king of ros

Chapter 344 Principality Ambition
The Principality of Polotsk is a principality with a long history.

Before the arrival of Prince Rurik, there were their Varangian rulers in the local area, forming the Varangian Principality independent of the Kingdom of Rurik, and also a competitor of the Kingdom of Rurik.

The so-called Varangi is a name Ross gave to the Norse people.

This piece of land itself is also on an important trade route, so it attracted the Varangians, but here is the main competitor with Novgorod on the trade route, so the two places have been dirty, which also determines this land. The ruler of the country is bound to conflict with the Kingdom of Rurik.

But in the time of the saint Vladimir, this Varangian principality was conquered by the Rurik family, and it has since become part of the Rurik kingdom.

At that time, Vladimir proposed a marriage request to the Principality of Polotsk, but all he got was "I will not take off my boots for the son of a slave girl." This undoubtedly angered Vladimir, whose mother was a slave girl , and taking off the boots was the last part of Ross's marriage ceremony, which means that Polotsk rejected Vladimir's marriage request and insulted Vladimir's origin.

Vladimir then naturally broke through Polotsk, then raped the daughter of the prince of Polotsk in front of his subordinates, and forcibly married her as his wife.

However, since this land was the latest to be included in the Kingdom of Rurik, there is a powerful and eager group of Varangian retainers in the area. In order to appease and control this group, Vladimir can only entrust one of his sons Govern locally.

It was also in the Vladimir era that after the death of Prince Rurik, who guarded the place, the Grand Duke left this land to the descendants of that prince, and the Principality of Polotsk became a hereditary property in this way.

Since then, Polotsk has become a fairly independent principality in the country of Rurik, subordinate to the Grand Duke of Kyiv, but at the same time it appears to be independent.

In the melee after Vladimir's death, Polotsk did not participate in the dispute, but later had some wars with Yaroslav, but these wars ended in peace. The two sides did not fight to the death, but reached mutual agreement. compromise.

But in Kievan Rus, which is ruled by Yaroslavitch, Polotsk, which is not ruled by descendants of Yaroslav, seems quite obtrusive and quite different.

Yaroslav cared about the kinship, but just as he thought, no one would recognize this kinship after his death. In the eyes of his sons, Polotsk was just an outsider he didn't know.

Yaroslav was helpless and sighed because of this, but he did nothing because he knew it was unavoidable. When the elders passed away, the bonds linking this big family would naturally be broken, not to mention that Polotsk was in Small actions in the Kyiv riots, then what will follow must be war.

The local rulers also know this, so for more than 40 years, the Principality of Polotsk has been developing itself silently, making the Principality more prosperous, expanding its power towards the Baltic Sea, obtaining more tribute, and earning More gold and silver, and most importantly more troops.

The feudalization of the Principality also continued to deepen during this process. The subjects belonging to the prince of Polotsk brought the power of the prince to the countryside, and the military strength owned by the prince continued to increase.

Today's prince of Polotsk, the famous prince of witchcraft, Vseslav, who was rumored by his subjects to turn into a werewolf at night, is now very sure that even if the Yaroslavitches go all out, he can confrontation.

This is the result of countless years of hard work in Polotsk, and Vseslav's father has worked hard all his life for this day.

And now, the Maharaja of Witchcraft thinks it's time to take that step.

This is not entirely his subjective action, but the growth of Polotsk's power over the years has been unable to hide from Yaroslav's descendants, and Kyiv has begun a series of temptations and blockades against Polotsk.

And there was the Kyiv riot. Everyone was very silent about it, but it doesn't mean that everyone has forgotten about it. It's just that everyone is waiting for a better time to attack. .

Rumors of war have become more and more intense in the sky over Ross over the years, and now it has reached the point where anyone who cares about the situation in Ross can see it.

The situation and Kyiv's temptations made the prince of witchcraft understand that he had to do something, or he could only sit and wait for death. It was better to let himself be an assailant than Kyiv to assault him.

However, Vseslav did not intend to attack Kyiv with an army, but it was beyond everyone's expectations. He chose to attack a city that was far away from Kyiv-Novgorod.

The purpose of Vseslav is to destroy Novgorod. This city has been Polotsk's biggest trading rival for many years. The two sides are constantly dirty and conflicted.

Moreover, Kyiv has been giving support to Novgorod, allowing Novgorod to contain Polotsk commercially and causing them constant trouble.

If it can be destroyed, then just like Ross destroyed Khazar, a large number of caravans will be transferred to the destroyer. After all, the original ecological niche occupant dies, and the new one will rise.

