Chapter 631: Rurik Goes to the North Again

Compared with baking bread in a clay oven, the most convenient way to process flour into cooked food is to bake mature cakes on hot stones.

When humans master the processing of flour to make cooked food, the first thing that comes to mind is to make scones.

There is nothing surprising about what the Ross people did. People who bought wheat are making large quantities of new-style breads that are different from oatmeal. They are deliberately making large quantities for convenience.

Rurik ordered more than 20 women from Mercia to devote themselves to the work of baking bread after finishing their morning prayers.

They make dough out of dough and paste it on a hot cast iron plate to mass-produce scones.

At night, the still-subfreezing temperatures cool the scones, and the limited moisture in them immediately makes them hard. Rurik sent someone to collect the scones at this time. A hole was punched in the middle of the pancakes, and fifty pieces were strung together with hemp rope to carry them away.

These pancakes are the "military rations" for people traveling far away.

As for the Mercian women whose hands are full of dough after a busy day, they have already fed themselves in their labor.

They were a strange group of women who would watch over each other and pray at noon and evening, praising their gods for the bread they had given them in thanksgiving.

"Ridiculous. That's the food I rewarded you." Rurik felt a little unhappy, and considering that they really put in a lot of labor and worked hard, forget it.

The day of departure was about to come, and as the time approached, Rurik's workload for them also increased significantly.

A total of 450 surviving Tavastia female prisoners, their physical fitness has been trained too strong by long-term physical labor. As for physical fitness, the weak have already died.

Rurik was a little bit reluctant to let these female miners leave, but their right to dispose of them belonged to the kingdom of the Balmerks who immigrated to Britain.

The time for renting their labor has come, and he really didn't pay more than clothing, food and housing.

And their contribution to Fort Rose was to create two hills made of iron ore, which became two dangerous highlands.

Just after the vernal equinox, the breath of spring became more intense after a brief sacrifice. The sea is still frozen, and the ground is covered with snow.

There are too many hours of the day,

During this period, the walls and internal houses of Blast Furnace Town have been basically completed.

A hill of iron ore was within the town walls, and after a light snow it turned into a huge white tower.

Employed men and women are using iron ore to build the necessary solid foundation for the new blast furnace, and when the temperature warms up, the construction of the blast furnace will also be classified as the end.

On the frozen coast, taking advantage of the snow everywhere, the hulls of two new ships were pushed out of the huge wooden shipbuilding.

They have also reached the last and most critical moment.

Before the spring equinox came, a reindeer transport team from the north quickly moved along the frozen coastline.

This is a heavy transport team, with up to 300 adult reindeer doing the arduous task of pulling the sleds.

The reindeer gained strength by eating oats, so they pulled as many as ten carefully selected giant spruce trees to Roseburg, and then violently unloaded them in front of the Hotra family shipyard. space.

Soon, thousands of people who joined in the fun ran to the coast again to enjoy a great event.

Rurik also came, he was covered in a white and fluffy polar bear fur, showing his vigor in warmth. A ferret hat with a huge white tail on top of his head makes him look even more regal.

His female relatives all came, and their clothes were almost the same, and each of them deliberately displayed their gold, silver and precious stones.

Exquisite clothes are made by expert tailors.

It was Rurik's old friend and old subordinate Fisk, and this person's mother Broma became Rurik's queen tailor in a sense. Hundreds of traditional Rossi women have been ordered to tailor linen and leather for Rurik over the years, and receive monthly remuneration.

The women cherished their job opportunities, and absorbed the technology of the Verdegen tailoring workshop and the Slavic canvas weaving technique, and the level of tailoring skills of the Ross people was greatly improved.

There are people wearing taupe hats everywhere, and many of them are men and women wearing colorful striped linen blankets.

Those are the masterpieces of Slavic women. They use woad, blue moss, red chrysanthemum, yellow chrysanthemum and other colored plants to dye the cloth on the spot, so that their clothes are full of colors.

The crowds were crowded and lively, and the countless whispers turned into a low hum.

"It's finally time to install the mast again." Old Otto's eyes were full of joy, and the big hand on his son Rurik's shoulder subconsciously pinched.

"In this way, we now have six large Aurora-class ships."

"Have you thought of a name for them? I remember that two more ships will be launched this year. A total of four new large ships..."

"Yes, the name has already been thought of."

"What is it?" Otto asked with great interest.

"The new two ships are called Gray Squirrel and Salmon Chief."

"Huh? So casual? Wait, you..." Otto thought for a while and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Do you think I choose a name casually?"

"It doesn't matter." Otto let go of his hand and raised his head again. "The installation has already started. The mast is transported to the scaffolding. We will wait and see."

In recent years, watching the installation of masts on large ships has become a routine program for the people of Roseburg.

People cheered after the mast was installed on the big ship. The whole fjord was rumbling, and even the pine trees in the distance were covered with snow and began to shake off the ice.

What kind of name to give the new ship, Rurik did not have a proper plan at the beginning.

