Chapter 1,407 The County of Azerei and the Boy Jogela in the Courland Region
【The Rise of Rurik】 【】
The old man who suddenly appeared kept shouting one word - Varyag.
"You call us Varyag? Do you understand our language?" Rurik asked sideways with interest.
"I understand! I understand everything. You...you...are you? What are you going to do when you come to our village?!"
The old man's tone became increasingly urgent, unable to conceal his nervousness. Rurik, who had experienced many battles, secretly sensed a hint of hostility in this man.
"Oh? Do you still want me to tell you our identities?" Rurik noticed the awkward movements of Ostein who was leading the way, and gave a hint with his eyes.
At this moment, Ostein, who had been left alone for a while, finally took up the conversation. This guy hurriedly approached the old talker and the old man who dared to face Rurik's challenge: "You must recognize me! Our group just passed through your village a few days ago, and we sold you some salt, right?"
"It's you. Ostan, we all know you are a good person. As for..." The old man couldn't help but glance at the corner of his eyes, and then looked at Ostan's face: "Did you bring them here? Why do I think they are all your tiles?" A good person."
Osten immediately switched to Baltic, the local language, and cautiously moved his mouth close to the old man's ear with a huge amber earring: "It's true they are Varyag. They are Rus, the most powerful Varyag people. The person you just spoke to is their supreme leader!"
"Supreme leader? As powerful as our Namsis leader?!" the old man asked subconsciously.
"Do you still have any doubts? Old friends, this is only a small part of them. Behind them, there is a huge team that is about to arrive in your Aize.
thunder. Fortunately, their leader is kind today and does not want to destroy your village. Let me tell you the truth..." Osten suddenly changed his subject and pointed out in a straight and clear manner: "The leader of Namsis. he! already dead! "
"Dead?! Huh?!" The old man trembled all over as if he had been electrocuted.
"It's not just Namsis! The city of Pasvalis was destroyed. The inner city of Mezot is now a territory shared by Varangians and Latvians. Semigalia no longer exists, old friends! You really You should think about your future.”
The residents of Azerei are not the only ones who have always lived in isolation. There are still some larger settlements in the north. The northern area is scattered with villages beside streams and in the forest. The people are like turtles living in pottery urns. They There are few opportunities for external communication, and they are unwilling to take the initiative to break the silence and isolation.
The village of Ezere happens to be on the inland river trade route of the Varyag across the Courland Peninsula, and it has only just had the opportunity to communicate with the outside world.
There are many Semigalian settlements north of Azerei, with a total population of 20,000.
This seems to be a very large number in today's era, but in fact the people are so loosely distributed and have limited communication with each other that some villages do not even know that they are nominally surrendered to the great leader of Semigalia. Naturally, this kind of people are very important to them. The knowledge of the Varangians is limited to legends.
"Namsis, dead?!"
"Dead. The leader you surrendered to has ended! So... why don't you surrender to the new one now. I pledge my honor to surrender to the greatest leader of our Varyag people, and you can find peace. Otherwise, they may fear
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【The Rise of Rurik】 【】
I'm afraid it will kill you. Because these Varyag warriors are more numerous than your entire population of Azeroth! "
Shock, disbelief, panic, until the tension is released. After a brief brainstorming session, this old talker once again saw how ironic it was to see the laughing faces of the people watching the excitement. "Idiots! Don't you feel that once they go crazy, you will all die?!"
In fact, this is not the case. Most of the people know each other. When the little boy's parents can walk out of the crowd to pick up the child, it also means that most of the people who come to watch are the boy's neighbors.
The people were confused about the situation, but saw the strong and well-dressed warrior inviting the shepherd boy to ride a horse. The child's face was full of joy when he got off the horse and ran, which made the people feel relieved.
The old man took a good look at his relatives and friends. He widened his eyes and realized that there was no time to hold a voting meeting to elect who would be the talker. It would be better for him, an old guy who had retired, to overstep once, just to ensure that the Varyag people would not Like a sheep, he would cut open Azerei who had turned his soft belly towards the hunter.
The old man had to put away his nervousness and approached Rurik with a wooden stick in a humble manner.
This posture is not like that of a leader or a priest, but more like that of a devout pilgrim.
The old man raised his head slightly, and suddenly knelt down on one knee when he was about to approach the horse's hooves. This blatant move immediately caused an uproar, but Rurik was very happy with this guy's wise move.
"You? Are you surrendering to me on behalf of the entire Ezerei?" Rurik looked down arrogantly.
"Yes! The ruler of all Varyag people! The greatest leader! Please allow me to express my gratitude to you on behalf of all Azerei.
You surrender! From now on, you are our leader. "
The humble gesture only came from an old man. Rurik took another look and saw that the majority of the people still had an attitude of watching the excitement. The people had no intention of surrendering, but this was no problem.
Rurik followed an old-fashioned solution, and the first thing he thought of was to meet with the prominent guys in the village, give these elites a boyar title, then designate a leader among them, and give a war chief (count) the title of nobility. .
