Chapter 1,255 Businessmen Intending to Go to Rome

The pontoon bridge was soaked in water, and a large number of cavalry gathered on the right bank of the river. They continued to pass the bridge in an orderly manner in the formation of a centurion.

At this time, Carlotta and Fisk had already crossed the bridge in advance.

The Duchess still had the familiar face. She seemed to have suffered from fatigue along the way and looked a little haggard.

She dismounted, and a handsomely dressed boy stood beside her.

Of course the old man Jeringer Eriksson, who was ordered to guard Vitebsk, recognized this boy - the next generation of Duke!

"My lord." Under the attention of all the Danish travelers, the old man greeted Carlotta with his right hand on his heart.

"Excuse me. Old man, it seems that the gods have given you strength, and you easily defeated the severe winter."

The old man smiled slightly: "The fortress remains the same. We spent the winter safely, and the years to come will be just as smooth."

"That's good." She winked again: "There are...many guests behind you. What's going on with them? And the ships here? Are they from the Gulf of Riga?"

"That's what I'm introducing."

As a result, the Danish guests walked from behind the scenes to the stage.

There are two long ships temporarily parked in Vitebsk, belonging to two caravans. They are indeed merchants, but they can do business on the dangerous "Amber Road". In addition to transporting in-demand goods to the far south, they also carry enough weapons and will deliberately do some evil things to rob families and even risk their lives along the way. Taking huge risks to make some money by catching slaves.

There are two leaders here, one is called Harold and the other is called Bjorn.

"Two names that are too casual. It doesn't matter..."

Carlotta suppressed her words in her heart. She had no ill will towards these Danes who were said to be from the Danish community in the Gulf of Riga and who followed Boss Stekander, and naturally she had no good feelings towards them.

On the other side, mighty cavalry troops were crossing the bridge one after another. They saw the Ross Cavalry last year, and now the bald general is here again! Only the eldest brother, Stekander, had met Rurik in person, and the brothers had only heard of his name but had not yet met him.

The female noble standing in front of her is Duke Ostara. Although she is a female, the boy next to her is really a son of King Rus?

These Danes recognized the Rus flag, and even more so the bull-headed flag of Ostara.

Having witnessed their combat operations last year and facing the new cavalry tactics, they asked themselves that if a conflict broke out with these ruthless people, it was obvious who would lose.

They were congratulating themselves - fortunately, the boss led everyone to surrender to King Rus.

The long march made the soldiers miserable, and of course the soldiers could continue to endure it. Since the duchess had promised to train in Vitebsk, now was the time to fulfill her promise.

Flat areas are full of areas where houses can be built, swamps can be transformed into farmland, and meadows everywhere can now be used for grazing cattle and sheep.

All the supplies consigned by the horses were unloaded, and most of the war horses took off their saddles and bridles. The soldiers took care of their horses and personally took them to the grass to graze freely.

Another group of soldiers buried stoves for cooking and went to nearby forests to cut down small trees to build temporary wooden shelters.

Vitebsk is now just a military fortress with wooden walls. It can accommodate a limited number of settlers. After 700 soldiers were suddenly stationed, everyone could only camp outdoors.

They have no plans to build a permanent camp. After a few days of rest, the army will go straight to Polotsk in the downstream area. The army may have to be stationed there for half a year.

Carlotta has already made a plan. As the saying goes, a sudden army will make the locals extremely frightened. As long as the time is long enough, the locals realize that this foreign army is not harmless, and they will eventually get used to their existence, even if this is This kind of forced tolerance is extremely bitter psychologically.

In the west is a huge orange-red sunset, and the soldiers are drowsy under the soft light.

Oats are mixed with wheat and boiled together. When it is almost cooked, a piece of butter and a piece of salty cheese are added.

The air is filled with an indescribable mellow aroma. The people in Ostara have long been accustomed to this kind of food, and it has become a coveted temptation for the temporary Danes.

Everyone spoke Norse, and the Danes couldn't resist the temptation and simply took their pottery bowls to the open-air pots and stoves to get close to the Ostarans or the Rus.

Help or refuse?

Then give it to them.

Carlotta thought of a possibility. Her principality was in the process of employing people. If the Danish immigrants in the Gulf of Riga were willing to join her, it would undoubtedly greatly strengthen the principality's strength.

That night, the fortress was destined to stay up all night.

Supplies from the north have greatly enriched the defenders' supplies. Today, there are guest merchants, and the situation in Vitebsk is good.

In the largest wooden house in the fortress, a feast was naturally held.

All the oil lamps were lit and the interior was brightly lit.

The duchess was seen sitting cross-legged, her braids hanging down on her chest, and her right arm holding a thick glass high, filled with real wine.

