Chapter 385 Open the market

In September 1068, it was another peaceful day in Novgorod. On this day Rostislav was writing in the castle facing the Volkhov River, and enjoying the scenery of white sails coming and going on the river.

The prince was in a good mood, because in the past time, as businessmen discovered that the shelf life of these salted fish had exceeded the usual technology of this era, they all realized the business opportunities and realized that these salted fish could come.

profit.

There are more and more merchants buying salted fish, both from outside Rus and from within Rus. Everyone has seen the profits of these salted fish. The salted fish can be stored for such a long time. There are too many ways to make money here.

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The market that was originally restricted due to the shelf life of salted fish has also opened in front of them. Next, they only need to buy Ross's salted fish to enter this market and make a lot of money.

But whether you can get the goods now depends on luck. After all, the production of salted fish has been troubled by the production of salt. Of course, the businessmen who supported the salted fish business in the first place will definitely be able to get the goods. This is a reward for them.

Some businessmen noticed the feasibility of selling salt in Novgorod. There was a strong demand for salt in this area due to the salted fish industry, so they shipped a lot of salt. However, compared to this huge market, it was still

A drop in the bucket.

In Novgorod, those who invested in the salted fish business are now being rewarded for their efforts, and this reward will obviously be brighter in the future.

Those who did not invest or withdrew their investment are now regretting it. They wanted to join again, but they were all ruthlessly rejected.

Some people want to start their own business, but unfortunately the relevant supply sources are already controlled by Rostislav. They want to build supply sources from scratch, which is not something they can do with their own financial resources.

So these people can only watch others make money, and they will make a lot of money in the future, but they can't do anything.

The number of foreign businessmen attracted by salted fish is also increasing, because as Rostislav envisioned, this thing is very, very big, and salted fish with a high shelf life is welcome in any corner of the Christian world.

There are also a lot more merchants in Rus, and the salted fish market in the south is also very large. Some people even send these salted fish to the imperial capital.

The increase in caravans also makes the city more prosperous. The increase in the flow of people itself drives the development of the entire city's industry, and the entire Novgorod is benefiting from this.

There are also more businessmen going to Moscow. Moscow has long been famous as the city of weapons. If you don’t go to this city to buy some weapons and equipment for sale in Northern Rus, it will be in vain.

This made Muscovites quite gratified. The prince did not forget them just because he owned Novgorod. Rostislav still remembered his roots.

In Novgorod, local support for Rostislav has also reached a new level.

Novgorod people who have always been unruly are now boasting of Rostislav's name. It is great to have "little Rostislav" as the prince. He is much better than the dead Mstislav before.

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They called Rostislav the Red Sun of Novgorod. This was a title that only Yaroslav once enjoyed, which shows the support he now receives among Novgorod citizens.

Various subordinate cities also benefited from the prince's actions, especially the salt-producing Rusa, who also obeyed the prince's officials.

And there is good news, that is, due to the strong demand for salt, salt production areas were discovered in the two border areas of Pskov and Toropets and began to be developed. Rostislav also immediately imported salt here.

A lot of labor.

With the development of these two areas, the salt problem will definitely be greatly alleviated.

Some people are worried that the outflow of technology may lead to the loss of profits. Rostislav is not afraid of this, because he has established a size advantage, and he is promoting this matter as a ruler, so that he can directly increase sales.

Are rulers in other places as keen as he is?

As for businessmen, it is not two hundred years from now. They are still accumulating capital. They simply do not have the money to do this.

Moreover, the current salted fish market is not large in nature and has not developed to the extent that rulers would pay attention to it.

When it develops to that level, Novgorod will also become a salted fish sales giant. It has a monopoly market. How can others compete with it?

Rostislav's most important naval construction is also on the agenda. As profits continue to pour in, Ivangorod is also expanding. With the expansion, the number of shipyards is also increasing, and the manufacturing of ships is also increasing.

Ivangorod is now undoubtedly the most rapidly developing city in the Baltic Sea. A large number of merchant ships are pouring in to buy salted fish and other Novgorod products. The rapidly developing city is also attracting an inflow of people.

