Chapter 1348 Orafenstad on the Shores of Lake Lubans and the Road to the Velikaya River

For the Seron people, there is a large lake called Lubansi, also known as Lubanna, to the northeast of their settlement.

The Seron people know that the area has been separated from the hilly area, and a lakeside land may be easier to settle. However, the Seron people have not relocated on a large scale, and overall they appear to be dismissive of it.

The actual reason is very simple. When the snow melts in spring, the water level of the lake will surge. Once rainfall occurs frequently in summer, the expanding water body will destroy the farmland that has been cultivated so hard. So much so that the Lake Lubans area is now uninhabited, and even the three villages that fled with their entire village cannot build new homes on the shores of Lake Lubans.

These things had to be explained by Ilbert himself before Rurik knew the secrets. But wouldn't Orafin be asking for trouble by establishing a settlement on the lakeside and building his own country?

What Rurik didn't expect was that Olafen knew all about these situations!

"So, we have to take advantage of the upcoming dry season to reach Lake Lubans, and then take the river into the big river to reach Riga. Originally, we planned to row back to Pskov during the snowmelt season that started in spring, but now we have to change our mind." Olafion said this, and then explained it again.

Only people who have been doing business for a long time are fully aware of the risks of traveling and will take advantage of the changes in nature to reduce transportation costs as much as possible.

The flooding of the lake does not mean it is just a bad thing. After all, the Danish immigrants in Pskov have not forgotten the navigation skills of their ancestors, and they dared to dive even with canoes.

The rapidly expanding lake surface will pour water into a large number of low-lying areas, thus creating large swamps. The water in that kind of swamp is often only waist deep, which is enough

Enough for the canoe to break through.

The flooded Lubans Lake will only show a sharp expansion of the lake area, and its name comes from the description of "shallow water". The water is rising but the river is not turbulent. As long as you use more force when paddling, it will be offset. The flow rate of the river increases, so that it can smoothly enter Lubans Lake from the large water channel to the small water channel.

As long as you enter this lake, everything will be fine, and then you just need to move in the direction of sunrise, passing through swamps and forests. The first river that travelers see is a perfect thoroughfare.

It seems that the road to Pskov is already very clear. Riga has no direct access to it. Travelers must take a zigzag path to reach it. For a trip like Olafen, it is necessary to take another trip in the ice and snow to explore the clear road. There are still considerable risks.

Rurik was willing to listen to this man, and believed that the Ross army could reach its destination safely through the path of the Seron people, who had a better understanding of the geography of the region.

Rurik thought about it again and found that he did have the capital to gamble.

Even when it comes to gambling, I can try some crazier things, a new adventure that may change the army's perception.

Now Olafion became Rurik's guest, and he was able to live in King Rus's hut-style sleigh and guide King Rus in this magical sleigh with a built-in pipe stove.

He has seen too many new things these days. From the initial shock to acceptance, he has gradually become accustomed to the Russian way of life. For example, he also wears a pair of wooden-framed sunglasses.

The dazzling snow-white world under the sun no longer hurts the eyes. The world has become much dimmer, and we are moving forward in the snow.

People no longer have to squint their eyes.

However, the horses and reindeer sled troops now lined up in a long and narrow squadron are operating in gray weather and braving light snow. The temperature has dropped a lot. And because they are worried about the weather worsening, those brave enough can't help but worry about the risks involved.

Let’s talk about the Ross Army in action. When the army marched into Riga a few days ago, they discovered that the mouth of a tributary suddenly appeared on the right bank of the Daugava River.

The extreme cold had frozen the tributary to a solid state. The river was covered with what looked like an ink-colored layer of ice at first glance, and there were endless patterns on it. It looked like the ice had cracked, but in fact the ice was so thick that it probably only squeezed the river. A thin layer of living water at the bottom.

The entire Russian army is now turning into the river one after another.

"What is the name of the river?!" Standing outside on the sled, Kiryurik faced the cold wind. In order to offset the noise of the wind blowing in his ears, he asked loudly to Olafin, who was also blowing the cold wind.

"It's Donghe." Orafin said.

"East River? Named after the direction? So casual." Rurik didn't want to complain about anything, but it was obviously too casual.

The rest of the march was bound to be full of boredom. Even with the cold wind blowing, Olafin wanted to have a little fun, so he gently teased: "The river has no name. Anyway, except for us, the Pskov people, all the travelers on this river are here." There is also the king’s huge army. Perhaps, the king can give it a name.”

"Would you like to give me a name?" Rurik glanced at the man next to him who was covering his head tightly: "Just name it after you. Let's call it Orafen River."

"Is that so? That's fine..."

"That's it." Rurik thought for a moment: "I will give you some advice."

