Chapter 490 A new plan, a new deal, and a new ambition

Rurik really underestimated the strength and endurance of the reindeer, and also underestimated the smoothness of the glacier.

Human beings are the endurance champions in the animal kingdom, and animals like reindeer are the endurance kings.

Rurik thought that most of the people would follow the sled and walk from Murmansk back to the stronghold of Fiskeleburg (Rovaniemi). This was a long march in the polar regions, and no matter how strong the people were, They are all huge and terrifying challenges.

But the reindeer seemed accustomed to this kind of life. The reindeer selected by Rurik were all good deer captured in the previous war against the Kovin tribe. Rurik forgot that those Kovin reinforcements came over on a sleigh. The sleigh was made up of two strong and docile doe, and they just pulled twenty people forward across the frozen Oulu River.

The remaining wheat is all food for the reindeer. Every two deer pull a sleigh carrying ten people, and behind the sleigh is a temporary sleigh carrying cargo.

Driven and corrected by the whip, the reindeer ran towards the south at a leisurely pace.

Rurik and everyone did not want to ask too much of the reindeer. After all, the reindeer pulls a heavy sled and needs someone behind to push it when it starts.

The reindeer move forward at a speed of about four kilometers per hour under the sun. This is their "leisure stroll", and the violent white mist they exhale proves that the deer are not relaxed.

We spent the whole day on the road, and at night we used the stars to estimate the time. Half of the day was spent on the road. Of course, the clever Saipolava focused on the reindeer's toileting situation.

"Reindeer peeing, what's there to see? Why are you paying attention to this?" Rurik rolled his eyes at Saipolava who suddenly spoke about it.

Saiborava was not embarrassed at all. She said proudly: "This is our wisdom. You...have never known it?"

"What do you know? You know about deer urine." ? Why am I paying attention to this?"

"Yes, because the reindeer... urinates at a constant time"

" Rurik on the sled suddenly tensed up. , "Really? I never heard of it before."

"Now you know." Saipolava continued to hold her head high with a proud look on her face, "The reindeer is the first to complete its morning urine. After it was completed for the ninth time, it took about half a day. This is how it is in spring and autumn. "

The current night time is still too long, and there is no clock reference for how long the team marches every day.

Everyone can only estimate by the stars. Saipolava’s explanation made Rurik immediately give instructions. The so-called Saipolava is the master of time management.

She is not a pendant in the team, or in other words, she has been observing deer urine to calculate time from the beginning. Generally, no one in Russia pays attention to this. Rurik didn't ask her or tell her, until now the team needed to manage time accurately.

Rurik decided to listen to Saipolava's statement. He stipulated that when the reindeer went to the toilet for the eighth time, it was when everyone set up camp and rested. This would be the way to design deer-drawn sleds in the future.

Saiporava does provide the wisdom of the Kovin people, orThe author said that all deer farmers know this too.

The interval between reindeer's toilet breaks is usually about eighty minutes. Rurik's saying that he set up camp after the eighth toilet break meant that the team ran for ten hours.

As a result, the team was pulled by the reindeer for a distance that was a little more than a marathon every day. The daily journey was not short, and the animal power was not seriously wasted.

Every time we set up camp, we fed the reindeer a lot of wheat grains, and each deer dug through the snowdrifts to eat the dead grass beside the glacier.

The Rus and Balmoks lit bonfires and grilled a large number of pre-made meat skewers.

Rurik was making skewers at the pole. A large amount of seal meat skewered on the branches was washed clean of blood. Everyone was very satisfied as they ate the oily roasted seal.

Seal oil can be absorbed by humans in large quantities. In such extreme cold, high blood lipids are actually an advantage. People rely on these oil-rich barbecued meats to obtain powerful heat, and their thick leather jackets insulate them from the cold air, even making them a little hot.

After making sufficient preparations, there was no embarrassment on the way back. After six full days, people arrived at the key mountain. The polar tundra under the mountain is the Ailon River (Kemi River). water source.

While resting here, the reindeer crazily gnawed on the hay under the snow everywhere, and the hunters also harvested something.

People still like steaming fresh meat, and arctic foxes and snowshoe hares come foraging uninvited!

These little creatures never imagined that they died inexplicably. They could not understand the sniper attack of the crossbow and were shot from a so-called safe distance.

A fierce flame ignited in the camp, dispelling all the cold. Next to the fire were a large amount of meat skewers, as well as grilled foxes and rabbits with their heads and tails removed.

"Continuing south, we will find the right river. According to my opinion, at the current speed, we will have to walk for another twenty days." Biyongni, who is playing string, is dissatisfied with the current speed.

“Let’s go like this.” Rurik shouted helplessly.

