The old fox was dying, his sons and daughters continued to develop his career, and the little foxes ran in all directions.

Old Gould boasted that he would die on Tombstone Island in the land Islands at the T-junction of the Baltic Sea. He had no more appeals, and he was shocked to find that the whole world had rejected him.

Who cares about the thoughts of an old man who is dying of old age? At least their sons, daughters, and sons-in-law have been scattered all over the world, and a huge world is presented in front of them.

If a businessman is very fond of one acre of land in his hometown, his career will not last long.

The Gould family was originally a traveling merchant of the Anklas tribe in Sweden. The young old Gould ventured into the world bravely, with keen eyes to discover the fantastic changes of the Ross tribe, and made a fortune by betting on everything. He took the whole family to bid farewell to Uncles and became the new Russ.

But is Ross the eternal abode? Or in other words, the huge world inside and outside of Ross' influence, where there are places to stand, just for the cubs to explore.

The Gould family has not really left the ancestral home of Onkras, because the eldest in the family has become the city owner of the entire Swedish World Trade Center.

The second child of the family is the most promising. This is the blue fox who has experienced hardships and knowledge, and the merchant has become a warrior and a frontier noble.

The daughter married the old Eric family of Denmark, thus maintaining a trade route from Rus to Copenhagen and Schleswig, Denmark's emerging trading ports.

Now, the third and fourth are going to create their own wonderful things.

The black fox and the red fox were ordered by King Rurik, and their journey was not only for the family, but for the benefit of the kingdom. It is precisely because the two young people are too young that Ross has achieved great results in the grand war, but they are rejected by them.

They are easily infected by grand things, and now the eldest brother, the white fox, is also older, and the two of them are not from the same era, and they are not the same as the youngest brother. Only the experience of the second brother shocked them and hoped to follow suit. Of.

The old mother gave birth to four boys and one girl. Although the old father Gould was a promiscuous guy, he was willing to take responsibility for his actions in the end. The children of the concubine could not inherit the name of the Gould family, nor were they entitled to inherit wealth. After all, those children are the sons of slave women, at least their current identity is also Russ, and this identity is already a great honor.

Northern tradition means a certain cruelty, and most of the wealth that Old Gould has fought for his life must be inherited by the eldest white fox, even if the eldest is already the governor of Stockholm.

The wealth of the other brothers must be obtained by themselves, at least, the king provides the brothers with the opportunity to make meritorious deeds.

As for those lowly brothers who have the status of "children of slaves", if they want to stabilize and improve their social status, a shortcut is to join the standing army, or join the team of professional sailors, and rely on future wars to take advantage of the opportunity to become famous.

It is obvious that the world is unpredictable and war is the melody that never changes.

The black fox and the red fox, who were destined to go to the south, had a premonition that because they wanted to enter the chaotic Frankish world, it was not just as simple as facing the war.

I am afraid that the brothers can still be the promoters of the battle in the new era of war.

An armed cargo ship and four long ships are traveling in the vast Baltic Sea, and the small fleet carrying the northern goods is going to the most important relay station for its trip - Hamburg in the Principality of Saxony.

The fleet first passed through Copenhagen, a new city in the Kingdom of New Denmark, and replenished some catches and water in this humble port under construction, and also received a major news.

"Looks like they really did."

"I don't know how much loot that Ragnar can get by running to Britain."

"Maybe a lot of wool, gold, and slaves."

"Impossible. The Franks are richer than those guys, and our brothers will make a fortune going to Frank."

The two brothers talked for a while. They had no idea about Copenhagen. How does this port, which is under construction and looks desolate, compare to those big ports in Ross?

Now the question arises, who goes to Rotterstad and who goes to Nassau.

I am afraid that Rotterstad is still a flat wasteland, a good place to build a good port, and it is very close to the local prosperous Utrecht. Even if the basic port facilities cannot be built in the first year, there is no problem in utilizing the local resources in Utrecht.

To go to Nassau is to enter the Frankish hinterland, and for a while, you must be surrounded by them. No one can be sure whether Ludwig will be disgraced and angry when he returns to his hometown after the defeat, and insists on using his powerlessness to regain his face. For example, to take revenge against the Rus living in Nassau, the risk is bound to be great.

The two brothers are about the same age, and the two little fat men are standing together, and it is difficult for outsiders to tell who is the older brother and who is the younger brother. They don't care about the specific age, both brothers want to seize the opportunity to take risks, even the younger brother will not let the older brother.

"Then let the gods decide." The black fox suggested, and the red fox deeply agreed.

A fine Frankish silver coin became a dice, and the obverse side of Charlemagne's head represented Nassau to the hinterland, and the reverse side went to Rotterstad.

Who is eligible to go to Nassau? Black Fox won the gamble.

"Brother, it seems that this is the will of the gods." The black fox even got a little cheap.

"No way, this boat is quite bumpy..."

