Rise of Rurik

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Some sneaky people have always been secretly observing, they are the spies sent by the merchants, and Haken noticed their existence when he went to redeem the people. He has no intention of taking care of these guys, and the spies are also taboo to expose them.

The spies were always hiding. They saw the failure of the king from a distance in shock and fear, as well as the ferocity and cunning of the Rus.

The Rus evacuated, leaving behind the corpses of a group of Gotland warriors, as well as a large number of arrows stuck to the corpses and shields.

The eldest son is dead, and even if the eldest son is still alive, he is now a crippled man with broken hands. Such a person has no right to inherit power. Haken put the eldest son's body aside, endured the grief and anger in his heart, and squatted down to examine the arrows of the confiscated Rus people.

"Russian, have you always used iron arrow clusters? This arrow cluster..."

These are no doubt clusters of iron arrows, but how are they any different in color from half the iron?

The arrow clusters collected are very long, like a chisel, they can easily penetrate the iron ring of the chain mail, and they can persecute the ring very simply. Under such impact, the arrow cluster is still sharp and straight, with no sign of bending.

The stubby crossbow arrow is meaningless to the Gotlanders, only its arrow clusters can be removed to make long arrows.

As for those light long arrows, they can be used immediately after they are captured.

The Gotlanders were defeated again, and the prospects for a decisive battle in the future were even more bleak.

Haken instructed his mercenaries to dig pits and bury the corpses on the spot. The mercenaries were terrified. When they thought that in the future decisive battle, they had to fight against such a savage opponent, they would also die in battle. They began to complain, and finally forced them to Haken took out more remuneration before reluctantly started digging.

Only the body of the eldest son, Siegfast, will be brought back, and he will be buried in the family cemetery in Harken. Of course, this burial is secret, and Haken doesn't want others to see his embarrassment.

For Siegfast, at least, his tragic end came to an abrupt end, and he no longer had to worry about the horrors of the future.

It takes time to bury a large number of bodies, and Harken has been on guard under the hill while dealing with the mess.

The spies fled back to Visby with horrific news, claiming they had seen something horrific, propagating through them, as if King Harken had been killed.

Is the news reliable?

The merchants believed very much what the spies they sent out had seen and heard,

Because these are all worth believing.

In addition to Heken's family, the heads of eleven big merchant families gathered in the council chamber, and all the village leaders came one after another, just asking for the latest news.

"Haken, the self-proclaimed king, is dead! There is no king now, and we should think about our own affairs freely! I want to leave with my family, and I advise you to leave as well."

"Let's go? It's okay, but I still have a lot of money and a lot of backlog of goods. It can't be pulled away by a few boats."

"Are you stupid?! Those Russ are coming, and no one can stand against them. It's a matter of life and death, and we're going to die in one step at night. Wouldn't it be okay to drop some belongings in exchange for life?"

"That won't work either. What are we without money and goods? How are we different from those pirates who flee? I'd rather stay and fight the Russ."

"However, do we really have the courage to fight now? The Russ haven't fought yet, and we are already at war. Friends, maybe we should elect a new king." It was the Krorev family who said this. Harald.

As soon as this statement came out, some businessmen sneered on the spot: "Forget it! You, a tailor who knits wool clothes, you clearly hope that your brothers will elect you as king. Then what?

Some even sneered with their mouths open: "You're the king? It's fine. We don't have to fight them, you hand over your daughter Asraki to the Ross leader, maybe they get your fairy, and they can just get a sum of money. You can leave. That way, we will praise you as a good man who brought peace."

Harald of Khrorev, in his rage he drew his short sword of self-defense.

The other businessmen were unmoved, and when the atmosphere was anxious, some old men stood up: "Brothers, have you forgotten our oath at the altar? We have an alliance of businessmen, and brothers should not fight against each other."

This is the case, since Haken broke the rules by calling the queen queen, it is equivalent to saying that the alliance of the businessmen has been broken.

The spies came back to report the news, and the most distinguished men on Gotland began to quarrel. When night fell, they were still discussing what to do in the future.

