Chapter 1072： Polotsk has been defeated

Proclaw, who was knocked out, finally woke up, his head was still buzzing, and it took a while to understand what happened after seeing the scene in front of him.

"I... lost the battle."

The leopard skin was stripped off his body, his helmet was removed, his hands and feet were **** against the wheel of the carriage, and even a rope was tied to his mouth.

He and a few cronies were tied together, and a group of Varyags stood in front of him. It must be Rosma bandits, even if they dismounted, the clothes and weapons prove it all.

The crowd also saw the captive's open eyes, even though they were suddenly closed again.

"Don't pretend to be an idiot." Proclaw was kicked a few times, and he whimpered in pain.

"Tell me! Who are you?" The words were asked in Norse.

Then someone shouted impatiently: "You ask in our language, does this guy understand?"

"I'll come." A shorter warrior stepped forward. He was a Slav from the north, or even the son of a Boyar nobleman.

"Who exactly are you?"

The words were changed into Slavic, and Proclaw basically understood, but how should he answer? His mouth was still bound. He whimpered for a while and finally got his mouth loose.

"Have you figured it out? You dress like a leader. Who are you?"

Originally, Proclaw wanted to proudly claim that he was the chief of Polotsk, but then he thought that he was now **** with his hands and feet as a wild boar captured alive. .

His silence made the Ross very impatient.

"Is this guy dumb?"

"Not necessarily. I'll ask again." Well, the boyar's son heard the news again, but in exchange for the other party, he still shut up.

"He doesn't understand you?"

"No. I think it's a tough mouth. Just beat him again."

The soldiers were chattering, as if the prisoner could speak when the prisoner was being served, someone picked up a wooden stick and made a ramming action, but they saw that the person closed their eyes directly, as if appointed.

"Wait!" The boyar's son stopped his companions. "The boss asked us to see that they were not beaten to death. This guy doesn't want to talk now, there is always time to talk, and the big deal is to bring them back."

"It's really boring." The soldier threw the stick and walked away angrily.

Proclaw wanted to be beaten to death, but he was still sitting here without the courage to bite his tongue and commit suicide, so he had to wait for an unknown fate.

At the same time, Fisk, who was cleaning the battlefield, made a lot of progress. A large number of arrows were recovered, as were the enemy's weapons.

Men and women, captured warriors gathered together. The dismounted warriors checked all the dead bodies with their swords, made up for the severely wounded, and pulled away the lightly wounded. They would deliberately stab the dead body in non-lethal places such as the arm, and those who pretended to be dead were easily exposed and then **** and taken away.

The battle is over, a large number of enemies have fled into the forest, and it is possible but not necessary to pursue them.

"It's over." Quetzal, who took off his mask, came on his horse, and the horse was fixed in front of Fisk. Youdao: "These people are really weak and poor. My people didn't find much loot, but they captured some slaves. You...you can give me some money when you arrive at the Great Northern Lake."

Fisk heard what this guy said was very funny: "Are you still thinking of selling slaves? They are really poor. Even if you want to sell slaves, we may not buy them."

"Huh? How do you say this?"

"Let's not talk about it." Fisk waved his hand. "Look at how many slaves we have captured."

All the captives sat together and counted as many as two hundred.

How many enemies have managed to escape? But there are also nearly 200 dead bodies that are roughly lighted. The battle was fierce, the people who were actually killed were not outrageous, and the full-scale killing was not Fisk's original intention. He was more satisfied with the current battle situation.

He then assembled his team leader and asked everyone, "Do you have any casualties in your team?"

There were no claims of casualties or serious injuries, although there were a few minor injuries. They were hit by the enemy's loss, but unfortunately the inferior arrows can only scrape the Ross cavalry, and the mere wounds are nothing.

"You should also be vigilant with minor injuries. We also brought alcohol, so let's smear it. I hope you don't drink it secretly."

The Russ people have been experienced in various wars, and the highly distilled ale is finally turned into a base wine with a purity exceeding 95 °, which is diluted with water and debridement.

