He really didn't expect that this child could actually tell the difference between fresh wheat and old wheat. When he thought of his arrogant son Karl, who had no family and no relatives, he suddenly wished he had a little son like Rurik, even if his grandchildren also had such a boy.
However, the Russians got a treasure.
Soon, the transported wheat was completed into new wheat, which had a strong aroma unique to oats and grass, proving their quality.
Weighing and moving is a huge job. It starts early in the morning and continues at night. Is just weighing enough? The porters began to walk straight to the dock with Maizi in good health, and carefully waded into the water to move the sacks to the ship. As soon as the ship was basically full, they returned immediately.
Russians are using ants to move up to 500,000 pounds of wheat, which is equivalent to nearly 200 tons of wheat!
When night falls, the work of weighing, handling, and shipping continues. There were a lot of torches lit on Gould Island this night, especially the wooden castle. There were even some small boats floating quietly on the lake, with only oil lamps on the bows. More than thirty small boats desperately lacked carrying capacity, and their lights formed a line, which was the route that guided the grain ship to safely reach Gould Island.
The final shipment of half a million pounds of wheat was not completed until the evening of the next day.
During this period, more than 20 silver coins weighing 455 pounds were loaded into thewooden boxes, all moved to Olegin's house.
When he saw these coins of good quality, Olegin's whole bones froze, and Karl, a desire called possession, also penetrated his mind. He immediately asked his father for a box of silver coins as a reward for reporting the news, which was naturally rejected by Olegin.
The father and son even quarreled over it, but this was no longer Rurik’s concern. The plan has been achieved. Although some of the wheat is still old wheat, overall I still make a profit.
This is good, a large amount of wheat has been put in place. Theoretically, now, only the last preparation is needed, and the huge fleet should return, ending this wonderful journey of the Melalen tribe.
Of course, returning is another nerve-wracking event.