Chapter 393 The secret deal between the two tribes

How much friendship and how much hypocrisy is there in the embrace between the two leaders after more than ten years?

Rurik felt that there was more hypocrisy in this.

After all, if economic and trade exchanges are put aside, the Russians do not need the Melalen people, or even the entire alliance.

Otto unceremoniously showed the caution of the Russian people he represented. The so-called secret meeting place was at the edge of the forest. The participants could always be watched by the Russian soldiers, and some situations would naturally occur. Can intervene immediately.

Even if Olegin is a little dissatisfied, he must agree.

On this trip, Olegin went in secret. Apart from his own bodyguards, there were no other important personnel, not even anyone working as a scribe. The key to so-called secret meetings and secret agreements is not to leave evidence that can be inspected by a third party. It is best to keep the agreement at a verbal level, with both parties tacitly fulfilling the agreement afterwards.

Olegin sat upright, as did Otto in front of him.

After all, we have not seen each other for more than ten years, and the atmosphere of this meeting was really tense with a hint of embarrassment.

In the end, Olegin was the first to break the silence: "The messenger I sent told you my needs, plus the agreement I made with your Rurik last year. Those goods, especially weapons, they all shipped Are you here yet?"

"Is this the only reason why you asked me to go to the appointment?"

"It's not just that," Origen pretended. "Subconscious action", he gently touched the crown on his head, which was obviously a hint.

Otto squinted at him and already understood that the rumor was true: "All the goods you asked for have arrived. So what about the things we need? I want money, a lot of money. I want something else. Things, such as oats, flax, and even slaves, are very important to me."

After receiving an affirmative answer, Origen breathed a sigh of relief, which was the Russian mentioned by Otto. Requirements, the current situation is really a bit special. "That's really great. I urgently need a batch of weapons now. Since you have fulfilled the contract, I will send someone to pick them up soon."

"Wait! You didn't answer my question."

"Oh, you mean the money to buy weapons? Haha..."

Olegin laughed slightly awkwardly, and the meaning was really self-explanatory. Otto and Rurik immediately cheered up and looked extremely solemn.

Although the following statement is a bit disrespectful, it must be a major event involving huge wealth. Otto put on a stinky face and asked extremely rudely: "Don't you plan to pay me?"

"Huh?" Olegin made a skillful tactical move, "I don't Say so."

"What do you want to say?"

"Ah! Actually, I have more to tell you about this matter." Jin started the fight just as he planned, which was really uncomfortable.

"If you have anything to say, tell me! Here, you and I are both businessmen, and the key to doing business is to get money in one hand and goods in the other."

“But sometimes things get complicated.” As he said that, Olegin did not tell the other party that he had the intention to become king. He did not believe that Otto, the old guy, glanced at the gold crown and didn’t know what was going on. meaning. "You must know what happened in recent years. You Russians have attacked our enemies many times, but the enemy's revenge is also very brutal."

As he spoke, he deliberately glanced at Ka, who looked a little dull. Lotta, on purpose: "Armies of the Danes and Gotlanders attacked Ostara, and it is said that there were also troops of Oslo among them. They organized a coalition and attacked us on a large scale when we were unprepared. Sneak attack, if I endure this, how can I serve as the leader? I have decided, I want a war!"

When Olegin spoke, Carlotta's brows became more and more frowning. After the word "war" was spoken, her whole body was trembling.

Carlotta has never been afraid of war, she even longs for war and any force that can help Ostara get revenge.

The situation became extremely strange. Rurik and Otto watched helplessly as Carlotta suddenly stood up, then hurriedly knelt down in front of Olegin and asked in a very complimentary manner: "Leader of the Alliance. Sir, are you...really willing to avenge us Ostarians?"

"Of course. Child, you are taller and more beautiful than last year. You will become a person." A good leader, but unfortunately, your tribe has lost too much. You can rest assured that I will not ignore you because your tribe has too few survivors."

Hearing these words, the girl's eyes were already covered with tears. It was this scene that really gave Rurik a strong hatred. This is not obvious! Olegin is poaching in reverse, and the child Carlotta is also not up to par. Has she always been a person who lacks independent opinions? Or is it that she can actually sacrifice everything for her revenge.

No, Olegin wanted to use some words to show that he was actually a gifted and loyal person, vowing to get rid of all the unfavorable remarks about his family.

“I want to launch a revenge of the same scale to avenge the Ostara people. I also want to collect the corpses of the dead and hold funerals for them. I also learned some information about the Gotland people. They did not leave the homeland of Ostara. They even occupied the homeland of the migrating Glens and built their Gotland settlement. It is reported that there are many Danes inside. ”

At this moment, Otto was blaming himself. It was really wishful thinking that he had an obedient daughter. Who would have thought that this girl was essentially dependent on the strong. Putting aside her irrational behavior of not being able to see the situation clearly, Otto was now completely sure of the authenticity of those rumors. In this case, other details of the rumors must also be true.