Farmers also took the initiative to gather in the city to seek shelter. There was soon a large amount of fertile land outside Ivangorod, and reclamation was still in progress.

In order to ensure control over Ivangorod, Rostislav established a standing battalion, called the Ivangorod Battalion, which was permanently stationed in Ivangorod.

However, this battalion is just a standstill and needs to be replenished with manpower.

There were even foreign businessmen building local trading stations in Ivangorod. Rostislav did not refuse this because it was conducive to the development of the city. He only emphasized the city's control over the trading stations and ensured that these trading stations

control.

After all, a thing like a trading station is a continuation of a colony. Of course Rostislav attaches great importance to such an existence.

In addition, speaking of trading stations, some Novgorod merchants under Rostislav have recently established a business war outside.

And this place is Gotland, which can be said to be a great success for Ross's trading career.

Many times Rostislav thought that it would be great if he could take over this island. This island radiates almost the entire Baltic Sea. Controlling this place means controlling the eyes of the ocean.

But it is a pity that Ivangorod's fleet is too weak. A rash attack will only bring humiliation to themselves. They still need to accumulate strength.

In addition to building its own ships, Ivangorod is also buying a large number of foreign ships. There will always be captains who want to sell their ships.

Excluding the fishing boats, Ivangorod now has a fleet of twenty-five ships, all of which were purchased. Most of them are longships, mainly used for transporting cargo.

Only four warships have been specially modified and equipped with scorpion crossbows, but these are enough to dominate the entire region.

As for sailors, there is no shortage of this thing at all. They are all fishermen, and they can be recruited as sailors. Moreover, they do not need to be recruited. Because of the generous treatment promised by Rostislav, some poor people want to join the fleet.

In addition to transporting cargo, this fleet also has the task of clearing out pirates in the Gulf of Finland, ensuring the safety of the bay, and turning the Gulf of Finland into the inland sea of ​​Russia.

In addition, Rostislav also established Vyborg on the opposite side of the Gulf of Finland, where Vyborg would later be located, to strengthen his influence on the bay, increase his influence on the Finns in Karelia, and increase the amount of money collected from this area.

Number of furs.

After all, the creation of salted fish has just emerged. The mainstay of Novgorod's gold industry is fur sales, so it is still important to increase fur output.

At the same time, this layout is also for future preparations to deal with the rise of Sweden and Ross's struggle for the right to claim tribute in this region.

The city of Ladoga joined the project very enthusiastically, and the residents of Ladoga's lake actually came to invest as a whole.

This made Rostislav extremely happy, as he had obtained a powerful maritime warrior just like this.

Ladoga saw an opportunity. If they took advantage of this opportunity, they might be able to achieve a status above Novgorod.

It was precisely because of this vitality that Rostislav was in a good mood, so he enjoyed the scenery every day.

This is Rostislav's favorite view in this city, because in his eyes, what flows here is not a river, but gold and silver. This is why the ancestors of the Rurik family came and established the prosperous Kievan Rus.

, there is more gold and silver on this river now.

Just when the prince looked at the scenery for a while and planned to continue writing, his personal captain Vasily opened the door and walked in. He placed a letter in front of Rostislav.

"Sir, the letter from Kiev was written by your uncle."

"Thank you very much, Vasily, go down and rest."

Rostislav took the letter and deftly lifted the seal on it, then opened the parchment and saw Izyaslav's handwriting.

At first, the face of the Prince of Moscow was full of indifference, but the more he looked at it, the more serious his expression became.

The above meaning is very simple, that is, the Polotsk people in the south are invading again, and this time their attack is very fierce, no less than the attack in 1053.

But the uncle was confident enough to stop them, so he directly gathered the troops of the other two brothers to face these guys.

And he wrote to tell Rostislav not to come. This war will be over soon. The flowers will have withered by the time you come, so you won't come.

After reading this letter, Rostislav looked very solemn, because he knew that the impact of this battle was huge.

But he is also worried, what if history changes and the war does not develop according to the original logic?

In the end, he still couldn't get a result, and he simply didn't want to and just waited and waited.

With this thought in mind, the Prince of Moscow continued his writing, and then began to write furiously, using the world in the book to divert his attention.

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Chapter completed!