There are four existing ships: Aurora, Gurdot, Sperosvillea and Duke of Ostara. Although the ship names are very meaningful, they have no commonality.

What is commonality? Rurik decided to create commonality for subsequent ships by naming the new ships after other tribes that had surrendered to Ross.

Gray squirrel and salmon chief were originally the tribal names of the Kewen people. Naming the new ship with the name of the tribe is actually a means of strengthening cohesion.

As for the big ship that will be launched in the future, the names proposed by Rurik are "White Tree Manor" and "Rapp (Deer Breeder)". They are the most loyal servants of the Ross people now, and they will continue to fight side by side in the future.

The big boat will continue to install the huge spinnaker and other accessories. Based on the lessons learned from the expedition to Britain, some paddle boats will be evenly hung on the side of the ship.

As for their launching into the water, Rurik guessed that he really didn't have time to witness it.

According to Rurik's plan, Ross's "Eighty-Eight Fleet" plan will be completed during the autumn and winter exchanges this year.

The Hotra family and their old friends have proven their shipbuilding prowess and made their fortunes. This group of people obviously has a higher pursuit, and building a ship makes them proud, and building a bigger ship has become the life goal of the new craftsman! This is like a brave warrior trying to fight the enemy bravely on the battlefield in order to realize the value of his belief.

Ross's shipbuilding industry will further prosper, and of course it is Rurik himself who contributes to its prosperity. He is very clear about this. If there is no warship order from the Duke of Ross, how can they have the motivation and need to build large ships?

Ships such as the Aurora had to gather all the strength of Hotra and his friends, relying on the giant trees and high-quality metal materials provided by the Duke, and it took nearly half a year to build two ships.

Relying solely on the family's own strength, building general cargo ships and traditional rowing boats is the most cost-effective choice.

"Then, should we build a Galen-size ship with a displacement of over 1,000 tons like the Gothenburg?" Rurik personally knew of the only Swedish galleon in history. How to build her, Sweden Artisans have spent years.

Do not! The current technical level of the Ross people can't make it, and there is actually no need for more.

Ross can develop more slender, light, and fast planetary-class sailing destroyers, and build more to gain absolute maritime hegemony in the entire Baltic Sea as soon as possible.

I am afraid that the Principality of Ross has already occupied the sea power in this sea area. Rurik doesn't think this is true. His dream is very broad. Unfortunately, Danish power is still a huge threat. Before Denmark recognizes Ross's hegemony, Ross must continue to spend a lot of money.

Big construction requires a lot of money, and with a fleet, you must have an ice-free port facing the Atlantic Ocean! With more large ships, it is possible to sail to the Atlantic Ocean to America, the land of miracles, and to grab future benefits from the west.

No one has a strategy like Rurik's, and the Ross people can't imagine that their Duke has at least planned a national strategy for Ross for the next 233 years!

An expansion strategy from east to west to south to north.

For the sake of a great future and first possession of sea power, the land trade line from the Gulf of Bothnia to the Port of Narvik was personally opened by Duke Ross himself!

It happened to be April 1st in the Julian calendar.

This day is not April Fool's Day, because April Fool's Day did not exist in 834 AD.

Everything Rurik needed was ready, especially when the huge shipments of timber, chromite, chromework, and hides (a tribute from the gray squirrel tribe) arrived at the end of March, making the sleigh-drawing robust reindeer a very timely power source.

Is it necessary to walk to the port of Narvik of the Balmerks?

With these strong deer, the large troop is traveling on sleds, and it may take two weeks to reach the destination.

As for the road to Balmerk, there is actually a ready-made road for this trip, which is to find the big river (Torna River) to the west of Eronburg, follow the frozen river way up the river without thinking, and arrive at The ice lake on the top of the mountain (Lake Torna), under the lake is the port of Narvik of the Balmerks! This frozen river can be called a highway in the Middle Ages. In winter, it is very flat and suitable for the reindeer sleigh team to move forward unimpeded. In summer, people can take a boat down the lake and drift all the way to Bothnia. bay.

This line was discovered many years ago by Balmerk explorer Modgen and his team. This group of people also discovered another waterway leading to the Ayron River (Kemi River), which directly hit the busy mining town of Ayron. Ross of Fort.

As for the eye on the upper Arron, the Ross explorer Spueut and his men went far, and when Rurik himself joined them, the Murman was discovered.

After that, Rurik did not go to Murmansk, which was appointed by him, to inspect. Just based on the news from the north and the fresh walrus ivory brought back, he can completely judge that Murmansk is a Russian. The ice-free port built by myself is indeed being developed.

Walking on the glacier to the home of the Balmerks, Rurik once thought it would be a difficult journey, but now the road is no longer far away.

A mighty reindeer sleigh team is gathering.

April 1st is the last assembly day.

The female miners of Tavastia were assembled, and each of them was clutching the two silver coins issued by Rurik, as well as some personal belongings.

They gathered in their quarters, and each of them had cleaned himself with hot water. A black crowd gathered outside the warehouse, and Rurik stood on a sled and shouted loudly.