Perhaps everything was released intentionally by Olegin to test the direction of public opinion in the alliance.

Otto’s face was solemn and his eyes were deep. He coughed twice suddenly and reprimanded: "This is a meeting place for men, and women are still here."Let’s avoid it for now. ”

These words shocked Carlotta. She hurriedly sat back in her seat, lowered her head and glanced at Otto from time to time. Her eyes were telling her apology.

Yes, this must be a meeting between two old men. Rurik has long wanted to say something, so he will continue to wait and see for the time being.

Otto's face relaxed slightly. He was glad that the girl Carlotta's conscience had not changed. He pretended to be looking forward to the war and deliberately said: "From what I know about the Gotlanders, their preference for burying silver coins and gems cannot be changed by anyone. . If we defeat them, we will most likely make a fortune. "

"No! It is bound to make you rich. "

Olegin is extremely happy to see the cooperative attitude shown by the Russians this time. Money! Who can not love it?

"Just helping the Ostarans get revenge is No, this is a war, not a fight between two people. We must expand our results and go south along the coastline. We must organize a large fleet and a large army. Haha, I saw that you brought a huge transport ship this time, which is great. It may not be suitable for combat, but it can definitely transport a large amount of goods. "

To be able to dismiss the Aurora as just a large transport ship, Otto was cursing in his heart, but there was no clue on his face.

Ruri What about Gram? He feels secretly happy now. The Melalen people are competitors of the Russian people. The more they ignore the strength of the Russian people, the more conducive it will be for the Russian people to develop like Olegin. It would be great to think that the Ross people are "stronger and excellent partners"

While showing off to the Melalen people, they also try to hide their strength. Although this is very contradictory, now Otto. Or should I act cowardly according to the agreement with my son and the prepared plan?

“Oh, you mean that big ship? She is indeed a large cargo ship, and only she can transport all kinds of materials that you, the alliance leader, need to Mellaren. I know that you will happily buy all our goods, and we Russians will get a vital coin. You will also get the weapons, leather, soap, glassware, and even spirits you need. "

"Of course, your cabin will be empty. Let's do this, regarding money, our coalition forces will participate in fierce battles and plunder. When the battle is over, I will give you a large amount of loot. In the end, you will be rich and rich, and you will definitely get more money than you imagined. You don't even need to land to fight, there won't be any personnel losses, you just need to wait quietly for me to hand over the loot to you. ”

Otto and Rurik never thought that Olegin’s opinion would be like this. So the question is, if this is the case, will the Russians still send troops to join the coalition?

Otto felt a little insulted, and he had to ensure that the Ross people had the necessary face in the alliance: "Are you letting us get something for nothing? We are warriors, not businessmen, we want face! Since you wantIn this case, I will sell you all the weapons and leather, and you will hand over the money to me in a few days. We Russians can just go home directly after participating in the alliance. We have no right to go to the battlefield anyway, right? "

Say it, Otto made a move to get up and leave.

This was a way to provoke the general. Olegin immediately reached out to retain him and sternly denied: "I am the leader of the alliance. Naturally, he is also the commander-in-chief of the coalition forces. This time the entire alliance will act together, and I can arrange the work of each tribe. I arranged for you Russians to transport some logistical supplies, such as wheat and dried meat. You happen to have a huge ship that can naturally transport a lot of food and fresh water. Isn't this ship also the best ship for storing loot? "

"I don't want to hear this now. Are you saying that you don’t have enough silver coins to buy the leather and weapons we provide? "

When the matter reached this point, Olegin simply did not hide it. He said weakly and timidly: "Unfortunately, my funds are very tight. "

"Huh? Could it be that even the richest Mälaren people are troubled by financial problems? Are you going to be the first to renege on the agreement you made with my son? "

"I'm not! I don't! Don't talk nonsense! "Olegin glanced at Rurik a few times.

Otto was not present when the agreement was made last year, and now it is obviously Rurik's time.

"Alliance leader, we are still I hope to get the money as soon as possible, even if it is goods of equal value, such as wheat. There is still a lot of wheat in your barn, even if it is old wheat, just give me a little more. Originally, I still wanted to continue to buy your wheat. From now on, we Russians will buy in large quantities every year. We don’t even need silver coins or copper coins as a medium. ”

These remarks are very constructive. Origen really hopes that the Russians will buy grains every year, so that his tribe can continuously obtain high-quality leather and high-quality iron tools. After all, the Russian iron tools It's magical. At present, Olegin hid his dagger very tightly just for the sake of face, for fear that the other party would see that the item that the leader of the alliance regarded as a treasure was also made by a Russian.

