A group of cavalry raised their banners high and galloped on the snow-covered dirt road by the river. Their horseshoes kicked up ice **** on the road with obvious sled tracks.

As long as you keep your eyes open, there is a large city with a wide wall in the huge flat area not far away.

Novgorod stands at the mouth of the Volkhov River at the exit of Lake Ilmen.

In the past ten years, a large area of pine forest has been completely developed, the roots of the trees have been dug out, the acidic humus has been cleaned up, and the annual wheat straw is burned on the spot, and the pH of the soil has gradually been reconciled. Now this newly cleared land is growing peas for the first time! The rotation of peas and cold-resistant wheat has started, and the crop yield in the future will increase every year.

A vacant lot has been deliberately left uncultivated, and people let the weeds grow wildly.

It is the training ground of the Ross army and the main camp of the garrison, especially the cavalry.

But now all the farmland is abandoned in winter, and there are snow-covered flat lands everywhere, and the returning messengers on horseback can quickly rush into the city.

A team of ten cavalry, each cavalry is extremely fancy dress.

Their high-topped imitation Cossack fur caps feature at least ten geese feathers, each nearly 50 cm long, which are dyed blue. Another wooden pole was planted in the saddle, on which flew a Ross flag.

All this was done to attract people's attention. With the king's order, they had to rush into the city before sunset, and inform the people and King Otto of the news.

Even in winter, or just in winter, people who cannot work in the fields use their main experience to produce in family workshops. Cloth, felt, wool,

It is impossible for the state-owned tailor factories to fully digest the ever-increasing textile raw materials for various kinds of leather, and the majority of housewives and children must undertake its processing.

Five- and six-year-old children undertake simple work, and on the other hand, even pregnant women sit down and do needlework. It is better for men to do some labor nearby, and if not, they can also go home and work on various kinds of leather, especially leather and felt boots. Because everyone needs boots, and the army needs them even more urgently, it has become one of Novgorod's top export products, and its sales are extremely good.

Every farmhouse is a small family workshop, so the market in Novgorod is no longer limited to bulk grain, fish catch, and textile trade.

Now is the time when Baigong is thriving and has greater development potential. Even in the evening, those who set up stalls on the road are still the same, and those who are interested in buying goods are still coming and going.

The arrival of the messenger startled the guards of the city's south gate, and they were even more surprised to learn that the remaining troops of King Rurik's expeditionary force had arrived at the Fisherman's Manor.

These city patrollers immediately enlightened them. They yelled rudely to order the guys who occupied the road to avoid quickly, and they made all the customers stand on both sides of the road.

People were dissatisfied with these expulsions, but hearing the content of the patrollers' yelling, dissatisfaction quickly turned into happiness.

"Get out of the way! Make way for the king's messenger!"

The patrol opened the way ahead, and the following cavalry passed the main road at lightning speed.

Thousands of people on both sides of the road saw the flashing blue and white phantom, watching them go straight to the palace.

for otto, the rebels

Vadim was executed and his skull turned into a goblet.

He used the special wine glass only once, and then displayed it as a trophy and collection, which is no different in nature from the circle of ferocious bear heads hanging on the wooden wall.

The joy of victory gradually dissipated, and life became calmer.

After all, the old king was old, and Otto's aging body could no longer be as aggressive as it was twenty years ago. In other words, in 831, he personally led troops to put down the rebellion in the Novgorod region in name, which was the swan song of his life. The veteran's career has come to an end after that **** victory, and the rest is to live for the rest of his life, which even makes him feel boring.

The childhood playmates are all dead, and the group of cubs I watched growing up, either died in previous wars, or are already middle-aged, and now is the era of the grandchildren of the tribe.

"Today is another peaceful day..."

He often closes his eyes and rests his mind. He wears a thick fur coat and his face is much thinner than it was a few years ago. The court guards were ordered to serve in good health, and everyone was actually worried that Otto would suddenly go out of his body during a nap, and in the most euphemistic way, "his spirit has ascended to Valhalla".

The young grandchildren fought each other with wooden sticks as weapons, dressed thickly and played some exciting games in school.

Children are taught not to cry at will, not to be afraid of being injured, and even to be proud of not crying because of injury and bleeding.

Because most of them are destined to be assigned to the borders of the kingdom to become princes, to guard the borders of the kingdom and actively expand the territory.

They are the eldest sons of their respective mothers. Based on the primogeniture system established in northern Europe since ancient times, they

They must face their own destiny, and they must be trained to be warriors from an early age.

In this regard, there are veterans who teach them how to fight, and Otto is sorry that he can't teach the cubs himself.

Nap Otto waiting for dinner.

His body can no longer fully digest big fish and meat as in the past, so he eats some boiled wheat porridge mixed with butter, or even braised noodles made of refined noodles, which is his favorite daily food now.

But there is one thing, the wine can't be stopped!

Alcoholism certainly caused premature death, but Otto's favorite drink in his life was alcohol, and he lived to be seventy years old, so of course he had to enjoy it in his old age.