Pai's territory is the lake at the source of the river. Since the big lake has a clear name, the river must also have one. By the way, the settlement you built should also have a name. "

"Still named after me?"

"Exactly. Following the custom of us northerners, we call it Orafenstad."

Anyway, it was chatting, and Olafin became full of energy: "Ovonsitadt on the shore of Lake Lubans? It seems that it has been a settlement for a long time, even though we haven't even laid a foundation yet."

"It doesn't matter, we will choose a camping ground, and you can use our army's camping ground as the starting point to build your city."

"Follow your orders. In this way...I have to choose a good camp for the king's army." After saying that, Orafin continued to stare ahead.

But it is said that this river heading northeast should be called Aiviekste (Aiviekste River). Just because a missionary named Aiviekste established a small monastery in the river mouth area, a river without a name became Got a name.

In this time and space, it was the name of the Pskov traveling merchant that became the name of the river, but the essence of the river and the lake remained unchanged.

No one can stop the extremely exaggerated expansion and contraction of Lake Lubans during the dry and wet periods. After all, now is the extreme dry period in the cold winter. The area of ​​the lake covered by ice is only less than 20% of that in the heyday of the wet period.

Even in the wet season, the river has a gentle flow, and its side profile shows that its channel is shallow and its surface is wide.

On a mere tributary, the Russian army could still march forward in two columns in a majestic manner, and each flag team did not have to worry about the collision of the sleds.

The steel horseshoes and the iron-covered sleigh tracks made a lot of noise as they rubbed against the ice. Along with the copper bell hanging around the reindeer's neck, the reindeer's heavy breathing, and the chatter of the sled riders, the army kept making a lot of noise. When there was a big movement, animals big and small fled wherever the army came, and birds that were not hibernating also flew away to avoid disaster.

In such a situation, the Ross warriors did not even have the chance to hunt and perform the tooth ceremony on the spot.

However, they unexpectedly discovered that it was easy to catch fish under the ice of this river.

What happened was that when the entire army began to set up temporary camps in the flat riverside area as usual, people with nowhere to vent their strength began to dig holes in the ice with axes, iron hammers and "human drills".

Drilling holes in the frozen sea ice to catch seals and fish for cod has been a specialty of the Ross tribe since ancient times. As descendants of the Ross tribe, a large number of mixed-race warriors also inherited this survival skill from their fathers. .

Three blades are "glued" to an iron rod by heat welding. They are arranged in a uniform spiral. There is a crank at the end of the iron rod. Fishermen operate it with both hands. The three blades can continuously scratch the ice surface and finally drill directly to break the ice. Layer, then put out some rotten fish and dried meat to make a nest, then put out real bait and hemp rope fishing line, and wait for good news.

The soldiers who originally had a try mentality saw the bass going crazy and drilling into the newly dug holes.

In the evening, the campground was filled with the aroma of grilled fish, and Rurik was proud to enjoy some local products on the spot.

Despite the erosion of the dense snow, the soldiers hid in the comfort of their tents and waited for a new day. They even raided the pile

Build snow walls and make windproof barriers for all the war horses in the forest to ensure that there will be no horses in the winter after this night.

As for the reindeer, they were the only ones with nothing to worry about.

After entering the tributary, the Ross army walked on the ice road for three days, and finally what appeared in front of everyone was an extremely huge ice field.

The sky was still gray, and the cold wind mixed with snow hit people's faces. Everyone looked around and saw that the forest disappeared in a huge space! It was replaced by a snow-covered flat land. There seemed to be a large number of snow piles on the flat land. After struggling to push it aside, a large number of reeds could be seen.

Ryuri got off the sled, raised his proud head and looked around.

Orafin and several other Thelon guides were waiting beside him.

"Could this be Lake Lubans?" Rurik asked.

"Exactly. It's a place we experience every year." Olafington said angrily: "Moreover, the place where the king is standing now is part of the river during the high water season."

"Oh?" Rurik couldn't help but shrink his feet, fearing that the ice layer here was not solid enough and his boots would sink in and be covered with a layer of mud.

Olaf gasped and pointed everywhere: "There! And there! I dare say that in three months it will all be water. The lake bed here is extremely muddy, and most places are not suitable for establishing settlements at all."

"Oh? What should we do?"

"Across the lake, our army continues eastward until we reach the place I confirmed. Well, at least there must be woods nearby."

Rurik pinched his beard thoughtfully, and he suddenly realized: "That's right. Forests can only exist where lakes cannot flood them. And you do need a lot of wood to build you."

city. "

"Exactly."

"Huh." Rurik shook his head in frustration: "I thought we could set up a permanent camp once we reached the Great Lake, but it seems we can only stay in this unlucky place temporarily. There is no large area of ​​flat land in this terrible place, alas. ..." Rurik had already envisioned what this place would look like during the flood season—a land of marshes.