Olegin expresses it. An idea, according to Rurik’s words: “This year’s climate is very warm, even warmer than in previous years. The wheat harvest season has returned to August, and we will definitely have a bumper harvest this year. It’s just that I don’t have much food in stock right now, and many people in Melalen are actually hungry. The grain in my barn will be used as rations for the warriors on the expedition. Before the rations are exhausted, we must attack the Gotlanders and Danes. We must plunder their wheat, cattle and sheep. This is not only for revenge, but also for our survival. ”

Rurik guessed that this guy finally said what he really meant, about revenge and glory. The underlying logic was revealed in his simple words - the Melalen tribe has no food left.

If Mälaren really suffered from famine, what happened to the large number of fishing boats cruising on the lake?

Otto asked about this and received a pessimistic reply from Olegin. The so-called fish in the lake are not as abundant as in the sea.

"The best fishing ground is occupied by the Gotlanders. We were the losers in the past and lost it. This time we will take back the fishing ground."

Otto He really couldn't complain, and he didn't want to reveal that the alliance's lost fishing grounds, that is, the sea area from the Åland Islands to Gotland, had fallen into the terrifying shadow of Ross warships and cutting-edge weapons last year. Of course there were plenty of ships cruising there, but many of them were identified as Ross.

Otto’s attitude towards the Melalen people is really complicated. It must be an alliance. Today, the leader of the alliance, Olegin, actually took a very low stance. He actually revealed the truth about the Melalen tribe. Promising the internal dilemma, he believed that this guy would not show Melalen's weak side to other tribes.

The alliance leader is doing it to win sympathy, as for the reason! Otto actually guessed that of course this guy would give money for the sake of glory and credibility, but it was impossible to give money immediately. Strictly speaking, it was the alliance leader who violated the agreement last year.

Rurik kept a careful eye on the wooden document signed last year, but he always carried it with him. Given the current situation, he had no intention of letting Yevro take it. Everyone cares about face, and Rurik really doesn't want to see the fact that "the alliance leader openly violated the agreement."

Old agreements can certainly be revised, and people doing business must behave flexibly. In line with this principle, Rurik deliberately pinched his fingers and said with strokes: "Fifteen hundred weapons, according to the agreement, the price is a battle ax of 30,000 silver coins, and a spearhead of 10,000 silver coins. There are also fierce Wine, soap, etc., if you are interested in buying them, the price will not change. Oh, the price of soap can be reduced a bit. The price of the goods we can provide is more than 60,000 silver coins."

Silver coins are a huge sum of money for Olegin's family from any point of view! After all, the Melalen tribe is not his private property. Many wealthy families are capable of competing for the alliance leader. It’s just that these scheming businessmen are just busy making money. They continue to support and support the Oleg family. Glory returns. Olegin, of course, he should be responsible for anything that happens. The Olegin family has the power to collect taxes, but the tax collected cannot reach those large households. Therefore, the Melalen tribe itself is also a small "tribal alliance" in a strict sense.

The Sveyan Tribal Alliance is like a matryoshka doll.

Olegin was not the supreme emperor, and could never be. He made a golden crown for himself, and even imitated the Franks in calling themselves "kings", which was a long-cherished wish to break this matryoshka pattern.

It’s just a title of “King”. If there is no loyal and powerful military guard, this person would call himself “Augustus”, that is just the plaything of a powerful chief.

The war plan has been conceived since last year, and rumors have spread for a long time. Olegin intends to raise troops, so he spends huge sums of money to add armor and weapons to what he considers to be elite private soldiers. Selecting a group of qualified young people in the tribe increased the number of private soldiers to 800 people. This is the source of his power! It is very expensive to feed this army. He actually has a strong gambling element. If he does not get enough spoils in the war, he will not be able to maintain an army of this size for long.

The number of private soldiers increased, as did the number of warships. What troubled Olegin was that why did the Hotla family, who were good at building large ships, move to Rus? It was so embarrassing to talk about, so he simply didn't mention it.

Rurik calculated the accounts for the alliance leader. If all the goods were bought by Olegin, there would indeed be 60,000 silver coins in the account, but it was a pity that the other party could not afford so much money.

So there are huge operable elements here. Rurik coaxed and said: "I believe that the alliance leader has actually kept his promise. Something happens during the performance of the contract, and sometimes it is irresistible. We You can talk slowly."

"Well! I'm very happy with what you said." Origen calmed down a little.

Rurik showed that sweet smile, and the lake breeze blew, making him elegant and refreshing, and the golden silk made him more beautiful. What Olegin saw was a handsome young man, but he didn't know that behind this handsomeness there was a special "knife" that he had never seen before.

