Chapter One Thousand Two Hundred and Fifty: The Converted Kamchatka Tribe, the Stone Tower of the Martyrs
The winter in Kamchatka Peninsula is particularly long. The sky after snow is blue and bright, like an endless sea. And the snow-capped fields, connected to the endless ice sea, are like pure white clouds. The sky is the sea and the ground is the clouds.
, this is the Kamchatka coast in winter.
Between the clouds and the sea, there are the towering white snow-capped mountains in the middle of the peninsula. And under the hills where the snow-capped mountains extend to the shore, there are dozens of thick wooden houses built with logs, more semi-underground shacks, and frozen
Three long boats and dozens of small boats on the shore together form a large port camp on the seaside.
This is the Shennan Mountain Port of the Kingdom, the second Kingdom port on the Kamchatka Peninsula. It is also the winter camp where the warriors led by Zuvalo and the people from the far north mainly live and operate. In fact, this is already the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The southernmost tip of the peninsula. From the end of the southern coastline, as long as you cross the ice-covered strait, which is only more than 20 miles away at its narrowest point, you will reach the northern large island of the Kuril Islands, later known as Severo-Kurilsk.
The cold ice wind blew across the strait, and the hummingbird flag of the main god was hung on the cedar tree outside the Nanshan Port camp, frozen into a straight shape. In the eyes of the local mountain people, it is regarded as "some kind of strange bird" as a totem
The longship sea department is often called the "bird department" because of this.
"Blessed by the Lord God of Big Bird! The reason why so many deer herds are preserved this year is thanks to the black stones transported by those two big ships! It's a pity that these precious fuels will be used less every time they are used... I don't know if they will be used next year.
Will there be a big ship from the tribe coming?..."
"Hey, may the bird god of the tribe bless you! It's a pity that one of the three large ships that came over last year sank midway. It is said that dozens of elite warriors died, and a shipload of grain and black stones were also lost... Otherwise, the tribe's
The black stone can be piled up in another warehouse, which can be kept until next winter... Well, two large ships have arrived, and the tribe has so many more capable warriors! After the thaw this year, the shaman chief will probably still take us south.
, go to those short islands and plunder some food and women and come back!…”
Two tribesmen from the Deer tribe were slowly returning from the snow outside the camp, carrying fodder on their backs. Although they spoke the local tribal language, they had the emblem of hummingbirds carved on their foreheads, and they considered themselves tribesmen from the Bird tribe. Obviously,
The kingdom's assimilation policy that treats everyone equally, the spread of the belief in the main god, and the nomadic people's weak and strong ethnic affiliation are gradually forming a new branch of the Jiao people, Kamchatka's "Bird Tribe"!
"YoYo!…"
"Huh! Hiss!..."
Smelling the approach of forage, the calls of dozens of stags came from not far away, and they seemed very excited. When the two tribesmen climbed over the low hills, nearly a thousand strong reindeer suddenly appeared.
In front of you!
Large herds of reindeer raised their horns and gathered in the mountain col outside the camp, huddled in a simple fence to stay warm during the winter. Deer are the most important means of production for the people in the far north, just like fishing boats that can catch fish.
. And hundreds of tribal people in the port are responsible for collecting daily fodder and taking care of these deer that are eager to migrate and fresh grass. Some diligent tribal women are half-kneeling in the snow, chanting prayers.
Carefully squeeze the deer's milk for today's fresh milk.
"Warm firebird blessing! Let the deer produce more milk and spring come early!..."
For nomadic people, whether they are grazing cattle and sheep from Northeast Asia or reindeer from the Far North, their most daily food is various dairy products, not meat. If they can't survive the winter, no one would be willing to go there.
Slaughter your own livestock to reduce your tribe’s means of production.
Further inside from the shack where the deer spend the winter, there is a row of meat drying racks where venison and skins are dried. The venison on them is all fresh red, obviously just slaughtered. There is a lack of fodder in winter and the climate is too harsh.