Just as the sun was dying, Visby was immersed in lively cheers.

That was the cry of the people, because legend has it that the dead King Haken has returned with a troop of warriors! At least the king is not dead, maybe the situation is not too bad.

It's ridiculous that Haken hears about his own death!

His big foot kicked down the wooden door of the council chamber, and then he cursed: "Which villain cursed me to die?! We fell into the despicable trap of the Rus, our army fought hard, and finally beat them away. Now, The villain among you actually said that I was killed!"

"The Russ were driven away by you?!" Harald of Krorev was overjoyed, "This is the best news in a while."

Many businessmen cast contemptuous glances. They hoped that Haken would be dead in the dark in their hearts, and they also despised Harald's rhetoric. Isn't this Harald the one who most wants Haken to die?

In any case, the Rus did leave on their own. Although very guilty, Haken openly declared his victory on this result.

He knew too well that his old friends, the village chiefs who had fled, and the people of the port of Klintheim in the south needed the news of victory too much.

"You see, the Rus are not invulnerable. I killed... a lot of enemies, and they were all buried. And!" Harken wanted to continue the play, and he recruited a few mercenaries, holding bundles of arrows Ya entered the courtroom. "You see, these are the arrows of the captured Rus. They are indeed strong enemies, and the arrow clusters are excellent iron. They have better weapons and take advantage, but we warriors of Gotland There are a lot of them, and as long as we gather all the fighters, we can successfully defeat them."

The businessmen saw something else in the eyes of the past.

The king is indeed making optimistic remarks, but what is written in his eyes is grief, anger, grievance, and of course the desire for revenge.

A businessman asked directly: "You go to redeem your son, what about the Siegfast people?"

This was really like stabbing Haken in the heart with a sharp knife. He rolled his eyes at the speaker and said angrily: "Killed in battle! He died like a warrior."

"But he is obviously a big businessman you carefully cultivated. What does he have to do with soldiers?"

"Shut up!" Haken's rage came too suddenly, he suddenly drew his sword and threw it frantically, almost hitting the talking businessman.

Harken was panting heavily, his eyes bloodshot.

The businessman was also shocked and trembled. After recovering, he yelled: "Are you going to kill me?" The businessman drew his dagger and continued to curse: "You want to be a tyrant? Look, who is really here? Are you afraid of you? We are businessmen, not docile sheep, we can immediately become warriors and kill you.”

Haken was clearly insane, and the merchants present drew their swords in self-defense.

Harald of Krorev said bluntly with his sword: "Haken, do you want to attack us? Then we don't need to attack the Rus or the Melarens, we kill each other, and they will occupy Visby without dying alone. Everyone's wealth is easily taken away by them."

"He's right!" A businessman made a firm statement on the spot: "Haken, brothers support you in the hope that you will defeat the enemy. I didn't expect your sword to be aimed at your brother. I won't accompany you! I'm going to take mine People evacuated."

"You dare!" Haken snapped, never expecting more businessmen to object.

"Why don't we dare? You want to kill me and rob my family's wealth? Let's go to war then! My warriors against your warriors, or are you and I dueling here? You can fight so many people?"

Haken's eyes swayed from side to side, knowing his absolute disadvantage. "Damn, I don't want things to turn out like this, but we have to fight." He took his sword and admitted his gaffe, but some businessmen have lost all hope for the future.

Three merchants insisted on withdrawing!

Haken took pains to authoritatively said: "I learned their demands from the Rus, and they did choose war, which is part of the great war of the villains in the north! Don't think that you three will be safe by fleeing now, Meralen in the north is still alive. The fleets of other tribes are already returning, and you will definitely be evacuating south, and you will definitely meet them! You will all die!"

"That's better than sitting here and waiting. Listen, no one wants to die in vain."

Looking at the determination of these three families, Haken was powerless. Fortunately, there are still many merchant families who are willing to stay, especially the village leaders who have fled. They simply do not have the capital to flee across the sea in an instant, so they can only continue to support Haken, who has "won the battle" and continues to be king.