As a result, the local big families came forward one after another with their family leaders. Considering that the old man had a peaceful meeting with the "King of the Varyags" when the old man was in danger, everyone who had always lived in harmony acquiesced in allowing the old man to continue his business. People are dead, but they don’t know that this tacit understanding is actually handing over power to a family...
Rurik fulfilled his promise to Ostan, and the cavalry regiment did not launch an attack. He selected a meadow that seemed to be grazed by local people and temporarily used it as a camp.
He sent some soldiers and horses to hold flags in the eastern part of the settlement, and soon waited for a mighty reindeer army.
Reindeer, this is another huge beast that Azerei people have never heard of!
In the past world, reindeer herds migrated freely across the vast expanses of Eastern and Central Europe. As the migrating human hunters hunted them wantonly, wild reindeer were hard to find in the Courland region.
Because wild reindeer always migrate in groups of dozens, hunters carry spears, arrows and spear throwers, and hunt with more people than the herd. It is not uncommon to annihilate a group of deer in one operation.
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【The Rise of Rurik】 【】
Leather was made into clothing and tent materials, large amounts of meat was smoked into jerky, deer
Bones were made into tools and even ritual objects.
Courland's reindeer herds have disappeared, but other solitary wildlife remain. People have forgotten about the king, but the people in various settlements still keep some huge reindeer antlers and tell the old legends to their children.
A huge team of reindeer arrived carrying a large amount of supplies. All these stags shed their antlers in the spring, and then quickly grew antlers.
Deer antler can be eaten, but its aphrodisiac value is not known by deer farmers (Lapp people). After all, anything edible in the wild ice fields cannot be wasted.
The newly grown antlers are cut off, and the next growth is the ossified antlers.
Due to the need for marching, these obstructive antlers have been monitored by deer farmers. When the antlers of any deer grow long, they are cut off with a saw. It is like a human fingernail. A deer can saw or cut it without any pain.
The reindeer herd of nearly 6,000 has created history in Ezere. Even in the past when reindeer migrated freely, the deer here were not as concentrated as they are today.
However, despite the initial surprise, people have to worry about one thing - will all the big foreign beasts eat up our wheat fields? !
After all, in Courland, the traditional harvest season of oats and rye is just over a month away. Whether the harvest can go smoothly will determine whether they will have to live a hard life next year and whether they will have enough surplus products to exchange with Varyag merchants.
As for famine, this is definitely not the case. The locals mix fishing, hunting, and farming, but this kind of production and lifestyle really cannot feed more people. They planted seeds indiscriminately on the farmland, and the weeds in it were not properly cleaned. The local people's poor performance in agriculture was appalling.
See, Rurik didn't have any extravagant hopes for them. He could clearly distinguish where there was farmland and where there was grassland.
Instead, Rurik noticed the chickens, cattle and sheep raised by the locals.
"I have to ask them to pay tribute to me, otherwise it will not count as surrender to me. I also reward them with something to show my kindness? It is kindness, and it will also make it easier for me to rule them better in the future." Rurik thought for a while.
The entire Ross army was camped in the western wasteland of Azeroth. In order to avoid causing trouble, he deliberately kept a certain distance from the large settlements. He also emphasized discipline to the officers and strictly prohibited soldiers from leaving the camp without permission, and no one was allowed to enter the local villages without permission.
"The king is showing his kindness again. Is this kind of kindness really necessary?" The warriors did not dare to put it on the table. However, they really saw the local villages. These people were selected from the rich areas of Ross. Most warriors who become standing cavalry are not willing to look for treasures in the mud.
Look at these guys living in "haystack huts". Only the poorest Slavs in the area around Lake Ilmen have such dwellings.
However, once the king declares war, the warriors who despise the poor accommodation of the locals will still attack savagely and seize the enemy's granaries and livestock, and then take their young women away with them. The warriors are happy to do this.
Since your Majesty has given orders, don't do anything that will jeopardize your future.
The soldiers began to set up tents. As usual, the reindeer unloaded all their supplies and were driven by the deer herders to graze on the spot. Although the Russian army decided to spare the residents of Azerei under Rurik's instruction to prevent the human heart from being ignored, Rurik still ordered a group of soldiers to maintain a high degree of vigilance.
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【The Rise of Rurik】 【】
Be on guard against peaceful residents suddenly being foolish enough to start robberies.
Because Rurik gave the local elites time to gather and discuss, he also sent the messenger Osten as the king's lobbyist to continue to point out a clear way to the locals.
What he worried about did not happen, although the elites are not yet sure whether the big leader Namisis was killed or other terrible things. All the disasters are worthy of belief. The so-called Ross army is approaching the city. As long as Azerei does anything that displeases King Ross, the butcher knife will be chopped off immediately!
After some discussion among more than twenty family leaders, the position of speaker was now officially handed over to the old man.
The old man's name is Domantas, because this man has met the leader of Namsis in the past and brought long-term security to Azeroth. He has a successful experience. Now he officially represents all the people and surrenders to King Rus. , presumably still a huge success.
All the elites have thought about it, and they have decided to go to the Rus' camp in person to pay homage to the King of Rus, and to provide some cattle and sheep as tribute to the Rus in exchange for safety. At this point, there is no need to consider the property of cattle and sheep. Preserving life is the top priority.
