In just one afternoon, all the cargo carried by the Avora was sold out by the Balmoks.
The supplies in the cabin were replaced by a batch of good quality salt, which was what the Russians longed for most.
But among the Balmoks, their purchases did not decrease at all because the supplies were sold out. Those ordinary people probably don't have too many expectations for buying some goods. Only a few lucky people bought the last remaining supplies, and the main supplies were snapped up by dozens of powerful families.
It was these big families. The representatives they sent kept shouting under the big ship, and went directly to the home of the leader Magnute, trying to talk directly with Rurik, the leader of the Rus.
Everyone’s attitude is surprisingly consistent, that is, they hope that the Russians will bring more goods when they come next time.
However, Rurik is not there.
A group of men gathered in front of Magnut’s house and started talking.
"Ostan, you actually personally invited the Russians to your home. What are you plotting?"
"If he does this, he is afraid that the Russians will come over again next time, okay? Everything has been bought by the guys from Washobi."
"That's not okay. We are not poor people, so why should they take advantage of it?"
" Yes! By doing this, Ostein is destroying the unity of the brothers."
...
Perhaps people are always willing to share hardships, but they cannot share happiness because of selfish desires.
Chief Magnut and Biyongni tried their best to appeal to everyone to calm down and stop using bad words to hurt the harmony.
"Everyone, please listen to me." Magnut waved his big hand and said: "We will hold a meeting soon. The Russians intend to explain many important things to us. I learned some things, but the Russians There are obviously more ideas."
"Do you know something?" a strong man shouted suddenly.
"I know best." Biyongni raised his head and said: "Barda, my friend, I know something about the situation."
"You! Biyongni, you are in Ross I have been living there for a while, and my brothers happened to ask you something. Tell us what you know now.”
Barda is also outstanding among many Balmok men. He is young, powerful and wealthy. Courageous, his father was newly deceased, so he naturally took charge of the entire family. These people and the family power behind them are really the reason why Balmok can condense into the backbone of a behemoth.
Those who insist on hiding in the fjord are tantamount to cowardice. People present are willing to go out, but unfortunately they lack leaders and opportunities.
The wonderful adventures of the Biyongni brothers and the brave men of the tribe in the past year are really the talk of every family, and any ambitious person intends to imitate them.
On behalf of his father, he publicly announced something to his brothers: "You have all seen the Russian ship! I saw it at the Russian port.A large number of ships have arrived, and their shipbuilding workshops are still building new ships! The leader of Rus strongly desires an alliance with us and is willing to sell us a large ship. ”
As soon as this statement came out, the atmosphere became lively again.
However, new major issues followed one after another. There are two main issues. One is to purchase a large ship. Who owns it? Secondly, what is the price of the big ship?
Because of the Nordic tradition of the Balmok tribe, the ownership of some important things is essentially owned by everyone, such as a ship as huge as an iceberg. She is of course the wealth of the tribe, and the entire tribe should pay for the ship.
The most critical issue is the price of the ship.
When Biyongni pointed out. The price was as high as two thousand pounds of good salt, and everyone was shocked.
It was as if Biyongni had become a despicable liar, tricking everyone into raising an extremely high price, and finally at the time of the transaction.
Yes! Is this bullying an honest person for two thousand pounds of salt?
Bi Yongni is angry. His cheeks were as tight as a toad. He held back a sentence for a long time: "If you have any complaints, don't target me. These are the opinions of Rurik, a Russian. When the meeting starts, you go to negotiate with him. ”
As night fell, the boiling Balmok finally calmed down.
Rurik and his party had to live in Washobi with a group of ordinary local fishermen.
People learned that this young man from Rus was going to show everyone the right way, so that everyone could build a new home in a warm land. Hundreds of Vashobi came in droves. They lit more bonfires, looked around Rurik himself, and then praised him for being such a beautiful boy. He must be a good man from Asgard.
This night, Rurik was helpless. Even so, according to the locals, the place where the two live is considered high-end.
