Chapter 1004： The lost sword

The cavalry had furry caps on their heads, and when they saw the king here, they dismounted one after another and knelt on the ground in an instant.

Rurik was excited, and he did not complain that these subordinates missed the decisive battle. As long as they brought back a lot of supplies, it could be concluded that they would have gained a lot in another unknown battlefield.

"Get up! Fisk, welcome back."

Rurik opened his arms to meet him, then hugged Fisk, who got up, and enlarged his chest to show his respect.

"It seems that you have gained a lot this time! Be sure to tell me about your experience."

"Then allow me to show the king our most important trophy. You... will definitely be satisfied." Saying so, Fisk's heart continued to jump out of his chest with excitement.

He pointed with a big hand to a strange man sitting on a horse: "Perhaps, that man is King Ludwig of East Frank."

"What did you say?"

"Ludwig."

"That guy?!"

Subconsciously, Rurik quickly drew his sword, and the berserkers who were so startled with the bear head also drew their swords.

Even though the Armageddon has come to an end, the coalition forces have always failed to find Ludwig's body among the corpses. Since there were very few captured enemy soldiers, Rurik got extremely vague information. There are rumors that Ludwig fled shamelessly with the remnants of his cavalry infantry who gave up the fierce battle. Is this true?

Rurik looked serious, and suddenly, Fisk offered a treasure.

"Your Majesty, this sword is very strange. I'm a little familiar with it. It was captured from that man."

"sword?"

Rurik looked at the gem-encrusted dagger and the exquisite scabbard that Fisk had reached, and was instantly surprised: "What a ghost. This sword belongs to me! How could it be... Wait a minute! "

He closed his eyes and followed the logic line, and some things in the past suddenly matched.

When he opened his eyes again, he affirmed: "Yes. That man must be Ludwig."

Therefore, Ludwig, who is now attached to the horse, is still pretending to be dead. As a defeated king, he is ashamed to meet Rurik the Rus. No, Rurik has come over with a sword...

"It's not like a typical warrior in dress. Hey! Ludwig, are you pretending to be dead? Or are you really not understanding Latin?"

Seeing that he was silent and pretending to be dead, Rurik cut off the hemp rope that bound his feet and dragged him off the horse. Ludwig fell heavily, and in screaming, he could no longer play the farce of pretending to be dead.

"Wearing a golden crown, or a golden crown in the shape of an iris, I knew it was you!"

That's all, Rurik kicked his foot again, and slipped Ludwig on the ice for some distance before he was relieved.

The poor King of the East Franks lost all his energy. He barely got up and knelt on the ice, blood dripping from the corners of his mouth.

"Here's someone!" Rurik raised his hand.

All the bear-headed berserkers are all "in".

"We have finally caught Ludwig, King of the East Franks. You **** this man back to Hamburg!"

"As ordered!"

As a result, Ludwig was erected. Although he struggled subconsciously, he was immediately honest after being punched in the abdomen, and was dragged to Hamburg like a prisoner who was about to be executed.

This is the end of a drama that relieves anger. Capturing Ludwig can be regarded as a great achievement, and Rurik also subconsciously believes that this is the great achievement of his beloved general Fisk.

Rurik patted his shoulder, his strength getting more and more fierce: "Many people want to make this great contribution, but the credit is yours. I want to reward you well."

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Fisk didn't change his face: "It's not all my credit, it's Brody Haraldsson who made it."

"Oh? Who?"

Fisk roared immediately, and a soldier immediately knelt in front of the king in response, and then claimed his identity.

"You're Brody? Get up."

"As ordered."

Looking at the person's eyes, it is really beautiful blue, and he also has beautiful and even white hair, and he is indeed a Scandinavian with a highly pure blood.

"Is it a Ross?"

"Old Russ. My family is in New Roseburg, the first immigrant family appointed by King Otto. My blood is very pure."

"That's great! What a hero! Is it Ludwig your captive? I want to reward you."

Just look at this Brody's velvet cap Rurik to judge that his identity is extremely ordinary. The cavalry team has "ten captains", "thirty captains" and "one hundred and twenty centurions". And the highest flag captain, so the current four-rank system.

