Rise of Rurik

Carlotta, Ella, their lives finally calmed down.

Days passed by, and in a blink of an eye it was the end of July.

In the past month, although the people of Melalen knew that the Danes had attacked the south, the enemy had no intention of going north to continue fighting. The Mellarens were on guard, and all the men made the most basic preparations for war.

The enemy did not expand the war, and as time passed, people gradually lost their fears.

Because the climate is getting cooler.

Autumn is coming, and the wheat fields around Mälarenburg are entering their final heading state, and they are already one step away from maturity.

But before the wheat harvest, many crops are ripe and traded in the market.

Gould didn't know if the Russ were interested in the bunch of goods they brought back. After all, Rurik's attitude was that as long as it was useful, he would have it.

Onions, cabbage, carrots with yellow roots, such as storage-stable and large-volume vegetables, Gould has a lot in stock.

There are also plenty of fresh raspberries, which he also sends to buy and roast into dried prunes.

He pondered, Rurik promised to buy food at twice the market price, but what about fruits and vegetables? Is it also double the purchase price?

The only thing he can be sure of is that this year's Rus are in desperate need of food.

In the past, the fleet heading north often had a large number of empty ships. This year, the situation will change completely.

Gould sat on the island himself and sent his eldest son back to his hometown to announce the order to move.

In this way, his family members in Uncles, as well as the large amount of property still hoarding in the local area, must first arrive at Gould Island.

In the conceivable future, this island, which is about the size of two football fields, will become a huge cargo yard, and a large number of ships will moor around the island.

Even before Gould's move has begun, his reputation has spread in the marketplace.

For the Britten men and women captured by the Norwegian merchants were bought by Gould.

The dirty little beggars on the street were also taken away by him.

Beggars, those squatting in ragged clothes in the corners, they are real beggars.

They don't ask for money but a bite to eat,

Even if it's a fish bone that has been eaten, they will try to eat it again. Sometimes there is a stench in the hidden places of the street, and it is no accident that it is the carrion of beggars who have been dead for a long time.

Who would have mercy on such a person? There are some, but there are too few benevolent people.

The Meralen tribe is indeed prosperous, and the disparity between the rich and the poor within it is even more extreme. In the event of a natural disaster, the tribal tenant farmers went bankrupt, and they did not want to become slaves, so they had to stay on the streets.

The merchant Gould almost collected all the beggars who were connected, and the security of the entire market suddenly improved. For example, during this period, traders who buy fish basically no longer have to worry about their fish being stolen, and farmers who sell carrots don't have to consider their "additional losses".

Because all the beggars are on Gould Island, it has become a child's nest!

To feed more than seventy children, if only to feed them, it is not a big number. What's more, the children here are mainly girls, and some boys are too young to support them without much food.

So many children to be servants of Rurik?

Maybe the problem is not so simple.

Gould would ship as many children back as possible as agreed, and earn a reasonable fee from it. So what about the homes of these children? He naturally thought of the group of boys who followed Rurik for war training. Maybe Rurik was already preparing his wife for his young subordinates in ten years?

Thinking of this, he was quite excited.

Gould has been doing nothing for a while recently, even with the two Ostara girls.

The boring days are temporary. He knows that when the wheat harvest season arrives, he will bring people to the market and buy the wheat as soon as possible, even if the wheat kernel has not been dried.

Finally, a fat old guy came to visit suddenly in a small boat.

This person wears a nice ferret hat with two nice feathers on top. The man also wore a ferret coat with a belt wrapped around the waist with gold thread. His boots are made of black calfskin with tight stitching on the upper and sole.

Such a well-dressed person is none other than the businessman Fo Degen.

The appearance of this person made Gould instinctively think that he was about to finalize another big business.

At the dock, Gould met him in person.

The two wealthy businessmen embraced each other warmly. It was this smile, full of business atmosphere. They smiled at each other, and when they talked about business topics, they all wanted to get the most benefits.

Goodell is willing to do business with Fodgen, and he is drawing on the leather and leather jackets in Fodgen's hands.

Because in the Melalen business circle, mainstream businessmen know this Fodgen, who buys cowhide and processes it into leather clothes, and then earns another processing fee. In the past, a small number of tailors in the diaspora did this kind of work, but Fodgen gathered a group of tailors to work for him.

"My friend, is it my good things that attract you? Maybe you should have landed on my island earlier. I'm sorry, my high-quality goods will be sold out."

Fodgen gently pushed the old guy away: "Don't mention it, I suffered a big loss this year."

"Did something happen to you?"

"South! The Ostarans were attacked, and I was also implicated. You should have heard about this, but I ran with the Granites to avoid being hacked to death by the Danes..." Verdegen deliberately He described his experience as miserable, but in reality, his loss was not serious.

"Oh, it's so miserable, let's talk about it in the house. Come on, make arrangements for my friend."

Gould recruited two mercenaries to entertain Fodgen and his squires into the chamber.

He turned his head and called Yevlo again: "Go and call those two girls over."

"Yes, my lord."

Yevro ran away quickly, and after a while, he grabbed Carlota and Ella who were having fun, and brought them to Gould who had been waiting for a while.

"Sir, is there something important?" Carlotta asked weakly with a happy face.

"One thing. A friend of mine just came. I suspect that the person you sisters also recognize. Come with me now and verify my guess."

"Do we know each other?" The suspicious Carlota thought for a while, "Well, it would be great if you could know the whereabouts of my people."

What other acquaintances do you have? Carlotta felt that this plump Gould was a powerful businessman, and maybe some of his clansmen had dealt with him.

The two girls followed closely behind Gould and entered the council hall through the side door, which is the place for business negotiations.