"Your life in Ross is over! You will go to Balmerk, marry a strong man, and emigrate to a far away warm island! We will start tomorrow on a sled, don't worry about the future, we will all arrive safely .Think about the days to come, and you will all have a bright future."

Rurik didn't say much, the group of women had no choice. The eyes of the Tavastia women are extremely responsible. Maybe they are used to the regular life now, but they have to leave, and even in the future they will not be able to enjoy the good days of having enough food every day.

Of course, we must give them a good hope, but...

I am afraid that in this time and space, it is extremely rare for everyone in a country to have enough to eat. Rurik didn't dare to say that he was a benevolent and good person. At least he was a holy king to the Ross people, but to other forces and other countries, he was pure suffering.

Is the Principality of Ross a pirate country? I'm afraid so. Rurik has no choice, this is an era where the weak prey on the strong, and Ross can only avoid being wiped out by the strong if he is strong enough. Rose had to accumulate primitive capital. She was too small to accumulate enough primitive capital through internal exploitation. External expansion and plunder was the only means, and he knew he had to do this.

But the female miner of Tavastia left, who will fill the vacancy?

Perhaps when recruiting from the shores of Lake Mälaren, or simply recruiting from Balmok and Novgorod, men are of course stronger than women, and they will not be weakened by menstruation. He estimated that recruiting 200 people would be enough up. As for the labor force, the more the better, after all, ironware is a kind of huge profit, and the Ross people's shipping ability is terrifyingly strong.

These measures will take time to complete, and Rurik does not hope that the future miners will be a group of simple slaves.

Isn't indentured labor more suitable than slaves? With whom to sign a contract? Of course it was with Rurik, the Duke of Ross. If there were no special circumstances, the contract would naturally be continued by his descendants. Contractors can be conquered people from all walks of life, early hired mercenaries, simple slaves, homeless children, or even the purest Rus natives.

When the Principality of Ross becomes a mature country, this group of contractors is the cornerstone of the country. They pay taxes, serve, and contribute, and they are the real subjects of the Principality of Ross.

It is such people, such as miners, once they have settled down and can engage in mining year after year and even their children and grandchildren, they will get used to this kind of life and fear losing it.

This is almost the iron law of "beating workers".

Then when Rose encounters a possible crisis, they will also defend Rose to defend their stable life.

Who does not yearn for a stable life, the expansion of the Ross people is for a better and more stable life, and the purpose of the war is also to destroy the enemy and gain a better life for the Ross people in the future.

This is of course selfish, but Rurik, who has become more and more ruthless, will no longer be generous to others. At this stage, he only pays attention to whether the Ross people and servants have enough to eat today. The legend of the Son of God is just icing on the cake, and this group of very practical guys will always follow the leader who can bring good times.

On April 2nd, as many as seventy sledges were prepared, each drawn by four deer, and Rurik's oversized chariot by six.

Naturally, reindeer are not as powerful as horses. They can withstand the extreme cold and have amazing endurance.

As long as they are not forced to travel endlessly, it is no problem for the four deer to pull a sled with as many as ten people and a batch of supplies to travel fifty kilometers a day.

Rurik also loves animal power. Some sleds are specially used to haul hay and sacks of oats. He doesn't believe that reindeer can eat grass on the spot under the snow when they are resting. After all, they still have to be fed high-energy wheat.

450 Tavastian women crowded into the sleigh, a total of forty-five cars. Rurik and a hundred loyal mercenary soldiers were divided into ten vehicles.

More than 50 hired Ross people are responsible for assisting in pulling carts and feeding deer.

In particular, Rumia's uncle who lived far away brought more than a dozen Lapps (deer breeders) to participate. They are the real deer breeders. Their existence is in Rurik's eyes. Almost equivalent to a mechanic in a car transport team.

The personnel and supplies were ready, and Rurik casually hugged Noren, but many of the family members pursed their lips in jealousy.

This is going to Balmerk. Some elite mercenaries are originally from Balmerk, and they are natural guides.

In addition to the Tavastia women, there were also a batch of commercial goods such as wheat, ironware, Slavic-style cloth, and a small amount of bearskin and buckskin. Compared with sea transportation, the cargo transported by land sled is really limited.

Rurik didn't want to let go of the trade opportunity. He concluded that the people left behind in Balmerk had made a new batch of salt according to the agreement, and these goods happened to be exchanged for their good salt.

As for meeting Magnut from Britain again, Rurik didn't care anymore. He only thought of the destination to unload these women and goods, let Noren declare the right to rule, and recruit some warriors to live in Rose, and then he can withdraw.

Because the decision to crusade against the Karelians was determined by Rurik himself. As the Supreme Commander, when he came back decided when to start the war.

He really didn't dare to delay any longer.

The people were cheering, so were Otto and Niya, and even Rurik's daughter, Velika, stretched out her little hand in her swaddling baby.

He waved to his family and his tribe. Then he ordered the Lapp driver: "Let's go."