If the sudden abstinence from alcohol was just a psychological blow to this old guy, Rurik would not deprive his biological father of his hobbies because of such a trivial matter in order to live two years longer.

For low-alcohol wine, even distilled dry red, and higher-alcohol vodka, he only feels happy when he is slightly drunk from the whole glass, and he will quietly recollect his life in the intoxication.

The arrival of the messenger suddenly disturbed the Taishang King.

Otto got up slowly, put on his robe and walked into the outer hall with a wooden staff. Although he is old, it doesn't mean he can't walk. Since the guards told him that Rurik was back, the happy old man was overjoyed and walked a little more hurriedly.

He sat back on his own bearskin bench, looked at the ten young warriors with exaggerated feathers on their heads, half kneeling on the ground, and asked forcefully, "Where are my son Rurik and the Expeditionary Army now?! "

"Report to the great king!" The team leader shook his head and said with a serious look: "We are at the Fisherman's Manor. The king ordered us to inform the great king that our army has returned. Tomorrow, the army

I will officially enter Novgorod, and I hope that the great king can personally put on the golden armor and inspect the expeditionary army in person..."

"Is this what Rurik told you?"

"Exactly. We dare not expire."

Otto was ecstatic in his heart. On the surface, he gradually suppressed his joy, so he tapped on the wooden stick: "Understood, you can go back to the barracks to rest temporarily. Come here!"

Immediately, a guard appeared: "We are here."

"Go and inform Governor Medved to come to see me!"

"As ordered."

Governor Medved knew about the return of Rurik's army immediately. As the uncle of the state, he understood the purpose of Rurik's actions. It is said that the army came out of a magical place, and they walked along the Xieron River that no one had explored before. Pathfinders unearth trade routes for Ross' future.

As for the army staying at the Fisherman's Manor, it was because they needed to rest after a long journey, and it also gave Novgorod a time to welcome the king's triumphant return.

King Ross needs a triumphal ceremony, and the people of the city will eat pots of oatmeal on the main road to welcome the king.

After receiving the order, Medved immediately met with the Supreme King. The two discussed quickly, and then he sighed deeply with the messengers. He basically learned about the "Pskov Adventure" of King Ross. To greet the triumphant return, he already knew what to dojust like the Supreme King parading around the lake, just reproduce it once according to the same specifications.

The news immediately spread throughout the entire city of Novgorod, and the soldiers from each family gathered urgently. Don't expect to sleep soundly this night.

The horns representing "Assembly" were blown all over the city.

The sleepy soldiers put on their clothes one after another and assembled at the training ground outside the city.

Almost all of them are soldiers of the Slavic flag team. These citizen soldiers rarely have Nordic blood, but they are die-hard supporters of the Kingdom of Ross.

In addition to these registered soldiers, Medwait also organized the militia. The latter certainly did not have the uniformed uniform and awe-inspiring posture of the former with a full set of weapons.

In the early morning, the morning sun illuminated the white world with a golden light, and the chill gradually dissipated. Outside the city, there were spears in the forest, and the Slavic banner soldiers lined up in two long and narrow columns to create a human wall.

Militiamen gathered behind them one after another.

More and more people gathered outside the city, and more people were looking forward to it on the main road inside the city.

Today is a good day, and any commercial transactions, any workshop production, are suspended in the morning.

The human wall on the main road has been lined up to the city square and to the gate of the palace.

Otto didn't stay outside the city early in the morning. He had already put on the golden armor. At the same time, all the members of the royal family gathered in the palace, especially the queen Svetlana who became a "big belly woman" again. The leather jacket concealed her pregnant belly, and she adorned herself with a large number of gemstones. She pulled Prince Osborn and stood dignifiedly beside Otto.

All the famous people in Novgorod are shouting in the city square, and the merchants from the capital are also waiting here, many of them are Danish, Swedish and Finnish merchants who have traveled thousands of miles to import leather products.

It has long been known that the king intends to personally conquer the Franks, and the entire capital has been mobilized.

Becoming a huge arsenal, there wasn't much tension here as Novgorod mainly provided rations and clothing for expeditions.

Everyone wears the clothes they are most proud of, and even commoners rarely wear jewelry, even if it is mostly cheap colored glass beads strung together.

People wanted to appreciate the glorious image of the triumphant army, and they were all talking about how much spoils and news the king brought back this time.

The news about Pskov spread like wildfire. After all, for the local Slavs, they only care about their own one-acre three-point land. What they can think of is that the king will conquer new regions with thunder. A shock.

Because some Danish merchants not only know that there has been a community of eastward migrants in the Bay of Riga since ancient times, and it is not surprising that it is now a part of Ross, but why is the northeast stronghold of Pskov easily manipulated by the king?

The merchants in New Roseburg had long known the willingness of the Danish community in Pskov to form an alliance with Ross. However, what the merchants now learned was that King Rurik had completed the military conquest. Obviously, there must be many hidden secrets about this matter.