Fisk noticed that many of the prisoners were wounded, and let their injuries cause fevers. He ordered his subordinates to clean the wounds and then apply alcohol to the wounded. The wounded did not understand, and they screamed in pain with alcohol debridement. In the eyes of others, this was deliberate abuse by the Ross gangsters for fun.

Finally, the soldier reported the situation to Fisk: "The guy in the leopard skin woke up."

"Did they say anything?"

"Nothing, mouth as hard as a stone. That look like a pleading for us to kill."

All this was within Fisk's expectations, and he shook his head: "Let them be stubborn, at least they're not dead, right?"

"Yes. We dare not be rough."

"Very good. Those guys are not ordinary fighters. Maybe that Lambert knows a thing or two. We can find out when we bring them back."

A small-scale battle was planned, but the enemy was too weak, so Fisk took advantage of the situation to launch a full-scale attack, and the mere 150 cavalry won the victory with no casualties.

It is not easy to stay here for long, the corpses of the enemy are abandoned, and all the prisoners are taken away.

The captives, like gifts caught alive, are bound on horseback. The captured carriages were also used, and a group of prisoners were placed on it. Desheng's cavalry evacuated as fast as possible, but victory still had a price.

"Have a good rest after returning." Fisk, who was returning, ordered loudly: "Our war horses are fed with the captured food, and we will sleep well. However, you must not play with the women you have captured. Violators will be fined!"

The last request made the soldiers speechless, why shouldn't they play with those female prisoners? The big deal is to buy the captives that you like at your own expense, and then become wives and concubines according to the rules set by the king.

That's what Fisk wanted, and the soldiers complained and had to give up.

They set out early in the morning, fought the battle by noon, and waited until the sun set and the cavalry finally returned.

Vitebsk ushered in the triumphant division, and the people standing on the heights hurriedly blew horns and waved flags to welcome.

The soldiers who stayed behind hurriedly greeted him on horseback, and both Svalgardpo and Wladyslav came, surprised that Fisk Boss had also escorted many prisoners of war.

At this moment, the captured Proclaw finally saw the target of his battle - the fortress on the swamp. It's a pity that I came here as a prisoner of war.

The prisoners were all thrown inside the fortress. They were starving and thirsty and looked extremely haggard, but there was no fear as a whole, as if they were fully appointed.

More than a dozen people who were originally wearing leopard skins were specially brought out to stand by.

Fisk personally walked into a separate room. Lambert learned early in the morning that the Polotsk army was coming. His mood was both anticipation and worry. Now that he saw the bald general again, he looked anxious: "You guys! We won the battle. ?"

Fisker said with an iron face: "Ross has nothing to lose, and a lot of your people have been killed."

"This..." Immediately, like a stone pressed against his heart, Lambert took three steps back and didn't know what to do.

"Caught some people in leopard skins, like they came. Do you know them?"

Hearing that, Lambert's heart tensed again: "Recognize. Those are the personal soldiers of our chief. Ah! Maybe the chief has died in battle."

"Big Chief?" Fisk was ecstatic, but he suppressed this emotion. "Perhaps your big chief is not dead. Come on, let me see the captive, maybe the guy again."

Lambert walked out of the dark house under house arrest with an uneasy and heavy heart. In the sunset, he saw many people sitting helplessly on the ground. And his appearance instantly caused a collective uproar among the captives.

Proclaw, who closed his eyes for this reason, opened his eyes slightly. Even if the sunset light was dim, he could see that it was not his nephew who was walking.

"Lambat, this kid is not dead? Can he walk freely among the enemies?"

Indeed, Lambert has no restraints, and his current appearance is clearly surrender. How did the most vicious main war faction turn into a big traitor? The captured people were shocked.

It was too embarrassing for his nephew to see his appearance, Proclaw nodded, but he was easily recognized by Lambert.

"Uncle!" Lambert hurriedly walked over, crouched down and shook Proclaw's shoulders vigorously: "What the **** is going on, you... lost the battle?"

"Shut up!" Proclaw asked loudly, "What's the matter with you? Are you dead? Are you a traitor?"

"I...I didn't."

Finding a window for venting, Proclaw said again: "It must have told the Russ information. I was defeated, your clan was killed, and you still have the face to stand here."