Brody is a little soldier, even as an old Ross.

"This king will make you a centurion! What I need is a doer, and obviously you are such a person! Remember, it is impossible for our country to have only one cavalry flag team. Don't feel that the level of the centurion is low. A bright future ahead.”

What more could Brody ask for? He immediately knelt down halfway, and slammed his right fist into his heart: "Thank you for the gift of the king."

"Get up. I will continue to investigate your affairs in the future, and I will give you more rewards as appropriate."

The implication of this is that Rurik has some doubts about the whole thing. Although the idea wars he participated in always produced bizarre results, as a king, he could not arbitrarily award rewards based on the words of an officer.

However, when Fisk excitedly pointed out his huge capture, Rurik was already shocked and suddenly slipped and sat directly on the ice. His face was trembling, even more so with his well-trimmed beard.

"Unbelievable, five thousand pounds of silver coins? You actually robbed Cologne?! You are the only people who forced Cologne to lose money?"

Fisk hurriedly pulled the king up: "You better see for yourself! I think those priests in Cologne really handed over five thousand pounds of silver coins. Oh, and some ale, which tastes good."

With the opening of the sack, Rurik saw and touched the silver coins filled with his own eyes, and any doubts he had become a thing of the past.

Of course, there are always strange things in war, and it seems too strange that the cavalry team has snatched five thousand pounds of silver coins unscathed. As it is, as many as fifty sacks are here, and a large number of horses have been brought back...

As a result, the news about the capture of the East Frankish king spread like wildfire, and the news quickly spread throughout the Hamburg region, and everyone shared it as an uplifting talk with everyone they met.

People jumped up and down to celebrate "caught the big fish", and some people shouted that Ludwig should be hanged, or burned, or even crucified for homomorphic revenge.

When did you need the guidance of ordinary farmers to deal with the affairs of the enemy nobles? Duke Ludoff of Saxony's attitude towards the captured Ludwig is completely opposite to that of his own people. The desolate king is still the king. Only this person has the legal claims of all the eastern kingdoms, and objectively the current Saxony area still belongs to East Frank.

Of course, the corpses were slaughtered everywhere on the battlefield, and at the same time the great aristocrat Liudov gave Ludwig dignity.

The captured king was loosened, he was controlled to unload all his weapons, and he could stay in a warm place to meet some unexpected old times, waiting for an unknown fate.

Because the Archbishop of Cologne, Hardbold, had been captured first, Ludwig saw the "Golden True Cross" from Cologne in Hamburg, the Archbishop of Cologne, and the long-lost northern saint Esquier.

In addition, Baudouin, Count of Flanders, and Harald Clark, the head of the mercenary (abandoned king of Denmark), also miraculously appeared in Hamburg.

There is even a person who is not a heavyweight, but has an extremely bizarre character - the Northumbrian king Ernred from Britain and his prince Ella.

When he saw these nobles and high-ranking priests, his premeditated plan to anger the enemy in exchange for being killed completely collapsed.

Ludwig didn't want to die at all, he became extremely shy.

Just because he suddenly woke up to the situation he was facing: "They want to negotiate."

Then, the defeated king, who had completely lost his entourage, suddenly commanded orders in the city of Hamburg, shouting: "I am the king of the East Kingdom! You are all servants of this king, kneel before me and give me a delicious meal. and new clothes..."

Such shouting was very useful to Liudov, who, after all, had sworn allegiance to this man a few years ago.

It can be said that he betrayed the oath of the year, and Liudov, who was psychologically unhappy, had to show his guilt. Except for not kneeling down, he tried his best to satisfy the various demands of the defeated defeated.

Ludwig was able to feast on salty grilled fish, strange but delicious creamy pancakes, and some honey-dipped ale in the warm castle, illuminated by beating oil lamps. To be fair, these meals are already quite rich, and Ludwig has eaten this very delicious food for the first time in these days.