And it can let all places in Ross see that Yaroslavich cannot completely protect them and shake the support of Yaroslavich everywhere.

And you can get a lot of gold and silver by destroying such a big city. If you can get more gold and silver, the Principality of Polotsk can hire more North mercenaries, better fight against Yaroslavitch, and keep Rick has their Nordic connections, and Polotsk has theirs.

And most importantly, the city is now controlled by Izyaslav's son. That kid's authority in the city is not enough. Novgorod presumably has his own will, and that kid obviously can't tame the city.

Today, in Polotsk, a large army has assembled.

Polotsk is the oldest city in the principality and the most prosperous city in the principality. The prosperity and busyness of the principality can be seen here at a glance. It is also an important local trade distribution center.

The newly-emerged city of the principality is Minsk, but it is a pity that it is still much worse than Polotsk.

Now a full [-] soldiers are assembled under the outer wall of Minsk. This army is composed of the Walled Lord of the Principality of Polotsk and his subordinates, as well as Varangian mercenaries, that is, North mercenaries.

There is also a group of mysterious groups camped on the edge of the military camp, and they are the pagans of Polotsk, these guys believe in Perun, and they don't mind fighting for Vseslav, the prince and their The relationship is very ambiguous

Of course, the main body of the army is the citizens of Polotsk. The citizen militia will always be the mainstream of the Ross army. The equipment of the Polotsk militia is obviously better than that of other cities. Many militias have iron armor. The three generations of rulers of Lotsk did not hesitate to arm the citizens.

There is no doubt that this army is the essence of the Principality.

And if it is fully mobilized, coupled with the strength of various vassal towns and tribes, Polotsk can pull out tens of thousands or even more. This is also the courage of Vseslav to fight Yaroslavich. The army was strong enough to face Yaroslavich's allied forces.

However, the side effects are also obvious. Maintaining such an army for a long time will consume the foundation of the Polotsk country, and it will not last long.

The main purpose of sending troops this time was to destroy Novgorod. Vseslav did not intend to occupy it. He believed that even if he occupied it, he would not be able to hold it, so a capable team was enough to solve the problem.

On the tower of Polotsk, the prince of witchcraft looked down at the tents that occupied the white wilderness outside the city like mushrooms, looked at his mighty army, but there was no smile on his face.

In the rumors, Vseslav always wore amniotic membranes on his head and dressed himself like a wizard, but now he is dressed like a normal Ross nobleman, wearing a long robe, wrapped in a coat, and gold and silver on his head. Crown.

The wizard prince is 36 years old this year. The years have left many marks on his body, but at the same time it has made his heart stronger.

Although such a large army has been assembled, although he has made up his mind to fight with Zhu Yaroslavitch, although he is ready to die, he still can't help asking himself in his heart.

Is he really ready?The hard work and hard work of the three generations of the family will now be put on top of the power gamble by him. Is he really ready?

Vseslav understood that if this challenge failed, their family would have to face the encirclement and suppression of the whole of Russia. Yaroslav's descendants had always disliked him, and they couldn't keep him after noticing his growing strength.

Once it fails, it will be beyond redemption, and the whole family may be cut off because of it.

So Vsheslav stood here and looked at his army. Only when he saw the large army below would he feel a little bit of comfort in his heart and feel safe.

"However, in the end it's something I can't decide."

When Vsheslav said this, there was finally a trace of lightness in his tone, which would surprise his subjects, because the words of the prince of witchcraft during this period were full of tension and seriousness.

The reason for his ease is that he has figured it out, which is not something he can decide, but he has actually repeated this figured out several times, which shows that he is entangled in his heart.

After all, Vseslav is still afraid of going to the roulette wheel. He keeps making small moves, but this time he is going to gamble. If one fails, the efforts of three generations will be in vain.

"Prince, according to your order, I have already released the news, and outsiders will only think that we are sending troops against the Lithuanians again."

A voice interrupted Vseslav's thoughts. The owner of the voice was Stepan, Vseslav's important vassal.

Compared with Vseslav, Stepan was much stronger. He was as tall as an iron tower, and with a fur cloak, he looked more like a barbarian.

But his speech and demeanor are very orderly, and it seems that he is an educated nobleman.

Stepan was born as a Norse vassal in Polotsk. Their ancestors came to this land when the principality was founded. Even if the owner of the principality became Rurik, the influence of their family would still be significant.

In Stepan's generation, this family from North has been completely Rossized, and the same is true for this group of Ranji vassals.

However, the North bloodline is still the bond of unity of their group, and Stepan is the spokesperson of this group of vassals, so he is reused by the princes.