Lambert seemed to have eaten a lump of dung, and he was very uncomfortable and didn't know what to say.

But Lambert's job was over, and Fisk came and pulled him away. After inquiring, I finally realized that the chief of Polotsk was in my own hands. Fortunately, he was not killed. Of course, according to Viking values, Fisk expected this guy to die in battle, and his capture was deserving of contempt.

"Your name is Proclaw? Very well. You don't seem to want to talk now? Don't worry I'll let you speak."

Fisk's Slavic accent is a little weird, but the other party still understands the main content. Seems like a big punishment? Proclaw looked serious, but he remained silent.

"It is as hard as a stone. I tell you, I am Fisk, captain of the cavalry of the Rus kingdom. The army you have seen is only a small part of Rus, and even so, it is easy to slaughter you Polotsk. Then , do you really want Polotsk to disappear forever? Or, would you like to have a good chat with me? I will give you a chance to negotiate. If you don't speak, you will refuse. If you refuse me, it means that the Polotsk must die. ."

Lambert retells this sentence carefully, and at the same time hurriedly persuaded: "Uncle, everything has changed. We have to survive first, and have a good talk with this group of people, we still have the possibility of life."

It's unbelievable that the nephew can say such a thing. He is like two people, who knows what kind of soup this kid drank in the Ross camp.

But he had to make a decision, because the bald guy was taking the life of the captive.

Silence means doom, even though Proclaw has realized that the other party is asking him to surrender on behalf of the whole of Polotsk. He can quibble the so-called whole village alliance is not his own words, make peace without permission and cannot convince the public. Can the Russ believe this? They will find it perfunctory.

In order for the tribe to see the future sunshine, Proclaw is reluctant to make stones. He hooked his head and spoke in a low voice, like a whispering wolf: "Okay... I am the leader of Polotsk, and I organized a large army to conquer you. I... I am willing to talk to you."

The down-and-out wolf became a dog, Proclaw lost his vigor, and Fisk had no intention of abusing the defeated man.

He was unbound and taken to a room with cooked wheat in front of him.

"Are you hungry? Let's talk about something to eat." Fisker sat cross-legged, and he wanted to see if the captured guy would eat what he had come to eat.

Proclaw knew very well what it meant to eat the food in front of him. Hunger was acting on him, and he had no choice but to eat these food in order to save the other captives.

The room was a little dim, and the few bronze lamp sockets were filled with gelatinous seal grease, and the oil lamps lit slowly to illuminate the room. There were several burly people and an old man sitting in the room.

It was the first time that the old Harald had met the supposed chief of the Polotsk people in this way. The old fellow sat here, serving as an adviser to determine how much the captives were telling the truth, and secondly participating in the meeting as a settler in the Gulf of Riga.

Fisk intends to negotiate with Proclaw, so this negotiation is not just a problem between Ross and Polotsk. Of course, rather than talking about peace talks, it is better to say that this is Ross taking advantage of a golden opportunity to order the biggest speaker of the other party to declare the surrender of his family.

It's really human beings for knives and me for fish and meat. Proclaw kept silent and listened to the requirements of the Rus.

Seeing that the other party was listening intently, Fisk looked left and right, and declared his claim on behalf of Ross as a general of Ross.

"The Kingdom of Rus ordered you to surrender Polotsk immediately, and you will be loyal to Rus. You will pay a tribute in kind every year to allow Rus' troops to station in your territory. For this reason, you will be protected by Rus' military, and you can Live in peace in the future, any force that dares to attack you is equivalent to attacking Ross, and will be severely punished..."

The nephew Lambert is here, and the boy repeats the words of Ross's bald general, but the words are more cordial in the words of his hometown.

Proclaw found it inconceivable that these remarks did not seem to be what the victor should have, as if the victor was showing his cowardice. He even felt a sense of absurdity! If all the Rus in Varyag want is this, why should the two sides meet each other? To be fair, the Polotsks didn't feel anything wrong with depending on a strong man to live.

Now that the main force has been defeated, although there are still thousands of soldiers left, just as it was originally estimated that those soldiers would not be able to find a shadow even on the march, how can they expect to fight the enemy bravely? The real war exposed the weakness of the Polotsk army at the moment, and the community had no ability to continue fighting.

