Rise of Rurik

The prince will finally become a khan, and Kagan's shoulders will bear the responsibility of the entire clan.

It was in the interests of both parties to build a relay station called Luki on the road between Ross and Pecheneg, and Kagan strongly supported this.

Carlotta finished what she wanted to say, and now it was Kagan's turn to speak the words of his heart.

"You... sunk the power of Ross early. And I, I can finally get my power. You are the khan of Ross, I am the khan of Pecheneg. But... when I get the power, I can hardly get it anymore. I am so free to meet you now."

Kagan had spoken as implicitly as possible, and a sense of loss permeated the house.

Rurik nodded: "I can understand. You were a free horseman until you got the khan, like a yoke. But you never want to lose it! Rest assured, you are the only Peche I admit. Neg Khan."

"Thank you. Ah... wish we two brothers drank until I was drunk before I left."

"A banquet? Yes, I can arrange it immediately."

Ross has good wines that are clear as water and really flammable and capable of mass production. There are a lot of strange little things to satisfy the nobility's preferences, and there are more bulk materials to meet the necessities of life of the prairie people.

A farewell banquet Kagan is full of expectations, but now he has to take advantage of his sober mind to inform Rurik of his strategic arrangements after leaving.

"Our trade routes go through grasslands, rivers, and endless forests. There are always challenges in our communication, which requires maintaining large trade groups to trade."

Kagan's words seemed to have a deep meaning, and Rurik thought for a while: "Could it be that you want me to organize a caravan and go directly to your residence for trade?"

"Of course you can, you must have this ability. You have as many horses as you, and cavalry who have won great victories in the far west. Brother Rurik, you know it. We Pechenegs and those Kievs, everyone. Faced with sneak attacks by Khazarian cavalry all the time, the southern steppe route is not really safe."

"That's right. I know those people." Rurik replied, pinching his beard, feeling that something was wrong.

Kagan continued his speech, and his words became more and more high-pitched: "There is a very fertile grassland in the southern coastal area, where the Khazars occupied the cattle and sheep. We Pechenegs long for it, and we were incapable of it in the past. Now with your weapon input, this is no longer an extravagant hope."

"The grasslands on the southern coast?"

"Exactly," Kagan added.

Rurik had a map in his head, and he knew the concept of the Khazar Khanate.

The Khazars are the Khazar tribe of the Western Turks. They were forced to move westward under the military attack of the Tang Empire. This escape was to go west along the vast grasslands, riding horses and driving cattle and sheep all the way to the Carba. Qianshan. The Pechenegs are related to the Khazars, and even so fight over the grazing pastures.

The Khazars were the forerunners, and the Pechenegs were latecomers. In the follow-up, there will be Kipchak and Ogusi peoples with similar blood rushing to the rich southeastern European grasslands on horseback.

The macroscopic historical development is like this, not a king can change at will with his personal will.

Rurik really felt that since he made a distant friend of Pecheneg, delivering important iron and salt to him is like stepping on the accelerator of a historical car.

The Pecheneg people are also from the Western Turks. Originally, the area at the mouth of the Volga River was the control area of ​​the Khazar Khanate. After they captured it through war, they continued to expand. That is to say, the Pecheneg people take the fertile steppe area along the Volga River from Volgograd to Astrakhan as the core control area, and several major tribes are arranged like a star chain. They expanded to the nearby Donbass Basin, actively trying to seize control of the Donbass River.

At the very least, they have carved a trade line through the Khazarian Khanate's area of ​​control.

Place names are all given by people, and Kagan's own description only gave it a description of "traffic lines", but Rurik has a special understanding of the so-called "traffic lines".

There is the vast Kursk salient area of ​​World War II, itself a flat prairie with many rivers. Every time Pecheneg's horse team crossed here, and then from the position of about Mokharkov, towards the west, arrived at the residence of the Kyiv people.

In this era, even the so-called powerful Khazarian Khanate had too few populations, and even the once mighty Eastern Roman Empire did not turn over after its population plummeted after two plagues. The Eastern European world has huge forests, lakes and grasslands, but the active population is very small. There is no concept of borders in the steppe area, and this situation is completely applicable to the kingdom of Rus sitting in the north.

Theoretically, the Rus Kingdom only had borders with Denmark, Saxony, and East Frank, established by the Treaty of 840. Territories are bounded by natural rivers or special landmarks, and are recognized by the rulers.

In Eastern Europe, Rus has only areas of control and spheres of influence, but no borders.

To the east, Ross' tentacles can directly control the Valdai Lakes area, and to the south, the Lukiholm stronghold can be established in the Everglades this year. Could it be said that further east or further south are not within the control zone? of course not. As long as there are no forces that prevent the explorers from advancing and are incapable of conquering, Rurik can claim that the endless east is "the territory given to Rus by the gods".

The same logic applies to Pecheneg.

The lower Volga Valley is now their core area. As long as their cavalry is strong enough, it is theoretically possible for the Pecheneg Khanate to continue to expand and replace the Khazarian Khanate.