It is possible for all the deer to survive. Basically every month, there will be old or weak deer that die of cold and starvation, which makes the tribal people in the port feel heartbroken.
"Phew! God bless you! Knead the leather carefully! This batch of new leather armors is prepared for the newly arrived longship warriors. They must be strong and durable!"
Not far away, more than twenty tribesmen wearing furs squatted in the snow, carefully using blunt stone knives to repeatedly shovel the surface of the deer skin. From time to time, they also added a handful of powdered snow and a handful of salt.
At the end, there is also a handful of unpleasant-smelling yellow powder, which makes the tanned leather become more dry, hard and smelly.
These deer skins are first dried in the sun, and then soaked in lime water or plant ash water for alkalinization. Because they are made of leather rather than fur, the soaking time will be longer. After several weeks of soaking, the hair on the fur will
It started to fall off and almost completely lost its activity, so it was time to fish it out and remove the hair. After the hair was removed, it took a long time to dry and harden in the sun until the last step, nitrification tanning. As for the materials used in tanning the skin.
For the mixing agent, Kanchajia Zhubu did not have alum and was short of Glauber's salt, so all they could use were brine salt and urine saltpeter...
"Ah! It's such a pity that such good reindeer skin is used to make leather armor! This is a fine fur mattress..."
"What do you know? God bless you! When the snow melts, the tribal warriors will go out...hurry up and make leather armor! This is a consumable for tribal fighting, and it can also be fought on the islands in the south. Some of them even come from unknown sources.
of metal spears…”
The older leatherworker from the Deer Department was mumbling, looking at the fine deerskin with reluctance in his eyes. The young hunter next to him didn't care and was actively tanning the dehaired leather.
Among the nomadic tribes in Northeast Asia, if these leathers are not hardened, they can be made into very soft and smooth furs. Then, they can be sewn into leather boots, fur coats and mattresses, and even amazingly beautiful leather paintings can be made.
!
There used to be a beautiful cowhide painting in the deer migration camp of Lumohe River, which painted "Eternal Blue Sky" and "Great Tengger". It was an inherited leather painting that Lubu obtained two hundred years ago. It is said that it came from
The Ma tribe further west comes from the rich grassland where our ancestors once nomadic, and from the powerful empire that once unified the entire grassland and entrusted various tribes in Far North Asia!
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! However, the legendary grassland empire as powerful as the blue sky was defeated and disintegrated by the more powerful southern tribes, as powerful as the red sky. Since then,
In this forgotten land of snow in Far North Asia, there are no more envoys from the Steppe Empire coming from the east...
"Bless me, God in charge of fire! Is the fish maw glue ready? How is the deer sinew silk? The fine fir bow body is ready, only this gel is missing, the key to sticking the silk is two steps!..."
"Okay! Now it's time to apply glue... Be careful, the weather is cold and the glue will gel quickly! Remember, these newly glued bows must be checked every day, and the deer tendons will be applied again after about six or seven days.
...And these bows that were previously glued will be glued together today...You all think highly of my skills, learn from me!..."
The old hunter Lu Gong of the Deer Department shouted loudly, and together with several experienced tribesmen, he carefully made the unique skill of the safari tribe, the compound horn bow inherited from Northeast Asia. This is a real technical job and a real slow job.
Making a high-quality and durable horn bow often involves dozens of processes and takes at least a year to make. The most critical of these, the two steps that determine success or failure, are boiling and gelling!
"The Lord God testifies! The best fish maw glue is the glue boiled out of the stomachs of yellow croaker and catfish. The heat must be controlled properly! After gluing, it depends on the material of the bow body and the condition of the glue... There is no one that is ten years old.
Bow-making craftsmanship, without the craftsmanship and control of glue boiling, can’t make a good bow!…”
After attaching a horn bow, the old hunter Lu Gong raised the corners of his mouth, and his simple face was full of confidence. As the best bow maker in the Lu Mosi River Department, after being captured, he not only did not become a deer herder
The herd slave, on the contrary, gained a further status in the new deer tribe. Even if the shaman chief Zuvalo saw him, he would greet him with a smile and ask him "Have you eaten?" and "I prayed before and after eating."