Even in the capital city of Regensburg, you can't eat this kind of delicious meal. The flour is mixed with honey and the flour is fermented and fried with butter on an iron plate. The pancakes are so sweet that Ludwig is addicted to it, and there are also some who ask for more. reason.

In fact, he was covering up the fear in his heart by yelling at the maids provided by Liudov and pointing at Liudov himself.

It was late at night, and because of the great psychological stimulation, Ludwig, who was currently standing high in the castle, looked out through the narrow window, only to see bonfire stalls everywhere, dense like stars. It was a brutal battle, and their entire army was annihilated, but they still lit a bonfire here, as if they had not suffered much loss.

Due to the reflection of the thick snow, the visibility at night was not bad, and he could see the glacier under the dark world and the large number of large ships frozen on it, and his fear was even worse.

The Normans and the Saxons were mixed, their beliefs should be **** for tat but brothers on the battlefield.

Ludwig couldn't understand it, and shouted again in the narrow dining room: "Give me more grilled fish! Give me more biscuits! Give me more wine! Ludov, you must not mistreat you. king!"

However, Liudov had already had enough of this guy's nonsense, and he chose to avoid it.

Rurik, on the other hand, has basically completed the task of returning the cavalry. All evidence showed that it was indeed the warrior Brody who captured Ludwig, and he was immediately promoted to centurion.

Maybe the silver coins in a sack are not a sufficient amount of one hundred pounds, even if it is less, it does not matter, after all, it is a large amount of fifty sacks. Whether the silver coins really came from Cologne, Rurik ordered the captured Hudbold to come and see for himself.

Those sacks were marked with dyed twine, but upon examining the twine sacks, Hardbold passed out with a groan. After he woke up, he immediately confirmed that the silver coin came from Cologne, and that the two cardinals Hildwin and Marquez mentioned by Fisk were indeed real people, which further proved the authenticity of the matter.

Rurik then followed the rules he had made, and the cavalry could share half of the silver coins in accordance with the "royal pirate rules". It will be divided equally among all members of the cavalry, even if the soldier has died.

Each cavalry will make a lot of money because of this. To be honest, Rurik really wants to take most of them to fill the national money. It is the most important thing to think about maintaining morale.

Even the appearance of these silver coins really solved a pressing need for Rurik.

It can be said that the war has been fought for a whole year, and the Kingdom of Rus has paid a huge price for this war. After defeating the army of the King of the East Franks, the long-suppressed war weariness of the army finally broke out.

After all, the brothers can't think of what battles will be fought in the future, but the situation is not yet clear, and the army still needs to maintain a state of war. The best way now is to send money to the soldiers, and a huge amount of money is left in the hands. Rurik has already walked the news that "Hanukkah benefits" that night.

The Ross camp was lively and lively at night. Except for the cavalry, every living Ross soldier could get half a pound of silver coins in cash.

Rurik was not worried about the inflation caused by the influx of hot money when the brothers returned to their hometown. The price level of the Rus Kingdom has long been greatly increased due to a large number of war dividends, and the price of grain has been officially set to death. The issue of unofficially endorsed reselling of grain is a serious crime of death. In addition, the key metal smelting and iron making industries are also monopolized by the kingdom. Rurik was convinced that he was in control of grain and metals, and that the country would not currently be economically collapsed by the influx of silver coins.

In the end, silver coins will be turned into taxes and flow into the treasury through many channels, and many people will melt silver coins and make them into noble living utensils because of the Viking tradition.

Perhaps silver coins will return to the essence of precious metals at the right time. If the kingdom always uses it as a currency, it will not be able to control its own economic sovereignty. After all, no silver mines have been found in the kingdom. Instead, printing paper and pen, and using grains such as wheat and oats as anchors can be implemented. Isn't it just food stamps...

Rurik was desperate to figure out one thing at last. A sword was said to have been seized from Ludwig, and Rurik looked at it carefully, and no matter how he looked at it, he felt that it belonged to him.

He needed to decide one thing, so he summoned the blue fox, who was already in a state of salted fish after the war, to meet him at the Ross Barracks after the meal.

Rurik spoke with a thick fog, his eyes were like torches, and the dagger in his hand shone brightly under the oil lamp.