But by that time, the power became a threat to anyone.

"No! The Pechenegs can't be that strong! My Ross will become the Rome of the North ahead of time." Rurik sighed secretly.

In fact, Kagan's meaning is implicit but obvious, that is, if the situation changes, he invites allies in the north to send troops to the south to attack the Khazars.

Rurik understood what he meant by marrying his righteous brother, raised his majestic chest and declared arrogantly: "Brother! I just thought about it, I completely understand what you mean. We really need to determine the line of communication between our two countries. , I should also send cavalry along your way home to visit your homeland at the appropriate time. So that if you intend to start a war, we Ross can respond quickly and reach the battlefield along the road to help you."

"This is exactly what I want." Kagan is happy to have a close brother.

In short, the two sides need to make the alliance closer. Putting aside the feat of the two rulers' **** bond, the economic relationship between the two countries is already very close, and the next step is a comprehensive military alliance. Pecheneg is still weak but the future is promising, and they have already embraced Rose's thigh. Kagan's statement today fully proves one thing - Pecheneg is about to start an epic expansion.

No, Kagan began to reiterate his demands.

"So, of all the Ruth goods, we will always need salt and iron. In fact, we can make do with extremely bitter seawater, but we only have you one ally who can supply iron steadily. We will always need a lot of iron armor, Iron spears and clusters of iron arrows. You see, I'm about to officially become a khan. Brother, look..."

Kagan said a lot, and those brown eyes began to spin frequently.

Rurik suddenly laughed: "Brother, you are asking me for a gift."

"Why don't you give me some more? Maybe this will make you unhappy, but supporting me is good for you. After all, we will trade frequently in the future, and I will create a larger sphere of influence to ensure that our lines of communication are more secure. This keeps coming. Wouldn't it be nice to send the prairie horses and slaves to you?"

Looking at Kagan's meaning, he wanted to get some iron tools for nothing.

It stands to reason that Ross shouldn't make a big grievance on this issue. Today's Kagan lowered his attitude and became a brother to have a friendship, which made Rurik feel itchy. After all, there is an oriental soul in his heart, and the Pecheneg people are indeed the defeated generals of the Tang Empire, and he has always had a psychological advantage. Besides, Bejasil is here too.

Wait a minute! Isn't Bejahir here a tool that causes him to be hard-hearted?

Rurik's expression was a little hesitant, but Bejasil started to make a noise.

"Your Majesty." She poked her head with trembling eyes: "Didn't we seize some worn-out armors from the West? There are also some poor-quality irons. Why don't you give them to my eldest brother."

"That's right." Kagan said hurriedly, "Brother, I'm not very demanding. Those things are nothing to you, but they can play a very good role in our hands."

"Hahahahaha..." Rubbing his beard, Rurik laughed out loud, his face became more stern: "You are indeed brothers and sisters, it seems that it has been discussed."

The two brothers and sisters looked at each other and smiled again, the scene was indeed strange.

"Humph. After all, we are relatives." Rurik said again: "Don't you just want those scraps of copper and iron?"

"If there is a better one, as long as my horse can pull it away, I will... try to pull it away."

"You're really welcome. That's fine."

It was Rurik's oriental temperament that reminded him of the arrogance and domineering of the kingdoms of all nations. Is there only intrigue between countries? Do they just maintain their relationship based on common interests, and immediately tear up past treaties once their interests conflict? That's what real barbarism does.

A strong Pecheneg, who has always maintained an alliance with Rus, is very beneficial to the Rus Kingdom at the current historical stage.

Considering the limited capacity of the pack horses, even if Rurik suddenly burst out with kindness and wanted to give Kagan a large amount of supplies as a gift to bless him to become a Khan, he would not agree with the reality.

How did the Pechenegs or steppe cavalry fight? If it is not necessary, they are unwilling to face each other, but they frequently fight against each other with horses and archery, and sneak attacks often occur. Even if the prairie people know how to smelt iron, because of the environment in which they live, it is not easy to find iron ore, not even a single stone. Iron will rust. For their consumables, once they cannot be effectively replenished, the military strength of a grassland tribe will continue to weaken.

Use bone fragments to make arrow clusters. If you shoot a little farther, you won't be able to wear leather armor.

And Ross' steel cone armor-piercing arrow can easily pierce through the lock ring of general chain armor, and can drill holes just like iron scale armor.

"Fairy Wood"

According to Kagan's past descriptions, the Khazars have a high rate of leather armor because of their frequent business with the Romans, and they can also use a large number of iron arrow clusters. The quality of its iron clusters is simply not comparable to that of Ross.

The cone-shaped arrow cluster is formed by casting once, and then decarburized into low-carbon steel by frying steel. Finally, after a fierce quenching, it becomes extremely hard and will not lose a certain degree of willfulness. It is really hard and not easy to break. Baby. Because Ross has already achieved mass production, the cost of a single arrow cluster has been greatly diluted.