At this time, Fodgen, who came earlier, was already staring at the transparent crystal glass filled with wine, and his mind was full of envy. He wanted to take it as his own, just because Gould's mercenaries were always staring at him like a door god.

Gould came, and he coughed twice, which caused Fodegan to look up suddenly.

It was this look up, Carlotta, Ella, they were stunned.

"It's you?! Fodgen!" Carlotta exclaimed and covered her mouth suddenly, grabbing Gould's belt subconsciously.

Ella was even more frightened, she simply hugged her sister's body tightly and closed her eyes tightly.

"You...you? Carlotta, Ella?! Is that you? Why are you two here?!" Fodegen was stunned on the spot, his trembling hand almost made the glass fall on the spot on the ground.

Gould was a little surprised by this. Thinking about the girl's previous self-report, and even Fodgen's self-report, he reckoned that they were already in touch with each other.

"Haha, I guessed that you knew each other. Haha, Fodgen, it's actually you." Gould laughed, then shook his head sullenly. "Sit down, Fodgen, my friend. I hope you don't startle these canaries again."

"I..." Fodgen was sluggish for a while, he sat down and thought about the current situation, and couldn't help but think more.

Even if they had gotten a little fatter, Fodgen remembered the two faces.

Fodgen frowned: "My friend, I rescued these two canaries, they escaped. They don't belong to me, but they don't belong to you. We are friends, I advise you, they are as beautiful as they are. , it's not that you and I can take it as a wife and concubine."

"Yes! I heard. The two girls told me about your unreasonable thoughts."

"Indeed, if I had known their identities earlier, I wouldn't have those thoughts. But you!" Fodgen stretched a heavy old face, as if dark clouds were pressing the earth. "Friend, no matter what caused you to get them. Believe what I'm saying now, they are the nobles of the Ostarans, not for businessmen like you and me. For our benefit, you should let them go! ."

"Oh? What if I don't agree?" Gould knew what the man meant, and he asked that on purpose.

"You don't agree? Well, maybe I'll lose a friend like you."

Now, Gould sipped his glass and smiled without saying a word.

Carlotta, who calmed down, sat beside Gould. She was surprised and tried her best to cheer herself up. First, she coughed twice and said, "Ferdgen, now that you know our identities, there will still be that kind of thing. any ideas?"

"You... Carlotta, I dare not. You are beautiful, but not a gem that a person like me can possess."

"No!" Carlotta shook her head, "Not only did you want us to be your wives and concubines, but you also bought our amber and our gold coins. You are really greedy."

Gould immediately echoed: "I heard them talk about this, but I never thought it was you. Fodgen, taking advantage of the danger, your business won't last long."

"I...you two joined forces to attack me?" Fodegan blushed and defended: "If I knew her identity, I wouldn't want her to be my wife."

"And you also forced many of my clan to be slaves. You are really vicious." Carlotta continued to criticize.

Carlotta was young, and she spoke harsh words like a knife with her delicate face, which made Fodegan feel uncomfortable.

He immediately defended: "Carlotta, you can't say that. I didn't force your people! Your people are going to starve to death. I bought cattle from the Granites and fed you beef. I am a businessman. It's right to ask you for a reward! Boy, you don't have to deny it, if you and Ella didn't eat my beef, you would have starved to death!"

There is indeed no falsehood in this matter, Carlotta nodded: "That's right. But our surviving clansmen are still your slaves. They must all be sold by you, because that's what you said at the time."

Gould also interjected with a sullen face: "You are a businessman in your duty, and you have become a slave trader, just like those Norwegians. If you sell an enemy, I have nothing to say, now you It has degenerated to the point where even the allies' clansmen are sold."

At this time, Fodgen seemed to be making a good defense. He was already puffed up, so he simply followed their inferences for the time being.

Fodgen deliberately put on a fearless appearance: "You're right, I'm doing business, I'm just asking for money. The Ostara people are indeed miserable, compared to the Danish army who kills everyone, I at least A hundred people were saved, and they were at least alive."

"Slave? It's better to die than to live." Saying this, Carlotta has already shed two lines of hot tears.

Seeing this, Fodgen denied it, and he shook his hands desperately for it: "Son, you are wrong. Gould, you are all wrong. Don't get me wrong again, I didn't really become a slave trader."

"That's a liar! A greedy liar! You have offended me." Carlotta said the most vicious words in the weakest manner, and her little face blushed with the anger of leaving.

Fodgen, before speaking to the little girl, told Gould, "I've heard a few things these days. You say I'm going to be a slave trader, Gould, aren't you trying to collect beggars from the streets of Mellaren? Er. I have heard about this. It is said that a businessman almost took Qi'er away. There are rumors that the businessman is you, and you are also a slave trader."

"I don't deny it. What you learned is the truth, but not the truth. I have raised those children well, and now all the children are healthy. In the future, I will send the children to the Rus."

"Send it to the Rus? For what?"

"Because..." Gould thought about it again and made up a reason and said: "The chiefs of the Rus people like children very much, and they finally realize that it is stupid to abandon baby girls. They have even gone to the east to absorb women from foreign races. As a wife, I think you can understand."

"It's unbelievable. I thought they were still baby girls who simply couldn't raise children. Did they just dislike little girls?" Fodgen shook his head, "So you collected a lot of children? Oh, then you So kind. You're so rich to feed so many beggars. Oh no, you're a great man."

"Haha, put away your flattery! Of course I'm rich." Gould laughed. "The Rus said they needed more children, or more population. Friends, as you can probably guess, the Rus..."

"Are they merciful?"

"No! They are too ambitious!" Gould said solemnly.