For a long time, Varangian vassals have enjoyed the benefits of Polotsk's expansion. The witchcraft prince has never been stingy with gold and silver. He is also a ruler who knows the truth of jewels wielding swords, so Varang Ji vassals became more loyal to Vseslav, and their cooperation also made Vseslav stronger.

"When the Yaroslavitches found out that the army that was supposed to conquer the Lithuanians appeared in Novgorod, I really looked forward to their expressions."

Vseslav said to himself, and his tone became high, and it was only at this time that he could relax a little. He enjoyed the feeling of "teasing" everyone.

For a long time, Polotsk has been using troops against the Baltic tribe headed by Lithuania, and the model here has become "life is not satisfactory, fight Lithuania".

And these wars can indeed allow Polotsk to obtain a lot of useful resources, so they have been going on all the time.

Therefore, the use of troops to Lithuania cannot cause any surprises. At most, it feels that Polotsk has sent more troops this time. No one thought that the target of this army was actually Novgorod.

But even if they knew that the goal was Novgorod, it wouldn't cause any trouble. These veterans all hoped to go to Novgorod to grab one, which would actually boost their morale.

Everyone thought that Lithuania was their next destination. Many people were discussing how to sell the things they had robbed from Lithuania.

"How about Novgorod? Is there any change over there?"

After enjoying his mind for a while, Vseslav asked about the situation in Novgorod. The situation over there was extremely critical, and he had to ask, which was related to the entire operation.

Although he has known it for a long time, he still wants to listen to other people's words, so that he can feel at ease.

"What else? Izyaslav's little boy is just a mascot, and Ostromir has been dead for a year, and there is no one in Novgorod who can stand up and lead the city. Once our army appears in Novgorod, it will definitely scare that kid to run away, and once he escapes, Novgorod will not even have the highest authority in name, and Vecher will have to act on his own again, quarreling constantly, Then the city will be ours."

Stepan said like a cannonball, which shows his understanding of Novgorod, but this is also normal. As a nobleman in Polotsk, Stepan has been paying close attention to that city, paying attention to any money making news.

"What about the road? Is there no problem?"

Nodding subconsciously, Vsetslav continued to ask. This question was actually asked for the fourth time by Vsetslav.

"Those tribes are already preparing the road, and as agreed, the people below don't know what the road preparation is for. They thought the chiefs had nothing to do. It is impossible for Smolensk to notice our actions."

Stepan did not get angry at being asked about it again, but just continued talking quickly.

"Okay, everything is fine, the next thing we have to worry about is an unstable factor, Rostislav..."

Mentioning this name, Vseslav seemed to be chewing. The ability shown by this Yaroslav’s grandson was completely beyond his expectations. He has done a good job in Northeast Ross these years, and now he has become a person worthy of attention. object.

After all, in Northern Ross, the only one who has the ability to influence his actions is Rostislav, and this kid was once the prince of Novo City, so he must be full of longing for that city.

Unlike the other three Rus princes who basically didn't pay much attention to the ruler of Northeast Rus, Vseslav cared about Rostislav very much, because Riga and Polotsk, which were vassals of him, had always had many conflicts, even in the delineation After entering the sphere of influence, both sides are in a tacit understanding of crossing the boundary and fighting.

"Your Majesty, we don't need to worry too much. You don't have to care about this kid so much. Our actions are fast and powerful. Maybe when everything is over, the kid hasn't reacted yet."

Stepan said firmly, they have prepared for so long and done so many things, why should they worry about a young man's possible sabotage? According to the secret of their actions, it may be over before that kid finds out.

"That's good, that's good." Vseslav murmured, "Stepan, go on with your business, I'll stay here for a while, don't worry about me."

The prince ordered, and Stepan naturally had to obey, but the nobleman's eyes were somewhat dissatisfied. In his opinion, Vseslav was good at everything, but he was too unresolute when making decisions, and he was always worried.

Fortunately, although he was constantly worrying, he never abolished the actions that had been set. The witchcraft prince knew that the dice had been rolled, and everything was irreversible.

Vsieslav continued to look at the army, at the city, and continued to have a lot of thoughts here.

But one thing that will not change is that when the time comes, he will immediately lead the army to go out to embark on the battle that he is extremely worried about.

This is the way of witchcraft princes, he will worry, he will hesitate, he will be afraid after making a decision, but he will never change after giving an order, because it will not do him any good, it will only bring bad Impact.

So I made a decision, then just go straight ahead, don't have to look back, just go forward, and this philosophy of doing things has finally proved to be correct.

But whether it will take effect this time is hard to say...

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　Ten thousand changes today

　　
　
(End of this chapter)