“We can go faster.”

“No, the deer is exhausted, so we can only walk on foot. I don’t want to be so tired.”

" Returning to your hometown?" Rurik smiled, "Bring a lot of goods back and let your tribe cheer!"

"Of course, who doesn't want to be a hero?"

When Biyoni mentioned this, Rurik had a strong idea of ​​visiting the Balmok tribe.

He tested, "I can visit your tribe, we are allies after all."

"You want to go with us?" Biyongni was really overjoyed when he heard that, Floki was also extremely happy. "You come to my tribe and we will treat you like family. So we'd better set off quickly. You see, we are moving very steadily on the glacier."

"No, let's go to the sea!"

Rurik's answer with a smile raised questions.

Biyongni clasped his ears, "Going by sea? How is it possible? It's really weird."

"Yes. I have a great idea. I want to take a big ship and rush to the Danes." territory, pass through the sea areas they control, and then follow the coastline to what you call Bergen, and then continue north to reach your fjord.”

Rurik’s words challenged Biyoni. To understand the concept of geography, he used a bonfire to build a simple sandbox with snow. "You see, this is our world, a world that has been explored."

Rurik built the entire Slovakia. Scandinavia and the attached Kola Peninsula, and even the Danish Jutland Peninsula. Not only that, he simply piled up two snowballs to point out that these were Britain and Ireland.

Even Iceland and Iceland were also piled up by him.

Compared to the huge world, people are indeed too small. Biyoni watched as Rurik spread the charcoal ash from the bonfire to blacken the so-called earth. He felt that he was overlooking the earth from the perspective of Asgard.

He couldn't believe it: "So if we go south from your Fort Ross and cross the sea between the two peninsulas, can we really go home?"

Rurik Patting the black hand, "Why don't you give it a try? Look, we have already seen the northernmost ocean, what dangers are there?"

"Could it be that the Danes just watch and let you swagger over? They will try to collect tribute, I heard about it."

"I don't care. If we encounter any obstruction, our attitude is to fight!"

"Can you do it?" Biyongni's suspicion is not unreasonable. He doesn't want everyone to be in danger alone on the same boat.

But now, the Danish army seems like that to Rurik. He has never been as afraid of Danish power as some people.

Why should we be afraid? In the vast Baltic Sea, every tribe should fear the Rus army.

Based on this idea, Rurik beat his chest hard, "Sooner or later, we Russians will have a decisive battle with the Danes. I have no intention of annihilating them, I just hope that they will spit out most of their benefits and hand them over." Me. If they don't agree, don't blame me for being ruthless." Hearing this, Biyongni could only put on an awkward smile. Isn't this considered arrogant?

However, Modgen, who knew it was not easy to interrupt, interjected: "The Russians have ships as big as mountains, I saw them! Such ships can ram any Danish ship, and any obstruction is courting death. "

"Really?" Biyongni immediately stared at Rurik suspiciously, hoping for an explanation.

"Indeed, what do you think the huge machine placed in Ironburg is for? It is a machine that can lift giant trees, and the giant trees are meant to be made into masts of giant ships."

Biyong Ni is a good guy, his heart is beating fast becauseI was so shocked that I broke into a cold sweat again, and I held back a sentence for a long time: "I want to see is to believe."

"You are so lucky, there will be two big ships launched soon, and you will be a spectator."

Rurik's words were more irritating than Yongni's tossing and turning. He longed for all kinds of things that could show his strength and strength. This was why he shaved his hair clean and forcibly tattooed pictures of ferocious beasts. A crossbow made him a madman who could easily kill walruses, and he began to plan to buy a huge Russian ship.

When they were full of meat, they wrapped themselves in leather and fell asleep around the campfire. Only those who took turns standing guard, holding crossbows, stayed awake.

While resting, Rurik was a little worried. Did he reveal too much to them? Now the top nobles among the settlers of Narvik Port are already well aware of the fact that Britain, Ireland and even Iceland exist, and their geographical location is not too far from the port.

If the Balmoks decide to go on an expedition to Britain, will they take the Rus with them? It must be like this, and it must be like this.

"Attack the kingdom of Britain? Northumbria? Then we really need to try whether the Aurora can sail across the Atlantic Ocean."

Rurik did not do it on a whim. When visiting the Balmok tribe, there is no possibility of interest disputes between the two parties. What they do have is the opportunity to make a lot of money together. Both sides face different military threats. It is good for everyone to strengthen the alliance.

Rurik did not preset a military action plan for 832. He did not want to use troops externally. He just wanted to quietly make a fortune in the next one or two years, accumulate strength, and then vigorously expand his power.