The council of the three families left decisively, and the people who stayed all changed their faces. Everyone shouted the name of Haken and vowed to fight the Russ, as if they had never questioned Haken.

Surrounded by this enthusiasm, it was as if a mighty unspeakable force poured into Haken's decaying body, and he seemed twenty years younger, as if he had received the divine power blessed by Odin.

He drew his sword again, ripped off the amber necklace he had carved into a human shape, and chopped it off.

"You... what are you doing? This is the guardian spirit of your luck!" Harald of Hrorev asked.

"Enough is enough! I don't need this merchant's guardian spirit, it is meaningless! Remember, I am a warrior now, and belief in Frey is a thing of the past, and now I am a warrior of Odin!"

What is this? A businessman suddenly considers himself a warrior.

The next thing people realize is that Haken wasn't lying, he was actually acting crazy! 186 Chinese Network

When the corpse was buried, it seemed that Haken's business soul was also buried, and it was pointless to continue to worship Frey. In order to win, Haken decided to risk everything.

That night, at the great altar of Visby, a bloody incident suddenly unfolded.

Haken's elite mercenaries poured into the altar in the huge longhouse. They openly resumed their two-handed axe and smashed the bronze statue representing Frey. There were priests to stop them, and they immediately became the target of slaughter. The altar no longer needs to be dedicated to Frey, it will become the place of the priest Odin, and Odin needs the blood of the sacrifice to promise victory for the priest.

At the time of the decisive battle, human sacrifices are required!

Harken's second son learns the "bad news" of his eldest brother's death, and his pain is just acting. He felt that his chance had come, but was shocked to find that his father wanted him as a sacrifice to Odin!

Although he sacrificed blood to Odin in the form of a warrior, his soul after death visited Valhalla "with a letter of introduction".

Haken's second son cried and shouted, and was finally killed in the altar with a rope tied to his mouth and his hands and feet.

The surviving priests who witnessed this illegal sacrifice all chose to keep their mouths shut, and finally smeared their chalk-white faces with the blood of the sacrifice. The priests did not say that their faces were numb the whole time, but in their hearts they scolded Haken that he had gone crazy. Even if this is a human sacrifice to Odin, the sacrifice must be voluntary, and now it's better...

Besides, this altar was never a place to worship Odin! It is also possible to worship Odin. People should go to the top of the mound in the south. There is a small temple dedicated to Odin in the pine forest.

King Haken had turned Frey's altar into an Odin altar, and he finally made a slash on his left hand without changing his color, and the blood dripped on the altar. He sighed in the sky: "Odin! Please accept me. The sacrifice! Give us Gotland strength to defeat the invading Rus! Give us safety!"

It's not over yet, or Haken is really crazy!

He himself publicly announced that he would be a soldier and no longer a businessman, which can be interpreted as a cathartic snort. But when he openly destroys the statue of God Frey, it is equivalent to cutting off his past identity, and he has no way back.

His wife and concubine were crying bitterly, but Haken still scattered his family wealth overnight and gave a lot of silver coins to soldiers who were willing to fight. Especially those Danish mercenaries, this group of masters who want money and not their own life, they tore up the agreement with the former gold master and gathered in front of Haken's mansion to collect the money.

There are more than a thousand mercenaries from Denmark in Visby! More than half of the mercenaries declared their allegiance to Harken.

Many mercenaries believe that Haken used his own offspring as a sacrifice, and he also sacrificed his own blood, which of course was appreciated by Odin. Haakon must have been blessed by Odin, not to mention that this generous and good man is desperately trying to spread his wealth? In this way, the brothers got the money first, and there is nothing to be afraid of in the future decisive battle. Odin will watch this decisive battle, and whether or not he is killed in the battle, the final outcome is the same for everyone - after death, they will meet again in Valhalla.

For the three merchants who decided to evacuate, the big merchant was surprised to find that more than half of his mercenaries had run away!