At this moment Rurik realized deeply that even though he knew the basic structure of the earth, he still knew nothing about the details.

He knew Latvia and the forests everywhere in this place, but he didn't know that there was a "monster" named Lake Lubans.

The next day, after an uncomfortable night's rest, the Ross Army, despite their fatigue and inner chagrin, began to advance rapidly in the main part of Lake Lubans.

They pushed forward to what seemed like a smooth road, but their guide Olafen told them not to stop, so they just kept marching.

In fact, they walked the whole day on the lake bed that was completely covered by ice during the dry season. Everyone felt that they were just walking in a boring way, and the so-called lake area seemed endless.

They crossed the big lake abruptly, and the journey actually reached an astonishing forty kilometers.

"That's it!" Finally, Olafen's tight mouth relaxed.

The army arrived at the edge of a forest pointed out by Orafin before the sun set. The people who had been jostling all day were sore all over and were so depressed that they even gave up the idea of ​​setting up a tent.

Rurik carried the tormented Beyathil out of the sled, and everyone stood on the flat ground stamping their feet and jumping around.

When it got really quiet, Rurik also noticed how quiet this place was compared to other places.

It is true that the terrain is higher, with a huge forest in the shape of a mass behind it. Such an environment is indeed suitable for building a fortress surrounded by wooden walls.

Therefore, the planned city of Olafenstad on the shores of Lake Lubans started from the Ross Army's camp tonight.

However, the army will only stay here for one night, and the best benefit given to the soldiers is that they will set off later tomorrow.

They would leave a lot of traces of fires and cooking, and they would cut down some pine trees, sharpen them and smash them into the cold soil to serve as pile foundations. In form, this was King Rurik of Rus' laying the foundation for the new town and the new count's palace.

The campfire was crackling, and Rurik was holding the delicious meat of the grilled seabass with his hands while listening to Olafin, who was in a good mood, continuing to describe the wonderful future.

"What should we do next? Head straight to the east and force our way through the forest?" Rurik asked.

"Yes. Your Majesty, don't worry. Even if it's snowy, don't ignore my nickname. I'm a night walker. I won't get lost when I walk at night. It's just covered with snow. I even know how to walk through the forest correctly with my eyes closed. Please You must believe me." As he said that, Olafine kept beating his chest.

"I believe you, so how much time will we consume? You know, I don't want to linger any longer."

"Yes. With the speed of the Ross Army, I think it only takes one day."

"So fast?"

"It's just that after crossing the forest and arriving at the nameless river..."

"Is there something to hide?"

Olafin shook his head: "There is indeed a hidden secret. It is a small river. At that time, the king's sleigh team will only be able to form a single column. It will take us travelers seven days at the fastest to get from Pskov

Boating to the small river, we then take the land route through the forest to Lake Lubans. The King's sleigh team has great speed, so it may not take seven days. "

"That's it. Then five days?" Rurik thought while pinching his beard.

"I hope so. Maybe after we survived the bad rivers in the first two days, after entering the big river... we can speed like on the Daugava River, on the Olavin River named after me."

"Oh! It's good news, so your so-called big river in the future will lead directly to Pskov?"

"Exactly."

"Let's wait and see. You are indeed an excellent guide." Rurik had to praise.

Because most of the borders between the Russian Federation and Latvia are determined by a small river, which is what Olafin calls the correct route. The creek has no name, and it doesn't matter to Olafin whether it has a name or not. The brothers just call it "the creek leading to Riga" roughly.

After all, for the people of Pskov, few people know the significance of this river, even if they are local Danish immigrants and Krivi Slav immigrants, they have become the indigenous people of no man's land, so Pskov was born, but the descendants of early immigrants have quietly forgotten their ancestors’ immigration path.

Only a few people know it, and due to this or that relationship, Pskov has never established long-term trade relations with Riga, so only a few minorities operate this hidden trade line.

Eventually, this meandering stream empties into the Velikaya River, which today bears this name.

After all, the essence of the word comes from "sacrifice" in the Nordic context. Puth of the Land of Two Rivers

Cobh, which became a gathering place for all walks of life because of an altar.

"What? The name of the great river that leads to Pskov is Velikaya?"

Orafin couldn't even think of explaining a fact, so King Ross seemed inexplicably excited?

"Your Majesty, do you like this name?"

"More than just liking her." Rurik suppressed a smile, "My eldest daughter is called Verika, and the name you call Dahe must come from the same name."

"Is this... all because of the sacrifice? Sure enough, everything is God's arrangement." Olafin covered her mouth in surprise. When she saw Rurik laughing, he also let go of his hand and let out a barbell-like sound. smile.