No?"…
In fact, as nomadic tribes in Northeast Asia, whether they are the Deer Tribe, the Mountain Tribe or the Tent Tribe, they all maintain a practical attitude towards faith. What truly maintains their loyalty is whether the tribe's force is strong or whether food and fuel are sufficient. And the leader
As long as there is sufficient food, as long as there is a reputation for bravery or psychic, it is easy to gather a group of warlike tribesmen to fight and plunder other weak tribes, just like the southward raid after the freeze last year...
"Lord God! Although there are many island tribes on the big island in the south, they are all extremely poor and do not have any oil or water... I don't know that the chief shaman has captured these small tribesmen from the island tribe and is holding them in his arms every day.
Shimabe girl, what do you want to do? There are more than a hundred people in the tribe to feed. This is no small matter! You have food and shelter. It is really cheap to survive the winter safely.
A group of short islands..."
Thinking of this, the old hunter Lu Gong narrowed his eyes and looked at the newly built row of huts in the south. Dozens of short, hairy Ainu tribesmen, all with the emblem of the main god carved on their foreheads, were doing heavy carpentry around the shacks.
They have to take advantage of the sunny and warm weather to build a fishing boat that is good at it. When the spring snow melts in April, it will be a good time for fishing!
Further away, some short island fishermen squatted on the ice bank to fish on the ice to replenish their catch for the new tribes. And a peculiar Mesoamerican stone tower stood on the solidified seaside, facing the sunrise in the east.
direction.
The altars of the main gods are stacked at the highest point of the small pyramid-shaped stone tower. A hummingbird flag stands quietly, and a pottery basin filled with ashes is placed below. The green smoke that has not yet dissipated solidified and changed in the cold air.
The mysterious figures appear, just like the shaman's divination...
At this moment, a priest wearing a feather crown was standing in front of the burned-out brazier, staring at the strange altar and stone tower. In the traditions of various Mesoamerican tribes, this kind of stone tower with an altar is actually the symbol of nobles and warriors.
The tomb is the resting place that connects the kingdom of God and the abyss of the earth...
"The Lord God bless you! May the souls of the devout ascend to the lofty and beautiful Kingdom of God!..."
After a long stare, Zuvalo sighed quietly and prayed for the fallen warriors and priests. Then, he tried to open his eyes wide and stared at the east where the sun was rising. That was the direction of his hometown and the direction of everyone.
Thousands of miles away from home, perhaps never able to return...
"Zu...what are you doing? You seem...sad..."
The Ezo girl Qiandao Kaiji raised her head, carefully pulled Zuvaro's sleeves, and looked at the mysterious stone tower with some fear. Then, she tried to stand on tiptoes, but she could only reach her husband's handsome chin, so she raised her head
She pressed it up and kissed her gently...
"Um... Zu, according to the tribal custom, I followed you and lived in the same wooden house with you... If you have any sad things, you can tell me!..."
"Well, Shell, I was praying to the Lord God just now... Although this stone tower tomb looks empty, there are sixty-two devout souls living in it! Thirty of them are tribesmen from the North, and thirty
The kingdom’s warriors, as well as two noble-born Prepecha priests, were all buried in last year’s storm and sea of fog...
Speaking of this, Zuvarro paused, his eyes a little red. He couldn't help but stretched out his strong arms and gently hugged the soft yellow-haired girl in his arms. Then, he whispered like this in a low voice, deep and deep.
His eyes looked towards the sky, in the dazzling sunlight and under the girl's gaze looking up, shedding tears of sadness and sigh.
"Blessed by the Lord God! This frozen Arctic sea is where the bones of the devout are buried. Their bodies sank to the bottom of the sea, their flesh and blood returned to chaos, and their bones remained immortal in the abyss of death. But their martyred souls are there.
In the red and fertile country, enjoy peace and beauty forever!"
