Chapter 373： Doomed blizzard

Everything is in Rurik's calculations. In addition to the 20,000 pounds of food that is planned to be rewarded, another 50,000 pounds will be transported. The sleds used to transport the food are just a behemoth. Fortunately, the Lower Ross tribe is not short of reindeer pulling sleds in the new era. There was no intention of rewarding such a large amount of food to Mezzasta’s subordinates. Oats are a kind of food that is extremely resistant to energy storage and has a high density. It is the best reward for heavy manual laborers in Northern Europe in this time and space.

If it is said that it is located in the northernmost beach of the Gulf of Bothnia, besides a mine, there is another resource worth developing in this area, it is trees.

Rurik was full of shipbuilding plans. Since he had no financial resources to build an iron armored ship, even iron keels and iron ribs were incapable, so he had to rely entirely on hard wood.

Although good wood for shipbuilding is oak, are there large tracts of oak trees here? The answer is obviously no. He is not here for the first time. After a long march a year ago, Rurik has determined that the most abundant pine trees here are very hardy pine trees of many varieties. There should also be other tree species such as oaks, but they need to be looked for.

Even if there is not so much oak, it never means that the ship is not easy to build. Pine is definitely not better than oak. It is also better than most woods in terms of hardness and toughness.

Rurik also made a mistake, because he didn't watch closely, and most of the time he just watched the woods far away. He defaults those forests to pine forests, which are obviously mixed with a large number of Nordic spruce.

Perhaps this is not his fault, because red pine and spruce are both classified as pine trees. If they weren't looked at as straight as Optimus Prime, of course, there would be no difference.

The wooden walls and all the houses inside Alon Orava Fort are all built with solid pine trees. When the house was built, the interior was naturally filled with a strong smell of turpentine, and the problem of volatilizing for a while disappeared.

Otto’s fleet successfully completed the last sorghum this year, and it was also the first time to complete the sorghum in the newly opened tax source.

The wealth of the chief family has grown tremendously, that is, the loss of silver coins is very staggering. The silver coins were all turned into food, leather, and iron tools. Standing on the bow of the ship, Otto looked out at his home in the south. He increasingly thought that his son's explanation was correct.

People live to obtain them, not just beautiful silver coins.

So what is waiting for him is a comfortable winter? Do not! For Ross's warriors, the severe winter cold can only lock down cowards, and true warriors dare to fight the harsh nature.

These are of course just beautiful rhetoric. In recent years, Otto has become more and more like to encourage his tribe to hunt in winter, and the tribe is also willing to follow. The era when a deerskin could only be sold for one silver coin was completely over. A huge amount of money poured into Roseburg, and everyone seemed to become very rich, but in reality they were still poor.

More leather merchants flocked to Roseburg for more leather goods, and even decided to break away from the former tribes and become the new Roths to take root. Otto knew that Fodgen, a workshop that raised slaves to sew leather and linen clothes. Rülik's plan to sell a part of the squirrel skins to the man by name, Otto decided to fulfill the promise he made.

This time, Otto will fulfill all the promises he made to his son. He was only able to stay in his hometown for only two months, and he had to take his tribe to set foot on the ice sea all the way north.

The once comfortable and boring winter became lively.

A group of fishermen who dig ice to catch seals stay on the ice for a long time. A large number of seals were sold to the priests to boil oil, and the fishermen got the advantage. The priests, especially Parla, organized the ten named maids under Rurik to undertake the heavy soap making work. In the soap making industry chain, the peak period of production capacity is in winter, and it must be in winter. Only those seals can deliberately eat fat and make the best soap.

What’s interesting is that because many families in Roseburg have completed their residential upgrades in the past, they followed in the footsteps of Rurik and completed the “Novgorodization” transformation of their houses, which was upgraded to woodcuts. , The owner sleeps on a wooden bed. The fireplace system made of stone and clay has greatly ensured the safety of the residents' heating in winter. Of course, they must consume a lot of charcoal or wood in order to serve the stove. After all, those burning ashes were thrown outdoors as waste.

Ash is plant ash. In particular, the potters responded to the blacksmiths’ blast furnace smelting pig iron casting mold needs. The potters consumed the wood resources that had already become barren in Roseburg, and produced more vegetation ash. They become the alkaline water raw materials for making soap.

Just like the era after a thousand years, the world's operations are supported by fossil energy such as coal and oil, which are the blood of industry.