However, the twists and turns of the coast, complex waterways, and powerful enemies have strangled the throat from the Baltic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

Now Rurik wants to visit the Balmoks in Narvik Port by sea, but faces severe obstacles.

"Peter the Great at that time must have faced the exact same dilemma as me! I at least had to get free navigation rights into the Atlantic Ocean."

Rurik He has no intention of attacking Denmark now. The so-called revenge for the dead Swedish King Olegkin is not the dead king's son. Revenge is Karl's business. On the contrary, Rurik would be happy to go to the Danish waters and straits to provoke and act as a pirate to deliberately attack Danish merchant ships. Anyway, any form of revenge by the Danes cannot bypass the power of the Swedish Mälarens. With Melalen as a human shield, wouldn’t he be able to do whatever he wants?

Thinking of some points, Rurik actually laughed in his sleep. The laughter in his sleep shocked Saipolava, who was leaning next to him, and she didn't know why. She was even a little scared.

Once the plan was decided, Rurik did not want to deny it easily. On the way back, everyone had a new topic to talk about.

Rurik began to describe to all the Balmoks present the beauty of visiting by sea.

Everyone is in high spirits!

Rurik threatened that a large Russian ship could transport a hundred, one thousand pounds, so-called one hundred thousand pounds of various goods.Orders of magnitude are tantamount to astronomical figures for the Balmok people.

What exactly is Biyongni’s mission? I found the Russians, and after forming an alliance, the trade relationship was confirmed, and transporting the exchanged materials back was his last task.

Since the ultimate goal is to allow the tribe to obtain the goods, how is the most suitable way to transport them? Obviously, the safe arrival of a huge Russian merchant ship loaded with cargo is the best outcome.

In any era, the arrival of merchant ships from afar is the most exciting thing for the people. The Balmoks had a strong desire to trade, and Biyoni was sitting on the sled, shouting that the Rus would leave with a lot of salt.

But is salt really priceless?

Byongni gushed, "We can buy you a thousand pounds of good salt every year, and some leather. We need your high-quality iron."

"But, We won’t need too much salt, you need to bring out more goods, so that our trade will be more prosperous.” Rurik’s words immediately stabilized Biyongni.

The maritime trade in the Nordic world is one level worse than that in the Mediterranean.

That’s the Mediterranean! In comparison, the Baltic Sea is too small and the so-called commodity categories are too few.

Everyone was bored during the long march. Rurik simply said to Biyongni: "I will sell you the best iron weapons, and you will take the Balmok warriors to attack the British Island. There are a large number of them there. There are several kingdoms there, including gold and silver, slaves and wheat, all kinds of precious leather, cloth, and even some magical things. Their armies are very weak, and the guys in Bergen are there to grab gold and silver and slaves. , you can do the same."

Of course Biyongni knows about the British Island. Over the years, the news about the madman from Bergen who returned with the plundered treasure and became a great hero has deeply stimulated him. holding all the children. He told the truth: "I have had the idea of ​​going to sea to attack, but I have a lot of worries. Sometimes the sea is very violent and our ship will capsize. So, I... need your big ship. With a big ship, I can withstand any attack." Storm."

Byongni took the opportunity to test Rurik's attitude.

"You want a big boat? Okay, is it still a problem if you can buy it with money?"

Biyongni was overjoyed, "Great! How much does it cost? When can I get it?" Get it?"

"At least two hundred pounds of silver coins"

"Ah! So much? You...sell me a favor, less..." Biyongni was shocked. Jump, and what he says is also straightforward.

"No." Rurik said with a sullen face, "Brothers will settle the score. We are brothers. If I sell you at a low price, everyone will think that you are bullying my younger brother. Besides, , is it really expensive for you? Maybe it is. Don’t you claim that the Balmok tribe has no problem producing a thousand pounds of salt a year? You only need to continue to produce two thousand pounds of salt for two hundred pounds of silver coins. "Getting a big ship"

With Rurik's description, Biyongni felt hopeful again.head.

"Besides, if you get a big ship, you can go on expeditions at will. You can make more profits without worrying about the enemy. We are allies. When you go on expeditions in the future, please call me brother." "

What Rurik said, Biyongni felt that this man was really his brother. Also, who would look down on a beggar?

Biyongni solemnly expressed his position, "Give me two years, or less, and we Balmok people will work hard to make salt. At that time, please sell me the big ship."

"Okay, so wait until the ice and snow melt..."

" Of course we go to Balmok by sea." Rurik said solemnly: "I have to let you know the seaworthiness and combat effectiveness of the big ship, otherwise you won't be completely assured when you buy the ship."

"That's true. I think my father, the elders of the tribe, everyone will be satisfied with this deal."