Proclaw still found the victor's promise too absurd. Seeing his uncle's hesitation, Lambert hurriedly advised: "Uncle, these Rus people have given us conditions that we can't refuse. I'm afraid everything is a misunderstanding. We destroy their bodies and hang their heads high, and the Rus people don't want to do this. Let’s investigate further. We can trust their claims. Surrender is self-preservation. For the sake of our future, we surrender.”

Proclaw took a good look at his nephew's face. The Russ looked serious, and his relatives became lobbyists. This kid has changed from the biggest main war faction to the biggest main peace faction. Why is it?

"What the **** is going on with you?" he asked. "If we do surrender, what benefits will you... get?"

Now Lambert doesn't want to worry about his so-called face anymore, "Uncle, I want to understand. We can't take advantage of the Rus at all. The entire north belongs to the Rus, and the Krivics in the south (referring to Kyiv) Community) are their allies, and as you can see, there are not only the Varyags of Ross sitting here. I have discussed with them, you give me the position of the leader, and I will be the leader. "

"You!" Proclaw suddenly realized: "In order to be the leader, how dare you..."

Lambat simply gave it up, and he gritted his teeth: "Even if the clansmen call me a dog wagging their tails and praying for food, I am willing. I just want to be the leader! Let them call me! In this way, you are not morally wrong. Besides, I I also want to protect the lives of the people. The Rus supports me as the leader, and we can restore peace from now on. Of course, this is a bit humiliating, and it is better than the destruction of the whole family."

So the sole purpose of the nephew's resolute main battle at that time was to gain power, and he could do anything to gain power? Yu Xin, Proclaw despised his nephew's words, Yu Li, he found that he had no choice, and he was still sitting here just because it was useful.

From Ross's standpoint, Fisk was glad that the captured Lambert was willing to be a lobbyist for the power granted by Ross. Seeing that the time was ripe, Fisk was talking about his goals again.

"Surrender! Polotsks, as long as you surrender, all those captured will be released immediately, and you can go home. Our cavalry will go directly to your village community to declare conquest, and you must all give up Resist so we can guarantee that no one else will be killed."

"Is this true? No more killings?"

"It's true. I can immediately order the release of the captives, give them food, and let them go tomorrow." Fisk raised his chest and said.

"I want to see you actually do it."

"Then wait and see. You'll see in a minute."

"Okay. As long as you do this, I will declare surrender."

Fisk did what he said, and the soldiers who were ordered to untie the captives. These hungry people will be collectively locked in some vacant rooms at night, and they are all given some food that can only satisfy their hunger.

Both Proclaw and Lambert had seen all this with their own eyes. Lambert had some doubts at first, but now there is no doubt about it.

Not much touched, Proclaw only felt that the Russians were just keeping their verbal promises He couldn't completely trust each other, at least he saw hope. In fact, it doesn't matter whether or not to declare surrender now. Looking around, the wooden fort camp in this swamp is full of cavalry. They can easily destroy Polotsk as long as they gather their forces, but they did not do so.

"Okay, I am willing to surrender. I am willing to give up the position of chief. As for whether the chiefs of those villages agree to abdicate and hand over power to my nephew, I have no control." Proclaw finally told Fisk .

This promise has already met the needs of the Ross army. It just so happens that many of the prisoners who have been unbound and given food are here. Taking this opportunity, Lambert just came to a speech about becoming a big leader.

have no choice? at a loss? Angry? compromise? All kinds of emotions are intertwined. People who have lost their fighting spirit want to go home and live a peaceful life. They don't want to fight anymore, especially with the sturdy Rus.

Since Lambart claims to be able to satisfy everyone's demands to go home, they only need to recognize Proclaw's defeat and abdication and support Lambart's ascendance, even if they know that Lambart is essentially a puppet supported by the Rus.

From Lambert's standpoint, he knew that he was essentially an agent of Ross's development, and the foundation of his rule as a big chief was inherently unstable. You need to make some achievements, such as ending the war and returning home with the released prisoners.