Red Fox accepts this reality, but from a business perspective alone, he feels he may be more profitable. A Rotterstad to replace the burnt port of Durist, where Ross will set up shops equivalent to a military base. The city will be a gathering place for Danes, Rus, and other northerners. Legally, it is jointly governed by the Kingdom of Denmark and the Kingdom of Rus, but there is no city owner. I am afraid that this port will be more free than the Durist in the past, and the closest one is Hazelby, who has withdrawn from history.

This place will be a distribution center for goods from Britain, the Frankish hinterland, Flanders, and the North, an extremely free trade market, and the red fox feels that he must make a fortune.

And the black fox won the gamble, and also won the opportunity to make military exploits. Does the little fat man dare to fight? He feels that he is not really ready, but the opportunity is rare, thinking that his second brother Lanhu also survived the danger alone, and he can do the same. Going to Nassau is not as simple as building a new Ross store. The second brother, Blue Fox, was instructed to operate a local stronghold and accept it as soon as he arrived. Then, he was ordered to loot the Middle Kingdom.

Produce materials and then sell them to make money? Where is the looting to get the money fast? ! And in the peace treaty after the war, the Rus people have the right to plunder the Middle Kingdom, which is legally supported by the Eastern Kingdom.

The two brothers crossed the Great Denmark Strait peacefully all the way, and now they are facing the vast Atlantic Ocean.

With the salty sea breeze, a whole new world is in front of you.

The small fleet also turned, sticking to the coastline that began to extend to the southwest, relying on the advantage of the jib to drift against the mild southerly wind until it reached the mouth of the Weser River.

Starting to enter the inland river, the four longships quickly turned into tugboats.

It is not the first time for some brothers to come here. They are witnesses of the war. They have lived in the Hamburg area for half a year. For these guys, the village not far away was the salt-boiled stronghold in early spring, and now it is a new fishing village for the Saxons. , and inherited the salt cooking facilities of the past. It can be seen to the naked eye that thick smoke is billowing here, and the sea water is boiling in large and small pottery urns, accompanied by thick smoke billowing from burning resin.

Seeing all this for the first time, the two brothers were greatly surprised. The salt-boiler who was busy with his work was very cordial when he saw the fleet with the flag of Ross flying high.

The people of Saxony have a very friendly attitude towards the Rus people. They are not as close as brothers even if they have different beliefs. Just for the sake of money, what is the future of cooperation.

The arrival of the Ross fleet quickly caused a sensation in Hamburg, and a group of fishing boats escorted it and led them to the city in the inland river.

Even in the wet summer season, the Weser River still has limited water flow. The river washed away everything in the Winter War. Many corpses of Frankish soldiers who were frozen with the river drifted into the Atlantic Ocean as the snow melted. The traces of the war could not be found. Hamburg was originally a small settlement. After the war, she was the largest in the entire Principality of Saxony. settlement. Even though many of the war refugees have returned home, 20,000 people still live in the city-centred area.

Agricultural production is recovering faster than Duke Liudov imagined! At least they have kept the necessary crops for planting. Although they will be in trouble in the spring and summer droughts after sowing, as long as they harvest in autumn, everything will be fine.

Therefore, the Duchy of Saxony was extremely weak after the war. Even if he had to prepare for a new war that was bound to come in the future, Duke Ludov could not do anything because of poverty.

So Rurik's de facto eldest son Regraff, even if he has big ideas in Hamburg, can only implement a small part.

Regraf, the legitimate heir to the throne of the kingdom of Mercia, was in fact in exile in the Duchy of Saxony, and could only maintain a so-called "King's Guard of Mercia" of thirty Rus and seventy Saxons.

He wanted to imitate his great father, but because of the poverty of his father-in-law, Liudov, he could only maintain this amount of troops, and the soldiers were armed with their own.

Even so, this 100-man team was temporarily included in the armed forces of the Duchy of Saxony. Obviously very young, it can be said that he is young, and Regraff is a general of the Duchy of Saxony.

The "Great Peace Talk" has only ended for four months. The Hamburg area is the main battlefield, and the people are licking their wounds in pain. While the East Franks suffered heavy losses, the Saxons, who were not as strong, suffered as much. Last year's autumn harvest was hit, and famine had actually happened. If it weren't for ocean fishing, boiled salt for sale to buy food from Greater Flanders and Cologne, starvation would be the norm.

The whole people lived like ascetic monks, and they did not fall into endless lament, at least the Archbishop of the North, Eskil, was in Hamburg. This old man who traveled far and wide finally set up the bishop's church in Hamburg, just like a shepherd pointing out the direction for all the lambs.

Teach the people to live a life of hardship and to achieve the purity of the spiritual world by living as frugally as possible. Black bread, wild herbs and water, this old fellow can carry his lower priests through life in such a monotonous way.

But the nobility were not ascetic, and the populace didn't really feel that such extreme fasts had to be eternal.