Their houses are mainly ordinary fishermen. They built walls with stones and soil, piled soil outside the walls, and made rough wooden boards from tree trunks on the roof. They were more like rabbits living in caves. Their simplicity really left Rurik speechless. .
At night, despite the brief contact, Nolen already regarded Rurik as a relative that she could not let go of. What is love at first sight? Even if she lives here. In this simple place, Rurik didn’t complain, and he had nothing to say.
“The wind outside is a little different. "Rurik murmured in the darkness.
Nolen twisted his body. She seemed a little cold, so she clenched the arm of the person next to her and squealed a few times.
"I'm still here I thought Washebi was a wealthy being, but I didn't expect that they spent all their wealth on buying ironware. No matter what, the quality of my iron has to be far beyond their knowledge. Taking their group of fishermen to attack Britain? They have to do itThe consciousness of fighting to death. Nolen...are you awake? "
The girl twisted her body again and hummed twice.
"Okay. You go to sleep."
It's a new day, and the entire fjord is filled with fog.
When Rurik woke up, he twisted his body and felt that he was all wet. This is true. In this way, when he realized what had happened, he could only sigh. Living on the land on the Atlantic coast must be accompanied by moisture.
A new storm is brewing in the far north. Today's heavy fog was just a prelude.
It was not until noon that the strong sunshine blew away the weapons, and Rurik brought some local products sent by the Vashobi (a little cheese and goat's milk). A bag of salt), take a boat back to the home port of Balmok. In fact, according to the current situation, Balmok is a large home port combined with multiple villages of hundreds of people. According to European standards, the Balmok people can fully claim to have established a kingdom. After all, from all aspects, she has all the conditions for establishing a kingdom.
Place Vashobi and Rurik. Being able to go deep into the ordinary lives of the locals, based on his own memories, it is not difficult to see that the living conditions of this group of people are strikingly similar to those of the Russians in the past - they were all very poor.
After that. During the next two days, he walked around the main area of the fjord settlement accompanied by Nolen and Floki.
Especially the rugged road leading to the snow-capped mountains where the three of them were standing. /p>
Floki proudly raised his right hand and pointed at the mountain: "Go straight along the road, and we will find a lake when we climb the hill. Some people live near mountain lakes. Last year Biyongni and I boarded a boat on the lake and followed the river flowing eastward, and finally found you. ”
There are no roads in the world. Pedestrians trample their way out with their feet. When there are no roads, rivers are the best way. But compared to rivers, the sea is obviously better.
The so-called "Wangshan Road" was a dead horse. When Rurik learned that Floki and others had walked for three days to reach the mountain lake last year, he was sure that he would not join in the fun now. We have to take a land route back to Russia, but in terms of time efficiency, taking the sea route is a long way round, and the speed is really fast.
The weather seems to have changed, and it is supposed to be warm in the south. Why did the wind suddenly become chilly?
Rurik did not pay further attention to such changes, because the powerful families could no longer endure it. In the public forum of Balmok, there was a scene. The meeting was officially held.
What was going to be discussed in this meeting?
The men in Balmok spoke very simply. After sitting in an important position, a sharp question came to me.
The strong man Barda was elected as a spokesman by a kind of doubter, so he questioned the issue of buying a big ship: "Rurik of Rus, the brothers have discussedWell, we Balmok people are essentially willing to buy one of your big ships. But how can we get the price you quoted for two thousand pounds of good salt? Since you intend to form an alliance with us, you should show greater sincerity. Otherwise, brothers will only regard you as a good businessman from afar, but they will not really regard you as a brother. ”
When Rurik thought about this question, he had already discussed it with Osten in Vashobi. Besides, who loses when two thousand pounds of salt is used to buy a big ship?
He winked at Ostein.
Sure enough, Ostein stood up and said to the more than 20 brothers present: "The price offered by the Russians is already very cheap. This young Rurik, he and Biyoni swore to Odin that they would be half brothers in this life. It was for this friendship that he reduced the price of four thousand pounds of salt by half. "
Is there such an inside story? People started talking about it.