They moved their belongings to the wharf overnight, and transferred items of silver coins, copper coins, and jewelry to cargo ships, and a group of long ships became temporary cargo ships.

But it is very absurd that a large number of fishermen believe that Haken, who went out of his way, has indeed been blessed by Odin, and that the grand and crazy sacrifice has been recognized by God, and the victory must belong to the Gotland people.

The vast number of fishermen who have been tormented by the Ross "sea wolves" for several years have to fight to the death with the Ross people with a variety of weapons. Because the merchants can run away, what about them? At least when this autumn comes, there is only one result of the fishermen's escape - being frozen to death in the field.

The inescapable fishermen, farmers, and shepherds, along with their wives and young sons and daughters, all responded to Haken's call to become warriors, even though many of them didn't even have a decent weapon, not even a shield.

Their self-confidence lies in the multitude of people and the support of the illusory so-called gods.

The merchants who decided to evacuate were dissatisfied with the recruitment of rowers and guards, and a large amount of goods could only be abandoned on the spot without protection. The merchants decided to retreat to Jutland, Denmark, and then all the way south to the Hazelby market in Schlei Bay to settle down, relying on ready-made gold and silver jewelry as a start-up capital to make a comeback.

Early the next morning, three merchants pieced together a fleet of four freighters and fifteen longships, and began to slowly leave the port of Visby with their cargo.

No one paid attention to the departure of these cowards and traitors, and no one went to sea today! The whole Visby is actively preparing for the war, because everyone knows that the gauntlet issued by the Rus will be tomorrow, the 19th day of August in the Julian calendar. Today is the last day before the decisive battle. Except for the businessman who escaped, no one else has the right to escape. All those who can go to war are sharpening swords and axes, and many optimistically estimate that Visby will have no problem amassing an army of five to six thousand men.

However, the departing fleet had just entered the open sea of ​​Visby Port when it encountered another huge fleet!

Look at those ships from the north!

They at least have the bulk of a cargo ship, too, with huge blue X-stripes on the oddly raised jibs, proving their Roth-ships.

A fat man stood on the bow, dressed as if he didn't look like a warrior.

This is Gould, the great merchant of Rus, who participated in this battle with many of his sons. His fleet, with the Avrora as its flagship, led as many as twenty empty armed cargo ships, carrying a small group of elderly soldiers and female soldiers, and began to carry out the task of blocking the port issued by the Duke of Ross. .

"Boss, there must be enemies ahead. Look at their slow appearance, they are a group of businessmen." The sailor on the deck shouted loudly.

Gould knew that he had taken advantage of his tactics and strength, but he couldn't laugh because he was also leading an army to fight for the first time.

"Brothers, you all know how to fight, rush to me now!"

Sailors who have experienced naval battles certainly know how to maneuver the unique ships of the Rus to fight unique battles.

The Ross fleet also used the northwest wind to kill. Compared with the ships of the fugitives, the very wide jibs of the Ross Army brought the ships extremely strong momentum.

A total of twenty-one large ships simply formed a wall and rushed towards the slow enemy.

This is a very classical ramming tactic, and it was originally a tactic used by Greek and Roman rowing boats in the classical era. Because their bows are all installed with bulbous bows and wave-treading bow designs. The bulbous bow is a piece of hardwood and is also covered with copper. Collision tactics are classical and the magic weapon of naval warfare. In the early days of the ironclad ship era, any naval guns against the ironclad ships just fired iron bombs to cut insignificant holes, so the navies of various countries restored the ancient collision tactics.

It was Rurik who taught the sailors such maritime tactics. In fact, it cannot be said that he was too smart. It can only be said that Rurik came up with collision tactics because he knew some of the history in this area and built and transformed ships.

Twenty-one ships form a wall, and the bottom of the Gotlanders can't escape at all!

The bulbous bow of the Ross ship is extremely hard, and the Avlora is crazy to install iron reinforcement (which objectively stabilizes the overall center of gravity).