At the very least, the Northern Church is making a huge positive difference in difficult times.

It was in this atmosphere that the Ross Squadron came to port.

In any era, the landing of a distant cargo ship will cause a sensation, especially the Saxons who live in hardships are as excited as they see the ark when they see the Ross cargo ship at the port.

The facts also satisfy the demands of the poor people.

Liudov rushed to the river wharf with the whole family anxiously. Regraf brought his "King's Guard of Mercia" to greet the ship of his hometown under the flag of Ross. The boy even fantasized about his father Rurik coming in person. .

There were a lot of people gathered on the pier. When Eskil was leaning on crutches, suppressing his inner excitement, and with a calm expression, he came with a group of black-robed priests, and the people spontaneously made way for him.

The oarsmen of the Rus retracted their oars, and after they landed, they worked together to pull the cables and tow the ship to the trestle.

After the big ship stopped, the two little fat men clumsily got off the ship along the rope ladder, almost directly connected, and the material unloading work began.

The black fox and the red fox came to Hamburg for the first time. They noticed that the city was like a pie. The houses were densely spread, but some buildings were too chaotic if they were irregular. At least the inner city is delightful, with its walls and a tall stone fort in the center.

The two tidied up their clothes, and then put on their fur hats with gorgeous feathers to distinguish them from the others.

Is it the new Rus nobleman?

While Liudov was at a loss, his good son-in-law Regraff was already in a great mood.

"Child, these two... do you know?"

"I know. One is a black fox and the other is a red fox."

"Oh?!" Liudov suddenly realized: "I know there is a Ross nobleman named Joseph Blue Fox, surely that person's brothers?"

"Yes."

"Ah...that's what Rurik explained earlier."

Ludov heard Rurik mention that he would send trusted people to the Frankish world to develop new business matters, and of course it was not just business, but also the pursuit of power.

Regarding this matter, Archbishop Esquil of the North has more news, because everything has been discussed. The old guy has been waiting these days, thinking that he has finally waited for the right person.

When they met for the first time, the black fox and red fox brothers were quite restrained, but they knew very well that Regraf was the real eldest son of the king after all, and the fact that the Ross flag was flying on the shore was even more cordial.

Then at the pier, the two sides briefly introduced themselves.

The comers are not soldiers, nor will they stay in Hamburg, but they will leave a batch of supplies that can survive for the Saxons-food at Rick's request.

A part of the space in the armed cargo ship was stuffed with oats, and the total amount could be nearly five tons. This batch of grain was not given away for nothing. In exchange, the Duchy of Saxony exchanged salt.

The two brothers invoked King Rurik's trade demands, and what they got was, of course, that Ludov was trembling with excitement. In addition, a small batch of farm implements was also unloaded, they were only plowshares and shovel heads, and the work of installing wooden handles was left to the buyer, and the same batch of goods could also be exchanged for salt.

The food will immediately improve the dilemma of the summer drought in the Hamburg area, but the two brothers are also fatal. Half of this batch of food is a gift to Regraf.

Regraf got not only a batch of grain, but also ten pounds of silver!

This at least completely reversed the dilemma that Regraf is now facing. This is a start-up capital from the father to his son, at least the first batch of start-up capital. But more than that, Regraf still hoped that his father Rurik would come to see him again.

The little boy had tears in his eyes, but he raised his chest pretending to be strong, showing the arrogance of the so-called King of Mercia. He silently asked the older black fox: "My father... ah no! When will King Ross come to Hamburg again?"

The black fox was quite surprised that Regraf called his father so vividly: "The king is busy with his own business. I learned that this year's Ross is a truce. However, the king ordered our two brothers to develop in Frank. Order us to deliberately create some incidents."

So Red Fox deliberately added an intriguing sentence: "If there is a war, the king should send troops."

"That's good." Regraf was strong and deliberately responded in a very official manner: "I will bring the Mercia Army and fight side by side with the Ross Army."

It seems that ~www.mtlnovel.com~ young Regraff has become accustomed to his new identity, or has made compromises in life.

It is a small task for the fox brothers to stop and deliver supplies in Hamburg, and in the final analysis, it is also a normal business behavior.

The biggest purpose of the two is to find the archbishop of the north and present a letter written by King Rurik.

They are no ordinary people, two little fat men who have received a very formal education in church Latin. Even if the language is not fluent at all, it is not a problem to stammer and communicate with the old man Eskil. Of course, this is not a problem for Eskil. Just a miracle.

There are personal notes written on the paper. Esquil has accepted the high-level writing medium of "paper", and it is even more recognizable that this is Rurik's own handwriting.

It was a letter of introduction, and it was the wrong content that most appealed to Esquill.

The old guy's eyes trembled with excitement, looking at the two little fat men as if he was looking at his long-lost son.

He opened his aging arms with a kind expression on his face, "My child, I...is your godfather. The baptism is tonight."