Chapter 1,329 Blue Fox in Fort New Rose

There was no large fleet returning to the port, but a lone ship that was already inferior to the Sea Monarch returning against the long ice.

What can she bring to the table?

It's just that this ship seems to be alone, and it seems to be a small existence in the huge New Rossburg.

Residents here are busy stocking up on winter supplies, while hunters and deer herders are preparing for their winter operations.

The continuous snowfall in the past few days has made going out to sea for big fish a profitless operation.

Now that the wind and snow have stopped, even if the sea surface is full of broken ice, we can still fish for a while before the entire bay freezes, because the general public needs to catch fish, and they can get as much cod as they want, which is rich in fish oil.

People wearing thick leather jackets walk around the fish market, and whenever a fishing boat docks, a crowd of people will buy the fish, which is frozen solid. Cod and herring are the most abundant, and there are also perch, pike and other freshwater fish caught from the Neva River and Lake Ladoga.

Frozen fish are laid out like bricks and fishmongers sell them by the strip. Since they don’t use scales and other measuring tools, buyers and sellers inevitably have to bargain, which further adds to the liveliness of the fish market.

If there is a fish seller, there must be a bread seller.

The monopolist's mill in the capital has the priority to obtain wheat from the granary, and Aslaki's bread bakery basically monopolizes the supply of bread and scones in the capital.

Her industry is almost like a company. Naturally, such a company has a high degree of interest tied to Rurik himself. She must hand over a large amount of profits as taxes to the state treasury, so that she has the right to take excess profits from Rurik's granary. Grain share sustains industry operations.

There are multiple furnaces made of clay, bricks, and stones, with a number of metal brackets placed inside. One furnace can bake up to fifty loaves of bread as big as a basin at a time. Bread takes a whole day to bake at a time. Baking at such a low temperature ensures that the surface is not wet and the inside is cooked. Naturally, such bread needs to be cut with a knife when it is freshly baked, and then sold on a scale. Once it is dry, it is cut with a saw and sold at a higher price.

The capital has a group of the wealthiest people in the entire Kingdom of Russia. They are the vested interests of the war, the beneficiaries of business, and even a large number of people who serve these wealthy people. Their income can ensure that they have bread to eat and fish soup to drink every day, and they can spend this winter comfortably.

The demand is increasing, especially for the preferences of some visiting nobles, and batches of sweet pastries are flowing out from this large bakery.

Blue Fox had just arrived in the capital. What he didn't know was that Jevlo, the de facto ruler of the Finnish County and Rurik's old subordinate, had already arrived in New Roseburg with a group of brothers to stay as a guest.

All the "ash tree poles" brought were sold out, and hunters were willing to pay a higher price to buy them, thereby personally building a powerful single long wooden bow, diversifying hunting activities. Similarly, when the king summons the army to launch a war, all Orions, as descendants of Rus, should automatically join the army with weapons and be incorporated into the citizen soldiers stationed in the capital. The Russian army emphasizes long-range attacks, and all kinds of good shooters can find their own positions in the army.

Javlo built the Count of Finland's mansion in the capital. It was not big, but it also had high-rise buildings.

The main roads in the capital, especially Nevsky Prospekt, the longest street running through the entire city along the Neva River. There are all double-storey buildings on both sides of the road, many of which have been built to three floors. Their construction methods have indeed absorbed the characteristics of urban residential buildings in the Frankish and British areas, which allowed Ross to build high-rise buildings on a large scale.

The same is true for the Count of Finland's Mansion. Javlo brought his brothers here at first, but now he plans to bring his wife and children, so he can simply spend the Hanukkah in the capital. After all, this place is really lively.

Today should have been a normal day. He was standing on the roof terrace of the mansion. In this dangerous place without guardrails, he could clearly see the high attic of the palace, and he could see the gradually busier and last busier buildings after winter. port, as well as the entire Russian fleet anchored in Kronshtadt.

The First Giant Ship was undergoing sea trials throughout the summer, and formed a formation with other ships in a large enough anchorage to conduct frequent fleet navigation experiments. The Sea Monarch has overshadowed the hard-working sailing destroyers of the past, and her phantom is no longer shocking——

Throughout the warm season, the people in the city were familiar with her existence, as if she had existed since ancient times.

On such a peaceful day, a sailing cruiser suddenly passed by Kotlin Island not far away and rushed towards the port. The guys from the Navy even sent a ship to contact her?

Javlo is already forty years old, which is actually not that old. However, people in Finland can only live to be over fifty on average. Whether men or women live to be sixty, they are said to be blessed by God.

What he doesn't really know is that the majority of people in the Suomi tribe, which is the main body of Finland, have short life spans precisely because their living conditions are so bad. As long as you strengthen your protection against the cold, eat better food, pay attention to hygiene, and encounter no disasters in your life, it is not difficult for a person to live peacefully to the age of seventy.