The Ross ships are getting closer and the enemy has nowhere to run!

The first attack was the torsion slingshot on the bow deck. The cast iron projectile gave the enemy a stunning blow, and then the collision occurred!

The transformed cargo ships have become extremely ferocious, and they are strung high enough that the passengers of the long ship cannot climb with their bare hands at all, thus avoiding the possibility of enemy jumping.

The bulbous bow smashed the rib of the longship, and the ship immediately sank in two.

The Avlora is the most ferocious. She is the god of war at sea. The iron bulbous bow directly cut a big hole for the enemy's cargo ship. The ship immediately began to flood into the water and sank at a speed visible to the naked eye. This is such a pity! Lots of gold and silver jewels, as the ship sank into the sea!

If Gould knew that his enemy was like this, he certainly would not have been so brave to attack, and it must be a lot of money.

Only one collision tactics were decisively successful, the fleeing Gotland merchants were wiped out, and only the ships of the Rus were left floating on the sea!

The Ross fleet was unscathed, and the soldiers of different ages and genders began to carry wooden crossbows and short wooden bows, firing inferior arrows, and mercilessly attacked those who fell into the water.

This is the Duke's order! The Ross fleet, not to take prisoners, is to sink all enemies who try to escape, kill all those who fall into the water, and bring terror to Visby's opponents.

The Russ won a great victory, and the fleeing merchants no longer had to quarrel with Haken. They realized that Haken's warning was so gentle when they were hit by terror, but it was too late to regret it.

No one survived, a pile of sawdust floated on the sea, and soon the sea returned to calm...

In the afternoon, a huge fleet suddenly appeared off the coast of Visby, and the residents of Visby saw those terrifying flags in shock!

That's the flag of the Rus, there are blue interlaced stripes in the white, aren't the Rus east of the hills? How did they land from the port?

Haken led his troops into the harbor bay in shock, and he saw that the huge ships of the Rus were helpless. He did not dare to attack rashly, but gradually found that the Ross people did not want to land on the beach.

He suddenly knew the filthy intentions of the Rus: "Damn Rurik, you bastard is so vicious! You actually want to block my port, are you still afraid that I will refuse to fight! Arrogant boy, I will be on the battlefield tomorrow. The Admiral will chop off your head."

Of course, things are now more complicated. Haken must station a small force in case the Roths land while Visby is empty. As a result, his strength in the decisive battle was reduced, and he had no better way but to force everyone who could afford weapons, including boys and girls only ten years old, to join the battlefield. At least this group of children who are definitely not capable of fighting must carry food and water for the soldiers and act as logistics.

All but the babies and the old men with lost teeth must contribute to the decisive battle. Look! Haken even armed his concubine and slave girl.

As for the Harald of the Hrorev family, he had no choice but to hand over a shield and a sword to his beautiful daughter Asraki, who was only sixteen years old: "At least, rely on these to protect yourself. Don't fight unless you have to."

But Asraki has her own ideas: "Maybe I can conquer the leader of the Rus with my beauty, and finally assassinate him. I must die and end this disaster."

Harald was not moved at all: "No! Your man must be a hero, you must live in peace."

"Then take me as a gift to the heroes of Denmark. If we fail, only an army of Danes can save us."

"What? You mean that stupid tyrant Hafgen? He deserves it too! Compared to this Danish ruffian, Haken is gentle."

"If only his army can completely and completely defeat the enemies of the Rus and the North, I'm willing to..." Asraki's attitude was very tough.

Harald didn't want to discuss with his daughter anymore, but admired her courage under her weak appearance. He ordered the female guards who guarded his daughter, no matter what happened to them, they must be loyal to Aslaqi, and if the Gotland army was defeated, they would escort her from the battlefield and flee into the woods on the island to wait for the opportunity to take revenge.

For the convenience of reading next time, you can click "Favorites" below to record the reading record of this time (Chapter 459: Gotland's General Mobilization and the Strategic Blockade of the Ross Fleet), and you can see it when you open the bookshelf next time!

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