Roseburg has formed a handicraft industry system, it is too early to upgrade to a preliminary industry, but the contract system, employment and employment owned by the industrial age have begun to form and operate.

The system also has a source of energy, which comes from the nearby trees. It is the endless power brought by the burning of firewood and charcoal, which promotes the industrial operation of Roseburg metalware, pottery, glassware, spirits, leather tanning, and soap.

Of course, the start of the landmark shipbuilding business relied on the source of wood.

To get a towering tree, you need to go deep inland, and then drag it to the shipbuilding workshop by the sea. If there is no suitable wood for the Hotla family, the most capable of building ships, it is a luxury to expect them to build a new cargo ship in a short time.

Fortunately, Hortra had already made an agreement with Rurik, and that was some important materials for shipbuilding, and Rurik would find a way to get them.

Otto's last voyage was blown by the strong north wind in just two days, and it blew all the way back to the fjord where Roseburg was sitting. Even if these cargo ships are inherently slow, their speed is quite moving because the wind is strong enough.

Rurik lived in the Elon Orava Fort and became the supreme leader of the settlement.

He can give orders at will. The mercenaries under his command, such as Jeflo and others, will follow his orders, and the other Russ who have settled are also willing to obey the arrangements of the future chief.

Do you want to beware of Cowen artificial times? Not needed at all.

Mezzasta was very happy to meet his daughter and was treated as a family member by Rurik. Two children or even who are on a wooden bed, he really can’t wait for his daughter to grow up. As long as she can give birth to Rurik even a daughter, with the child as a bond, the future of the Iron Squirrel Tribe will be even better. It's better.

In settlements in the far north, the snowfall period seems to be unexpectedly delayed. The temperature dropped almost every day, until the fourth day after the departure of the Otto fleet, the floating ice on the river was clearly visible.

In fact, Rurik didn't know that the ice eggs had been born again on the island at the mouth of the Oulu River in the distance. Their appearance seems like a miracle, but it is actually a prelude to the freezing of the entire Gulf of Bothnia.

The freezing of the northernmost part of the bay has begun, and the temperature will gradually drop to a terrifying low temperature of minus 30 degrees Celsius at night. Without thick fur, only the strongest Ross warrior can resist for an hour or two, but the red pine and spruce are not afraid of this cold at all. Polar bears and reindeer are still active in such extreme temperatures.

Until the tenth day, it was November 7th in the Julian calendar. The time of day was very short. The sunlight of the past was suddenly covered by dark clouds. The world was darker. Everyone realized that a snowfall was coming.

The snow has finally fallen!

All the people who were stranded in the "cemetery hill fort" in the mine, especially women and children, under the leadership of the priestess, when the sky began to darken, they carried a soft or a reindeer cart with a very limited load capacity. , Or on foot, through the tortuous forest road with a straight-line distance equivalent to five kilometers, and return to the most substantial and safe Fort Elon Olava.

The heavy snow is coming, it is not simple.

The outdoor world is raging like a frost giant, and the howling cold wind envelops snowflakes like sharp sabers, cutting the wooden stakes of Elronburg. Including the cart-carriage reindeer that were raised, they were all driven to the sturdy wood deer enclosure. They stopped all their work and ate the dry pasture that had been reserved for them.

Even if the deer are extremely resistant to wind and snow, they are also instinctive avoiders of wind and snow. The wild reindeer herds will stay in the dense pine forest to avoid the snow disaster, and when the wind and snow is over, they will come out to pick up the snow and gnaw grass roots.

As for people, everyone stays in thick wooden houses. Fortunately, the tall wooden wall is a strong barrier against the erosion of the north wind. There were also two towers that were not so securely constructed from the beginning, but in the early days of the heavy snow, they collapsed under the strong wind.

The remains of the tower appeared inside the fort, but no one was to clean it up.

The blizzard is so serious, even if you wear thick clothes, rashly staying outdoors is a kind of death.

Rülik stayed in his home, and Mezzasta and his daughter Sepolava were asked to live in. Of course, there is also Jeflo, the captain of the Finn mercenary, who is Rurik's most trusted thug, and the one who should be given a heavy responsibility in the future.

The wind and snow outdoors, the howling sound is extremely terrifying.

The warm interior is another scene. The two big bags of oats that Rurik brought, one bag was rewarded to the mercenaries who stayed behind, and the rest was to be enjoyed by himself.