However, as the spokesperson of the doubters, Barda asked: "So, we still made money? Haven't you ever thought about how much effort we put into making just two thousand pounds of salt? "As he spoke, he stared at Rurik again: "Beautiful boy, may your heart be as pure as snowflakes. You are a businessman, so you shouldn't go overboard in plundering our wealth. "
"You? Rurik put on an angry face: "Maybe your leader has more say." I didn't force you to buy it, and I did give you a preferential price. After twenty days of sailing, I am not just giving you some money. Do you know how much materials we consume to build a big ship? What kind of fighting are we going through as we pass through Danish territory? "
When asked, Barda was speechless.
Suddenly someone shouted again: "Magnute's fairy is already the wife of Rurik. This is the biggest benefit that the Russians can earn. "
Magnut coughed twice and refuted: "My daughter and her marriage are another matter. Whoever Nolen marries is my right! ”
As soon as he finished speaking, some discordant boos came from the crowd.
Didn’t we mention that Nordic’s parliament should be a harmonious existence? How come there are still changes? The possibility of becoming the scene of a quarrel?
Rurik hurriedly said loudly: "We in Rus have a lot of goods, but you only have salt and a small amount of sheep in exchange for me. You are short of gold, silver, and other goods. I found that your settlements are also very bad, and the people live like prairie dogs. Maybe you have adapted to this kind of life? Don’t you like exploring the outside world? Or is it that only a small number of brave people plan to go out, and more people like to fight in a nest? "
After being scolded, someone pulled his beard and shouted: "We have always wanted to explore the outside world and expand new territories. However, our expansion must compete with the Bergens. As for the place east of the mountains, that is your territory. ”
“You are all willing to explore the outside world. Why not do it? ”
What did Rurik want to say?Chief Gnut has understood everything. Biyoni directly told his father that the Russians had a desire to explore the western sea, or that this desire to explore mainly lies in Rurik. Because Magnute himself never knew anything about the western sea, some of the most basic things were deeply rooted in people's hearts.
Of course, he remains steadfast in the legendary sea and abyss at the end of the world. However, due to the results of his son Biyongni's exploration last year, Magnute believed that the terrible abyss was still very far away, and it would take several months of continuous sailing for mortals to peer into the dark space beyond the world.
Magnut pretended to be helpless and said: "We long for wheat-growing land, warm pastures, and better herring fisheries. Our young people are eager to go out and have a career, so many of them go We want to be rich and we are fed up with this barren fjord. Who can give us a chance to go out?"
Look at this question, how wonderful it is? !
Rurik laughed loudly: "Okay, I will give you a chance to expand. You go and plunder resources, especially gold and silver. You will trade with us after you become rich."
p>Magnut pretended to be shocked again, and asked weakly: "We join forces to attack Bergen? No! There are one hundred thousand of them!"
"It's the British one The huge island is where your family’s Briton slaves come from.”
“I bought those slaves from the market in Bergen, and there are many other slaves from our tribe. Purchased from Hedebe."
Rurik continued to question: "Then why don't you attack the source of slaves? The land in Britain is fertile. The land there is suitable for growing wheat and grazing, and the surrounding seas are rich. Plenty of herring. Why don't you organize an army to conquer it? The Danes are already trying, and the Bergens are busy catching slaves and selling them to you at a high price. If you don't do it, they will have all the good places. . When they get richer and you still stand still, do you think this is a good thing? When they are strong enough, they will not hesitate to attack you."
The venue was suddenly silent.
At this moment, no one thought that because Rurik was just a young man, what he said was worthy of question.
Rurik's words pointed out two very fatal problems for the Balmoks.
First, rush to Britain, plundering can make you rich immediately, and settling down can make you rich for a long time.
Second, a new era has arrived. If the Balmoks do not act boldly, everyone will eventually be annexed by the powerful Bergens.
For them, the second situation is more fatal, because this is the most acute problem that the people present are facing.