"Honor the gods! Brothers, drink with me!"

Old man Jellinger and several other resident leaders are eligible to participate in the banquet. Glassware is not uncommon in Russia, but wine is more rare.

They were surprised that their lord the Duke specially placed a short, fat wooden barrel on a rough table eucalyptus, pried open the special stopper on the barrel, and poured the nectar like blood into the cup.

What they didn't know was that wine from Nassau's Lahn River had already completed its first commercial shipment to Ross. Only the first time made the people of the capital realize that wine might no longer be an overly precious delicacy.

Even their own people were so surprised. The two Danish business leaders Bjorn and Harold present had their eyes widened and were at a loss. The precious wine was poured into the crystal cup. The Duchess could laugh. A swig?

and……

"Is this true? I, a lowly person, can drink as much as I want?" Businessman Harold looked flattered.

"You are not lowly. I know that you are Danes living in Riga, and your boss voted for my husband Rurik. What do you think? I will give you a chance. There are many talents in Russia, and many good men lack the opportunity to show their strength. Why not follow? Me! I am working as a mercenary in my principality of Ostara. You see! This old man Olaf has not been very popular since he followed me."

"Him?" The businessman Harold opened his eyes wide, observed carefully, and couldn't help blurting out: "Harold, when did you change your name to Olaf?"

"Just to avoid having the same name as you."

A not-so-cold joke made Carlotta laugh softly.

"Forget it. I have known Olaf's identity for a long time, so it doesn't matter. Thanks to this person, I know a lot about you."

Of course, Carlotta didn't know that this guy with the pseudonym Olaf had brought a group of brothers to work as mercenaries for the old Pine Needle Manor. That was twelve years ago, and the person who knew about it was either missing or dead. Olaf's identity as known to the community was still just a businessman, and his identity was no different from Harold, who was shocked.

At this moment, the young Karl was sitting next to his mother. He imitated an adult and drank a little wine. Because the low-alcohol fermented wine was too sweet, the boy felt very comfortable after drinking a little. However, the feeling of being tipsy quickly made him dizzy. Lake lake.

Karl simply curled up next to his mother and fell asleep. She was a little dissatisfied with her son's lack of manliness.

"Who is a man if he can't drink? Oh, Rurik's drinking capacity doesn't seem to be very good..."

Carlotta drank herself until her face turned red. Her energy was still good, and she couldn't help but start talking: "Harold, or Harald. Half of the hundred northern warriors can be called this name, and the rest The other half is also called Eric. So..." She looked at the two businessmen: "Where are you going? Isn't it always... to do business with the Smolensk people?"

"This..." Harold, who was also slightly drunk, hurriedly denied: "We all know that Ross is dissatisfied with Smolensk. If we do business with them, wouldn't we be seeking death?"

"That's good. I heard that people tell the truth after drinking. I believe what you said is true. So, where are you going?"

"It's the south, to Rome." This time it was Bjorn who added.

"Rome?"

"Yes."

"How bold. Ah..." Carlotta thought of many things. She knew very well that Rurik talked confidently about the real and illusory Rome. "The Rome you went to? Is it easy to get there?" she asked urgently.

"Easy, not very easy."

"how do I say this."

"As long as we push the boat through the damn mud in the south, we can reach a big river. Then we just need to go down the river, and we can finally reach a place called Kherson." Businessman Bjorn said the action very simply, But this man was drunk. Only God knows whether it was really simple or he was bragging.

Let’s just take it as real!

Carlotta didn't take it too seriously and continued: "Then, I will pray for you two and hope that this business will go well. How will you return in the end?"

Businessman Harold hurriedly added: "Now those Polotsk people have no longer set up roadblocks. As far as we know, those guys are very respectful to you Russians."

"Of course they have to be in awe of us! So, they are really in awe?" Even though she was drunk, Carlotta realized that the few words contained important information.

"In my opinion, they don't dare to rebel against you. Now they even allow us merchants from Riga to dock at their dock. It's incredible. In the past, they would take the initiative to attack us..."

After the merchant Harold finished speaking, Bjorn continued to add: "The road has been completely restored. As long as you guard here, the Smolensk people will not threaten the trade line. We people can successfully reach Kherson and Those Romans were doing business.”

Carlotta nodded: "What will you sell?"

"It's amber. A lot of amber."

Bjorn said this, and Harold gave the brother a look, thinking that it would be better not to reveal such a big thing to others, lest his goods be looted, but the words had already been spoken.

"What can you bring back?" Carlotta continued to ask.

“A lot of interesting things in Rome are not available in the north.”

"Like? Slave?" she asked.