They are like prisoners, forced to stay in wooden houses, eating oatmeal and gnawing dried fish before the storm stops.

Rurik separated at least one small room in the house, which was the toilet of the house, which was actually a convenient dry toilet squatting. Only this small compartment is the coldest in the whole wooden house.

Because of his death order, the houses built in batches have such independent toilets. At first, people felt that this design did not bring as much convenience as imagined, until the wind and snow fell.

It was another extremely boring day. The indoor lighting relied on firewood and slow-burning oil lamps. In order to save fuel, the overall lighting time is not long.

The porridge in the wooden bowl was eaten again, Mezzasta wiped his mouth, and the fire was softened, picking up the grains of wheat in the bowl and stuffing it into his mouth.

"Liurik, when the wind and snow is over, are we really going to find the big tree and then cut it down?"

"We've been talking about this topic these days, why do you still think it's impossible now?" Rurik shook his head, "You are the leader of the tribe, you must do this for me. Don't worry, after it's done. I won't treat you badly."

"But, that's a big tree!"

"Are you still struggling with this? Do your people really dare not cut it down when they see the big tree?"

"Yes. I really don't dare." Metzasta would never do it. His tribe did not have any skills and abilities to cut down a tree that couldn't be held together by arms.

"Hey! But my people dare."

"That is." Metzasta hurriedly complimented, "You people of Ross are brave and possess such abilities."

Rurik felt that he was sarcasm: "Huh? Do you think it is enough to be strong enough? The soldiers under me are just one head higher than your man. They are not even as strong as bears. You think we are. How to do it? Tell you! Rely on wisdom." As he said, Rurik pointed to his own brain in particular.

Anyway, being idle is also being idle, Rurik explained bluntly that many of his mercenaries, and even the settled Ross people, know how to cut down giant trees. But they never showed Mezzasta this skill. The reason is very simple, there is no demand.

With Viking-style logging, trees of all sizes can be cut down safely and with only a long-handled forest axe.

Leurikkop talked about the techniques he had learned, although he hadn't actually implemented it himself.

"Wonderful! Really good technique." Mezzasta was busy clapping his hands in applause, did he understand? Before he saw the actual "Viking logging" of a real lumberjack, how could he think of something he had never seen before?

With a smile on his face, Rurik proposed another tool that even Jeflo had never added-a saw.

It is a very long iron bar with a lot of tiny "teeth" in it. If one tooth can only bite a small mark, and a thousand teeth keep biting, it is a huge wound.

Mezzasta and Jeflo have never seen a saw, especially Jeflo, whether in their hometown, in Mellaren or in Roseburg, have never seen a saw.

This is an extremely unfamiliar tool, although it has long appeared in this area of ​​Europe.

Rurik also knew that Rose’s craftsmen only had tools for wood processing such as axes, scrapers, and planers. It is reasonable to think about it without a saw, because it is somewhat difficult to make it under the existing technical conditions. The Rose craftsman did not research him spontaneously, perhaps because he had not been exposed to the concept, that is, "there is actually such a logging method."

“It’s not difficult to make a saw, but after it’s finished, even if it’s a child, even...” Rurik pointed at Sepolava and then at himself, “The two of us operate the saw without having to wield the axe at all~www .novelhall.com~ can make a tree collapse."

What he announced was so tempting and added fun to the boring time.

There is no development in the forests of the extreme north. There are quite amazing reserves of excellent trees. Find them and then turn them into boat materials.

How to make a saw? Rurik had already figured out a countermeasure. His subordinates are equipped with weapons of two materials, namely pure iron and chromium iron alloy. It is not difficult to reduce low-carbon steel to mature iron, and the blacksmiths of the Iron Squirrel Tribe have this ability. Wrought iron is soft, and it can be hardened with a chrome-iron chisel to easily cut sharp and acute-angled dents. The rough saw blade is then carburized and quenched to become hard and elastic. Each tooth is polished with iron ore to become sharp enough. In fact, the saw blade can't be too sharp. In theory, even an iron bar, madly rubbing against the trunk, will still file the trunk abruptly.

The plan has been set, the next step is to wait for the wind and snow to end.

Those wrought iron and low-carbon steel axes will be returned to the furnace, and the long and thin iron bars will be beaten, as if to make a steel sword. Many children from the Iron Squirrel Tribe can become a group of bear children who can efficiently destroy the mountains and forests. At least in this era, children with high-efficiency logging capabilities are really excellent laborers.