"Look at this land, it's really fertile, but why isn't anyone planting it?"
Standing on the hillside, Rostislav grabbed the soil on the ground and smelled the smell. He could tell that this was fertile land.
"Because this is a land that has been cultivated by forest dwellers, prince. It seems that it has been abandoned for more than five years, so it is so fertile."
Sanya immediately answered the prince's question.
At this moment, all the dignitaries of Rostov are following behind the prince. In addition, there are the castle lords outside the city of Rostov. Their clothes are much simpler than the dignitaries of the city, but they look more like warriors.
The young prince expressed his desire to inspect the villages and lands near Rostov. As landowners, they naturally had to fulfill their duties as landowners, and at the same time, they wanted to explain the problems that the prince might encounter.
Many dignitaries in Rostov have manors outside the city, but they are reluctant to go to these manors. They just send hired stewards to manage these manors, and the output is sent directly to the city. More than half of this output will be collected with the Sorgon.
The goods that come in are sold.
This is also a common situation throughout Russia. The powerful nobles do not care about land. When business is enough to earn a lot of money, who cares about the output of the land?
In comparison, the walled lords outside the city, who rose from humble beginnings or were granted land, attached great importance to the land, and they were also a group of people rejected by the city's powerful people.
These city lords were very enthusiastic about the prince's parade on the outskirts of the city. This was the first time they had seen such a powerful prince come here, so naturally they had to treat him well.
Therefore, when Rostislav randomly visited a castle, no matter how poor the owner was, he would provide the best things to entertain Prince Rurik.
This warm reception made the prince feel like the Grand Duke of Kiev. Although the castle owner's castle was simple, he had accumulated a lot of good things over the years, from spices to desserts, and these
were presented to the young prince.
Many of the city owners are even descendants of the meritorious people who were captured during the "Saint" Vladimir's expedition to Bulgar. As ordinary soldiers, they were granted land here and built cities. They were also the most enthusiastic about Rostislav's arrival.
He is also the most loyal person to the Rurik family.
"Forest dwellers? Are there many such forest dwellers around Rostov? Do they pay taxes?"
The so-called foresters are people who cut down trees for fields in dense forests. They first cut down trees, then set fire to the forest, fertilize the fields with the ash of grass and trees, and then plant crops for several seasons. When the fertility of the land is exhausted, they will abandon the land.
A piece of land is burned and planted in other areas.
Originally, Rostislav thought that Northeastern Rus' was all about logging agriculture, but after coming to Northeastern Rus' he discovered that settled agriculture was actually very common there, and village communities with hundreds of villagers were not uncommon.
That impression is completely wrong.
"The number of forest dwellers is not very large, sir. As for paying taxes, if they farm within the jurisdiction, our people will also collect taxes, but if they leave, we can't care."
Yevgeny said, this man is a powerful fortress outside Rostov City. His fortress is the largest among many fortresses. He supports nearly fifty soldiers, as many as ten or a hundred people.
Omura paid tribute to him.
"What about the uncontrolled free peasants and Finn tribes? Are they numerous?"
Rostislav talked about what he cared about most, and that was the number of free farmers. These people were the targets of his control in Northeastern Rus. If the Kashin silver mine development plan failed, he would have to strengthen his control over these people.
They are exploited and squeezed to obtain resources for development and hegemony.
Faced with this problem, the city's dignitaries were silent. These people never cared about things in these wilderness. In their view, there were savages outside the city and they were things that did not need to be concerned about, so naturally they could not say anything.
It was Yevgeny, the leader of the city, who spoke up. The tall and burly leader coughed a few times.
"Sir, I can only say that the number is countless and I can't see the edge. The farmers who pay us tribute are definitely not even one-tenth of the total."
Even the castle lord who has been living in the forest for a long time said this, and Rostislav also knew it. It seems that there is a lot of room for development in the future. If he can turn such a huge group of people into his own resources...
Stopping his imagination, Rostislav threw down the dirt and mounted his horse.
"Come on, let's go back and rest first."
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The resting place Rostislav mentioned was the wooden fortress in the forest. These fortresses were where the Grand Duke of Rus's tribute troops were stationed when they went on a tribute tour.
Such camps have the most basic defense measures, including barracks and warehouses, and they can be found all over Russia.
Everyone got off their horses after being greeted by servants. Some people clamored for mead, while others found a stool to sit down and rest. After riding for so long, they felt like their buttocks were going to explode.
As a prince, Rostislav naturally received the best treatment. He was given chairs with cushions and served precious wine.
But next, Rostislav saw a hasty rider arriving, and then the prince received news that made him ecstatic and nervous.
The silver mine in Kashen has been discovered, but the Finnish tribe's army is heading there.
Without bothering to explain anything to the nobles, Rostislav directly jumped on his horse, briefly explained the matter to Polei, and rode away.
The city's dignitaries were quite dissatisfied with the prince's sudden departure. They had been running around in the wilderness with the prince for so long, but now he ran away without saying a word.
As for the city lords, they are quite open-minded. They often encounter armed fights and even wars in the wild all year round, and are often forced to act in a hurry.
"I'm really curious. This is the first time I see this prince like this. I really don't know what happened."
Seeing Rostislav leaving in a hurry, Sanya stroked her chin and said, although the old man followed Rostislav on horseback and patrolled the fields for so long, there was not much fatigue on his face.
"Father, it seems to me that you are just being rude."
Sasha said on the side, he was full of disdain for the prince. He had always looked down on the young prince, thinking that he didn't understand anything and he was still patrolling the wild places. Didn't he know that all the wealth was in the city?
"Ha ha ha ha ha."
Seeing his son's daily incompetence, Sania just smiled, that was all he could do, this kid had never learned anything.
But I couldn't help but feel worried in my heart. Seeing my son like this, what would happen to the future of the family if he left.
In the end, he could only come to the conclusion that his children and grandchildren would have their own blessings, and he would do his best to protect and protect the family while he was still there.
As for the future, who knows? That is something only God can decide.