What Carlotta said was very straightforward. She really didn't understand what good things could be obtained from the Eastern Roman Empire, and even the concept of "Eastern Rome" was extremely vague. The biggest problem she faces is still that the population of the Principality of Ostara is too insufficient. Now it is necessary to fill the population through various means.

Even though the two businessmen were a little drunk, their intoxication dissipated almost instantly when they mentioned business-related matters.

They heard that the female noble had plans to plunder the population and couldn't help but gear up, and then directly heard "What kind of slave do you want?"

She wasn't particularly concerned about these things, but she didn't expect the two businessmen to be serious about it, so she cheered up decisively.

"Except the old ones, I want them all. If possible, it's better to be young women. The more people, the better."

Her words were a bit surprising, and the merchant Bjorn asked cautiously: "Any young woman?"

"As long as you can bring them back to work. I need a lot of women. They will marry my warriors and then give birth to more little warriors. You can also capture some men and bring them back, but you must have as many as possible."

Carlotta kept emphasizing the verb "capture", as if these Danish business groups could catch people like rabbits when they ran into Roman-controlled areas.

Businessman Bjorn had to explain: "If...we capture people in Kherson, we will be surrounded and killed by the Romans! Even we ourselves will become slaves."

"If they attack you, then kill them. I don't think you are weak."

"The Romans are very powerful." Businessman Harold had to explain again, "When we do business, we have to pay a tribute. As for getting slaves, the only way is to buy them with money. As for the young woman you need most... It might be a little difficult.”

"What's so difficult? Maybe you're just too weak. Just wait and see! Sooner or later, Ross's army will go south. Ross will attack Rome (referring to Frank) in the west this year, and will also loot Rome in the east in the future. Haha, They are all weak!"

Carlotta smiled, quite arrogantly. "Bald" Fisk here also joined in the arrogant laughter.

They have the ability to laugh wildly, because Ross's awe of the Frankish Kingdom is now gone.

The two businessmen didn't understand this. Is this a sign of confidence? It's probably more because of pride in what you know.

Harold, the old man whose alias was Olaf, couldn't laugh, and neither did the other two businessmen.

Legally, slavery in the Eastern Roman Empire had long been abolished. Of course this is only abolition in a legal sense.

The destination for the two merchants and their brothers was Kherson, the only Eastern Roman stronghold in the Crimean Peninsula, which is today's port city of Sevastopol.

It was a Roman commercial city and the northernmost city in the empire. Has slavery really disappeared from cities? On the surface, yes, but the people who work for the nobles are filled with a large number of hired workers without freedom.

That was the end of the Amber Road. From the perspective of northern merchants, the so-called hired workers were essentially slaves.

Purchasing the ownership of some "employees" from Roman merchants or industrial owners is not a problem, but the northern merchants do not believe in their gods, so there is an opportunity for the Romans to rip off their goods.

Because it must be a loss-making transaction, merchants will buy other goods from the Romans, but they have no interest in the population.

The two knew that this great northern nobleman would never suddenly take out a sum of money for their plan at the wine table, so they hired their brothers to go to Rome to buy people. Maybe she forgot what happened today after she got drunk.

For the two of them, the last time they went to Kherson was three years ago. That operation was full of risks. They sold some amber and imported rare goods from Rome. The goods were quickly digested in the city of Riga.

Sell ​​amber in exchange for lapis lazuli, and trade in colorful stones. Both are hard currencies in trade.

The next most important imported goods are daily necessities such as salt, cloth, and metal supplies. However, after the trade line with Rus was established, in 842, Riga received daily necessities imported from the Kingdom of Rus for the first time. Rome imported almost only rare luxury goods that could be brought back and sold at a good price.

Then try it!

Since the Duchess of Ostara wants some slaves from Rome, the brothers try one for her if she is willing to pay the right price.

No one confirmed the empty deal over the wine table, and Carlotta did not emphasize the matter again after she regained consciousness the next day.

She didn't mention it, and neither did the two businessmen.

After waking up, the merchants also deliberately paid attention to what supplies these cavalry brought.

As a result, they noticed that the dismounted cavalry was actually digging a hole in a selected flat land with a shovel, and some green particles were stepped into the soil. Is it a kind of wheat? It is said that it is called pea, and it was obtained by the Ross army from Frank. It has been successfully planted in Yin Ermen Lake in the north. This year, the Ross Kingdom is promoting its planting, and Ostara, as an important part of the kingdom, cannot stay away.

No one has ever seen peas grow. Many people have seen peas themselves for the first time. They only know that they taste soft and glutinous after being cooked and are very comfortable to eat.

No one knows what the future holds for the peas also grown in Vitebsk.

Carlotta has a lot of bean seeds with her, which will also be introduced to Polotsk. In her opinion, this is a good tool for direct rule.