Barda, who was elected as the "Harlequin", raised his fists: "Rurik of Rus is right! Those Bergen people have asked you to join them many times. Why? To join them, we must obey those people's orders and give themPay tribute to our leader. ”
“Yes! "Ostan also stood up with his fists raised high: "I support Rurik's proposition. I only represent all the people of Washobi. Rurik knows the correct route to Britain. I will take my friends to Britain. I will occupy a warm grassland to build a new homeland and breed a large population to become strong. ”
Ostan’s words were too straightforward, and now everyone understood. Before this meeting, Rurik went to Ostein’s place as a guest, which already explained too many things.< /p>
Ostan is obviously a die-hard supporter of the Russians. People can't help but think carefully about how to make those people support the Russians. This Rurik of Russia must have promised a lot of good things.
p>Based on the second fatal question, the smart people immediately thought of a new situation.
Since the Russians are very powerful, wouldn't it be a coincidence for Balmok to form an alliance with them? ! This thing was what Biyoni, the son of the leader Magnut, tried his best to promote, especially the description of the ten warriors who had been to Rus. They knelt down facing the first ray of sunshine after the long night and praised Odin's greatness. On the occasion, they also witnessed the oath of alliance between the three men.
The Balmok people felt strange about making an alliance through blood, but if they think about it carefully, this ceremony is a great symbol, symbolizing the connection between different bloodlines. Through bloodshed, people have a common ancestry.
In line with the current atmosphere, leader Magnut, who has the most say, persuaded everyone: "I have decided to form an alliance with the Russians. You listen to me, because the relationship between Bergen and Danes is getting closer. We and the Bergen people were essentially enemies, although we did not actually go to war. But the Russians and the Danes were already in a long state of war. They have ambitions to conquer the known world, and we and the Rus should unite to protect themselves. When necessary, coalition forces can be organized to resist their invasion. ”
“Then unite! "Ostan continued to raise his fist: "Brothers, look at it! Rurik will lead us to attack Britain, and we will plunder and open up the land ourselves. When we make a fortune, we can buy more Russian ships. When we get stronger, the guys in Bergen won't look down on us anymore. ”
“Yes! United! Then, attack Britain! I, Barda, fully support this idea of making a fortune. "It was Barda who spoke. Rurik was a little strange. Maybe this strong man was a villain from the beginning?
In fact, Barda was really convinced. Or, in other words, he was The desire to make a fortune occupies the whole mind. All the problems lie in the poverty of Balmok. If he gets rich by attacking Britain, wouldn't all the problems in the past be solved? Besides, it is not just as simple as making a fortune? Many young men cannot get women because of poverty. If they organize an army to fight in Britain and plunder the women there, the problem of marrying wives will also be solved for the explorers of the past who rushed to the sea. There is no return, that's because they lack experience.
But this Rurik was completely different. The Russians came prepared.
Barda has gained a new supporter of Rurik. Upon seeing this, the doubters were immediately concerned. Two words were shouted rhythmically throughout the chamber.
"Unite! Britain!"
"Unite! Britain!"
......
In an extremely warm atmosphere, Ma Gnut smiled and slapped his legs, signaling everyone to be quiet for now.
“Now, we should choose an excellent day to confirm the alliance between our two races through a ceremony. I decided to sacrifice on the summer solstice! On that day, we swore to Odin. On that day, it was also me On the wedding day of Nolen and Rurik of Ross. Also, since everyone thinks that following the Ross people to attack Britain, we will take advantage of the warm period of this year to make preparations and choose the bravest one! Soldiers, let’s organize an army to launch an attack.”
People were excited again, and Rurik was immersed in the atmosphere. He knew that at this moment, the core force of the entire Balmok tribe would essentially obey. own scheduling.
As for attacking Britain, Rurik counted the time, and he was sure that he had plenty of time and opportunities. Besides, due to climate factors, I decided to return home between September and October. Although the climate is already very cold, the Avora can rush through the Danish-controlled area at the fastest speed along with the strong Arctic cold.