It is not necessary to give good arrows to allies, but the army returning from the expedition has arrows that have been used many times.

The core of an arrow is its arrow cluster. The arrows prepared for the Ross expedition lost a lot of wear and tear. The arrow clusters recovered as much as possible are installed on temporary wooden poles, and the tail feathers are made of wild bird feathers, or even non-stick feathers. . This is like reloading bullets. Of course, reloading bullets can be used, but no matter how optimized the performance is, they cannot keep up with the original bullets.

Rurik said: "Since you only need arrow clusters, I can provide you with a lot. They have all gone through war, many arrow clusters have drank blood, and countless Western warriors have died from them. Arrow shafts are no longer usable. The arrow cluster is okay. You go back with the arrow cluster in plenty of sacks."

"Okay!" Kagan asked eagerly for the exact number.

"I can probably give you 10,000, anyway, even if I don't give you, those arrow clusters will have to be redone."

"Give it to me, I'll go back to my hometown to make another 10,000 arrows." Kagan's heart was beating wildly with excitement.

For Rurik, 10,000 arrow clusters are nothing now. The steel industry's production capacity in Rus has been expanding, because the people are fully aware of the huge benefits of bow loss for war and hunting. Two large smelters in the north and blacksmiths in various settlements are willing to mass-produce it. In the same way, common people are also willing to raise poultry in large quantities and sell large feathers for extra profit.

For Kagan, 10,000 arrow clusters are a huge wealth. They are still the so-called "Arrow Clusters in the past" who have drank blood, and are invisibly blessed by a powerful mysterious power.

These realistic munitions served as gifts from Rurik to celebrate Kagan's succession to Khan.

According to Kagan's plan, Pecheneg under his rule has two major national policies, the first is to continue to strengthen the all-round alliance with Ross, and the second is to devour the control area of ​​the Khazarian Khanate westward.

"I will choose an excellent, intelligent, and respectful clan brother to continue to trade with you on behalf of Pecheneg." Kagan reiterated.

"I hope he is a smart clan brother as you said. Oh, since I'm your clan brother, am I also that person's brother?"

Kagan shrugged: "Brother, you don't have to be like this. You are the noble khan of the north, and the whole north is yours. My clan brother is not that noble. But... according to our covenant, my clan brother is necessary when necessary. You can follow your orders to participate in the war."

"So, isn't your commercial horse team... it's possible to become my mercenary?"

"Of course you can. If you're willing to pay, it's great. It's fine if you don't pay. After all, you allow the army to loot after victory. We prairie people are good at this."

Everything is still in the dark, Rurik feels that he will send Kagan military supplies, and those who change direction will also get a cavalry mercenary team. Since the two sides are a military alliance, this is naturally understandable.

Forming an alliance requires fulfilling the covenant, even if it comes at a cost. If Kagan attacks the Khazarians, it means that Rus automatically declares war on the Khazarian Khanate.

Is there anything to talk about with the Khazars? The Russ didn't know anything about those guys, and there was no psychological burden to attack them, and Rurik didn't bother to know too much about those guys.

Kakansui continued the discussion and returned to the establishment of a settlement in the swamp at the headwaters of the Lovati River.

The current round of Carlota and Kagan are in harmony, and the two are full of hope for the stronghold of Lukiholm.

Carlotta gradually became like steel at the age of nine. Although she is a woman, for the sake of the old clan and the new obedient people, UU Kanshu www.uukanshu.com must be a leader, more like a man than a man. .

She made a high-profile announcement: "I don't trust my subordinates to build the Lukiholm stronghold. Anyway, the source of the Lovady River has been discovered, and my subordinates know the location of the Great Bend. I plan to lead my troops there to build a fortress. By the way, he also escorted Brother Kagan home. Rurik, what do you think?"

"Of course." Rurik didn't want to answer.

"Hey, I'll take our Carl. Even if this kid is only four years old, he has to see the world."

"It should be like this. My princes should go out and explore when they are at the right age. So, I arranged for my cousin Arik to explore the East, and many boys over twelve years old also acted." Rurik followed. In other words, this remark seems to be a general echo, but Kagan and Carlotta have no idea what it means.

No, Rurik pretended to be mysterious and put on an intriguing expression: "Brother Kagan, the core area of ​​your Pecheneg people is backed by a big river, I call it the Volga River. I dare say that the upper reaches of this river is right now where we are. The location is due east. You can believe that I will continue to send expeditions to the east, and sooner or later I will find the big river. Finally, I can row directly to your homeland, which is faster than horses transporting goods."

Such a situation was really unheard of for Kagan, and it was difficult for him to understand: "You? How do you know."

"What else?" Rurik stretched out his right hand to the ceiling and said deliberately, "God Odin told me. God didn't tell me the correct location, only told me in a dream that as long as I keep going east, I can finally find the correct one. River. Brother, our **** bless me. Just as your **** bless you. You rest in Novgorod again, and I will set up the banquet immediately, and prepare gifts for you."