Jevro just thinks that he is old mentally, but he has no regrets. His sons are rising, and he is satisfied with having successors in the family.

He is old and his eyesight is still good.

He stared at the large ship that was approaching the port. Even from a long distance, he squinted and saw the ship's bow number clearly.

"Ah? Sperosvilia? Isn't that the flagship of the expeditionary force?" Yevlo was puzzled. He looked left and right and found that there was no big ship escorting the ship. "Returning alone? It's too abnormal. Isn't it possible? yes……"

Javlo suppressed his inner worries, immediately gathered his people and hurriedly left the Finnish community in the capital, leading the team to the port pier where the naval ships were parked.

When he arrived, some nobles had been at the dock for some time.

Governor Cornuson and his son had learned of the situation from the navy courier and arrived at the dock without stopping.

Blue Fox has already taken the guys off the boat. At this moment, Blackbird Telesia is standing next to him like a close attendant, with a wide leather hat on his head slightly tilted to cover his delicate face.

At the same time, the human-powered cranes at the port have begun to work. The port workers who boarded the ship were ordered to form a human chain to transport the goods in the cabin to the deck one by one, and then put them directly into the net, relying on the principle of leverage to move them The heavy goods are moved to the open area of ​​the dock, and the materials are stacked into categories to facilitate follow-up operations.

"Blue Fox, you came back too suddenly. Only the flagship returned. If someone hadn't reported the truth quickly... you would have scared everyone!" Little Cornuson, who was already the governor, couldn't hide his joy and smiled.

The joy of little Conuson was not that he saw the blue fox. The two of them were not familiar with each other. What he liked most was the large cylindrical oak barrels that had begun to be piled up. Obviously, the people who pioneered in the Frankish world did not break their promise. These wooden barrels must contain all kinds of fine wines, and the most of them must be wine.

Blue Fox was actually a little regretful, at least he finally arrived in the capital and his tired body could finally take a good rest. He asked deliberately: "What? Are you really worried that I will encounter trouble in Frank? As you can see, how could I get so many treasures without victory?"

"It's all wine? It's really a treasure. Brother, besides wine...what else is there?"

"And money! Gold coins, silver coins, and some things I can't name, like silver or lead."

"Frank's mysterious baby? Very interesting." Little Conuson suddenly became interested.

"As for the strange metal thing, maybe that guy from Kamne can know about it. If he doesn't know about it, I'm afraid I'll have to let the king decide. It's a pity. I heard that the king is not in the capital. It's already winter, so he should come."

"Yes. The standing armies stationed in the capital have gone south. The king personally transferred them all."

"What is it for? Is it an expedition?" Blue Fox asked subconsciously.

"I heard they are training a new army. There is a piece of news you must not know."

"what is that?"

"Hehe. Of course, we will continue to increase our troops. The king has revealed the news that preparations for the capital have begun. Ross will continue to attack Frank. Brother, I'm afraid you will be ordered to go next year." Little Konuson couldn't help laughing. Hiding a hint of regret in his heart.

Just because he also hopes to participate in great actions, but he is the governor of the capital and has great responsibilities. Maintaining the stability of the capital is his family's top priority, and anything else cannot be done.

Stand aside.

His words played right into Blue Fox's mind: "Oh! I also hope that the king will increase his troops. I came back this time to report the impressive results of the Frankish world to the king."

"Then just wait. Or, go to Novgorod yourself." Konuson continued to suggest.

"It doesn't matter." Blue Fox shrugged, "I can wait."

Mysterious shiny metal ingots were being shipped off the ship one after another. Those dock workers who were carrying boxes filled with silver and gold coins could not help but have evil intentions. Considering that everyone in their family restrained their greed. Then they began to transport the metal ingots that were pressed into the warehouse. The dull lead ingots were not surprising at all, but the number of them was really staggering.

In addition, the particularly shiny metal ingot, which is white and even darkly blue, will not be processed directly for everyone.

What's this? It's very soft and makes a small dent when you bite it with your teeth. It is definitely not silver. Maybe it is more valuable than silver.

Even little Conuson and his dad on crutches saw zinc ingots for the first time.

It is not that there is no zinc in Ross's northern mines, but its content is too low, and there is no need to find ways to separate it from the lead. Therefore, the bronzes made by Ross actually contain trace amounts of zinc.

The blue fox wanted to show off his trophies and announce in a high-profile manner which treasures were presented as tribute to the king. He consciously wanted to prove something, especially to prove that no matter how long he led the army, he was still a loyal minister under the king.

His business mind made him pay great attention to public opinion. He needed to use this kind of performance art to make the people in the city have something to talk about after dinner: the so-called expeditionary force brought back a large amount of loot, and most of the so-called spoils were dedicated to the king.