But what happened to the locals in Pskov, and what does it have to do with the Danish businessmen living in Novgorod? So far, at most, it has given these people some thought. The so-called future commercial activities may have new ways to make money.

At the same time, the Fisherman's Manor is not far away.

Wheat porridge was boiled overnight in iron pots and pottery urns, so that the soldiers could have hot meals immediately in the early morning.

"Get up! Check your equipment and check your weapons! Hurry up and bridle and saddle the reindeer, and let's go!" the captains of each banner

Shouting everywhere, the sleepy-eyed soldiers got up cleverly one after another.

They rectified the housework and ate a hot meal, and then all the cooking utensils were still in the manor for the time being.

Anyway, I have already gone home, and some details that need to be considered during the field battle can be ignored now.

The Ross people left a messy eating scene, and also unloaded some sundries, such as the hay that had not been consumed to feed the reindeer.

Rurik rode his horse and waved his sword to call for everyone to get on the sled urgently.

So a marching army marched forward towards Novgorod mightily in the rising sun. At this moment, the banners were flying, and the faces of the soldiers were filled with happiness of returning home.

When they saw the walls of the main city of Novgorod, following Rurik's order, the four infantry flag teams jumped off the sleds one after another. Wear a thick batch, and then put on a linen robe with blue cloth strips sewn on the outside.

Armed to be firmly secured, with a round shield and his own backpack on his back, a steel sword and handaxe hanging from his waist, and a warrior carrying a crossbow carries it on his shoulder.

The infantry flag teams are lined up in a matrix, and the flags are flying at this moment. All this is simply a replica of the deeds of two years ago!

At that time, the newly formed Seventh Banner Team went on an armed parade, and was soon sent to fight in the Frankish world.

Now that four new flag teams have been formed, the brothers have already experienced the test of real war, and now they are lining up to triumph. Doesn't it mean that everyone can participate in a new expedition?

Each flag team is no longer full, and more than 400 people in each team can still line up the team squarely. This is the first time to show Olafin, Bohm and others.

The so-called if hundreds of them can walk neatly

Therefore, it is only natural to quickly set up a tight shield wall to fight.

In Pskov, what these people saw was the stormy arrow strikes of the Russian army, which negated all the "glory of the north" of Boss Gore with unheard of tricks. In other words, they had no martial arts and violated the customary warrior culture .

"Look." Olafin, who was sitting on the sled, pounded Bom, who was busy taking a nap after a full stomach of hot food: "Did you see them walking like this in their capital?"

"That's right. The Ross people are like that." Bohm naturally didn't care when he saw the build-up of the Ross army, and continued to tease: "You are so rare! When you go to New Roseburg, you will see their ships as tall as trees. fainted?"

"This... I am looking forward to it. At least I have seen their big ship in Riga. Can it be bigger?"

"Of course. It's a huge ship that even a giant python can't shake."

Olafin smiled awkwardly and didn't ask any more questions.

Bohm saw the huge ship Monarch of the Seas, but he didn't quite know why Ross made such a big thing? Is it as a transport ship? Maybe

At this moment, Rurik led the cavalry to open the way, and even the horses of the cavalry were in order.

More than 2,000 people arrived in the shanty town of Novgorod Waiguo in a mighty way. There are already a large number of people lining the road to welcome and cheer.

Many people, they are the parents of the children! After all, a considerable number of young people in the newly formed four banner teams are pure Slavs.

Zizi went through the most severe trial and grew into a real man and couldn't help crying with joy.

These people maintained great restraint, they just watched and cheered, and when the army passed by, they set their sights on the large number of sleds behind.

They saw some unfamiliar faces, even a group of nervous brown-black and auburn children.

Is this a captive of the king's expedition? It doesn't look like it.

At the same time, Olafin, Boom, and even all the people in the small community officially arrived in Novgorod, a big lakeside city. They couldn't help but compare it with their hometown Pskovas expected, it was the most prosperous place here.

This was Rurik's triumphant triumph, and he enjoyed the cheers of the crowd.

He doesn't need to do anything himself, now he only needs to ride a steed and raise his chin high to receive the admiration and cheers of tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians.

Finally, amid bursting cheers, Rurik led the team to the city square.

Overlord King Otto was wearing golden armor~www.mtlnovel.com~ and behind him were two berserker guards in bear skins. He knew that his father would not be able to stand firmly in armor, and those two were secretly helping him.

Members of the royal family were all gathered here, and Rurik saw the face of his first wife, and the faces of the wives and concubines at a glance...

"Svetlana..."

Rurik got off his horse and walked towards the long house of the palace step by step while holding on to the hilt of his sword, towards his family members.

At this point, the cheers and shouts of the people who surrounded the city square shook off the snow, and the whole city was plunged into a roar that could be heard in Mstisk.

Of course, a large number of old Rus immigrants in that city have been riding sleighs overnight to kill Bennov

Gorod.

This big city gathered into a "giant city" with a population of 50,000 to 60,000 in a very short period of time, only because of the king's triumphant return.

Please remember the first domain name of this book: . :