Rurik pretended to be generous: "We Russians have an obligation to fight our enemies. Over the years, our alliance has united to fight back against the enemy, and we Russians should provide manpower and material resources. I can provide it immediately All the weapons are given to you, and its price is 40,000 silver coins. You can get it even if you don’t have the money now. But..." Olegin's eyes trembled rapidly, and things took a huge turn. , as he had a strong need, he couldn't wait: "I will try my best to meet your request, I want weapons."

"We Russians can serve as the logistics force of the coalition. Just like you said, we need The loot should not be less than 40,000 silver coins. Oh, preferably it is 40,000 silver coins. In addition, you have to give us additional benefits. We are not your transport team after all. /p>

"Huh? I can allow you to participate in the looting after the battle. How much you loot is your own business."

"That's not the case." Rurik stretched out his right hand to veto, "We The Russians are not carrion-eating vultures, and it’s not like we didn’t fight against Gotland. They killed my uncle, and I wanted to eat his flesh. Of course we will win, but the Russians are taking huge risks. What did you loot?"

"It's wheat." Rurik waited for Olegin. He said these words himself: "Since it is a bumper harvest this year, the price of wheat in the market will inevitably rise to no less than one silver coin for fifteen pounds. WeJust calculate it as fifteen pounds. Forty thousand silver coins were exchanged for six hundred thousand pounds of wheat. "

Olegin pinched his chin. He was a little hesitant. He always felt that he would suffer a big loss in the future.

Rurik hadn't finished speaking: "I Additional money is charged, which is called interest. You have to pay for the risks we Russians take. "

"Ah! This..."

Rurik's face was stern. He was no longer cute. Olegin realized a kind of coercion: "Interest, how much? "

Of course Olegin understood the concept of "interest". This abstract concept emerged naturally and was mainly reflected in the collection of land rent. Olegin actually understood it very well.

Usury! Today's era has no restrictions on interest rates. For the future of his Ross tribe, Rurik wants to be a "villain" this time.

"I want 100% interest, and you can do it." Get all the weapons soon, and when the harvest comes, you have to return me 1.2 million pounds of grain. Or after the battle, you give us Russians 80,000 silver coins. ”

Olegin almost chipped his few teeth. The boy in front of him was still handsome, but what he said was really cruel. This kid could say such a crazy interest rate! But! Weapons are just needed. Ah! The axes and spearheads made of "hard iron" can turn ordinary iron into waste. The leader doesn't want his men to be equipped with such magical weapons.

But he doesn't think about it either. Now, the Russians have come up with so many high-quality weapons in a short period of time. How is the military strength of the Russians really?

Olekin gritted his teeth and asked: "In that case, can your crossbow... ..."

"No. "Rurik refused directly without any consideration.

"You can't even buy one piece of wheat for ten thousand pounds? "

To be honest, Rurik is a little moved now, but this is still a matter of principle at this stage, and it cannot be broken. "No! It just doesn't work. Leader, have you thought about it? I don't believe it..."

Suddenly, Rurik suddenly came to his senses. He changed his honorific vocabulary and called Origen the king.

"Dear King, my respected King. , great king. "Rurik deliberately emphasized that the word "king" is nobler than "leader". He said it three times, which really made Olegin extremely excited.

"You...I haven't said this yet. , you have..." The excited Olegin's old face was shaking.

"Yes. I believe those legends are true, that's why you wear the crown. If you become king, my father and I will support it, as long as you meet the requirements of us Rus people. "Rurik has already discussed these plans with Otto, "We Rus people and Ostara people will support you at the official alliance meeting, even if we kneel down to you, we will set an example for other tribes. . If we do this, you will be honored, and you must also give us tangible benefits. For example, give us 80,000 silver coins and the equivalent amount of wheat. ”

Otto also expressed his opinion: "From the moment I saw your crown, I noticed your actions. As long as you meet our needs, I will take the initiative to salute you as a warrior."

It can be said that , Olegin, who was in a dilemma just now with sweat on his forehead, now faced with the promise of Otto and his son, he no longer had any reason to refuse.

What Origen needs most now is the support of the Ross people. He knows that the strength of this tribe cannot be underestimated, but he does not want the Ross people to really steal the show in future wars. Only the Olegin family of Mellaren can steal the show. The Russians are actually the best logistics team. How happy would it be if they could be appeased with a lot of money?

Because of Olegin, what he needs is power! What is needed is for some powerful tribes in the alliance to set a clear example and kneel down on one knee, which cannot be bought with a million pounds of wheat!

Oligen stood up and expressed his position solemnly: "I completely agree. You support me in becoming king, and I will give you huge benefits. We will always be brothers and comrades-in-arms..."