It doesn't really matter what the public thinks of Blue Fox. It doesn't matter if it's praise, sarcasm or jealousy. As long as the king, nobles, and big businessmen are informed, it will eventually fill the national treasury. Especially in the current special period, Blue Fox knew more than half a year ago that the expedition to Frank had just begun, and the king would definitely expand the scale of the expedition, which would inevitably require a large amount of money and food to support the army's squandering.

In the past ten years or so, Ross has relied on war to support war. The shortcut to the rise of the country is to plunder the wealthy. Now the wealthy are none other than the large and small nobles of Frank. When Ross accumulates enough capital, he will start some high-end industries in the wealthy occupied areas.

Blue Fox, Conuson and his son, and Admiral Goedlund, they gathered around the pile of zinc ingots to discuss. A moment later, Kamne, the boss of the "State-owned Metallurgical Complex" in the capital, got the news. He hurried over wearing leather overalls, wondering what kind of new metal he had never seen before.

[An app that has been running stably for many years, comparable to the old book-chasing tool, used by all old bookworms.

Walk. "

Kamne smiled so brightly that he won the battle, and quickly ordered his entourage to run back and ask someone to drag the sled to move the goods.

Kamnier indeed did not recognize these shiny metal ingots. He clearly recognized the lead ingots and made some associations with the shiny metal ingots - its bright white color also had some sky-blue and greenish feel to it. It is undeniable that the haze has not dissipated, and it is already shining bright enough. If it were bathed in the sunshine, wouldn't it be...

Kamne was one of the participants in the initial process of gilding iron scales with a layer of silver. Now he is very familiar with the process of gilding artifacts. This is the original gold plating process. A layer of silver water is poured on the iron plate, and it is plated after cooling. Of course, there are also more silver-saving methods. At that time, Rurik plundered a large amount of silver coins and had the capital to squander it. He was willing to spend money to build an army with a limited number of people but must be flashy.

This kind of treatment not only prevents the scales from rusting, but the most important thing is to deliberately highlight its metallic color.

The disadvantage is of course that it’s too expensive!

Kamni couldn't help but think, if this thing is the so-called "shining lead", can it be treated like lead? Lead water is easy to bake. Put the iron piece in the lead water and rinse it. After cooling, it will stick. After a few times, the iron piece will be coated with a layer of lead.

Since the king wants a new chest plate for the flag team, he will naturally make it more gorgeous if possible. Of course Kamne had the intention of claiming credit, and besides, the total amount of metal in these destined "shining lead ingots" was really large. Not to mention plating five hundred pairs of plate armor with one layer, its usage might be sufficient for two thousand pairs.

The prerequisite is, of course, that it can melt as easily as a lead ingot.

It was Blue Fox's deliberate decision to linger on the flat pier. His feet were so greedy that he enjoyed the feeling of standing on the flat ground.

For Trisia, the blackbird, who had been struggling with her needs, her flagging spirit finally recovered as she set foot on land.

Only after entering the pier, facing the magnificent wooden wall of New Rossburg, looking around are bustling residential areas, and the wall cannot hide the existence of a large building - the residence of King Ross.

There are indeed no large wooden and stone buildings as magnificent as the Aachen Palace and Aachen Maria Cathedral. Even the city walls are made of wood instead of stone.

The city called New Roseburg really has nothing to do with chaos anymore.

This place was extremely unfamiliar. She saw that more and more people were gathering at the dock. Everyone who came must be there to watch the fun. The dock workers all had golden hair, and some of them had hair that was almost white. They spoke the language of the Normans, and this was actually the home of the Normans.

The onlookers seemed to be Norman civilians. They were all wearing thick leather coats and thick leather hats of similar styles. There are obviously some Norman women here who are watching the fun. They actually insist on watching the show with their children in their arms?

A large number of civilians with the financial resources to own fur coats? Based on his own knowledge, Blackbird felt that none of these civilians were actually simple. They might be a large number of lower-level nobles and wealthy senior servants under the rule of the Kingdom of Ross.

Blackbird still has to play the role of Blue Fox's follower. She has realized that the people talking to Blue Fox are only some high-ranking Ross nobles. They speak to each other in Norse, which they seem to understand, and they all sound like greetings and laughing. The atmosphere was quite relaxed.

The blackbird always had its head tilted, which allowed her to estimate the wealth of the nobles from their lower body clothing.

They all wore shiny high-top leather boots, and all had belts decorated with gems and gold. There must be a slender Ross steel sword hanging on the belt, and the scabbard was naturally inlaid with gems. As for the leather coats worn by the nobles, it is white. It must be the white bear unique to the north!

Blackbird thought back to the past, and it seemed that the entire Carolingian royal family did not have a white bearskin coat.

barbarian?

No. This is the capital of the Russians, equivalent to Aachen, Cologne, Metz, and Trier.

"This is a huge city. If I want to live here, at least it will be much better than that place in Gothenburg." She still tilted her head and thought silently.