As everyone knows, this is part of Rurik's plan, and he is already selecting rewards to reward these new loyal ministers.
In the evening, Rurik, accompanied by Fisk, inspects the supplies unloaded by the reindeer.
Large pots were set up to cook wheat in the camp, and they also brought some spare iron pots. Based on actual needs, some pots were coated with anti-rust grease and kept tied with hemp ropes. Why not use them as rewards?
"Is it necessary to give these savages an iron pot?" Fisk said casually.
"Reluctant to part with
Already? "
"An iron pot is far better than a pottery urn. Although it is nothing in our country, now that the army is out on an expedition, it is better for us to keep these good cooking utensils for our own use."
"No problem." Rurik waved his hand: "Give them an iron pot and ten shovels. Well, give them two hundred iron arrows and ten deer."
"Huh? I feel like the reward is a bit too much."
"How?" Look at the old man's face: "Maybe. That Ostan said that Azerei is only a settlement in the south, and there are many settlements in the northern part of the Courland Peninsula. We don't have time to conquer them now, so why not Collect their tributes and then give them rewards. Give the leader a title and a flag. They are considered our people. Yes! Give them some spare Ross shirts and some more flags. I'm afraid... this will be very difficult for them. important."
Rurik took a long and meaningful breath, just because he thought of something longer-term.
Before the sun had set, the Azerei elites who had negotiated brought more followers with them, and asked the villagers to lead as many as thirty cows and fifty goats towards the Ross camp.
The general title of Varyag is already a thing of the past, and people gradually begin to know that the newly arrived army belongs to Rus. The news about the killing of the great leader Namisis and the destruction of the Semigalian Alliance spread like wildfire. The fear among the people only lasted for a moment. When everyone learned that the big shots worshiped a more powerful person, everything was relieved.
They brought a large number of cattle and sheep to meet them, and the rangers on guard immediately noticed these people.
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【The Rise of Rurik】 【】
Soon, Rurik happily led a group of dismounted warriors to greet these surrenders.
Ross camp has
Bonfires were widely spread, and many warriors also held burning pine branches as torches to serve as a guard of honor for King Rus.
Rurik's golden laurel crown shone brightly in the setting sun and in the firelight.
When these surrendered elites saw the nobleman wearing a golden crown, they all suddenly fell to the ground and knelt down. They were truly kneeling down, as if they were playing a flock of sheep, and Rurik was the shepherd.
The old man at the head still spoke respectfully, and officially signed up his name: Domantas.
"So your name is Domantas? Very good. I am very satisfied with your tribute gift. My soldiers happened to be hungry, so I accepted the cattle and sheep." Rurik said deliberately arrogantly.
"Thank you to the great King Rus."
"You all get up!" Seeing these people getting up one after another, Rurik scratched his face: "Where was the kid who was herding sheep during the day? Is that boy related to you? Domantas?!"
"Yes." The old man said truthfully: "He is my brother's grandson. Unfortunately, my brother has passed away long ago..."
"It doesn't matter. The boy is not afraid of me. I invited him to sit on my horse, and the boy obeyed. His name is Yujia, right?"
"Yes." The old man had already smelled something strange.
"You!" Rurik pointed his big hand directly at the old man's face: "Domantas! Kneel down!"
The old man knelt down again like a reflex. He didn't understand what King Ross was going to do. It seemed like it would be a good thing.
Suddenly, a gust of sword wind buzzed.
The setting sun illuminated the sword orange, and before anyone had time to react, the back of Rurik's sword had already covered the old man's Tianling Cap, scaring all the Azerei elites present dumbfounded.
"Now! Call you Ai
Count Zere. You are the last of the Semigalians, and you have the right to conquer your kin in the north for me. You are the leader of this area, the one who rules here on my behalf.
Your power is hereditary, but the next generation of earls must be inherited by your grandnephew Yujia. Your family is the ruling family!
I accepted your tribute and now give you some property, some clothes, some flags..."
Azeroth County? The name of the Count is too advanced for these people. If it means that the Count refers to "ruling other local Semigalians with Azerei as the center", the old Domantas understands this.
But this old guy has no desire for expansion in his old age, and he has no ill intentions towards his fellow tribesmen in the north. Since King Rus arranged this for him, he had no choice but to accept the appointment.
Just like the hereditary transformation of the former leader family of the Semigalian Alliance, under the transformation of the Ross people, Azerei's ancient system of voting for speakers immediately became hereditary. The elites are all here, weighing their own strength. Who dares to oppose the determination of the powerful King Ross?
But no one could have imagined that a bold shepherd boy could be favored by the young and promising King Rus.
"Where is the child?"
"Yojia? The child's real name is Yogaila."
The old man's reply made Rurik suddenly think of something. "Jogela? This name sounds familiar, like a common name among Lithuanians." He pinched his beard and thought for a while, Rurik ordered again: "Go and send someone to bring the child here, and he will stay with us tonight. And you, follow me now to receive the treasures given to you by this king!"