Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 327 The Kingdom's Plans

Salomon walked into the lobby of the administrative affairs department, which was bustling with people coming and going. After observing for a moment, he walked to the front desk and took out his transfer order.

The receptionist glanced at the cover. "Transferred from the Channel Islands to the central hub? You're in luck. Go into the right corridor, keep going, and it's the second to last room at the end."

Salomon found the target room, knocked on the door, entered, and handed the transfer order to the middle-aged man behind the desk.

The latter carefully read the transfer order and the series of seals at the end, his tone slightly doubtful:
"Your original position was military, and you transferred to a civilian position and even got promoted. That's really rare. Even if you were promoted for meritorious service, you should have stayed in the military. Why?"

Before Salomon could reply, the middle-aged man asked several more questions, looked at the transfer order again, and instantly had a very ominous guess.

“By Odin, this man doesn’t have the bearing of someone who has served in the military for many years. Could it be that his so-called military rank is just a nominal title, and he actually comes from ‘that department’?”

He picked up the tin cup, took a sip, and completed the formalities as quickly as possible, not daring to say a word to Salomondo.

Carrying a sealed document bag, Salomon walked out of the administrative office and headed to the courtyard at No. 8 Cod Street to complete his onboarding procedures and receive a royal bonus of one hundred pounds.

Now 54 years old, Salomon has no interest in saving money. He spends it on eating, drinking, and having fun, and occasionally goes to the countryside to observe the promotion of seaweed fertilizer. He lives a very leisurely life.

Salomon paid no attention to the Iberian War or the Eastern European War that his colleagues often talked about. He didn't know how much longer he had to live, so he just took it one day at a time.

royal palace.

Inside his office, Vig is reading a report on the Canary Islands.

The Canary Islands have now been initially developed, producing sugarcane, grapes, and citrus fruits. The island's original inhabitants are gradually accepting Helgi's rule, and they can develop steadily even without exiles. Therefore, Vig decided to send the exiles to a more needed location—the New World.

He unfurled a parchment scroll, a map of America he had drawn from memory many years ago. Combined with the Voyager's report, he finally selected three new places of exile.

One was located in the Caribbean Sea, and the other two were located off the east coast of North America. Subsequent ships traveled with the ocean currents between Europe and the Americas, stopping at three settlements along the way for rest.

“The Cooper River Estuary in Puerto Rico, South Carolina (Charleston), and the Misty River Estuary in Massachusetts (Boston).

In the initial stages, the development model of the three settlements was similar to that of Quebec—buying goods from Indigenous people and reselling them to passing merchant ships to purchase various supplies.

Vigé personally drafted a document and submitted it to the cabinet for implementation. Soon after, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of the Navy had an audience with him to inquire who would govern the settlement.

Vig: "The crew of the Voyager have been promoted to nobility and granted permission to explore new territories in the New World. I plan to select three volunteers."

In mid-June, the Voyager and another three-masted sailing ship departed from Rendinium, carrying a total of 105 immigrants and various supplies. They were heading to Puerto Rico to choose a suitable place to settle down.

Subsequently, the Admiralty would dispatch a second and third batch of ships, regardless of the profits, to at least occupy a piece of land and assert the kingdom's ownership of the New World. After seeing off the two sailing ships, Vig headed to the military horse farm in the eastern suburbs to observe a new batch of warhorses purchased by the cabinet.

Last year, the cabinet reached an agreement with the Moors to purchase Andalusian horses from Lisbon. However, sea freight typically results in losses of 30-40%, making it costly and unsustainable.

In an effort to salvage his image in the eyes of the king, the Minister of the Navy came up with another idea: to ask Rurik to help purchase steppe horses from the nomads.

Upon hearing the news, Rurik readily accepted. Novgorod had long purchased grain, wine, dyed cloth, and iron ingots from Britain, and the only products it could sell were furs, amber, and luxury goods from the Eastern Roman Empire. Moreover, the fur trade faced competition from New World fur companies, resulting in a significant decline in profits.

Therefore, Rurik's kingdom faced a trade deficit and a severe outflow of silver. Unfortunately, Eastern Europe's production level was low, and it was impossible to find products that could be sold.

He sent his trusted men to the middle reaches of the Dnieper River to buy warhorses from nomadic tribes with grain and spirits, and then transport them to the mouth of the Neva River.

According to the price agreed upon by both parties, each steppe horse was priced at two pounds.

During sea voyages, merchant ships can dock at Gotland, Bornholm, and Zealand, allowing horses in poor condition to rest and recuperate. Moreover, steppe horses are more adaptable to harsh environments, with a loss rate of only 15%.

"Compared to the warhorses of Western Europe, steppe horses are indeed smaller in size."

Vig observed the more than one hundred steppe horses inside the enclosure. They appeared lean and compact, with a shoulder height of thirteen hands (1.3 meters), while the shoulder height of Western European warhorses was usually fifteen hands (1.5 meters).

Upon closer inspection, the steppe horse has a broad forehead, large and bright eyes with an innate alertness, and constantly twitching ears, searching for nearby threats. Its limbs are relatively short, but its skeleton is exceptionally sturdy, and its hooves are small and hard, making it well-suited for long-distance running on the grasslands.

"The total cost, including the selling price and damage during transportation, is £2.5, which is much lower than the £7 in Andalusia, making it a good value for money."

Vig decided to expand the procurement scale, using steppe horses as mounts for the rangers. They were not suitable for short-range bursts of speed, nor could they carry heavily armored knights in charges like Western European warhorses, but they were well-suited for long-term roaming in the wild, engaging in reconnaissance and harassment missions.

He instructed his aide-de-camp, "Inform the Minister of the Navy to purchase at least eight hundred steppe horses this year. Also, notify the Ministry of the Army to recruit civilians with basic horsemanship skills to expand the two ranger battalions."

When fighting the Franks, Viggo's biggest fear was being ambushed or having his retreat cut off, so he adopted a conservative tactic, which made him feel constrained and frustrated.

Assuming a thousand or more rangers are assigned to scout, the probability of the army being attacked will be greatly reduced. At this point, even if Vig has fewer heavy cavalry than Gunnar, he will be confident of defeating the enemy.

Gazing at the ever-flowing Thames, he muttered to himself, "Old buddy, I hope you stay put in Iberia and work diligently for your new boss. If you interfere in my war with the Franks again, don't blame your brother for showing no mercy."

Suddenly, Vig gave another order to his attendant:

"The habits of steppe horses differ from those of Persian and Andalusian horses. Have Rurik help recruit some nomads. Nomads enjoy drinking; tell them that Britain is rich in alcohol: wine, whiskey, mead, spirits, beer, ale, cider—I guarantee there will be something for their liking."

(End of this chapter)