See, the blue fox was subconsciously surprised.

"Your Majesty, is there something important?" he asked cautiously.

"This sword. Do you remember?"

"I……"

"You traveled to the Franks many years ago. I gave you a sword, which is like the authority of this king, and you ran your business in the Hazelby shop. Later..."

The blue fox answered immediately: "I almost died later. I saw a lot in exile in Frank. Even I tried to meet Ludwig, the sword you gave me, and I took it as a gift."

"But Ludwig doesn't appreciate it. He takes the sword and ignores you. Look, is it this one?"

Lanhu cautiously stepped forward and took a look at his thigh: "It's this sword. In this way, the captured man is indeed Ludwig."

"Let's go." Rurik stood up and gestured to the angry blue fox to stabilize his emotions, "Let's go see that Ludwig."

At this moment, Rurik and the blue fox had a great sense of personal sarcasm, but as soon as the two arrived at the main castle in Hamburg, they vaguely heard a man's filial piety.

"Isn't that Ludwig still so spirited?" Blue Fox asked cautiously.

Rurik twitched his beard and looked contemptuous: "He has nothing, how is this?!"

Just inside the fort, he collided with Ludov, who was in a dilemma.

"Isn't this the Duke of Saxony? Are you pacing here and worrying about something?"

Rurik's words were joking, and Ludov's words seemed to be looking forward to a great savior, and he immediately greeted him: "Ah! King Ross! You've come. That guy Ludwig just treats himself as a master, making me It's difficult."

"What's the problem? You kick him a few times and tell him who is the ruler of Hamburg."

"However, I swore allegiance to him, and it was inappropriate to do so..."

"Ridiculous. Then he invaded Saxony with a large army, and threatened to kill all Saxons. He did it on purpose to destroy your family. You are... stupid."

It makes sense to say that, but Liudov is the one that can't get around his head.

He will neither release Ludwig nor abuse him, he can only put him under house arrest on the tower for the time being, and he will have to ask Rurik, the king of Rus, to decide what to do in the future.

No, Rurik himself ascended the heights.

The door with the metal latch was opened, and because a man's filial piety was heard across the door, after Rurik opened the door himself, Rurik walked up to it and kicked Ludwig's stomach.

This kick is not cruel, but Ludwig knelt on the ground with his knees after the pain, covered his stomach and vomited a lot of second-hand barbecue and ale all at once. The smell is really bad Ju Say you are a king, what qualifications do you have to be a king? You barked like a mad dog, I heard it from a distance. "

"It's you?! The chief of the Rus people?!" Ludwig gritted his teeth and found himself kneeling on his knees, and hurriedly stood up with his stomach covered, trying to maintain his dignity.

After a while, a general with a round face and a slightly chubby face who could display a sterling silver cross, wearing a standard Ross blue and white shirt, was ordered to appear with a short sword.

The blue fox is here. He shows the sword and shouts with his chin raised in Frankish with a strange pronunciation: "Ludwig, do you know this sword?"

"This is my sword!"

"Bah! You are a thief! Years ago I asked to see you and was forced to ruthlessly banish it. Now we meet again, and this time, you are our prisoner of war!"

"This matter... I remembered. I am the king of East Frank, and I am noble by nature! You can't treat me like this." Ludwig was still stubborn.

"Really?" Blue Fox answered immediately: "You'd better be quiet before our King Ross is angry. Listen, we are still interested in negotiating with you and can send you back to East Frank. But if you continue If you are so irritable, we will throw you out of the window now, and you will fall directly to death. Think about it, if you die, wouldn't your family power be directly occupied by your elder brother Lotaire? You don't want to die, right? "

"You..." These words hit Ludwig's heart directly, his irritability cooled instantly, and he immediately found a wooden stool and sat down with dignity, still holding his stomach with his right hand.

He raised his head and still had a fierce look on his face, but his trembling eyes showed a hint of compromise.

He gritted his teeth and said slowly: "Rurik, the chief of Ross, I lost to you. You made me lose so badly! But everything is over, we... should have a good talk."